See Megan Run (3 page)

"I won’t point out that you didn’t say
Aiden’s balding and has a beer belly." Lynne straightened the
sweaters on the table and stood back to look at her handiwork. "And
that you’re going to leave me in charge while you’re gone for a
month."

"I haven’t decided yet."

Lynne pursed her lips in disbelief.
"Right."

"Really, I’m still debating whether it’s
going to be good for me to go."

"If you ask me, which I also noticed you
didn’t, you’re pissed your mother still knows you so well. She
knows you won’t say no."

"She’s still manipulative, and I’ll have to
deal with her for a month. Geez, it’s my father’s house. If Nicole
was any type of mother, she’d just hand it over to me without
conditions." Megan shook her head, still holding the box. "The
whole situation just pisses me off."

"You’re so calm about it. That’s a funny way
of showing it."

Megan scoffed. "I called you at six o’clock
in the morning to fold clothes. That is a mean streak." Megan
smiled at Lynne’s disbelief. "Yes, I’m admitting something out
loud. Savor it. It may not happen again."

"Wait, let me get a pen."

Megan sighed. "If I had the money to just buy
it from her, I could avoid it."

"Can you?"

"No." With that, Megan collapsed the box and
went out the back way to dump it in the trash. She let out a sigh
of relief as she came back into the store, where Lynne was
unlocking the front doors. Lynne was like a dog with a bone. Megan
didn’t want to talk about Aiden. Sure as hell didn’t want to talk,
think, or ponder about her mother more than she had to.

"Back to business as usual," Megan said and
stationed herself on the stool behind the cash register.

"I’m going to say two things and then leave
it alone." Lynne’s silence had only lulled her into believing the
subject was dropped. Megan sighed and waited. "First, I’ll gladly
take care of the business for a month. Second, you’re probably
going to end up sleeping with Aiden."

Megan almost fell off the chair. "Who said
anything about sleeping with him?"

"You felt nothing when you saw him
again?"

"He wouldn’t want me."

"And if he does?"

"I’d be there only to make sure my mother
doesn’t sell the house to someone else."

Lynne placed her hands on her hips. "I’ll
repeat: and if he does?"

"Nothing can come of it. I live here, my
business is here, my life is here."

"Right." Lynne said.

Megan’s reply was interrupted when the first
customer came in. She really needed to stop being friends with her
employees.

*****

Megan frowned for the second time in a year
at what would be her home for the next twenty-seven days. Yes,
she’d counted, and she had every intention to pull out her calendar
and mark off the days. It had taken less than three days to prep
Lynne to take over the business. Megan had hoped the prepping would
take longer. She hadn’t wanted the transition from work to
fulfilling a duty in order to acquire her father’s home to be so
easy. Unfortunately it 
had
 been that easy, because
she didn’t hire fools. With the small duffle bag in her hand, she
got out of her car and walked up to the door. Her hand felt sweaty
against the cloth handle.

The scent of the potted black-eyed Susans
filled the air. The porch swing swayed from the light breeze. Hints
of jasmine and rosemary mixed with the heat of the day. On the
outside, her father’s house seemed so homely. A place where anyone
would want to spend their time. Megan took in a breath, knowing the
looks were deceiving. If anyone knew of the turmoil, the arguments,
the coldness, they wouldn’t push her to stay. They’d side with her
for not wanting to come back. If anyone knew how it hurt to cross
this threshold once again, they’d tell her the house wasn’t worth
it. But then again, who would know?

Jane opened the door, breaking Megan from her
reverie. "We’ve been waiting for you."

She pushed aside the dreary thoughts and
smiled. "
We
 sounds ominous."

Jane sighed. "If you behave, I’ll let you eat
the cookie dough off the spoon."

Megan dropped the bag, thinking for the first
time that everything just might be okay. Jane had a knack for
making her feel that way. To Megan, Jane was the home she’d left
behind, and she was the only person happy to see her back in
Riverbed. Megan swallowed the emotions welling up in her throat. "I
can’t make any promises."

Jane smacked her butt and laughed. "They are
in the living room."

