Saturday 21st December
Nashville
Lunch
Mercy sat in the waiting room at the airport nervous, it had been three months since she'd been within talking distance with the man, and now, for some unknown reason she'd agreed to spend the holidays in his presence.
"Hi" his voice filled her head sending shivers down her spine, she couldn't help but smile at how nervous he looked, maybe they were feeling the same.
"Hi" her face broke out into the widest smile she'd had in a while, she didn't mean to do that, but suddenly she found herself happy to see him.
"Bags?" he asked, watching her eyes go in the direction of the cases sat next to her "God" he smiled at the mountain of cases she'd brought for a short week long break at the ranch. He picked them up and made towards the exit across the airport carpark and onto the private plane strip, to stack her cases in his air taxi.
"Thanks" she smiled as she climbed into the familiar plane and sat in the seat strapping up
"Welcome" he jumped in and started the engine, there was nothing more to say
Flying over water Mercy could only smile at the sight of their lake running through the snow topped forestry, she'd had a busy time producing her first album, and now it was time to get some well-deserved family time in. This was going to be the first time in three months she'd spent any time with Sam, they were on a relationship break, simply because their worlds had drifted so far apart, they weren't them anymore.
Fond memories flooded in as the Schuester residence with its bright yellow roof, with the usual over the top holiday garden decorations came into sight. Back in the day Mr Schuester; or Will as they fondly called him, gave private music lessons to most of the folk in the area and played at the bar on Saturday nights when he had the urge, but about six years ago he'd handed that baton over to Sam. It was winter now, but there was more tree felled in the water than she remembered from past winters, and the flow seemed rather rough.
Seconds later she caught sight of the Chang residence, the place was covered in snow today, but in the summer months, at this time in the morning, it would have been yoga time, so there'd be the people from the village on the lawn doing their thing, she frowned realising how much she'd missed a morning at home.
The air taxi took her past what they'd named rubble cove she smiled at the memory of them as newlywed's, spending many nights there doing things married people don't tell their parents about. As the banks got further apart, the plane turned into the homestead, she could see the guys from the fishing men's club stood in the freezing water up to their knees, catching fish to undoubtably start a BBQ this afternoon, suddenly she realised how much she missed the taste of fresh fish from home, it tasted different to what she had in Lima.
Fact was she missed the place she'd called home for nearly eighteen years, in fact she couldn't wait for get there to see her family and friends, the air taxi dipped, and the people below waved, exciting her at the feeling of arriving home. She waved back trying to curb the urge to jump out and grab hold of her babies, twelve-year-old Mason and nearly sixteen-year-old Jada were miniatures of them, they hadn't followed suit like most folk in the area, by calling their children something junior, but they had given them their names as middle names.
She hadn't seen her children for three solid weeks after she'd left just after the summer, she'd gone on her own to Los Angeles, because she'd bagged herself an EP deal, and it didn't include howling two children with her, so it made sense. Eight weeks later, she'd finished the EP, and LA didn't seem so urgent anymore, plus she missed her children terribly. Things were still very raw between Sam and her so after they'd had their first civil conversation about the children and he'd agreed she could have them, she celebrated with a bottle of Hennessy in one hand and a pin in the other, she closed her eyes and stuck a pin in a map, landing her in Lima.
After the first four years, money had never been a problem for them, so although it was hard having to cope alone, she needed something to fill the gap when she wasn't singing or making music. She easily fell back on what she'd been doing for the last eighteen years and opened a restaurant. Two months and she was lving her best life, children, music in her spare time and a restaurant to run, it wasn't her first rodeo in the business he knew what she was doing.
So, her new life without Sam was planned, once the holidays hit, the children would go to Sam and she'd tour and promote, it had only been ten weeks, but so far it was working, or so she thought, because now she was sat next to him, her mind was fuzzy again.
