Mending His Past Read online

  “How have you been, darlin’?” Alice asked. “It’s been way too long.” She looked over her shoulder at her husband, who was standing next to Kat with a pleasant enough expression on his face. “Andy, we’ve got to make an effort to come down here more often. Life is passing us by.” She stepped back, holding onto Olivia’s hand and shook her head. “Where have all the years gone? It’s so good to see you, Olivia.”

  “It’s good to see you, too, Mrs. Roland,” Olivia said.

  “You’re not six years old anymore, sweetheart. Just call me Alice.”

  The sweet tone of her voice brought memories of happier times to mind. A bittersweet smile made its way to Olivia’s lips when she recalled the summer when she was eight. She nearly wore her favorite star out by making the same wish night after night. “…I wish I might, I wish I may, have Mrs. Roland be my mom someday.”

  Back in college, she’d had the crazy idea that Alice might actually become her mother one day—her mother-in-law. That idea lasted a whole five minutes before Trent decided to pick up and leave.

  Kat looped her arm around the tall man’s elbow. “Olivia, this is my twin brother, Andy. I don’t think y’all have ever met.”

  “No, we haven’t.” Olivia accepted the hand Andy offered her, studying his face for any hints of the money-obsessed oilman she’d heard tell of for so long. Her smile became less forced when she couldn’t find a single trace of him. All she saw were the kind eyes of an older man looking down at her.

  “That’s entirely my loss, Miss,” Andy said, his big hand completely covering her own as he shook it. “I spent a lot of years playing the fool and missing things I had no business missing.”

  Alice walked to Andy’s side and tugged on his arm until his cheek was low enough for her to reach with her lips. She placed a feather-soft kiss there and took his other hand, interlacing her fingers with his. “You’re here now.”

  The couple shared a tender moment right in the middle of the busy aisle of a flea market. The tiny pocket of air separating them was so charged with emotion that Olivia could feel it in her own chest. Regret, sorrow, forgiveness, and hope intermingled in one beautiful, unspoken language that passed between them.

  There was something about Andy that drew Olivia to him, even though part of her felt like a traitor for it. She knew first-hand how complicated parent-child relationships could be. Her relationship with her own father was no walk in the park. But somehow, the friendly curve of Andy’s lips made her question whether Trent really had anything to worry about today.

  “I don’t know about anyone else, but I came to shop,” Kat said. “What do you have to show us this week, Olivia?”

  Molly wiggled out of Kat’s arms and picked up the plaque her mother had handed her in the parking lot. “I carried this,” she said.

  “Let me see that.” Kat took the wood in her hands and read the words aloud. “One plus one equals love. I’ll take it. It’ll make the perfect wedding gift for a couple I know.”

  The cagey looks Kat and Alice flashed one another were enough to give Olivia the distinct impression that she was probably the bride they had in mind. Quicker than she could put her defenses up, her mind chose to create a slide show of the fairy tale beach wedding she’d always wanted.

  “Who’s getting married? Anyone I know?” Trent asked.

  Olivia choked on a sudden breath of air, the sound of his voice bringing her back to reality even as a burning flush spread across her chest. Her eyes met his in much the same way they had in her own private fantasy world only a moment before, when she’d imagined herself walking toward an alter where he awaited her.

  Her cheeks blazed with heat. What was happening? First her mind, and now her body was betraying every well-thought-out decision she’d made concerning Trent. Why was it there were never any rocks around big enough to crawl under when you really needed one?

  Focus! Today wasn’t about her apparent inability to listen to reason and stick to a plan, it was about supporting Trent. Her gaze bounced from son to father and back again. She offered a tight-lipped smile of solidarity to Trent that he acknowledged with a nod that seemed imperceptible to anyone but her.

  Trent’s parents weren’t the only couple who could have conversations without speaking. A giddy shiver raced down her spine. Today felt just like the old days when they’d been so close that it was almost like they shared their own secret language. She missed being that connected with another person. Being alone was lonely business.

