Relief competed with polite curiosity. “Where’s Jessica?”
“Well, after picking out her maid of honor dress…” He motioned toward a slinky strapless red gown that adorned a velvet hanger on the wall. “…she went out to get a chai. She said she’d see us on the ferry.”
Surveying the dress, or what there was of it, Kate shook her head. The plan to have Jessica as her maid of honor was a sure argument for elopement. If Josh hadn’t offered to accompany them today, Kate very likely would have traded in her wedding dress for two plane tickets and a ladder.
She sighed in resignation. “That’s just as well.” Starting for the door, she reached into her bag for her sunglasses. “She doesn’t like my dress.”
“So what?” Josh swung the door open for Kate. “It’s not her wedding.”
“And neither do you.” Kate slipped on the glasses as she stepped out onto the sidewalk. “I could tell.”
He followed her outside. “Hey, it’s not my wedding either.”
“Fine.” She glanced up and down the sidewalk, relieved to see that no photographers lurked. “I was just hoping for a little reassurance that I didn’t look like a lampshade or something.”
“I said the dress looked beautiful. I wasn’t lying.” He paused. “It’s just that…”
She looked at him. “What?”
He winced. “Well… it just doesn’t look like you.”
“Look like me? What do you mean?”
“I mean, it doesn’t look like your style.”
A deep affront tried to settle in her chest but was crowded out by an unfamiliar warmth. “How would you know what my style is?”
He dipped his chin toward her, as if speaking in confidence. “I saw that picture of you, remember? You looked so different.”
She shrank back. “That picture was taken a long time ago.”
“Even so…” He nodded with a confidence that should have come across as arrogant, but somehow didn’t. ”Something tells me the girl in that picture is the real Kate.”
She felt awkward at what seemed like a little too perceptive an observation on his part. What would he think if he knew that the “real” Kate was actually a girl named Kathy?
“Come on.” Hands in his pockets, Josh tipped his head in conjunction with his forward movement up the sidewalk.
“Where are we going?”
He lifted a one-shouldered shrug. “You owe me a shake, remember?”
Glancing again at the row of flier-dotted windows, she wavered on her still-unsteady legs. “Okay, but…can we take the car?”
Josh stopped and turned, giving her that cockeyed grin that had wormed its way into her heart mostly without her knowledge and definitely without her consent. “If you still think you want to live here, you have to carve out your own place in the community.”
Cautioning a step forward, she contemplated his words. Why had it seemed feasible and even desirable for her to hole up on Chase’s property like some kind of outlaw? This town was charming, and no one here seemed to be paying any attention to her. Josh was right. If she had any hope of making a real life for herself, she had to show a little backbone. She could do this.
Pleased that she could walk without a hitch in her gait, she caught up to him. “So where’s the ice cream?”
He smiled. “I think I saw a sign just around the corner.”
Casting a quick glance up and down the street to confirm that there were no paparazzi or looky-loos staring at her, she gained confidence.
He looked over at her as they strolled. “Are you okay? You’re limping a little.”
She sighed. So she wasn’t hiding it as well as she’d hoped. “I’m fine. I just twisted my knee yesterday wearing those stupid high heels. I’m not really used to them.”
“I’m not surprised. You strike me more as the athletic shoe type.”
“Meaning what, exactly?”
“You just seem like a person who would prioritize practicality over fashion.”
It was hard to be insulted, considering the accuracy of his statement. She pursed her lips. “For someone who’s known me for less than twenty-four hours, you seem to have a lot of opinions about me.”
“Not opinions, really. Just observations.” He sounded congenial, like their being together was the most ordinary thing in the world. “So, what else do you need to get done today?”
“Well…” Considering that she hadn’t thought past getting the wedding dress, the question caught her off guard. “I do still need a wedding gift for Chase.”
He nodded, his expression noncommittal. “Where do you want to look?”
