That didn’t work.
He finally gave up, washed the paint brush, and went to sit on the front porch. Louie came running over. “Hey, buddy.” Cal leaned over and stroked the dog.
Steve came wandering over after Louie. “Sorry about that. Louie is bored. Josh is spending the night at a friend’s house.”
“Louie is always welcome. It’s nice to have company.”
“Then do you mind if I grab a beer and join you?”
“Not at all.”
Steve disappeared into the cottage, came back with a beer, and dropped into a chair beside Cal. “Heat wave is supposed to break tomorrow.”
“Is it? Good. We could use some cooler weather.”
Steve took a long swig of beer. “Listen, it’s none of my business, so you can tell me to butt out, but why are you living here? Away from Becky Lee? I know you guys got married suddenly, but I thought things were working out okay. You always looked so happy around her.”
Cal sighed. “I was happy. It’s complicated. We got married for… various reasons.”
“You mean to improve your chances of keeping custody of Scotty?”
Cal looked at Steve in surprise. “You knew that?”
“I figured it was why you two hurried up and got married. But I also thought I saw you fall in love with her as time went along.”
Cal stared out into the distance. “I did. Which is why things are so… wrong now. She married to keep Scotty safe, not because she loves me.”
“Well, have you told her that you love her?” Steve stared at Cal over the top of his beer bottle.
“No, I mean, why would I? That wasn’t part of our agreement. Now Scotty is safe. There is no reason for her to stay married to me. What do I have to offer her anyway? I’ve moved around for years. I don’t even know how to be a husband. Or have a family. Look at the mess I came from. My father almost got Becky Lee killed.” Cal raked his hand through his hair. “I have nothing to offer her.”
“I don’t know, buddy. You have the strongest, most important thing in the world to give her.”
“What’s that?”
“Love.” Steve finished his beer, set the bottle down, and whistled for Louie. “Think about it.”
Cal watched Steve and Louie walk back to their house. He saw Holly pull into Steve’s drive and get out of her car. Steve wrapped her in his arms and kissed her. Envy skittered through Cal. It was so easy for Steve and Holly.
But he just wasn’t sure that Steve was right. Was loving Becky Lee enough for her?
~ * ~
“Um, that’s nice” Holly kissed Steve back then pulled back and looked at him. “What’s wrong?”
“What do you mean? Nothing’s wrong.”
“You have that troubled look about your eyes.”
Steve laughed and pulled her close. “You can read me like a book.”
“So?”
“Oh, I was just over talking to Cal. The man is in love with Becky Lee.”
“And that’s a problem, why?”
“They rushed into marriage to help Cal keep custody of Scotty.”
“I thought as much.”
Steve took Holly’s hand and led her onto the porch. “But now Cal has gone and fallen in love with Becky Lee.”
“Has he told her?”
“Exactly what I asked. He hasn’t.”
“Well, he should.”
“I know. But he says since Becky Lee married him just because of Scotty, he doesn’t feel right changing the agreement up now.”
“That’s ridiculous. Besides, I saw Becky Lee and Cal together the other day. I’m pretty certain that Becky Lee is nuts about him.” Holly shook her head.
“The two of them need to talk, then.”
“They do. Let’s hope they talk before it’s too late.”
~ * ~
“You’ve been kind of moping around this last week. What’s up?” Theresa Jean sat on a park bench next to Becky Lee while they watched Scotty, Josh, and the two dogs play.
“I don’t know. I just feel… out of sorts.”
“You know what the problem is, don’t you?”
“No.” Becky Lee pursed her lips. “What is the problem?”
“You miss him.”
“Who?”
“Don’t be dense. Cal. You miss him.”
Becky Lee sighed. “I do miss him a bit. I got used to having him around. I was teaching him to cook a few things. At least I don’t have to worry about him starving, he can feed himself now.”
“So you miss him a bit?”
“Okay, okay. I miss him a lot. I wasn’t prepared to miss him, that’s all. Besides, he just married me to keep Scotty safe, not because he cared about me.”