DINNER OVER, dishes done, Kate was working on a counter proposal for the Graham Foundation that would allow her to implement two new grief counseling programs on an accelerated schedule that would not interfere with her wedding plans one bit, when the phone rang the next evening. She waited for Lewis or Kev, the only two boys home, to pick up one of the extensions. When they didn’t, she caught it on the fourth ring. “Kate? Gus Barkley. Your dad would kill me if he knew I was calling you but I think maybe you better get over to the field house locker room.”
“Why?” Kate demanded, alarmed at the concern in Gus’s voice. The assistant football coach and friend of her father’s for years was one of the most levelheaded men Kate knew. He wouldn’t call her unless he had no other choice. “What’s going on?”
“I’m not sure,” Gus whispered on the other end of the line. “But I’m worried about your dad. Just get here as fast as you can, okay?”
“I’ll be right there.” Kate shut down her laptop, then grabbed her purse, cell phone and keys and dashed to the stairs. “Lewis—Kev—come here a minute!”
Within seconds, both heads popped over the banister. To Kate’s dismay, the hyper-alert looks on their faces matched the terse, worried sound of her voice. Trying her best not to panic herself, or them, Kate looked them each in the eye and said calmly but firmly, “I’ve got to run over to the high school to do something for my dad. You two going to be okay here alone for a few minutes?”
They nodded. “Don’t worry, Kate,” Lewis reassured her when she hesitated. “I’ll take care of Kev. He can come in my room and play video games with me.”
“Thanks, guys. It means a lot, knowing I can count on you. You’ve got my cell phone number, Lewis?”
“It’s on the bulletin board in the kitchen.”
“Okay. Call me if anything comes up. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Her heart pounding, Kate drove the eight blocks to the high school. Cars were turning left and right out of the lot as the football team disbanded after evening practice. Knowing it had to be something serious for Gus to call her, she parked her car beside the stadium, made her way through the chain-link gate and headed for the field house. Gus was pacing around outside, hurrying the remaining kids along home, and watching for her. The moment he saw her, he made a beeline for her side. “Thanks for coming.”
“What’s going on?” Kate asked anxiously.
He wrapped a paternal arm around her shoulder and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I think your dad’s having chest pains.”
Kate did her best not to panic. “Did you call an ambulance?”
“Are you kidding? He wouldn’t care how long I’ve been his assistant coach here, he’d have me fired. Not to mention that would be the end of our friendship. Besides, what if it’s just indigestion, like he says?”
And what if it isn’t, Kate thought, alarmed. “Did you tell my mom?”
“Just you. I didn’t want to upset her if there was no cause. And I figured since you work at the hospital you’d know a little better what to do.”
Kate had been trained in CPR, but that was little comfort to her now. “Where is he?” Kate asked quietly as they entered the field house. A couple kids came bursting out of the locker room and, nodding hello at Kate and Gus, headed for the exit.
Still guiding her down the hall, Gus spoke quietly into her ear. “He’s in his office. The door’s shut, but go on in. I’ll be there as soon as I get rid of the rest of the team.”
Not wanting to alarm any of the players, Kate did as Gus asked. She knocked once, let herself in, and shut the door after her. There were no windows in the room, and it took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the glare of the overhead fluorescent lighting. She dropped her bag onto a chair and moved toward him, not liking at all what she saw. Mike Marten was dressed in his usual burnt-orange coach’s shirt, khaki shorts and hat, and he looked terrible. The air-conditioning was on full-blast, icy-cold air pouring from the vents, and he had unbuttoned the front placket on his shirt as far as he could, but he was still sweating profusely. His face was red and flushed. He had one hand pressed against his sternum, an uncapped bottle of water resting on his knee. With considerable effort, he lifted it to his lips and took a sip. “What are you doing here?” he growled from his perch on his desk.
Trying not to look as alarmed as she felt, Kate said, “Gus called me.”
Mike let out a string of swearwords that blistered Kate’s ears and left no doubt how he felt about his assistant coach and best friend at that moment.
Ignoring Mike’s temper, Kate said, “He’s worried about you, Dad. And now that I see you, I am, too.” More than I can say.
Mike sipped some more water and waved off Kate’s concern. “It’s nothing.”
Kate touched his arm gently. It was cool and damp to the touch. “Let’s have a doctor tell us that, okay? I want to take you to the emergency room right now.”
Mike shrugged off her touch, glared at her. “I’m not going to the hospital, Kate.”