“Well, I…” This could present a problem. What do you buy for the man who has everything, including a yacht and access to a private jet? Her gaze darted around and landed on a couple up ahead, bent over a colorful shop window.
Lowering her shades, Kate squinted. “Oh, look. I think that’s an art gallery.” Removing the glasses, she quickened her steps, allowing the slight limp to protect her knee. As she got closer, her spirit lifted. The window featured a display of vibrant glass art. “It’s just like Chase’s…I mean our chandelier.”
Josh chuckled as he fell in behind her. “Now that’s the Kate I want to hang out with. The one who sees what she wants and goes for it.”
If only she were as self-confident as he made her sound. “Thanks for the reminder, Josh.” She rubbed her knee. “But promise you’ll stop me if I try to climb any furniture.”
He chuckled. “Promise.”
Kate suppressed a grin. There was nothing flirtatious about this exchange. Just friendly banter between…well, friends. At least, that’s what she told herself as they stepped up behind the couple.
“That’s so unexpected in a town like this.” The man, who looked like a young college professor on vacation, commented to the auburn-haired woman beside him.
“Oh Mark.” The woman shook her head. “It’s so tragic. What kind of world do we live in?”
Tragic? Kate jockeyed to see what kind of artwork would elicit a response like that. Her heart fluttered at the realization that they weren’t commenting on a piece of art. They were commenting on the flier in the window.
Her face heated. Instinct told her to turn and head for the car but now that she was close enough to one of the fliers to actually read it, she couldn’t stop herself. As she absorbed the details, a creeping realization took hold. If what Chase had told her was true, she and Trina had something in common. They were both runaways.
The thought flowed through her like ice water. Had anyone made fliers with her picture on them when she went missing? Distributed them around Sacramento, asking if anyone had seen her? It had been six years, but maybe some of the fliers still remained, fading like the memories people held of her. Did total strangers gape at the washed-out, torn remnants, commenting on the tragedy of it all?
A fire lit behind her eyes as the weight of what she’d done really hit her. She had broken her mother’s heart, abandoned her childhood friends. Her fate remained unknown to them, and she hadn’t even given their pain a thought. How selfish could she be?
She shut her eyes. As concerned as she’d been these past weeks that Joe or someone loyal to him might recognize her face if it made the national news, it hadn’t occurred to her that someone from back home might take notice as well. Would that be a good thing? She was an adult now. They couldn’t force her to go back, but it might at least put their minds at ease.
And there might be a small chance that she could have a relationship with her mother again.
The auburn-haired woman made an abrupt about-face and stepped right into Kate, who had been teetering closer to the couple than she realized.
“Oh, pardon me.” Alarm filled the woman’s compassionate blue eyes.
Kate forced out a shaky apology. “My fault. Really.” She dipped her chin and stepped back, not wanting the woman to recognize her.
“Are you all right?” Genuine concern tinged the woman’s
voice. “You look a little pale.”
“I…I’m fine.” She cast one last emotional glance at the flier, then her focus hit something behind it, inside the gallery.
“Are you sure? Because—”
“Piper.” The man spoke in a stern but kind voice. “She said she was fine.”
“Oh, there I go again.” The woman acquiesced. “I probably should have been a counselor instead of a writer.”
Barely registering the woman’s words, Kate moved closer to the window to get a better look, scarcely believing she could be so lucky. It was a glass mosaic sculpture of a seahorse, done in the same color palette as Chase’s chandelier.
“You’re a writer?” Josh’s voice sounded dimly behind her as he picked up the conversation with the couple.
The seahorse stood on a small pedestal, reverentially set apart from the rest of the display. About two feet in height, it was made up of bits of glass which had been painstakingly pieced together.
She edged in closer so that her nose practically touched the window. Incredible. There were gold flecks in the glass, just like in the chandelier at home. It would be a perfect match.
She swallowed hard to suppress a childish giggle.
Vaguely aware of Josh talking with the woman about the writing he did for his movies, Kate turned her head to encourage him toward the window. “Josh, look!”
