by Janet Dailey
A RAW TENSION dominated the drive to her parents’ lake cottage. Eve sat rigidly in the passenger seat, staring straight ahead. Luck had made a couple of attempts at conversation, but her short one-word answers had ended it. She felt that she didn’t dare relax her guard for a second or all her inner feelings would spew forth.
She could only thank God she was adult enough to recognize that Luck could want to make love to her without being in love with her. Her embarrassment would have been doubled otherwise.
Luck stopped his car behind her father’s sedan. This time he switched off the engine and got out to walk around the hood and open her door. He silently accompanied her to the front porch.
“Good night, Luck.” Eve wanted to escape inside the cabin without further ado, but he wasn’t of the same mind.
His hand caught her arm near the elbow. “I’m not letting you go inside feeling the way you do,” he said.
“I’m all right,” she lied.
His other hand cupped the side of her face, a certain grimness in his expression. “I don’t want Toby’s interference spoiling those moments for us.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Eve tried to evade the issue.
“It does matter,” Luck insisted. “It matters a great deal to me.”
“Please.” It was a protest of sorts against any discussion of the subject.
His hand wouldn’t let her move away from its touch. “I’m not ashamed of wanting to make love to you, Eve,” he declared. “And I don’t want you to be, either.”
His bluntness seemed to weaken her knees. After avoiding his gaze for so long, she finally looked at him. His steady regard captured her glance and held it.
“Okay?” Luck wanted her agreement to his previous statement.
“Okay.” She gave it in a whisper.
He kissed her warmly as if to seal the agreement, then lifted his head. “You and I will talk about this tomorrow,” he said. “In the meantime, I’ve got to go back and have a little father-to-son chat with Toby.”
“All right.” Eve wasn’t sure what he wanted to talk about, and that uncertainty was in her voice.
Luck heard it and seemed to hesitate before letting her go. “Good night, Eve.”
“Good night.” She called softly after him as he descended the porch steps to his car.
Returning to the cabin, Luck went directly to his son’s bedroom. He switched on the light as he entered the room. Toby sat up and made a project out of arranging his pillows to lean against them. When Luck walked to the bed, Toby crossed his arms in a gesture that implied determined tolerance.
“Sit down, dad,” he said. “I think it’s time we talked this out.”
Luck didn’t find the usual amusement in his son’s pseudoadult attitude and had to smother a fierce rush of irritation. “I’ll sit down,” he stated. “But I’m going to do the talking and you’re going to listen.”
“Whatever you say.” Again there was an exhibition of patience with his father.
“Do you have any idea how much you embarrassed Eve?” Luck demanded, taking a position on the edge of the bed.
“You kind a lost your cool, too, dad,” Toby pointed out calmly.
“I said I was going to do the talking,” Luck reminded him sternly. “It wasn’t so bad that you walked in when you did, Toby. The part that was wrong was when you stayed.”
“I wanted to find out what was going on,” he explained with wideeyed innocence.
“It was none of your business,” Luck countered. “There are certain times when a couple wants privacy.”
“But you told me that happened when the two people were married.” A faint light gleamed in Toby’s eyes, betraying his supposed naiveté.
“That is beside the point.” The line of his mouth became grim as Luck’s gaze narrowed on his son. “Right now, I want you to understand that what you did was wrong and you owe Eve an apology.”
“Was what you and Eve were doing wrong?” Toby inquired.
“Toby.” There was a warning in his father’s voice not to sidetrack the conversation with his own questions.
“Okay,” he sighed with mock exaggeration. “I’ll apologize to Eve,” Toby promised. “But since you like Eve and you want to do things with her that married people do, why don’t you marry her? Did you find out if she has staples in her stomach?”
“Staples?” Luck frowned, briefly avoiding the first question.
“Don’t you remember when we met that real sexy blonde on the beach and you said you didn’t want to marry anyone with staples in her stomach?” Toby reminded him.
