Home in Carolina

by Sherryl Woods

  “I’ll talk to Erik,” she promised. “I can stop by Sullivan’s on my way home from now on and pick up dinner. We’ll eat when I get here.”

  Flo nodded. “Thank you. I wouldn’t have made such a fuss, except if I eat so late, I wind up with indigestion, and I can’t get a wink of sleep. You’ll see what I mean someday.”

  “Actually, that probably explains why I’m up half the night,” Helen conceded grudgingly. “An earlier meal will be good for me, too.”

  When Helen would have picked up the trays and headed for the kitchen, her mother gestured for her to stay. “Sit for a few minutes longer and tell me what you did today. Any interesting cases?”

  “Are you sure you want to listen to me go on and on about all this boring legal stuff?”

  “Of course I do. It’s not boring. Divorce Court was always one of my favorite shows. Nowadays, it seems as if every station has some judge or another with a show. I have to say, I can’t imagine dragging all my dirty laundry onto TV in front of millions of people, but I get a kick out of watching others do it.”

  Helen chuckled as she recalled the TV tuned into Divorce Court years ago. Day in, day out, it was what Flo watched while she did the ironing she took in for a few extra dollars. “Do you suppose that’s why I wound up specializing in divorce cases?”

  Flo seemed intrigued with the idea. “I do believe it could be,” she said. “You always picked the side of the person you thought wasn’t getting a fair shake. I swear, by the time you were ten, you could argue their cases as well as any lawyer or judge on the TV could.”

  “I’d forgotten that. I guess I owe you even more than I realized.”

  “You don’t owe me a thing,” Flo insisted. “Seeing you so successful and happy, being here with you, Erik and Sarah Beth—that’s all the thanks I’ll ever need.” She hesitated, then added, “Of course, I wouldn’t mind a cocktail, if it’s not too much trouble.”

  For the first time since her mother’s arrival, Helen laughed, rather than letting the request immediately get under her skin.

  “Coming right up,” she said. “And I believe I’ll join you.”

  Who knew, maybe rather than her going insane while her mother was underfoot, the two of them would wind up bonding.

  “Don’t make mine too strong,” Flo called after her. “And hold the ice. I like it neat. Use one of those little tumblers. It always seems like more when you use those.”

  Then again, Helen thought as the orders followed her down the hall, maybe bonding was a little unrealistic. Surviving with her sanity intact might be the best she could hope for.

  Ever since she’d started working as a personal trainer and therapist, Annie hadn’t felt the need to schedule additional workouts. She got plenty of exercise during the day. Lately, though, she felt the need to go out running early in the morning before the heat and humidity kicked in. It helped to clear her head, and she had a lot of thoughts tumbling around in there these days.

  She’d been following her new routine for a week, when her mother called her on it.

  “You haven’t stopped by Sullivan’s for breakfast lately,” Dana Sue noted casually, though there was a worried glint in her eyes that immediately put Annie on the defensive.

  “I’ve been out running in the morning,” she told her mother. “Then I grab a quick shower and head in to work.”

  “When are you eating breakfast?”

  Annie bristled at the direct question. “Mom!”

  “I’m just asking. You are eating, right? Your dad hasn’t seen you eating at home, either.”

  “I don’t like to eat right after I run,” Annie said, her annoyance growing that they were obviously comparing notes on her eating habits again.

  “Then you’re eating at the spa when you get there?” Dana Sue persisted.

  “Why are you pushing this?” Annie asked, though of course she knew.

  “You know exactly why,” Dana Sue said without even a hint of apology. “I’m not going to ignore it when I think you’re in trouble, Annie. Not this time.”

  “I’m not in trouble,” Annie said furiously. “Get off my case, okay? I’m an adult.”

  “Then act like one and answer a simple question. Are you eating at the spa?”

  “Yes,” Annie said. “Of course I am.”

  Despite the adamant response, Dana Sue looked as if she’d been slapped. “You’re lying. I can see it in your eyes. You’re saying what you think I want to hear.”

