Her sultry, flirtatious tone threw him, but he managed to get to his feet to acknowledge her. “Nice to see you, Kristine—Mayor Laughlin, I should say. I just opened my law office on River Street, where Benson Insurance used to be. I’m here to catch up with what’s going on in town and introduce myself.”
“When did you come back?” Jim called out gruffly.
“A few weeks ago,” Mike said. “My son is in first grade at the Roosevelt school.”
“Quite a surprise to see you, Mike.” Kristine lowered her gaze to the file folder in front of her.
“I’ll say,” Jim added in a loud voice. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.
A couple of council members shifted in their seats in response to Jim’s icy tone.
“It’s great to be back home. I grew up here and a part of me never left.” Take that, Kellerman. Amused by his own words, he wondered what made both Kristine and Jim so uncomfortable. Maybe his dad had been right about people in town having long memories.
The meeting adjourned and he and Maggie filed out of the room in silence. Mike sensed Maggie’s curiosity about the undercurrent in his exchange with Kristine and Jim. He glanced at his watch. “Looks like I can go pick up my son earlier than I expected.”
Maggie touched his arm. “Do you mind my—”
He raised his hand to interrupt. “When we meet in my office, I’ll give you the thirty-second version. It’s personal.”
Maggie nodded. “Gotcha.” She said good-night and took off for her car.
Mike did the same, suddenly more drained than he’d been in a long time. And sad. Sad about the state of the town, Jason’s continuing silence, and having to dip into savings to get his office ready. With no guarantee it would pay off.
Seeing Jim hadn’t helped. He’d always been a “get off my lawn” grumpy man, old when he was young. Jim had been his parents’ only real adversary in town. That was his mom’s word for the guy, as opposed to calling him an enemy, which his dad liked better. A contractor, he’d wanted to build vacation homes on the Abbot land. He’d hounded Mike’s parents to sell for years before his mother died and his father up and left. Jim complained the stupid bird sanctuary wouldn’t produce a dime of return on the investment. At the time, Mike and his dad amused themselves by making up lame imitations of Jim’s protests about the lazy, “good for nuthin’” birds not earning their keep.
What a hoot. Climbing in the car, he laughed out loud and reminded himself to tell Ruby about Jim and his attitude. Less entertaining was the odd welcome from Kristine and Jim’s public gruffness. Maggie hadn’t missed it, so he couldn’t write it off to his imagination. It brought back the way his mother’s death had been like a crash itself. Without a chance to take a breath so many lives had instantly spun out of control, just as Timothy Driscoll’s car had done on the highway.
As he drove through town, images flashing through his mind put Mike inside the police car with Ruby, the last time he held her in his arms. Then it was to stop her shivering from the cold. He and Ruby had exchanged few words, at least that he could recall. But his memory of clinging to each other in the backseat of the cruiser was sharp and clear. Ruby’s head was on his chest. As if it happened yesterday, he remembered the minty scent of her hair. His favorite smell back then. He’d rubbed his hand up and down her arm to warm her up.
Mike pulled the car over before he turned onto the shortcut road to Emma’s house. He had to stop these memories from taunting him, especially the moment he’d learned that Ruby’s father was driving the car with his mother in it. It took a second or two, maybe even three, to let his thoughts take that next leap.
By the time he accepted the truth, the whole town knew.
CHAPTER EIGHT
CONTAINER OF LEFTOVER cookies in hand, Ruby approached Mike’s office as a very tall, slender woman came out with Mike. Standing on the sidewalk, they shook hands and the woman walked down the street, her long gray-white hair tousled in the wind.
Before he could go back inside, Ruby called his name.
Mike’s tight smile looked forced. “I didn’t expect to see you this morning.”
“Uh, is this a bad time?”
His expression neutral, he said, “Not exactly. Come in. I’ll explain.”
“I won’t keep you,” Ruby said. “I thought Jason might like the extras. He seemed to really enjoy baking them, not to mention eating them last night.”
