Chapter Thirty-Three

Charles was just as nervous as Kathy about the dinner at Roy and Nancy’s—not for himself but for her. Given what she’d told him about Nancy, he couldn’t help but expect trouble. With any luck, nothing out of the ordinary would happen. He just didn’t expect that luck to hold. Things had been going too smoothly.

The dinner would be the first time he’d publicly presented himself to Roy and Nancy as more than a friend of the family. Charles liked the older man, respected him, and he was fairly confident Roy felt similarly about him. He would have hated to have that respect sullied by thoughtless words about his relationship with Kathy.

“Time will tell,” he told his reflection as he parked in Roy’s driveway. Owen’s car was already there. After taking some deep breaths and squaring his shoulders, Charles got out and hurried up the steps to the front porch. As the sound of the doorbell echoed through the house, he rocked back on his heels and stretched his shoulders. “Guess there’s no time like the present to find out.”

“You’re nervous,” Owen stated. He and Sarah were feeding the babies before dinner, and he was slowly walking back and forth, Emma in his arms.

Sarah blew out a breath as she adjusted her hold on Ben, who was almost finished with his meal. “Do you blame me?”

“No. But I think she’ll be fine. She can handle this. You have to have faith.” He set Emma’s bottle down and wiped her face with a soft cloth. “Who’s the prettiest baby girl in the whole world? Sleepy, sleepy baby girl. That’s right. My Emma Jean.” He placed a kiss on her forehead ever so carefully and crossed to the portable pen that was acting as a temporary crib.

Watching him with their daughter, Sarah was overwhelmed with feelings. Chief amongst them was thankfulness, followed closely by love. When he moved from the playpen to the daybed where John was sleeping to adjust the blanket covering him, Sarah smiled. When Owen turned around, she handed him Ben’s bottle.

Owen swooped in and stole a kiss and the baby before she could get up. “We did good with these three, you know that?”

“I think we did. You’re a fantastic father. Have I told you that lately?” She touched his cheek, and he nuzzled her hand.

“Often enough.” He straightened, cradling Ben close. “I can’t imagine not loving them, not doing everything possible to protect them and make the world a safer place for them to grow up in.”

The look he sent her was complicated, and Sarah knew that as soon as they got back to their secluded home in Kentucky, he’d spend time running in the woods as one of the animals he could shift into—a deer or a wolf, depending on his mood. For some reason, she thought he might go for the wolf this time, which was the creature he changed into when he was struggling with his emotions.

“Are you okay?”

He nodded as he placed Ben beside Emma and made sure they were both cozy. “I’m just feeling introspective. Come on. Let’s go make the rounds.” He held out his arm.

Sarah gladly accepted, searching his eyes. “Want to talk about it?”

“No. There’s nothing really to talk about. Not here and not now. Maybe when we get home though. I’m just thinking about the past and things that are best left to wither to dust. I need to let the dead bury the dead, and I’m having a hard time doing that at the moment.”

Roy was just letting Charles in when they reached the foot of the stairs. Even as he greeted them, his eyes scanned the room until they landed on Kathy, who was seated on the couch and looking at a magazine with Nancy and Eliza. He visibly relaxed, and he smiled. Kathy glanced up and saw him, and she smiled back, her posture easing as well.

“Did you see that?” Sarah asked Owen.

“I did. Think he knows he loves her?”

“Mm, I do. I don’t think she’s figured it out yet, not in a tangible way.”

“There you are,” Roy said, coming in from the hall. “Charles, how’s your weekend going so far? Are you taking some time off?”

“Enough,” he said. “Thanks for inviting me.”

Roy slapped him on the shoulder. “You know you’re welcome here any time.” When the doorbell rang, he frowned. “Who in the world is that?”

Nancy crossed the room. “That’s probably Dorian. You remember, Jan’s oldest son? He’s just out of the Navy, and he’s unattached and doesn’t know a lot of people in town these days, and well… I thought it might be nice to invite him to dinner.” She went to the door, oblivious to the quiet chaos she’d left behind.

Appalled, Sarah stared at a flabbergasted Charles then Kathy. Her mouth open, she looked at Owen then back at Kathy. “Oh, dear. Surely she doesn’t mean…”

Eliza closed her eyes briefly, muttering, “Of course she does.”

