Another Chance at Happiness

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

A week later, the phone rang late, well, late for her. It was ten p.m.—never good news. She didn’t recognize the number. Also not good. She hoped it wasn’t one of her guests with a problem; the inn had only been officially open for a few days. Lela answered hesitantly. “Hello?”

“Lela? Baby, don’t hang up. Please.” s**t. Nathan.

Anxiety stabbed her. “What’s wrong, Nathan? Are you hurt?”

“I wanted to make sure you were home ‘fore I drove over there.” His words slurred when he spoke.

“Don’t you dare drive over here, Nathan!”

“But, baby, I wanna talk to you,” he whined.

“How much have you been drinking? Where are you?”

“I’ve been gettin’ my drink on fer a while… just a couple’a beers.”

Which meant more like five. And probably just as many shots of whiskey too. “Where are you?” She searched her closet for clothes to throw on.

“I’m with the guys. Ya know, from my ol’ job at the rig?” Lela could hear other male voices talking and laughing in the background.

“Where’s the rig now?”

“By Fort Lupton. Iss not that far, I can be there inna bit.”

“Will you do me a favor, Nathan? Nathan?” He was talking to someone, but she couldn’t make out the words. It sounded like he was covering the phone with his hand.

“Hold on.” More talking. This time she could hear the deep voice of another man arguing with him.

“You aren’t fuckin’ goin’ over there.”

“f**k you, Jimmy. I’ve heard enough s**t outta you tonight,” Nathan slurred.

“Give me that phone.” Lela heard the sounds of a struggle and then a loud clatter as the phone dropped to the ground. It was picked up, then… “Hello?” Not Nathan this time.

“Hi. Look I…” she began.

“Nathan is drunk off his a*s, honey. Can’t you just leave him alone?”

“Excuse me?” she snapped back. “He called ME saying he was going to drive over here, and I was trying to talk him out of it. That’s all.”

“You haven’t been emailin’ him again?”

“Nope. The last time I contacted him was months ago and it was for a legitimate business transaction. That’s it.”

Suddenly, she heard shouting. There was more rustling and a crash. The line went dead.

Fuck. Now what? Should she just wait to see if someone called her back? What if he tried driving to her house? Her stomach cramped with worry. Lela threw on a pair of jeans, a black sweater, and boots in case she ended up driving to the rig. Ten excruciating minutes later, her phone rang again.

“Hello? Nathan?”

“Hey. Sorry about earlier…” He must have stepped outside because she couldn’t hear any voices in the background now.

“Are you still at the rig?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I’ll call you when I get there. And Nathan?”

“Lelaaa,” he drawled, “they won’t letcha in.”

“Get in your truck and wait for me there. If you get tired just lay down and go to sleep. I’ll wake you up when I get there. Okay? Nathan?”

“Yeah, okay. I am sleepy, baby…”

“I’ll be right there.” She ended the call and opened her laptop, looking for the location of the rig near Fort Lupton. She found it and pulled up the directions on her phone. She grabbed her purse and some water bottles then ran out to the car, hoping he did as she asked and was sleeping in his truck.

As she drove, she thought about Nathan’s call and worried about how sad and drunk he sounded. He was obviously upset about something. He wasn’t the type to get wasted and drive drunk.

An hour later, she pulled onto the dirt road leading to the work site. Beige polymer walls towered high around the several-acre area, blocking out most of the noise, dust, odor, and light coming from the machinery inside. The white mast of the steel drill rig rose high from beyond the walls, dwarfing everything else in sight. She drove up to the entrance, glimpsing the teal substructure under the derrick where men in dark-gray coveralls and black hard hats worked, guiding long lines of pipe into the ground under the bright lights.

As she looked to her left, she saw the guard walking toward her car, an amused look on his face. Unsure what his reaction would be to her request, she decided to just be honest. She pressed the button to roll down her window.

“Ma’am, are you lost?”

“No. I’m looking for…” She paused, clearing her throat. “Nathan Lyons.”

Upon hearing Nathan’s name, he drew his eyebrows together. “And what do you want with him?”

“I’m a friend of his. He called me, and he’s been drinking, so I’m here to pick him up,” she explained with a smile.