“Nice of you to think of him, right.” Mike’s smile changed—sort of.
He was distracted. “Was that your new client?” Ruby asked to change the subject.
“Maggie Hall. The web designer in one of the other offices just like mine.” He pointed down the street. “We had our first meeting.” He grinned—for real—and flexed his biceps. “I’m back. A pro again.”
He eyed the container in her hands. “Do you think Jason would miss one or two of those?”
She held out the plastic box. “Go ahead, have some. I packed plenty. Like I said last night, it’s the same recipe I used years ago.”
“C’mon in, have a cookie,” he said, opening the door to let her in. “Probably best to eat in my office and not sitting at the window.”
She followed him and sat in the chair across from the desk. “True, we wouldn’t want the stodgy new attorney to be seen sitting around munching cookies.”
“I don’t do stodgy too well, or so I’ve been told.”
“No, I don’t suppose you do,” she said with a laugh.
Instead of sitting in his chair behind the desk, he chose the other client chair and put the container on the desk between them.
“Nice touch.” She pointed to the vintage photos of the resort back in the 1940s. “I like the shots of old River Street, too.” She slipped off her jacket and curled one leg under her, feeling at home. “You’ve done such a great job with this place.”
“With your help,” he said, opening the container and holding it out to her. He glanced at his open computer, obviously preoccupied.
She edged forward in the chair. “You’ve traveled miles away. I should go so you can get back to work.”
That got his attention. “No, no. I mean it, Rubes. Stay.” He laced his fingers behind his head and stared at the ceiling.
“If I stay, then you need to tell me what’s going on with you.”
His expression, even his body language, told her he was discouraged. “I hate admitting this, but you were probably right about Bluestone River’s long memory.”
She liked being right, but not this time. “What happened?”
“There’s no smoking gun, so I can’t prove anything,” he said, “but when Kristine Laughlin spotted me she acted surprised.”
Well, that seemed logical. He’d been gone for years. What was Mike’s point? “Tell me more.”
He glanced up to meet her eye. “She said it so publicly, Rubes, and in a certain tone. And then Jim Kellerman chimed in with his icy remark.”
She remembered the name, Kellerman, an old Bluestone River family. Like the Laughlins and the Abbots. Not like her family. Her parents adopted the town as their own when her dad started teaching high-school history with ambition to become a principal. Every now and then her family was reminded they were “from away.” Her mother had felt that acutely in the groups of women charged with planning the town’s Christmas celebrations or organizing the Halloween parties for the kids. She had a certain status as Timothy Driscoll’s wife, but lost a few points by being from Indiana.
“You seem upset by this, but the Kellermans were known snobs. My mother was on the receiving end of their snooty ways a few times. But Kristine? Do you believe she cares much one way or the other about what happened with our parents?”
Mike shot her a look full of meaning—but she couldn’t interpret it. “What am I missing, Mike?”
Mike propped
his elbow on the arm of the chair and rested his chin on his closed fist. “What about my mom and your dad?”
Her heart beat a little faster. Buying time, she raised her shoulders in an innocent shrug as if pretending she didn’t know what he meant.
“Seriously, Ruby? Like you haven’t thought about it?” He rubbed the back of his neck in a way familiar to Ruby. It wasn’t relaxing his muscles so much as showing frustration. “Other than an offhand remark about my mom’s Christmas extravaganzas or your dad the football fanatic, our parents’ secrets are off-limits between us.”
“And Kristine and Jim’s reactions to you at the meeting last night stirred this up?”
It was his turn to appear perplexed. “I don’t know. It was like being put on the spot. They absolutely remember what happened.”
“Only the smallest, pettiest people care,” she said, waving him off. And sounding a lot like Emma. “You’re here to make a life. So what? Kristine will have to adjust. Jim will keep on being Jim. You didn’t do anything wrong. Neither did I.”
Her spirits were sinking like the stones they’d thrown in the river as kids. They could talk, laugh, have fun with Jason and Emma, but they’d always be the kids of parents who’d died because of an affair.