  “Well, why wouldn’t I, if it will stop this interrogation?” Annie shouted, then whirled and left the house.

  She’d walked the few blocks to Sarah’s before she even realized what she was doing. When she rang the bell, Sarah answered, looking frazzled.

  “I wasn’t expecting you,” Sarah said, greeting her with a halfhearted smile.

  “Is this a bad time?”

  Sarah rolled her eyes. “It’s always a bad time around here. I thought you saw that for yourself the other night.”

  “Well, it has to be better than my house,” Annie declared. “Mind if I visit for a little while, at least until I calm down?”

  “Sure,” Sarah said at once, stepping aside and kicking a toy truck out of her path. “Watch where you’re going, though. Walking in here is like traipsing through a minefield.”

  Annie headed directly for the kitchen and, without waiting for an invitation, poured two glasses of sweet tea. She leaned against the counter, her gaze taking in the fact that the room looked cleaner and more organized than it had on her last visit.

  “Looks as if you’re getting things under control in here,” she observed.

  Sarah gave a wry chuckle. “Looks can be deceiving. I had a cleaning lady come in yesterday and give the whole house a thorough once-over. You saw how long that lasted in the living room. The only reason the kitchen’s still looking good is that I banned the kids from setting foot in here and ordered pizza for dinner last night. I want one room in this house that I can walk into and not feel like crying.”

  She sipped her tea and studied Annie over the rim of her glass. “You looked upset when you got here. More problems with Ty?”

  Annie shook her head.

  “What, then?”

  Annie wasn’t sure she wanted to talk about her mom’s suspicions. She also knew why. There had been a faint whisper of truth to Dana Sue’s assessment that Annie was inching precariously close to reverting to her old eating habits.

  When she remained silent for too long, Sarah’s expression turned dismayed. “Oh, Annie, no! Don’t tell me you’re not eating again.”

  Shocked that Sarah’s first guess had hit the nail on the head, she demanded, “Why would you even say that?”

  “Because you’ve lost weight just since I got back to town. It’s not like it was back in high school, but you’ve definitely shed a few pounds. And you haven’t mentioned that dinner the two of us were going to have at Sullivan’s again. When I reminded you the other day, you blew me off.”

  “I had a tough schedule this week.”

  “And yet here you are, apparently at loose ends,” Sarah said, calling her on it.

  Annie pulled out a chair and sat down slowly, trying to absorb the idea that her parents and her friend were all worrying about her, all seeing the same signs that she was in trouble.

  “When did you eat last?” Sarah asked, her tone gentle.

  “Not that long ago,” Annie said automatically.

  “What did you have?”

  When she thought about it, she honestly couldn’t remember. Was it possible she was skipping meals that often and not even aware of it? If so, even she could recognize that it wasn’t a good sign. Maybe she needed to pay attention to what everyone was telling her.

  “I don’t remember,” she admitted eventually.

  “Then how about I make you a sandwich? Ham and cheese with tomato? Tuna salad? Peanut butter and jelly?”

  Annie’s stomach churned at the thought, which in itself gave her pause.
Determined not to give in to the reaction, she said, “Tuna salad sounds fine.”

  Sarah made the sandwich for Annie and put a scoop of tuna on a plate for herself. Annie picked up half a sandwich, took a couple of bites, then almost pushed it aside. The knowing look on Sarah’s face forced her to finish.

  “Do you still see Dr. McDaniels?” Sarah asked. “That’s the shrink you saw back then, right?”

  Annie nodded. “Once in a while, but it’s been a few months now.”

  “Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to make an appointment, you know, just in case.”

  “I’m not anorexic,” Annie said fiercely, even though her struggle to choke down that sandwich suggested otherwise.

  “I’m not saying you are, but it didn’t happen overnight last time, either. Your dad left, and slowly but surely you stopped eating. Now Ty’s here, and you’re obviously stressed out about it. Maybe it’s just a normal loss of appetite because of the stress, but maybe not. Are you willing to take a chance?”

