Ransom highly doubted it, but he knew that it wasn’t the real reason his chances with Hailey were hopeless anyway. He decided it was better to just tell the kids some of what he was really thinking, so they didn’t get their hopes up.
“She probably won’t be around for long,” Ransom explained. “Soon, her agent will find her a new job, and she’ll go back to New York to be an actress again.”
That idea was met with sad silence.
Toward the endof the week, he took the kids to the library after school. They always loved all of the children’s programs, and the big Christmas tree was already set up by the circulation desk with ornaments you could choose in order to adopt a family for the holidays. Asthey pulled in, he told Travis and Mae that when their reading group was done they could choose an ornament.
“We get to buy their presents?” Mae asked as they walked through the parking lot to get to the main doors.
Families with kids were spilling out into the lot and lawn as one of the other reading groups must have just let out.
“We do,” Ransom told her. “Does that sound like fun?”
“Yes,” she said, nodding.
They walked through the lobby of the building, which was also home to the municipal office, and Ransom pushed open the door to the library.
A wave of warm air greeted them along with the cozy hush of the blessedly quiet space.
Ransom was surprised to see his old best friend, Jensen Webb, along with a sweet little toddler boy who must be his son, Henry.
Ransom knew that they were bound to run into each other sooner or later now that Jensen was home again. There wasn’t much room to hide in a small town like Trinity Falls. He was also surprised to find that the dread he had been feeling about seeing his friend had mostly melted away. Ransom had been feeling better about pretty much everything this week, and he realized that maybe this was the perfect time to mend another bridge.
Seeing Jensen alone with his boy made him realize all the more just how much the two of them needed each other now. And this was as good a moment as any to start making things right again.
Of course, he had no idea how to do that. But he’d heard from Chris Bell that Jensen had recently helped Willow out when her car broke down out on Route One. So he went with that as his way in before he could overthink things.
“Hey, Webb,” he heard himself say in what he hoped was a relaxed and friendly way. “I heard about you and Willow. I talked to Chris.”
Jensen blinked at him in surprise for a moment, and Ransom figured that was no more than he deserved. He hadn’t talked to his best friend in years now. Of course the man was stunned.
“He told me the old folks were saying you got her a tow truck and everything,” Ransom went on, hoping that if Jensen saw he was determined to be friendly that maybe he would let his guard down. “That was really nice of you, man.”
“It was no problem,” Jensen replied at last, the tension in his face melting away. “It’s really good to see you. And the kids.”
We don’t even know each other’s kids. How did I ever let that happen?
“This is Travis,” Ransom said, raising the boy’s hand, then Mae’s. “And this is Mae. Say hi, guys.”
The children said hello and Jensen introduced little Henry, who seemed to be charmed by the bigger kids who bent to smile at him.
And just like that, a welcome sense of relief washed over Ransom. He hadn’t been willing to admit how much he missed his best friend, or what a toll their break was taking on him. Things weren’t fixed, not yet, but hethought that it might be possible to at least start that process.
“Listen,” Ransom said. “We should get together soon. Why don’t you come by on Christmas, like old times?”
He wanted to say out loud that he had been an idiot and he wouldn’t blame Jensen if he never spoke to him again. But that wasn’t the kind of thing you got into in the middle of the public library.
Besides, he was pretty sure his best friend knew exactly what he meant. He always did.
“Sounds good,” Jensen said simply, nodding.
But the look in his eyes told Ransom that he was moved by the gesture, and Ransom cursed himself inwardly again for letting so much time pass without even trying to make things right.
“Come on, Daddy,” Mae said a little too loudly, tugging Ransom’s hand. “We’re going to miss story time.”
Miss Helen, the head librarian, was just coming by and she frowned at Ransom.
“Let’s use our library voices, Mae,” Ransom reminded her softly before turning back to his friend. “See you later, Webb.”
