Michelle tsked her tongue, but she didn’t try to stop them as Wynn fled the scene. She didn’t stop until she was at the corner and surrounded by strangers who wouldn’t comment on her personal life, looks, ormarriage.
“We can cross.” Miles took off for the other side of the intersection. She hurried after him, dragging Laney along and finally picking her up and carrying her because the little girl just didn’t have the hustle her older brother had.
“Miles, wait.”
He paused and turned expectantly.
“We should stick together.”
He didn’t answer but stayed by her side.
“Mommy?” Laney held up her chocolate-covered hand. “I’m sticky.”
Wynn sighed. “Yes, you are.” She set her down and rummaged for a package of wipes as they walked.
“Are you getting married?” asked Miles.
Wynn’s head whipped up. “No. Why?”
“Because Aunt Michelle said—”
“Aunt Michelle was joking about marrying someone.” She pulled the wipe out and handed it to Laney. Then she grabbed another one because she would have to help her wipe her hands in about two minutes. But if she started out helping, then Laney would be upset. The girl had some independence in her since starting first grade.
Wynn was curious about how her kids would react to the idea of her bringing a man into their lives, even she had no intention of tying the knot.
Although … if she were to marry someone …
Judd …
Nope. She was not going to go there!
It was just … He was already a part of the kids’ lives, and they loved him as much as they loved her. Not to mention he was always there for her. And he was the person who made her laugh. And now she knew they had chemistry—lots of chemistry.
But what about the logistics? They had two houses. Where would they live? Her house. Really, it was the only reasonable option. The kids needed the stability. Judd shouldn’t mind. He spent more time at her place than his anyway.
After that was solved, there wasn’t much else to figure out. He already picked the kids up from school if they were sick. They had dinner together all the time—he cooked in her kitchen.
Oh my gosh—we’re already practically married.
Laney shoved her goopy wipe into Wynn’s hand and sprinted after her brother for the swings. They always started out there and then moved to the slides.
Wynn sank onto a wooden bench where she could watch them but think.
Michelle was right: she was blind to what was going on right in front of her face. She and Judd co-parented on a daily basis. They texted all throughout the day abouteverything. He was the person she stayed up late with, confiding her fears that her booth would flop and she’d be forced to list her wares for cost on Craig’s List.
They were married in most ways. Except the most important. She glanced down at her bare ring finger. Gulping down the pumpkin cocoa, she did her best to quell the rising tide of panic in her chest.
Thatcher’s family thought of her as an angel—the woman who had loved a man who was going to die. But the more time went on, the more she realized that she’d been young and naive when she’d said “I do.” She’d had no idea what a marriage was supposed to look like, that it could be empty and lonely at times.
She’d never considered leaving him—that just wasn’t an option, because she really did love him. But it wasn’t the kind of love that would have passed the test of time. In the end, she wasn’t even in love with him anymore. She’d cared for him like a mother, taking care of his physical needs and holding him when the pain was too much.
And through it all, she’d given up parts of herself. She didn’t sing in the shower for fear of waking him up. She didn’t dance in the kitchen, because the emotional load she carried was too heavy. She didn’t read the books she wanted to, because he wanted her to read his books out loud to him.
And it was all fine. She was happy to be the angel in his life.
But a while after he was gone, she realized how much of herself she’d poured into him and how little she had left. Not that Thatcher meant to drain her—he just needed so much of her.
She didn’t want that to happen ever again. She was just starting to find her happiness, and if she tied herself to a man, he could take it.
