Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Phoebe gazed out of the window as Jen drove Noah’s big truck toward the outskirts of Reno. Sally sat in the passenger seat, and they’d picked up Lucy from the hotel and Bernie and Penny from the café. The truck had seven seats so was ideal for the journey. It also meant Noah couldn’t suddenly decide to head out by himself without alerting the others who were expecting him to join them for “dinner” with their military friend.

Luke had even taken Jen’s truck keys, so Noah didn’t have access to them. He said that if Noah asked, he’d say Jen must’ve accidentally taken them with her. Phoebe was quietly amused with the extent of the military planning involved to get Noah to his own bachelor party. And she needed something to cheer her up when her own life had suddenly become more complicated.

Should she have explained her reasoning to Max more carefully? That she didn’t want him used as a weapon by her family to exert pressure on her to conform and it was safer for him to remain behind? But she hadn’t been at her best after the tense conversation with George, and Max hadn’t stuck around after she’d told him he couldn’t come to England with her.

He’d been nice as pie since—almost as if nothing had happened, and maybe he was over it, and she was the only one still obsessing because they didn’t owe each other a thing. She had to remind herself of that constantly and that she might have imagined that jolt of hurt she’d seen in his blue eyes.

Pen, Bernie’s cousin, nudged her in the ribs. “Hi! Have we met?”

“I think so.” Phoebe smiled at her blond companion. “You work with Bernie at the café, right?”

“Yes!” Pen said. “I do! I remember you now.” She smiled encouragingly at Phoebe. “Well, I remember your face. But I’m not sure I know your name.”

“It’s Phoebe.”

“Oh, that’s lovely! And you’re not American.”

“I’m British.”

“Then why are you here?” Phoebe looked genuinely confused. “Did you get lost?”

Bernie caught Phoebe’s eye over Pen’s head. “We already went over this, Pen. Phoebe is married to Max who works with Luke up at the ranch.”

Pen’s mouth formed a perfect O. “Max is married? Why didn’t we get an invite to the wedding, or was it just me, and no one told me about it?”

“It’s okay.” Phoebe reassured her. “We were married in Reno four years ago.”

Pen’s brow crinkled. “You’ve been at the ranch for four years and this is the first time we’ve been out together? Did Max have you locked in a dungeon or something?”

Bernie reached over to pat Phoebe’s knee. “I’m sorry about my cousin. She takes everything very literally and loves to ask a million annoying questions.”

“It’s fine,” Phoebe reassured Bernie and turned to Pen. “I haven’t been here all the time. I only just arrived. I had to deal with some family issues in England.”

Pen nodded. “I’m glad you made it out here in time for Jen’s wedding. I absolutely adore her.”

“Me too,” Phoebe said. “I was thrilled to be included in her bachelorette party.”

“It’s going to be lots of fun,” Pen agreed. She sat back, smiled sweetly, and put her earbuds in. “It’s time for my meditation session. Speak to you in an hour.”

Phoebe turned her attention to the endless forest passing by her window and allowed her eyes to gently close. She hadn’t been sleeping well and had woken up the previous night to find Max wasn’t there. They hadn’t made love again, either. She’d heard all the jokes about him never being able to sleep at night but hadn’t experienced it herself until then. Was he stressed about having to share a bed with her now? Should she offer to move out?

She cursed her innate British politeness, which made it difficult for her to ask directly for what she needed. Perhaps a relaxing time at the spa would help her work out how to approach Max and make sure he understood exactly why she didn’t think it was a good idea to bring him to meet her family. He certainly didn’t deserve to be questioned or bullied by George or her grandmother.

She opened her eyes. No one deserved to be treated like that.

Including her.

* * *

Max glanced at his phone and looked over at Noah who was settled at the kitchen table with his laptop and was muttering to himself.

“Do you want more coffee?”

“Sure, thanks,” Noah said. “Have you heard from Phoebe?”

“Why would I?” Max asked as he refilled Noah’s cup and set it at his elbow.

“Because she’s your wife?” Noah looked up.

“She’s a grown woman who can take care of herself, and as she’s currently with every female we know, I think she’s in good hands.”

“Jen texted me to say they’d arrived.”