Hand lifted in a wave as the couple moved on, Josh joined her.
“I found it.” She pointed to the seahorse. “The perfect wedding gift for Chase.” She started for the door. “Come on.”
“Well, that was easy.” Just as he moved to follow, a muted ring tone sounded and he reached for his pocket. He pulled out his phone and gave it a quick look. “You go on. I’ll just be a minute.”
Kate hurried inside to claim her treasure. What a beautiful stroke of luck. This would show Chase that she was a keen observer of details. She smiled to herself. Soon she would be identifying arias in operas and steps in ballets. This was who she was. Not Kathy Jennings, teenage runaway, but Mrs. Chase Cole—a connoisseur of the arts.
It was all going to be okay. It had to be.
Chapter 10
Kate stood in front of the sculpture, waiting for the saleswoman to look up the price. From this proximity, Kate could see the quality of the piece. It was truly a work of art.
“I’m so sorry.” Confusion creased the woman’s brow. “I’m afraid this piece hasn’t been appraised yet. I’ll have to consult the owner as to what she intends to do.”
“Oh…but I really want it. Money is no object.” Had she really just said that? She sounded like a caricature of a wealthy snob.
The woman smiled in nervous reassurance. “I’m sure we can work something out, Miss Jennings.”
“Jennings? Kate Jennings?”
Wincing, Kate tried to ignore the feminine voice behind her. The day had been going so well. If she could just complete this transaction without anyone causing a scene—
“You should be ashamed to show your face in this town.”
The anger searing a hole in Kate’s back made it clear that ignoring the speaker was not going to be an option. Resigned, she turned to see a woman of about fifty, wearing a gallery name tag and a pinched expression. Her cropped grey hair stood up in tiny spikes on the top of her head, giving emphasis to her prickly disposition.
Timidity edged out Kate’s confidence. “Excuse me?”
“You heard what I said.” The woman glowered at her through small red glasses, then turned her vitriol on the saleswoman. “Jocelyn, you know how I feel about that sculpture.”
“I’m sorry, Marion.” Apprehension glistened in Jocelyn’s eyes as she gave Kate an apologetic glance. Clearly trying to mitigate the situation, she looked again at Marion. “I thought you’d decided against keeping it.”
“I did.” Marion’s jaw tightened. “But you know who this woman is.”
Tears welled in Kate’s eyes. She would have run if not for the fear of her knee buckling again. Her eyes darted to the window, and she saw Josh involved in what looked like an intense conversation on his phone. He was in no position to come to her rescue.
“Marion…” Jocelyn sent a look of cautious warning, the meaning of which Kate couldn’t even guess.
Marion held for a beat, her nostrils flaring like a bull as she glowered at both of them. Then her jaw firmed in irrevocable decision. “I put this piece on display so it could be enjoyed.” She snapped a look at Kate. “But it remains unpriced for a reason.” She took a quick glance at the door as another patron entered, then lowered her voice to a menacing hiss. “If you think you’re going to take her place, you’ve got another thing coming.”
With a parting sneer, she whirled around and stomped off to a room at the back of the store, banging the door shut behind her.
“I’m so sorry.” Jocelyn spoke in a soft jittery voice. “Marion owns the gallery but that’s no excuse for her behavior.” She glanced around, as if to assure herself that no one was close enough to overhear. “She wanted to keep this piece for her personal collection, but since she almost lost the gallery a year ago she needs every sale she can get.”
“Oh.” Alarmed by the woman’s candor, Kate nodded. “I’m glad she didn’t lose her business. But, why is she so upset with me?”
“Don’t take it personally. It’s just that…Trina Cole was her best friend.”
Kate’s heart raced. She hadn’t even considered that Trina would have had friends on the islands. No wonder that woman resented Kate. And she probably wasn’t the only one.
A bead of sweat trickled down Kate’s forehead. Suddenly the thought of making a place for herself in this community seemed completely ludicrous.
