Chapter 16
Ever since their tryst in the barn, Magnolia felt a shift in the dynamic. Gone was the tension, and in its place was a calming flow. Dax’s smiles came so easily now, and Magnolia ate up each and every one like it was candy. The mid-afternoon sun peeked out from behind the gray sky, and the unseasonal heat from the days before gave way to cool fall air. The crispness tickled her cheeks, and when she looked at Hayden running around the yard with the new horse figurine Dax got for him she relished the pink in his cheeks, as well. The country air was doing Hayden so much good. He smiled all the time and his laughter was infectious to her.
Magnolia chased after him, with her arms spread wide. “I’m going to catch you! You better run.”
“No, Mommy, no.” He giggled so hard his whole body rocked, then he took off running. His toddler legs barely propelled him forward fast enough, especially in the soggy ground. Yet he peeked over his shoulder, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
Hayden was so focused on running away from Magnolia he didn’t even see Dax waiting for him just a few feet away. With two big steps, Dax wrapped his arm around Hayden’s midsection and lifted him off the ground. “Ha! I got you.”
The squeal of laughter Hayden let out rang across the open yard. For the first time, Magnolia realized this was what family should be. This piece of heaven was everything to her. She ran up and wiggled her fingers at Hayden. “Get ready for the tickle monster!”
“Oh, no! Tickle monster!” Dax tossed him up on his shoulder and began to run across the yard. Oh, the man was fine, with his dark jeans, white shirt, and plaid shirt hanging perfectly off his shoulders. An ear-splitting smile crossed his face, and for once his stubble-covered jaw wasn’t ticking when they were together. It didn’t seem possible, but Hayden giggled even harder, as Magnolia chased them around the yard.
“Magnolia! What the hell?”
That harsh New York accent made her stop in her tracks. She spun so quickly she stumbled forward. “Eric? What are you doin’ here?”
A smooth smile spread across Eric’s face as he began to walk across the yard toward them. He was the complete opposite of Dax, with his light gray dress pants, white button down shirt and tie hanging loosely around his neck. He’d tossed his suit coat over his shoulder and held it there with one finger hooked into it. With each step he took, his black dress shoes sunk into the wet earth and mud caked over them. Secretly, Magnolia knew he’d hate it, and she wished it had rained more the night before.
In college, Eric had overwhelmed her with sophistication, flattery, and a smoothness that came naturally to him. The country girl had been a sitting duck for the city boy. He’d waltzed her off her feet in new and exciting ways she’d never seen. Looking back on it all now, she realized one important detail—Eric had benefited from her being young and naïve. Now that her rose-colored glasses had been removed, Magnolia saw exactly who and what he was, a smooth talking player.
Dax strolled up beside her. Under his breath, he whispered to her, “Is that who I think it is.”
“Ugh, yeah,” she whispered back.
When Dax put Hayden on his feet, the boy immediately took off running toward Eric. As he closed in on him, Eric knelt down and spread his arms open wide. Hayden ran at him. “Hi, Dad.” At the last moment, instead of running into his father’s outstretched arms, he ran right past him. “Bye, Dad.”
“Whoa.” Dax stifled a chuckle.
Magnolia elbowed him. “Shh, stop.”
Eric shook his head as he stood and continued to walk up to them. As soon as he was only a few feet away, he motioned between Magnolia and Dax. “What the hell is this?”
Dax shrugged and gave him a snide smile. “Insta-family… just add Dax.”
Laughter burst past Magnolia’s lips, and she covered her mouth with her fingers. “You’re so bad.”
Eric pursed his lips. “What is a Dax?”
“I’m a Dax.” He extended his hand. “Pleased to meet you.”
Eric gave Dax’s hand a withering glance before he turned on Magnolia. “Is this what you’ve been doing all this time? You didn’t return any of my calls, not one text. I had to harass your mother to find out where you were.”
Dax dropped his hand and put it on his hips. “Seems to me, if she wanted to talk to you, she would have.”
“Do you mind? I’m trying to have a conversation with my wife.” Eric motioned from Magnolia to himself.
Hayden ran back up between them and they all fell silent as he reached up toward Eric. “Pick me up, please.”
Eric immediately began to reach down, then paused. “You’re covered in mud, buddy. After you get cleaned up. Okay?”
“Geez, Magnolia, where’d you find this guy? The prissy pen?” Dax reached forward and hiked Hayden up on his hip. Hayden’s feet rubbed up against Dax’s jeans, covering them in mud… He didn’t blink twice.
Eric closed his fist at his side. “Why didn’t you call me back, Mag?”
Ugh, she hated when he called her Mag. “I needed time to think without you talkin’ in my ear.”
“Well, you’ve had time enough. We need to work this out,” he demanded.
“Ha! Man, this guy has no idea who he’s dealing with, does he?” Dax tilted back his head and laughed.
“Listen here, bud—”
Before Eric started a fight he couldn’t win, Magnolia interrupted him. “Dax, why don’t you take Hayden in for some cookies.”
“All right.” He took two steps and paused next to Eric, leaning in. “If you even saw who she really was, you would know by now. No one forces Magnolia Reed to do anything.”
