I followed behind her thinking of all the changes she’d made in her life after she divorced me. She’d embraced her true nature, pushing back against her mother’s desire for her to become just like her. She had a good relationship with Diane now, but it was very different from when we were married.
Instead of chairing a bunch of committees, Carrie ran half-marathons. She founded the local kayaking club instead of becoming president of the Women of the Church. Instead of joining her mother’s knitting club, she joined a cycling club andspent one weekend a month biking the Silver Comet Trail with them. The only club she’d kept was the Indigo Falls Garden Club. That was because she liked to garden and loved the annual Orchid Ball, which I’d never missed again. It had nothing to do with the fact her mother was in the club.
And she was happy. I’d never seen her so happy, in fact. I was thrilled for her and hated that I’d contributed to making her feel forced into a society-wife role that hadn’t really suited her. She was comfortable in her own skin now, and it showed. She was an excellent mother to our son, and she’d already had plenty of success as a teacher. The principal had asked her to get an extra certification to teach gifted students, and Sadie had begged her to be co-sponsor of the cheerleading squad.
I was thrilled for her, proud of her, and still so in love with her that it hurt.
“Do I smell lasagna?” I asked when the aroma of Italian food greeted me as I walked in. Carrie had taken up cooking while being a stay-at-home mom to Theo. Over the years, she’d become very good at it. I was lucky that I got invited to dinner often.
“My favorite,” Theo grinned, showing a missing tooth. It was his first one and a painful reminder that he was growing up fast.
Carrie ruffled his hair. “You’re such a good eater. Everything I make is your favorite.”
He wrinkled his nose. “Not tuna salad.”
She laughed. “Yeah, that’s fair. I’m not sure it’s my favorite, either. Go wash your hands, bud.”
I saw that her table was set for two, so I went into the kitchen to grab a plate, utensils, and a placemat for myself. I knew where everything was. That’s how comfortable we were with each other. Carrie had told me long ago that she wanted to have a good relationship as co-parents for Theo’s sake. I thought we’d achieved that for sure.
And I wanted desperately to make it more than that. Even though I’d been low-key trying for years, I knew I had to make a real move soon. I didn’t like that she’d been seeing Jon for so long. I was afraid that he wanted to marry her, and I was going to make damn sure I didn’t let that happen.
We laughed and talked while we ate. Theo told Carrie everything we’d done while he’d been with me for the week. I still had the house Carrie and I lived in when we were married, and on my weeks with Theo that’s where we lived. Carrie still saw him a lot on her non-custodial weeks. She attended any soccer games or school functions that fell during my weeks. I made sure and still took him to anything fun with her family that fell during my time, too. If Jack or Diane had a birthday or even just a family dinner, I made sure Theo got to go. I was even invited now, too.
It had taken three years, but Jack had finally welcomed me back into the fold. He’d never forgiven me for cheating on his daughter, and I didn’t blame him. He’d wanted us to have a decent relationship for Theo’s sake, though, so he’d decided to put up with me being around. Diane had come around sooner, which hadn’t surprised anyone.
Carrie had remained friends with Bryce and Celia and even had a decent relationship with Olive now. The only Caldwell she maintained distance from was my mother. No one faulted her for that except Mom, but she’d learned to grin and bear it for Theo’s sake.
Theo ran off to watch TV for a while before bedtime, and it was suddenly just Carrie and me at the table.
“What did you want to talk about?” she asked, still finishing off the chocolate ice cream she’d served for dessert.
I swallowed hard, not entirely sure how she was going to receive the news I had. “Now that Theo’s older and involved inschool and sports, I’ve missed a few of his activities because I couldn’t get here in time after work.”
She nodded.
“Well, I hate that.”
She frowned. “I hope you’re not about to propose that he split his time between Indigo Falls and Atlanta. I’ve mentioned before that I’d fight you for full custody if you tried to do something like that.”
I chuckled and held up a hand to cut her off before she really got going on the topic. “No. God, no. Don’t go all Mama Bear on me. I’d never do that to Theo or you.”
She visibly relaxed. “Okay. Well, what are you thinking about doing?”
“It’s a pretty big deal,” I warned. “I’ve resigned as CEO of Caldwell Financial and moved here full time.”
Her mouth dropped open. “What?”
“I’m just tying up a few loose ends before I’m finished in the Atlanta office entirely. I’m handing my role over to Celia. Bryce is happy in his role as marketing director, Olive never wants to leave her social media director position, and we all agreed it was more up Celia’s alley anyway. It hasn’t hit the news yet, but it will when we make a formal announcement next week.”
She still stared at me. “I… I’m stunned.”
I nodded. “Yeah, it’s kind of a lot to take in.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Have you noticed they’re renovating the old hardware building downtown on the square?”
“Um… yes,” she said slowly.
