Daddy Next Door (Hometown Reunion)

by Ginger Chambers

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  THE STRAIN BETWEEN Raine and Gabe grew worse during Gabe’s two remaining days off duty. They spoke, but not often and not about anything of great personal depth. They avoided touching. They avoided meeting each other’s eyes.

  When he wasn’t leaving the house on some pretext, Raine was. She went out to Britt’s farm then followed Britt back into town and was given a tour of the brand-new yogurt shop. Other times Raine just drove, letting the wind blow through the open windows and take her troubles away...at least for a short time.

  That was why the birthday party was going to be such a farce. Gabe wasn’t at all enthused, and she certainly wasn’t looking forward to it. But when Saturday night rolled around, both were at the door, greeting guests—Raine with a smile plastered on her face and Gabe seemingly equally happy.

  The day before, Raine had returned to Gates Department Store to shop for some of the party notions Nora had recommended, and probably because she wasn’t enthusiastic, she’d gone a little overboard. The seldom-used dining-room table was awash with colorful plates, napkins, party hats, confetti and long curling ribbons. Helium balloons floated in the air. In the middle of the table was a professionally decorated cake. The entire motif was styled for an adult, but Raine had held her breath when Gabe first saw it. His eyes had widened, but he’d made no disparaging comment.

  The guests were the same people who’d been at Marge’s the week before, with the addition of Richard Jensen and the loss of Byron Forrester. Byron had a commitment he couldn’t get out of, but he’d sent his best wishes along with Nora. Because most of the people were close friends, there was no awkwardness as the party-goers gathered. The night was taken in a spirit of fun, with gag gifts and much laughter. Even Richard seemed to enjoy himself, going so far as to don a party hat like everyone else.

  “Now wasn’t this a good idea?” Marge whispered to Raine as more laughter erupted from the living room. The two of them were in the kitchen preparing to serve coffee to the crowd, who’d earlier toasted Gabe’s birthday with the champagne Marge and George had brought.

  Raine’s nerves were on edge, stretched even tighter by the strain of the party, yet she nodded. “Yes, it certainly was.”

  “Is there anything I can do to help?” Susannah Santori asked, stepping into the room.

  Mother and daughter turned, almost in unison.

  Raine forced another smile. “I think everything’s under control. All we have to do is wait for the coffee to finish perking, which shouldn’t be long.”

  Susannah settled in a chair. Beside her delicately made body, Raine felt positively huge. It was hard to gauge how old Susannah was. From everything Raine knew of her, she was probably in her forties, but she could have passed for a woman half that age.

  “I can’t tell you the number of people who have mentioned the thank-you note you sent them, Raine,” Susannah said. “Everyone was impressed with what you said.”

  Raine shrugged. “I didn’t really say all that much.”

  “I appreciated it myself. It was sweet. You know, when I had my television show in Milwaukee, one of the things I always stressed was for people to be sure and send out thank-you notes. But you wouldn’t believe the number who forget. Or feel it’s too big a job. How did you do it so quickly?”

  Raine had used the time she was alone in the house over the past few days. “It was probably due more to Annabelle Scanlon than to me. She must have rushed them through the mail.”

  “Speaking of Annabelle—” Susannah sat forward “—you and Gabe have been replaced as the prime topic of conversation, Raine. Now everyone’s talking about Tisha. About how horrible it would have been if... Thank God it wasn’t serious! A wake-up call, I’ve heard Jeff Baron called it.”

  “It frightened everyone to death,” Marge murmured.

  Susannah agreed. “Particularly Judson. I haven’t seem him look so bad since his trial. I think he thought he was about to lose her.”

  “That’s enough to scare anyone. I know if I were to lose George...” Marge didn’t finish. Instead, she said, “But that’s not going to happen now. Judson’s not going to lose Tisha. She’s getting out of the hospital tomorrow, isn’t she?”

  “I’ve heard that, too.”

  Raine straightened from arranging the tray. “It’s all ready,” she said brightly, then lifting it, walked from the room. Her mother and Susannah followed closely.

  To anyone who didn’t know Gabe intimately, he seemed to be enjoying the party. He laughed and talked and poked fun with the others, but beneath the surface—revealed by the set of his shoulders and the way he held his head—he was tense, Raine could tell.

  He met her eyes as she handed him his cup of coffee, and Raine almost bobbled it. No coffee spilled, though, so the incident passed unnoticed, except by Richard Jensen.

  Raine felt his dark gaze follow her as she passed around the other cups. She pretended that it didn’t bother her, but it did. From the first instant she’d met him she’d sensed that he could see far deeper into the situation than she wanted him to. Had he detected her growing confusion about Gabe?

  She chose a chair out of his line of vision, but even then she felt vulnerable.

  * * *

  TO GABE’S RELIEF the party broke up shortly after eleven. He was concerned about Raine. She looked so stressed. That couldn’t be good either for her or the baby. But there was nothing he could say or do to influence the situation. She was so sensitive at the moment that even a genial “hello” was enough to create a problem. She tightened up every time he came near her, as if...as if she didn’t trust him. Didn’t even like him anymore!