“You can’t come on site, ma’am. But I can send someone to find him for you.”

“What if I parked out of sight and walked to his truck? You could point me in the right direction. I’d be super quick and…”

He cut her off. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but I can’t do that.”

“I don’t guess you could get Jimmy for me then?” she asked hopefully.

The man’s eyebrows raised and his eyes widened. “I’ll have to see if Jimmy is still up. Hang on.” He spoke low into his two-way radio, turning away from her so she couldn’t hear what was said.

“Is it okay if I park over there and wait?” Lela asked loudly so that he would hear her, motioning to a flat area by the entrance.

“Yeah, yeah that’s fine.” He waved her off and resumed his conversation.

Lela’s stomach felt like it was filled with butterflies. She remembered Nathan had told Jimmy about her long ago when they were involved the first time. She also remembered that Jimmy didn’t approve of their relationship—not that she could blame him. Unable to sit in her car anymore after the long drive, she got out and paced alongside it, wringing her hands. The sound of voices made her look up. She saw the guard motion a stocky older man, who reminded her of a burly, angry gnome, toward her car.

Lela held out her right hand to greet Nathan’s friend as he approached. “Hi, Jimmy, I’m Le—”

“I know who you are. I checked on Nathan. He’s in the back seat of his truck dead asleep. I’m not wakin’ him up for you.” He practically spat at her, ignoring her outstretched hand.

She raised her hands defensively. “I just wanted to make sure he didn’t drive after he’d been drinking… He sounded upset…”

“Yeah well, you’d be upset too if you and your wife of almost fifteen years were splittin’ up. Or maybe you wouldn’t be upset…”

She didn’t like his tone and what it implied. Lela straightened to her full height and let him have it. “Look, Jimmy, I understand why you’re annoyed with me, but you need to know that Nathan and I haven’t been together for three years.” Her head bobbed with indignation and her hand circled to emphasize her point. “The last time I talked to him was a month ago when he asked to start back up again. I told him no. So whatever assumption you’re making about me right now… it’s incorrect, and I don’t appreciate your attitude.”

He glowered at her, his blue steel eyes drilling into her with an intense stare.

Lela held his gaze and folded her arms in front her chest, refusing to be intimidated by him. “I can do this all night, Jimmy, but I suspect you’re beat, having just come off another grueling twelve-hour shift. Let’s just get on with whatever needs to be said or done so I can get out of here and you can go to sleep.”

He stared at her for a few more moments and, when he saw she wasn’t budging, backed down. “I can see why Nathan liked you so much. You’re a spitfire,” he said, nodding at her and cracking a small smile.

She didn’t bother to correct him. “Will you make sure he doesn’t drive tonight?”

“I took his keys, so he’s not goin’ anywhere.”

“Okay, thanks, Jimmy. That’ll help me sleep,” she said, breathing a sigh of relief, and let her arms fall to her sides.

“No problem. You okay gettin’ home?” His voice softened and his posture relaxed as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

“I’m fine. I’d say it was nice to meet you, but…” She shrugged and smiled softly. “I wish we could’ve met under different circumstances. Better ones anyway.”

“Yeah… Drive safe,” he said, yawning, as he turned and walked away.

She got back into her car, started it up, and headed back home, her mind full of thoughts of what could have been.

* * *

Four nights later, Lela was in bed, sipping red wine and working on an outline for a book she’d been thinking about writing, when her doorbell rang. She walked unsteadily down the hallway toward her front door, wary of who might be on the other side. It was eight p.m., not a time she expected a neighbor or a guest to visit. A quick look through her peephole revealed Nathan on the other side, hands in the pockets of his jacket, a serious expression on his face.

“What are you doing here?” she blurted out as she opened the door.

“I need to talk to you.”

“Okay, come on in.” She motioned for him to come inside.

He walked purposefully into the living room, took off his jacket, and sat down on her sectional.

“Do you want something to drink?”

“Do you have any wine?”

“Hello? Do you even know me?” she joked as she turned to walk back to her bedroom. A minute later, she returned with the half-drunk bottle and her empty glass and set them on the coffee table. After grabbing another glass from the kitchen cabinet, she poured him some wine and topped off her own glass.

