Loving Kate

by Lara Van Hulzen

  “He was charming and funny. He loved to take me shopping, liked how I dressed. My style. He was a few years older than me and already working for a large investment firm in Boston. He was climbing the corporate ladder fast and wanted me to go with him. Be his wife. He said I was what inspired him. Kept him successful.”

  She shook her head. “I bought into all of it. Hook, line, and sinker. He went to church with me, was nice to my parents. My mom still kicks herself for not seeing what he was like and my dad, I had to keep from pummeling Barry.”

  “I would have liked to meet your dad.”

  She smiled. “I’d love for you to be able to meet him too. But none of us liked feeling like a fool, ya know?”

  “Who Barry is has nothing to do with the kind of people you are. That’s his issue.”

  “Yeah. Well, it became mine. As the first year of our marriage passed, little things started to creep in, stuff I didn’t see at the time as a big deal. My mind told me it might be a big deal, but my heart talked me out of it. I wanted to believe the best about the person I married. Give him the benefit of the doubt. And if I tried to talk to Barry about things, he’d charm his way through, convince me it was nothing and move on.”

  Kate feared she’d said too much. Maybe unloading on Jack wasn’t such a great idea. She wouldn’t blame him one bit if he got up right then and ran for the door.

  Instead, he urged her on. “What happened?”

  “It wasn’t some big, huge thing. Well, it was, sort of. But it was all these little things that led up to it. He stopped coming to church with me. Didn’t want to go to dinner with people who were more my friends than his. He spent a lot of time at business dinners and events. Events I attended with him in the beginning but soon saw I was just his arm candy for the evening. The design business I wanted that he had promised to help me with, saying he would support my dreams as I supported his, he began calling a hobby, and not just to me but to business associates when we were at events. It was embarrassing. It was a subtle decline but he stopped wanting nights in watching movies and making dinner together. I stopped wanting to go out all the time, schmooze and kiss up to people. That’s what his world had become. All fake. Nothing real.”

  Jack reached out and wiped away a tear from her cheek with his thumb. He cradled her face in his hand for a moment. A small gesture and yet so precious. She let go of the paintbrush and folded her hands on the table.

  “In private, he was mean.”

  Jack tensed. He took her hands in his.

  “He didn’t ever hit me, Jack. It wasn’t like that. But words can be powerful. And he had them in spades. He would demean my desire to be a designer, said painting was for children. He would get upset with me before we went out; tell me no one wanted to hang with a frumpy bitch all night.” Jack’s hold on her hands intensified. She rubbed her thumb along his, his grip relaxing a bit.

  “I mentioned counseling but he balked at that. Said that only the weak sought help and that he was neither weak nor in need of any help. It was all me.”

  Jack pulled his hands away to reach for a towel nearby. He handed it to her. “I’m sorry. I don’t have tissues out here. But this is clean. I promise.” He lifted her chin so she looked him in the eye. His smile spoke volumes. He was still here. Still listening. He wasn’t going to bolt for the door.

  She made an attempt to wipe her face with the towel, certain she must look like a clown with black streaks down her cheeks. But for the first time in a long time, she didn’t care. Jack was here. With her. As is. He took her at face value.

  After she sucked in a deep breath, she let it out slow. “I guess the final straw was when I found out he was having an affair. Multiple affairs, really. In his frustration at me not attending events, he sought arm candy elsewhere. With his money and position at his company, it wasn’t all that surprising. And sadly, many of the men did that. Didn’t bring their wives to events, and didn’t go home to them at night either.”

  Jack had taken one of her hands in his again.

  “Part of me thought he was doing it on purpose to chase me away.” She lifted a shoulder and let it fall. “Maybe he was. But once I filed for divorce and moved out, he wouldn’t let go.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’ve been divorced for over a year now and he still calls and texts. Just taunts me. Says I’ll never succeed. That I’m nothing without him.” She looked down again, the shame so heavy to hold. “Says no one will ever want me.”