  Annie recalled the horror of what she’d gone through, of fading away to the point where she’d wound up in the hospital with major heart problems. She shuddered to think of it happening again.

  “No, of course not,” she said emphatically. “I think you’re all overreacting, but I’ll make an appointment to see Dr. McDaniels.”

  “Soon?” Sarah pressed.

  “I’ll call tomorrow,” Annie promised. “I guess I should go home and apologize to my mother. I know why she worries, but I act like she’s nagging for no reason at all.”

  “We’re quite a pair, aren’t we?” Sarah said as she walked Annie to the door. “I’d like nothing more right this second than a huge hot fudge sundae, and I can barely get you to eat some tuna salad.”

  Annie gave her a hug. “But the good news is, I did eat the sandwich and you aren’t eating the sundae.”

  Sarah grinned. “The night’s not over.”

  “Don’t you dare fix that sundae,” Annie said. “You’ve already lost a few pounds. No backsliding, okay?”

  Sarah’s expression fell. “It’s just that sometimes I wonder why I’m working this hard, when I know what the end result is going to be.”

  “You being healthy?” Annie said.

  “No, me getting a divorce, anyway.” She held Annie’s gaze. “That is what’s going to happen, you know. I’m just putting off the inevitable.”

  “But you will be healthy and energized and you will kick his sorry butt in court,” Annie told her. “And when you walk out looking like a million bucks with a boatload of his money in your pocket, the little weasel will eat his heart out.”

  The look of discouragement on Sarah’s face faded and her eyes sparkled. “Now, there’s a plan I can get behind.”

  “Call Helen tomorrow,” Annie suggested. “Take the initiative on this, unless you believe there’s a chance you can save the marriage and that’s what you want.”

  Sarah shook her head. “My marriage is over. I’ve made peace with that. I’ll call Helen, if you’ll make that call to your shrink.”

  “Deal,” Annie said at once.

  Despite the commitment she’d made, as she walked back home, she couldn’t help wondering if she really needed to see Dr. McDaniels. Wasn’t it enough that she’d recognized the potential problem on her own? It would be better if she could prove to herself and everyone else that she had her life under control. Wasn’t that the goal of counseling? Weren’t you supposed to reach a point where you could handle things without asking for help?

  By the time she reached her house, she’d convinced herself that everyone was worked up over nothing. She’d tell them that, too, if the subject came up again.

  Not that she was quite ready to test her newfound conviction against her mom’s concern. She slipped past the living room, where Dana Sue was watching the Food Channel, and headed straight for her room. Denial, she’d discovered long ago, was a whole lot easier in private.

  9

  Thoroughly frustrated by his inability to make any progress at all with Annie and by the slow progress of his recovery, Ty decided to make a quick trip to Atlanta to see the team doctors and tie up a few loose ends. He could see Jay while he was there and make sure there was no news from Dee-Dee, since he was the one she’d chosen to contact. He also needed to set up a meeting with Tom Bristol, who’d represented him in family court. They needed to have a strategy in place in case Dee-Dee did decide she wanted to be a part of Trevor’s life, after all.

  He’d debated taking Trevor along with him, if only so he could spend a little time with the nanny he asked about every day. Though Cassandra had initially come with them to Serenity, she’d stayed only a couple of days since there was plenty of family around, including Ty himself, to take up the slack with Trevor.

  After several days of tear-filled requests for his beloved Cassie, Trevor had finally settled in with the family. Maddie and Cal had convinced Ty that it didn’t make sense to disrupt his son’s schedule for a couple of days when Ty was going to be tied up most of the time.

  “He’ll start missing Cassandra all over again when you come back,” his mother warned him.

  Ty had seen the logic and eventually agreed, despite his desire to give his mom and Cal a break. “You’re sure leaving him here is okay?” he asked Maddie one last time when he stopped by the spa on his way out of town. “It’s not too late for me to take him along with me. Cassandra’s eager to see him.”

