Page 36 of The Wedding Driver
“Not my story to tell.” Tonya lifted her napkin off her lap and placed it on the table. However, she wasn’t about to let Foster’s mood fester very long. He’d been avoiding her and now Kathy ruined what had started to be a nice night.
Something had to give.
It was time to lay her cards on the table and find out if this relationship was going somewhere or if it was time to call it quits.
* * *
Foster stepped out into the evening air. He’d avoided Kathy for years, and seeing her again only reminded him why he’d tortured himself since Lisa had died. After his conversation with Jared, he knew he had some serious soul-searching to do, and he’d come to the conclusion that he owed it to himself, his daughter, and Tonya to give life a chance.
Then Kathy had to walk into the restaurant and twist his gut. He shouldn’t be mad at Tonya for not telling her who took care of Maxwell. The fact of the matter was he should have known the moment Tonya had mentioned they had gone to urgent care.
“Foster,” Tonya said with a stern tone. “Wait up.”
He paused in the middle of the dock, staring out at the lake. Country music filled the air. A few other couples strolled down the wood planks, holding hands and enjoying the romantic ambiance. He turned and leaned against one of the pylons. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let her get to me again, but she really has a way of getting under my skin. She can be relentless and I tried being nice. I can’t go through this with her again, and I feel bad that you and your family are now in the middle of it.”
“I probably should have told you that I ran into her, but you haven’t made it easy for me to have a conversation with you lately.”
“This week was busy.”
“I’ll give you that.” She stood a few feet away. “However, now that we’ve been together, you’re acting like you don’t want to be around me.”
He opened his mouth, but she held up her hand.
“I knew when I asked you out that things could go sideways. I know what you’ve been through and what you think you’re capable of and I respect that. I’m a big girl and if this is where this is going to end, then I’m okay with that. Actually, I’d rather do it now, before we end up hating each other. Your friendship is more important to me.”
He set his drink on the post. “I suck at relationships.” He ran a hand across the top of his head. “I don’t want things to end, and I’m sorry that I avoided you.”
“So I wasn’t crazy.”
“But it’s not what you think.” He reached out and cupped the side of her face. “We went a little too fast and I needed some time to think. To slow down. I wanted to talk to you about it. However, it was never the right time, or I didn’t know what to say.”
“Yeah. You should have said something.”
“I know.” He brushed his mouth over her sweet lips. “I wish you would have told me about Kathy, though.”
“It’s been seven years. She’s a smart woman. Why is she holding on to you?”
“She told me that someday I’d come back to her and I told her that would never happen. At the courthouse, after Victoria’s sentencing, I said some of the most horrible things I could have ever said to someone.”
“Like what?”
He turned, planting his hands on his hips. If he was going to seriously give this relationship a go, Tonya had the right to know the truth. Well, some of it. At least his version of it. “I started by telling her that she meant nothing to me. That she never did and that if there had been a way to send her to prison with my ex-wife, I would have because that night I had planned on leaving earlier. Kathy liked hiding my keys. It was a stupid, childish game she played with me and we ended up—well, it doesn’t matter. I’m a grown man who made a bad decision. I told Kathy she might as well have set the house on fire with Victoria and that I wished she could trade places with Lisa.”
“Jesus, Foster. That’s cruel.”
He sighed. “Does it help that I apologized for it later?”
“Perhaps a little.” She came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his back.
“I was angry at the world. She didn’t deserve those words and I do regret saying them. However, she spent the next few months harassing me. She called me or texted me every day. She’d show up at my house. I had to threaten her and she finally went away. Mostly. I mean, she has reached out every once in a while, but I ignore her.”
“So what changed? Why is she all of a sudden in hot pursuit?”
He turned, holding Tonya close, staring into her kind, warm eyes. “I’m guessing it was seeing you and me together. The idea that I moved on and am dating someone that isn’t her doesn’t settle well.”
“Oh. I hadn’t thought about that.”
“It’s the only thing I can think of.” He kissed her nose. “I don’t mean to be so moody. I’ll work on being a better boyfriend.”