“You’re in pain.”
“Damn right I am,” Mike agreed, readily enough, still rubbing the spot just below his sternum. “I never should have eaten enchiladas for lunch.”
“Is your ulcer acting up again?”
“That cleared up years ago. This is just acid indigestion, pure and simple.” Mike wiped his brow with his hand. “I should have taken something for it earlier, but I didn’t, and now I’m paying for it.”
Kate studied her dad. “You really think this is heartburn?” she asked, not wanting to call in an ambulance unnecessarily any more than Mike wanted her to do so.
“Acid reflux,” he corrected, handing over a prescription pill bottle for Kate’s perusal. “Spicy foods, too much caffeine or acidic foods like tomatoes and jalapenos set it off. It feels like hell when it happens, but once the medicine gets to work, I’m okay.”
Kate had to admit her dad was starting to look a lot better. “When did you take the medicine?”
“Ten, fifteen minutes ago.”
There was a knock at the door, then Gus slipped inside. “Everyone’s out of here.” He shot Mike a concerned look.
Mike sent Gus an irritated look. “What were you thinking, calling Kate over here? Not that I don’t think you should be out of Sam McCabe’s house, anyway.”
Kate tensed. “Dad…” Sick or not, she wasn’t letting him run her life.
Mike looked at her, not the least bit apologetic. “Can’t blame me for trying, Kate. You’re making a mistake, getting involved with that man.”
Kate spotted a white terry-cloth towel and handed it to her father. “Let’s just worry about your problems for the moment. Did you tell John McCabe you were having trouble with your stomach again?”
“Who do you think called in this prescription for me?”
Kate glanced at the bottle, reading all the information she had skimmed over before. It was dated two weeks prior, ordered by the very recently retired John McCabe, and had no refills on it. “And he’s not worried?”
Mike was silent.
“Dad,” Kate reprimanded, feeling as if she had just grabbed a tiger by the tail because she and her dad disagreed on something.
Mike scowled. “Who died and made you my protector?”
Kate watched him loop the white towel around his neck and wipe his face. “Is that what you’d say to one of your players who needed medical help and refused to get it?”
“I did get it. I got the pills. I took one. Just not soon enough. Next time I’ll know better than to eat enchiladas on a day that’s been hotter than hades where my team doesn’t perform worth squat.”
Exasperated, Kate looked at Gus to see what he had to say. “It was a terrible practice,” he confirmed.
Kate looked back at her father. He was still sipping water, but his color had returned to normal and he was no longer sweating. He did not seem to be in pain. “You’re scaring me. You know that,” Kate chided.
Mike shrugged his massive shoulders. “Then blame Gus. ’Cause he’s the one who called you for no reason.”
Kate and Gus exchanged looks. Though Gus was quiet, she could tell by the look in his eyes that he was still concerned. He just wouldn’t dare say so to Mike. Kate turned back to her dad, wishing for once he weren’t so darn bullheaded. “I want you to make an appointment with Luke Carrigan,” she said quietly but firmly.
Mike scoffed. “That kid?’
“He’s not a kid, dad, he’s thirty-something, and he’s a fine physician, John McCabe said so himself, otherwise he wouldn’t have turned his practice and all his patients over to him.”
Mike wiped his brow with the hem of his towel. “Okay, okay.”
“Okay what?” Kate demanded.
“Okay.” Mike sat up a little straighter and began buttoning the placket on his shirt. “I’ll get in touch with him.”
“Soon…if for no other reason than so he knows what’s been going on with you,” Kate insisted. “Your history with your ulcer and all that.”
Mike stood, put his hands on the small of his back, and stretched. When he’d worked out the kinks, and he took his time about it, he reached over, grabbed his coach’s cap and put it on his head. He tugged it low across his forehead, removed the towel from around his neck, set it aside and then looked at her. “You’ve spent too much time at the hospital, Kate. You’re beginning to talk like a medical doctor, which you’re not,” he emphasized bluntly before softening slightly once again. “You should come back to the high school, where you belong, and be a counselor here again.”
Kate didn’t know whether to kiss him or throttle him. She did know she was glad he was okay. “I’m glad you miss me, Dad. But I’m happy where I am. Now promise me,” she pleaded, not caring if she had to beg. “You’ll make an appointment to see Luke.”
“Okay, okay.” Mike gave up the argument if for no other reason than to get rid of her.
