by Cindy Kirk
“Did you ask how she got his cell number?” Fin asked.
“I did. His answers all made sense. He ran into her at a seminar he was attending in Milwaukee. That’s when he gave her his number. He told me she’d like it if we could all get together sometime.”
“How long ago was this phone call?” Prim asked.
“Two weeks,” Marigold told Prim.
“Why are we only hearing about this now?” Fin asked.
“I told myself my fears were silly. Cade is so kind and loving, and he’s an honorable man. Cheating is not in his DNA. I almost convinced myself I was being silly when—”
Around the small table, the sisters all leaned forward.
“I saw a text.” Conscious of Fin’s desire for all the facts, Marigold continued. “It was from Alice asking if he could meet her in Milwaukee today. That was last week.”
“Did you ask him about it?”
Marigold shook her head. “I didn’t want him to know I snooped.”
“He’s working today, right?” Ami’s brows drew together in thought. “He works on Tuesdays.”
“He left the house at his usual time.” Marigold clasped her hands together to still their trembling. “I called the station, and they said he took the morning off. Something to do with business he needed to take care of in Milwaukee.”
“Well…” Fin blew out a breath. “That isn’t good.”
“Cade wouldn’t cheat on you.” Ami placed a hand on Marigold’s arm. “I’ve seen how he looks at you. He loves you, Marigold.”
“There has to be an explanation,” Prim insisted. “We just have to figure out what it is.”
Over dinner that night, Marigold studied her husband. Cade had come home at a normal time and appeared in high spirits. Though she’d given him plenty of opportunity, he hadn’t mentioned a trip to Milwaukee.
“This pot roast is amazing.” He smiled at her from across the table, a handsome man with brown hair and broad shoulders. It was the twinkle in those dark eyes that had first captured her attention.
Cade was fun and sweet, and by God, he was hers. Alice had had her chance. She wouldn’t get a second one, not if Marigold had anything to say about it.
“This wine goes perfectly with the meat.” He glanced at her glass as if noticing for the first time that hers held water. “You’re not having any?”
She shook her head. “My stomach has been upset, and it didn’t taste right. Probably all those cookies I chowed down on at Fin’s today.”
“That’s right, you were doing party planning on your day off.” Admiration filled his eyes. “It amazes me how much you get done. One of these days, you’ll need to hire someone at the salon to take off some of the load.”
“Actually, I’ve been emailing back and forth with Charlotte McCray. Do you remember her?”
He cocked his head. “She owns Golden Door.”
“Her salon was my main competitor when I moved here.” Marigold’s and Golden Door weren’t the only hair salons in town, but both were considered a cut above the others in quality of services. “Once Charlotte left Good Hope, the woman who took over for her, well, she wasn’t a particularly skilled stylist. Or as good of a businesswoman.”
“Is Charlotte thinking of coming back?”
“Actually, she is, which is surprising considering how eager she was to leave.” Marigold’s lips curved. “We’re discussing the possibility of going into business together.”
Cade lifted the wineglass to his lips. “Really?”
“My client load is out of control. When you add in the customers who come in from other states for my services and expect me to fit them in, well, you know what it’s been like for me.”
“You make carrying a heavy load appear effortless.” He reached across the table, and the simple touch of his warm hand had her heart weeping. “I can’t believe how you’ve continued to build your business, despite all the infertility stuff the past couple of years.”
“If things work out, and we have a child—”
“There’s no ‘if’ about it.” His fingers tightened around hers. “We will have a child. Whether it’s the usual way or as a result of adoption.”
The fierce certainty in his voice steadied her and gave her strength. How many times along this journey had she been tempted to give up?
“I’m terrified we’re going to get picked by a birth mother who changes her mind at the last minute.”
“What’s meant to be will be.” Cade studied her for a long moment. “Now, tell me how you’re considering working Charlotte into your business plan.”
See? It isn’t that difficult to have a conversation, Marigold thought twenty minutes later as they sat on the sofa, his arm looped around her shoulders.
When he began to nuzzle her neck, Marigold cleared her throat. “I called the station today.”
He lifted his head, surprise on his face. “Why didn’t you just call my cell?”
Because, she wanted to tell him, there had been times recently when she’d had difficulty reaching him on it. She simply shrugged. “I don’t know. I was surprised when they told me you took the morning off.”
The guarded expression that filled his eyes had her heart sinking. Still, she pressed forward. “I understand you went to Milwaukee.” When he said nothing, Marigold felt compelled to fill the silence. “I’m surprised you didn’t mention it.”
“Not much to say.” He smiled, took her hand and brought her ice-cold fingers to his lips for a kiss. “Quick business trip.”
“What kind of business?”
His dark eyes narrowed. “Why all the questions?”
“Why all the hesitation in answering?” Marigold managed—barely—to keep her tone light. “Unless you have something to hide. Do you have something to hide, Cade?”
The guilt in his eyes was unmistakable, and her heart lurched. She blinked back tears. She would not cry. She would take this time and find out what was really going on between him and Alice. Then she would deal with it.
“Marigold.” He met her gaze. “I’ve—”
His phone squawked, a ringtone she recognized as coming from the sheriff’s office. He yanked it from his pocket. “I need to take this.”
