THE CABIN WAS ONE rectangular room with a tiny adjoining bathroom, but Susannah liked the old iron bed. The other furniture was either handmade or high-quality reproductions.
A covered porch ran the length of the building. The back door stood directly opposite the front and a colorful floor runner stretched between them. That divided the space into halves.
A couple of chairs and a table big enough for eating or working on her computer occupied the kitchen. A door on that side led to the bathroom.
On the left was a stone fireplace, the double bed, a couch with cushions covered in a striped Indian print, a small trunk that served as a coffee table and a waist-high bookcase holding several local guidebooks and assorted paperbacks. The last resident had obviously been a hiker and mystery-novel reader.
Large picture windows set in both the front and back walls made her feel as if she were outside. She could look out the rear window or door and see the mountain with the house nestled at one edge of the clearing.
Ryan’s place sat about a hundred yards away to the right, on the other side of the driveway leading to the house.
From the front window she had the same awe-inspiring view she’d admired last evening from Mrs. Whitepath’s steps.
She puzzled over the position of the claw-footed tub in the kitchen until Ryan’s mother showed up and explained.
“My husband built us this place thirty-one years ago when we got married so we could be away from his parents. He called it our honeymoon cabin. I loved it except for one thing. Ned only installed a shower, which wouldn’t do. I like my baths.”
“Same here.”
“I cajoled, whined and begged for a bathtub until he finally gave in, but the bathroom didn’t have space, even for a small one. Hence, it wound up out here. The pleasure you’ll get from using it, though, is worth its unusual location.”
“I’ll bet it is.” The thing was huge. Susannah couldn’t wait to fill it up and soak. “Who made the furniture?”
“Ned and his father. They built the cabinets, too. I’ve had the couch reupholstered a few times since then, but the rest is original.”
“Everything’s lovely.”
“Unfortunately, I didn’t get to enjoy it very long. When I got pregnant with Ryan, moving to the house with Nana Sipsey and Papa George seemed the practical thing to do since they had plenty of room, but I came to miss this little place.” She looked about wistfully. “Ned and I had some good times here.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind me using it? I could make other arrangements.”
“No, I’m happy to have you.” She handed Susannah towels and clean linens for the bed, then drew her finger across the table. “The furniture could use a bit of dusting, I’m afraid. I haven’t cleaned in here in a while.”
“That’s okay. I’ll take care of it.”
“Ryan called Joe, my youngest boy, to come over and turn the water back on—he’s handy with things like that. He also checked the chimney and water heater to make sure everything’s working as it should.”
“I appreciate that.”
“Joe said he’d bring you some more wood when he got a chance, although there seems to be enough in the woodpile for a week or so. You have electric heat, too.” She motioned to a wall heater that was blasting hot air. “You might prefer to use that all the time and forget about struggling with the fireplace. I always found it inconvenient. Light it or not—that’s up to you. If you do use it, just be careful about going off and leaving the fire unattended.”
“Okay.”
“There’s no phone, but you’re welcome to use mine whenever you need.”
“Ryan’s already offered me his.”
“Would you like me to bring down a small television? There’s one in Anita’s room you could have.”
“Don’t bother. I have a CD player I like listening to. Even when I have a TV in the room, I rarely turn it on.”
She helped Susannah make the bed, then got blankets out of a built-in storage cabinet. On the table she placed a bouquet of dried flowers in a vase, a present from Ryan’s grandmother.
“I’ll leave you alone now so you can settle in. Ryan’s trying to catch a couple of hours’ sleep, but I’m sure he’ll be over shortly. Let me know if you need anything else.”
“You’ve been wonderful, Mrs. Whitepath. Your whole family has.”
“I’d be delighted if you’d call me Annie. And Ryan’s grandmother is Nana Sipsey—Nana to everyone.”
“Thank you, Annie. And please thank Nana Sipsey for the flowers.”
After Annie left, Susannah set about moving in. She had few possessions, but that was fine because there wasn’t much space, anyway.