  “Trent!” The apples of Alice’s cheeks touched the bottom of her dark rimmed glasses as a wide smile spread across her lips. She rushed to her son with outstretched arms.

  “Hi, Mom,” Trent said, with the table still resting on his shoulder and his hands clasped onto either side of it.

  Alice wrapped her arms around his trim waist. “It’s so good to see you, honey.” She released him and stepped back. “You need to put that thing down,” she said, pointing to the table. “It must weigh a ton. Andy, give him a hand.”

  Trent’s Adam’s apple bobbed with an ominous swallow as Andy neared. “That’s okay, sir. I got it.” Trent glanced at Olivia, who was looking on, brows pinched with concern. “Where do you want it?”

  “Anywhere is fine. Just don’t hurt yourself,” Olivia said.

  Trent nodded and shifted the table’s weight.

  “Please, son, let me help you with that.” Andy took hold of the end, lifting some of the weight off of Trent’s shoulder. The two men set the table on the ground with as much care as if it were made of the finest China. “Nicely done,” Andy said.

  Had Trent’s father just complimented him? This certainly wasn’t the family dynamic Olivia had expected.

  Trent blinked several times before replying. “Thank you, sir.”

  The men stood within arm’s reach of each other, looking about as comfortable as a hog at a bacon convention.

  “It’s uh…” Andy began. “It’s real good to see you again, son.”

  “You, too.” Trent choked out the words.

  “We’ve missed you… I’ve missed you.”

  Trent’s jaw unhinged as he stood frozen in place.

  Olivia shot Trent every signal she could, short of belting out instructions at full volume. Talk to him! Open your mouth, Trent! Her theory about their unspoken language went up in flames when he failed to catch on to any of it and continued standing as still as a bump on a log.

  A small chorus of oohs and ahhs erupted next to Trent’s father, shattering their almost-moment.

  “I told you you’d love her stuff, Alice,” Kat said to Trent’s mother.

  “It’s gorgeous! You made this table, too?” Alice asked.

  Olivia tore her eyes away from the silent drama unfolding in front of her and addressed the ladies. “Yes, it’s one of my favorites.”

  “Andy, buy this table for your wife,” Kat said, slapping her brother on the back. “It’s plain as can be that she loves it.”

  Alice clasped her hands together in front of her chest, her eyes bright. “We were just talking about getting a new game table for the den. This would be perfect.”

  Andy ran his fingertips up and down the length of the table, taking in its one-of-a-kind organic beauty. “It’s a fine table. There’s no doubt about that. I like it a lot.” He turned his attention to Olivia. “How much?”

  Olivia bit her bottom lip and shifted her weight, unsure where to rest her gaze. Everyone always loved this table until they heard the price. “Well, that piece was really difficult to make and I sunk a lot of money into the materials. It’s my most pricey item.” A timid smile rested on her lips as if to apologize for the sticker shock she was about to inflict. “I’m asking five hundred dollars.”

  Andy huffed. “Absolutely not.” His brows furrowed as he took a closer look at the table, squatting to get a close-up view of the live edge.

  Olivia’s stomach clenched. This was the part where the customer—this time Trent’s father—would offer h
er a price so low it wouldn’t even cover the cost of material, much less her time and artistry. Her shoulders sagged with the understanding that she’d have to accept a lowball offer this time. Her eyes came to rest on Molly, who was still holding Kat’s hand with a wide smile on her face, oblivious to their precarious financial position. Holding out for top dollar wasn’t an option when life was in the process of royally dumping on you.

  “Andy’s right,” Alice said. “There’s no way a table like this should go for five hundred. What do you think, hon? What’s it worth?” She rested her hand on Andy’s back as he stood and bent over the table seeming to inspect every twist and turn in the grain.

  After a few more seconds of appreciating nature’s handiwork in the fine wood, Andy stood tall. “I won’t do a penny less than three.”

  Three hundred. That was better than the offer of one hundred she’d received a few weeks ago from one of the ladies browsing her pop-up shop, but it still wasn’t great. “Could you meet me in the middle and call it four?”

