Once Burned

Chapter 1-2

“Speaking of my camera,” Skye remarked. “I need to run down to my cabin to get it. See you both back here in twenty?”

“Sure, but when do I get to see this cabin you rented for the next six weeks?”

“Maybe we could pop down after the rehearsal dinner. It’s gorgeous, Linds. You’d love it.”

“If it’s anything like Evie’s place—” She gestured to the two-story cabin behind her.

“—I’m sure I would.”

“It’s smaller but tucked up against that big aspen grove across the way. Cozy. Private.”

With her divorce from her philandering ex nearly finalized, the vacation rental—and Northstar in general—was exactly what Skye needed, and Lindsay was glad her friend would have the peace and quiet she needed to repair her fractured heart. But it was hard to stifle the jealousy.

“I could really use six weeks here, but I know you need it even more than I do,” she said, trying and probably failing to keep the bitterness from her voice. “You won’t mind if I live this experience vicariously through you, will you?”

“I promise I’ll keep you posted on everything I see and do.” Skye studied her, frowning. Then she wrapped her arms around her in a sympathetic hug. “I wish you could stay here with me. And I’m sorry Noah decided he didn’t want to come. I know that hurt.”

Lindsay nodded. “He would’ve loved it here.” Shifting her weight, she hugged herself. How wonderful would it be to spend six blissful, worry-free weeks here, surrounded by all this natural beauty… to have the freedom to up and decide on a whim to do it? Stubbornly, she forced her envy down, pushing it deep into the darkest recesses of her being, where it belonged. “You should probably go get your camera so we can get this show moving.”

Skye gave her a reassuring smile. “I’ll be back in a few.”

Without giving Evie the chance to remark on the turn of the conversation, Lindsay promptly said, “I probably ought to call my folks first and get changed into something that isn’t completely wrinkled from travelling, but after that, how about you show me your beautiful wedding gown and my bridesmaid dress?”

Evie eyed her briefly, but for once, didn’t press her. It wasn’t long before her excitement took over, and she was soon babbling about her impending nuptials. Awash in her friend’s vibrant joy, it was easy to let go of her bitterness. As they walked up the flagstone path, Lindsay listened to Evie’s descriptions of the wedding planning and wished she could have helped more in the process. But the way Evie told it, there probably wouldn’t have been much for Lindsay to do; the groom’s family had done much of the heavy lifting with the matriarch of the Carlyle clan—Vince’s grandmother, Livia—marshaling everyone like a drill sergeant.

“It all sounds wonderful, Evie,” Lindsay remarked. “But did you have to pick red for the bridesmaids dresses?”

Evie rolled her eyes. “You’ll look absolutely gorgeous, Linds. I promise. I picked a red that won’t clash with your red hair.”

“I’ll withhold judgment until I see it, but I doubt such a shade exists.”

With a laugh and a comment about Lindsay’s lack of faith, Evie opened the front door of her home. Lindsay inhaled sharply. The place was beautiful—log and native stone. There was a loft over the back half of the spacious great room. Below the loft and directly back from the massive front windows were the kitchen and dining room. Down the short hallway to the right were two bedrooms and a bathroom, and to the left through a door beneath the stairs up to the loft was the master suite. A beautiful stone fireplace commanded attention from the corner between the angled walls at the front of the great room, though even its grandeur could not compete with the view the big windows provided of the Northstar Mountains and Valley.

“It isn’t huge,” Lindsay remarked, “but it feels huge. Is it really yours and Vince’s now?”

“Not officially until the wedding, but yes, his grandparents are giving it to us as a wedding gift.”

Must be nice to have a family that can just give you a house. As soon as the thought wormed its way into her mind, she buried it. Evie deserved every bit of happiness she’d found here, and Lindsay would not begrudge her friend any of this. Besides, even if her wants frequently went unmet, her needs didn’t, so she had no room to complain.

“I know I said we were putting you in one of the guest bedrooms, but we’ve had a last minute change of plans. My grandmother decided to get over being mad at me for moving to Montana, and she came out with Mom and Dad. Since she just had knee surgery last week, she can’t make it up these stairs. And you know my dad’s irrational fear of heights….”

“The loft is fine, Evie. I rather like it, actually.”

“There’s not much privacy. Just those screens.”

“Why would I need more privacy than that?”

“Well, you never know. There are some attractive men in these parts.”

“Are you suggesting I should find one to hook up with while I’m here?” Lindsay inquired flatly, more intrigued by the idea than she was willing to admit. A fling to satisfy her long-ignored carnal needs with a man she’d never have to see again had a certain no-complications appeal.

“Your words, not mine,” Evie teased. With more seriousness, she said, “You’re a great mom, Linds, and I know you work your a*s off to make sure Noah has everything he needs, but you’re only twenty-six and single, and you need to think of yourself sometimes, too.” She nudged Lindsay with her elbow. “Besides, with that perfect body of yours, I imagine you’ll have just about every single man in Northstar dying to take you out.”

