“So I take it you don’t want to marry her?”
“No, there are too many differences between us. I knew in my heart that she’s not the one for me. It just seemed that she was shallow and too into my money. I want someone down-to-earth. Someone who cares about more than just herself. It dawned on me when she brought up marriage that I really didn’t feel loved by her nor did I feel love toward her. We had fun together, but a marriage needs more. Do you know what I mean?”
“Man, that sucks. It would break my heart if I felt that way about Kate. If anything, she doesn’t want me to support her. She wants to be independent. I never in a million years would think that she was with me for my money.”
“That’s good. Don’t let go of her,” Mac said, finishing off his drink. Neil poured him another one.
It looked like they would be staying in since neither would make a good designated driver tonight. Neil poured himself another drink as well. Neil had always appreciated his friendship with Mac. Even before Mac lost his parents, he had always been the kind of guy who was committed to friends, no matter what. He was part of the family. He never saw Neil as the wealthy attorney from old money, but rather just as Neil—his friend to vacation with, shoot hoops with, commiserate about women with. He had just always been there. It would be good to see him happy with the right woman, someone who appreciated a kind hearted, funny guy.
“So,” Mac said. “Tell me happened with Kate.”
“I dropped her off at the airport this morning to go to her dad’s funeral. He died about a week ago. She looked in the glove compartment for tissues and found more than I bargained for. I forgot that I had a small photo album in there with pictures of Elizabeth and me. Kate took the album without my knowledge. When she decided to look at it on the plane, she naturally was shocked. Now she needs space to think about things.”
“Shit. You should have told her.”
“Yeah, I know, but I never found the right time. So much has been going on with that crazy lunatic who’s stalking her. Then her dad died. I just didn’t want to upset her with this right now.”
“I can understand that. Maybe if you explain it to her, she will see your point of view. You could send her an email.”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll definitely email her tonight.”
“What’s your back-up plan if that doesn’t work?”
“I have no idea,” Neil said, taking a sip of scotch “All I can do right now is drown my sorrows with a drink and hope my email does the trick.”
Chapter 10
Roger was very satisfied with himself. All of the pieces were coming together. He and his beloved Kate would be reunited soon. Seeing her at the airport was like striking gold. He wasn’t happy about the guy, but he knew how to deal with unwanted men in the picture. That had become his specialty.
He realized that Charlie was now the key to finding Kate. As he still had their old rental agreement, it wasn’t hard to find Charlie at her workplace. Paulina and Jacob, both being exhausted from their journey, were safely ensconced in his flat, resting, while he ‘ran errands’. When he arrived at Charlie’s office around four o’clock and noted that her car was in the parking lot, he waited for her to emerge from the building. Surely following Charlie home will lead him to Kate. He knew that there was more than one way to hook a fish.
When Charlie walked out of the building an hour later, because he had strategically parked out on the street, she didn’t see Roger. He was right behind her when she pulled out of the parking lot, and despite knowing that Kate had taken a trip, his heart beat increased rapidly as he anticipated finding out where his beloved lived. He knew he was close to getting her back. It excited him to think that he was this close to knowing where Kate was living now. Visions of her naked body drifted through his mind. Soon baby, so soon.
After fifteen minutes, Charlie pulled into a small complex of townhouses called Astor Place. She opened her garage door and pulled right in. Roger was a little confused when he didn’t see Kate’s car parked in the garage, and guessed that the other car must be Mitch’s. Where was Kate’s? Doesn’t she live with Charlie anymore? Maybe she moved in with that guy who dropped her off. One phone call to Rose would get him that guy’s name and address, but what would be his reason for needing the address? He thought for a moment, and praised his brilliant mind when the perfect excuse came to him. He knew exactly what to say and would call her right now.
“Hey, Rose. How are you? It’s Roger.”
“Hi, baby,” she said, excited to hear his voice. “Did you pick up your son yet?”
“Yeah, I sure did. He and his mom are taking a nap right now. They are both exhausted. It was a long flight.”
“Oh, I can imagine. It’s good that they are resting. It will probably take them a couple of days to adjust to the time change.”
“You’re probably right.”
“So where will they be living after they get adjusted to being back in the states?”
“They are going to live with me for now. Paulina and I haven’t discussed anything other than that. She needs a job before they can live on their own.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Listen, I need your help with something. Earlier today, I had a fender bender. I hit a parked car. I left a note, but the driver hasn’t called me yet. I want to be a good guy and pay for the damages. I wrote down his license plate number. Do you think you could get his name and address for me so that I can contact him?”
“That’s so thoughtful of you. Most people wouldn’t even bother to leave a note. Of course, I can get you the information.”
“Thanks, Rose. I was worried that the note fell off of the car and that’s why he didn’t call me yet. How soon can you get it for me?”
“I can do it tomorrow when I go to work.”
“That will be perfect. I wish I could see you tonight, but with Jacob just arriving in town, I need to spend time with him. I’m hoping to see you over the weekend. Are you free Saturday night?”