  “That’s more than fair. You’ve got yourself a deal. I saw something like this in a gallery in L.A. last month for five grand. It wasn’t nearly as gorgeous as this.” Andy pulled a billfold out of his back pocket and unfurled a fan of cash. Olivia’s own jaw slackened this time, and fell open a little more with each crisp, new one hundred dollar bill Andy peeled off. So that was what a billionaire on a shopping spree looked like.

  One, two, three, four, five hundred. Andy kept counting. Eleven, twelve, thirteen hundred. And he kept counting until he reached four thousand.

  “Wait. I thought you meant three hundred. I’d have never asked for more if I’d have known you meant three thousand. You don’t have to—”

  “Oh yes I do, miss. I agreed to four thousand and that’s exactly what I’ll pay.”

  Olivia looked at Trent as if to ask if his father was serious. He seemed just as shocked as she was.

  Her head swam when it dawned on her what this kind of money would do for her and Molly. She clutched the folding-table in front of her as the world spun off-kilter around her. Trent was at her side in a moment. With a warm hand splayed on her back and the other holding onto her arm, he was her rock—the one steady thing she could lean on. No matter how the world tilted and twisted beneath her feet, she wouldn’t fall when he was next to her. She knew it.

  “Are you all right?” Trent asked, hooking the leg of a chair with his foot and pulling it up behind Olivia.

  “I’m fine,” she said, sitting down. “Just a little dizzy.”

  Andy pushed the cash toward Olivia with a sober expression on his face. “This isn’t charity, young woman. I want to make that very clear. You’re a gifted artist. Don’t sell yourself short.” He looked over at Trent. “There are all kinds of talents in this world, and they’re all just as valuable. I’m only sorry it took me so long to figure that out.”

  Olivia and Trent remained still, allowing Andy’s words to sink in. The tension Trent carried in his features melted away. He reached across the table and gave his father’s hand a hearty shake. “Dad… thank you.”

  Even recovering from her shock, Olivia spotted the tears pooling in Andy’s eyes.

  “Thank you for coming today, son. I was a little worried you might not come after I sent you that monster of a text, but I didn’t want to show up in town without letting you know first.”

  Trent knocked on the now-sold table, seeming to search for words. “I’m glad you came.”

  Olivia’s own eyes welled up as she watched father and son hold each others’ gazes as something precious and tangible passed between them.

  “We’re stealing Molly for a bit,” Kat called over her shoulder as she, Alice, and Molly started walking down the aisle. “Us girls have some serious shopping to do. We’ll bring her back happy, fed, and loaded down with more toys than you have room for.” Kat leaned over and spoke in Alice’s ear loud enough for Olivia to overhear. “This is what it’ll feel like to be a grandma.”

  Alice looked over her shoulder at Trent and threw a hand to her heart, a sweet smile resting on her lips. Tears shone in her eyes as her gaze shifted from Trent to Olivia.

  Andy lifted his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. “I guess I’d better keep up with those lovely ladies. As long as there’s money in my pocket, they’ll find a way to put it to good use.” His warm chuckle washed away the care he’d worn on his brow. He trotted after the chatty threesome with a quiet smile on his lips.

  Once Andy was out of earshot, Olivia stood and slipped her hand inside Trent’s. “I don’t know how to thank you. You really came through for Molly and me.”

  Trent trained his gaze on her. “I didn’t do anything. It was your amazing eye for design that sold them.”

  “I wouldn’t have been here to make the sale without you. Do you know what this means? I’m not going to have to worry about money for the rest of the month, or next month, either, for that matter. I might even be able to afford to fix the truck, depending on what’s wrong with it. This is the break I’ve been praying for.”

  “It’s about time something went right for you.”

  Goosebumps rushed up her arm when Trent squeezed her hand. The gentle strength in that simple gesture was enough to melt her from the inside out. Her knees threatened to buckle, but she wasn’t worried about it. She wasn’t worried about anything. Trent was next to her. She was invincible.