Kate stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. “I love you, you know that.”
Mike nodded and turned away. Sentiment was not his thing. Kate knew her dad loved her dearly, despite all his gruffness, even though he had never come right out and said so, and generally pretended he was above all overt displays of affection.
Kate smiled at Gus. She suspected he was going to be getting heck from her dad for days to come about the way he’d panicked. “I gotta go. Thanks for calling me, Gus. And no matter how much bluster and bull he gives you, don’t hesitate to call me again if this happens.”
Gus nodded. Grinned. He turned to Mike. “Glad you’re feeling better, Coach.”
Mike responded by swearing, vigorously, again.
“KATE!” Sam yelled Saturday morning. “Come and get Kevin! I’m trying to work here.”
Wincing at the degree of pique in Sam’s voice, Kate rushed to the hall outside Sam’s study. Sam was standing there, an irritated scowl on his face, a stack of jelly-smeared transparencies in his hand. He had already showered and shaved, and was dressed in olive-green khakis and a black polo shirt that emphasized his broad shoulders and expansive chest. Kevin slouched beside him, looking both guilty and hurt at the way he was being pushed away.
“I’ve got to finish this presentation and he needs some supervision,” Sam continued brusquely, nodding at his son.
Kevin was still in his pajamas. He had finished his meal and surreptitiously left the table while Kate was busy getting breakfast for the other boys. Consequently, she hadn’t had time to wipe the six-year-old’s hands and face, and they were smeared with a sticky combination of chocolate milk and pancake syrup.
“I’ll get him cleaned up,” Kate promised.
Before she could take him by the hand, Kevin made a beeline for the dining room. He pushed aside the elegant satin covered chairs, getting syrup all over them, too, and climbed beneath the table, settling down where no one could easily get to him. Instead, they would have to coax him out.
Sam frowned at Kate as he took in her muted-rose sheath dress. “Why are you so dressed up?”
Realizing she was still holding her pearls in her hand, Kate fastened them around her neck as she patiently explained, “I’ve got a prenuptial meeting with our minister in thirty minutes.”
Sam’s glance narrowed. “Doesn’t Craig have to be there for that, too?”
He sure should be, Kate thought. Shrugging at Sam, she replied, “My mom set it up. She’s getting kind of antsy. Besides, Craig will be here next weekend and we’ll both meet with Reverend Baxter then.” Kate couldn’t wait. It would mean her wedding preparations were officially under way.
“Then who is going to watch Kevin this morning?” Sam demanded, looking more annoyed than ever.
Kate gestured helplessly. “I thought maybe you—”
“Oh, no,” Sam interrupted with a resolute shake of his handsome head. “I’ve got way too much work to do. Besides, that’s why I hired you, remember? So you could take care of things like this for me? And I wouldn’t have to worry about it.”
“But you’re here,” Kate said a little desperately.
Sam shoved a hand through his short, sable brown hair. “I can’t get anything done when he’s underfoot. Besides, it’s easy enough to see he needs some attention.”
Yes, Kate thought, Kevin did need some attention. But he didn’t need it from her. He needed—and wanted—it from Sam.
Realizing that wasn’t going to happen, not this morning, anyway, Kate turned to Lewis. “Don’t look at me,” he said immediately. “I’ve got plans for the day. Josie and Wade are giving me my birthday present today, remember?”
Actually, Kate hadn’t known about that.
“They’re going to teach me all about the oil business,” Lewis continued excitedly. “I get to ride to Houston in Wade’s chopper, and visit a refinery, and go wildcatting for new oil with Josie, and even have dinner at the private club where all the Texas oil men and women like to eat. It’s gonna be my best birthday present ever, and I won’t be back until tomorrow afternoon.”
Brad and Riley who’d come into the front hall outside Sam’s study to see what all the commotion was about, made faces at each other. “Some birthday present,” Brad muttered jealously.
“Yeah, sounds like geek city to me,” Riley agreed.
Sam looked at them sternly. “Guys—”
Too excited about the weekend ahead to care, Lewis blew off their teasing with a shrug. “They’re just jealous.”
You got that right, Kate thought, taking in the resentful looks on Brad’s and Riley’s faces. They wanted some of that special attention, too.
“Oh, who the heck cares!” Will shouldered his way through the group loosely assembled outside Sam’s study. “I’m going to football practice.” Will shot an angry look at Sam—who had come down on him, hard, the night before, for coming in an hour after curfew. Kate had been in bed by then, but she had heard bits of it, and the confrontation between Sam and his oldest son hadn’t been pleasant.
