Excerpted from "The Return"

Crisp azure-blue skies and leaves tipped with burnt-orange fringes: The first signs of autumn tiptoed in on the coattails of a long humid summer, bringing shorter days and greatly-appreciated cooler temperatures. Summer had all but passed, a fact reflected by both the calendar date and the rich palate of harvest colors that would soon begin to grace the thick foliage along the curving roads through town.

Ashley kicked off her sneakers and sank onto the front stoop of her little house with her Australian heeler, Nadine, at her feet, letting out an exhilarated sigh as the light evening breeze ruffled the ends of her shoulder-length hair. She leaned against the porch rail and closed her eyes, inhaling deeply to capture the heady scent of pine drifting from the towering trees overhead.

“How lovely,” she murmured, bending down to stroke Nadine’s ears. “No ringing phones, no complaining customers. Just me and you, girl, all alone, communing with nature.”

There was nothing to distract her from her coveted moment of relaxation — nothing except the sound of a few birds and the soothing warmth of the afternoon sun on her face.

She stretched her lightly-tanned legs and wiggled her toes with delight. “Life just doesn’t get any better than this.”

A familiar shriek shattered the stillness, and Ashley lifted her head, watching as Susanna marched up the leaf-covered hillside, her red hair disheveled and her eyes blazing with determination.

“Well, it was good while it lasted.” Ashley viewed Susanna’s feisty expression with an involuntary shudder. “I wonder what I’ve done this time?”

With a sudden burst of energy, Nadine bolted from her spot at Ashley’s feet and bounded happily across the grass, barking and bouncing in ecstatic circles as she nipped at Susanna’s knees.

“Nadine, please!” Susanna came to an abrupt halt in the middle of the lawn and glared impatiently down at the dog as she swatted her off her khaki linen outfit. “Keep your hairy little paws off the duds. The shorts alone are worth ten of your worthless hide.”

She glanced at Ashley, conveying extreme irritation through the dark lenses of her tortoise-shell sunglasses. “Why the hell does she like me?”

“I don’t know,” Ashley replied, offering an indifferent shrug. “I certainly wouldn’t.”

“Well, how about teaching her some manners?” Susanna suggested, continuing across the yard, exhibiting unusual primness as she smoothed imaginary wrinkles from her clothing. “Being attacked this way is just ridiculous.”

“Such melodrama,” Ashley said, taking in her crisp clothing and perfectly matched accessories with a wary eye. “Why do you wear stuff like that, anyway? You’re way overdressed for hanging out with me.”

Susanna rolled her hazel eyes and issued a bored sigh. “Just because I gave up Dallas doesn’t mean I have to give up my sense of style. You’ll never catch me lounging around in worn-out old jeans and a sloppy T-shirt.”

She plopped down next to Ashley, removing her sunglasses and running a hand through her sleekly cut hair. Nadine curled up at her feet, resting her head against Susanna’s sandal and gazing up at her adoringly. Susanna frowned.

“It just seems to me that she’s overstayed her welcome. I can’t believe you’re not tired of her. I’m tired of her, and I don’t even live here.”

“Even if I were tired of her, there’s not a thing I could do about it. She’s Jack’s dog, not mine.”

“Of course she is,” Susanna waved away Ashley’s explanation with an exasperated gesture. “If they’re so close, then why is she always with you and never with him?”

“What do you expect? I learned from the best. Which reminds me, do you have some real purpose for invading my privacy or are you just here to spread cheer and sunshine?”

“As a matter of fact, I do have a reason for being here — a damn good reason,” Susanna remembered, squaring her shoulders authoritatively. “Dealing with the mutt almost made me forget.”

“Jack again!” Susanna shook her head. “I should have known. He is really not in my good graces this evening.”

“Oh, for God’s sake, cut it out!” Susanna snarled, slapping Ashley hard on the leg. She folded her arms across her chest and reclined against the banister, sniffing with self-importance. “Fine then, I’m not even going to tell you. Just remind me to kick Jack’s ass the next time I see him.”

“Your daughter drives like a maniac!” Susanna barked, shoving Ashley aside as she leaped dramatically onto the porch. She stomped angrily down the length of the veranda, her hands flying as fast as her words. “She came by to pick Emily up for the football game and when they left, she squealed her tires and tore out of the driveway like a bat outta hell. I about died!”

Ashley eyed her doubtfully. “I’m sure it wasn’t as bad as all that. I find it terribly hard to believe that a ten-year-old Honda Civic can put out that kind of power.”

“Trust me, this one can. Knowing Jack, he probably souped it up just to torment me. I’ve never seen such recklessness.”

