by SUE FINEMAN
Jenna crossed her arms. “No, you’re not.”
“Then you’re not getting another penny of child support.”
“You and your parents aren’t welcome here. If you want to visit Katie, call and we’ll arrange something, but it won’t be here. Al owns the inn, and he doesn’t want you around.” She stared him in the eye. “I don’t want you here, either, and if you stop paying child support, I’ll take you to court.”
Without another word, Brian stormed out and slammed the front door. “Well, that was fun, wasn’t it,” she muttered mostly to herself.
“That’s the man you wouldn’t marry?” Aunt Mattie asked.
“That’s him. He doesn’t like to work, and because his parents are rich, he thinks that gives him the right to push other people around. He’s a lousy father and would have made a terrible husband. Katie and I are better off alone.” She didn’t want to live with Brian, and she didn’t want Bruce running her life like he ran Brian’s. Katie loved her daddy, but Jenna didn’t love him, and she’d never marry a man she didn’t love.
Jenna made Aunt Mattie a cup of tea and left her to watch her television programs, or sleep through them. She had other things to do, like clean the formal dining room and feed the cats.
Mattie sipped her tea and turned on the television. She didn’t much like that rude man, and she didn’t like Jenna either. As soon as the cast came off her arm and she could take care of herself, she’d chase the girl and her little brat out of here.
<>
Al called his oldest brother, Vinnie, who owned a big landscaping business. “I may need to install a gate on the driveway. Any idea what those electronic ones run?”
“Anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand, depending on what you want. Got problems?”
“I’m getting tired of the Baxter family showing up without an invitation and walking in like they own the place.”
“Ah, the bozo who wants to have dinner with Nick and Cara.”
“That’s the one. He and Jenna have a kid, and since the kid is living here, he thinks—”
Vinnie laughed. “Don’t want any competition, huh? Nick told me she was pretty.”
Pretty didn’t touch it, but Al wasn’t about to discuss women with Vinnie or anyone else in the family. They’d all pushed women at him, including his mother. He was the last available Donatelli brother, and they all thought they had to find him a woman. Vinnie’s wife was blonde, chubby, and outgoing, Nick’s wife was rich and would do anything for the family, Angelo’s wife was dark and pretty, and Tony had found a sassy redhead on a television show. He liked them all, but he didn’t want to date their friends.
“If you need a gate, I’ll come help you put it in,” said Vinnie.
“Yeah, okay.” Vinnie would help – his whole family would help – but Al hated to put a gate on the property. It shouldn’t be necessary.
<>
Jenna put Katie down for her nap and went up to the attic. It smelled dusty and musty, so she pushed a window open to get some air.
The storage closets were off the attic sitting room, and they were stuffed full of boxes and suitcases and trunks. Seeing them reminded her of what she’d lost. She was only twelve when her parents died and her whole world came crashing in on her. They’d been to a New Year’s Eve party, and on the way home were hit by a drunk driver. The drunk walked away from the accident in one piece. It took hours to get her parents’ mangled bodies out of the twisted metal.
Jenna was in shock for several days, through the funeral and beyond. She didn’t remember much about the rest of the school year. They’d moved into the inn over the Christmas holidays, so Jenna stayed at the inn, but things would never be the same. The school counselor helped some, and Uncle Charlie spent hours talking to her and helping her deal with her grief. Aunt Mattie acted like nothing had happened.
Her friends and teachers said they were sorry about her parents dying, but no one was more sorry than the kid they’d left behind. She gradually worked through her depression, but it wasn’t easy. And it wasn’t easy living with Aunt Mattie.
After a short period of mourning, the inn opened for business again, and Aunt Mattie expected Jenna to help with the cleaning. She worked at least four hours a day every day from the time she was twelve until she left for college. Shortly after that, the inn closed. Aunt Mattie and Uncle Charlie still lived there, but they were too old to keep the business going by themselves. They’d tried hiring people, but nobody wanted to work for Mattie Worthington.