As Charles went to Kathy, Roy took in the scene in an instant, and he gave a low curse. “When did this happen? Or am I reading things wrong?”

Nancy was still in the hall, chatting amiably with Dorian.

“It’s been building,” Charles said as he sat beside Kathy. He put his arm behind her, leaving his hand low on her back as she perched on the edge of the sofa. He gave her a reassuring smile, concern etched onto her face. “It’ll be okay.”

“Sure, it will,” Eliza said dryly from Kathy’s other side. She shrugged when everyone looked at her. “The law of averages has to be in our favor, right?”

Owen snickered, trying to stifle his laughter when Sarah shot him a dirty look. “I’m sure everything will be fine,” he hastened to say. “Sure.”

Nancy came back in, beaming as she introduced Dorian. “This is my niece Sarah and her husband, Owen. They’re leaving for Kentucky in the morning. My sister, Eliza, and my other niece… Kathy?” She frowned as she took in their closeness. “And… Charles?”

“How do you do?” Dorian said.

He didn’t seem disappointed to see Charles and Kathy sitting so close, and Sarah had to wonder if he’d had any idea what he was walking into. He was a handsome young man; she’d concede that point to Nancy.

“Well! I believe dinner is ready,” Roy said with a hearty laugh. He rubbed his hands together. “Let’s eat.”

As they took their places around the table, Nancy’s frown grew. When she saw Charles taking the seat beside Kathy, she opened her mouth. Before she could say a word, however, Eliza had her by the elbow.

“Excuse us for just one moment, please. I think we need to check on dessert.” Eliza utterly ignored the dirty looks Nancy shot her and tugged her into the kitchen with relentless determination.

Charles hurried to fill in the conversational gap. “So, Dorian, Nancy said you’ve recently left the Navy?”

“Yes, sir. I was in for eight years.” He glanced at Roy. “I remember coming here to play with Oscar when we were just little tykes. How’s he doing these days?” Oscar was Roy and Nancy’s son.

“He’s doing well. He and his wife just had their second child. They’re down in Louisiana. He works for a machining shop that supplies parts to the oil rigs in the Gulf. What are you planning to do now that you’re out of uniform?”

Dorian sent an appreciative look at Kathy then turned back to Roy. “I’m not sure. I have a lot of friends who’ve headed to Louisiana and Texas. There’s some good money to be made down there from what I’ve heard, and it sounds like the work might be right up my alley. It’s just me, so I’m free to go wherever I want. It’s liberating, really, after having been so tied down for so long. It’d be an exciting life if one were so inclined.”

As Sarah was seated beside Kathy, across the table from Dorian, she’d seen the heat in the glance the young man sent her sister’s way. She had to revise her opinion—he might just have been aware of Nancy’s intentions after all. Charles’s presence seemed to be keeping Dorian in check for now, but that glance… that had been bold.

Kathy sighed quietly as Roy and Dorian talked about the opportunities in the Gulf. She exchanged a look with Sarah.

“You look ready to bolt,” Sarah murmured as she settled her napkin in her lap.

“I have my running shoes on, and I’m not afraid to use them,” Kathy confirmed. But she sat up straight, squaring her shoulders, and for all the world, she looked as though she was ready to do battle, not flee.

Eliza and Nancy came back in, each carrying a dish. The maid Nancy had hired for the evening was behind them with more. Eliza set the mashed potatoes down, and then she took her spot beside Dorian.

“It looks scrumptious as usual,” Roy said. “Thank you, dear.”

“Of course.” Nancy’s smile was tense. “Let’s eat, everyone.”

Most of the meal went smoothly enough, but when the main dishes had been cleared away and the cheesecake was brought out, things turned.

“Do you ever get up to Virginia or Kentucky, Dorian?” Nancy asked.

He shook his head as he accepted a coffee refill. “No, ma’am. Well, we put in at Norfolk on occasion, but that was about it.”

“Hmmm. We’ve been talking about making the trek, Roy and I. We both grew up in Perry County over in Eastern Kentucky, you see, and we try to get home at least once a year. I’m hoping Eliza and Kathy will join us this time. You lose yourself if you don’t visit your roots, I believe.”

For several seconds, Sarah felt as if the entire room froze then jumped back into focus like a bad film at the movie theater.