“So, we know they’re all where they should be—unless someone got left behind at a gas station—and I think we’d have heard about that.” Max patted Noah’s shoulder. “Lighten up, dude.”

“I’ve done a security assessment of the spa and checked out the owners, and it all looks okay, but you never know.”

“I’d back our women against a bunch of terrorists any day,” Max said as he placed his mug in the dishwasher. “What time is Luke thinking of heading out this evening?”

“As to that.” Noah cleared his throat. “I’m not one hundred percent certain I should go out. What if Jen needs something?”

“Then she’ll call or send you a text,” Max said firmly. “You know she’d be mad at you for babying her and she wanted you to go out.”

“But what about Sky?”

“Bernie’s sister Mary is coming over with her mom to babysit.” Max stared at Noah. “Come on, man. You already know all this stuff.” He lowered his voice. “You have to come. What if Luke freaks the hell out and we need to get him back to the ranch? I can’t handle him on my own. We both know he only listens to you.”

Noah frowned. “Maybe Luke shouldn’t be going either.”

“Luke is trying to get over his fears and the least we could do is be supportive,” Max said. “He needs us, Noah, whether he realizes it or not.”

Noah turned back to his laptop. “Fine, I’ll come. Luke said to be ready at eighteen hundred hours.”

“Great. That gives me plenty of time to get the barn in order.”

Max went outside, passing Luke who was coming in and gave him a thumbs up.

“Noah’s good to go. He thinks he’s doing it to support you, so don’t act too confident.”

“It’s okay, I’m still genuinely terrified.”

“We’re only going down the road. You’ll barely be off Nilsen land.” Max kept moving. He was on a mission to make sure everything he’d planned worked out. “I’ll check in with Olly and Fred, and make sure we’re still on for seven.”

“Great, now all we have to do is stop Noah from bolting, make sure I don’t have a panic attack, and hope Fred is still as good a guy as we remember,” Luke said.

Max raised his arm and snapped his fingers. “Piece of cake.”

* * *

Phoebe laid on her bed and stared out of the window, the gentle sound of running water hardly disturbing the tranquility of the spa complex. She was due down for dinner, and then there might be swimming, which she always enjoyed, or a hot tub to try for the first time. She glanced at her phone, but there was nothing from Max. Should she send him a message? Make believe that everything was fine, and that if they both pretended hard enough, they could go back to where they’d been before she’d let him down?

She turned around so that the view was behind her head and snapped a photo to send with her text.

The spa is beautiful. Hope your plans are going well. X

He replied almost instantly.

All good here. Have a great and relaxing time. Cell reception might get bad after 7 so don’t worry if you can’t get hold of me.

Phoebe stared at the message for at least a minute. What had she expected? That he’d say he was missing her after four hours apart? She really needed to be honest with herself about what she wanted from him. With a groan, she sat back against the pillows. She wanted him to take her seriously. She wanted something he hadn’t agreed to and insisted he didn’t have the capacity to give.

Her cell buzzed again, and she picked it up.

p.s. You look hot.

She smiled foolishly at the screen, rolled onto her side, and got up. She had ten minutes to get some clothes on and present herself at the bride-to-be’s dinner. For whatever reason, she suspected Bernie had organized a few extra surprises, and she couldn’t wait to see what they might be.

It was far warmer than the ranch, so she wore a maxi dress with long floaty sleeves that Jen had described as boho when Phoebe tried it on in the department store. She slipped her feet into silver sandals and wished she’d had time before the meal for the manicure and pedicure that were on her spa to-do list. Not that she looked bad. She and Jen had spent the previous evening painting their nails, de-fuzzing, and plucking anything that dared to grow where it wasn’t wanted. It was the most fun that didn’t involve Max that Phoebe had had in ages.

Jen was easy to like, a great and sympathetic listener, and wise beyond her years. She’d regaled Phoebe with stories of the mythical Dave whose random appearances at the ranch to see his son always caused drama. Her theories as to why she’d been foolish enough to hook up with Dave in the first place were equally hilarious and Phoebe had cried with laughter.

