Mad About You

pleasure.
    "Wow," Chad said, his voice and eyes excited. "Will it be a big house?"
    Virginia could see the wheels turning in his head, and she felt a flash of panic. Of course he'd want to live there with Bailey.
    "Big enough," Bailey said.
    Her stomach churned. "Th-that's great, Bailey." She forced a smile to her lips. "When will it be finished?"
    "If the weather cooperates, about three months."
    Her alarm increased. "That soon?"
    "Wow! I can't wait!" Chad said.
    "But with my new job, I may not be able to get out here during the day as much as I'd like to check on the progress."
    "What kind of house are you building?" she asked, her voice weak.
    He looked into her eyes, then said, "I'm sure you'd find the plans familiar."
    She dropped her gaze and pretended to be engrossed with adjusting her horse's halter. "Those old plans we ordered from a magazine?"
    "With a few modifications. I guess I have my sights set a little higher now than I did in my twenties."
    He was building their house in their meadow—did he intend to ask her to share it with him?
    "Look at that tree!" Chad yelled, pointing across the meadow. "It's huge!"
    Virginia looked up and smiled in spite of her muddled thoughts. It was Bailey's tree, the one his father had planted for him.
    "Want to ride over?" Bailey asked Chad, who responded with an eager nod.
    The three of them rode abreast slowly, and Bailey recounted the story of Chad's grandfather planting the tree. The sprawling oak was a magnificent sight, having grown exponentially since she'd last seen it. She estimated the trunk at ten feet in diameter.
    "That's awesome!" Chad exclaimed.
    Bailey smiled. "I'm glad you think so," he said as he reined in next to a smaller, lone oak tree, about fifteen feet tall. "Because this tree is yours."
    "Really?" Chad asked.
    Virginia was as surprised as Chad.
    "Yep. I took an acorn from my tree and planted it the day you were born."
    Chad didn't say anything, just stared at the tree with an awestruck expression.
    The news shook Virginia to the core. "You never told me, Bailey."
    He shifted in his saddle. "I wasn't even sure it would germinate, and by the time it started growing..." He trailed off and smiled sadly.
    By the time it started growing, Lois Green had ripped their son from their lives. She bit her tongue—God, would she ever stop hurting?
    "You mean that tree is the same age as I am?" Chad asked, grinning.
    "To the day," Bailey responded.
    Chad looked at the older tree. "Is it okay to climb it?"
    Bailey pursed his lips as if he were pondering the question. "Well, if you're going to find a good place to build a tree house, I guess you'd better scout it out with a good climb."
    "Oh, boy!" Chad said, kneeing his horse forward.
    "Be careful," Bailey called sternly. "Walk him over to the fence to climb down, just like you mounted, then tie him off like I showed you."
    "Okay, Bailey."
    Virginia watched the exchange, feeling more and more like an outsider. The house, the tree, the open space, the paternal guidance—in Chad's eyes she could never compete with any of those things. Her face must have betrayed her emotions, because Bailey asked, "Ginny, what's wrong?"
    She shook her head, smiling sadly. "Chad loves it here."
    "I loved it when I was his age too." Bailey dismounted, then offered her a hand.
    She swung down, her body inches from his, her head still spinning.
    Bailey held her gaze for a few seconds, then cleared his throat. "Listen, Ginny, I don't know if this is the right time, but I realize you're having a rough time with Chad, and I was hoping you'd consider letting him move in with me at Rita's while you and I work things through."
    Stunned, she only stared at him. Let Chad move in with him while they "worked things through"? "I don't understand," she murmured.
    "Well, I've been giving this some thought," he said, his words sounding rehearsed. "School will be starting in a few weeks, so it would be best to get him settled in now, rather than move him in the middle of the school year."
    "Move him in the middle of the school year?" she parroted.
    "Well, yeah, the house should be finished by mid-October."
    Her mouth tightened in dawning realization. It had all been a ploy. Butter her up to let Chad move in with him, knowing full well it would be next to impossible to revert if she and Bailey couldn't "work things through."
    "No," she said.
    He frowned slightly. "What?"
    "I said no," she said, her voice louder. "Chad's not coming here to live. He