  The screech of Jack’s stool moving along the cement floor echoed through the room. He stood and pulled her to him in one graceful movement. Melting into him, she let all the hurt pour out through her tears. She had no concept of how long he held her but she didn’t care. There was nowhere else on earth she wanted to be.

  When her breathing had come back down to somewhere near normal, he pulled back and held her by the shoulders. Leaning down, he looked her in the eyes. Goodness, if her face hadn’t been bad before, it must now. Like stung-by-a-bee swollen kind of bad.

  But Jack ignored that. Instead, he said, “Kate McIntire, I am falling head over heels madly in love with you. If you can’t see that, we’re getting your eyes checked first thing tomorrow. And from this point on, I’m going to spend every ounce of my energy on getting you back to where you know, without a doubt, the woman you truly are. You are going to see yourself through God’s eyes and mine. And we both think you are incredible.”

  He pulled her to him and kissed her. Sweet and soft and slow, his words turned to action right there in his garage. A flicker of hope danced inside her. Barry was wrong. Jack was right. She was loveable. And her heart wanted to love again.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Against his better judgment, Jack pulled back from kissing Kate. He could live every minute of every day exploring those decadent lips, but he wanted – no, he needed – to look in her eyes. Without hesitation, he’d just poured his heart out to her, telling her he loved her, and, in fear of how she might respond, decided kissing her senseless was the best course of action.

  But now, somewhere deep inside him, he wanted a response. There was a high probability she wouldn’t confess her undying love to him in return, but he could at least read her eyes, see if he had a chance.

  She blinked a few times, her head tilted back to look at him. Her lips were swollen like they’d been thoroughly kissed, because of course, they had been. Her eyes were puffy, too, but gorgeous as ever. And full of...hope. She smiled, the gesture warming every inch of him.

  “That was nice,” she whispered.

  “Which part?” He teased. He had her wrapped up in his arms with no intention of letting go anytime soon.

  She placed her forehead against his chest. Her hands held the front of his shirt like a lifeline. “All of it.” Her voice was muffled but he heard her just the same. Yeah. She was falling for him, too. It would just take her battered heart a little longer to recognize it. Not a problem. He was a patient man.

  He cradled her head in one hand, the other holding her close to him. It couldn’t have been easy for her to unload like that. Unsure of what had caused her to trust him on that level, he wasn’t about to ask, but rather accept it with gratitude. He imagined she’d carried that all alone for a while. Well, she was close to her mother, Rose, who, he was sure, was aware of the details. But still. To have this jackass continue to taunt her, texting her and telling her over and over that... Jack swallowed down the desire to find the guy that second and deal with him his way. No. The woman in his arms who’d just given him the gift of her trust needed him, so he was for damn sure not going anywhere. Barry would be dealt with later.

  She pulled back a bit in his arms and looked up at him. Her eyes were brighter than before. “I’m sorry I dumped all that on you.”

  He took her face in his hands and bent down so they were eye to eye. “Don’t apologize, Kate. You’re safe with me. Always.”

  Her head bobbed in a nod as she wiped her face with her hands
. “I know that.”

  She stepped back, away from his embrace, her warmth missed by him immediately.

  “Is it okay if we keep painting?”

  Caught off her guard by her question, but by all means pleased, he reached for a dart and placed it in her hand. “Absolutely.”

  He cradled her cheek and kissed her once more, for good measure, then stepped back out of her way. “Have at it, my lady.” He waved his arm toward the canvas.

  She giggled. It bubbled through him all the way to his toes. He watched as she threw more darts, most of them hitting their mark. Kate didn’t cheer each time now, but her whole countenance was different. It was visible, the weight lifted from her shoulders by her spilling things to him. And he was more than willing to share the load with her. Canaan Smith sang from the iPod about loving someone slow and steady, his voice and words drifting through the garage. That was fine with Jack. He was more than happy to take things slow and steady with Kate. Love her the way she deserved. He’d start with this night. If it were up to him, it would never end.