The small closet had a hanging rod and a couple of shelves and was adequate for what she owned—a jacket, one summer and one winter dress with matching shoes and a few casual outfits. For ease, she’d kept her wardrobe to a minimum.
The only personal articles she’d held on to were the family photo albums and her mother’s jewelry.
She dusted the furniture and put her albums on the trunk. Her chores finished, she stepped back and looked around.
For the first time, she felt a longing for the things she’d given up when she sold the house, even those she’d never imagined she’d miss—like the grandfather clock that sat in the hallway for more than twenty-five years and annoyingly chimed on the quarter hour.
That sound, she realized now, had provided comfort to her when she was growing up. She missed it.
She missed the ugly lamps, too, the ones with peonies on them that her mother had found for a dollar a piece at a yard sale years ago and insisted on putting in the living room. She missed that awful dressing table with its frilly skirt trimmed in white eyelet. And the tea pitcher that, despite its hairline crack, had never leaked a drop and sat on the table at nearly every meal.
The cabin was charming, but it belonged to someone else and was decorated with someone else’s things.
Be content with that, Susannah.
She had to remind herself that her life was different now. The people she’d loved were lost to her by one means or another. And no place would ever feel like home again.
“SHE’S REALLY, really gonna live with us?” Nia asked Ryan, her face showing her excitement.
He’d driven into Robbinsville and picked her up from school instead of letting her ride the bus. He figured he needed the quiet time alone with her to explain the situation, why Susannah was suddenly around again.
“Not live with us. For a few weeks, Susannah will be staying in the cabin and helping me with my work. Do you remember Brian with the long beard who stayed there two summers ago? He used to tease and tell you his name was Booger.”
“Uh-uh.” She shook her head.
“I guess you were too little. How about when Uncle Charlie and Aunt Barbara moved to the city and they stayed in the cabin for a couple of weeks until their new place was ready?”
“Aunt Barbara let me put pictures on the ’frigerator.”
“That’s right. She did. This’ll be sort of the same. Susannah will stay in the cabin but only for a little while. Then she’ll be going away.”
“Where?”
“To New York.”
“Where’s that?”
“We’ll get out the atlas tonight and I’ll show you.”
He parked the truck at the barn and told Nia to go in and hang up her backpack. “We’ll say hello to Susannah before we look up your word definitions.”
“Are we staying here tonight, Daddy, or with Gran and Nana?”
Shuttling back and forth between their place and his mother’s and having two bedrooms got to be confusing for her at times.
“We’re home tonight.”
Nia hung her backpack and jacket in the kitchen, while Ryan went through the mail and put away the groceries he’d bought in town. He took a minute to slip a couple of steaks into marinade and pat out a hamburger to cook for Nia.
She insisted on taking time to draw a picture for Susannah with her crayons. Afterward, the two of them walked over to the cabin. Nia kept running ahead and Ryan had to keep ordering her to slow down. That part of the drive still had a few icy spots.
They found Susannah sitting on the porch, enjoying the day’s pleasant weather. Their arrival frightened the snowbirds pecking for seeds beneath the melting snow. The creatures scattered with a flurry of wings.
Nia threw herself excitedly into Susannah’s arms.
“Hey, be careful,” Ryan warned her. “Remember her wrist.”
“Sorry.”
“That’s okay,” Susannah told her. “You didn’t hurt me.”
“I made you a present.”
“You did?” She beamed a smile. “Let me see.” Nia showed her the drawing with its crude house and stick people, and from Susannah’s reaction, you would’ve thought his daughter was Picasso. “You made this? I can’t believe how talented you are. Why, you draw as well as your daddy.”
She winked at Ryan over the top of Nia’s head and he felt a tightening where he shouldn’t.
Too pretty, all right. Too nice. Too damn sexy. He was going to have a hell of a time behaving himself.
“The picture’s for your ’frigerator,” Nia told her.
“Let’s go put it up.”
Nia went ahead, with Susannah a few steps behind. Ryan followed them in.
“Do you have everything you need?” he asked Susannah, looking around.
