sure many women are going to want to bounce around all the time. This is Texas, after all, we see just about everything here.”
“A friend? Wouldn’t a wife be my best friend? I’d rather I spent my nights with her.”
She shifted in her seat. “No matter. There will always be time to travel after you’ve had a family, and they’re all raised up. That’s what most people do. Then by the time you reach that age, you don’t really see the importance anymore.”
“Then shouldn’t you travel young?” I asked.
She rolled her perfectly, made-up eyes, and shook her head before plastering a smile on her face. The entire process was hard to watch. I could tell that she didn’t like what she was hearing from me, but my last name made it hard for her to admit that. She wanted to make her family happy, even if that meant a loveless marriage with a man she had nothing in common with.
“Listen,” I said. “I don’t think this is going to work out. You seem like a nice lady –
“It’s because of the divorce, isn’t it?” She snapped. “I swear, all you Wheelers are the same. Your mother barely gave me a second look once she found out.”
“I wouldn’t care if you had seven ex-husbands. We just don’t have anything in common. I don’t want to settle down with someone, I want to have an adventure with them.”
“Then get a girlfriend,” she whispered. “Isn’t that the way it’s done? A wife at home and a woman to travel.”
“Maybe fifty years ago, but I think I’ll hold out for the real thing.”
“I guess traveling wouldn’t be so bad,” she muttered. “Don’t you ever think about settling down, though? I’m not trying to be rude, but don’t you feel obligated to your family? What with everything your older brother pulled?”
I cringed. “Jackson had a hard time with marriage, but that isn’t me. I’m just not going to settle for anything but true love, and let me tell you, this isn’t it. Listen, I get the pressure around here, but you need to think for yourself. Do you really want to be a wife to a man with a mistress or find someone who wants to give you everything?”
“I never really thought about it,” She muttered.
“Maybe you should. I know I have, and I’m not compromising.”
I sighed and flagged down the waiter. We left before he could bring us the dessert menus. The ride back to drop her off was silent. Even knowing that there wasn’t a future, I still felt terrible for her. The southern standards were ridiculous. Maybe there was a man around here for her, but it wasn’t going to be me. I kissed her cheek politely as her parents waved to me from the porch.
It wasn’t my place to tell my mother or anyone else how the evening had gone. I’d let her field the questions and comments that came with it. At some point, I would ask my mom to see what she could do about playing matchmaker for the woman, even if it wasn’t to a Wheeler. The soft spot in my heart for a damsel in distress was just natural. The road curved in front of me as my mind wandered. It wasn’t long before I found myself heading into town, miles past the exit for Calumet.
Cars lined the narrow one-way street I had to take to get back onto the highway. Near the end of the road, colorful balloons dappled the left side of the road where Stacy’s gallery was located. Her son's birthday party hadn’t slipped my mind; Hailey’s truck sat out front as the traffic in front of me crawled to a stop. With just a few buildings before the gallery, I watched kids and parents darting in and out to the festivities that spilled onto the street.
As the traffic started to move again, Stacy walked out. In her arms, she had a small boy that was cheerfully giggling as she tickled him. My heart soared. Stacy was deep in conversation with another woman, but the boy looked up at my loud exhaust as it rumbled. His hazel eyes locked onto my truck. I could barely breathe. The same eyes looked back at me every day in the mirror. Stacy’s son was a Wheeler, without question.
Behind me, a car honked as I sat frozen in traffic. The noise made the little boy jump. Stacy looked around as she talked to her friend. She glanced at