She watched as the air taxi hit near the decking and settled, before she quickly alighted onto the slippery wooden deck and made the short journey across the cleared pebbled walkway, into the cove, where her family were. In the summer the cove was a very different space was more for entertaining. About a mile up the lake they had a log cabin that was kitted out with everything they needed; loungers, bathrooms, hot tubs, eating areas, outside portable screen for night movies, but Sam used that more than they did, this cove was their place, she stepped on their private snow covered cove and took in a deep breath of home.
"Smells good, don't it?" Sam hissed at her as he passed with her bags
"Hey" she smiled, ignoring him, he always preferred an audience, her arms open for her two children to hug into
"Mom" Jada; her lookalike with dirty blond, brown, fuzzy hair, and green eyes, and twelve-year-old Mason, another Mercy lookalike but with straight hair, who had every trait of Sam you could think of, came running towards her, excited
"Thanks for coming" Mason hugged her
"You asked, I couldn't not" she smiled, wondering if that was true "Did you catch anything yet?" she laughed at the abandoned rods floating in the water, they very rarely did, and what they did, Jada was all for putting it back
"My lines stuck can you help me" Mason asked running back to his floating rod in the shallow waters
"Sorry Son, that's dad's thing" Mercy told him laughing at the thought
"You're so mean" he moaned
"Don't talk to mom like that" Jada ran into the water to splash him, Sam looked on laughing
"Dad" Mason shouted when the splashing got too much, expecting him to get Jada to stop
"Don't call me, I agree, don't talk to your mom like that"
"Thanks" Mercy mouthed to him, there wasn't very much they agreed on since the split, the journey across the lake had been quiet
It was early, and there was nothing in the basket yet, she sat on the buggy watching as Sam dragged his waterproofs on and walked into the lake with his rod, he looked so at home in his environment, she knew she'd done the right thing.
"Got one" Sam shouted after a few minutes, everyone watched as he reeled it in, "It's a big one" he struggled to keep control of the line "Lunch" he smiled turning for them all to see the size of it
"Wow" everyone shouted clapping as he brought the second one in
"It's good to have you here" he finally gave her his warm smile, making her finally feel relaxed
"It's good to be here" she smiled taking the celebratory hug
"Come on let's get back" Sam announced watching the children pick up their things and run to the buggy
"What's happened to the decorations, why isn't the house decorated?" Mercy asked shocked at it came into view looking nothing like the festive period, she was sure was happening in the small town a few miles away.
"Dad didn't believe you'd come" Mason told her
"But everything's ready, we can do that before lunch" Jada quickly added
"I'll go and get Rodderick and the guys" Mason jumped off the moving buggy
The main house was as you'd expect for somewhere by the Lake during the holidays, except it wasn't dressed for the holidays, considering it was only five miles away from the town, it felt secluded, it had a porch stretching the length of the house, five steps leading up to the double story eight-bedroom property with lavish amenities and McConaughey the family dog running around the yard, looking over a beautifully tended garden, with a triple garage, to the side, all very log cabin, and pretty brick feel. At the back of it there was a few acres of healthy farmland to play with for the cattle, it had been nearly ten years in the making, but Sam and Mercy had finally got their dream ranch together.
Two hours and the entire contents of the third garage was sitting on the porch or front lawn, ready to be switched on, a sledge with two reindeers, Santa with his sack of presents, two snowmen, and lots of candy canes, it was all there waiting to give the feel Mercy had expected when she arrives "That's better" she smiled stood a short distance from the house "We're ready" she called to Sam.
"Christmas is really here" Sam smiled as he flicked the switch and lit the front yard up to everyone's cheer
"I'm glad you're here mom" Jada hugged her
"Me too" Mason joined them
Mercy and the children sat on the veranda wrapped in fake fur blankets, scarves, hats, and gloves, conversing, catching up while watching Sam clean the fishes, and marinate the stakes, ready for their meal. Her phone buzzed closing the conversations down, the children looked at each other, they were more than aware of what phone calls usually meant for their mother "I guess I better go freshen up" she finally left the family to take the rest of the call in private.
