The Best-Made Plans

by Leigh Michaels

  “Yes, Mom.” She sat up, rubbing her upper arms almost unconsciously, still shivering at the memories. The swing creaked as it stirred under her weight.

  Audrey came across the porch soft footed, belting her terry robe. “You’re alone? I thought I heard Penn. Did he bring you home?”

  “No, Marcus did.”

  “Oh. Of course.” Audrey yawned. “I suppose I was half asleep, and must have heard the porch swing creak, and it reminded me of all the nights you and Penn would sit out here till the wee hours.” She settled herself on the end of the swing. “And of how your father would come downstairs and ask Penn what time it was, and Penn would politely tell him.”

  “And then he still wouldn’t take the hint to go home,” Kaitlyn finished.

  Audrey smiled a little. “I suppose I’m just feeling more sentimental than usual. Stephanie told me tonight she’s had an offer on the house. She’ll bring it over in the morning for me to consider.”

  “On Sunday? Does that woman work all the time?”

  “She said the buyers are from out of town, so I’m sure they’re anxious to get an answer.” Audrey yawned again. “I hope it’s a good offer — I must say it would be a relief to have it all decided. The lawn needs to be mowed, I see, and the little Benton boy is away.”

  “Again?”

  “Some sort of camp-out, I think. I wonder who I can get to take care of it. It’s not like it was when you were in school, is it, dear? Then there were all kinds of young men hanging about all the time.”

  “And every one of them could be bribed with cookies or apple pie or pocket money.”

  “Speaking of young men,” Audrey mused, “I wonder…”

  Kaitlyn laughed. “Whether Marcus would consider this lawn as a sort of test plot for TurfMaster’s new equipment? I’ll ask him, Mother, but—”

  “No, that’s not what I meant at all. I wonder if Penn might take care of it.”

  Kaitlyn bit her lip. Then, very quietly, she said, “All that was a long time ago, Mom.”

  She thought for a moment that her mother hadn’t heard, but finally Audrey said distantly, “Yes. I know it was, dear. Don’t you think that by now—” She sighed, and Kaitlyn braced herself, but instead Audrey said merely, “I always liked Penn, you know.”

  “I know you did. I’ll try to find time to do the mowing myself. But for now, don’t you think you’d better go to bed, Mother? You’ll have to be on your toes when you look at that offer in the morning.”

  Audrey pushed herself up from the swing. “Kaitlyn, what really did go wrong between you and Penn? If it was one of those silly misunderstandings that happen now and then… Well, you must remember the terrible shock he’d had, darling.”

  “I never forgot it, Mother. And we didn’t have just a silly misunderstanding. But it’s too late to talk about it.”

  Audrey seemed to understand that she wasn’t referring to the clock, but to the calendar. “It’s never too late, darling. And if it would make you feel better…”

  The idea made Kaitlyn shiver. Spill out the embarrassing details to her mother now, after all these years of keeping them to herself? “This time it’s too late,” she said firmly.

  “It’s up to you, of course. But if you ever change your mind, dear—”

  Kaitlyn nodded, but as soon as Audrey was out of hearing range, she muttered, “No thanks, Mother. I wouldn’t like to tell you about it.”

  But it wasn’t only the unpleasant idea of sharing her shame that was keeping her quiet, she realized. She was unwilling to hurt Audrey. Her mother hadn’t just liked Penn; she’d adored him. Why ruin that, too? Why take away Audrey’s good memories, when it was far too late to change what had happened that summer ten long years ago?

  *****

  Sunday morning was sunny, with the golf course filled with players, swimmers already splashing in the pool and joggers out on the paths when Kaitlyn drove home from the country club. The rented equipment was safely on its way back to the warehouse, and the florist had retrieved all of his belongings. She could close the books on another successful event and have a day or two of peace before the tension began to build for Sabrina Hart’s wedding next weekend.

  That was a joke; the tension surrounding this event had been on a steady upward climb for weeks. I don’t think it can build much more — or that I can forget the whole thing for a couple of days, either. I’d better talk to the woman at the bridal shop tomorrow about those tuxedos....