“Yes, thanks. Your mother helped me.”
“Did she warn you not to put any garbage outside?”
“No, she didn’t mention that.”
“Separate the recyclables, if you don’t mind—glass, paper, aluminum—and put any vegetable-based waste in a bucket to throw in Nana’s compost bin. And when you have a bagful of garbage, let me know and I’ll take care of it. I don’t want you scared by some four-footed visitor scrounging for meat scraps in the middle of the night.”
“Uh, neither do I.”
“I’ll bring you some containers.”
She told him again how much she appreciated his letting her use the cabin and said she was ready to start her job.
“Tomorrow’s soon enough,” he told her. “Or we can wait until Monday, since tomorrow’s Friday.”
“I’d rather get started immediately.”
“Okay. That’s fine.”
“What time?”
“I take Nia to the bus stop every morning, but I’m back by eight. Walk over anytime after that.”
“What’s your schedule?”
“I work whenever I can get a minute, but you should plan on helping weekdays from around eight to three with a break for lunch. I leave again at three-thirty to pick up Nia and we’re home by four except on Tuesdays, when she has ballet down at the community center. She’s in bed and usually asleep by eight on school nights. I go back to the studio after that.”
Every second Monday he also took her to her therapist after school, but her next appointment wasn’t for a week. This information was best left unsaid, for the moment anyway.
“Do you work weekends?”
“Saturdays.”
“And how often do you try to kill yourself working all night?” Susannah asked.
“Not often. Last night was an exception.” Sleep had eluded him after Nia’s episode. He’d simply put the time to good use.
“Don’t hesitate to let me know how I can help, Ryan. I can run errands and get supplies. I could even take Nia to catch the bus and pick her up, if it’ll save you time.”
He almost confessed his deceit then. Obviously she liked Nia and didn’t mind being with her. Maybe she wouldn’t care that he’d hired her only to befriend his daughter.
“Thanks,” he told her instead. With Nia there, now wasn’t the time to be making such revelations. “I’m sure we’ll find plenty for you to do.”
She got some tape so Nia could attach her drawing and commented on what a lovely present it was.
“I can make you more,” Nia told her. “I draw flowers real pretty, don’t I, Daddy?”
“She’s an A-Number-One flower artist,” Ryan agreed.
“Then flowers it is,” Susannah told her. “I could use some pictures in here.”
“Do you got crayons?”
“Mm, afraid not. Maybe you can draw it for me at your house and bring it over the next time you come. Would that be okay?”
Nia agreed it would.
“Well, we’d better go,” Ryan told her.
“You just got here.”
“I know, but Nia has homework, and I like to get that out of the way. We also need to spend a few minutes with Mom and Nana.” He hesitated, hoping he wasn’t about to make a fool of himself. “How about joining Nia and me for supper? I picked up steaks to grill.”
“You don’t eat at your mother’s?”
“Some nights, but not tonight. I already told her not to expect us and that I was going to ask you over.”
“Oh? Well, then I’d love to come. I haven’t had a chance to buy any supplies yet. All I have is a pack of peanut-butter crackers. Steak sounds much better. But are you sure? I wouldn’t want to intrude on your time with Nia.”
“You won’t. We’d enjoy the company. Wouldn’t we, Sa Sa?”
Nia jumped up and down and begged her to say yes. “I can show you Dora, Boo and Jessie.”
“Are those kittens?”
Nia giggled. “No, they’re my babies.”
Ryan explained that they were dolls associated with her favorite TV shows and movies.
“Ah…babies. I see. Okay, but I don’t change diapers, young lady, especially stinky ones.”
Nia fell into a new fit of giggles.
Ryan couldn’t help chuckling himself. A weight seemed to lift from his shoulders. He’d done the right thing in asking Susannah to stay. She was going to be good for Nia.
“We won’t ask you to do any diaper-changing,” he told her, “but we might put you to work making a salad.”
“Vegetables I can handle. No problem.”
“Then we’ll expect you about six. I’ll leave the door unlocked.”