The horrified look on Susanna’s face made Ashley want to giggle. “Since when are you so conservative?” she asked, trying hard not to laugh as she looked down at her hands.

“Don’t think I don’t see you laughing. This isn’t funny! You have to do something with her. I did not move back here to save my children from the evils of the big city only to have them taken out by Molly on Marksville Highway.”

“Why not?” Ashley stifled a yawn and stretched her arms lazily above her head. “I think it would be more than appropriate. You’ve been trying to take me out for years.”

“I most certainly have not,” Susanna puffed up importantly. “If I had, you would have been gone long ago.”

They stopped squabbling at the sound of crunching gravel, calling an unspoken truce as Kate eased her car into the drive. She slowed in front of the house and parked, giving them a cheerful wave as she slid from the driver’s seat.

“Hey y’all!” she sang out, looking over her shoulder with a bright smile as she whipped open the back door to pull out a child. “Brawling again?”

She balanced a sunny-haired little girl on one hip and proceeded around the back of the car, producing an identical tow-headed little boy from the other side.

“What makes you say that?” Ashley asked, flashing Kate an angelic grin laced with suppressed laughter.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Kate replied, making her way easily toward the house. “Could it be that horrendous snarl plastered on Susanna’s face?”

“I might’ve known you’d show up, Kate,” Susanna spoke up, displaying the horrendous snarl in question. “You always do. And why is that? Have you no home?”

“You’re a fine one to talk. You’re here every bit as much as I am, if not more,” Kate noted Susanna’s surly expression with a good-natured giggle. “Susanna, I’m telling you, if I didn’t know better, I’d swear you were going through the change.”

“Why, because I asked what you were doing here? I’m sorry, but I don’t consider that a real hormonal question.”

“It’s not the question, Sunshine. It’s the manner in which you ask that makes me suspect menopause.”

Kate handed one toddler to Ashley and the other to Susanna then returned to the car, hoisting an oversized suitcase from the trunk. “And if you must know,” she continued, “it just so happens that Jack stole Todd to go to Toledo Bend for the weekend, so I came to spend the night with Ashley.”

Susanna whipped her head around, smirking wryly at Ashley. “Gone again, is he?”

Ashley clenched her jaw defensively. “Mind your own business.” “Since when is that an option?”

“Stop it, Susanna,” Ashley warned. “You’ve ragged on Jack enough for one afternoon.”

“Oh, I haven’t even begun to rag. Doesn’t it bother you one bit that he’s gone more than he’s home?”

Ashley’s mouth tightened into a stubborn line. “I think you exaggerate,” she muttered.

“I think not. Ashley, I swear. As long as I live, I will never understand why you let men walk all over you.”

“For heaven’s sake! I’m not letting anyone walk all over me. I’m just giving Jack some space. Domestication has been a little tough on him.”

“Well, poor Jack. I guess he should have considered that before he made that little trip down the aisle.”

“Susanna, will you please stop trying to make something out of this?” Kate stepped between them, giving Susanna a stern look as she placed a hand on her shoulder. “Jack’s not gone that much, and even if he is, it’s none of your concern.”

“For goodness sake, lighten up. Cut the man a little slack. After all, he’s just hit midlife,” Kate attempted to smooth things over with humor.

“I think it’s incredibly hard for one to hit midlife when one has never grown up at all.”

“Oh hush!” Even the normally tolerant Kate was beginning to lose patience. “I swear, Susanna. You’re making a mountain out of a molehill, as usual. Jack’s off entertaining my poor, pitiful homebound husband and you’re having a cow over it. He’s actually doing us a huge favor. Bless Todd’s heart, this is his first big fishing trip since the twins were born.”

“Wait! What’s that I hear? Could it be the sound of violins?” Susanna cupped her hand to her ear and raised an imaginary bow to her shoulder, sawing it mockingly back and forth. “Don’t whine to me about the overwhelming responsibilities of motherhood, Katie Ducote. You brought this upon yourself. No one told you to wait until the twilight of our youth to have babies.”

“Speak for yourself!” Ashley said, reaching out to play with baby Jordan’s chubby hand. “It may be the twilight of your youth, sister, but Kate and I still have a way to go.”

She beamed at the little boy as her maternal instinct tugged relentlessly at her heartstrings. “Besides, I don’t think it’s so stupid. I was thinking of doing it again myself.”

Susanna’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Give me a break! You haven’t had a baby around for sixteen years. After going this long without one, why in God’s name would you want one now?”

“Oh relax. I only said that I was thinking about it. Besides, Jack already nixed the idea.”

“That was not very nice,” Kate said, throwing a scolding look over her shoulder as she carried both children into the house.