Kathy very carefully laid her fork down and pushed back her chair. “If you’ll excuse me, I need some air.”

And without looking at anyone, she left the room, heading into the kitchen. A moment later, the sound of the back door opening and closing echoed through the room.

Dorian scooted his chair back, but Charles was on his feet first. “Don’t bother. She’s spoken for.” He buttoned his suit jacket, and his jaw ticked as he straightened his cuffs, staring hard at Nancy the whole time. “This stops right now, right here, this evening. This quest to get Eliza and Kathy to return to a place that hurts them both… I know you enough to believe you truly mean well, that you honestly think you’re helping. But all you’re doing is pouring salt on a wound that isn’t yet healed and may never be, and that’s a cruel quest you seem determined to pursue. Please, Nancy, stop. Excuse me.”

No one spoke immediately, then Dorian stood. “I should go. This sounds like a family matter.” He held his hand up when Nancy started to rise, and he went to her chair and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I can show myself out. Thank you for inviting me.”

It wasn’t until the front door closed behind him that Sarah felt as though they started breathing again. She looked across the table at Owen, whose lips were pursed as he stared back at her.

“It could have been worse,” he stated with a shrug.

Sarah snorted, her temper lit. “It could have been better. Nancy, what were you thinking? You know good and well that if Mama wants to go back to Kentucky, she’ll go. As for Kathy, I highly doubt she’s ever going to set foot near the state again. Why is that so difficult for you to understand?”

“Because I happen to know my sister a little better than you, missy. I want to see her and Kathy get better, not stay down here and pretend the past never happened. They’re not facing it. All they’re doing is wallowing in the misery. That’s no way to live.”

Stunned and outraged, Sarah stared at her, mouth agape. “How… I… no. You can’t possibly be serious.”

“Enough of this. Charles is right,” Roy said quietly. “You have to stop pushing.”

Nancy’s cheeks were bright red as she glared at her husband, and her mouth was pinched so tight Sarah knew she was inches away from crying, losing her temper, or both.

“What does Charles know about this family?” she asked in a voice barely above a whisper. “Why is he an expert on Kathy and Eliza all of a sudden?”

Eliza slammed her napkin on the table. “I told you why, but you won’t listen. He and Kathy are involved.”

Nancy laughed, but the sound held no humor. “And I told you that’s the most ridiculously inappropriate pairing I’ve ever heard of. I love Kathy dearly, you know I do, but she’s no match for Charles.”

“I beg your pardon, but I believe that’s something Kathy and I should decide,” Charles said, stepping inside the dining room with a stricken Kathy behind him, her hand linked with his. “With respect, our relationship is none of your business.”

Owen stood, his face grim, and sent Sarah a look. “I think I’ll get the kids ready to go.”

She nodded, heartbroken for Kathy and for her mother. Eliza would find Nancy’s words hard to forgive. For that matter, so would Sarah. And Kathy…

“After everything you’ve done for us, how can you believe what you just said?” Eliza asked. She shook her head. “We should go. I can’t talk to you right now. Not anymore, not tonight. Not for a while.”

Kathy gave Sarah a hug as Nancy stormed from the room and ran down the hall. “We’re going to take a drive. I’ll see you back at the cottage later?”

“Of course.” Sarah got up as Charles escorted Kathy out the door. “I’ll go help Owen.” She crossed her arms as she hurried from the room, hoping she’d make it upstairs without crying. That wouldn’t help anyone.

“I’ll go with you,” Eliza said. When Sarah turned to look at her, Eliza shook her head. “Don’t try to think about it or talk about it. Not right now. Let’s just get home.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Heart heavy, Sarah kept her mind focused on the task at hand, trying to keep her thoughts away from how hurt Kathy had looked when they’d come back in. She drew hope from the fact that Kathy’d gone with Charles and that he’d not seemed cowed by Nancy’s opinion of their relationship.

With any luck, this would be a simple bump in the road for them all. Nancy was one of the kindest women Sarah had ever known, and she couldn’t imagine that her aunt really believed what she’d said. More importantly, Sarah hoped that Kathy didn’t believe it, and if she did, Sarah prayed Charles was the kind of man she thought he was, someone who could break through the defenses Kathy was bound to raise.