In return, she’d told Jen about some of the more eccentric members of her family including her Great-uncle Cuthbert who insisted, despite not being the slightest bit Scottish, in parading around in a kilt playing the bagpipes at dawn and dusk, scaring all the wildlife, drowning out the birdsong, and annoying the occupants of the house. She’d even shared the video she’d secretly taken, which made Jen howl almost as much as the bagpipes. Noah had even popped his head into the room to make sure they were both okay.

After deciding to be her father’s main caregiver, Phoebe had lost touch with most of her eventing and college friends and only had her family around her. It was nice to have a friend again even if Phoebe couldn’t confide everything to her because of her loyalty to Max. She sensed that Jen knew things were complicated because she deliberately steered clear of the more controversial questions like, “are you coming back here to live,” or “how on earth did you and Max get together in the first place”.

Phoebe checked her reflection in the mirror, found her handbag, making sure she had her key card at least three times, and left the room. When she came out of the elevator, she saw her group gathered by the entrance to the dining room. Bernie, who was wearing red, beckoned her over with a big smile.

“There you are, Phoebe. I hear Max has taken to calling himself Mr. CSR. Is that true?”

“Why would he do that?” Pen asked. She was wearing a short pink dress with ruffles and what appeared to be fairy wings on the back.

“It’s their initials,” Bernie explained to her cousin. “Creighton-Smith-Romero.”

Jen grinned. She wore a tiara and a sash that read ‘Bride to Be’ over a fitted blue dress. “CSR sounds like a crime show.” She looked at Phoebe. “That dress looks great on you.”

“I really like it.” Phoebe did a twirl. “It even has pockets.”

“Did you hear from Max?” Jen asked as they were escorted into their private dining room.

“He said everything was going according to plan and not to worry if I didn’t hear anything after seven because the cell phone reception might be a bit dodgy in the woods.” Phoebe took her seat at the table between Bernie and Lucy.

“That sounds ominous,” Lucy said. “What exactly are they going to do to Noah?”

“Oh, they’re going to blow his mind.” Jen grinned. “I just wish I could see his face right now.”

* * *

Noah’s frown deepened as Max slowed his truck and stopped at the gate.

“I thought we were going to a restaurant?”

“We are.” Max got out, tapped in the code Oliver had given him and the gate swung open.

“Here?” Noah looked around the pristine woodland.

“It’s a bit farther in,” Max said as he started driving again.

Beside him, Noah shifted restlessly in his seat. Max considered setting the child locks on all the doors.

“You doing okay back there, Luke?” Max called out.

“I’m good so far.” Luke patted Noah’s shoulder. “Hang in there, big guy.”

“Aren’t we supposed to be meeting Fred?”

“He’ll be there.” Max came around the bend of the curving loggers track and pointed at some lights in the distance. “He’s waiting for us.”

Max parked the truck alongside the others and went around to open Noah’s door.

He was met with a blast of suspicion and a death glare.

“You know I don’t like surprises, Max.”

“Nothing to surprise you with.” Max shrugged. “Just a group of old friends meeting for dinner.”

For a second, Noah looked like he wasn’t going to get out of the truck and Max braced himself for an argument. Luke came to stand beside him, looking as calm as a mill pond. He sniffed the air.

“Something smells good. I’m starving.”

“Fine,” Noah growled at them both. “I’ll come, but don’t think I’m going to forget about this.”

“Like you forget about anything,” Max murmured. “You’ve got a memory like a steel trap.”

Noah didn’t hear him as he was stalking purposefully toward the tentlike structure in the center of the glade. Fairy lights had been strung around the edge of the canvas and the lower hanging branches of the redwoods making it look magical. The smell of barbecue drifted out from the rear of the tent along with a hint of hops. Max had asked the caterers to keep everything low-key because Noah had never met a steak or a burger he hadn’t instantly devoured.

A woman stepped out from the entrance of the tent and smiled at Noah.

“Welcome!”

Noah halted and looked down at her. “Hi.”

“You’re Noah, aren’t you?” She smiled sweetly and offered him her hand. She had long, gray hair and wore yoga pants and a silky tunic top. “I’m Jane.”

“Nice to meet you,”

Whatever Max might say about Noah, he did have excellent, if intimidating, manners.

Jane kept hold of Noah’s hand and led him inside.