“Rallis,” he said into his phone, then listened. “I’ll be right there.”
“Cade.” Standing now, as was he, she grabbed his arm. “Don’t go.”
“I have to,” he told her with what appeared to be sincere regret. “There’s been a bad accident out on the highway. My deputies need extra support.”
She couldn’t hold him back from his duty, couldn’t insist that he sit down and finish their personal conversation before heading out to help.
Instead, Marigold forced her lips into a semblance of a smile. “Be safe.”
He bent over and brushed her lips with his. “Back soon.”
She stood at the window and watched him leave. Only then did she let the tears fall.
Chapter Two
Marigold let her gaze wander over the scene for this week’s Wacky Wednesday dinner. The large expanse of lawn behind the house at Rakes Farm was a beautiful setting for the get-together. In addition to family, several close friends had been invited. Ruby Rakes, Fin’s grandmother-in-law, was there, along with a couple of her best buddies.
Standing by herself beneath a leafy oak tree, Marigold felt a sense of trepidation when she caught Ruby’s closest friend, Gladys Bertholf, staring. Gladys, the ninetysomething matriarch of Good Hope, had many talents. One of them was her Madame Gitana persona. During various events held in the town square, Gladys would set up a tent, bring her crystal and tell fortunes.
Her sisters, especially Ami, had encouraged Marigold to have her do a reading, ask Gladys what she saw in her crystal regarding a baby for her and Cade. Marigold had resisted the urge to see too far into her future.
She wasn’t sure she wanted to know if her and Cade’s quest to have a child, whether through conceiving or adoption, would be successful.
Ami was convinced Gladys was legit. Even more reason, Marigold thought, to keep her distance. Especially now that she was worried about her relationship with Cade.
She could survive not having children, but she wasn’t certain she could survive losing Cade. Especially to a former girlfriend who could likely give him the children he so desperately wanted. Children that, as of now, she couldn’t.
Keeping her distance from Gladys proved surprisingly easy. In addition to Marigold, her three sisters and their families, her stepmother’s three children and their families were out in force.
She smiled, her gaze lingering on Cade as he played badminton with several of the older children.
“He’ll make an excellent father.”
Marigold had been so focused on her handsome husband she hadn’t seen, or even felt, Prim move to stand beside her. Two of Prim’s kids—twin sons Connor and Callum—were playing the game, as well as Prim’s husband, Max.
Marigold had spotted Prim’s youngest child, Adelyn, a few minutes ago, one arm hooked around her grandfather’s neck.
Prim leaned close and pointed, a wide smile on her lips. “Look at the way Cade’s teasing Callum. The boys adore him.”
“If he sticks with me, I don’t know that he’ll get a chance to be a father.”
The elbow to the ribs would have been expected from Fin, or even Ami, but not from sweet and mild-mannered Prim. Then again, Prim was made of strong stuff. Hadn’t she raised rambunctious twin boys on her own for several years after their father died, back before she and Max got together?
“Hey.” Marigold glared at Prim. “What was that for?”
“For being a stupid-ass.”
Marigold widened her eyes. “Since when do you talk like that, Primrose Bloom?”
Prim waved an airy hand. “I learned it from the boys.”
“Since when do you and Max let them talk that way?”
“We don’t.” Prim grinned. “They know better now.”
“I’m not being stupid, just realistic.” Marigold held up her hands and took a step back when Prim’s eyes shot blue fire.
“No,” Prim told her, “you’re being a stupid-ass. I thought you and Cade decided that after you tried the fertility stuff you’d go for adoption. If that didn’t work, you’d foster.”
“We did decide that.” Marigold heaved a breath.
“Where are you with the adoption process?” Prim demanded.
“Everything is done. We even passed the home visit.” Marigold gave a little hiccup of a laugh, recalling the celebration. “We were both so excited, we went out for dinner at Sombreros and celebrated.”
“Best Mexican food on the peninsula and really amazing margaritas.” Prim’s eyes grew soft. “What happens now?”
“We wait. We hope that a couple will pick us.” The smile that had lifted Marigold’s lips at the memory of those amazing margaritas faded. “The social worker warned it can sometimes take years.”
“It won’t. Not for you and Cade.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Sometimes you just have to believe.”
“My belief in a lot of things is being sorely tested these days.” Marigold’s gaze shifted to Cade.
“What about private adoption? David went that route. He said it didn’t take long for him and Whitney to get Brynn.”
David Chapin—Lynn’s eldest—and his first wife had adopted Brynn as an infant through a private adoption brokered by an attorney in Chicago.
“We’ve discussed that option. Since we sold the land, we have the money. But…” Marigold hesitated.
“Marigold, honey.” Prim’s touch was like a soothing balm on her frayed emotions. “You can tell me anything. You know that, right?”
“This whole trying-to-have-a-baby thing has been hard on me.” Marigold blew out a breath. “You know me, Prim. I’m as strong as they come.”
“The strongest,” Prim agreed.
“I told Cade I don’t know if I can stand having a birth mother change her mind at the last minute. I don’t think it’s uncommon, and while I understand they need to be sure, I…”
Her sister offered an encouraging smile, even as her eyes remained somber.