  This would be the biggest wedding she’d handled in her eight months in business, and Kaitlyn was counting on it to make her reputation not only in Springhill but throughout the whole corner of the state. If Sabrina’s wedding came off smoothly, all six hundred guests would be impressed. And if it didn’t—

  She closed her eyes briefly at the nightmare vision of the caterer’s van running a stop sign and Sabrina’s wedding cake ending up as a crumbly stain on an intersection.

  Nothing would dare happen to that cake. She simply wouldn’t let anything go wrong.

  Stephanie Kendall’s black Jaguar was in the driveway, so Kaitlyn parked her car on Belle Vista Avenue in front of the house and strolled up the sidewalk. She was in no hurry; either the offer to buy the house was satisfactory or it wasn’t, and it wasn’t her decision.

  Not that there wasn’t a twinge deep in her heart at the idea of giving up the house she had grown up in. But it wasn’t her home any longer — not really. She had moved back in with her parents during her father’s last illness in order to give Audrey all the help she could, and she had only stayed on after his death because her mother had been so desperately lost and lonely. But Audrey was coping with her grief, and Kaitlyn was looking forward to being on her own again.

  She stopped at the foot of the front steps and looked up at the white clapboard house with the dark blue shutters.

  It was big and square and solid and unpretentious, one of a row of dwellings built by middle-class merchants at the turn of the century. Like any house of that vintage, it needed the loving touch of a handyman, constantly keeping it in repair. Kaitlyn hadn’t realized until after her father was no longer able to putter about the house just how much he’d been doing, or how difficult it would be for her mother to manage alone. When Audrey had first tentatively brought up the subject of selling, Kaitlyn had been relieved.

  In the kitchen, Audrey was refilling a coffee mug for the lovely redhead who sat at the table. Beside her on the polished surface lay a manila folder; papers peeked out of the corners of it as if they had been carelessly pushed aside.

  Kaitlyn glanced at the folder. “No deal, hmm? That’s a shame. Hello, Stephanie.”

  The redhead gave her a brilliant smile. “Of course it’s a deal. At least it will be as soon as Audrey signs the papers.”

  “Then what’s holding you up, Mother? The price?” Kaitlyn got herself a mug.

  Audrey filled it. “It’s a good offer. But they want possession of the house in two weeks.”

  Kaitlyn choked on her coffee. “That’s a bit brisk, isn’t it?”

  Stephanie said solemnly, “It’s faster than usual. The buyers are a young couple with two small children and another on the way, so they want to get settled somewhere and stay there. They’ve already sold their old house, and he starts to work in Springhill in three weeks, so—”

  “It’s impossible,” Audrey said firmly. “I can’t go through an entire house and sort and pack in two weeks. All of Kaitlyn’s baby clothes are still in the attic, for heaven’s sake. Stephanie, I can’t be out of here in two weeks. Two months, maybe. If they could wait just a little longer…”

  Stephanie’s gaze was understanding. “I’ll tell them. But I have to be frank, Audrey. I don’t think they’ll wait. There were a couple of houses they didn’t like as well, but they’re available now.” She set her cup aside and reached for the folder. “Thanks for the coffee. I’ll let you know.”

  Audrey released a long breath and said, “I don’t see what else I can do.
I don’t have an apartment, or—”

  Kaitlyn pulled up a chair. “Now hold on a minute. Let’s not do anything rash. You said this is a good offer, Stephanie?”

  The redhead nodded. “It’s the first one I’ve had in a while that’s well above the asking price.”

  Kaitlyn whistled.

  “These are reasonable people,” Stephanie went on. “They know it’s an imposition to ask you to move so quickly, so they’re willing to pay more.”

  Kaitlyn stirred her coffee slowly. “Is anyone else likely to come up with that price?”

  “It’s possible,” Stephanie conceded. “But not likely, and it might take a while. We priced it on the high side, you know.”

  Kaitlyn turned to her mother. “Do you want to sell the house, or not?”

  Audrey looked at her as if she’d suddenly sprouted an extra nose. “Of course I do. I put it on the market, didn’t I?”

  “Then I think you should take this offer.”

