Gavin didn’t go in when he dropped off the kids at home. He pulled into the drive, told them to tell their mother he’d see her later and left. He hated how torn he felt in Savanna’s presence, felt he’d be smarter to limit contact as much as possible. Besides, he had to get the football field mowed before school let out, since Track and Field used it.
By the time he arrived at New Horizons and got the riding lawn mower fixed, he barely had enough time to get it done before the bell rang. He generally developed new ideas for songs or thought about his music career while cutting the turf. Thanks to the contacts of a fellow performer he’d met at one of his gigs, he’d been able to record a couple of demos in a studio in LA, which he’d sent to Republic Records. He was hoping to interest the label in his first two songs, but he knew he probably wouldn’t hear back. It seemed like the only way to sell a song these days was to move to Nashville, make connections, perform at the various bars, become a known entity and build from there. He’d read blog after blog stating the same thing—some from experienced and successful songwriters who’d lived in Nashville for years and were still busting their asses, hoping to attract a big label or a major artist.
Even if he relocated, he knew his chances were slim of attaining the kind of success he occasionally allowed himself to dream about, which was part of the reason he hadn’t felt too bad about trying to hold out until Aiyana married Cal. He didn’t want to leave his mother and the students at the ranch without his help and support only to have his career go nowhere, anyway.
Today, he didn’t think about music, however. He thought about how difficult it was going to be to support Savanna while he was in town, even as a good friend and neighbor, while trying to fulfill Heather’s needs at the same time.
Putting his foot on the brake, he shifted into Neutral, pulled out his phone and texted Eli. Do you think Mom will ever really marry Cal?
He pulled off his cap and wiped the sweat from his forehead while waiting for Eli’s response. But at least the answer, when it came, was hopeful. I think they’re getting darn close.
How much longer?
Is there any rush?
“Yes,” he muttered in frustration. But that wasn’t what he texted back. He wrote, Of course not, and shifted into Drive so he could finish cutting the football field. He didn’t want to push Aiyana into Cal’s arms. He just wanted to start preparing for his move so he wouldn’t be tempted to spend his nights in Savanna’s bed.
* * *
“What’s wrong?”
At the sound of Eli’s voice, Aiyana glanced up to see her oldest son standing in the doorway of her office. She’d been so deep in thought she hadn’t even heard him approach. “Nothing.”
He came in and closed the door. “Sorry, not buying that. I saw the look on your face when I walked up.”
“I’m worried, I guess.”
“About...”
“Gavin. I admire his sense of duty, the kind of man it makes him. But I fear, in this instance, his honor is leading him down the wrong path.”
“You mean with Heather.”
“That’s exactly what I mean.”
Elijah folded his long body into the chair on the other side of her desk. “You don’t like her.”
“Not a great deal.”
He rocked back. “Whoa! You saying that is like someone else saying they hate her.”
“Stop. I don’t hate her.”
“Do you believe she’s trying to trap him?”
She nibbled at her bottom lip. That was a serious allegation. She didn’t want to go that far for fear of misjudging Heather. “I have no idea, but I believe she’s secretly elated to think she will finally have the man she’s always wanted. She’s gone after Gavin so many times. And he’s tried to like her in return, given the relationship chance after chance. He just doesn’t feel for her what he should feel, and I can’t stand the thought that getting with her might make him unhappy.”
“So what do we do?”
“Is it even our place to get involved? He’s an adult. We have to let him live his life.”
Eli rested his chin on his steepled fingers. “He just asked me when you were going to marry Cal.”
She felt a fresh fissure of alarm. “He did? I wonder why he’s never asked me that question.”
“He doesn’t want to push you.”
“But...”
“I think he’d like to make sure you’re taken care of, so that he can feel free to move on with his life.”
“I didn’t realize I was holding him back.”
“You aren’t. His love for you is. Now that Heather’s pregnant, I bet he’s planning to leave Silver Springs. To pursue his music.”