“I still find it almost impossible to think about my mom with your dad...the secrets they kept. For a year or more.”
No kidding. Ruby got to her feet. “I better get back to Emma.”
“Sure, leave, go ahead.” Mike gave her a sharp look as he flapped his hand toward the door, as if shooing her out. “What will you do when you don’t have Emma as your excuse to run from every uncomfortable conversation?”
Whoa. She was in no mood for his attitude. She matched it as she hurried out of the office and toward the front door. “As a matter of fact, Emma is having a really bad day. If you must know. She sat at the table too long last night because she was having so much fun with Jason. She still gets tired, and some days everything aches.”
Mike followed her, his apology coming fast. “I’m sorry. I really am.”
“Okay, I’ll forgive you this time,” Ruby said, forcing a breezy lilt, despite the pressure building behind her eyes. If she stayed another minute tears would start rolling down her cheeks. Over what?
Suddenly, Mike’s arms were around her, gently pulling her close. “Oh, Ruby.”
Her muscles gave way as she let her head drop against his chest. In an instant Mike’s lips had found her mouth and everything about him rushed back. The voice in her head screamed a warning not to let down her guard. Ever. She broke free of his arms and stepped back. “I can’t... I can’t.”
Without looking into Mike’s eyes, she turned away and fled out of the office and down the street. She heard him call her name. When she reached her car, she glanced behind her and saw him approaching.
“No, Mike, not now.” She left him standing on the sidewalk. He lifted his arm in a goodbye wave.
Every time she ran away, she fought the urge to go running back. Every time.
All the way back to Emma’s house Ruby repeated her plans in her head. Get Peach, go for a run. Fix dinner for Emma. Call Mom. She’d been putting off that call. But it was time. Her mother was encouraging her to come back to Florida for the winter to get a good long break and take time to figure out her next step.
It was time to take her up on the offer. She had to.
When Ruby let herself into the dark house, she inhaled the lingering scent of burning wood from their almost daily fires. Peach was curled up on the rug in front of the fireplace. Holding out her hand to stop Peach from rousing herself and following, Ruby tiptoed down the hall and peered through the half-open door to see Emma on her side, sleeping. Seeing the slow, easy rise and fall of her friend’s back, Ruby realized Em wouldn’t need her much longer. This was one bad day, not a setback. Ruby felt better knowing Emma was optimistic about a complete recovery most of the time. But now and again in the four weeks or so since the surgery, doubt would creep in. Emma admitted she feared that even the surgery wouldn’t give her back her full life. To Emma, that meant walking without a cane, hiking, dancing and doing everything she did before the fall that started her troubles. Ruby wanted that for her friend, too, but even Emma said she was given no guarantees.
She went back down the hall and let Peach out into the backyard, and stood on the deck watching the sky change from blue to slate as thickening clouds slid across the sky from the west. Another day was passing quickly. On the drive home, she saw a mom and a couple of toddlers arranging pumpkins on their front stairs. The house down the street from Emma was already decorated with scarecrows and giant spiders and ghosts hidden in the empty tree branches. As much as Bluestone River had changed, marking the changing seasons and their holidays stayed the same.
As she watched the sky, the memory of Mike’s mouth on hers and the warmth of his arms holding her close pushed away everything else she tried to think about. Those few seconds lifted her back to an old, once-familiar feeling of being exactly where she belonged. For a second or two the years dropped away. Even the texture of Mike’s blue sweater on her cheek was as familiar as the color of his eyes.
“Stop, stop.” Ruby said the words out loud to drill the reality that all the memories, sweet or painful, were behind her. Done with. Halloween was around the corner, and next up Thanksgiving. Em likely would be cleared to drive by early December. By New Year’s Eve, Emma the list maker would be jotting new goals in her journal. Maybe Ruby would do that, too. But not in Emma’s homey room with its desk and comfy reading chair. Instead, she’d think about her future on the deck of her mom’s condo in Florida.