  “But all the work,” Audrey wailed. “In two weeks!”

  “It might be easier that way. Ripping off a surgical bandage hurts less than picking at it. I’ll help, Mother.”

  When? Between Sabrina Hart’s wedding this weekend, and Laura McCarthy’s on the following Saturday...

  Why must every woman in the world decide to be married in June?

  Stephanie seemed to be reading her mind. “We’ll figure something out. With the extra money, Audrey, you could have the movers put everything in storage until you’re ready to settle somewhere, and sort it all out then. You can even stack it in my garage, for heaven’s sake.”

  Audrey looked at her daughter for a long moment, and then back to Stephanie.

  “It’s very natural to have doubts at this stage,” Stephanie said gently. “It doesn’t mean you’ll regret selling.”

  Audrey sighed. “Where do I sign?”

  Stephanie didn’t move. “If you want to think it over, I can ask if they’ll wait till tomorrow.”

  Audrey shook her head. “No, you’re right — both of you. I know I’ve got to sell this house, and it wouldn’t be any easier to get rid of things if I had a year. I’d just keep putting it off.” She reached for the folder and a pen.

  Stephanie handed over the duplicate copies to be signed as well, and it was done. The official contract went back into the folder and was tucked safely into Stephanie’s briefcase.

  Kaitlyn walked out to the Jaguar with her. “Thanks for being so patient with Mother.”

  Stephanie smiled. “I understand what she’s going through. When I sold the first little house I’d ever owned, I cried for days, even though it made no sense at all to be upset.” She waved and called out, “Hello, Marcus!”

  Kaitlyn swung around to see him crossing the street to join them. “I was on my way home from golfing and saw your car,” he told Kaitlyn. “I stopped to ask about your plans for the rest of the day, darling.”

  Kaitlyn tipped her face up so he could kiss her cheek. “I haven’t made any. Except for mowing the lawn.”

  “In that case,” Stephanie said, “come up to Sapphire Lake to our cabin this evening. It’s nothing elaborate, but I’ve invited all the old gang.”

  The old gang. It wasn’t an unusual invitation; relatively few of that crowd of friends had remained in Springhill, but they still saw a great deal of one another. Last week the invitation wouldn’t have given her a twinge. But today, she could think of a hundred things she’d rather do than go up to the lake with all the old gang—

  Oh, be honest. It isn’t the old gang that bothers you, but one particular member of it.

  And she’d just told Stephanie that she had no plans that would keep her from attending.

  Before she could find her voice, Marcus said, “That sounds like fun. Kaitlyn was telling me just last night about your younger days.”

  “Please don’t make us sound like senior citizens,” Stephanie begged. “I can count on you, then? It will be just like old times — hot dogs on the bonfire, and maybe a moonlight swim.”

  Just like old times. That, Kaitlyn thought, was exactly what she was afraid of.

  *****

  Marcus didn’t take his eyes off the twisting gravel road that led back into the hills north of Springhill to Sapphire Lake. He frowned as gravel pinged off the underside of his car, despite his cautious speed. “So that means you’ve got just two weeks to find a place to live?”

  “Actually,” she said calmly, “it’s worse than that. We’ve got two weeks to find two places to live. I love my mother dearly, but it’s been hard enough to share a house with her. An apartment would be impossible.”

  “Does she know that?”

  “Absolutely. We talked it over before she listed the house for sale. It can’t be that difficult, Marcus. There are a dozen new apartment complexes.”

  “That may be true, but I think you’re overestimating the quality of what’s available. Don’t forget how long I looked before I found a satisfactory place. I dread the day 1 have to start shopping for a house.” A tinge of color climbed into his cheeks, and he darted a look at Kaitlyn. “I’m sorry, dear. I didn’t mean to imply that I’ve changed my mind about marriage since last night. I was only saying—”

  “That the housing market in this town is impossible right now, if you’re a buyer. I know; Stephanie’s told me.” Kaitlyn tried to conceal a sigh of relief as the car topped a hill that overlooked the small, brilliant blue lake. In two more minutes they’d be down at the Kendalls’ cabin, and there would be no more chance for private discussions, or difficult questions for which she still had no answers. She simply hadn’t had time today to give Marcus’s proposal the thought it deserved — but she didn’t exactly want to tell him that he hadn’t been at the top of her list.