“Do you really think I care?” Susanna scoffed, shifting her feisty gaze to Ashley. “Honestly, Ashley, you’re almost old enough to be a grandmother — which you may be soon if you don’t get that kid of yours under control.”

“And now we’re back to that,” Ashley sighed. “What is your problem tonight, Susanna? Why are you so hell-bent on picking apart my family? Jack I can almost understand, but Molly? She’s a good kid and you know it.”

“No, I could think of it as a bunch of hot air coming from someone who needs to learn to keep her mouth shut.”

“Fine, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. Molly may be good now but I can see it coming. First the wild driving, then she’ll start picking up guys, and the next thing you know she’ll be smoking pot and having wild orgies down by the lake.”

“Okay! That’s it.” Ashley slapped both hands resoundingly against the porch steps and got to her feet, her expression stony as Kate came back outside. “I worry about you, Susanna. I really do. Sometimes I wonder if you wouldn’t benefit from a little medication.” She turned her back and began to help Kate sort through luggage and diaper bags.

Susanna knew she had gone too far and quickly changed the subject, looking on with interest as Kate and Ashley began filling one of the bags with traveling paraphernalia.

“So what’s on the agenda tonight for the merry ladies of leisure?” she asked, flinging herself nonchalantly into a chair as she buffed her manicured nails against the shoulder of her linen jacket.

“Ugh!” Susanna’s face took on a look of distinct displeasure. “Why on earth would I want to do that? Better yet, why would you?”

“Oh come on, Susanna. You didn’t make it to a single game last year. Why not start the season off right and at least go to the first game? It’ll be fun.”

“Oh yeah, woo-hoo, another Friday night in the big town! Can’t we just stay here and play gin rummy instead?”

“Hey, then why don’t we run over to your folks and see what Ms. Maggie’s whipping up for supper?”

“You really don’t want to go to the game, do you?” asked Kate with an amused smile.

Susanna stuck her lip out in a pronounced pout. “No, I most certainly do not.”

“You ought to be ashamed,” Ashley told her. “Your own son plays on the team.”

“I know, but I just can’t make myself go. I loathe football. It’s bad enough that I have to put up with Mark traipsing off to that stadium every single Friday night without the two of you doing it too.”

“Quit being such an old stick in the mud.” Ashley returned to her seat on the stoop, slipping her Keds back onto her feet as she grinned at Susanna. “Don’t you remember how much fun we used to have at the football games?”

“Yeah, I also remember when I used to drink sloe gin mixed with 7-Up straight from the drive-thru window, but that doesn’t mean that I do that anymore either.”

Energy renewed, Ashley bounded up the steps and grabbed Susanna by the arm, pulling her insistently toward the waiting Jeep. “Let’s go, miss. You don’t even have to watch the game. It’ll be just like high school.”

“I’ve got shotgun!” Kate called out, casting a mischievous smile from the back seat as she loaded the twins in their car seats.

“Then where am I going to sit?” Susanna asked, frowning as Kate tossed her purse into the passenger’s seat.

“Just get in the car,” Ashley pushed Susanna begrudgingly into the back seat. “You are extremely foul tonight.”

“Well hell, Ashley. I wonder why? It’s not often that I have a brush with death.”

“I find that incredibly hard to believe, given the number of people you offend on a daily basis.” Ashley slammed the car door and climbed behind the wheel.

“I beg your pardon. I do not offend people.” Susanna leaned forward and stuck her head between the seats, viewing a giggling Ashley and Kate with a sullen snarl. “I find the two of you less and less amusing every day,” she declared dryly.

“It’s not us, Susanna,” Ashley said. “It’s you. You can hardly blame us because you have zero sense of humor.”

“I do too have a sense of humor! I hang out with you, don’t I? Incidentally, I am not offensive. I’m just brutally honest. It’s not my fault if people take it the wrong way.”

“You’d have a lot more friends if you would quit being so brutally honest,” Kate said, tugging teasingly on a strand of Susanna’s hair.

Susanna jerked away and threw herself impatiently against the back seat. “You know what, Katie? I have no friends and I want no friends — and I intend to keep it that way.”

“So, here I am,” Susanna sighed, grumbling under her breath as she lifted her eyes toward heaven, “asking myself once again: What am I doing here? What am I doing here? What am I doing here?”

“You’re like the rest of us who moved back, Susanna — you just couldn’t stay away. Now, just shut up and enjoy the ride.”

Ashley laughed and threw the Jeep into reverse, backing out of the driveway and heading down Marksville Highway toward town.