“Which is just one more place to get yelled at for no reason,” Will finished bitterly.
Sam clamped a hand on Will’s shoulder, halting him in midstride. “I had a reason for reprimanding you last night and you know it. Furthermore, I want you back here as soon as practice is over, and you’re to give me the keys to your Jeep the moment you get here. Understood?”
“Dad…”
“I mean it, Will. You’re on restriction the rest of the day. It will help you to remember to keep track of the hour and come in before curfew the next time. Got it?”
“Got it,” Will said sullenly. He shot an angry look at Kate, then turned back to Sam. “Can I go now? If I’m late—” he pointed at Kate “—her dad is going to ream me out but good.”
“Go,” Sam said.
The phone on Sam’s desk began to ring. He swore softly at the interruption on his business-only phone line. “I’ve got to get that. Meanwhile, someone needs to keep an eye on Kevin. Got it?” Not waiting for a reply, he stepped back inside his study and shut the door behind him.
Kate shot a glance at Kevin, who was still crouched beneath the dining-room table. There weren’t enough hours in the day to tend to the emotional needs of all the kids, even with Sam’s help. And that she didn’t have. She turned back to Brad and Riley. “How about it, guys? Can one of you help me out here for an hour or so?”
They were already backing out the door after Will. “Sorry, Kate, we got stuff to do.”
“What stuff?” Kate asked, following them suspiciously. The boys’ telephone had been ringing off the hook all morning. Different girls every time. All of them asking to speak to either Brad or Riley.
“We’ve got big plans for tonight,” Brad explained, backing out onto the front porch.
“But you will be here for dinner.”
“Why?” Riley demanded.
“Because it would be a good chance for you to eat with your dad,” Kate said.
At the thought of some “quality time” with Sam, Brad and Riley perked up immediately. “He actually said he’s going to have dinner with us tonight?” Brad asked, looking pleased.
“Well, no,” Kate allowed reluctantly. But she was going to do her level best to see that it happened. “But he’s working at home today and tomorrow and—”
“Forget it. It’ll never happen,” Riley interrupted with a disappointed scowl.
“Isn’t that the truth,” Brad said morosely as he fished his car keys out of his pants’ pocket. “Besides, Riley and I already have plans to have dinner out tonight with some…er, um…friends.”
“Girlfriends?” Kate asked as she stepped out onto the front porch with them.
Brad’s wicked grin widened as he contemplated their secret for a moment longer. “We could tell you. But then we’d have to kill you.”
“Yeah, what me and Brad are doing is top secret,” Riley agreed with a mischievous smirk.
Oh, Lord, Kate thought, this was all they needed, given the grumpy mood their father was in. Hoping to put on the brakes, at least a little, she asked, point-blank, “Is whatever you’re doing going to get you in trouble?”
“Don’t worry,” Riley replied breezily.
Now that was a tall order, Kate thought, and one she couldn’t possibly keep, given the looks of choirboy innocence suddenly on their handsome faces.
“We’re not going to be breaking any of Dad’s rules. And we will be home by curfew,” Brad emphasized sincerely as they dashed down the steps to Brad’s Mustang.
As Kate watched Brad and Riley drive away, she found their promise small comfort. Those two boys were definitely up to something. She just didn’t know what. And at this point, she wasn’t sure she really wanted to know.
“YOU’RE LATE,” Joyce said with a frown as Kate and Kevin rushed into Reverend Baxter’s office some fifteen minutes past the scheduled time.
Given the way Kate’s morning had been going, she was lucky to get there at all. “I know, Mom, and I’m sorry,” Kate apologized hastily. “I didn’t realize Kevin was going to be coming with me, and we had to get him ready, too.” Unfortunately, Kevin hadn’t been very cooperative, so dressing him and trying to get him cleaned up had been difficult to say the least.
“I thought Sam was going to be home this morning.”
“He is, but he’s also tied up on some important business calls.” Kate settled Kevin onto the sofa between her and her mother and opened his plastic case of toys. Kate looked up with a smile, reading the look in her mother’s eyes, the one that said she shouldn’t be working for Sam and staying under his roof in the first place. “But it’s going to be fine. Kevin brought his snap-together building blocks with him, so he and I are going to play quietly while we talk. Right, Kev?”
