by SUE FINEMAN
“Not right with the baby?”
“With the situation. Eleanor fussed over Maggie, but William was the one who took care of the little boy.”
“His name was John. I found some pictures of him downstairs. Looks like he had Down’s syndrome.”
“Is he still alive?”
“I don’t know.”
<>
Benton lay in the hospital recovering from a heart attack and wondering what Billy Kane kept in that room or vault. Or maybe Cousin Eleanor kept something locked in there.
He called his mother again. This time he didn’t intend to ask her for money. It wouldn’t be necessary. “Mother, I’m in the hospital in River Valley, Ohio.”
“I thought you were in jail. Did someone attack you?”
He didn’t want her to know he’d broken into a house, so he said simply, “I had a heart attack. The doctor said it caused significant damage to my heart.”
“Oh, Benton. I’m so sorry.”
“And I’m sorry about the house and the antiques. I was desperate for money or I wouldn’t have sold the antiques.”
“Gambling debts?”
“I borrowed money from a loan shark and couldn’t pay him back. He’s not the kind of man who lets people walk away, so I did what I had to do. I sold the cars, the furniture, everything.”
“I thought you quit gambling.”
“I tried, Mother.” Because he couldn’t quit gambling, he’d turned to stealing, which was a stupid, but necessary, thing to do. “I just wanted to let you know where I was. As soon as I recover, they’re sending me back to jail.”
“For what? What did you do?”
“It doesn’t matter now. I love you.”
She sniffled. “Oh, Benton, no matter what you’ve done, I love you, too.”
He hung up and smiled. He didn’t lie to her, but he knew he’d touched his mother’s heart. She’d no doubt be up to see him in a day or two, and she’d use her influence with the judge to set him free.
Benton hated using his mother like this, but he didn’t want to die in a prison cell.
<>
While Kayla cleaned the nursery, Billy searched the study for vital documents. He wanted to know when William and Eleanor’s son was born and when he died.
He found a file in the cabinet behind William’s desk labeled FAMILY. Inside were birth certificates and death certificates going back to William’s grandparents, Cecil Goodman and Helen Smith Goodman, the couple in the portrait on the wall. They married in Pennsylvania. William’s father, John Goodman, was born two years later, in Ohio. He died when William was a little boy.
Billy finally found what he was looking for. John William Goodman was born a year after William married Eleanor. Billy went through all the papers three times and couldn’t find a death certificate. If John was still living, he’d be in his fifties now.
He was about to put the file back in the cabinet when he saw a paper on the bottom of the file drawer. It was a paper committing John William Goodman, age five, to a mental institution. Billy stared at the paper. The reason for commitment was mental retardation. They sent a five-year-old to a mental institution? They were rich enough to hire someone to help take care of their son. Instead, they institutionalized him.
In that moment, he understood. Eleanor wanted a perfect child, and her son was far from perfect. He probably had a multitude of medical problems, and the mental retardation and the physical features of a Down’s syndrome child would have been disappointing to a perfectionist mother. Did she blame herself for his condition, or did she blame her husband? Either way, it would have put a strain on their marriage.
What happened to John after he was committed? Did he spend the rest of his life in that institution?
Dad tapped on the door. “What are you doing in here?”
“Learning things about my family. Did you know Maggie had a brother?”
Dad sat beside him on the sofa in the secret room. “No, I didn’t. Is he still alive?”
“I was just wondering that myself. They sent him to an institution when he was five. I don’t know if they wrote him off or if they visited him or what.”
“Why did they—”
“I think he had Down’s syndrome. I found some baby pictures and one of him when he was two or three, and that’s it. No more pictures. I thought Down’s kids were only mildly retarded. Would you put a little kid in an institution for being mildly retarded?”
“No, but things are different these days than they were fifty years ago. I doubt there was much help for those kids back then.”
“Did Maggie know?”