Ashley Stewart LeNoir Chambers was a thirty-something mother of one, thriving happily in her hometown of Pineville, Louisiana. She had lived in the small town for most of her life, leaving only once for a trip to college that turned into a three-year stint in Oklahoma City with a man who thankfully was now her ex-husband — the same ex-husband Kate refused to discuss and Susanna referred to as “the evil spawn from hell.”

She’d known Kate all her life and Susanna for most of it. They were an inseparable childhood trio, reunited at last when first Ashley, then Susanna returned home.

Kate Ducote Richardson had been Ashley’s best friend for as long as she could remember, growing up next door with her mother Imogene, sister Debbie and father Frank, a kind and loving man several years deceased. Over the years, Kate had matured from a sweet, willowy blond with an angelic personality and uncanny knack for doing the right thing into a beautiful woman, wise in the ways of the world, who always gave the right advice and moved with flowing grace. She was married to Todd, an assistant district attorney, and they were blissfully happy, almost to the point of nausea, especially with the recent addition of their long-awaited twins.

In contrast, Susanna Robicheaux Lawrence was a fireball, a feisty redhead with a loud mouth and hot temper to match who never hesitated to say exactly what was on her mind. Kate and Ashley had befriended her in kindergarten, although some days they wondered why. However, marriage and motherhood had somewhat mellowed her, instilling a certain amount of class, wisdom and style. Gone were the outlandish outfits and riotous curls of her youth. The “mature” Susanna wore little tortoise-shell glasses, her auburn hair subdued in a sleek cut and tailored clothing by Ann Taylor and Liz Claiborne. Outwardly, she appeared a changed woman, but those who knew her best also knew that whatever change — if any — was minimal. Beneath the Nuevo-glamour, the new Susanna was just as opinionated and abrasive as the old one.

Ashley rounded out the trio, a harmonious blend of two extremes, a petite slender brunette with Sprite-bottle green eyes and shoulder-length hair. Where she had once been a vivacious teenager, as impulsive as she was charming, the adult Ashley was much different: more subdued, less irresponsible and certainly much wiser than her youthful counterpart. Life had taught her hard lessons.

She had never been lucky at love. At one time, she’d all but given up on the idea. Before Jack, she had only known true love twice. One she had lost to tragedy, the other to growing up.

Her first love was Jimmy Moreau. Dear, sweet Jimmy with a lovable grin and heart of gold. His life was cut short by a speeding truck the summer following their high school graduation. Ashley had been crushed, her life never the same, and after a series of foolhardy blunders, she met and married Rick LeNoir, a mistake that had almost proved fatal.

At the end of a traumatic marriage, she had returned to Louisiana to make a life for herself and Molly, regaining her self-esteem and rediscovering what she liked about herself along the way. It was hard to believe that thirteen years had passed since she’d moved home and taken over her father Remy’s pharmacy business. Time passed peacefully and Ashley had all but forgotten the tragic loss of Jimmy and her miserable marriage to Rick — thanks to Jack.

She met Jack Chambers while married to Rick, working with him as an intern at University Hospital in Oklahoma City. Jack was vibrant, the very epitome of a ladies’ man with irresistible charm, a dazzling smile and captivating eyes of rainforest-green. He was incredibly attractive and charismatic, in a Mel Gibsonesque sort of way, with an Adonis-like face, thick, curling hair of cinnamon-red and a muscular physique. He had a wonderful sense of humor along with a neverending sense of fun, and Ashley had been drawn to him from the very beginning.

Working together at the hospital, she and Jack became great friends. He became her confidante, her sounding board and her only link to sanity during the period when her relationship with Rick was at its worst. Jack had come to her rescue the night Rick had tried to end it all, taking her to the emergency room, making sure she was cared for and nursing her back to health. Jack had been wonderful.

Ashley hadn’t stayed in Oklahoma long after her divorce. She and Molly returned immediately to Pineville, a place that was familiar and safe, leaving behind all things connected with the misery of her past, save one. Ashley couldn’t forget Jack. She had missed him terribly and enticed him to Louisiana with the offer of a job. They’d fallen in love at the drugstore, working side by side, sharing laughs over lunch, growing closer with their heads together over the accounting books and finally marrying the autumn before Molly turned five.

After their Las Vegas wedding, Jack moved into Ashley’s house, a charming little bungalow with crisp lace curtains and floral décor overlooking the lake.

“I did manage to wrestle one room out of her,” he declared proudly as he showed Todd Richardson around. He swung open the door to the former frilly guest room, revealing a newly redecorated camouflage arsenal stocked with fishing poles, rifles and waders. “This, my friend, is the only masculine room in the house.”

Ashley never regretted luring him to Louisiana. Life with Jack was anything but dull. They’d had a good run of it, eleven years in all, and with the exception of a few things almost forgiven, remained relatively content. They were great together, two independent souls co-existing in almost-perfect harmony, yet for Ashley, something was lacking.

