Her mother knocked softly on her door. "Katie, honey, can I come in?"
She didn't answer, but Vicky heard the lock on the door flip and turned the knob. Walking in she saw the suitcases and torn apart room.
"Are you going somewhere?"
Katie wiped her eyes and sniffled. "After the wedding, I'm leaving. Me and Jacob. I can't stay here any longer, Mom. I had such big plans…" She broke down again, covering her face. "I found a fortune in antiques in the attic. I rented a storefront downtown. I was going to open up my own shop. I wanted to make a business, and make money, and make you proud."
"You do make me proud, Katie. I think the store is a wonderful idea."
"I wanted to surprise you when it was all done," she said, nearly whining.
"If you leave, what about the Johnson's lawsuit?"
Katie gave a desperate sob and flopped down on the bed. "I have to fight it with everything I've got. And breaking up with Will Anderson will show that I'm not the loose woman the lawyer is portraying me as. I won't be able to move but a few hours away. But I have to get out of here."
She sat down on the bed beside her. "Did you give him a chance to explain?"
"He explained that he'd been lying to me all along. The simple life he lives here is just a sham. And I'm part of that sham."
"Oh, honey, I don't believe that for a second. I think Will is genuine in how he feels about you."
She shook her head like stubborn child.
"He's downstairs, Katie. He's begging to talk to you."
Her swollen eyes darted to her mother. "How dare you let him in! Tell him to go away. And if he comes back, I'll call the police."
"Katie…" her mother sighed, thinking her unreasonable. "What's the harm in letting him talk to you?"
"You really don't care, do you? You think I should run into his arms just because he's a millionaire. Well, I know what people with money are like and I don't want anything to do with them."
"Will isn't like that."
"Suddenly you know him so well?"
"Will is good people, Katie, that much I know. The Judge does, too, and he is a harsh judge of character. No pun intended." She grinned. Katie didn't.
"Tell him to go away," she said and went back to her packing. "And bring Jacob up here. I don't want Will spending any more time with him."
"Can I come in?" Sarah poked her head around the door to see Katie curled up in a chair by the window and Jacob napping on her bed. Katie gave her the faintest of nods. She closed the door softly and eyed the CD player.
"Oh, Lord. Sarah McLachlan. It must be bad."
Katie looked over with red swollen eyes. She had run out of tears for now, and had resorted to stewing and seething.
"Mama sent me up to tell you it's time for dinner."
"Is he still here?"
"No. Come on." She held her hand out. "Eat something."
Katie sat at the table with Jacob in her lap. His eyes were large and his cheeks were red, still fully coming awake from his late nap. She refused to look anyone in the eyes. She'd had her fill of feeling stupid because of the men she chose.
"I don't want anyone to speak Will's name ever again in my presence," she said simply.
"I would like to talk to you about your business," the Judge said.
"There isn't going to be a business. I'm selling it all and leaving."
"That's what your mother said. I happen to think you're on to something here and wanted to propose an alternative to scrapping the whole thing."
Katie looked up at him, waiting.
"Finish getting the store ready to open. Then, hire someone to run it for you. You don't have to give up the idea completely, but you won't be tied to it, and you'll still have an income."
Her eyes flickered, rolling over the idea. "And, I have quite a bit I've collected over the years. I'd like to talk to you about the possibility of consignment."
She still didn't answer. Her mind was buzzing with so many urgent issues and the cold space where her heart used to be made her lose her appetite. "I'll think about it," she whispered.
"Tell me you didn't go after her."
"Of course I did! I'm not going to let her walk out of my life!"
Will's sister walked in and barely had her suitcase on the floor before she started questioning him.
"She needs a few days to think this through."
He shook his head fiercely. "If I wait a few days, she'll think I don't care."
"Will, I know women. I happen to be one. Give her a few days to settle down. I don't care how mad or hurt she is, she's going to start missing you. Then you show up unannounced, preferably in public, and try to get her to talk to you."
He paced the living room, still unconvinced. "And if that doesn't work?"
"Then we move on to plan B."
"What the hell is plan B?"
She pulled out her notebook. "How far will you go to get her back?"
He stopped pacing and looked directly at her. "As far as I have to."
"Then do what I say, exactly when I say, and you'll get your girl back."
"How can you be so sure?" he asked, flopping on the couch and resting his head in his hand.
"I just can," she said, flipping her hair back over her shoulder. Something caught her eye and she pointed.
"Is that a crib?"
Katie tried not to count the hours that had rolled into days since she'd last seen Will. Her anger had given way to heartbreak and now she was left with the confirmation that she was horrible at choosing men. She could only hope she was better at making business decisions. She opened the door to her shop. It was just as she'd left it nearly a week ago. Nowhere near ready to open. The Judge and Stephen had offered to start bringing things over from the storage unit and her mother promised to drop by with Jacob later to help her clean, paint and organize. Her eyes ached from days of off and on crying. She cried until it made her angry and she swore she was done pining over Will Anderson. Her life was dangerously close to spinning even further out of control, with the Johnson's lawsuit and trying to make a go of a new business. She had to focus her energy on more important things.