  Marge stayed behind to help with the cleanup, and Gabe walked Nora to her car. When he returned it was to find Richard waiting for him just outside the kitchen door. His friend stood with his back to the garage, a foot propped against the wood siding. As Gabe drew nearer, Richard lit a cigarette.

  “I thought you were going to give those up,” Gabe said.

  “Easier said than done.”

  Glasses clinked in the kitchen. Water ran in the sink. Raine and her mother were talking, but their words were muffled. Gabe wished that he could go inside, send Raine to bed and finish the job himself, but at present he doubted that his offer would be well received. He looked away from the window and unconsciously sighed.

  “Nice party,” Richard said.

  “Yeah. Raine went a little overboard, though.”

  “Everyone enjoyed it.”

  “Yeah.” Gabe bent to sweep a twig off the grass.

  “Except you...and her.”

  Gabe broke the twig in half and tossed it away. “Yeah.”

  Richard took another draw on his cigarette. The smoke curled into the night air. “Things not going so well?” he asked after a moment.

  Gabe was surprised by the sudden jolt of anger that overtook him. “Hell, I don’t know,” he exploded. “One minute you think you’re doing the right thing, and the next...!”

  “You sure it’s not just growing pains? It takes a while to adjust in any marriage.”

  “What marriage?” Gabe snapped, then immediately wished that he hadn’t.

  Richard pushed away from the garage. “I’m your friend, right?” he asked.

  “Right,” Gabe answered tightly. He could feel his colleague’s deep concern, his desire to help. For Gabe, that was a unique situation. Not that he wasn’t ever in need of help, but he was usually able to work most things out for himself. Except where it concerned Raine. For years his feelings for her had kept him off balance.

  “Don’t keep secrets,” Richard said. “Whatever’s the matter, get it out in the open. I’m the one who should know, remember?”

  “This is a different situation,” Gabe defended.

  “It’s two people trying to live unde
r the same roof together, isn’t it? Two people trying to get along?”

  “This is different!”

  “Does she know you love her?”

  “No.”

  “Then tell her.”

  Gabe flared again. “It’s not that easy!”

  Richard bent down to stub out his cigarette before flicking it away. “Tell me about it,” he drawled wryly. “Love can be as addicting as one of these.”

  * * *

  WHEN GABE CAME into the house after Richard left, he and Raine glanced at each other, but neither said a word. Marge looked from one to the other.

  “Did everyone get off all right?” she asked.

  “Without a hitch,” Gabe said.

  Marge rinsed and dried her hands. “Well, that’s everything done here. I suppose I’d better get myself over to my place. George will be waiting. Gabe, you’re back on duty tomorrow morning, aren’t you?”

  “Seven a.m.”

  Marge grimaced. “Even more reason for me to get going.” Yet she paused, directing another penetrating look at Raine. “Unless there’s something else...”

  Raine shook her head. She couldn’t meet her mother’s gaze or Marge would see the tears that hovered on her lashes. She was so tired, both physically and emotionally. The past few days had taken everything out of her. She felt bruised, drained.

  The telephone rang and the sound made Raine jump. Her cheeks became stained with embarrassment as Gabe went to answer it.

  Her mother continued to hover, only now she was frowning. “What is it, Raine? All evening I’ve felt... Have you and Gabe had an argument?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it, Mom. At least not right now.”

  “But Raine—”

  “Later, Mom, okay?” Her hands curled tightly on the rim of the counter.

  She could feel Marge’s great need to ask more questions. Her mother was worried, because she loved her. But one thing Raine had learned over the past few weeks was that a parent’s love, which could magically fix everything when you were young, could do little to repair grown-up problems. There came a point when a son or a daughter had to stand alone and deal with the slings and arrows of life.

  “Okay,” Marge agreed quietly and started for the door. But before going out she asked, “I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”

  Raine could only nod.

  * * *

  GABE SAT AT the desk, his hand on top of the telephone. His father had called to wish him a happy birthday.

  “It’s far too late, I know,” Charles Atwood had said, “but I got all mixed up in the time difference. I’ve moved out of Mountain Time into the Pacific time zone, and somehow I thought you’d be two hours earlier, rather than later. Anyway, happy birthday, son!”

  He’d told Gabe all that he’d seen and a lot of what he’d done—things he couldn’t fit on a postcard. He’d sounded relaxed and happy, and Gabe had hated to spoil his enjoyment of his vacation, but he’d decided earlier in the week that the next time his father called, he was going to tell him. It had reached the point where his father would be hurt if he didn’t get the news soon.

  His dad had reacted to the information with a long silence. Then he’d said, “I hope you know what you’re doing, son.”

  Gabe had laughed, a little unsteadily. “I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t, Dad.”

  “But a baby that’s not yours! That’s a lot to ask.”

  “She didn’t ask. I did.”

  “But under the circumstances—”

  “If it’s all right with me, that’s all that should matter, shouldn’t it?” Gabe interrupted him.

  His father was silent again. “You’re certainly old enough to make your own decisions,” he said finally. “I just hope—” He cut himself off, and Gabe heard his deep sigh. “I just hope everything works out. That you’ll be happy. Both of you.”

  “There’s no reason why we can’t be.”