  “Don’t be silly. With Jessica Lynn and Cole already creating chaos around the house, one more hardly makes a difference. He’ll be fine.”

  “I’ll be back tomorrow night,” Ty promised. “It could be late, so don’t wait up.”

  Maddie’s face took on her worried mom frown. “If it’s going to be late, I’d rather you drive back the next morning. I don’t want you on the road late at night. You never know what might happen.”

  Ty bent down and kissed her furrowed brow. “When are you going to stop worrying about me?”

  “Never,” she said at once. “It’s part of the job description for a mother.”

  Ty grimaced. “I was afraid of that. If I’m not going to make it back, I’ll call.”

  He turned to go and saw Annie in the doorway, her expression frozen.

  “You’re leaving?” she said.

  He had the feeling if he’d turned just a second sooner, he’d have seen genuine dismay in her eyes. He held her gaze. “You gonna miss me?” he taunted.

  “Of course not,” she denied too quickly.

  Ty fought the desire to chuckle. “Not to worry. I’m just going for a couple of days. I have some business to take care of in Atlanta. I need to check in with the doctors there.”

  This time she didn’t even attempt to hide her alarm. “Your shoulder’s worse?”

  “No,” he said. “It’s just that they paid a lot of money for my pitching skills. They like to check on their investment.”

  “And I imagine you have other people to see, people who’ve been missing you,” she said, her more familiar reserve firmly back in place, along with that edgy tone she used when referring to his past history with other women.

  “You’d be surprised by how few people genuinely care where I am,” he said. “Trevor’s here, and he’s the only one who counts.”

  “Yeah, right,” she murmured. She started to turn away, but Maddie called her back.

  “Annie, were you looking for me for a reason?”

  Obviously flustered, she shook her head. “It can wait.”

  “Don’t leave on my account,” Ty told her. “I’m on my way out.”

  Annie’s gaze met his, and for a minute, he saw the old Annie in her eyes, the one who’d believed in him, who’d always wished him well. “Drive safely,” she said, then looked away as if she regretted saying even that much.

  “Thanks. I will,” he told her. He hesitated a moment, then added, “Annie, when I get back…” He couldn’t decide how to finish that thought. He didn’t want simply to
talk, at least not the sort of stilted conversation they had these days. He wanted to spend time with her the way he used to, sharing their dreams, talking about stuff that mattered.

  She studied him quizzically. “Yes?” she said when he still hadn’t spoken.

  “Maybe we could get together or something,” he said finally, knowing even before the words were out that the response would be no.

  She didn’t fail him. “I don’t think so,” she said at once. Then she must have caught Maddie’s disappointed expression, because she added, “Thanks, anyway.”

  The words were so polite, so emotionless, he had to fight the urge to drag her into his arms and kiss her until she admitted that the old feelings were still there, that the old passion could still be sparked.

  Of course, that wasn’t something he would ever do in front of his mom, and it was probably best if he didn’t do it at all. He settled for waving to Maddie and nodding in Annie’s direction.

  But as he left the building, he couldn’t help wondering if he hadn’t just missed an important opportunity.

  Annie turned to find a scowl on Maddie’s face. She sensed a lecture coming even before her boss opened her mouth.

  “I know I was rude. I don’t know how else to be,” she told Maddie.

  “Not rude would be a good start,” Maddie said. “He’s reaching out to you, Annie. One of these days he’s going to get tired of being slapped down.”

  “I hardly slapped him down. I said no.” She shrugged. “Of course, it’s little wonder he looked so shocked. I doubt that’s a word Ty hears too much these days.”

  Color flooded Maddie’s cheeks. “That’s not fair, Annie. Do you have any idea what the past three years have been like for him? He made a terrible mistake, and the person he counted on for most of his life got hurt. That’s you, in case you have any doubt. So, not only has he been filled with guilt, he has a little boy who needs love and attention. Raising a son isn’t easy for a man who’s all alone. Ty had to grow up fast. He learned to put someone else first.”