Jenna wondered what her life would be like today if her parents were still living. She couldn’t see either one of them lecturing her about being an unwed mother. They might not approve, but they wouldn’t rag at her like Aunt Mattie.
She pulled several boxes out of the closet, intending to open them this evening after she put Aunt Mattie and Katie to bed. Too bad Uncle Charlie hadn’t kept Mom’s piano. All she had of her parents was in these boxes.
Sounds of Italian opera drifted in through the open window. A deep voice sang along, making her smile. Who knew the Italian hunk sang opera? She pushed the door closed and walked down to Al’s office. He had a nice voice. Not great, but nice. She’d heard the Donatelli brothers sing a dorky song on a television show a few years ago, when Tony was the bachelor on one of those reality shows, but this was the first time she’d heard Al sing alone.
She stood in his office doorway. The song ended and she clapped.
He twisted around to face her. “Hey, I didn’t know anyone was listening.”
“Italian opera?”
“What else? I grew up listening to this. To my mother, this is sacred stuff.”
The tension between them had eased, at least for now. She wanted to apologize for the past, but the words wouldn’t come. Al turned back to his computer and she walked down to check on Katie and the surly old woman who was yelling for more tea.
Maybe she should lace it with arsenic or rat poison.
<>
That evening, after Aunt Mattie and Katie were in bed, Jenna sat on the floor in the attic and began unpacking boxes. Several held clothes and kitchen things, some held personal papers that she’d go through later, and one box was filled with her schoolwork, report cards, drawings, and school pictures.
Another box was filled with family pictures. She went through her parents’ wedding album picture by picture. They were such a handsome couple. Dad had a huge smile on his face. Then she found the invitation. Jenna stared at the date. Her parents had married when she was two years old? Why didn’t she know that?
Was that why Aunt Mattie was so obsessed about marriage?
Jenna dug another album out of the box. This one had her baby pictures in it. Several had pictures of Mom and Uncle Charlie holding her when she was a tiny baby, but Aunt Mattie wasn’t in any of the pictures. Neither was Dad. Strange.
Al tapped on the open door. “What are you doing up so late?”
She motioned him over and he sat beside her on the floor. Handing him the album, she said, “What do you see, or what don’t you see? That’s me, my mother, and Uncle Charlie.”
He flipped through several pages of pictures. “I don’t see your father, and I don’t see your aunt.”
“I just discovered that my parents weren’t married until I was two. Now I don’t even know if he was my natural father.” She didn’t know what to believe.
“What do you remember about him?”
“Not much. He was gone a lot. Mom said he was working overseas making lots of money so they could retire early.” Money that had disappeared after they died. It didn’t all go into the inn or the place would have been in better shape over the years. The hardwood floors all needed to be refinished, the drapes were so old they were rotten, and most of the upholstered furniture was shot, including the beds. There were some lovely antiques, and she’d been polishing them, restoring the finishes.
“Does it bother you that your parents weren’t married when you were born?”
“No, but it bothers me that no one ever told me.”
“Your mother was probably waiting until you were older.”
“Maybe.” She sighed. “Probably.”
Al closed the album. “It’s one in the morning. This can wait until tomorrow, Jenna. Get some sleep.”
She tried to unfold her legs, but they’d stiffened up. “My leg went to sleep.”
He jumped easily to his feet and helped her up. Still holding his hands, she stood and gazed up into his dark eyes. Her breath caught at the look on his face. He was going to kiss her, and God help her, she wanted him to so much she could already taste him. But he had a lady doctor in his life, a lover no doubt, and he wouldn’t want a loser like her.
He gently brushed the hair off her face. “Afraid I’ll kiss you?”
“Afraid you won’t,” she murmured.
Leaning down close, he put his warm cheek against hers and then kissed her there. His hot breath brushed her ear and then his lips were on her neck. He was doing it to her again, giving her a taste of what it would be like for him to kiss her and then leaving her unsatisfied.
“Still think I’m gay?”
“I think you like women, but not this woman. You probably don’t like kids either.”
