Emily walked into the kitchen and twirled around, her green dress swirling around her. “I’m all ready for the school dance tonight.”
Olivia paused from putting the dishes away. “You look lovely, Em. That dress really suits you.”
“I found it at the secondhand shop. Isn’t it great? And it was five bucks. Such a deal.” Emily twirled around again.
“I can’t believe it’s already the fall dance. Where has the time gone?”
“Ha, easy to say when you aren’t the one struggling through chemistry this semester.”
A knock came from the front door. “That’s probably Blake. We’re going to head to the dance together.”
“You’re walking?”
“Yeah, we decided to. He’ll walk me home after, okay?”
“Sure, that’s fine.” There really were perks to living in a small, safe town. Walkable, so she didn’t have to worry about Emily out driving all the time.
Blake came back into the kitchen with Emily.
“You look dashing, Blake.”
He flashed a pleased smile. “Dashing, huh?”
“I think that’s old people talk for you look great.” Emily rolled her eyes, but grinned. “Right, Mom?”
She laughed. “You two go run along. Have a great time.”
“We will. It’s going to be the greatest dance ever in the history of Moonbeam high school dances. It’s so cool that Delbert let us have the pavilion at The Cabot for the dance.”
Her daughter was never lacking in enthusiasm. “Have fun. Wake me up when you come home so I can hear all about it.”
“Mom, it will still be the same stuff to tell you in the morning.” Emily rolled her eyes again and grabbed Blake’s elbow. “Come on, let’s go. This is going to be spectacular.”
She followed them to the front door and watched as they headed down the sidewalk. Who knew that her daughter would find such a great friend in an unexpected cousin?
Ted and Patricia walked out of The Cabot after having a lovely dinner in their dining room. “You want to walk along the harbor a bit? It’s cool out this evening,” Ted suggested.
“That sounds nice.”
He was glad she seemed to be enjoying walking outside more often now. Maybe it was because the beastly heat of the summer was abating. Or maybe she enjoyed his company?
He took her hand in his, and she smiled up at him. He liked that special smile she gave him when they were together. He’d gotten used to having her by his side. And he’d gotten used to kissing her. He couldn’t ever get enough of that. She was so refined and proper most of the time, but she was surprisingly passionate with her kisses, which he enjoyed.
They neared the pavilion that was spilling over with teens and a smattering of adults. “I heard the high school is having a dance here tonight. Delbert let them use the pavilion. He’s really a great guy, and it seems like he’s made quite the success of things. I love seeing The Cabot come alive again. She deserves it.”
“The Cabot is very nice.” Patricia nodded. “And I’m glad it makes you happy to have it opened up again.”
“Let’s peek in at the pavilion. I’d love to see the kids having fun.”
Patricia looked skeptical about taking in the hubbub but walked with him over to one of the large arched openings to the pavilion. Music floated around them.
It warmed Ted’s heart to see the pavilion restored and brimming with people. He paused when he saw Emily standing across the way. He stared at Emily, his brows furrowing. Her hair was pulled up on top of her head and tendrils of red curls framed her face. He frowned. He’d seen that face before. He knew that face, that look. Why hadn’t he noticed it before tonight?
He slowly turned to look at Patricia, searching her face. “Emily. She looks so much like Cassandra at that age. Like a carbon copy with her hair pulled up. And her smile. That looks like Cassandra’s too.”
Patricia swiveled, stared across the distance, and the color ran out of her face. “No, it’s just the red hair,” she whispered.
He stared at Patricia. “No… I mean, she looks… just… like…” He drew in a sharp breath as his thoughts ping-ponged from the past to the present to Emily. “Like a Cabot.”
He should have noticed it before. All the air was sucked away, and he could hardly breathe.
“Patricia?”
She looked away, ignoring him, her shoulders set firmly.