“I feel off my game,” Marigold said. “Not strong.” When those blasted tears once again formed in her eyes, she swiped them away. She would not ruin Lynn’s party by bawling like a baby. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“Sweetie, you’ve been through so much.” Prim wrapped her arms around her, her voice as soothing as a mother’s caress. “Have you considered talking to Liam or Trinity?”
Liam Gallagher and Trinity Goodhue owned Connections, a local counseling center. Marigold knew several people who’d gone there and been helped.
“If I continue to feel like this, I might.” Dry-eyed now, Marigold gazed over the yard, the sounds of laughter and conversation sliding off of her. “I’ve been done with the fertility drugs for nearly three months. I should be feeling better, shouldn’t I?”
Concern filled Prim’s eyes. “Are your hormones still out of whack?”
Marigold gave a little laugh. “If by out of whack, you mean no period, PMS symptoms and sore breasts, then yes.”
Prim stilled, and a look Marigold couldn’t decipher filled her eyes. “You haven’t had a period since you went off the drugs?”
“The doctor warned me it might take a while for my system to get back to normal.” Marigold attempted a nonchalant shrug. “She said it happens a lot after you go off fertility drugs.”
“Do you…” Prim paused to clear her throat, appeared to be carefully considering her next words. “Do you think you could be…pregnant?”
Marigold was embarrassed to admit her heart gave a sudden leap. Even after so many negative pregnancy tests, the response told her she hadn’t given up hope. Still, wanting something, hoping desperately for something, didn’t mean she was going to be, well, a stupid-ass about it.
“I suppose anything is possible.” Marigold couldn’t quite keep the hitch from her voice as she added, “Though it’s not likely.”
“What’s not likely?” Fin sauntered up with four-month-old Eddie in her arms. The tiny White Sox ball cap that covered his blond curls coordinated with his baseball onesie.
Unlike most babies, Eddie had retained the head of lustrous hair he’d been born with. Marigold had once envisioned the same hair on her own child when she’d dreamed what her and Cade’s baby might look like.
“I repeat,” Fin spoke with a little more force, “what’s not likely?”
The thought of never cradling a child in her arms like Fin was doing now had Marigold bristling. “Did you ever think that maybe we’re having a private conversation and that what we’re discussing is none of your business?”
Fin’s green eyes narrowed, then she grinned. “Whatever goes on between my baby sisters is my business.”
Marigold couldn’t help but laugh. She shot Prim a warning glance. She understood Prim speculating, but she didn’t want the rumor starting up again that she might be pregnant.
Several weeks earlier, when rumors had spread that one of the Bloom sisters was pregnant, everyone assumed it was her. It hadn’t been her. It was Fin, pregnant again after having her first child only months earlier. No, Marigold definitely didn’t want the speculation to start up again.
“It’s not likely Connor and Callum will beat Max and Cade.” Marigold gestured with one hand to where the badminton game raged.
“Someone needs to tell the twins.” Prim’s smile widened. “They’re definitely going for gold.”
“Your boys are growing into fine young men, Primrose.”
Marigold stiffened at the sound of Gladys’s voice. She hadn’t seen the woman approach. Hadn’t realized the older woman, who saw too much, stood right beside her until it was too late to make an exit.
“Thank you, Gladys.” Prim smiled. “Max and I are very proud of them.”
“They adore Eddi
e.” Fin rubbed her son’s back. “They’re so gentle with him.”
Marigold felt the pressure build as she realized it was her turn to add to the discussion.
Keep it general, Marigold told herself. One thing was for certain: She’d definitely do her part to keep the discussion off of her and Cade.
Thankfully, Gladys loved to talk, and she ended the momentary silence. “This is a lovely birthday celebration.” Her gaze shifted momentarily across the yard to Lynn and the sisters’ father. “They’re an amazing couple.”
That, Marigold thought, was a statement everyone could get behind. She smiled as her father gave his wife a one-armed hug. Left alone to raise four girls after his wife died, Steve Bloom had shouldered the heavy load with strength, grace and a healthy dose of good humor. He’d dated other women, but he’d told his daughters that Lynn was the one he’d waited for all these years.
Lynn had waited, too. She and her husband had been Good Hope’s power couple. They owned and ran a network of banks and had their fingers in a variety of commercial real estate ventures. They were known for holding the most elegant parties.
Then, under immense stress during the 2008 banking crisis, Robert had collapsed after a sudden heart attack and died. Lynn, strong as they came, soldiered on and brought all their business enterprises back from the brink of collapse.
Unlike Marigold’s father, Lynn had rarely dated during the years following her spouse’s death. She’d preferred to focus on business. No one had seen a marriage between the business tycoon and the high school teacher coming.
Fin smiled at Gladys. “The dinner at their home on Sunday was lovely, but we wanted to do something fun where all the grandchildren could be involved. Also, we wanted to open up the celebration to more of her friends and ours.”
“It’s been a few years since I’ve been a child, but I enjoyed today’s menu immensely.” Gladys chuckled. “I had two hot dog sliders. The mango-pineapple salsa topping was inspired.”