By the time she exited the gallery a minute later, her knee throbbed and her stomach burned. At the rate she was going, they’d have to carry her down the aisle on a stretcher.
Seeing her, Josh clicked off his call, his face slightly ashen. “Mission accomplished?”
“Not exactly. Turns out the sculpture’s not for sale.” Kate frowned at his uncharacteristically cheerless demeanor. “Is something wrong?”
“That was my uncle.” He slipped his phone back into his pocket. “Turns out he can’t hire me this summer after all. The economy’s not so great for contractors right now.”
“Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.” While her sentiment was sincere, she couldn’t but help hope that maybe now he’d be free to stay for the wedding. “What are you going to do?”
He shrugged. “I guess it’s in God’s hands. If I had known sooner this was going to fall through, I would have started job hunting a month ago.” He glanced up the street at the line of traffic rolling off the ferry. “It’s going to be tough to find something now that everyone’s done with school.”
Her heart went out to him. She remembered what it had felt like to be jobless with no decent prospects. “I suppose that means you’ll be heading back home now.”
“Soon, but…” He tipped his head toward the corner. “I promised you ice cream.”
A smile curved her lips. “Ice cream it is.” Relief surged as they started to walk. She’d have to say goodbye to him sooner or later, but the longer he stayed the more time she had to adjust to being here on her own. “Hope you don’t mind a leisurely pace.”
“I don’t mind.” He gave her a critical glance. “But maybe we should have a doctor take a look at your knee.”
She shook it off. “I’m fine, really. I…”
As the line of ferry traffic worked its way up the street, a blue Honda jerked to a stop adjacent to Kate and Josh, causing the driver behind it to lay on his horn. Ignoring him, the driver of the Honda leaned across the passenger seat to roll down his window, then drew a camera with a long lens up to his face.
Kate squealed. Turning her back to the car, she started to dig around in her bag for her sunglasses.
“What’s the matter?” Josh eyed her.
“The press.” Why hadn’t she re
membered to put her glasses back on?
He looked past her. “Yeah. So…?”
“I can’t explain.” Kate’s panic escalated as a small crowd began forming and the traffic snarl grew louder and more pronounced.
“Oh my gosh!” A young woman extended a full-arm point. “That’s the lady who’s marrying that pharmaceutical billionaire.”
Kate’s stomach did a gymnastics maneuver. Where were those glasses? She dipped her chin and put her hand up to conceal her face from the photographer as she angled her shoulder in the direction of Josh’s car and took a couple of wobbly steps.
A teenage girl zipped in front of her, thwarting her advancement. “Can I interview you for my blog?” She pulled her phone out of her purse and held it up like she might snap a few photos while awaiting a response. “Please, please, please?”
Tossing a glance over her shoulder, Kate saw the photographer get out of his car. Terror surged. She had to get out of there before either the professional or Miss Can-I-Interview-You-For-my-Blog reeled off a string of close-ups of her face.
As she put her hand to her forehead, the crowd closed in on her like she was Madonna on her bodyguard’s day off. Shrieks and honking drummed in her ears and the gymnastics demonstration in her belly advanced to the next event.
In true security man-style, Josh spread his arms and inserted himself between Kate and the pressing throng. She seized the opportunity to break away in the direction they’d originally been heading. So much for making it to his car. The irate driver behind the photographer yelled at him to move his car then leapt from his own vehicle and intercepted the photographer at the curb. Grateful for his unintended and expletive-filled assistance, Kate hobbled as quickly as she could down the sidewalk, her eyes zipping around for a safe refuge.
“Kate!” Josh’s voice came dimly from behind as she slipped around the corner.
Partway down the street, a small building that looked like it had once been a house grabbed her attention. A sign reading ‘A Scoop in Time’ hung from the edge of a shingled overhang above a cute little porch. Ice Cream. Trying to ignore the pain in her knee, she willed herself toward it.
Tide Will Tell (Islands of Intrigue: San Juans) Page 6