"Your bedroom's got your name on it" Jada smiled "Mason and I did it"
"Thank you, baby," Mercy smiled walking off to see what was in store for her, it was crazy walking past the main bedroom and not having the right to enter, she couldn't resist peeping in though, and was sad that it didn't seem like he was using it either. They'd put her in the bedroom next to the main one, she opened the door and smiled at the purple room, "A bit over kill on the colour scheme" she laughed looking around at the matching bedding, curtains, lay low, but it was cosy. She finished the call and sat looking around the room wondering, even now, had she done the right thing.
The shower was refreshing, she took her time to get dressed, that wasn't a luxury she often afforded, suddenly the nose downstairs had her wondering what was going on, she left her room, checking the other rooms as she walked past, smiling at the children putting her next to Sam "Temptation" she frowned before venturing downstairs
"Is that table ready?" she heard Sam shouting as she re-entered the back porch nearly an hour later; she stood in the doorway smiling, it was the little things like watching the children run around to make sure it was all done before they answered him, that she missed, he truly was the man of the house.
"I noticed your Santa suit hanging, seriously?" Mercy laughed, grabbing the blanket to cover herself, making no secret of the fact that she'd been sneaking around upstairs
"What?" he turned, stopping to take her in "You..."
"Dad" Jada walked out from behind her with a bowl of salad in hand "Please tell me you're going to buy a new suit for my recital instead of wearing that old Santa suit again"
"What's..." he tried to pull his eyes away from his wife, he shook his head, telling his brain to engage "What's wrong with my Santa suit?" he finally looked at Jada
"I'm nearly sixteen now dad, it gets a bit old after six, but you never listen"
"What?" he looked at Mercy again shocked "Did you put her up to this"
"No" Mercy giggled
"Well, she's never complained before"
"Oh, I've complained" the girl stood there wiggling her head with attitude, everyone knew she was about to get real with him "Every year since I was ten, I've just been very nice about it, but now, I'm sixteen and you said I needed to stand up for what I want in life" Jada threw his words back at him "So, that's what I'm doing" Sam stood shocked looking at Mercy
"Sorry Sam, but I have to agree with her" Mercy laughed
"Where's the loyalty?" he asked laughing, looking back at his daughter they stood having their usual non-verbal conflict with their eyes until as usual he gave in, he couldn't not, she was the image of her mother "Okay" he grinned "If that's what you want, I'll buy a new suit"
"Thank you" she hugged him "Are you here for the holidays mom?" Jada asked, seeing the telltale signs of her mom ready to give bad news
"Sorry" Mercy looked across at Mason playing his game "The call" she held her phone up
"I knew it" Mason threw his game down
"Sorry, something's come up which means I have to fly back to Lima today, after lunch actually"
"No" Jada moaned
"You've just got here" Sam gasped
"I should be back tomorrow"
"Have you booked your flight already?" he asked
"Four" she told him
"Is the mysterious Joe coming back with you?" Mason asked
"No" she smiled at the conversation she was having with her twelve-year-old "I didn't invite him, because we're not a thing"
"As always, he's another imaginary boyfriend" the attitude in Mason's voice made Mercy look at Sam for support, he didn't give any
"He's not imaginary and he's not my boyfriend, he's the guy that found the restaurant for me, and he's just hung on, I'm not comfortable with him, let alone having him around my family" Mercy told her defensively
"There have been a few that have been unmeetable" Jada carried on
"Is that a word?" Mason asked Sam laughing
"That's because they're mostly work colleagues as you already know young lady, and they're friends, nothing else" Mercy snapped ignoring Mason
"Hello" Will and Emma walked through into the garden, breaking the quickly developed tense moment
"Hey" Mercy smiled leaving the blanket to walk towards them
Will had been in theatrics for many years, but just after Sam and Mercy moved into their home, he'd done himself an injury during a performance causing him to swifty retired from stage, since then he'd been a music tutor in the community. Will and Emma had two boys Michael who was thirty-one and a love child Taylor named after Emma's deceased dad.
"Now there's a smile I haven't seen in a while" Will hugged Mercy grinning "And you got him to decorate the house" he pulled away from her "Impressed"
"He's been distracted, and I've been busy" she told him as she moved towards Emma for a hug "The restaurant, my music, the children, it doesn't leave much time for anything else" she looked around "Where's the boys?"