“Your friend is here. Once you have all been reintroduced, help yourself to some drinks, and then we can begin.”

Before Noah had a chance to ask any more questions, she disappeared into the rear of the space, which Max thought was super smart of her.

Two sides of the tent were open to the forest, on the left was an area with circular seating and on the right a table already set for dinner. A man rose from one of the couches and came toward Noah.

“Noah the Arkie! Awesome!” He enfolded Noah in a hug and slapped him hard on the back. “Same miserable bastard as ever.”

Max came forward and was hugged as well. “Max, you old devil. Still chasing the ladies?”

“I’m a respectable married man, now,” Max said.

“No!” Fred grinned at him. “Me too! How about you, Luke?”

“Just about to get engaged.” Luke shook Fred’s hand.

“That means all three of you are settling down.” Fred shook his head. “I can’t believe it.”

“You’re not the only one,” Max said. “I never thought any woman would look at these two knuckleheads and think they were worth marrying.”

Noah and Luke both looked at him and he raised his eyebrows. “What? I guess the truth hurts.”

Fred gestured at the trees as he helped himself to a beer. “I love this venue. How did you find it, Max?”

“Olly put me on to it,” Max said. “He’s employed by the forestry commission to save our trees or something useful like that.”

“Then he’s doing a great job.” Fred looked up. “This place is amazing.”

“This was Olly’s idea?” Noah turned to Max. “You didn’t mention that.”

“Why would I?” Max opened his eyes wide.

“Because you suggested Fred was the one setting the agenda.”

Luke touched Noah’s arm. “Does it really matter, Noah? We’re in a beautiful place, and we’re about to have a nice evening reminiscing with an old friend. How about you just relax and enjoy yourself.”

“Yeah, chill out, bro,” Max added.

For a moment, Noah looked like it really did matter and then let out a breath.

“Fine.”

Jane reappeared and clapped her hands. “We’re ready for you outside.”

Fred and Luke walked either side of Noah with Max bringing up the rear just in case Noah changed his mind and decided to bolt.

There was a firepit in the center of the clearing with large cushions around it that Olly was busy straightening up. He was a slight, dark-haired man who had briefly dated Bernie before Luke had gotten his head screwed on straight.

“Welcome!” He gestured at the cushions. “Please take your seats so we can begin.”

“Begin what?” Noah murmured as Luke maneuvered him toward the firepit and “helped” him sit down.

“Your stag night,” Max said.

“What the hell is that?” Noah demanded.

“You said you didn’t want a bachelor party, so we’re giving you the British version.”

“I don’t want either of them.”

“Too late. You’re already here.” Max smiled sweetly at his scowling friend. “Now, sit down and enjoy it.”

* * *

Phoebe gazed up at the stars, her neck comfortably supported by the back of the hot tub she was sharing with her newfound friends. She’d had three glasses of wine with her dinner and some kind of specially designed cocktail, which she’d had to try because it was made for Jen, and she was feeling pleasantly buzzed.

“This is heavenly,” Jen said from beside her. The bride-to-be still had her crown and sash on over her swimsuit. “I mean, I love being a mother and a midwife, but sometimes it’s really nice to just have some me-time.”

Everyone nodded. Bernie had bundled her red hair on top of her head and her pale, freckled skin was already flushed, which she said was normal for her. Pen had her eyes closed and was basically floating, while Lucy looked like she was doing math problems in her head.

“I wonder whether Noah’s worked out that he is having a bachelor party yet?” Jen said.

“I should think so.” Bernie consulted her phone, which sat on the side. “It’s gone eleven and I haven’t heard of any murders being committed.”

“Noah’s not that bad,” Jen protested.

“He is slightly intimidating,” Phoebe said. “But I always remind myself that looks can be deceiving.”

“Truth.” Bernie nodded. “Actions speak louder than words.”

“Although he is also very loud,” Jen acknowledged with a chuckle.

“So, I’ve heard,” Phoebe murmured. “Especially at night.”

It went quiet and she opened her eyes to see that everyone was looking at her.

“What did I say?”

“You said Noah was loud.” Bernie grinned. “Is that true, Jen? Is Noah a shouter?”

