“I want him and Beth to have a chance. They have a child coming.”
Van took a deep breath. “Tell me what the fuck you’ve done with the percentage of Wade I supposedly sold and what you know,” Van said, scooting his chair away from the table and lifting his ankle to his opposite knee as his green stare zeroed in on Lena.
He sold?
My mouth opened, but no words came out. Van was handling this.
His body language didn’t tell me that he was aggravated by the situation, but his tone did. The man who I barely knew a month ago was now an open book and the words were gaining clarity.
“I don’t mean to be rude,” Lena said, tilting her head toward the ovens, “but I’ve been driving and whatever you’re cooking smells delicious.” She turned to Van. “You seriously found a woman who is unbelievably kind, interested in business, beautiful, and who cooks.”
“He didn’t,” I said, standing and opening a drawer for oven mitts, my thoughts on Wade. “I don’t cook. A lovely woman comes in and cooks. We reheat.”
“That works,” she said. “You’re guilty of the rest.”
Opening the oven, I told myself to not jump to conclusions. “I’m not unbelievably kind.” Before Van could argue, I continued. “I’d like to think of myself as fair. There are people who deserve my animosity.”
“Madison.”
I looked at Van and back to Lena. “I haven’t decided.”
“That’s fair,” she replied. “What can I do to help?”
Soon the three of us had our plates filled and were back to the table.
Without proclaiming our dinner as ado-not-talk-businesstime, that was what happened. My concerns about Lena seemed to evaporate into the mixture of food, drinks, and the crackling of the fire. I’d had visions of Van and Lena talking about old times as a reminder that I was younger.
That didn’t happen.
All three of us conversed. Our conversation swayed from the incident with Madison and when we’d last seen Phillip, to when Ashland and Bayfield would see a thaw. There was even an in-depth discussion between Lena and me about the Cubs versus the White Sox. Anyone could be a Cubs fan—and most people were. It took a true fan to support the White Sox. Van abstained from our discussion, saying that the only team he’d ever cheer for was the Astros.
I couldn’t decide if that should be a deal breaker on our wedding.
As we finished dinner with a cup of coffee, I mentioned Vicki’s visit. “As you may have figured, Van’s and my wedding still hasn’t happened.”
“It’s because you were waiting for me.”
I took a deep breath. “What are your plans?”
“I need to get home and back to my office, but that isn’t happening soon. I have a meeting on Monday in Madison with the team of attorneys I’ve recruited for my sister’s defense as well as an appointment with an advocate who will work as a liaison between Madison and the court. If Phillip thinks he can keep me from helping her, he’s wrong. I’ve found a loophole.” She turned to Van. “You and I need to discuss Sherman and Madison.”
“And the issue I learned about from Oscar.”
Lena nodded.
“You have a room in Ashland,” Van said.
“Yes.”
“You’re welcome to stay here.”
Her brown eyes opened wide, staring my way. She appeared genuinely surprised at my offer. “I-I.” She sat taller. “Thank you.”
“I have a friend coming in later tonight. And then sometime tomorrow...” I exhaled. “There’s no plan. Our marriage license is in Van’s desk. If we can get a judge or someone out here to say vows. Well…” I couldn’t believe I was saying this. “Since my friend will be here for me, it would be nice if you could be here for Van.”
“I haven’t done this marriage thing before,” Van said with a smirk. “I thought I needed a man to stand up with me.”
“Has he always been this sexist?” I asked with a grin.