It took Luck a minute to recall his reference to the centerfold type. “No, Eve isn’t the kind with staples,” he replied.
“Then why don’t you ask her to marry you?” Toby argued. “I’d really like it if she became my mother.”
“You would, huh?” He tilted his head to one side in half challenge. “After what you pulled tonight, she might not be interested in becoming your mother even if I asked her.”
A look of guilty regret entered Toby’s expression. “She was really upset, huh?” He was worried by the question.
“Yes, she was. Thanks to you.” Luck didn’t lessen the blame.
“If I told her I was sorry, maybe then she’d say yes if you asked her,” Toby suggested.
“I’ve already told you that you’re going to apologize to her in the morning,” he stated.
“Are you going to ask her to marry you after that?” Toby wanted to know.
“I don’t recall even suggesting that I wanted to marry Eve,” Luck replied.
“But you do, don’t you?” Toby persisted.
“We’ll talk about that another time.” He avoided a direct answer. “Tonight you just think about what you’re going to say to Eve tomorrow.”
“Will you think about marrying her?” His son refused to let go of the subject as Luck straightened from the bed. Toby slid under the covers to lie down once again while Luck tucked him in.
“I’ll think about it,” he conceded.
“Good night, dad.” There was a satisfied note in Toby’s voice.
“Good night.”
Luck was absently shaking his head as he walked from the room. After checking to make sure the fire in the fireplace was out, he went to his own room and walked to the dresser where Lisa’s photograph stood. He picked it up and studied it for a minute.
“You know it isn’t that I love you any less,” he murmured to the picture.
“What we had, I’ll never lose. It’s just that my love for Eve is stronger. You would have liked her.”
He held the photograph for a minute longer, saying a kind of farewell to the past and its beautiful memories. With deep affection he placed the picture carefully inside one of the dresser drawers. He had not believed it possible to fall in love twice in a lifetime, but he had. Once as a young man — and now as a mature adult. By closing the drawer, he turned a page in his life.
A ROUND BEVERAGE TRAY was precariously balanced on Toby’s small hand as he quietly turned the knob to open his father’s door. The orange juice sloshed over the rim of its glass, but he miraculously managed not to spill the hot coffee. With both hands holding the tray once more, he walked to the bed where his father was soundly sleeping.
When he set the tray on the nightstand, Toby noticed something was missing. His mother’s photograph was gone from the dresser. A smile slowly began to curve his mouth until he was grinning from ear to ear. He tried hard to wipe it away when he turned a twinkling look on his father.
“It’s time to get up, dad.” He shook a bronze shoulder to add action to his summons.
His father stirred reluctantly and opened a bleary eye. He closed it again when he saw Toby.
“Come on, dad.” Toby nudged him again. “Wake up. It’s seven-thirty. I brought you some orange juice and coffee.”
This time both sleepy blue eyes opened and Luck pushed himself into a half-sitting position in the bed. Toby handed him the
glass of orange juice and crawled onto the bed to sit cross legged.
After downing the juice, Luck set the glass on the tray and reached for the pack of cigarettes and lighter on the nightstand.
“You are certainly bright-eyed this morning.” There was a trace of envy in his father’s sleep-thickened voice as he lit a cigarette and blew out a stream of blue gray smoke.
“I’ve been up awhile,” Toby shrugged. “Long enough to make the coffee and have some cereal.”
Luck picked up the coffee cup and took a sip from it. “After last night, I think it would be a good idea if you started knocking before walking into somebody’s room.”
“You mean, so I won’t embarrass Eve when she starts sleeping in here after you’re married,” Toby guessed.
“Yes — ” The affirmative reply was out before he realized what he’d admitted. The second he heard what he had said, he came instantly awake. Toby laughed with glee. “You did decide to marry her!”
“Now, you wait just a minute,” Luck ordered, but there wasn’t any way he could retract his previous admission. “That doesn’t mean Eve is willing to marry me.”