Choosing a seat on the other side of the sectional, Lela raised her glass. “Cheers,” she said before taking a long drink. When she looked back up at Nathan, she saw that his glass was already half empty.

“Jimmy told me you came by the job site,” he began.

“I said I would.”

“I passed out, sorry about that.” He smiled sheepishly and took another sip of his wine.

“It’s better than driving drunk, Nathan,” she replied seriously. “I was worried about you.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry… I don’t normally act that way.”

“I know.” She watched him refill his glass with what was left in the bottle and take a long gulp of wine. Oh boy. “You wanted to tell me something?” Should I tell him that Jimmy already told me the news? No, he needs to tell me himself and get this off of his chest.

“Lela, you aren’t going to believe this. I still can’t believe it myself.”

She leaned forward, encouraging him to continue, but said nothing.

“I found out… God, I can’t even say it…” he trailed off, setting down his glass and dropping his head in his hands.

Wait. This must be something else. She was concerned now. “What is it, Nathan? You can tell me anything.”

“My wife…” He choked on the word. “Mary. She’s been cheating on me. For years.” He looked like a lost little boy.

Woah. She definitely wasn’t expecting that. “What? Holy s**t, Nathan. How did you find out?”

He sighed and looked back up at her. “I forgot some paperwork for an inspection I was doing, so I went home to get it. She was in the shower when I got there. I grabbed the paperwork but heard her phone buzzing like crazy on the nightstand. I picked it up, thinking it might be the boys’ school calling her, but it was a bunch of text messages from a guy saying he couldn’t wait to see her. Apparently they were meeting up later that morning.”

“Did you say anything to her?”

“No. I got in my truck and called my appointment to tell them I had an emergency come up and would have to reschedule. I parked around the corner from the house and waited for her to leave.” He paused and took another fortifying sip of his wine before setting the glass back down on the table. “I followed her to a hotel on the other end of town. Saw her hug and kiss a guy I’ve never seen before and watched them go in together. I went home and cancelled the rest of my appointments for the day. I had no idea what was going happen, so I picked up the boys from school early and took them to her parents for the night. I assumed that she would be back before the time she expected me to be home—I was right. When she found me, she asked me what was wrong. Can you believe that?” he asked, chuckling humorlessly and shaking his head.

“Well, I’m sure she had a feeling she was busted, but didn’t know exactly how you found out or what you knew.”

“I asked her how long she’d been cheating on me. She denied it at first. Said I was crazy and didn’t know what I was talking about. I told her I’d seen the texts and followed her to the hotel. I described the guy and how I saw them kiss each other. She couldn’t deny it anymore and finally admitted she’s been cheating on me for years. It started right around the time my first business went under and I started working on the rig.” He clenched his fists, and his nostrils flared. “No wonder she didn’t want me, she was f*****g someone else. Some old boyfriend from high school. How f****d up is that?” He looked over at her, his eyes filled with pain, and it broke her heart.

Lela moved to sit next to him. She took his left hand in both of hers, uncurling his tight fist, and laced their fingers together.

He squeezed her hand and continued. “I felt like s**t for years, especially after I had to let go of the business, and that whole time she made me feel like I wasn’t good enough for her. And now I find out she’s been cheating on me? Way before we… It’s just so…”

“I’m so sorry, sweet man. What happened after you confronted her?”

“She said she wanted a divorce and only stayed with me because he wasn’t ready to leave his own wife. Said she hasn’t loved me in years, since after our second son was born.” He took a deep breath and exhaled shakily. “My mind is so f****d up, I can’t even think straight.” He let go of her hand and stood. Stepping around the coffee table, he began to pace in front of the fireplace.

“I wish I knew the right thing to say. Are you hoping to salvage things, try to work it out?”

“No. She says she’s done, and so am I. I don’t see how we could ever work things out. Not after this. She told me she’s going to stay with her parents for a while. She thinks I’m going to give her the house. She obviously doesn’t know who she’s dealing with. The house is in my name only…” His hands were two iron fists again, ready to fight.

Lela knew he had difficulty expressing his feelings with words. He was the type of man that needed to be physical to get rid of his pent-up tension, but he had no outlet for that right now. “Nathan… come here and sit down.” She patted the cushion next to her. “You know I have your best interest at heart, right?”