She began by covering the front window with brown paper. She hated the idea of passersby peeping in on her, just in case stubborn tears did decide to return. And it will create curiosity, or so she read in a business book the night before.
Working in the front corner, she cleared out the cobwebs and wiped down the walls. Light blue would look so wonderful with the white trim. She was halfway finished with one wall when the Judge and Stephen showed up with the first load.
"Where do you want this stuff, Katie?" Stephen looked light and happy, beaming at her with overt admiration, despite the box he was struggling with.
"Just in the center of the store is fine. We'll cluster it all there until I get the walls painted and the artwork up."
"Now, hold on, what about this wall?" the Judge asked.
The front fourth of the opposite wall looked at first glance, really torn apart. The fading print wallpaper was mostly missing, revealing a weathered brown wall beneath.
"I think that might be perfect for something. See, I have a bunch of old cowboy memorabilia. Some of it is real rustic stuff. It might look good all set up by that wall."
Katie tilted her head, trying to envision it.
"And we could set up a divider, if you'd like, so it didn't interrupt the look of the place," Stephen offered.
"I think that might work," Katie said. "I'll leave it alone for now."
"We'll go get another load, you want anything while were gone? Sandwich? Drink?"
"No, I'm fine, thank you."
They left and Katie continued to stare at the empty space, seeing potential with a mock hitching post, a framed picture of Mae West and, if she remembered correctly, that old table she found in the attic would make a great display table.
The bell on the front door rang again and the Judge hurried in.
"Forgot my keys," he sa
id with a grin, swiping them off the counter. Katie smiled and went back to her painting. A moment later, she heard the bell and smiled.
"What'd you lose this time?" she asked.
"My heart."
Katie turned at the sound of Will's voice.
"Okay, that was corny," he admitted with a shy, sheepish smile.
"What do you want, Will?" she asked. She had a death grip on the paint roller and suppressed a childish urge to hurl it at him.
"Will you talk to me? Please?"
"There's nothing to talk about. You lied and I'm moving on." She turned back to the light blue wall so she didn't have to look at him. He'd worn that tight t-shirt on purpose, she was sure of it. "I suggest you do the same."
"How can you just throw us away? I love you and I know you love me. I miss you so much. We had something really great and I can't lose that."
"What we had was based on lies, Will." She pushed the roller over the wall viciously. "There is no way you can make that right."
"Let me try," he begged. "Come to my place for dinner and hear me out. That's all I ask."
She closed her eyes, summoning her resolve. "No."
"If you'll just give me an hour, I can explain everything."
"Can you explain the trip to New York?" She spun around, letting her temper get the best of her. "Can you explain the receipt for dinner in your jacket pocket? You're prepared to tell me who you were having dinner with and expect me to believe it was innocent?"
"Yes, I can and I will."
She stood tapping her foot, waiting.
"I flew to New York to help my sister with her new business. The girl does not have a head for it and yet she's determined."
"Your sister lives in Michigan," she growled.
"Yes, but she's opening a business in New York. A fashion magazine. It's always been a dream of hers. I met her there and we were celebrating getting an investor in the magazine. Something that gives it half a chance of making it. The dinner receipt I saved for taxes."
"Funny, the woman in the picture didn't look a thing like your sister."
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "My sister got up and went to the restroom. That woman—"
"Does that woman have a name?"
"Not one that matters."
She stared at him.
"Fine, her name is Stella. My ex-fiancé. She slipped into my sister’s seat and that must have been when someone took that picture. Just like the ones of me and you, it wasn't what it appeared to be."
"Hmm."
"Hmm, what?"
"I'm just weighing your story of a sudden inheritance that you didn't know you had coming, against a rumor that makes a lot more sense."
"Great. Let gossip determine the fate of my relationship with you."
"You determined that when you lied."
"What's the rumor?" He blew out his breath.
She turned away and started painting again and he grew agitated.
"What's the rumor, Katie!"
The doorbell rang and Stephen stepped inside. "Is there a problem, Katie?"
"No problem, Stephen." She turned around with a stone expression. "Will was just leaving."
"Not before I hear about this rumor you're convinced of."
She turned away from him again and he looked to Stephen. "Do you know anything about this?"
He waffled and squirmed. Will took a step toward him. "If you know something, out with it." He stood a good head taller than Stephen and right then he looked positively dangerous. Katie tried to ignore the stirrings in the pit of her stomach.
"C'mon, Stephen. You told me, now tell Will."
"It's going around that you take advantage of lonely women. Pilfering their resources as a living."
Will turned his head slowly toward Katie. "And is that what you thought I was doing with you?"
She opened her mouth, but looked down.
"You thought I was helping you to sell your house and get this store off the ground for my own personal gain?"
His eyes were angry and hurt and his face showed his betrayal. "You thought I was using you?" he whispered.
Her eyes filled with tears again. In her heart, she knew the truth that he wasn't. But to say no, now, would be a lie. She had thought that, if only for a moment. She nodded her head. Will looked as though he'd been stabbed in the gut. He simply turned and walked out the door. Katie took two steps to follow him, but Stephen touched her arm.