In the moment, Magnolia knew Dax saw her for exactly for who she was, and he relished her inner strength. He glanced over his shoulder and winked at her.
Eric didn’t miss a beat. “When you’re an adult, you learn to compromise. Magnolia understands she can’t just go do what she wants all the time. This is about us, not just her.”
Dax placed Hayden on his feet. “Run on inside. I’ll be there in a moment.” Hayden charged around the side of the house and out of sight.
“Dax, don’t.” Magnolia stepped forward, ready to stop him from hitting Eric.
He waved her away. “Don’t worry.” He stepped up to Eric. “You know what your problem is, pal?”
“Why don’t y’all tell me what my problem is?” Eric said in a mocking phony southern accent.
Dax chuckled. “Maggie is a shining star, and because you don’t understand how to grab hold of it, you try to force her into a something you can grab and control. And that is your first mistake.”
Utterly stunned, Magnolia crossed her arms over her chest and turned on Eric. “Was it about us when you slept with your skanky receptionist? Was that a compromise I’m supposed to make?”
Dax laughed as he walked back toward the house. “That, my friend, is Magnolia Reed. You might’ve put a dent in her, but she’s all better now, and I pity what’s about to happen.” He spun and pointed at her. “Oh, and honey, if you go after his bony ass, I won’t pull you off him.”
A slow smile spread across her face as he walked out of view. Eric rounded on her. “What in the hell was that, Mag? Are you sleeping with that guy?”
“You lost the privilege of having that information when you stuck your puny pecker in someone else.”
“Ugh, you are so stubborn and difficult. Can’t you see I am the only one who will be with you for exactly who you are?” He pressed his hand to his chest.
Magnolia tilted her head to the side looking up at her beautiful husband. In the short time she’d been away from him, his hair had grown disheveled; even his normally pressed white button down was rumpled. “Some people like my stubborn side.”
“Oh, come on. No man likes an immobile woman. Except me—you know I am the only one who will love you the way you want. Just let me love you, Magnolia.” He stepped forward and put his hands on her crossed arms.
Let him love me? Was this how he’d gotten her to stay all those years ago? Telling her he was the only one who would love her for the way she was? Putting her down, just to make himself look better? She stepped out of his grasp. “Do you even hear yourself?”
“What?” He threw up his arms.
“Is this how you’ve always spoken to me?” She wrapped her arms around herself. Thinking back over the years at all the times they’d argued, had he told her she was stubborn, convinced her she wasn’t worthy of anyone else? Standing in front of him, listening to his words, she questioned how she’d spent the last few years with him. Had her fake, plastered-on smile been a result of him always low key hurting her?
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He spun in a circle, looking around the farm. “Is this really the life you want? We can have it all, Mag. The beautiful house, the family, we can even have another kid if you want. I’ll do all that for you. Just come home.”
Do it all for me? How could she have fallen for this line of bullshit for so many years? Dax and Eric were polar opposites in more than just looks. Where Eric saw a person he needed to conquer, Dax saw a partner in crime. Where Dax wanted to let her run free and support her while doing it, Eric wanted her to step back into his shadow and play the role of the good little wife. Buying a new family car every five years and saving up for that one family vacation to Florida each year. What in the hell had she been thinking, staying with him all this time? She took another small step back. “I want a divorce.”
“Oh, no. You don’t get to just leave me. We are going to work this out.” He dropped his jacket to the ground and shoved his hands in his hair. “You are the only one I can picture my life with, Mag.”
She ground her teeth and hardened against him. “Then you should’ve thought of that before you cheated.”
“I have been thinking about it, and I am so sorry. You are everything to me.” He fell to his knees, coating his pants in mud.
Magnolia’s eyebrows shot up. “Eric, get up. What are you doin’?”
He cupped his hands together. “Please, Magnolia, I can’t be without you. I know I messed up, but there has to be a way we could work it out. What can I do to change your mind?”
How the hell did he go from telling her how much she sucked and how great he was, to how could he fix this? She was getting emotional whiplash trying to keep up with his changing moods. “For the love of Pete, get up.”
“I’m not getting up until you tell me you’ll at least think about it before asking me for a divorce. I know we can be happy if you just let me take care of everything like I want to.”
Magnolia felt the weight of him pushing her in her chest. The longer he stayed kneeling in front of her, the more she wanted to walk away. This man had kept her pinned down for years, cheated on her and was now refusing to move unless she agreed to think about walking back into a toxic situation. “I think you should leave. Now.”
He shook his head. “I’m not leaving until you agree to just think about it.”
“I don’t want to think about it. I want this to be done.” She again crossed her arms over her chest.
“I know I’ve made mistakes, but you have too.”
She frowned at him. “How have I messed up?”
He leaned forward and whispered, “I know you slept with him, it’s written all over him. But I forgive you, Mag. Now you should forgive me.”
“Eric, just go.”
“No! Not until you agree to think about going to counseling with me.” He held his fists at his sides and remained unmoving.
What more could she say? She wanted him to leave but he refused. For the first time, Magnolia did exactly what he’d done to her for years… she lied. “I’ll think about it.”
When a smile of relief spread across his face, she almost felt guilty. Almost.