“Patricia, is there something you want to tell me? She’s your daughter’s granddaughter. Is…” His blood raced through his veins and pounded in his temples as the possibility hammered through him. “Is she my great-granddaughter? Is Donna my daughter?”
Patricia slowly turned to face him, her face a mask of protection. “I really don’t know. I never wanted to know for certain. I had my suspicions. But… well, Nelson never questioned Donna was his, and you were gone.” She shrugged.
Shrugged. Like this wasn’t the most explosive thing to happen to him in his whole lifetime. He looked over at Emily again, his heart soaring and his pulse racing. “I have to know, Patricia. I have to.”
“No. No one is ever going to know for sure. No one. There is no way I want my family to know. I don’t want anyone to know. It would be… scandalous.”
“Patricia, they might be my family. I can’t turn my back on that now that I know it might be a possibility.” He heard the pleading tone in his voice and didn’t care.
She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. They aren’t. They can’t be.”
He looked over at Emily, and certainty flowed through him. “They are my family. I feel it. Just look at her.”
“Well, we’ll never know that for sure, so put your questioning away. Put it away for good.”
He turned to her in disbelief. “Are you afraid that Donna and Olivia and Emily will be hurt? Or is it that you don’t want people to know what happened that summer?”
“They can’t know. No one can know. It was wrong. I was wrong. We were wrong. And Donna is Nelson’s daughter. That is the end of the discussion.”
“Patricia… don’t you understand? They might be a part of me. My family.”
“Ted, we are never going to have this discussion again. Do you hear me? Never.” Her face froze into a hard, determined mask.
“Patricia, I can’t just let this drop.” The pleading tone was gone, and now his voice held authority and insistence.
Patricia ignored it. “You have to. Now, please take me home. This evening is over.”
By the sound of her voice, their newfound friendship was over, too. He took one last long look at Emily, his heart pounding in his chest, and turned to follow Patricia, who was already hurrying away. Away from the truth of their past. Away from the possibility that these women were his family.
Patricia sat in the dark of her suite that night. This was the last thing she’d wanted to come to light. She figured her little secret would be just that. Her little secret. And besides, she really didn’t know if Nelson or Ted was Donna’s father. She’d never wanted to know for sure.
Maybe so she wouldn’t feel so guilty…
It was all Nelson’s fault, anyway. Him and his not-so-discreet affair that summer. He’d had one the year before but swore it was a onetime thing. Until the next one. Then that summer he’d been totally infatuated with some young blonde woman he’d met. He was rarely home that summer, traveling around the country with this new girl. The town had talked about it some, in whispers at least. She’d been so angry with him. More angry that he wasn’t being circumspect than about the fact that he was cheating on her. Again.
And the sideways pitying looks from the town. She couldn’t abide by that.
Then suddenly… there was Ted. Understanding. Friendly. Easy to talk to. He didn’t criticize her every move. He complimented her. Told her she looked lovely. She’d been swept away with their friendship.
Until one night, their friendship had deepened, and she’d slept with him. Not actually as revenge against Nelson’s infidelities, but partly for that reason. But mostly because she’d begun to have feelings for Ted. She’d held this tiny hope in her heart that maybe someday they could be together. That she could someday have a relationship with someone who cared about her and respected her.
Even though Nelson constantly cheated on her, she’d still felt guilty about the handful of times she slept with Ted. She hated the sneaking around feeling. But those times in his arms, those she’d treasured.
And she’d never had another affair with anyone. Ever.
But she had slept with Ted, and then he disappeared. She was devastated. After he was gone, she began to suspect she was pregnant. And there was still every probability that her child was Nelson’s. A small probability, but it was there.
So she’d ignored the doubt. Ignored it for all these years. Even when Olivia had her red-haired, green-eyed daughter. She’d convinced herself that was just a coincidence.
But none of this mattered. It all had to be kept in the past. She’d made that perfectly clear to Ted. Insisted. And he’d have to listen to her. He had to. There was no way the secret could come out.