“No, I’m sure she didn’t. Now I understand Eleanor’s focus on perfection and on her not wanting Maggie to have a baby. She probably thought she’d have a retarded grandson, and she didn’t want that any more than she wanted a retarded son.”
“She didn’t want me anyway, Dad. She treated me like shit. I can only imagine what her own son went through. I never thought I’d say this about anyone, but John was probably better off in an institution than with his own parents.”
Dad took the paper from Billy’s hands and examined it. “I’ll put a trace on John William Goodman.”
“Thanks, Dad. What did William do with the rest of his estate? Did his money go to Eleanor, or—”
“I have no idea. I know he left Maggie a few thousand, which she ran through in a month or so. William was a wealthy man. I imagine he spent a bundle getting help for his son.”
“That doesn’t explain what he did with the rest of his money,” Billy said mostly to himself. “I found a few thousand in the safe, but there’s got to be more somewhere.”
“Unless Eleanor found it. If she did, it’s gone now.”
Dad stood. “I came by to invite you and Kayla to dinner tonight. Hamburgers and chicken on the grill. Hannah’s making potato salad and whatever. Six o’clock.”
“We’ll be there.”
Billy walked his father to the front door. “Have you heard anything about Benton Ainsworth? Did he survive?”
“He’s still in the hospital. When he gets out, he’ll go to court. I can’t see the judge letting him go again, but they don’t really have the facilities to take care of someone with serious health problems in the jail. That means—”
“They’ll let him go again? He’s broke, Dad. How is he going to take care of himself? He’s better off in jail than on the street, especially if he ends up back here.”
“Apparently he isn’t quite broke. He had nearly six hundred dollars on him when he was arrested.”
“Two hundred and eighty-three of it came from Eleanor’s purse. Did they find her credit cards, too?”
He nodded. “Two of hers and one that belonged to his public defense attorney. The guy is a loser, but his medical condition could get him a suspended sentence. Nobody wants the state to have to cover his medical bills, and if he goes to prison, that’s exactly what’ll happen.”
Billy didn’t care who covered his medical expenses, as long as the guy wasn’t free to come back here again.
Andy walked over. He’d just finished mowing the lawn. Billy tried to give him some money and he waved it away. “You don’t have to pay me. You got me a summer job.”
Billy smiled. “Yeah, that went well this morning. Marvin Klein is impressed with your work and with you.”
Andy grinned. “Yeah, I’m an impressive guy.”
Dad punched him playfully on the arm. “Your head is growing.”
“Hey, remember me? I’m the good twin.”
“Most of the time,” Dad muttered. He turned back to Billy. “See you and Kayla at six.”
“We’ll be there, with Buford.”
Billy watched Dad and Andy leave, and then took the steps two at a time to check on Kayla. She was still in the nursery, boxing up toys.
“I can’t believe one little baby girl needed this many toys. There’s enough here to equip a nursery school.”
He wondered if they b
ought as many toys for their natural son as they did for their adopted daughter. How long did they have John before they gave up on him? Before they decided he wasn’t perfect enough to keep?
“Billy, are you all right?”
“What would you do if you had a baby with birth defects?”
“Love it,” she said without hesitation.
He helped Kayla pack up the rest of the toys and dust the shelves. “What’s left to do on this floor?”
“I have two more suites to clean and then I’ll start painting Maggie’s rooms. I need to shop for paint, though. There’s no sense hiring a painter until I figure out what colors to put in which rooms or set of rooms.”
“What about the basement?”
“Oh, I forgot all about the basement. I haven’t even been down there yet.”
“We’ll do it together, after we get the rest done.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s time to quit for the day. We’re having dinner with my family tonight. Six o’clock. I’ll take all this stuff to the homeless shelter tomorrow afternoon.”
“Not the baby clothes. They need to be washed first. I washed the toys, but not the clothes. Eleanor’s things aren’t bad, but the baby clothes have been sitting here gathering dust for a whole lot of years.”
“Did you find any boy’s clothes?”
She shook her head.
