Page 10 of Mountain Dreams

At that moment, his impulsiveness kicked in. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” she said, leaning across the bar again.

If she thought he was going to ask for her number, she was about to be disappointed, or maybe not. He motioned to Wyatt’s table. “That waitress…I think I know her, but I can’t remember her name. Can you tell me what it is?”

The bartender narrowed her eyes, and he figured she was about to tell him off. “Never mind. I’ll just ask her myself.”

She stared at him for a few beats and said, “Her name is Sadie.” Then she turned and walked away.

Sadie. Madison hadn’t told him the name on the napkin, so he couldn’t be sure, but he had a feeling the names would match. Soon the bartender returned with his potato skins, but this time, she quickly set down the plate and left, obviously disgusted with him.

He forced himself to eat, though he would have rather gone home. However, if he got up now, he’d have to pass by Wyatt’s table, and he didn’t want to confront him in a roomful of people. He could only hope that Wyatt would go to the restroom or leave the bar before him. In the meantime, he’d wait it out.

Sadie visited Wyatt’s table a few more times, and each time, she lingered, paying extra attention to him and hardly any to his friend. If this was the woman who’d given out her number, it clearly had been meant for Wyatt and not Mark, assuming that was whom he was with. Cody didn’t have to be a detective to deduce that.

Soon the men got up and went over to the pool table at the back of the bar, and Cody finally had a chance to escape undetected. He set down some bills on the bar, including a generous tip, since he felt bad about pissing off the bartender. Then he hurriedly left before Wyatt spotted him.

As he drove back to Sawyer’s Ridge, he cursed his friend under his breath. “Why would you mess up the good thing you have?” Sadie had nothing on Madison, though, in all fairness, he didn’t know the woman. Still, Wyatt’s behavior was wrong, even if he viewed it as a harmless flirtation.

Right now, Madison was probably at home, the home she shared with Wyatt, worrying and wondering where he was. Cody hated to think of her sitting there alone while Wyatt was at the bar, acting like a single guy with nothing to lose. How ironic that Cody, who was single, had been on his best behavior tonight. Normally, he would have flirted with the bartender or maybe some other woman who’d caught his eye. However, tonight he felt off-kilter. Everything felt wrong, and it was easy to blame it all on Wyatt.

If Wyatt had been where he was supposed to be, home with Madison, Cody wouldn’t be feeling this way. Now that he’d confirmed her suspicions, the next question was: What am I going to do about it?

Four

After Wyatt left with Mark, Madison decided she needed a distraction. She changed into her coziest pajamas, made a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows, and turned on Netflix. She skimmed through the selections until she came to 17 Again, starring Zac Efron. “Why not?” she said and clicked on it. Zac was easy on the eyes, but moreover, it would transport her to her high school years, when life was simpler and the world full of possibilities.

Watching the movie served its purpose; it distracted her and made her laugh, which she hadn’t been doing much of recently. When it was over, she considered waiting up for Wyatt, but she decided not to.

Instead, she went to bed, determined not to worry about where he was or what he was doing. She picked up the historical fiction novel from the nightstand and started reading. However, her eyelids kept drooping, and soon she set the book aside, shut off the lamp, and drifted off to sleep…

“Wow. You look great!” Cody said, his gaze traveling over her.

“Thanks. So do you,” she said. Wyatt had told her she looked “nice,” but it hadn’t had the same effect as Cody’s compliment.

It was homecoming night of their senior year, and she and Wyatt were double dating with Cody and Brooke. The four of them were at Maddie’s house so her parents could take pictures, but Brooke and Wyatt were off talking when Cody approached her.

“Save me a dance tonight,” he said.

“I’m not sure Wyatt and Brooke would like that.”

Cody frowned. “They know we’re friends. It’ll be fine.”

Her mom interrupted them. “Picture time!” she trilled.

Somehow, when they lined up, Madison was sandwiched between Wyatt and Cody. Both of their arms curled around her waist, but one of them gave her a squeeze. She glanced at Cody. and he smirked. He was a hopeless flirt, and she knew it was harmless. Maybe that was why she leaned closer to him as the picture was taken.

As the evening went on, she kept sneaking glances at him. She’d always thought he was good looking, but tonight he looked especially handsome in his suit and tie. She noticed him tugging on his tie until it loosened and revealed his Adam’s apple. She knew he preferred jeans and a T-shirt, but he was sexy either way.

Wait, what? Sexy? She purposely turned her gaze to Wyatt, who was looking around the room and appeared bored.

“Are you okay?” she said.

“Yeah, why?”

“You seem really quiet tonight.”

He shrugged. “This isn’t really my thing.”