Phoebe sat up so abruptly that she created a wake. “Oh! I didn’t mean that, I—”

“He is loud.” Jen was laughing. “But we do try and keep it down to be considerate of others.” She winked. “I can’t wait until we move into our own place where he can roar like the beast he is.”

Bernie looked at Phoebe who was blushing up a storm. “Is Max?”

“Is Max what?”

“Loud.”

“He’s . . .” Phoebe considered what to say. “Just lovely.”

“Which doesn’t answer the question because let’s be honest here, girls, we’ve all thought that Max would be great in the sack because he’s so hot,” Bernie said.

“Not all hot guys are good in bed,” Lucy said. “In fact, they can be the worst because they are so busy admiring themselves that they forget we’re also there.”

“Like Dave,” Jen said.

“Dave . . .” Everyone groaned and nodded.

“Back to Max,” Bernie said. “How would you rate him, Phoebe?”

“Ten.” Phoebe said instantly. “He’s amazing.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Jen said and turned to Bernie. “How about Luke?”

“Also, a ten.” Bernie said. “That man is thorough!”

Pen giggled and they all joined in. Jen checked the time.

“I want to be up early for my massage, so I think I should turn in. Thanks everyone for making this such a special occasion.” She hesitated. “It’s always been hard for me to make friends that stick around, and this feels different to me—more permanent.”

“Damn right!” Bernie held up her glass. “Friends forever, okay? All of us.”

Phoebe politely raised her glass even as she knew they couldn’t really mean her and then caught Jen looking at her.

“I’m trying to persuade Phoebe to get Max to build a house next to ours so we can be neighbors.”

“That would be awesome.” Bernie climbed out of the tub and offered Jen her hand. “Unless Phoebe’s planning on taking Max to England to live in that castle of hers.”

“It’s not my castle.” Phoebe got out and wrapped a towel around herself. “Thank goodness.”

Jen waved goodbye and set off toward the main house, her crown slightly askew leaving the others to clean up. The air felt cool after the heat of the hot tub and Phoebe shivered.

“I’d love to live in a castle,” Pen said. “If you do go back and live there, Phoebe, can I visit?”

Bernie rolled her eyes. “We’re all going to be visiting her, friends forever, right?”

“But what would Max do?” Pen asked. “I don’t think they have cowboys in England.”

“They have farmers, which are the same as ranchers, right?” Bernie checked with Phoebe.

“Yes. My family have an interest in several.”

“Well, that’s okay, then. Max can run one of those while Phoebe swans around the castle looking glamorous and mysterious.”

“I could do that,” Phoebe said as she put on her sandals and toweling robe and followed behind Bernie.

The hotel was still alive with guests who were dining and enjoying the bar facilities, but Phoebe was looking forward to her bed. She said goodnight and was hugged by Lucy and Pen who were sharing one room and went with Bernie to their adjoining rooms.

Just as she was about to say goodnight, Bernie touched her arm.

“I’m sorry if we embarrassed you earlier.”

“I don’t think you did,” Phoebe said cautiously.

“With all the questions about Max.” Bernie made a face. “You fit in so well that I forget you’re not really used to the way we talk to each other.”

“I wasn’t offended,” Phoebe rushed to reassure Bernie. “I thought it was sweet you included me so completely.”

She only realized how much she meant it when she said it out loud. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so relaxed with a group of women who’d made her feel like she belonged.

“Max really is a great guy once you get to know him,” Bernie said earnestly and then rolled her eyes. “Like I’m telling you that. The woman who’s married to him.”

“But I hardly know him at all,” Phoebe blurted out. “And it’s driving me crazy.”

Bernie blinked at her. “Okay. How much have you had to drink, my friend, because—”

“I’ve spent less than a month with him in our entire lives,” Phoebe said. “But everything I said about him was true.”

Bernie held her gaze and slowly nodded. “Then that’s okay, isn’t it?”

“No, it isn’t really because what am I going to do with him?” Phoebe asked. “He won’t want to live in England, and he hasn’t asked me to live with him here.”

Bernie held out her hand. “Give me your card key.”

“What are we—”

The next minute she was being ushered into her room and Bernie was closing the door behind them.

“I think you need someone to talk to that isn’t Max, so sit yourself down and tell me everything.”