Eleanor and William had not only banished their son from the house, they’d wiped him out as if he didn’t exist. The only pictures Eleanor kept were pictures of her perfect baby girl.
Billy wasn’t the only child in this family Eleanor didn’t want. What was wrong with her that she couldn’t love her own son? That she couldn’t accept her grandson?
She’d ruined her son’s life by depriving him of a family, and she’d ruined Maggie life by treating her as a possession instead of a person, but he would not let her ruin his life. Dad and Pop and Hannah showed him more love in a single day than Eleanor had in his entire life.
“Eleanor was the one who should have been locked in an institution.”
Kayla sighed. “I’m afraid you’re right. I wonder what happened to make her so unfeeling.”
“She had a son who wasn’t perfect.”
“Nobody’s perfect, Billy. Nobody.”
<>
After dinner with his family, Billy drove Kayla to a hardware store and they looked at color charts. He bought three gallons of sage green paint for Maggie’s rooms and all the painting supplies they’d need to get the job done.
Kayla showed Billy what she had in mind for the living and dining rooms. “Light gray, like this, with darker gray drapes and throw pillows in rose and grays.”
“You’re sure that’ll work with those blue sofas?”
“I’m sure it’ll look a whole lot better than it does now.”
“Okay. Trevor said he’d paint tomorrow if you have a room ready to go.”
“Then let’s buy some of the light gray paint for the living room.”
A voice behind them asked, “Buying body paint? Because it would be a shame to cover those luscious—”
Billy whipped around and did what he’d wanted to do at the restaurant the other night. He planted a fist in Steve Sullivan’s soft stomach. Steve sank slowly to the floor, letting out a squeak like a balloon losing air. Billy took Kayla’s arm and they walked around the corner out of sight. Seconds later, Billy heard the clerk and Steve’s wife fussing over him.
“Must be something I ate,” said Steve. “I’ll be all right.”
“Come with me,” Billy told Kayla. He walked around the corner and stuck out his hand. “Steve Sullivan. Long time no see. How are you?”
Steve shook his hand, but his eyes were wary. Billy said, “You remember Kayla Blanton, from Memphis? She’s helping me get the Goodman house ready to sell.”
“Goodman house?” said Steve.
“Yeah, the house on Mansion Drive, the one my grandfather left me. It’s way too big for a single guy like me.”
The woman with Steve introduced herself. “I’m Steve’s wife, Melissa.”
“Billy Kane, and this is Kayla Blanton.”
“Nice to meet you both. Don’t you teach at the River Valley Academy?”
“Yes, I do.”
“My niece is a freshman there. Taylor Banning. And my sister is on the board.”
Billy nodded. “I won’t have Taylor until next year.” He didn’t realize Steve Sullivan was related to someone on the board. Elizabeth Banning was one of the strongest advocates for a strict moral code. She was also one of the biggest snobs he’d ever met.
Melissa said, “I understand they’re making some changes in the teaching staff this summer.”
Billy forced a smile. “They do that every year.”
As Steve and Melissa Sullivan walked away, Kayla asked, “What was that about?”
“Apparently, she knows something I don’t.”
“About your job?”
If he lost this job, he’d have a hard time finding another one. “Maybe I should get my resume up to date.” He could probably find another job in another city, but he wasn’t sure he could find one here in River Valley. The public school districts had waiting lists of teachers looking for jobs.
On the way back to the house, Kayla said, “If you lose your job, it’ll be my fault.”
“No, it’ll be Steve’s fault. The guy was a jerk in college, and he’s still a jerk.”
“Is your hand all right?”
He flexed his fingers. “Fine. Steve has a soft stomach.”
“I’ll finish cleaning tomorrow and go back to Memphis. Mr. Clapp can mail my inheritance to me.”
“Aw, don’t do that, Kayla. I can’t get the house ready without you. I don’t want a painter in the house alone, and someone has to buy drapes and coordinate the colors. I don’t have time to do all that myself, and I’m no good at decorating.”