“Actually, I do like kids. Someday I hope to have a few of my own. If I can find a classy woman with good taste.”
“That leaves me out,” she said mostly to herself.
“Does it?” A little smile played with his mouth. “I haven’t tasted you yet.”
“No, but you’ve done enough tormenting.” She couldn’t handle any more tonight, so she turned away and walked to the door.
He caught up with her and turned her to face him.
“What do you want from me, Al? An apology? I’m sorry. I was a stupid kid and I made some bad mistakes, and if I could take it all back I would. But I can’t.”
“Brian used you.”
“I know. Can you imagine what it was like for me, growing up without parents?”
“Yeah, I can. My father died when I was two.”
“But you still had a mother and brothers and sisters.”
Mattie’s screeching voice carried upstairs. “Jenna, where are you?”
“Do you hear that? That’s what I grew up with. She never let a day go by without telling me what an awful person I was. I needed someone to love me, and I thought…”
His arms closed around her and he rocked her while Mattie screamed at her from downstairs. Jenna put her head on his shoulder and tried to stop the tears that threatened to fall. After a few seconds, Mattie shut up, and Jenna stayed right where she was, in the most comforting arms she’d felt since Uncle Charlie died.
She pulled away and Al followed her down the stairs to the second floor. “I thought you’d be married by now, Jenna. You were popular in high school.”
“I was miserable in high school. Brian jerked me around as if I didn’t have a mind of my own, and for a long time, I didn’t. I wouldn’t sleep with him at first, so he told everyone I was sleeping my way through the entire junior class.”
“I remember.” He leaned against the attic door. “I finally got the courage to ask Suzy Hertel for a date, but before I could ask, Brian started the rumor about me being gay. Every time it died down, someone stirred it up again, so I didn’t date at all in high school. College was better.”
At least she didn’t ruin his entire life. Just high school. She was deeply ashamed of the way she’d behaved back then. She’d let Brian manipulate her, and she went along with it because she wanted so much to be liked.
Mattie’s shrill voice carried upstairs again. Jenna sighed. “I’d better go see what she wants. Goodnight, Al.”
“Goodnight, Jenna.” He watched her walk down the hall, peeking in on Katie on the way to the stairs. Al had seen a side of Jenna that he’d never seen before – the vulnerable, contrite woman. He could no longer play the payback game with her.
The next time he got that close, he would kiss her.
<>
Mattie’s arm hurt and she couldn’t sleep. She’d been calling for Jenna, but the girl didn’t come. Where was she, and where were those pain pills the doctor gave her?
Getting old was no fun. Her bones ached and she couldn’t see very well anymore. And now the ungrateful girl was ignoring her.
“You’re awake.” Jenna walked toward the bed.
“I’ve been calling you.”
“I didn’t hear you. Is it your arm?”
“It hurts and I can’t find my pain pills.”
The girl handed her a pill and a glass of water, and then she gently lifted the casted arm and tucked a pillow under it. She stayed in the room until the pain subsided and Mattie closed her eyes.
<>
After church, Sophia had Vincent load the car with the pans of food and drive her out to the inn. She wanted to get there first and get things set up before the rest of the family arrived. She couldn’t wait to see the place and meet the people Alessandro shared his new home with.
A pretty young woman answered the door. “Mrs. Donatelli?”
“Please call me Sophia. You must be Jenna. It’s so nice to meet you.” She turned to look behind her. “This is my grandson, Vincent.”
“Hi, Vincent.” Jenna took some of the pans from him. “Do you need an oven for this?”
“I’ll take care of it,” said Sophia. “Point me to the kitchen.”
Alessandro came downstairs and hugged her. “Hi, Ma. I didn’t expect you yet.”
“I went to early mass with Vincent.”
“Hey, kid. Where’s DeeDee?”
“She moved out when Grandma came home.”
“Uh oh.”
Vincent rolled his eyes. “Tell me about it.”
