Free Good Together by C. J. Carmichael Page A

list. It was past midnight. Where was he? Would he take her call if she had the nerve to hit that button?
    Even if he did—she had no idea what to say. And there was always the possibility that that woman would answer. Mattie didn’t know if she could bear the certain knowledge that her husband was having an affair.
    And yet her father had done it.
    Sage’s revelation about their mother’s affair was still difficult for Mattie to believe. How long had the affair gone on? And why had Hawksley put up with it? The man Mattie knew as her father did not offer forgiveness or second chances very often.
    Maybe he’d understood that it was his own lack of kindness and loving that had chased his wife into the arms of another man?
    No one could say the same of her and Wes, though. From the beginning they’d been affectionate in private and in public. The twins would sometimes complain when they kissed for too long in places like restaurants or street corners. But Mattie had loved Wes’s demonstrativeness.
    That, too, had eased off recently, she realized, when she couldn’t recall the last time they’d shared a kiss in front of others.
    Or made love.
    Damn, how long had her marriage been crumbling without her even noticing?
    * * *
    C ooking apples and cinnamon. Fresh brewed coffee. French toast and maple syrup. Mattie rolled over in bed, trying to decide if these delicious smells could possibly have been conjured in a dream. Then she heard the sounds of dishes being unloaded from the dishwasher. Hell, Sage must have gotten up before her. How was that possible?
    She reached for her phone and saw with dismay that it was after eight. Outside there was just a hint of daylight peeking through the curtains.
    Suddenly she was reminded of how it had felt to be a little girl, on Saturday mornings, sleeping in and being woken by her Mom calling that breakfast was ready so get it while it’s hot. She so hadn’t appreciated how lucky she’d been in those days. If only she could have her Mom back for one day to tell her thank-you for those hundreds of breakfasts that had been made with love and devoured so carelessly.
    Like so many things in life, the wisdom of appreciation came too late.
    She grabbed her robe and headed to the kitchen, where she found Sage dusting powdered sugar over the French toast. Tuff was licking the floor by her feet where something yummy must have spilled.
    “Oh my God. You’re amazing Sage. You made Mom’s breakfast.”
    Her younger sister had such beautiful skin that she looked fresh and pretty, even first thing in the morning. Her loveliness only increased with her smile. “I haven’t had French toast for years. But I woke up craving it. Hope you don’t mind that I commandeered the kitchen.”
    “You’re kidding, right? Like I would mind. I thought I was dreaming all those delicious aromas. I was afraid to open my eyes.” She gave Tuff a cuddle, then glanced out the window at the morning fog and sighed. “Poor Jake. He had to do the morning chores on his own again.”
    “Not totally. I probably wasn’t as much help as you, but I did try.”
    “What time did you get up?”
    “Early. Tuff has been fed and taken out to pee, as well.”
    “You’re an angel.”
    “Pretty much.” Sage placed two slices of the prepared toast on a plate, smothered it in cooked apples and cinnamon, then passed it to her. “Eat up. You hardly had a bite of dinner.”
    Was that why she felt so famished now?
    Her first taste was heavenly. “Tell me more about this new guy of yours. Dawson O’Dell.”
    “Want to see some pictures?” Sage set her breakfast plate next to Mattie’s then sat beside her and passed over her phone.
    Between bites of scrumptious maple-infused French toast, Mattie scrolled through several pictures of a dark-blond cowboy with a laid-back air and the hint of a smile on his lips. He lacked Wes’s confident, almost cocky air. Instead—“There’s something kind of sweet about him, isn’t