"It's been two years, boys are men now, you knew about Michael's first child, but he has two now, Terrie's popping them out like she's racing against time, and Taylor's off trying his hand at drag racing"
"He's what sixteen?" Mercy pulled away from her concerned
"Don't worry his brother's taken him to watch the drag racing for the afternoon, he'll be joining us any minute now" Emma assured her
"Oh" Mercy smiled relieved "I had flashes of Jada wanting to do the same thing, you know how those two are"
"This looks good" Emma looked over Mercy's shoulder at the food on the BBQ "It's been a while since I've tasted your cooking" she looked at Sam before reaching for a hug from him
"Come on sit, we're just about ready" Sam told Emma nodding at the seats while piling stakes on a plate, Mason blessed the table, and they tucked in
"Should I tell one of my jokes?" Mason asked excited, making Mercy smile for how much like his father he was
"Dare I say just one?" Sam grinned
"Taylor" Jada got up excited to see her best friend again "I've missed you" she hugged him
"Missed you guys too, but it's only been three weeks" he smiled at her "Aunt M" he moved off to go hug her "Long time"
"You've grown" Mercy stood up to hug him, laughing at him being taller than her now "I can still whoop your ass" she reached up to kiss his cheek "Good to see you, where's your brother?"
"Simon had an accident in the car, he took him home to change him"
"Uncle" he touched fists with Sam, before ruffling Mason's hair, and sat next to him "What did I miss?"
"Mason was about to tell us one of his jokes" Jada rolled her eyes at the pending treat
"Okay" Mason sat up straight and rubbed his hands down his thighs excitedly "Listen to this" he laughed to himself "Why did the scarecrow win an award?" he asked looking around the table
"I don't know" Sam encouraged him "Why did the scarecrow win an award?"
"Because he was outstanding in his field" he laughed
"I get it" Will laughed "The boy is so much like you" he looked at Sam laughing
"What field did he win in?" Emma asked frowning
"You're nearly as funny as him" Will laughed harder throwing food in his mouth
"So, how long are you here for?" Emma asked Mercy, ignoring the joke she didn't get
"I intended on coming for the week, but I've literally just had a call telling me we haven't got a manager on site for tonight in Lima"
"But there's a cook?" Emma asked
"Yeah, but the cook hasn't got a liquor licence, so I have to go back for the evening, I should be back tomorrow afternoon, at the latest, I'm hoping Sam can pick me up from the airport"
"Just a day?" Will asked
"Yeah, I have to be back here tomorrow, I got a call from Tina, someone told her I was home" she looked at Sam
"I told Henna you were home" Mason confirmed
"Yeah, I think I mentioned it to her too" Jada added
"She's down on staff so she needs me to help her with the pre-theatre rush, we're expecting tomorrow afternoon" she smiled
"So, this isn't a holiday with us then?" Sam asked concerned
"I want it to be" her eyes begged him to understand "I'm trying Sam"
"Mom" Jada moaned "It's my birthday on Tuesday"
"I know what day it is sweetheart" Mercy smiled at her "I'll be back tomorrow"
"Promise?"