Jack loved her, of that she was sure. Falling in love had been easy, but making the transition from friends to lovers had been a little rocky.

As the honeymoon faded and real life began, Jack became antsy, often to the point of pacing through the house wearing the trapped, anxious look of a caged animal. Ashley did her best to be patient with him and gave him a great deal of freedom, free rein to deal with the claustrophobia of his commitment. Jack made the most of it, taking frequent trips hunting and fishing with Todd, or snow skiing with their old friend Matt Whitford, Ashley’s pharmacy school classmate, now a Colorado cardiologist. He spent most weekends away, occasionally gracing Ashley with his presence between seasons.

“How can you just let him gallivant around the country that way?” Susanna demanded repeatedly, shaking her head in disgust. “I’m as liberal as they come, but you don’t see Mark traipsing around all over the place, do you?”

“Let it go, Susanna,” Ashley told her with an exhausted sigh. “I don’t mind really, most of the time. I can certainly sympathize with him. I know exactly what it’s like to feel caged.”

“Sympathetic or not, the way you close your eyes to things is just pathetic.”

“I don’t know where you’re going with this, but I have the distinct feeling I’m not going to like it.”

“You shouldn’t like it, Ashley! No self-respecting woman would. No woman should have to vie for her own husband’s attention. You just stand in line, watching him run from place to place and woman to woman, waiting patiently until he has time for you. Sure, you’re crazy about him — who isn’t? Everybody and her mother wants a little piece of Jack. No normal woman would stand for it.”

“And I suppose next you’re going to tell me that you’re a prime example of a normal woman?”

“Hell no. Why would I? Never in my life have I pretended to be normal. I do, however, have enough sense not to let my husband date.”

“Susanna, there’s quite a bit of difference between flirting and dating, and Jack does not date.”

“I’m stupid? At least I have enough intelligence not to go around shooting off my mouth, giving advice on subjects about which I know absolutely nothing.”

“Meaning, you don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. You’ve never been where I am.”

“Nor will I. Not ever. I’d slap Mark Lawrence silly before I’d ever travel down that path.”

“You want me to shut up?” Susanna asked, pausing in her tirade as she noted Ashley’s sour expression.

“Okay, I’ll shut up. But mark my words, dear friend: One day I’ll have the opportunity to say I told you so — again — and believe me, I won’t hesitate to do so.”

If Ashley’s relationship with Jack was hard to describe, even harder was her relationship with Doug.

She rarely brought him up, hardly ever even mentioned his name, but she still thought of him — almost daily. No matter how content she was with Jack, Ashley could never forget Doug.

She couldn’t help smiling as she thought of him: Douglas Fairchild, childhood playmate, teenage buddy, golden-haired quarterback of her youth. She had fallen for him quite unconsciously, some time during the period following Jimmy’s death. Although she had loved him in some capacity all of her life, being in love with him had come as quite a shock and she had not handled it well. She’d spurned all attempts he made at a romantic relationship, foolishly pushing him away, and by the time she’d figured out what he meant to her, it was too late.

After high school, Doug went on to play college ball at Louisiana State, earning a degree in law and marrying an influential debutante: an intoxicatingly beautiful spitfire named Camille. He quickly rose up the political ladder and was elected to the Louisiana Senate within a few years. A natural politician, his appeal was immense, and the people of Louisiana adored him.

What if I had married him the first time he asked? What if I hadn’t sent him away?

It had been her decision to let him go — twice no less — and her idea to persuade him to go through with his marriage to Camille. For as much pain as it caused her, she knew her decision had been the right one. However, knowing it was right and living with it were two different things.

She hadn’t been alone with Doug in ages and over the years had purposely kept her distance, avoiding contact, steering clear of situations and places where he might be present, thinking it would be easier if she didn’t see him.

However, given Doug’s political prominence, Ashley couldn’t elude him completely, no matter how hard she tried. Every now and then, she would run into him at a fund-raiser or social get-together, her heart pounding the moment he strolled into the room. Even so, she stayed away from him, using Kate or Jack as her shield, determined not to come face to face with the one man who could melt her resolve. She didn’t have to touch him or even speak a word to know that nothing had changed. Despite years of estrangement and her stubborn vow to make them go away, they were still there: the same deep feelings she worked so hard to hide, evident in the way a rosy flush crept over her face every time their eyes met across a crowded room.

Nevertheless, she stuck to her guns and never pursued it, no matter how smitten she felt during weak moments. A vow was a vow, and a promise was a promise. She was married to Jack and married to Jack she would stay, for better or worse. In spite of all that had happened, she would not throw away what they had in the name of unrequited love.