“If he’s having a baby, wouldn’t he be smarter to stick around here, where he has family? Surely, he’ll want us to be part of the child’s life.”
“I’m guessing he knows he won’t be entirely happy with Heather, and this is how he’s planning to compensate.”
“You’re essentially agreeing with me—at least when it comes to Heather.”
“I am.”
“So do we have a talk with him? Or would that be too intrusive? I’ve never wanted to be overly controlling.”
Eli crossed his ankles. “He won’t listen even if we do. But we could show him another possibility.”
“What does that mean?”
“Gavin never misses Sunday dinner, right?”
Aiyana invited her sons for a meal nearly every Sunday, and those who lived close usually came. They felt comfortable bringing a friend or a date, too. Aiyana liked touching base with her boys, liked providing a big meal where they could talk and laugh and reconnect. She thought it was healthy for her youngest son to have that time with his older brothers, and for her college-age son to return when he felt like making the long drive from San Diego.
She remembered when Eli had brought Cora for the first time, how much she’d liked Cora and what their relationship had turned out to be since... “Of course not. It’s the only time he gets home-cooking.”
“So we can be reasonably confident he’ll be there this Sunday.”
“Not this Sunday. Cal’s got something going in Idaho, a cattle purchase. He’s asked me to fly up with him.”
“Then next weekend.”
“What does this have to do with anything?” she asked.
“Remember Savanna, that pretty neighbor I told you about? I say we make Sunday dinner a week after next a barbecue and swim party and invite her and her two children.”
Aiyana wasn’t convinced Eli had hit on the high-powered solution they needed. “Roger Nowitzke’s coming that weekend. I’ve already invited him for dinner.” She often included various alumni from the school, if they were in town, and she was anxious to see Roger again. He hadn’t been back since he graduated twelve years earlier. Even the boys she hadn’t adopted were sort of like her sons.
“He can be there, too. There’s no reason he can’t.”
“But I’ve never even met Savanna. How can I invite her over?”
Eli jabbed a thumb into his chest. “I’ll do it. Let’s put the two of them together for a few hours of fun, see what happens. I’m telling you, there’s something between them. I could feel it when I was around them.”
“What about Heather and the baby?”
“If he doesn’t love Heather, marrying her won’t change anything. She may think she wants him, that she’ll somehow make him love her. But odds are it’ll end in divorce. That’s what’s troubling you, isn’t it? The fact that it wouldn’t be wise, or even healthy, to enter a marriage the way he feels? She deserves more, and so does he. For that matter, so does the baby.”
Aiyana shook her head. “He’ll never see it that way. He won’t want to give up control over his child’s life. He’s taking his job as that baby’s protector very seriously. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to the child, either—his or anyone else’s—and that ties my hands.”
“Not completely. Even if he doesn’t marry Heather, if the baby’s his, we’ll all stay involved.”
“Providing Heather will let us!”
“She will.”
“Gavin won’t take that on faith.”
“Then he’d better be good at resisting temptation,” Eli said, and stood. “He came to work late today, right?”
“Around noon. Why?”
“He’ll probably be staying late to finish up. You go talk to him, delay him if you have to, and I’ll drive out to invite Savanna to the barbecue.”
“I feel guilty for meddling,” Aiyana admitted.
Eli turned back at the door. “We’re not meddling. We’re welcoming someone new into the community. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
He had a point. They were only having a barbecue.
Aiyana straightened the blotter on her desk. “How do we make sure he doesn’t bring Heather?”
“We’ll let him know we’ve invited Savanna. If he brings Heather knowing Savanna will be there, it’ll mean he’s completely committed and doesn’t like Savanna as much as I thought. There’s nothing we can do to save him at that point. But if he doesn’t bring Heather...”
She lifted the bottle of water on her desk as if she was making a toast. “Here’s hoping.”