  Kate’s phone rang, the tone cutting through the air. Now that Jack was aware of Barry calling and bothering Kate, he tensed, but Kate put down the dart in her hand, brushed her hands on her sweatshirt now covered in paint spots, and answered her phone.

  “Hi, Mom.” She covered the phone with her hand and whispered to Jack, “My Mom’s ringtone.”

  Jack nodded as she went back to chatting with Rose. Hmmm, good idea with Barry bugging her. He thought of a few ringtones he’d give Barry if it were up to him. He was pretty sure Kate’s phone didn’t have the tones he had in mind, however.

  Kate’s “Oh, no!” rattled him from his thoughts. He searched her face for signs of what was wrong, but found none.

  She held her hand over the phone again and said, “My brother, Drew, is hurt.”

  Moving her hand away she spoke again into the phone. “Yeah. I was talking to Jack. I’m at his house.”

  Jack liked the color that rose in her cheeks.

  Kate turned her back to him but he could still hear. “Yes, Mom. We can talk about it later.”

  He couldn’t help it. He laughed. But made an abrupt halt when Kate turned back to him and gave him the stink-eye. Man, she was cute.

  “Yeah. Okay.” She continued with her mom. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Ending the call, she placed her phone back on the table. All signs of frustration due to Rose’s teasing were gone from her face, now replaced with a look of worry.

  Jack was at her side in a blink. “Hey, talk to me.”

  “It’s Drew.” She leaned into him as he put an arm around her. “You know he’s a pitcher for the New York Empires?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, he was pitching in practice and went down. The doctors think it’s a torn rotator cuff.”

  Jack held back a reaction. He was no medical doctor but he knew enough to see that an injury like that could end a guy’s career.

  “Did your mom know anything more?”

  “No. She said he sounds awful, which is understandable, but they are doing tests, an MRI, etcetera. and will know more tomorrow.”

  “Okay, then we will pray that tomorrow brings good news, right?” He placed a hand under her chin and tilted her face toward his. Her eyes were sad, but she nodded in agreement.

  “You wanna keep painting?”

  “I don’t think so. Is that okay?”

  “Of course. I do have brownies with ice cream I think we might need to dive into.”

  The sparkle in her eye at that news, he wanted to bottle up and sell. He’d make millions. Nah. On second thought, he’d rather keep it all to himself.

  “I think Josh has a stash of old movies in the office that are pretty good, too. You up for that?”

  “That sounds perfect.”

  He put his arm around her and led her back to the main house. He’d close up the art studio later. For now, he had a warm woman to hold while eating brownies and watching a movie. The perfect way to end a day, indeed.

  Kate sat in a booth at Meg’s Diner which was about two blocks over and down from Atmosphere. It sat on the corner of Seapoint Boulevard and Sand Dune Street. Originally, Kate and Rose were going to meet for coffee but decided instead to do lunch.

  Kate looked around. The diner had been refurbished about six months ago when Meg Malone inherited it from her father who had willed it to her upon his death. From what Maggie and Hannah has said, Meg went to high school with them and had dreams of leaving Silver Bay for a big city but then her mother died of cancer her senior year of high school and she didn’t have the heart to leave her dad all alone.

  Kate had met Meg a few times when she came in to have a meal, but didn’t know the woman well. At the moment she was wiping down the main counter and smiling at an older gentleman who was telling her about the good old days when coffee was simply coffee and didn’t cost four dollars a cup. Meg was Kate’s age. Pretty. Her long, dark hair was pulled up in a messy ponytail, her black t-shirt with the diner’s logo on it was tucked into blue jeans and a black half apron wrapped around her waist.

  Kate had heard what it was like to grow up in Silver Bay from Hannah and Maggie, but Hannah never wanted to leave and Maggie had been lured back by love. How would Meg’s story differ from theirs? Did she still want to leave? She made a mental note to reach out to Meg soon, invite her for coffee or something.

  “You’re deep in thought.”

  Her mother’s voice made her jump. “Sheesh. You startled me.”

  Rose took off her coat and placed it, along with her purse, on the bench across the booth from Kate before taking a seat. “It’s not like I tiptoed in behind you or anything.”