  Even though Gabe’s bravado had fallen a little short, his father had gone on to tell him that since he was already in California, he was going to continue on to San Francisco before he started back. Gabe had tried to talk him out of cutting his vacation short, telling him that there was no reason why he needed to return to Tyler, but Charles had been adamant. “I’m tired of living in a tin can, son.”

  There’s no reason why we can’t be happy. Gabe’s claim echoed in his ears. It had sounded hollow because neither he nor Raine was happy now.

  He heard a noise behind him and turned to see that she had started down the hall. His heart gave a funny little vibration.

  “Raine?” he called after her quietly.

  She braced her shoulders before she turned. “Yes?”

  “That was my dad. I told him.”

  “Oh.”

  “He’s coming home.”

  Her eyes darted down the hall toward the room she was borrowing.

  Gabe smiled tightly. “He’s going to see San Francisco first...dip a toe in the Pacific, he said...then he’s turning back. It’s going to take him a couple of weeks. He’s like a snail, dragging his home behind him, remember? After that...well, I told you. We’ll work something out. Everything’s going to be just fine.”

  Her green eyes were luminous in the half-light. “Is it?” she whispered.

  He stood up. Don’t keep secrets, Richard had advised. But this was more than a secret. It was a land mine that could destroy everything.

  She’d tensed even more. He could sense it even from this distance. For protection he ignored the question she’d posed. “And Raine?” he said instead. “It was a very nice party. Thank you.”

  Her eyes seemed to shimmer before she murmured something unintelligible and hurried down the hall.

  * * *

  RAINE CRIED SILENTLY in her room for she didn’t know how long. She cried for herself, she cried for Gabe, she cried for this unknown tiny person who would make an appearance sometime during the middle of November. What did the future hold for any of them? Should she stay in Tyler, as her mother wanted, or should she leave? What would be best? For her, for the child, for Gabe?

  She curled onto her side and looked at the photograph hanging on the wall. Positioned so that it could be easily seen from the bed, it was of a young woman, Gabe’s mother, close to the age that her son was now. She had the same color hair and eyes. She was sitting on the hood of a car, leaning back on outspread arms, her chin up, her smile teasing.

  Did she know? Could she, if she was in heaven, look down the road ahead and see what was in store for them? Ever since Raine had been using this bedroom, she’d stared at the photograph each night before going to sleep. Was that what Charles Atwood did? Immerse himself in the room that still held the essence of his wife and gaze upon her image, both before going to sleep and upon waking up?

  Love. It was a funny emotion.

  Raine had never been sure if her mother had loved her father. She’d never been able to penetrate the veil Marge had erected to defend herself against his betrayal. Raine assumed her mother once had loved him, but she didn’t know for certain. As a child, she had only ever had a couple of photographs of him, and in both he’d been standing alone and staring at the camera with a go-ahead, give-me-your-best-shot swagger and grin.

  But it was for sure that her mother loved George. The more Raine saw them together, the more apparent that became. It was a deep, comfortable kind of love with few surprises, but all the more secure because of that fact.

  Love? In the past Raine had been in love with the idea of being in love. She’d thought herself in love several times. But it had never lasted, and truth to tell, she hadn’t wanted it to. The feelings had always seemed hollow, somehow lacking.

  The closest she’d come was with Joel.

  Joel. She repeated the name in h
er mind, then tried it on her lips. It didn’t have the same impact as it once had. Because he had rejected her? Was she wrapping herself in a veil of hurt, so she wouldn’t have to think?

  But she did feel!

  In a sneak attack around her will, thoughts of Gabe arose. Gabe! And something within her spirit trembled, came to life.

  No. It couldn’t be! She couldn’t be falling in love with Gabe! No!

  Her gaze flew back to the woman who posed on the hood of the car, forever young, forever smiling. What did she know? Whom was she teasing?

  Raine made a soft mew of distress and buried her face in her pillow.

  She couldn’t even let herself think about falling in love with Gabe!

  * * *

  GABE HAD BEEN at work for a full three hours by the time Raine awakened the next morning. Today there was no note, but at her place at the kitchen table she did find a leftover party hat and a scattering of confetti that he had left for her. Smiling faintly, she placed the hat on her head, then gathered the confetti and tossed it a little way into the air. “Whee!” she said in mock celebration.

  As tired as she’d been last night, it had taken until the wee hours of the morning before she could fall asleep. She had relived every minute she’d spent with Gabe since her return to Tyler, incident layered upon incident. She’d tried to remember every word they’d said.

  She pulled the paper hat from her head and pushed it across the table. In the end, she still wasn’t sure of anything. On one hand, it wasn’t all that surprising that she might feel a special affection for the man who had offered himself as her champion. Who had a history of protecting her. On the other, her view of Gabe had never been anything but platonic...until now.

  A short time later Raine went in search of her mother. As she had concluded last night, her mother’s love would never be able to solve her problems for her, but it could offer comfort. Today Raine needed to be close to her, to hear her soothing voice.

  She found her mother in the hobby room—Raine’s old bedroom. Marge was sewing on another wall hanging.

  “How’s this for the new arrival?” she asked, holding it up for Raine’s inspection.