“Jeez, Ashley! Where’s your head? You’re going to miss the turn!” Susanna’s agitated screech jerked Ashley back to reality. Her cheeks flooded with color and she wheeled the Jeep abruptly onto Claiborne Street, traveling at just above the speed limit toward Pineville High School Stadium.

Driving down Claiborne always brought back memories — memories of a time long past, before Rick or Jack, or even Molly. Simpler times spent cruising in a little burgundy Corolla, splashing carefree in the waters of Indian Creek, sock hops in the school gymnasium, evenings at McDonalds, parking under the stars by the lake. A time when friends were friends and love was love — and life was easy.

She heaved a melancholy sigh, her thoughts lingering on Doug until she suddenly became aware of Kate watching her from the passenger’s seat, her brow wrinkled as she studied Ashley’s pensive expression. Glancing her way, Ashley offered a facetious smile, determined not to let Kate read her mind.

“You know what,” Kate said wisely. “You’ve got that look thing happening on your face again.”

“What look thing?” Ashley quickly averted her eyes. “Honestly, Kate. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that new building,” Susanna remarked as she stared at the two-story structure in the distance. “There’s nothing like moving back to your hometown and finding out they’ve torn down your high school.”

“Oh, and I guess it doesn’t offend you to see a parking lot where our school once stood.”

“Obviously not the way it does you. How could looking at that beautiful new building possibly offend me?”

The Pineville High School Ashley, Kate and Susanna had attended was gone, demolished in its old age and replaced by a new building: a two-story work of architectural beauty that literally took Ashley’s breath away every time she drove past.

It was a strange feeling. It was still their alma mater, yet it wasn’t the same. They were alumni of a school that wasn’t there anymore — something that would have been true, save one thing. The Rebel spirit still burned bright, alive and well in their children and others who ruled the new school. This school represented a new generation of Pineville Rebels, all raised by their families to know what was right and sacred. Realizing this, Ashley felt better.

“I think our legacy’s in good hands,” Ashley replied and made another sharp turn, swinging the Jeep into the crowded lot adjacent the stadium, bumping over the gravel and jostling her passengers roughly.

“God, Ashley, take it easy!” Susanna yelled. “Jeez Louise! At least now I know where Molly gets it.”

Ashley wheeled the car into an empty space and jumped out, taking a twin from Kate and heading in the direction of the stands. The cadence of drums drifted from the stadium, instantly lifting her mood. She pushed away thoughts of Doug and began to hum, bouncing along in time with the band as she belted out the opening line of the school fight song.

“Are you from Dixie,” she looked over at Susanna, waiting for her to join in.

“If you think I’m going to start singing, you are sadly mistaken,” Susanna said, an annoyed frown creasing her face. “You can forget it, Ashley. It’s not going to happen, not in this lifetime.”

Susanna glanced back, surveying Kate with Jessie on one hip and a diaper bag over each shoulder. “The last I heard, you didn’t need hands to sing.”

They bought their tickets and entered the gate, finding seats at the top of the stands. “I still can’t believe we’re doing this,” Susanna mumbled as she collapsed onto the bleachers next to Kate. “This is so god-awful ridiculous.”

Ashley laughed and took her seat, watching the cheerleaders down on the track with a sense of nostalgia. She held her breath as the squad leader executed a series of back handsprings, clapping her hands with delight as she finished unscathed. She turned to Susanna, wearing a broad grin. “I used to do that,” she nodded in the direction of the track, beaming proudly.

Ashley rolled her eyes in exasperation. “No joke, Susanna. Thus the words used to.”

“Hey, just as long as you are aware of it. I don’t want to have to pin you down to keep you from racing down there to compete. The last thing you need is a broken hip.”

Ashley ignored Susanna’s self-satisfied chuckling and scanned the crowd, spotting Molly in the stands near the band. She was laughing and gossiping with a giggly group of Dixie Dancers, looking incredibly grown up in her black bell-bottomed suit and red sequined halter top, with her long hair held back in a loose ponytail by a matching sequined elastic.

She is so pretty. Ashley watched her daughter interact with the other members of the dance line, remembering with sentimental sadness the sunny-haired toddler of days gone by. She missed her baby, but was so proud of the young woman Molly had become. She waved fondly as she caught Molly’s eye.

“Hey Mom!” Molly returned her greeting with a brilliant smile before turning back to a crimson-curled Emily Lawrence, grasping her arm and pointing excitedly as she spotted her favorite guy.

Out of everything in my life, Ashley contemplated with a soft smile, she’s still the best thing I’ve ever done.

