Filed to story: Love on the Sidelines (Natalie & Karl)
“Has anyone ever told you you’re a lot like your Aunt Darla?” My lips twitched. I couldn’t help it. “No, and if ‘anyone’ knows what’s good for them, they won’t tell me now.”
“That’s better.” She grinned. “I was starting to think your face had frozen in a permanent frown. You know what you need?” She didn’t give me a chance to answer.
“You need to have some fun. Wednesday is ladies’ night at the roadhouse. How about the two of us take a night off to howl?”
“I don’t know…it depends on how the Judge is doing.”
“He’s going to be fine, and I won’t take no for an answer. Besides, isn’t your divorce final next week?”
I did some rapid calculations and felt a ripple of surprise go through me.
“Thursday. It should be final Thursday.”
“There ‘ya go. A reason to celebrate.” She hesitated. “You are glad it’s over, aren’t you? No second thoughts?”
“No second thoughts.” I took a deep breath. “It just sort of slipped up on me, I guess. I’ll have to let you know about Wednesday later.” Cody’s reappearance put a stop to the conversation. He took a chair across the room from us, his expression thoughtful even through he didn’t speak. Jenna stayed until they moved the Judge to ICU and got him settled, then left to keep an appointment.
When the doctor talked to us again, he was cautiously optimistic. It seemed the new drug was going to work after all, and I saw evidence of this myself when I visited the Judge later. His face had relaxed, looked more normal now, and his left hand was open, lying on the bed instead of curled tightly to his body.
Not long after that, my panicked family rushed in. It took a while to get them calmed down, and they each had to see the Judge before they believed he was going to make it. And then they took over. I sat in a corner of the large ICU waiting room, listening as they devised a rotating schedule of who would stay at the hospital with the Judge during the days to come, and who would stay home to receive sympathy calls from friends and neighbors.
I, of course, was not included in the duties. But that didn’t mean Mama was going to ignore me. Maybe I had forgotten my divorce would be final next week, but she hadn’t. It wasn’t long before she joined me, a look of determination on her face, and a feeling of resignation swept over me when she spoke.
“Natalie, you have to put a stop to this nonsense while there’s still time. Hugh is a good man. He cares about you. It’s insane to throw away fifteen years of marriage for no reason.”
I forced myself to stay calm. “There is a reason. I don’t love him. He doesn’t love me.”
“You’ve only hit a rocky patch, Dear.” She patted my knee. “It happens in all marriages. I’m sure you can work through it if you try.”
“He’s had one affair after the other since the day we married, Mama. Am I supposed to keep looking the other way?”
She hesitated. “He’s a man, Natalie. Sometimes they make mistakes. But I’m sure if you talked to him, let him know how you feel, he’d stop. You know I only want what’s best for you.”
“No, Mama.” I stood. “You want what’s best for you. You like having a daughter married to the richest, most prestigious family in the county. And if that means I have to be miserable the rest of my life, well, that’s just too bad for me, isn’t it? You’ve made it real clear that you care more about what Helena thinks than you care about me.
You’ve turned your back on me when I needed you the most. So don’t sit there and tell me you want what’s best for me.”
I was proud of myself. I hadn’t raised my voice a single time. But I couldn’t be sure I’d remain that calm if she pushed me. Head high, I walked out of the room and left her sitting there, face pale.
It wasn’t until I was standing on the sidewalk in front of the hospital that I remembered I didn’t have my car with me. I hadn’t even stopped to grab my purse, so I didn’t have the money for a cab or a phone call.
I was trying to figure out what to do when Cody came through the doors behind me. “Come on. I’ll take you home.”
Silently, I followed him down the hill to the parking lot and climbed into his truck.
As soon as we were on the highway, he glanced at me.
“Sorry I came down so hard on you this morning. It’s just that I’ve never seen you react that way to anyone before.”
I nodded. “I supposed you apologized to them on my behalf.”
“It seemed like the right thing to do. But you might be interested to know Karl was giving her holy hell when I caught up with them. I didn’t hear the whole thing, but the gist of it was that he was pissed off because she’d hurt you. ‘Again’ was the word he used. Said all she’d done was make things worse, and that now wasn’t the time for confessions. She looked like a little girl getting a scolding from her daddy.”
“Stay away from her, Cody.”
He took his attention off the road long enough to glance at me again, one brow arched in question. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t play innocent with me. I saw the expression on your face when she walked in. I’m telling you to stay away from her. You don’t have any idea what she’s really like.”
“And you do?”
“Yes. She’s so tangled up with Karl that neither of them will ever get lose.”
“Funny, but I didn’t get the impression they had that kind of relationship.”
“They have a son. She’s lived with Karl almost since the day he left.” I twisted on the seat to face him. “Look, you warned me about getting involved with someone again before the ink was dry on my divorce decree. Now I’m returning the favor. Lindsey isn’t what she seems to be, and I don’t want you to get hurt.” He was silent for a long minute. “Are you going to tell me what really went on fifteen years ago?”
I straightened, turned to gaze out the window. “You know what happened.”