Jack shook hands with Bethany and then Chris, smiling and nodding. Steph watched the exchange, wondering why Chris’s dad, the county sheriff, was aware of permits being pulled for a run that would take place on mainly federal lands. Not to mention, it seemed terribly early to be pulling permits for an event that wouldn’t take place until the end of August.
They exchanged a few minutes of small talk, Bethany asking how Jack was settling into Basin County, especially in Elkridge. Chris stayed a bit more reserved, his eyes flicking toward Steph with a faint raise of his eyebrows. Steph looked away.
Bethany laughed when Jack suggested she might want to tackle one of the Elkridge Endurance distances.
“We’re going to have a variety of options,” Jack said. “From half marathon up to a hundred miler.” He glanced at Steph.
She rolled her eyes. If he thought she was going to do his run, he was sadly mistaken.
“I’m not a runner,” Bethany said. “Chris used to run with Steph sometimes, but I’ve never really done it. Besides...” Her hand went to her stomach. “I’m going to be too busy next summer to even think about doing something like that.”
Chris’s arm went around Bethany’s shoulders while his eyes stayed on Steph. “We’re expecting. Due at the end of March.”
“That’s wonderful,” Steph said. She meant it—really, she did. “Congratulations to you both.”Okay, keep it steady. Be happy. You mean it.
Steph had known for a long time that Chris wasn’t right for her. She had ended it, not him. They dated for years and even announced their engagement. She wanted it to work and needed it to work for her long-term plans and her future.
But Chris wasn’t the one. As great as he was, she always felt like he wanted her to be someone else. Someone without the drive she had, someone content with a more routine life. She had tried. She really had. But eventually, she got tired of apologizing for who she was.
That was when Steph realized she couldn’t stay with Chris. She certainly couldn’t have married him and been the wife he expected her to be. Deep down, she knew he knew it too. He and Bethany fit together in a way she and Chris never had.
Now the hurt was real. Not that he and Bethany were happily married, but that in just a few months they would have a baby, and Steph’s biological clock would still be ticking.
She kept her smile in place as she wrapped Bethany in a hug.
When she stepped away, she gave Chris a smile. “I bet your dad and mom are over the moon.”
“You know they are. Mom’s already put a list together of things we need.”
“It’s been fun,” Bethany said. “Especially now that I’m feeling better. And look.” She turned to the side and lifted her winter jacket, showing off the tiny roundness of her stomach.
Steph ignored the burning in her nose and the way her eyes threatened to fill.
Happy tears. Happy tears, she told herself.
“You know,” Bethany said, “I’m not a runner, but Chloe might be interested.”
“Chloe’s not a runner either.” Chris shook his head.
Bethany shrugged. “She might be now. She told me she’s been working on getting in shape. Living abroad hasn’t quite worked out for her waistline the way she anticipated.” She turned to Steph. “She’s coming home next month.”
“She is?” Steph’s smile was genuine. “For a visit?”
Bethany shook her head as she took Chris’s arm. “For good. That’s what she says, at least. You know Chloe.”
Steph nodded. She did know Chloe. Chris’s younger sister had a serious case of wanderlust. She managed to keep it under control long enough to graduate from college five years earlier, but a week later, she had her passport and a backpack and set off.
Chloe and Steph had stayed in touch even after her breakup with Chris, but she hadn’t heard about her coming home. It was good news for the family, and maybe Chloe was ready to settle down, though Steph couldn’t imagineher staying in Irma forever. Not everyone was cut out for small-town Wyoming.
“When will she be home?”
“Before Christmas. Probably only a day or two, but Meagan is still excited.”
Steph was sure of that. Meagan Hepner, Chris and Chloe’s mom, loved the holidays and having everyone together.
Chris shifted, tucking his thumbs into his belt in that way he had. “Hey, speaking of March, are you doing The Frozen Divide again this year?”
She glanced at Jack, who seemed to be completely enthralled by the conversation.