“He can do better,” said Sophia, and nobody said another word about DeeDee. She couldn’t believe the condition of the house when she got home – food wrappers and dirty dishes everywhere, piles of dirty clothes, and the house looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in weeks. Apparently all the girl did was listen to loud music and make a mess. Her grandson could find himself a decent girl instead of one like that.
Alessandro showed her through the charming old inn, and then Jenna introduced her to her great aunt, Mattie Worthington. “It’s nice to meet you, Mattie. This is a lovely old inn, and my son is lucky to have it.”
“Well, they told me if I didn’t sell it, the county would take it for back taxes. Shoot, what else was I supposed to do but sell it? He said I could live here as long as I could take care of myself or have someone live here to take care of me.”
“Well, of course he did. My Alessandro, he wouldn’t throw anyone out of their home.”
Alessandro cleared his throat. “Ma, this is Katie, Jenna’s little girl.”
Sophia smiled at the cute little blonde girl. “Katie, it’s very nice to meet you. Do you like living here at the inn?”
Katie gave her a shy little smile. “Yeah. Do you have kitties at your house?”
Al watched the conversation between his mother and little Katie. Ma loved kids, and it looked like she’d already won Katie over. Jenna seemed relieved. He wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but it wasn’t a woman like his mother.
He and Jenna helped Ma set the table and then the rest of the family started to arrive. Cara and Nick came first, with their three little ones. Max was in the first grade, Sophie was Katie’s age, and the baby, Johnny, was two. Everyone went into Mattie’s bedroom and introduced themselves, and Cara handed Katie a present wrapped in tissue paper. “Thank you for letting us come to your house for dinner today, Katie.”
Before long, the whole family was there, sitting down to an Italian dinner fragrant with garlic and tomato and cheese. Mattie was given the seat of honor at the head of the table, and Jenna sat on her right, so she could help her eat. For once, the old lady seemed speechless, but it didn’t matter because everyone else was talking, as usual.
Al loved hi
s family, but when they were all together, they were overwhelming. Since he was the only one without kids of his own, he’d been given the status of favorite uncle, and all the little kids came to him to be picked up. He ate dinner holding Johnny and then Maria’s little girl, Jeannie. It was a typical Donatelli family dinner, with plenty of talking, laughter, and good food.
Katie sat beside Sophie, and the two little girls smiled and giggled through dinner. Cara smiled at them. “Jenna, Sophie has been looking for a playmate. She has lots of cousins, but she needs someone her age to play with.”
“Hey,” said Al. “I need a playmate my age, too.”
Blade grinned. “Jenna’s right here.”
Nick laughed, Jenna blushed, and Al was sorry he’d opened his big mouth.
Ma looked around. “You don’t have a piano?”
“My mother had one,” said Jenna. “I don’t know what happened to it after my parents died.”
“That means we don’t have to sing?” said Max, and everyone laughed. Ma always encouraged them to sing, especially Angelo, who had an outstanding tenor voice. Angelo could sing nearly anything, yet instead of going for a career singing, he’d stayed in Gig Harbor with the family. He occasionally sang in benefits, and he’d been on television a few times, but he usually stayed close to home. Now he had a wife and twin daughters, and you couldn’t pry him loose. Angelo had always been close to the family.
Tony was the only one who lived out of the area, and he flew up every other month or so for a visit. He and his wife lived in California, at one of the hotels she owned, and Tony ran the California division of Max and Company. Al had thought about moving to California, and then he’d found the inn. Now he was committed to staying for at least five more years. It would take him that long to work his way through the improvements he intended to make to the property.
Some of the kids went into the living room to play. Nobody missed two little girls until Sophie came running in yelling, “Katie went to get Callie and she got stuck.”
Al and Jenna both jumped up and ran outside, but Katie was nowhere in sight. Sophie pointed to the hill overlooking the beach. Katie was perched halfway down, and Al’s heart dropped down there with her. Most of the trail she was on had washed away, and it was a long drop to the rocks below. If she fell, she could be seriously injured or killed. “Don’t move, Katie,” he called. “Hold real still and I’ll be right down to get you.”