Megan squared her shoulders and walked
through the foyer toward the voices. Her heel caught on the
threshold, or at least that’s what Megan blamed when she stumbled.
Aiden sat on the edge of the couch’s arm. Dark brown liquid filled
the glass half raised to his mouth. And, okay, maybe her heart sped
up a little bit seeing the way he filled his jeans. Her breath,
maybe, shuddered out a little at the open button on his shirt that
gave her a teasing view of his chest. The mocha color of his skin
looked taut with muscles.

Megan met his gaze and the butterflies
started to flap their wings like crazy in the pit of her stomach.
This wasn’t the same reaction she’d had when she first saw him.
Then Lynne’s words hit her—
You’re probably going to end up
sleeping with Aiden
. The possibility hadn’t lurked in the
depths of her brain before. Now it did, and now she needed to tamp
it down.

With an unsteady hand she brushed her bangs
out of her eyes. "Decided to give me a ticket after all?"

His eyes traveled behind her. It hadn’t been
so long she didn’t recognize the emotion fleeting in them. He was
worried. Megan followed his gaze to find out why.

"Hey." Megan went still. " Shep."

Shep’s fingers were laced with her mother’s.
An intimate touch, one that spoke of them being more than
friends. 
You’ve got to be kidding me
. She kept her tone
casual as she said, "I’m glad to see you. How’ve you been
doing?"

She held onto the chipper tone like a vise.
If he was getting friendly with Nicole, then he couldn’t be doing
well. She wondered if he was taking Prozac. He had to be.

"I’ve been doing the same," Shep said. His
answer meant nothing, but then he glanced at Nicole. Her mother’s
hand tightened on his as if drawing strength from his touch.

This is what she’s been hiding from me. No
wonder. Their coupling refused to process in Megan’s brain. She had
expected another loafer as Nicole’s husband-to-be, not sturdy,
dependable Shep. 
I’ll be
. She kept her hands at her
sides, although she wanted to rub her eyes to make sure what her
retinas were telegraphing to her brain was real.

He released her mother’s hand and came over
to Megan, embracing her in one of his famous bear hugs. He was
going to be family.

Aiden was going to be family.

It was probably going to take the rest of the
month for her to process 
that
.

Shep pulled back, inspecting her face.

"I’m glad you’re here for the wedding. I know
you’re busy with your business."

He looked down for a moment. Was he blushing?
Megan needed a drink and now understood Aiden wasn’t drinking
soda.

"My business is doing good."

Shep nodded. "That’s good to hear. Really
good to hear."

Another beat of silence. "Well…" Nicole
started.

"Congratulations," Megan said slowly. What
Megan really wanted to say shouldn’t be spoken in polite society.
If she’d learnt nothing else from growing up in a small town, she
could at least be diplomatic when she really wanted to spit.

She crossed her arms, wanting to choke her
mother for a number of reasons, while a million questions ran
through her head. Megan knew the time wasn’t right to ask them. She
let her gaze drift back to Aiden, who drained his glass. He wasn’t
scot-free from the choke festival, either. He’d known when he
stopped her that Shep and her mother were getting married.

Married.

He’d probably had a good laugh at that one.
Then again, he owed her nothing, and that’s how she wanted to keep
the terms of their relationship. Things got complicated when
emotions and sex got involved. Megan reminded herself she was here
to keep the house off the market, not to ignite old flames. What
Aiden and she had shared—that died the day she left.

Still, no one spoke. What could be said? Why
did you leave Aiden? Why in the hell are you marrying Nicole? A
safe subject like the weather was pointless in a situation like
this. Fortunately, Jane called them to dinner, forestalling any
awkward conversation. Megan told herself the questions for Nicole
would have to wait. She could only hope she wouldn’t actually choke
her mother.

*****

Knowing he had a ride with his uncle, Aiden
finished his third glass of scotch. This marriage was bound to make
him an alcoholic, if for no other reason than having to spend time
at dinners with Megan across the table.

No one dared to point out Megan’s prolonged
absence, nor that she did not want to be there now. The tension
might as well have been served beside the potatoes, steak, and
gravy. If Shep had any brains, he wouldn’t stay after dinner. Shep
should give Nicky a chaste kiss and see his bride-to-be the next
day, especially if the steam coming out of Megan’s ears was any
indication.