“I know.” Toby continued to grin widely. “You haven’t asked her yet. When are you going to propose to her?”
“You will have to apologize for last night,” Luck reminded him. “You aren’t getting out of that.”
“We can go over there this morning, just like we planned.” Toby began laying out the strategy. “I’ll apologize to her, then you can ask her to marry you.”
“No, Toby.” His father shook his head. “That isn’t the way it’s going to happen. We’ll go over there and you’ll apologize. That’s it.”
“Ahh, dad,” Toby protested. “You’re going to ask her anyway. Why not this morning?”
“Because you don’t ask a woman to be your wife while there’s an eight-yearold kid standing around listening,” his father replied with mild exasperation.
“When are you going to ask her, then?” Toby demanded impatiently.
“I’m going to invite Eve to have dinner with me tonight,” he said. “You’re going to stay home and I’ll have Mrs. Jackson come over to sit with you.”
“Mrs. Jackson?” Toby cried with a grimace of dislike. “Why does she have to come over?”
“We’ve been through this before,” Luck reminded him. “You aren’t going to stay here by yourself.”
“Well, why do you have to go out to dinner with Eve?” he argued. “Why can’t she come over here like she did last night? I’ll leave you two alone and promise not to listen.”
His father sighed heavily and glanced toward the ceiling. “How can I make you understand?” he wondered aloud. “When a woman receives a marriage proposal, she has a right to expect a few romantic touches along with it — a little wine and candlelight. You don’t have her come over, cook dinner, wash dishes, then propose. It just isn’t done like that.”
“It sure sounds like an awful lot of fuss to me,” Toby grumbled. “Eve wouldn’t mind if you just asked her without going through all that.”
“I don’t care whether she doesn’t mind. I do,” Luck stated, and crushed the half-smoked cigarette in the ashtray. “Off the bed,” he ordered. “I want to get dressed.”
“Are we going to Eve’s now?” Toby hopped to the floor.
“Not this early in the morning,” Luck told him. “We’ll wait until later.”
“But it’s Sunday. She might go to church,” he protested.
“Then we’ll drive over there the first thing this afternoon.”
“Aw, dad.” Toby sighed his disappointment and left the bedroom dragging his feet.
IT WAS NOONTOME when Eve and her parents returned to the lake cottage from Sunday church services. Dinner was in the oven, so they were able to sit down to the table in short order. By one o’clock the dishes were done and Eve went to her room to change out of her good dress.
“Eve?” The questioning call from her mother was accompanied by a knock on the door. “Your father and I are going for a boat ride on the lake. Would you like to come with us?”
Zipping her jeans, Eve went to the door and opened it. “No, thanks, mom.” She smiled at the woman with graying brown hair. “I think I’ll just stay here and finish that book I was reading.”
She didn’t mention that Luck had indicated he would see her today. No definite arrangement had been made. Eve preferred that her parents didn’t know that she was staying on the off chance he might come by or call.
“Is Eve coming with us?” her father asked from the front room.
“No,” her mother answered him. “She’s going to stay here.”
“I’ll bet she’s expecting Luck McClure,” he declared on a teasing note, and Eve felt a faint blush warming her cheeks.
“Don’t mind him,” her mother declared with an understanding smile. “He’s remembering the way I sat around the house waiting to hear from him when we were dating,” She made a move to leave. “We probably won’t be back until later this afternoon.”
“Have a good time,” Eve said,
“You, too,” her mother called back with a wink.
Chapter Nine
TOBY WAS SLUMPED in the passenger seat of the car, a grimly dejected expression on his face. “Boy, I wish Mrs. Jackson had been busy tonight.” He grumbled the complaint for the sixth time since Luck had phoned her to sit with him.
“She’s coming and there’s nothing you can do to change that,” Luck stated, looking briefly away from the road at his son. “I don’t want you pulling any of your shenanigans, either.”