Molly had blossomed, becoming more beautiful, if possible, with each passing year. She was tall and slender with amazing eyes — wide, innocent and dramatically aqua-blue. Her once sun-kissed hair had darkened to a golden brown, a much more attractive color than Ashley’s own natural shade. Molly was a happy girl, bubbly and full of life, left blessedly unscathed by the few years spent in the presence of her father. Molly didn’t remember Rick, for which Ashley was grateful, and thrived wonderfully with Jack, considering him the only father she had.

“Are you sure I even have a father?” Molly questioned repeatedly over the years. “No one ever talks about him, not even Auntie Suz, and I find that highly unusual. Sometimes I think you just made him up.”

“Don’t be silly,” Ashley hid her uneasiness with forced laughter. “Why would I make him up? Of course, you have a father.”

“Why can’t Jack just adopt me? I feel so odd being the only LeNoir in town! It’s like I don’t go with anyone.”

“Just wait,” Ashley reasoned, sliding a consoling arm around Molly’s shoulders. “Eighteen’s not that far away. If you still want to do it then, we’ll do it.”

Ashley tried to be comforting, but didn’t really know the best way to go about it. It would be difficult to explain to her daughter that the process of adoption would involve contacting Rick, and she was unwilling to pull him back into their lives. After years of putting up a brave front for all involved, it would be almost impossible to justify to Molly the irrational fear she still felt at the mere mention of Rick’s name.

The roar of the crowd recaptured her attention and she focused on the field, just in time to see the Rebels score their first touchdown.

“Hey now! That was number fifteen, Eric Lawrence, going in for six,” the voice of the announcer roared over the loud speaker. “Touchdown Rebels!”

Susanna jumped up on the bleachers, punching Ashley in the arm with uninhibited glee. “Did you see my son make that touchdown?” she bellowed, beaming proudly as she hopped excitedly on one foot.

“I did too know it,” Susanna informed her smugly. “Just because I loathe football doesn’t mean I don’t pay attention. Besides, I would’ve known anyway. See Mark down there?” she pointed to her husband’s red baseball cap among a sea of football fathers sitting several rows in front of them. “Well, I happened to spot him about the time Eric crossed over the goal line. I thought he would have a conniption. He came pretty darn close to vaulting over the wall and running out on the field.”

Ashley looked down, grinning as Mark Lawrence accepted congratulatory pats on the back from the other dads sitting around him.

“The kick is good!” the announcer broadcast in an animated tone, “The Rebels lead it seven to zip.”

“Hey! Check out Jeff Thomasee.” Kate shaded her eyes and nudged Ashley, an affectionate smile lighting her face as she nodded in the direction of her old beau standing on the sideline with his players. “Looking good.”

Ashley giggled. “You know you’re getting old when you stop looking at the players and start looking at the coaches,” she kidded.

“Oh Kate, please!” Susanna butted in, disgust dripping from her pursed lips. “Exhibit some taste.”

Susanna let out a heavy sigh and rolled her eyes. “Sometimes I don’t even know why I bother,” she muttered.

On the sideline, her son Eric grabbed a cup of water and removed his helmet, his blond hair soaked with perspiration. He wiped his brow and stared into the stands, displaying an excited grin to his father. Mark gave him a thumbs-up and clapped with wild enthusiasm.

“Way to go, Eric!” Molly and Emily hopped up on the bleachers, waving their arms to catch his attention. His smile grew even larger as he looked their way, and he winked playfully before turning back to the game.

Kate noted their interaction and looked over at Ashley with a wistful smile. “Isn’t it just wonderful that the kids are so close? I just wish Jessie and Jordan were right up there with them.”

“That would have been something to behold,” Ashley said. “The perfect trio’s children all playing nice together. But then again, isn’t it great to know that you have a set of built-in babysitters?”

“I don’t know. I trust Molly, but I’m not so sure about Eric and Emily. Poor things, they have the disadvantage of their mother’s genes battling against them.”

“Now, don’t be too hard on them, Kate. Nothing’s for certain. Maybe they got lucky and took after Mark.”

Kate grinned and gazed down at the team, studying Eric thoughtfully as he joked around with a couple of his teammates.

“Isn’t it spooky the way the mind plays tricks on you?” she asked, her voice low and sincere against Ashley’s ear. “Is it just me or does Eric Lawrence remind you of anyone standing down there that way?”

Jimmy and Doug. Ashley smiled and nodded, her eyes suddenly misty with sentimental tears as she inspected Eric’s confident stance.

“Yeah, he really does,” she said, staring at the sideline, the vivid images of two handsome teenage boys alive in her mind’s eye — one sandy-haired and the other golden-blond, exchanging a high five after a magnificent play. Her breath caught in her throat and she swallowed hard, wiping her eyes in an effort to push the haunting images out of her head.