  Kate laughed. “Sorry. I know. I was watching Meg, thinking it would be nice to get to know her.”

  Her mother turned and looked at Meg then back at Kate. “That’s a great idea. Looks like your time with Jack is bringing you out of your shell a bit. I like it.”

  The teenager in her wanted to roll her eyes but she pushed down the urge. “Mom, not everything is about Jack.”

  “I didn’t say it was. I’m just noticing a change in you since he’s been around. A good one. You’re getting back to your old self again.”

  A stout older woman with the same t-shirt and apron as Meg came and took their drink order. She walked away as Kate answered her mother. “I guess there’s some truth to that.”

  After they’d painted the night before, Jack had heated up homemade brownies – ones he’d made, not Josh, which did surprise her – then they’d watched Rear Window, one of her favorite old Hitchcock movies. Curled up in his arms under a blanket, her tummy full of chocolaty goodness, her heart was lighter than it had been in a long, long time, the weight of her stress over Barry not as heavy a load anymore. Not to mention Jack saying he was falling in love with her. That made her heart do a touchdown dance of its own.

  “By the look on your face, I’d say there’s quite a bit of truth to that.”

  Kate’s eyes met her mother’s and she smiled. Why fight it? Or deny it. She was falling in love with Jack, too. Why else would she have spewed her life story to him? Well, because she trusted him, for one. But also, he needed to know everything before things progressed between them. He deserved an out, which she was still surprised he hadn’t taken. Rather, he wrapped her up, said he loved her, and kissed her senseless.

  Yeah. Denying her feelings for Jack anymore was just plain silly.

  Kate leaned an elbow on the table and placed her chin in her hand. “We painted.”

  “That sounds lovely. And rather whimsical.”

  “It was.” She described the rest of the evening to her mother, leaving out the heated kissing parts, of course. They were close but there was only so much her mother needed to know. Besides, Rose teased her mercilessly anyway. The last thing Kate needed was to give her more ammo.

  As Kate talked she got to the point of the evening where Rose had called with th
e news about Drew. “Oh, my gosh! Mom! I’m the worse sister ever. Here I am going on about my date last night and I haven’t asked about Drew’s injury.”

  The waitress returned then and took their lunch orders. They both got burgers with cheese fries. It was a diner. What else would they get? Not a salad, that was for sure.

  Rose spoke once the waitress turned for the kitchen.

  “I haven’t had much of a chance to talk to him. David called me. The trainers called him as soon as Drew went down.”

  “What happened?”

  Her mother lifted a shoulder and let it drop. “No one is saying for sure yet. They are thinking torn rotator cuff which can wear down and happen over time.” She shook her head and dug in her purse for a tissue. “I’m worried about him.” A tear ran down her cheek that she swiped away.

  “Mom, I am, too. But it’s going to be okay. Tell me what else David said.”

  “Just that Drew would have an MRI today. He will call when they know something. We have to keep it hush-hush, as you know. If the press gets wind of it, or bad information, it could be a nightmare for Drew.”

  Kate nodded. “I only told Jack and he won’t share.”

  Rose nodded her agreement. Funny how fast she and her mother trusted Jack. They’d done that with Barry, too. But the two men could not be more different. Jack was trustworthy. Barry was not.

  “I’m thinking of flying out there to see him. But I’m going to wait until I hear from David. He’ll know what’s best.”

  Kate said a quiet prayer for both Drew and David. Kate’s father had been the light of her mother’s life. When he’d passed away from a heart attack, David stepped up as head of the family. As self-sufficient as Rose was, she still relied on David to lead in some ways. He was their rock. One they were going to need now.

  “I think it would be good if you go. Drew needs you; David and Brenda always love seeing you.”

  Her mother agreed. As they finished off their meals they chatted about how things were going at Atmosphere and the beautiful new stockroom Jack was almost finished with. Kate didn’t tell her mother either about the suspicion of arson. The woman had enough on her plate now with Drew’s injury without something else to worry about.