"I promise sweetie, we'll still get our time, I could bring you guys with me, it's just for a day, we'll be back in time to spend the rest of the holidays together"
"We want you to be home all the time" Mason moaned
"I'm sorry, but you know this isn't home anymore" Mercy looked at the children, sorry for bringing it all up again "And that I'm committed to my restaurants, I have to help Marley and Tina, because I made promises to them"
"You promised us as well" Mason snapped at her
"Hey" Sam looked at him "That's your mom young man"
"Sorry mom" he smiled sheepishly
"You're upset, I know but we'll be back tomorrow"
"I don't want to stay overnight" Jada announced "I want to stay with dad"
"Come on" Sam smiled at her "Your mom's trying her best"
"I don't want your dad coming across to get me late at night"
"I could bring the children to the restaurant in the morning, and pick you all up when you're done early evening, it would give me the chance to do some last-minute shopping, they wouldn't even miss a thing" Sam tried to help
"You would do that?" Mercy asked knowing how much he hated shopping
"I'll do anything to make the children happy, you know that, and I did promise I'd get a new suit" he looked at Jada smiling
"That sort of implies that I wouldn't" Mercy snapped at him
"Actually, Rachel's son is coming to us for the holidays" Will interrupted their conversation before it got heated "That husband of hers" he shook his head "They're going through a pretty rough time, and we thought Finlay shouldn't be made to suffer, so we asked if he could come to us, she grabbed at the offer"
"She's not doing well" Emma told them
"Sad to hear that" a wave of guilt swept over Mercy at that being their situation right now
"Yeah, Sam's picking them up tomorrow so if eight isn't too early, he could take the children to you first thing" Will told her
"That works, I was planning on driving into town tomorrow actually, so I can do the pickup, get back grab the car and the children, and get to you for nine"
"Okay, problem solved" Will smiled at the two of them
"So" Sam picked up his glass of beer, still ready to make noise "Prey tell what kind of unmanageable crowd, does a night at the theatre generate, in a small town near Lima?"
"Even small towns have people that are interested in more than the sound of crickets and rendering plants" Mercy snapped back
"I for one never get tired of that?" Sam looked around
"Well, I'm sorry I got tired of it" she hissed
"Come on, mom, dad" Jada looked from one to the other "It's the holidays, you promised"
"We did, sorry sweetheart" Mercy smiled at her and then at Sam, he was so damn irritating
The conversation got lighter after that, they stayed on safe subjects until lunch was over, they'd agreed birthdays and special holidays would be family time and for the sake of the children they needed to stick to that and put everything they had on their front burner to the back.
"Lima calls I guess" Sam eventually got up and threw his napkin on his plate "Are you ready?"
"Yeah" she got up and kissed her children "I'll see you tomorrow morning bright and early" she hugged them
"Will, Emma" she smiled going around to hug them "It was lovely seeing you again, we'll see each other over the holidays"
"Sure will" Emma smiled, Mercy grabbed her coat, overnight bag, and they were gone
They didn't really know Rachel, she'd visited a couple of times, but she wasn't sociable, she was one of Will's co-workers from back in the day, they knew she had two dads from the stories Will told, but they separated. Story has it, her parents went underground and were never talked about again, Rachel was theatrical and had one child, Finlay who hadn't visited for nearly ten years.
Ready?" Sam smiled as they jumped into the buggy to get to the plane
"Yep" she clipped the buckle and held onto her purse, he had a habit of trying to frighten the life out of her, but the short journey was quiet and calm.
As the plane lifted off, she couldn't help but feel sad, she'd left a lot of her heart back there. As they flew across the lake and over the snowy mountains towards the main airport it felt like her heart was being ripped out all over again "Well I thought you'd have at least lasted the day roughing it" Sam snapped at her, she should have guessed he was a pressure cooker waiting to go off.
"What makes you think I ever had anything against roughing it"
"Maybe the fact that you couldn't get away fast enough?"
"Yeah, that's me, love my clean get aways"
"You call it clean?"
"Sam" she looked at him "Okay, it wasn't clean, we both got hurt" she snapped the conversation into silence "And those digs from Jada, why didn't you back me?" she broke the silence asking
"And say what?"
"You let her because you wanted to hear what I had to say, didn't you?" she looked at him "If you wanted to know you could have asked"
"So?" he looked at her
"No" she snapped "I'm not seeing anyone, not like that, not yet" they sat in the silence "You?"
"No" he looked at her "You fell out of love with me remember, I'm not like you I can't just turn this shit off"
"For the record, you who always knows what the hell I'm thinking, I didn't fall out of love with you, I fell out of love with a life full of rendering plants, and damn crickets"
"Isn't that the same thing?"
"No Sam, it isn't" the silence let her know he was thinking on what she'd said
"Are you sure this is it for us?"