“You’ll have time after school lets out for the summer.”
Billy pulled into the driveway at the house and parked in front. “I don’t want you to leave.” She boosted his spirits, did more work on this house than anyone could be expected to do, and communicated with the ghosts as he couldn’t do himself.
“Billy, I don’t want you to lose your job over me.”
He unfastened his seatbelt and hers, and leaned in for a kiss. “I need you, honey.”
“Do you?”
He pulled back. “What do you mean by that?”
“I waited for you last night.”
“I started looking at the photo albums I found in that secret room and forgot the time. I didn’t go to sleep until after one this morning, and you were already asleep.” He stroked her soft cheek. “I’m sorry, honey.”
“So am I,” she whispered just before their lips met.
Kayla helped Billy carry the painting supplies into the house, but her mind wasn’t on painting. It was on Billy’s wide shoulders and strong arms, his quirky smile, and those incredible lips. Seeing him set her heart beating harder, and the slightest touch made her entire body tingle. She wanted him so much she was burning up inside.
Billy set the gray paint inside the living room, with the drop cloths and brushes and rollers. He put the cans of green paint for Maggie’s rooms on the third stair from the bottom.
“Hungry?” she asked.
“Only for you,” he replied.
A smile pulled at her face, and his eyes darkened with longing. They’d make love tonight, and she could hardly wait.
Chapter Ten
Billy groaned. “I forgot to bring the condoms.”
“It doesn’t matter, Billy,” Kayla told him. “We’re both clean, and I can’t get pregnant.”
Maybe not, but it was the first time he’d ever have sex without a condom. Dad had drilled that lesson into him. STD’s weren’t just a nuisance, they could be deadly, and Billy wasn’t ready to be a father. He wanted to get his career better established and get a graduate degree before he took that step. “I c
ould go—”
Kayla unbuttoned his shirt and unsnapped his jeans. “Oh, no you don’t. You’re not going anywhere, cowboy. You’re going to make love to me right now, before I go up in flames from wanting you so much.”
A smile pulled at one side of his mouth. “You want me that much?”
“More.” She propped her hands on her hips. “Are you going to take your clothes off, or do I have to do it for you?”
He toed his shoes off and kicked them aside. His shirt dropped by the bed. He grinned at her. “Is that enough?”
She rolled her eyes, and he laughed softly. “Okay, how about this?” He stripped off his jeans and tossed his socks on top of his shoes.
Kayla put her hand over the front of his knit boxers. “Mmm, is that all for me?”
“Every inch, baby.”
He rolled her down on the bed and kissed her so passionately, she thought she’d melt into a little puddle right there on the bed. By the time he pulled back, he had her shirt pushed up and her bra unfastened. “How did you do that?”
“Practice,” he said, and covered her mouth with his.
Her breast seemed to grow in his hand, and he found her nipple with his thumb. When his mouth closed over her other nipple, she moaned with pleasure. She ran her hands over his strong shoulders and muscled arms while he opened her jeans.
They were both naked in seconds, rolling around on the bed in passion. She’d never felt so turned on, so needy for a man to make love to her, especially this man. Who knew she could feel this way about a school teacher?
She knew he didn’t love her, but she couldn’t help loving him. It was a foolish thing to do, to fall in love with a man she’d only known a week, one who didn’t love her back. She always led with her heart instead of her head. It had gotten her in trouble before and probably would again, but she couldn’t live without love.
He slipped inside her, bare skin to bare skin. “Oh, that’s nice,” he whispered.
It was more than nice, especially with this man. She wanted to stay with him forever, but he had other plans for his life.
And she had to leave in three weeks.
<>
Billy woke early the next morning. The bed in the maid’s room was so lumpy he didn’t know how Kayla could sleep on it. He had to figure out a way to get the ghosts to move on. The sooner he could get them out, the sooner they could sleep upstairs, in a more comfortable bed.