Not perfect, Lindsay thought, hugging herself. No matter how hard she tried to erase them, faint reminders of her pregnancy remained, and more than one man had been put off by them. Abruptly, she asked, “Um, where’s the phone?”

“There’s one beside the bed in the loft.”

Nodding in thanks, Lindsay hauled her suitcases upstairs. As her friend had said, the queen-sized bed was shielded from view by a pair of tri-fold screens. The bed itself was adorned with what appeared to be a handmade heirloom quilt of bold blue, green, red, brown, and tan in a pattern that invoked thoughts of a rustic mountain cabin. She settled her suitcases on the cedar chest at the foot of the bed and made her way around to the log nightstand where the phone sat beneath a wrought-iron lamp with a moose-print lampshade. With a flicker of hesitation, Lindsay picked up the phone and dialed her parents’ number.

“Hello?” her mother asked after the second ring.

“Hi, Mama,” Lindsay greeted. “I’m in Northstar, safe and sound.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Is it as beautiful as the pictures?”

“More so. And you should see Evie’s house. It’s incredible. She’s so lucky.”

“I bet she was glad to see you.”

Lindsay smiled fondly. “It’s so good to be together with her and Skye again—at the same time. It feels like it’s been forever. I don’t think I realized just how much I missed them.”

“Did you get any rest on the way over? You sound tired.”

“It’s been a long eight hours, but I dozed a bit on the plane and slept the whole way from Butte to Northstar.

“So you really haven’t had much time to catch up with them yet.”

“No, but at least I might be of some use for the rehearsal this afternoon. Besides, we’ll have a week and a half to catch up.”

“I still wish you would have given yourself a full two weeks off.”

Exasperated, Lindsay sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. They’d gone around and around about her trip to Montana, and it was only because her mother and father had been so stubbornly insistent that she’d agreed to ten days instead of the bare minimum to see Evie married off. “I can’t afford it, Mama. I can’t really afford ten days.”

“Your father and I could’ve helped out.”

“I don’t want you to have to help me out.”

“I know that, honey. I just wish…. Well, you know what I wish.”

That Max would put as much effort into taking care of his son as he did into making him. Lindsay sneered. She had no need to say it out loud; this was a conversation she and her parents had on a regular basis. They wanted Max to step up and willingly do his part for Noah, but Lindsay had come to believe that she and Noah would be better off—emotionally, at least—if Max would just do what he obviously wanted and step out of their lives. The constant pull on Noah couldn’t be healthy, and the never-ending strain on Lindsay was bound to make her old before her years.

“Anyhow… we’d like to take Noah school clothes shopping while you’re in Montana,” her mother continued.

“I can’t afford to buy him clothes right now, Mama.” Lindsay was able to restrain her growl of frustration, and it came out as a subdued sigh. She would have been able to take Noah shopping sooner if she hadn’t agreed to Evie’s request that she stay in Montana until the newlyweds left on their honeymoon. It was difficult to swallow the guilt even though she knew she needed the time off. She hadn’t taken more than a sick day or two here and there in over two years, and it was wearing on her.

“I said we would take him, Lindsay. And don’t you dare offer to pay us back. He’s our grandson, and you don’t let us spoil him nearly enough.”

“Max does a pretty damned fine job of spoiling him,” Lindsay muttered.

“Different kind of spoiling, dearest. This is the good kind. Anyhow, your son’s just come in from the beach. Noah, your mom’s on the phone.”

There was some shuffling on the other end of the line, and then Noah picked up. “Hey, Mom,” he said sullenly.

“Hi, baby.”

“Why do you keep calling me that. I haven’t been a baby for a long time.”

“I know that, but you’ll always be my baby just like I’ll always be your grandma’s baby.”

“Dad says that’s stupid girly talk.”

Lindsay’s face snapped into a scowl. “I really don’t care what your father says, Noah, and you’d better put that attitude in check right now, young man.”

“Sorry,” he retorted.

“What’s your issue? Grandma said you just came in from the beach, so you should be in a good mood.”

Noah didn’t immediately answer, and she could see him digging the toe of his tattered Keds into the carpet. “I wanted to go to Montana with you,” he said at last, his voice taking on a whiny note.

“Back that up. I had your plane ticket bought and paid for, and you decided you didn’t want to be stuck having to go to a wedding and doing all the ‘stupid girly stuff.’ So I cancelled your ticket. Lost fifty dollars on it, too. Remember that?”

“Yeah, but—”

“You made the choice to stay with Grandma and Grandpa, so you can’t blame anyone but yourself.” Lindsay sat on the bed and tipped her head back. “I love you dearly, but every time you come back from your father’s, you become this… this obstinate, rude little boy I don’t recognize.”

“I do not!”

“Yes, you do, but I’m not going to run up Evie’s phone bill arguing with you about it. Find a way to get back to being my sweet, polite young man again. Please.”

“Fine. Whatever.”

Irritation surged, but she swallowed it. The last thing she wanted right now was to fight with her son. This wasn’t him talking—it was his father.