"Sam" she moaned, unsure if she was elated, or relieved, he'd asked the question
"You know I know what that tone means" he laughed "I just thought, because of the children..."
"Sam" she held her hand up at him "I am not the one, and this is not the damn day" there was too much water under that bridge to just solve it all with makeup sex, which she really wouldn't have minded had there been someone else to fly the damn plane. They sat in silence until the air taxi landed "I'll see you at nine sharp" she got out the plane and went across to get to the airport
"Nine it is" he watched her walk until she was out of sight
Along with everything else in his life Sam ran an air taxi business, it kept him busy with people opting for the twenty-minute flight across the lake rather than drive the hour and forty-five minutes around it. Change was on the way however; a road was being constructed, which meant more freedom for the families living around the lake, maybe more publicity and access for the fishing club he ran with Will's help, the possibilities were endless.
When Sam wasn't flying, ranching, or fathering, he was writing songs, he did that now-a-days more so than singing, which he'd done a lot in his early days, of late he'd taken over from Will at the local bar on Saturday nights. He'd written a few songs with Mercy, and she'd even managed to get some of them released along the way. She was right he'd always been happiest when he was in the countryside away from the bustle of city traffic, but she was a city girl and he'd been delusional to believe his way of life was always going to be enough for her.
It had only been three months, but they were trying hard at being friends now but for him it still hurt, and everything she said or did was a trigger for him, either to love her or hate her so he was having problems with mixed messages. Even with everything that had gone on between them, he still couldn't see his life without her in it, in some way, shape, or form, so if this was it, he'd settled for it. He'd got a lot of reasons that could last a lifetime to keep her close, the children, their weddings, grandchildren, her restaurant, all adding to his master plan to keep her front and centre.
Lima
Dinner
"Thank God you've arrived" Ryder greeted Mercy at the restaurant door
"Walk and talk, and please tell me why we're open" Mercy instructed, going into boss mode as they walked through the restaurant, smiling at the few customers as he talked her through what was happening
"The waiter's dropped a crate of our best wine, and of all the people the mayor decided to drop in with a party of twelve, he's just arrived I couldn't leave him outside, but I'm betting they'll all be ordering fresh salmon, and did I mention we have no wine to serve them"
"Well, offer them a couple of bottles of champagne, on the house of course, and this is Lima, when can we not get fresh salmon" Mercy looked at him "What did you say was wrong with Kitty?"
"It's not kitty, my mom's had a fall"
"Is she alright?" Mercy stopped to ask
"Not sure, but we both couldn't go, and to be honest she's better with Kitty at the moment, at least she recognises her which calms her"
"I hope everything goes well, keep me posted" she pushed the kitchen door open to turn her attention to the food "Marley talk to me"
"Boss" Marley looked up smiling "Sorry you only got a day with your family"
"I'm going back as soon as I sort things here" Mercy told her
"I guess people with rich husbands can do shit like that" Marley laughed
"Rich soon to be ex-husbands" she laughed "I have my own shit too" she frowned looking around
"I know you do; you're Mercedes Jones or is that Evans at the minute, can't tell with that glow you've got going on" she laughed
"I haven't" she laughed "We promised Jada we'd be a family for her sixteenth and of course the holidays tagged onto it for Mason's ask, I should be back before the new year"
"And you guys don't break promises, right"
"To the children no, but I guess we broke a pretty big one to each other" she frowned
"I'm not blaming you" Marley stopped cooking to look at her "How is hunky Sam?"