SHE NEEDED new clothes. Her “best” jeans had somehow acquired a hole in the knee. The back pocket was coming off the only other clean pair she had.
Sighing, Susannah decided the second pair, although more faded, would have to do. With a sweater, maybe the rip wouldn’t be noticeable.
After a long bath, she covered the freckles on her nose as well as she could with makeup, and applied a hint of mascara and lipstick. A quick brush through her hair to give it shine and she was ready to go.
Once at the barn, she let herself in the door. The kitchen and den of Ryan’s living area were at the rear of the loft. Glass walls made those rooms visible from below. The drapes were drawn back and she could see Ryan puttering around in the kitchen; Nia sat at the counter watching him.
Abigail approached her on the stairs, wearing a dress and an old-fashioned granny cap tied under her neck. Unhappy about it, she swished her tail.
“Oh, dear, what happened to you?”
The cat mewed pitifully in response.
Susannah entered the door to the den and called out a greeting. Ryan waved her in. “Perfect timing,” he announced.
Nia met her with a hug and the present of another drawing. Susannah took off her jacket, tossing it over a chair.
“Does your cat have a date? She looks pretty snazzy.”
“What?” Ryan asked.
“The cat has a dress and hat on.”
“Nia,” Ryan said, giving her a stern look, “what did I tell you about putting your doll clothes on Abigail?”
“I forgot.”
“No, you didn’t forget. You just ignored what I said.”
“But, Daddy, we were having a tea party and you can’t go to a tea party without clothes on.”
“What did I say about dressing the cat?”
“That she could get tangled up and hurt.”
“That’s right. And you wouldn’t want to do anything to hurt her, would you?”
“Uh-uh. I love Abigail.”
“Then go take them off. And if you forget again, no watching Powerpuff Girls for a week.”
She looked like she was going to sulk for being scolded. Not wanting a repeat of last night’s temper tantrum, Susannah jumped in. “Come on, I’ll help you and then you can show me your room. I’m anxious to meet your babies.” To Ryan she said, “Can you do without me for a few minutes?”
“Go ahead. I’m not ready to put the steaks on yet.”
They freed poor Abigail from her outfit. Still miffed, she streaked away and disappeared out the pet door.
Once in Nia’s room, Susannah sat on the bed with Nia next to her and was introduced to each doll and stuffed animal. The child had dozens of toys.
“But Cooper’s my favorite,” she said, hugging the bear. “He’s not a real bear. He only looks like one.”
“Is that so? I’m glad to know that.”
“Real bears are scary. They eat people. We have bears out there in the woods so you better be careful.”
“Oh, I will. Thanks for warning me.”
“Daddy says you’re going to New Ork. He showed me on the map. He says I’ve been there before but I don’t remember.”
“It’s called New York. They have interesting things I’ve always wanted to see.”
“We have int’resting things. Last summer Daddy and Uncle Bass took me out in a boat and I had to be real quiet. Uncle Bass said ‘damn’ when the fish ate the food. That’s a bad word.”
“Oops, it sure is.”
“I’m not supposed to say that, but it’s okay ’cause I’m only telling you what Uncle Bass said.”
“I think this one time it’s all right.”
“Uncle Bass isn’t my real uncle, but Daddy says to call him that ’cause he’s like a real uncle. Him and Aunt Helen.”
“I met them. They’re very nice.”
“I liked riding in a boat, but it don’t got a place for little girls to tee tee.”
Susannah’s lips twitched. She tried not to laugh. “I can see that would be a problem.”
“If you don’t go away, maybe Daddy and Uncle Bass will give us a ride.”
“That sounds like fun, but I can’t stay. I’m only going to be here a few weeks.”
“When are you going away?”
“Around Christmas.”
“Do you got to?” Her face was so solemn, Susannah felt bad for making her unhappy.
“I’m afraid I do.” Her instincts warned her to be careful. She could easily break this child’s heart—or her own—if she foolishly allowed herself to get too close. “Friends sometimes have to go away, Nia. But we can have a good time while I’m here. We can draw and play with your dolls.”