  They settled into their seats and looked on as customers flowed up and down the aisle, stopping to browse through her offerings. Gone was the pressure she felt each week—the pressure to sell. She’d already made more money that morning than she’d ever made in a month of Saturdays. Taking in a deep breath of fresh air, she leaned back in her sling chair and allowed herself to bask in the warm sunshine with a contented smile on her face. Today was a turning point. She could feel it in her bones.

  Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and swiped her finger across the screen, finding a text message waiting to be opened. An icy chill blew over her when she read the message. She sucked in a sharp breath.

  Trent looked over at her, brows knit together with concern. “What’s wrong? You’re white as a ghost.”

  Olivia held up her phone for Trent to see. “It’s my ex-husband. He’s flying in tomorrow—he’s already on the way.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  The whole world came to a screeching halt when Olivia showed Trent the text from her ex husband. Eddie! His hands balled into fists of their own accord at the thought of the rat of a man who’d left Olivia and Molly to fend for themselves.

  “He hasn’t had anything to do with us since before Molly was born,” Olivia said. “Now he texts me the day before his flight arrives, wanting me to drop everything and drive three hours one-way to pick him up?” Olivia leaned back in her chair and sighed. “It might sound mean, but I’m almost glad the truck is broken down. There’s no way I can drive up to get him if I don’t have any wheels.”

  The truck—great! Of all the days he could have chosen to be chivalrous, why had he chosen today?

  Trent squeezed his eyes shut and raked his fingers through his hair. So much for his fantastic surprise. If he hadn’t opened his big mouth and told Levi to work on Olivia’s truck today, she’d be in the clear.

  He shifted his chair to face hers. “I don’t know how to tell you this, Olivia, but Levi is at your place right now. I hired him to take care of your truck. It was supposed to be a surprise.”

  “You did what?”

  “I hired Levi to fix your truck. He sent a text about an hour ago. He’ll be done with it by this evening, but that doesn’t mean you have to go get Eddie. He’s a big boy. Let him figure out how to get down here himself.”

  Olivia’s lashes fluttered as her mouth fell open. “Back up. You arranged to have my truck repaired?”

  He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. I’m sorry. I know you like to handle things by yourself, but—”

  “Don’t
be sorry.” She dropped her gaze to the ground and kicked at the pebbles by her feet. A small, tired smile curved her lips as she looked up into Trent’s eyes. “Accepting help has never been my strong suit. But when you’ve got a little one to take care of, it changes your perspective, you know? It feels like I’ve been on my own forever. Even when Eddie and I were married, it still didn’t feel like anyone had my back.”

  The hollow sound of her voice struck Trent like a punch in the gut. She shouldn’t have had to face the world alone. He should have been there for her all those years. He’d never forgive himself for walking away like he had. How could everything have gone so wrong? Leaving was supposed to have protected her heart, not caused it more pain.

  His pulse thundered in his ears when she rested a delicate, creamy-white hand on the bronzed skin of his forearm. He hoped she wouldn’t notice the goosebumps her touch evoked.

  “It feels kind of nice to be taken care of,” she said. “Thanks. The independent scene isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

  “Tell me about it.” Trent had spent the last several years keeping the people in his life at a safe distance. Now more than ever, he was beginning to see that a life spent in virtual solitary confinement wasn’t really much of a life at all.

  Olivia looked at her phone and began typing with steady hands now that the shock of Eddie’s text seemed to have worn off a bit. Trent missed the warmth of her hand the second she removed it from his arm.

  “What are you going to do?” he asked.

  She filled her lungs with a deep breath. “I’m going to tell him I’ll be there to pick him up.”

  Trent covered the face of her phone with his hand. “Hold on a minute,” he said, a devious smile infecting every feature of his face. “Let me text Levi real quick. I’ll have him stop working on your truck today, and come over to finish it tomorrow. That’ll fix everything. You can’t pick Eddie up if your engine is torn apart in your driveway.”

  A thrill coursed through Trent’s body when Olivia’s furrowed brows dissolved into a bright smile. She threw her head back and laughed, a mischievous light dancing in her eyes. “That would be so much fun, but I can’t.”