Toby was silent for a minute. “Have you thought about how expensive this is going to be, dad?” He tried another tactic. “You not only have to pay Mrs. Jackson to stay with me, but you’ve also got to pay for Eve’s dinner and yours. With the money you’re spending tonight, I’d have enough to buy my minibike. It sure would be a lot cheaper if you just asked her this afternoon.”
“I don’t want to hear any more about it.” They had hardly been off the subject since this morning, and his patience was wearing thin.
“But don’t I have some say in this?” Toby argued. “After all, she is going to be my mother.”
“I wouldn’t bring that up if I were you,” Luck warned. “You haven’t squared yourself with Eve about last night. She might not want to be the mother to a boy who doesn’t respect other people’s private moments.”
“Yes, but I’m going to apologize for that,” Toby reasoned. “Eve will understand.
I’m just a little kid.”
“Sometimes I wonder about that,” Luck murmured to himself.
TAKING THE ICE-CUBE TRAY out of the freezer section of the refrigerator, Eve carried it to the sink and popped out a handful of cubes to put in the glass of tea sitting on the counter. The rest she dumped into a plastic container and set it in the freezer for later use. She turned on the cold water faucet to fill the ice-cube tray. The noise made by the running water drowned out the sound of the car pulling into the drive.
As she carried the tray full of water to the refrigerator, she heard car doors slamming outside. Her heart seemed to leap at the sound. In her excitement, Eve forgot about the tray in her hands and started to turn. Water spilled over the sides and onto the floor.
“Damn,” she swore softly at her carelessness, and set the tray on the counter.
Hurriedly Eve tore some paper towels off the roll and bent down to sop up the mess, Her pulse raced with the sound of footsteps approaching the cottage. Her haste just seemed to make it take longer to wipe up the spilled water.
A knock rattled the screen door in its frame. She carried the water-soaked wad of paper towels to the sink, a hand cupped under them to catch any drips.
“I’m coming!” Eve called anxiously, and dropped the mess in the sink.
Her glance darted to the screen door and the familiar outline of Luck’s build darkened by the wire mesh. She paused long enough to dry her hands on a terry towe
l and run smoothing fingers over her gleaming brown hair.
There was a wild run of pleasure through her veins as she hurried toward the door. Reflex action adjusted the knitted waistband of her carnation-red top around her snug-fitting jeans.
Eve didn’t notice the shorter form standing next to Luck until she was nearly to the door, and realized he’d brought Toby with him. Not that she minded; it was just that Luck had indicated he wanted to talk to her privately. Toby’s presence negated that opportunity. And there was the embarrassing matter of last night’s scene. She was naturally modest, so there was a sense of discomfort in meeting Toby today.
“Hello.” She greeted them through the screen and unlatched the door to open it. There was a nervous edge to her smile until she met the dancing warmth of Luck’s blue eyes. It eased almost immediately as a little glow started to build strength. “Sorry it took so long, but I had to mop up some water I spilled.”
“That’s all right. We didn’t wait that long,” Luck assured her. The admiring run of his gaze over her face and figure seemed to give her confidence. She could tell he liked what he saw, even if she wasn’t the type to turn heads.
“Hello, Toby.” Eve was able to smile at the young boy without any strain as he entered the cottage at his father’s side.
“Hi.” His response seemed a little more subdued than normal, as if his mind were preoccupied with other matters, but his bright eyes were just as alert as they always were.
“Come in,” Eve invited. “I just fixed myself a glass of iced tea. Would you two like some?”
Refusal formed on Luck’s mouth, but Toby was quicker with his acceptance. “Yeah, I’d like a glass.”
“And some cookies, too?” Eve guessed.
“Chocolate chip?” he asked hopefully, and she nodded affirmatively. “I sure would.”
“What do you say?” Luck prompted his son to show some manners.
“Thank you.” Toby inserted, then frowned. “Or was it supposed to be ‘please’?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Eve assured him with a faint smile. “You’ve got the idea.” Her glance lifted to the boy’s father. “Did you want a glass of tea and some cookies?”