“Yeah, why don’t you come over about seven o’clock and I’ll cook dinner for you?”
“Great. I’ll talk to you tomorrow when you call.”
“Okay, talk to you tomorrow.”
Roger hung up. He would have the address tomorrow. Between Charlie and this mystery man, he would have her in his sights very soon. She would soon be in his bed where she belonged.
Rose had turned out to be a handy asset after all. Perhaps he would keep her around a bit longer. He might need more information from her. It was easier to control Rose than Paulina who always seemed to give him a hard time. Rose even seemed to accept that Paulina and Jacob would be living with him. Somehow, it didn’t bother her. Maybe Rose was dense or just over confident. He wasn’t sure and didn’t care.
Chapter 11
When the alarm sounded, and it was time for Kate to get up, she knew she wasn’t looking forward to today, but she hoped that going through the motions would lead to closure in her relationship, or lack thereof, with her father. She had learned in therapy that rituals were an important piece of the healing process. She desperately wanted to heal and feel whole again, but not be reliant on Neil or anyone else to feel that way. She couldn’t return to how things were when she was grieving David’s death. She wanted to lead the life that she was meant to live.
Her thoughts turned to Neil and her disbelief of what she had learned yesterday. It all seemed like a dream, but she knew that it wasn’t. What was she going to do? Could she get past this and believe him? One thing that she did realize was that her life had improved dramatically in every aspect since she met him. He had changed things. She was no longer afraid to live. She felt like she deserved to love and be loved again, and she had him to thank for that. He had touched her in a way that no one else could, but perhaps she still needed to feel whole without him.
After showering, putting on her makeup and getting dressed, Kate made her way downstairs, where she found John going over the DVD he had made. Hearing �
��Somewhere over the Rainbow” again choked her up. No doubt, that song will conjure feelings of deep sadness for a long time. She was grieving the relationship that all of her childhood fantasies about having a father who cared about her had been based on. She stood there frozen, unable to move. How had things gone so terribly wrong with her dad? All she could do was speculate since she really didn’t know the man. Maybe over the next couple of days she could get to know him through the memories of other people who knew him well.
Her cousin finally noticed her standing there. “Good morning, Kate. I was just tweaking the DVD. I think that your dad would have really liked this. I chose the Hawaiian version because he loved Hawaii so much. It seemed like he was his happiest when he and your mom lived there with you and Eric.”
“I’m sure that he would love it,” she said. “You have done a great job. The pictures are really wonderful.”
“Thanks. Coffee is ready if you would like some. What would you like for breakfast?”
“I’ll just have cereal. Aunt Donna is going to be here in few minutes and I need to be ready. She wants me to go to the funeral home with her for last-minute arrangements.”
John opened the cabinet with the cereal. “Help yourself. As you can see, we have several kinds to choose from.”
Kate ate her cereal, hoping that she would be done before Aunt Donna arrived. Her aunt was a stickler about being on time. On her last bite, Aunt Donna walked through the door. “Are you ready?” she called.
“Yes.”
“Okay, then let’s go.”
Kate hurried downstairs. After taking care of the final details at the funeral home, they
met with the minister who was performing the ceremony. He hadn’t met her dad, so he asked questions to prepare his opening comments. The florist was next, to follow up on the casket spray. Kate felt a little overwhelmed. She was relieved that her aunt was a take-charge type of person and had made all of the big decisions already. They only had a few details to handle the day before the funeral.
“How about some lunch?” Aunt Donna asked when they’d finished their last stop.
“Sounds great. ” Kate said.
Despite the circumstances, it was great to spend time with her aunt; her presence alone offered Kate much-needed solace.
They pulled into The Red Lobster, which was a favorite place for them. It was a little bit after two o’clock so the parking lot wasn’t very full. Once they were seated, Kate began to relax a little. She had felt so tense all morning.
“So, are you just upset over your father, or is there something more going on? You have been awfully quiet,” Aunt Donna stated.
“Of course, I’m sad about dad passing away, but there is something else too. Actually, I have a couple of things on my mind.”
The waitress brought a basket of warm biscuits to the table. “Are you ladies ready or do you need another minute?”
“I’m ready. How about you, dear?” Kate nodded at her aunt’s question.
“I’ll have the tilapia,” her aunt said, closing the menu and handing it to the waitress.
“I’ll have the coconut shrimp,” Kate said. The waitress smiled, took Kate’s menu and walked away.
“So where were we?” Donna said. “You were telling me that you had a couple of things on your mind. I’m happy to listen if you need to talk.”
Kate smiled at the woman who she always turned to in difficult times. She removed the album from her purse. “I found this in Neil’s car before I got on the plane. It’s full of pictures of him and his wife.”
“You’re not upset with him because he kept pictures of her, are you?”
Kate slid the album over to her aunt. “Just take a look and tell me what you see.”
Her aunt opened the album and looked carefully. She put her hand to her chest. “Oh, my,” she said in her sweet voice. “Wow, there’s quite a resemblance between you two, my dear.”