Kevin looked at the adults in the room forlornly and did not reply. Joyce and Reverend Baxter both shot concerned looks at Kate. Clearly, they wanted to know what had been going on to make Kevin look so dejected and upset. “It’s a long story,” Kate said evasively, not about to get into that in front of Kevin. Feeling as if she had been operating on maximum speed all week, she continued breathlessly, “Why don’t we just get started?”
“Good idea, Kate. And, as it happens, we have a surprise for you.” Reverend Baxter picked up the receiver and punched a button on his phone as Kate took some blocks from Kevin’s box and fit them together. “What’s going on?” she asked.
Joyce and Reverend Baxter just smiled as he put the receiver to his ear. Seconds later, Reverend Baxter said hello, then pushed another button on the base of the phone. “Kate, honey?” Craig’s voice filled the room. “Are you there?”
Kate broke out in a smile. Finally, a surprise that morning that she liked! “Craig! Hi!” Kate bubbled over with delight. This was great. Now Craig could be “there” with them, too, just the way he should have been.
“I’d like to introduce you to my base chaplain,” Craig continued cheerfully from the other end of the international connection as Kevin took his blocks and got down onto the floor to play with them there.
The next several minutes were devoted to a four-way discussion of how to best incorporate military and civilian traditions into their marriage ceremony. Craig wanted to wear his full dress uniform. He also wanted the saber ceremony at the conclusion of the church service. “Kate, are you in agreement with all that?” the base chaplain asked.
“Yes.” Kate smiled as she reached over and squeezed her mother’s hand, then continued speaking into the phone. “I am. I can’t think of a better way to start off our marriage than for Craig and I to pass under the arch of military sabers.” It was romantic and exciting, and very much in keeping with what Craig was all about.
“Another nice touch,” Reverend Baxter added, “albeit a strictly civilian one is to include, along with the saying of the traditional vows, a more personal testament from Craig and Kate.”
“You mean…you want Craig and me to say something about how we feel about each other?” Kate suggested, surprised.
“Yes, exactly!” Reverend Baxter beamed. “It can be as formal or informal as you like, but I think it’s wonderful for the bride and groom to put their feelings into words at such an important time, and then share it with everyone who is there to witness their marriage. It adds a very personal and special touch. And it’s quite romantic, too.”
“I think it sounds wonderful!” Joyce said happily.
Unfortunately, Craig didn’t share Kate’s mother’s enthusiasm. “I don’t know, Reverend,” Craig hesitated. “That doesn’t really sound like something I would do.”
To Kate’s relief, Reverend Baxter did not look either surprised or disappointed by Craig’s reluctance. “You don’t have to decide today,” he soothed. “It’s just something to think about.”
“But what would we say?” Craig interrupted. To Kate’s embarrassment, he was beginning to sound a little testy and defensive. “I mean…I could say I love her,” Craig continued uncooperatively, “but wouldn’t that be kind of lame?”
No, Kate thought, beginning to get a little irked and a lot embarrassed by Craig’s recalcitrance. It wouldn’t be kind of lame. It would be sweet and wonderful and romantic. But obviously Craig didn’t see it that way.
“It doesn’t have to be anything overtly mushy,” Reverend Baxter stated. “It could be a simple recounting of the day you fell in love with Kate, or the moment you asked her to marry you, or the moment you knew you wanted to marry her. You could read a poem. Cite a brief passage in a book, or even from a movie that has particular meaning to the two of you. It’s just a way of personalizing the ceremony, to make it uniquely about you, as well as to allow the guests to share in the very special love and affection you two have for each other.”
“Well, I don’t think I can do it,” Craig said grimly on the other end of the phone connection, digging in stubbornly. “I wouldn’t know what to say or where to begin.”
Heat started in Kate’s throat and moved up into her cheeks.
“It’s not like people don’t know how we feel about each other,” Craig continued defensively. “Of course we love each other. Otherwise we wouldn’t be getting married. Beyond that, there’s nothing else to say.”
Silence fell. Joyce exchanged uneasy looks with Reverend Baxter. Kate was so embarrassed and hurt by Craig’s unromantic attitude, she wanted to crawl under a chair and stay there. “Maybe Craig and I should talk about this alone,” she said, trying to sound cheerful.
“Good idea!” the base chaplain boomed on the other end.
“Very well. Meanwhile,” Reverend Baxter said, “as long as we have you both on the line, we still need to set a date…”