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“You’re such a good little wife. I sit on the couch and have Dave get my drinks.” Melody laughs.
Sadie doesn’t say anything to that, and I’m growing more annoyed by the second. I pile another forkful of food in my mouth to make sure I don’t say something to embarrass Sadie.
Melody looks at the edge of the table and picks up a piece of paper, which she has no business doing, but I have a feeling she doesn’t really respect boundaries. “These are adorable. Did you do this?” She holds up the branding sheet Sadie wanted me to look at earlier but got distracted by, well, her. “I’d buy your eggs or chicken with this logo and branding.”
Sadie tries to tame her smile by biting her lip, but I can tell it means a lot to her that Melody likes her concept. “Thanks. I’ve been tweaking it for weeks.”
“I stopped at The Harvest Depot on my way in to say hello to Lottie, and she said you did most of the logos for the products they sell. You’re actually really talented.”
Of course she is. How can someone say something nice, but still make it sound underhanded?
“Packaging sells,” Sadie says with a smile.
“That’s the truth. I’ve been fooled a lot of times by talented people like you.” She laughs and tips back her wine.
We finish dinner, and I tell Sadie I’ll clean up while they go out on the porch to catch up.
“Thanks.” She kisses my cheek, grabbing a bottle of wine, and heads outside.
“I can’t get over how cute this all is. You live such a low-key life. I’m jealous,” Melody says, and I grunt, taking my aggression out on the dishes. “Everything is go, go, go in Los Angeles. Dave and I have to schedule date nights three times a week. Thank god for the nanny.”
After I clean up the kitchen, I wipe down the table and counters. With the windows open, I can hear them talking. Sadie tells Melody about her dad dying, her mom’s health, and almost losing the farm. She’s honest and raw, not hiding her emotions. It’s so admirable that I want to go out there and hug her for being such an amazing person.
Melody carries on about Dave and how much they both work. She talks about being thankful she’s done having kids so young, and although it was hard to have them back-to-back-to-back, she’s glad she won’t be an old mom.
Everyone who knows Sadie knows she wants a family, so I don’t know why Melody’s going on like that in front of her.
“What about you and Jude? Kids?” Melody asks.
I eavesdrop because we haven’t had that type of discussion about our future. We’re technically married, but that arrangement was made before we were an actual couple. We’re in this weird limbo state, and we’ve been so distracted by each other that we haven’t decided what to do moving forward.
“Oh, I don’t know. We just got married.” It’s the first time tonight that Sadie’s stalled as if she’s unsure how to answer.
“Would Jude ever leave Willowbrook?”
“I don’t think so. He runs Plain Daisy’s cattle ranch. His life is definitely here.”
“Too bad because I have a friend I know would love your artistic skills. You have a real eye, Sadie. You know that, right? I can’t help but feel like you’re wasting it here.”
There’s a pause before Sadie answers. “I’m not wasting it. I’m creating my own company.”
“Remember all the dreams you had? All the times we talked about living in an apartment in a big city? We’d be rich and powerful women breaking those glass ceilings. I just?—”
“I’m happy,” Sadie says, but her tone isn’t as convincing as I wish it was.
“I get that you scored Jude after all these years and that makes you happy, but are you sure you’re not going to wake up in ten years regretting that you never got out of this town?”
I lean back against the wall, waiting for her to answer. My gut twists because as much as I don’t like Melody, she has a point. At some stage in Sadie’s life, she’s going to mourn that she never accomplished all she was meant to in this life. I don’t like the idea of her sacrificing her happiness, then resenting me for it.
“I told you. I’m happy,” Sadie repeats. I worry she’s trying to convince herself as much as she’s trying to convince Melody.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Sadie
The reunion was fun, but Melody has been driving me a little crazy since she got here, and Jude has spoken to me many times about his dislike of her. He’s being a good husband, keeping his mouth shut, but it’s about time I set it straight with Melody, even if she’s not going to be a part of our daily lives.
She comes down the stairs, dressed in a leisure-type purple pantsuit. Jude already brought her suitcase down this morning before he headed out.