“Can we bake brownies?”
“I guess we could. I’ll ask about that.”
“I like the gooey ones with nuts.”
“Yum, me too.” She patted her leg. “No need to be sad. We’ll have lots of fun. Now, come on. Your daddy’s going to wonder what happened to us.”
THE STEAKS were delicious. After dinner they played two quick games of Chinese checkers with Nia. Susannah loaded the dishwasher while Ryan supervised Nia’s bath and put her to bed.
Susannah said a quick good-night to the child. She left father and daughter picking out a story to read.
Ryan returned to the kitchen ten minutes later. “I told you I’d clean up.”
“I didn’t mind. Nia asleep?”
“Yeah, she dropped off by the time I got to the third page.”
“Poor kid. She could hardly keep her eyes open during the game. She fought and fought to stay awake.”
“She didn’t sleep well last night. Nightmares.”
“Does that happen often?”
“Occasionally.”
“I guess that’s one thing that never changes. I used to dream about road machinery chasing me when I was little. Cranes. Big dump trucks. That sort of thing. What about you? What did you find scary?”
“The usual stuff. Monsters. Falling. Going to school without my clothes on.”
“I’ve dreamed about the last one,” she said, smiling. “What about forgetting the combination to your locker?”
“Oh, yeah. And not knowing you were having a test until you got to class.”
“Funny how universal nightmares are.”
“I didn’t really have that much of a problem with them. Charlie did, though. He had a thing about chickens.”
“Chickens?” She wiped her hands on the dish-towel and hung it on the rack. “What’s scary about chickens?”
“My great-uncle, Nana’s brother, had a henhouse. To keep me from stealing the eggs, he said the hens would peck me to death if I got near them. At first, I didn’t believe it. I was ten and thought I was pretty hot stuff. But I wasn’t taking any chances. I paid Charlie to go in to see if they’d attack him. He was five and you could get him to do anything if you gave him a penny.”
“You used your little brother as bait?”
“In those days, I thought that’s all they were good for. But the plan backfired. One of the hens flew near his face and scared him. He fell down and started screaming bloody murder and sent all the birds into a panic. When Nana Sipsey found out what I’d done, she took a switch to my backside and blistered it good. And she blistered Charlie’s because he was gullible enough to listen to me.”
“You’re too funny.”
“He still hasn’t forgiven me. He had bad dreams for years about killer chickens.”
“I don’t blame him.”
He got a bag of coffee out of the refrigerator and started to measure some into the drip machine on the counter.
“Can I interest you in a cup?” he asked.
“No, none for me. I should be going anyway and let you get back to work.”
“Don’t rush off. Talk to me while this brews.”
“Okay, for a few minutes.”
She took a stool at the island separating the kitchen from the den. When Ryan remained standing on the other side, she said a silent prayer of thanks. Her body was doing crazy things tonight, reacting to his smell, his voice. The farther away he stayed, the better.
The dark-green shirt seemed tailor-made to fit his broad shoulders. The tan corduroys showed off his flat stomach and narrow hips.
Had he dressed up for her? The thought made her a bit breathless.
“What will we work on tomorrow?” she asked, trying to keep her mind—and gaze—directed toward something safer than Ryan Whitepath’s splendid body. “What mosaics are priority?”
“The tile repairs for a mosque ceiling in California. Very detailed. Very old. The new pieces have to be aged to match perfectly or they’ll stand out.”
“Sounds interesting. And what’s the community center project you said I could help you with?”
“We’ll run over there sometime tomorrow and you can see where it’s going. I’ve completed the majority of the panels, but there’s still a couple more, plus grouting. If Helen doesn’t screw me up with her delivery, we should have that finished in time for the Christmas opening.”
“What’s Helen got to do with it?”
“The mural has caricatures of the people of Sitting Dog. I want to include the baby in a pink or blue blanket, but Helen doesn’t want to know the sex until it’s born.”