"He seems good, or at least I thought he was until he started pushing my damn buttons"
"He's more than good if I remember rightly"
"You saw him for all of three minutes at the airport once" Mercy laughed "His cowboy charm went over my head a long time ago" she rolled her eyes at drooling Marley
"But not his good looks?" she smiled
"I agree with that, but there are only so many times fishing retreats, weeklong hikes, cattle, men's clubs, sea taxis, and whatever he could find to fill his time, can come in front of you, before and you get fed up with living a lonely life"
"But eventually he'd come home, and you'd be sharing a bed with the hunk they call Sam Evans" she looked at Mercy "I don't see the problem" she served her some of the house sauce for testing
"That's good" she commented on the source "But try putting up with that for nearly eighteen years" she walked around the kitchen "We'd both been working so hard to get the ranch just how we wanted it, and when he got pissed off he'd go off for a week fishing with the boys, and I'd be left at home with the children, stressing about everything, and once it was all done, I was lonely"
"But you had the children, how could you be lonely?" she carried on cooking
"I slowed my dreams for him, so much so he forgot about mine once he got his"
"Jake used to go sit on an oil rig for weeks at a time, I didn't have children to see me through" Marley smiled at her "I mean since we settled into us, I have a good life, if I was still sitting waiting for him to be finished doing whatever the hell he wanted to do with his life, I never would have gone back to cooking school, got qualified, met you, and got this great job, you know?"
"Yeah, I mean I'll take shaky financial independence over good companionship and regular sex any day" Mercy laughed
"I'm running the risk of sharing too much here" Marley looked at her "But the sex isn't that regular" she turned and walked away, leaving Mercy giggling
"Okay" Mercy clapped her hands "Listen up Kitty isn't here tonight so unfortunately for you, I'm it, and what am I?" she asked the ten people standing in the kitchen
"A perfectionist" they shouted back
"I know you can do it, so I need everyone fed and finished by eleven sharp, I have a plane to catch"
Nashville
"Dad's back" Mason looked up at the plane coming towards them
"I can tell by the early dip he's in a mood" Jada frowned
"This plan to get them back together, do you think it's going to work?" Mason asked her
"Not if they're still mad at each other" Jada grabbed him around the neck for a hug "We'll work it out bit" they walked towards their dad "He looks lonely"
"Because he needs mom"
"He needs someone" she let Mason go to hug her dad
"Who needs someone?" Sam asked
"I was saying Taylor needs someone special in his life"
"I hope you're not implying you need someone, you're way too young for all that" Sam looked at her
"You're still my one and only papa" she laughed hugging him again
"Dad" Mason looked up at him "Can we make fresh cakes?"
"I'm playing tonight son" Sam told him "Let me get a bath and think about it"
They spent the early evening making cupcakes, afterwards Sam went out to check on the livestock and secure the plane
"I think you're right, dad's lonely" Mason told Jada
"I think you might be right" they both looked at the door as their dad came through it, looked at each other and smiled
"Come on guys get ready for bed, Britt will be here soon" Sam told them, watching as they got up to go through their routine before bed "I'll be in when you're in bed son" he told him as he hugged and kissed Jada "Sleep tight sweetheart" he waited fifteen minutes before going to check on Mason "Teeth?" he waited for him to nod
"Everything's done dad"
"Just checking" Sam laughed "Goodnight son"
"Goodnight dad" Mason sat up watching him leave "Dad" he called after him
"Son?" he turned to look at his boy
"Do you ever get lonely?"
"I'm too busy to get lonely" he smiled
"Do you miss mom?"
"Sure do, it was really hard seeing her again today, brought back some memories"
"Like when you brought her here when you got married?"
"That's right" he smiled "I came up here to work one summer before college and fell in love with the place" he looked out the open window "When I finished college I wanted to move here, but Grampa didn't want a straw of it, he wanted me to be a lawyer, he got so mad when we told him"
"Mom?" he smiled
"Yeah, your mom was right there, defending me" he laughed "She'd never even seen the place, then we got married, both grampas passed, we thought why not and moved here" he frowned "She loved it, then we had you two" he walked towards him and brushed his hair off his face
"And then?"
"And then" he looked into his son's eyes unable to tell him the truth "And then, here we are" his entire life with his wife flashed in front of him in that second "Time for bed you" he pulled the covers up and kissed his forehead before leaving the room
"Britt" he smiled seeing her sat on the couch as he came downstairs "Thanks for getting here on time" he told the babysitter; she'd just turned nineteen and currently on holiday from the college she attended in Vancouver, She was Sue's step daughter, usually Emma would come round, or the children would go to Emma's and he'd pick them up the next day, but tonight he'd booked Brittany, mainly because Emma was having visitors tomorrow. "I won't be long; I'll get you home when I get back"
"Thanks Mr Evans" she smiled before putting her eyes back on her phone
He left to go to the bar to do his usual Saturday night gig, it was more than just a gig, it was time to spend with his friends Mike wasn't there, but Artie was just as good a listener "Dude" he knocked fists with Artie the owner
"Shot?" Artie looked at him asking "Was it tough?"