He sat back down, but his leg bounced vigorously. “Yeah.”

“I’m going to suggest something, and I want you to listen all the way through, okay? Try not fight in front of the boys. I don’t know if you did before, but don’t do it now. And whatever you do, don’t talk badly about their mom in front of them or to them. You’re going to have to give up your anger for them. At least when they’re within earshot.”

“Baby, I can’t believe this is happening.” He rubbed the top of his head with both of his hands.

“I know, Nathan. I’m so, so sorry.” She leaned into him, encircling his shoulders with her arms and leaning her head against his.

“This is bullshit, but it makes so much sense now. Why she was never happy to see me. Why she didn’t want me to touch her. Why she never touched me. I just never thought…” Nathan kept his gaze on the floor.

“You will get through this. It’s going to be hard. Really f*****g hard. But I know you, and if anyone can do it, you can. Because your boys mean more to you than anything, and you will move mountains to make sure they’re happy.” His breaths were coming faster now. “Superman, look at me.”

She lifted his chin and gently turned his face to hers. The tears in his eyes were almost her undoing. “Breathe. Baby, breathe for me.”

She watched as his breaths slowed, shoulders rising and falling smoothly. “Do you need something to eat? Drink?”

“More wine,” he said, wiping his eyes.

“Okay, no problem. I’ll grab another bottle. Hold on.”

They talked past midnight. She let him vent about everything. It hurt her to hear how much pain he was in. But she stayed strong for him. Or at least that’s what she told herself. The truth was much more selfish.

Their conversation eventually slowed, neither of them speaking for a minute. She looked up to find him staring at her, his brown eyes reminding her of his favorite whiskey. “Lela, I want to start over with you. Do you think that’s possible?”

She sighed and shook her head. “I don’t think now is a good time, Nathan. You have a lot on your plate…”

“I was hoping we could take it slow, get to know each other?”

Why does he have to look so damn sweet? “I hadn’t realized that we didn’t know each other already,” she teased, but then got serious. “Here’s the thing—you have a long road ahead of you.”

“I know. I’m not saying now…”

“I’m not going to be your rebound, Nathan. I’m better than that,” she shot back, surprising herself.

“Oh.” His shoulders drooped. “Okay. I’m sorry. I just…”

Lela waited for him to finish his thought. The seconds ticked by achingly slowly. Her eyes locked with his. She could feel his desire for her, and she felt her conviction weakening. Uh-oh. This isn’t good. She sat back, creating some distance between them, and tried not to think about how easy it would be to say yes to him.

“Nathan, I never gave up on you, even when I let you go. I always hoped that we would find our way back to each other. And then there were the rainbows. You remember the rainbows, don’t you?”

He smiled. “How could I forget the rainbows? You used to send me pictures of the ones you’d come across, and I sent some to you too. I remember you saying they were messages from God.”

“He was telling me not to lose hope that someday you and I would have a chance to be together. But now just isn’t the right time. Not for anything more than friendship. I’ll listen and give you advice when you ask for it, but anything more? That will have to wait until much later—after you’re divorced. I hope you understand what I’m trying to say.”

Nathan sighed. “You’re right. I need to be concentrating on the divorce and my boys right now.” He gulped down the rest of the wine in his glass. She knew he was pushing his emotions down, willing himself not to feel.

“I know this is going to sound weird after what I just said, but do you want to stay here tonight? We’ve been drinking a lot, so you definitely shouldn’t be driving. I have a guest bedroom, so don’t get any ideas,” she teased.

He smiled. “Do you have more wine?”

After she returned with another bottle, they talked about her own divorce—what happened and what she learned in the process. After a while, they changed subjects and talked about their kids and the inn. They continued talking and laughing into the morning.

She woke at dawn as the sky outside was just beginning to lighten and realized they must have both fallen asleep on the couch. She watched him sleep for a few minutes, smiling at his gentle snores, before pulling a thin blanket over his sleeping form, taking care not to disturb him. Tiptoeing to her bedroom, she felt lighter despite the worry she had for him and what was to come.

Could this be the new beginning I prayed for so long ago?