"Let him go, Katie. Even if he wasn't using you, he lied to you. You can't forget that."
She shook off his hand and gave him a harsh look.
Chapter 38
Katie drove past Will's driveway, stopped, turned around and then drove past it again. She growled with frustration, debating. It had to end, but there was nothing saying it had to end like this. He had to at least know that she didn't suspect him the whole time. Just for a brief few moments after Stephen had planted the idea. She'd heard of men going to deceitful lengths to get the girl, and Stephen was proof of it. What little chance he might have thought he'd had with her, was laughable.
She jerked the wheel, turned around again and veered up Will's driveway. She opened her door half expecting to see him in the doorway, waiting for her. He wasn't.
She knocked and waited, wrapping her arms around her waist. He took several moments to open the door. His face was unreadable and he didn't speak. She took a step forward but he didn't invite her in.
"Will, I need you to know that…I didn't really think that of you. Not deep down. And the reason I got suspicious in the first place was because I always felt like there was this side of you that you kept hidden. It always bothered me that there was something I didn't know." She had promised herself she wouldn't cry, but that was a lie.
"I…I don't know what to believe, Will."
"That's unfortunate. Because what I showed you was the real me, living the life I want to live. I have to go to New York every now and then, and other places, too. I have investments and those damn cattle to manage and that requires me to put on a suit and look the part. But that's not who I am. And that is exactly why I left Stella. She wanted the fancy jet set life all the time. She'd never settle for this." He looked around his porch. "I remember how I felt when I realized she was pretending to love me when she was really only after the money. And to think that's how you felt about me…" he trailed off and shoved his hands in his pockets. "But you can't possibly understand how I would be hesitant to tell you I was filthy rich, without being one hundred percent sure you loved me for me, can you. I'm a bastard for that. A liar." He looked as if he was growing angry again and Katie bit her lip, quickly wiping a tear. "I was going to tell you when you moved in. That was the plan, anyway."
"Will, I—"
"Maybe it's better this way, Katie. It kills me to say it, but…" His voice was strangled. He cleared his throat, took a step back and closed the door.
He watched her from the slit in the curtains. She stood there for a moment, staring at the porch. A few tears slipped down her cheek. He looked back at his sister. "I gotta go out there. I can't let her cry like that."
"No, Will." She grabbed the door handle. "Please trust me. It's all working better than I planned."
"She's crying and I feel like I'm dying, Sis! How is this working?"
"Trust. Me."
He looked back and watched Katie get into her car and drive away. He walked over and grabbed a bottle of wine, pouring a glass to the rim. "So what's next? How long do I let her cry? Long enough to let that weasel bastard Stephen move in on her?"
"You honestly think Katie even notices he's there?"
"He'll make her notice." He gulped his wine and slammed the glass down, chipping the base. He didn't care. "This is miserable. What now? What's the next step in the grand plan to win Katie back?"
"Don't get pissy with me, dear brother. I dropped my whole world to come help you."
He closed his eyes and sighed. "I know, I'm sorry. Now, please, what's next?"<
br />
A slow smile spread across her face. "You are going to love this."
Katie sat in a plush chair staring out the window, waiting for her mother. Vicky came out of the dressing room in a flourish. Her red wedding dress swishing around her legs. "What do you think?" she asked, adjusting the small lace sleeve. Katie tried to smile. "Red looks really good on you."
"But you still don't like if for a wedding dress." She dropped her arms.
"It's your wedding, Mom. It doesn't matter what I like."
"Well, come on." She held out her hand, beckoning to her and Sarah. "It's your turn."
Katie rolled her eyes, gave an exaggerated sigh and pushed herself out of the chair. Sarah got up slowly and followed.
"Still feeling sick?" Katie asked.
"Every now and then it hits me hard," she said, placing a hand on her still flat stomach. "If I move slowly, I'm okay."
Katie stripped off her summer dress and stared at the ivory gown hanging on the wall of the dressing room. It was beautiful, to be sure. Slipping it on, she thought the brightness of it brought out the dark circles and red rims of her eyes. Products of off and on crying for the last ten days.
“Find the positive,” she whispered. “Anything positive.”
It contrasted her hair nicely; long and dark, even if somewhat neglected, she liked it. And not being stark white, her ivory skin seemed a little more alive. She shrugged at her reflection. She still wished she could wear black.
Stepping out of the dressing room, her mother and sister waited for her by the large three way mirror. Katie took her place by her mother.
"Look at my girls," she said, beaming. "So beautiful." The store attendant handed them each a bouquet opposite the color of their dress. Katie looked down at the bunch of red poppies. You'd think he'd of sent flowers by now, if he were really trying. But she hadn't heard a word or seen a glimpse of him in nearly two weeks.
"Will you be wearing a veil?" the attendant asked Vicky.
"Um." She turned to Katie looking desperate. "What do you think? Should I?"
Reclaiming Katie Page 26