Leaving Emma to her nap, Ruby let Peach back inside and went into her room and dashed off a quick text to Dee to let her know she was fine. Dee emailed and called and texted often, always in a serious older-sister tone. Ruby did her best to reassure her, but Dee worried if she hadn’t heard from Ruby every couple of days.
Finally, her calls and texts done for the day, and email checked, she left her room and went outside to gather logs from the stacked wood next to the deck. She carried them into the house and put them in the log basket. She kept her hands busy brushing ashes out of the fireplace and starting their afternoon fire. Growing up, her mom and dad used the fireplace almost every night in the fall and winter, unlike Emma’s family, who reserved the living room in their three-floor home for special occasions, the fireplace tools pristine in their wrought-iron holders.
“Hey, Rubes, you’re back.” Emma stood in the doorway, leaning on her three-pronged cane.
Emma’s voice startled her. “And you’re awake. I looked in on you a few minutes ago.” She pointed to the fire. “I thought I’d get an early start.”
“Fine by me.” Emma looked comfortable in sweatpants and a red flannel shirt. “I’m much better now. Not nearly as achy all over.”
“I was thinking about your fireplace back when we were kids,” Ruby said. “Did you ever use it?”
Emma laughed. “Heaven forbid. You had to be company from out of town. Funny thing. We didn’t have many visitors.”
Ruby struck a match to light the scrunched-up newspaper. “That’s all changed now. You’ve got me.”
“I like thinking of you as a roommate.” Emma held up her hand. “You don’t need to contradict me. I know this is temporary.”
“Turns out I was right and you were wrong,” Ruby said with good-natured smugness. “According to Mike it seems people around here haven’t forgotten all about the messy lives of the Abbots and the Driscolls.”
Emma slowly made her way to the couch and used the armrest for extra support as she sat down. “What do you mean?”
She repeated what Mike said about the council meeting and Kristine. “One of the Kellermans was there and a little gruff. I forget his name.”
“That would be Jim,” Emma said with a low groan. �
�He hasn’t met a new idea he likes in a decade. Or probably a person, either. He objected to the bird sanctuary and gave me a hard time about it.” Emma smirked. “That’s not quite true. Jim gave Neil a hard time for not controlling me better.”
“Sounds like a real charmer,” Ruby said, frowning. “I think Mike was bothered most because they were surprised to see him.”
“So?” Emma signaled she wanted more info.
“Mike sees it the way I do. We had nothing to do with what our parents did.” Mike had seemed a little defiant, too.
Ruby watched the kindling ignite and catch the birch bark. “This was the first time Mike and I inched a little closer to talking about his mom and my dad. The affair.” She had to pull the word out of her own mouth.
Emma responded with a cautious tone. “Was that weird?”
“Excruciating. But not for long. I ran out of Mike’s office as fast as I could.” Yes, she admitted running away from another conversation. She kept quiet about the rest of their meeting. Like Mike’s warm lips on hers. She startled herself when she pushed a log so hard with the poker, it almost fell off the grate. She glanced at Emma, waiting for the remark that was sure to come.
Emma rested her head back on the couch cushion. She pulled a tube of lotion out of her pocket and squeezed some into her palms, then began massaging it into her hands and arms. “Rubes, I love you, but you have no idea how much I envy you sometimes.”
Ruby almost dropped the poker. “Huh? You envy me?”
Emma nodded to the fire. “It’s a blaze, Ruby. Roaring. Leave it alone and come sit down. Thanks to my lavender lotion, we’ll have the softest arms and hands in Bluestone River.”
Ruby saw a tempting ploy. She knew Emma well enough to be certain a heart-to-heart was coming and that it wasn’t going to be about the smell of the hand cream. She sank into the chair cushions across from Emma.
“And my envy isn’t limited to your glowing health, which can be kind of annoying, by the way.” She tossed the tube to Ruby, who snatched it out of the air before it hit the floor.
A Family for Jason Page 12