Her cheekbones were more defined, and she’d
done something to her eyebrows to make them more sleek, but her
tells were the same. The hard line across her forehead told him her
mood. He scraped the last remnants of food from his plate and
wished the memory of her, of them, could be wiped from his brain as
easily.

Sitting across from her seemed to make all
the memories come back. They’d made love for the first time under
an oak tree on her father’s property by the lake. She loved
mornings; she loved her barbequed hot dogs slightly burnt, and she
loved action movies instead of chick flicks. He also remembered
vividly the first day he’d realized she wasn’t coming back.

Being young and stupid had shielded him from
a lot of realities. The first day after she left, when Nicole had
explained to him Megan had packed all her clothes, he believed
she’d done the cliché thing and left to travel Europe. Three months
later, with still neither a letter nor a singing telegram, Aiden
grew up. He went to college. He came back home. If life were fair,
Megan would have stayed a vague, irritating memory. But no, she sat
across from him, plowing through her plate, looking as good as, if
not better than, when she left. Why was he surprised life was never
fair? His uncle’s words finally penetrated his thoughts.

"Please tell Jane this was a wonderful meal,"
Shep was saying to Nicole, with a nod to Aiden.

No, his uncle was far from slow. Aiden hugged
Nicole, nodded to Megan, and then made his way out the door,
breathing easier until his uncle spoke again.

"You didn’t tell me you saw Megan."

"I stopped her on a traffic violation a few
days ago." Aiden focused on getting into the car, ignoring his
uncle’s bland expression.

"She’s all grown up." Shep folded his thick
body into the car. For a man over the age of forty-five, he kept up
well. No wonder he was able to snag Nicole’s attention. Still, it
didn’t stop the friction to come.

"Look at her. She has her own business.
Nicole told me she started it from the ground up after she received
her business degree."

Aiden made a noncommittal sound as his uncle
went on about the greatness of Megan. Bitter wasn’t a word he liked
to associate with himself, but the more Shep rambled, the more old,
dead and buried feelings started to rise up in him. All he heard
was how she’d left him to live this grand life. Men weren’t
supposed to feel jilted, right?

On and on his uncle went, until Aiden pointed
out, "Nicole didn’t tell her about you guys."

Aiden’s words stopped Shep in his tracks. His
uncle’s hands flexed over the steering wheel. Aiden only felt guilt
for a moment, because it was the truth. Nicole still had ways about
her that didn’t fit the changed woman she’d become.

"You of all people know how Megan is," Shep
countered.

Dead and gone meant nothing to his uncle.
"You of all people should know Nicole." He glanced out the window
as his uncle pulled up to his house. He turned to Shep’s sigh.

"Why do you think I hightailed it out of
there?"

Aiden chuckled. "At least love hasn’t changed
you that much."

Shep placed a hand on his shoulder before he
got out of the car. 
I should have moved faster
.

"Son, I know you and Megan have a
history."

"And that’s exactly where it is." His tone
closed off all conversation. His shoulders tensed, but Shep nodded,
letting the subject drop. Good, because he was over Megan.

As he watched his uncle drive off, Aiden
breathed in the cool air of the night, thinking sooner or later his
heart would get the same message.

*****

"Shep," Megan started. "You’re marrying
Shep."

"You make it sound like I shouldn’t be with
him."

"No, you shouldn’t."

Nicole lifted her hands. "When you get like
this there is no talking to you."

Color rose in Nicole’s cheeks. Good, Nicole’s
own temper wasn’t bottled up like she’d wanted Megan to
believe.

"We are getting married. I love him, and
that’s the end of that."

"Shep." Megan moved in front of her mother,
blocking the way to the stairs. "He’s a good man. Shep was a good
father to Aiden when his father passed." Megan kept to herself that
Shep was also a good parent to her when Nicole had checked out. The
subject was just too volatile.

Nicole shoulder’s sagged. "He was always nice
to me, and when I got over Taylor he helped me around the house,
and then..."