Why did I let that happen? she wondered miserably. Maybe Susanna has the right idea about not coming to these things. The memories alone could kill you.

For the first time, Ashley was grateful for Susanna’s unrefined shriek. Intrigued, she swiveled in her seat, appreciating the distraction as she followed the direction of Susanna’s disgusted stare. Her eyes fell upon their old nemesis, Rhonda Williams, ascending the stadium stairs.

Ashley frowned, her stomach slightly churning. Rhonda Williams, every man’s dream, was still stunning with a thick mane of jet-black hair and sparkling sapphire-blue eyes. Her skin was smooth, her face unlined, and she glided up the steps on long shapely legs, exuding confidence and feline grace, quite certain that she was still the cat’s meow.

“She sure aged well,” Ashley commented dryly, her back stiffening with the memory of old wounds. The sight of Rhonda Williams still irritated her, and the recollection of endless catty remarks spouted from Rhonda’s cherry-red lips still got under her skin.

“No doubt the work of a brilliant plastic surgeon,” Susanna remarked, scowling unpleasantly as she watched Rhonda giggle and flirt with every man she met on her way up the bleachers. “And that hair is nothing more than Miss Clairol™ Number 52 D. It reminds me of those wedding pictures of Priscilla Presley. Remember those?”

“Isn’t it nice to know that some things never change?” Ashley said, nodding curtly at Rhonda’s provocative display.

Kate remained silent, yet she viewed Rhonda’s approach through narrowed eyes, gauging every move skeptically. Susanna, on the other hand, was ready to fly over the bleachers and strangle the life out of her. Ashley put a restraining hand on her leg.

“What’s she doing here?” Susanna repeated, looking from Kate to Ashley with mounting indignation. “I can’t believe she’s back. I thought we got rid of her when she married that poor guy from Texas.”

“That’s the true beauty of moving back to your hometown,” Ashley said. “Every day is like a high school reunion.”

“I don’t know why you two act so surprised,” Kate finally said. “It’s perfectly natural that she’d be at the game. She is a faculty member.”

“Well, that’s fitting. If there’s one thing Rhonda knows something about, it’s reproduction.”

“Susanna nothing, Ashley. You know it’s true. And just how do you suppose she got hired? I thought teachers were supposed to have high moral standards.”

“Maybe age has changed her,” Kate suggested. “As you pointed out, she is married.”

Ashley shook her head, leaning across Susanna to correct Kate. “Was married. She got a divorce last year, remember?”

“What happened?” Susanna squirmed in her seat, eager for juicy gossip. “Did she get a case of the hots for the football coach or what?”

“Probably, along with half the team,” Ashley chimed in, nudging Susanna playfully.

“Okay, that’s cool then,” Susanna cackled in appreciation, relishing their mutual dislike of Rhonda.

“You can laugh now, Miss Susanna,” Kate said, indicating Rhonda with a dip of her blond head, “but I’d watch out if I were you. The man-eater just slid into the spot next to your husband.”

“What!” Susanna jumped up, her hazel eyes blazing with jealousy as she caught sight of Rhonda cuddled next to Mark. “Well, I’ll just put a stop to that!”

She hurdled the bench in front of them and bounded down the concrete steps, hell-bent on halting Rhonda in her seductive tracks.

“Should we stop her before she beats Rhonda to a pulp?” Kate glanced at Ashley, her green eyes sparkling with subdued laughter.

“Not a chance,” Ashley said, watching as Susanna inserted herself between Mark and Rhonda, grabbing his arm possessively and berating Rhonda with a blistering glare. “Let her go. Rhonda certainly deserves whatever punishment Susanna dishes out.”

After a triumphant win for the Rebels, Molly, Emily and Eric headed for McDonald’s, and Kate and Ashley returned home after dropping Susanna at her car, finding it still askew on the shoulder of the road near the end of Ashley’s driveway.

“I’m glad that’s over!” Susanna declared as she threw open the back door of the Jeep. She scooted across the seat, pinching Jessie fondly on the cheek as she hopped out of the car.

“A word of warning,” she stuck her head back in, staring brusquely from Kate to Ashley, “I’ll not be doing that again.” She slammed the door and jumped into her gold Mercedes, her tires squealing against the pavement as she sped away.

“Baloney,” Kate laughed as she let off the brake and continued up the hillside drive. “She’ll be right back in the stands next Friday night, protecting her man from Rhonda Williams and cheering her brains out.”

“Yeah,” Ashley murmured, staring out the window, although I could have stood for more fun and fewer memories.