“Yeah, it has me questioning everything about our relationship. I’m not sure that he loves me for me, as opposed to my similarity to his dead wife.”
“I can understand how you would feel that way. But just because you look alike doesn’t mean that you are anything like her. In fact, identical twins usually don’t have identical personalities. He might have been drawn to you for your looks to begin with, but I can assure you that it’s not why he is with you.”
“You think so?”
“Sweetheart, you are a wonderful young woman and I am sure that he can see just how special you are. I guess the question you need to answer is whether or not he is the one for you? Men are not complicated. Most of them really just need food and sex to be happy.”
Kate chuckled. “I love how you can always break things down for me to their simplest terms.”
“I do seem to have a knack for that. Women are the complicated ones in a relationship. Could it be that things are going really well and that scares you? I would hate for you to throw something away that could be wonderful because you’re scared. I’ve learned first-hand that being in love can be overwhelming.”
“I guess that I am scared of getting hurt. I hadn’t really thought of that until just now.”
“You went through a lot when David died. But now you have another chance at love. If it’s not going to work out, it should be for a really good reason. How does he treat you?”
“He treats me like I am the most precious thing in the world to him. He is kind and tender. He listens when I talk and he shares his life with me. He takes care of me and keeps me safe. He’s an amazing man.”
“Those are the things that are important. Those are the things to focus on Kate, not what his physical type is.”
“Do you love him?”
“Yes, I love him more than I thought possible.”
“Then, what about this is truly bothering you?”
The waitress brought their food. “Can I get you gals anything else?”
“No, I think we’re good.”
“What’s really bothering me is that he didn’t tell me. I just happened to stumble upon the album.”
“That would bother me, too. At least you have the next couple of days apart to get some perspective. Trust yourself. You’ll know the right thing to do for yourself.”
“Thanks, that’s good advice.”
“You had said that there were a couple of things on your mind. What else is going on?”
Kate had already told her aunt about Roger, but she hadn’t filled her in on the latest developments of him finding her at work and that she had quit her job. She didn’t want to worry her aunt, but she needed to talk to her about it.
“More has happened with Roger.”
“What do you mean, more has happened with Roger? Please tell me that they have arrested him.”
“I wish that I could tell you that he had been arrested. But, no he’s still free. He found me at my new job.”
“Oh, no. What happened?”
Aunt Donna took Kate’s hand as she heard the story about her niece’s close call and said, “You must be terrified. If you need to stay with me for a while, you can. I always have room for you.”
“Oh Aunt Donna, I love you. Thank you so much, but Neil has arranged for me to have a body guard to protect me when I leave the house. There’s still the possibility that Roger could find me at school.”
“Are you thinking of quitting school?”
“No. I don’t want to quit. Too much time has gone by. I should already have my degree. I don’t want anything else to delay my education if I can help it.”
“I don’t blame you. It’s important to get your education. At least you go to a big school. Does he know what your major is or any of the classes that you are taking?”
“I don’t think so. We never talked about that. It’s a pretty slim possibility that he’ll find me there.”
The waitress appeared to take their plates. “Did you save any room for dessert?”
Kate and her aunt shook their heads. “Ok
ay, here’s the check. There’s no rush,” she said with a smile.
***
Aunt Donna paid for lunch and then they went back to John’s house. Eric and John were hanging out, talking about dad. John seemed to have the inside track on her dad, his uncle. His knowledge too, was a comfort during this time.
Kate thought about Neil while she gazed out the living room window. He had been there for her in such a huge way during the last couple of months. She was so confused. The simple truth was that he had not told her the facts. He had kept this a secret. Secrets were dangerous in relationships. Secrets broke trust. Once trust is broken it has to be earned again. Would Neil be able to earn her trust again? She wanted the answer to be yes, but she wasn’t sure. She felt like she had no choice but to take a step back and evaluate their life together. Her aunt had given her good advice, but she still wasn’t sure and was contemplating moving out, living with Charlie and Mitch for a while until she could sort everything out. She knew that Neil wouldn’t like that idea. She wasn’t thrilled about it either, but she needed to guard her heart. It had been broken too severely when she had lost David.
Taking herself down to her room, she started up her laptop to check email. There were several waiting for her, but the ones most prominent were from Charlie and Neil. She read Charlie’s first since she didn’t want to deal with what Neil had to say.
She had asked him not to contact her, but she hadn’t specified all the ways in which she didn’t want to hear from him. At least he was being true to the persistent man she had come to know and love. He didn’t give up without a fight. She knew that he would do whatever it took for her to see his point of view, but could she do that? Really see his point of view. She clicked on his email to read it.
From: Neil Statton
To: Kate Simmons
Sent: Thursday, October 25, 2012
Subject: No Excuse
Baby,
I know that I haven’t an adequate excuse for not telling you of your resemblance to Elizabeth. I have been struggling with how to tell you since our third date, but I wasn’t sure how to broach the subject. I was afraid that you would react the way that you have. I can assure you that I love you for you, not for your appearance.
Taken By You Page 8