* * *
Once again, Savanna made dinner in her Crock-Pot. Sweet pork burritos were a family favorite. And she had plenty to share. But she wasn’t sure whether or not to invite Gavin back. She’d been deliberating on that while breaking down the last of the boxes and finishing the cleaning. She didn’t want to make him feel cornered or pressured, as though she was constantly approaching him, but she did want to provide a hot meal if that was something he’d enjoy.
When she heard a knock, she thought it could be him and decided to go ahead and invite him if it was. But when she swung the door wide, she saw Eli and not Gavin on her stoop. “Hi,” she said in surprise.
Gavin’s brother smiled. “Sorry to bother you...”
“No problem. It’s not like I get many visitors. You and Gavin are the only two people I know so far.” She glanced behind him but didn’t see a vehicle—his or Gavin’s.
“Gavin’s not back from the ranch yet,” Eli said, accurately reading the question in her mind. “He should be home soon. While I was waiting for him, I thought I’d walk over and invite you and the kids to a barbecue and swim party a week from this Sunday at New Horizons. My mother and I both live on the ranch, but my mother’s place is larger, and she generally does the cooking for our family get-togethers, so we all go there.”
Savanna hadn’t expected this. “You’re inviting me to eat with your family? Your mother and your wife and...Gavin?”
“Yes. As well as my youngest brother, who goes to New Horizons. Sometimes another of our brothers shows up, too. He goes to San Diego State and can make the drive in about three and a half hours, if traffic isn’t bad.”
“How nice of you.”
“My mother would’ve asked Gavin to invite you, but I was with her when the subject came up, so I figured I’d do the honors, since I’m the first one here. It can be a challenge to acclimate to a new area, and we want you to feel welcome.”
It wasn’t easy for Savanna to get to know anyone, since she wasn’t putting the kids in school until the fall, didn’t have a job and didn’t belong to a church. She felt like she could easily go undiscovered by the community until fall—a relief in one sense but probably not so good in another. Complete isolation had its own drawbacks.
“I hope you’re free that day,” he said.
“I am and I’d love to come.” She’d made good progress moving in, was down to the outside cleanup, and she’d have that squared away by then. She still had plenty of work for contractors, but it would feel good to get out and be with other people—people who hadn’t been part of her life with Gordon and had no preexisting ideas of who she was or should be. “What time?”
“Three? That’ll give the kids a couple of hours to swim during the hottest part of the day.”
“They’ll be so excited. Thank you. And please thank your mother.”
“I will. You can ride to the ranch with Gavin. Or you can drive yourself, if you prefer.” He lifted his phone. “Would you like me to text you the address?”
“Sure.” She gave him her number and watched as he typed the information.
“Cora and I will look forward to seeing you and the kids Sunday after next, then,” he said, and sent it.
She smiled as he gave her a farewell nod and strode off.
“Who was that?” Alia asked as she and Branson came out of his bedroom, where they’d been putting together his train set.
“Gavin’s brother.”
“What’d he want?”
“To invite us to a swim party and barbecue a week from this Sunday. Doesn’t that sound like fun?”
Alia’s eyes widened. “He has a pool?”
“The party’s at his mother’s house. I’m guessing she does.”
“Yay!” As her children began to dance around, Savanna couldn’t help feeling some anticipation, too. She didn’t have a decent swimsuit—couldn’t remember the last time she’d needed one—so she’d have to check the shops in town, but even that felt exciting.
She was smiling as she went back to finish the last of what she hoped to get done before supper. And she was smiling when her phone buzzed, indicating she had a new message. Since she’d been hoping to hear from Gavin, to have the opportunity to invite him over, she looked down with some anticipation. But as soon as she saw the number on her screen, she felt her smile wilt. It was yet another text from Dorothy.
How dare you cheat on Gordon after all he’s been through! As far as I’m concerned, that’s it. I’m coming for you. You won’t know exactly when, but I’m going to make you sorry. And that’s a promise.