  She peered down at the lake. The air was so still that the water looked almost like a mirror — or the polished surface of a gemstone. “Doesn’t it look like a sapphire, with the pine trees holding it firm in some gigantic ring?”

  Marcus chuckled. “You have such a romantic view of the world, Kaitlyn. It’s a nice little lake, but hardly the most beautiful one I’ve ever seen.”

  “But it’s our lake. And it’s close enough to home to enjoy, which makes it a great deal more beautiful, in my opinion.”

  The Kendalls’ summer home sprawled across the gentle hillside just fifty feet or so above the shore line, one of a dozen set next to the water. It was one of the newer buildings on the lake, but the architect had studiously included the best features of the older ones, complete with a screened sleeping porch and a fieldstone fireplace large enough to roast a whole pig. Down on the sand, a pile of driftwood had already been gathered, waiting for the cooler air that would come with twilight.

  Stephanie had said she’d invited the old gang, but she obviously hadn’t limited her invitations to long-time friends, for there was a row of cars on each side of the narrow graveled road that wound around the lake. Kaitlyn relaxed a little. This would be no intimate reunion —far too many of these people would be bored to tears by the rehashing of old memories.

  There was a chorus of feminine greetings from the huge deck overhanging the beach as they came around the corner of the cabin. Kaitlyn waved back and set her wicker basket down on a picnic table which was already groaning under the weight of various snack foods. They climbed the shallow stairs to join the others on the deck. Marcus was the only male in sight. “Where are all the guys?” Kaitlyn asked.

  “They went to inspect Penn’s cabin,” Stephanie said. She leaned over the deck rail to check on the half-dozen children playing in the wading pool below.

  Kaitlyn eyed a weather-beaten building far down the beach. “Considering your experience with real estate, I’m surprised you aren’t with them.”

  “I wasn’t invited.”

  “But if he’s thinking of selling—”

  “If that’s what he’s got in mind, he hasn’t told me about it.”

  Kaitlyn chewed her lip. Don�
��t jump to conclusions. He’s within a hundred yards of the place, so of course it makes sense to look it over and be certain it’s still holding together, no matter what he plans to do with it. “I don’t see why he’d want to hold on to it any longer. He’s already let it stand there empty for ten years.”

  “Not my business,” Stephanie murmured. She reached for a handful of corn chips.

  And it wasn’t Kaitlyn’s, either. But she was a bit hypersensitive about that cabin. She’d better cut that out before someone started to suspect there might be a reason.

  The front door of the Caldwell cabin opened and a half-dozen men emerged. Kaitlyn turned around as a burst of laughter came from a corner of the deck, and she wondered for one instant if she looked guilty — hanging over the rail like that, staring down the beach. Had she become a source of entertainment?

  Then one of the women said, “Remember the night Stephanie slid down the grand stairway at the hotel on a pizza pan?” and a couple of others began to giggle like the carefree teenagers they’d once been, and Kaitlyn relaxed.

  How different they’d all become since the days when they used to come to Sapphire Lake to spend the summers. It had happened so gradually she seldom noticed it. But she wondered what Penn thought, seeing the changes in them all at once....

  And here I am thinking about Penn again.

  Stephanie crossed the deck and sat down on the wooden bench that formed part of the rail. “Shall we just forget about the pizza pan? At least I didn’t turn up at the senior prom on roller skates and almost get expelled.”

  “I didn’t almost get expelled,” Kaitlyn protested. “I just got a lecture on not letting—” She almost said Penn, and caught herself at the last second “—other people lead me into trouble.”

  Marcus’s eyebrows climbed slightly, but Kaitlyn barely noticed. She dropped onto the bench beside Stephanie.

  Metal shrieked against wood as the seat parted from the rail and dumped both women onto the deck floor. Stephanie swore and then looked anxiously over her shoulder to see whether the children in the wading pool were within hearing distance.