Chapter 30 Part 30
Maggie
Maggie looked at the closed door, and wrapped her arms around herself. She turned her head toward the stairs, but Melody was quiet. She had no idea what was wrong, or why Asher was so mad. Things had been fine a few minutes earlier.
She walked into the kitchen, and saw her phone now at the other end of the table. Hesitantly, she picked it up and pressed the button that brightened the screen. The phone fell from her hand, and the sound that escaped her mouth was between a gasp and a scream.
Her heart hammered in her chest, her mouth was dry, and it felt like the room was spinning. She grabbed the edge of the table, and sat down. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths. When the spinning stopped, she opened her eyes, and picked her phone up again.
She played the video but stopped it halfway. She rushed over to the sink, and vomited out her earlier cup of tea. Asher had obviously seen that video. There was no number with the text, but she knew exactly who had sent it.
She had worked so hard, prayed so hard that her past would stay in the past. She’d put that life behind her. She understood the look in Asher’s eyes now; it had been disgust, pure and simple. Fat tears formed in her eyes, and they rolled down her cheeks.
She had no idea how long she sat at that kitchen table, but she had the sinking feeling that Asher wasn’t going to come back to talk to her. She didn’t know how to explain it. There were no words, there was nothing she could say to make him understand.
A hand touched her shoulder, and she flinched. Blair appeared in her line of vision, and concern was etched on his face. He looked so worried that more tears spilled from her eyes as she lowered her head.
“What happened? Rick called me worried to death because Asher took his horse and said he’d be back on Sunday.”
Maggie sniffed, looking up at him. “I screwed up, Blair.”
“What do you mean?”
She shook her head and wiped the tears from her face. “Asher has every right to be mad at me. I don’t know if I can fix this with him. I’m such an idiot.”
“Talk to me, Maggie; whatever it is, I’m sure we can sort this out. Asher gets into a tizzy, but when he comes back on Sunday, he’ll be over whatever it is that drove him out in this weather.”
“Not this time, Blair. I can’t talk about it. It’s something about my past I didn’t tell him, and he deserves better than me. I’m going to go back to my house. I’ll make a plan to return the truck to the ranch.”
She walked past Blair, but he blocked her at the staircase. “You’re not leaving while you’re this upset. Asher won’t come back until Sunday. You need to calm down, and get some rest. Tomorrow morning things will look different; it always does in the morning.”
Maggie nodded her head. “Thanks, Blair. I’m sorry.” She headed up the stairs, leaving Blair in the small foyer by the front door. A few minutes later, she heard the door close, and she sighed.
She didn’t sleep that night. She packed their suitcases, and paced the length of her bedroom. With every creak, she pulled the curtain back, hopeful that it was Asher coming back, but it wasn’t. The wind picked up, and the branches scratched against the window panes.
At 5 a.m., Maggie carried their luggage downstairs. She readied Melody’s bottle, then packed up her bottles and formula. She didn’t pack the stuff Asher had bought; she couldn’t bring herself to. It was bitterly cold when she opened the front door, but she braved through it, and loaded their stuff into the ranch truck.
At 6 a.m., when Melody woke up, Maggie changed her diaper, gave her a bottle, and dressed her warmly. Maggie started the truck and put the heater on. She strapped Melody into the car seat and ran back to the house.
She locked the front door, and left her set of keys under the decorative chicken on the porch. Her emotions were all over the place, but she knew she couldn’t stay in his house. He deserved so much more than what she had brought to the table.
Another hour later, they were back at the Lansing house, the heating blowing full steam to heat the place up. Maggie had unloaded their luggage, unpacking everything. Melody was in the living room, playing with some toys, when someone knocked on her front door.
With her heart in her throat, Maggie opened the door, and looked at Thomas. “Come inside; it’s freezing out.”
“Thank you.”
“Did someone come with you to drive the truck back?” Maggie asked.
“The truck is yours, Maggie. They just said it was the ranch truck, so you wouldn’t feel bad about driving it. That’s not why I’m here.”
“Oh,” Maggie said, shifting on her feet.
“I don’t know what happened last night, other than what Blair told me. I also don’t want to know; that’s between you and Asher. I am going to say one thing, though. Nothing is ever so bad that it can’t be sorted out. If you run away now, Asher won’t chase you. He’ll never know what he needs to know, and you’ll never know what could have been. You two are the real thing, Maggie. I know my son, and he loves you. When there is real love, it can overcome anything. Don’t run, Maggie, you’ll regret it forever.”
“I wish it was as easy as that. It’s too much, and Asher won’t ever forgive me,” Maggie said, as she looked at the floor. The wood was scuffed, but she didn’t care.
“He will. Maybe he just needs time to come to grips with whatever is going on. Give him that time, and try to place yourself in his shoes. You are still important to us, and so is Melody. That won’t change just because you and Asher had a fight. I might not be your father, Maggie, but I like to think that I could be. Don’t run. Stay and fight. Love is always worth it.”