"The toughest" he held his head in his hands "I just wanted to beg her to come back you know"
"It will get..."
"Please don't, it won't I'll never accept this getting easier"
"I know you understand this" Artie looked at him "If she moves on at some point, you're going to have accept it" he poured a shot
"I think she's going to have to really throw that shit in my face, by that I mean literally say it"
"Dude" Artie stood with the bottle in his hand, watching him take the shot "Go do your thing" Artie told him, pouring him another shot, watching him throw it down his throat before taking the stage to sing his rendition of 'You're Not There' by Lukas Graham
I only got you in my stories, and you know I tell them right, and remember you and I, when I'm awake at night.
So, give it up for fallen glory, I never got to say goodbye, I wish I could ask for just a bit more time
Every step I take, you used to lead the way, now I'm terrified to face it on my own
You're not there, to celebrate the man that you made, you're not there, to share in my success and mistakes,
Is it fair? You'll never know the person I'll be, You're not there, with me...
Though I know that you're not there, I still write you all these songs, it's like, you got the right to know what's going on
As I struggle to remember how you used to look and sound, at times I still think I can spot you in the crowd...
Lima
"Hey" Mercy smiled at Joe stood in the doorway of her restaurant "What are you doing here?"
"Just finished work, I came by to get some leftovers, but this is a nice surprise"
"Give me fifteen minutes" she looked around at the empty tables "I'm on my way back to Nashville in about... four hours" she looked at the clock
"I was also coming to get your address from Kitty, I'm out to get a great commission from a property that's just come in over there, and I thought I'd take the opportunity to challenge myself to get a close on it while you were out there"
"You're stood here in Lima, and you coincidentally found a property in Nashville to sell?" she stopped to look at him
"To be honest it's more of an office bet" he laughed "Hope you don't mind"
"I don't mind Nashville's a big place" she walked off to finish cleaning up before she left for the airport. "So" she finally sat in the chair opposite him "Have you decided whether this is a challenge or an opportunity yet?"
"Both" he smiled, attempting to grab her hand "When I get there, should I book us a double room at the hotel?"
"Joe, I told you, we're not a couple, and I'm staying with my family"
"In his house?" his tone strained
"It's our house, my family live in it" she told him, this man had predator traits
"How are the children?" he quickly changed the subject
"Pissed at the fact that I'm here" she frowned at him wanting to know her business, he already knew too much having found her the apartment and the business
"But did they have a good day?"
"We all loved it, I miss home, but I made my choice"
"Well, I'm glad to hear that" he laughed "Does being glad make me a bad person?"
"It makes you an honest person" she smiled at him falsely "Are you going to be with your family for the holidays?"
"Am I?"
"Joe" she frowned "Let's not run before we can walk" she huffed "We've known each other for a hot minute, through business, let's not mud the waters" she already regretted going for a meal with him a few weeks ago
"I'm not trying to pressure you"
"I need to rest; I've got a flight in a few hours"
"Why not wait till the morning and travel with me?"
"Because I've arranged for my family to meet me first thing in the morning, and I need to get some sleep on the flight" she got up "I'll try and find some time to catch up with you after the holidays"
"Try?"
"Yeah, try" she looked at him
"So, they're the..."
"Okay" she stopped the conversation "Rephrase, let's not walk before we can crawl"
"Try" he held his hands up accepting her decision, "I suppose a kiss is out of the question?"
"You suppose right" she smiled at him before he turned and disappeared through the door
"I'm not feeling that one" Marley came out of the kitchen commenting "A bit pushy"
"My thoughts exactly" Mercy sat watching the door "He's fucking delusional"