“Neither would I.”
“Bass is also reluctant to put up an image representative of the baby before its birth. He’s afraid we’d be asking for trouble.”
“That’s a bit odd, isn’t it?”
“What can I say?” Ryan grinned. “He’s superstitious.”
“Are you the same way?”
“Yeah, I guess I am to some extent. I’ve been brought up to believe in good spirits and bad ones and not to tempt the bad ones.”
“Angels and demons?”
“You could call them that. My mother is Christian but my grandmother, although she goes to church with us, holds fast to the old ways of our tribe. They brought me up to be open to the beliefs of each and my faith is an amalgamation of what they’ve both taught me. I believe in what some call God, but I know Him by another name. My understanding of creation, temptation, the flood, paradise…probably isn’t very different from yours, only it has a Tsalagi twist to it.”
“I suppose my faith is all that kept me going during my mother’s illness, but I have to admit it also wavered at times. I found it difficult to understand why her. I guess everyone who’s ever had a relative die feels like that. Life isn’t fair. Death has no rules.”
“Some things are beyond our ability to comprehend. Carla was only twenty-nine when she died and she’d been a fanatic about taking care of herself. Exercised every day. Ate right. Her job was stressful, I guess, but in a good way. She loved it. She was the last person I’d ever have imagined would die from disease.”
“What kind of work did she do?”
“She was in acquisitions and appraisals for Christie’s London auction house. Her specialty was Art Deco jewelry.”
“What a great job. She must’ve been very smart.”
“She was. And a nice person. We just weren’t right for each other.”
“I know how that is. I’ve had experience with it myself. How did you meet her?”
“On the way home after finishing my graduate work, I stopped in London to catch an auction of Impressionist paintings, not that I could afford any of them, but some hadn’t been available for public viewing in decades. Carla offered to show me around the city and I ended up extending my stay by two weeks. I’d been home a month when she called and said she was pregnant.”
The coffee stopped dripping. He poured himself a cup. “I guess you’ve been wondering why Nia lives with me.”
“Well…yes, but it’s not that unusual these days for a father to raise a child.”
“Carla didn’t want children. She’d worked hard to establish herself in a tough field. Luckily for me, she was willing to sign over full custody.”
“Did Nia visit?”
“Once a year. They weren’t close, though. Carla really never had time for her and Nia sensed it, but she still feels a loss now that her mother’s gone.”
“Nia must take after her mother in appearance.”
“Yeah, Carla wasn’t what you’d call beautiful, but she was an attractive woman and Nia resembles her. I see it more and more every day. She inherited her mother’s light skin and brown eyes.”
He looked toward the doorway and cocked his head, listening.
She turned around and looked, too, but didn’t see anything. “Something wrong?” she asked.
“I thought I heard Nia.” They were both quiet for a moment. “Probably my imagination but let me go check on her. Be right back.”
He returned a minute later, saying she was still asleep.
Susannah glanced at her watch. Eight-thirty. “I should go. If you don’t get back to work, you’ll be up too late, and I don’t want a crabby boss tomorrow.”
“Me, crabby?” he teased. “Never.” He put down his cup. “I’ll walk you to the door.”
They reached it, and she felt awkward saying good-night. Her attraction to him had caught her by surprise.
“Thanks for dinner. I enjoyed it.”
“Me, too, Susannah. Thanks for coming.”
He helped her put on her jacket. The collar got turned under and he straightened it, his fingers lingering a bit longer than necessary. His touch, even through the heavy fabric, had the same effect as if he’d caressed her bare skin. She had to force herself to be still and not jump away.
“See you in the morning,” she said.
“Lock your doors. And remember what I said about the trash.”
“I will.”
He watched until she went inside the back door of the cabin. She waved, indicating she was safe, and then did what he’d said and bolted everything up tight.
As she crawled into bed later, she admitted that he was right. Danger existed for her here—but not from nocturnal animals. Ryan Whitepath was interesting and sexy. His daughter took first prize as the most adorable kid on the planet.
“Damn,” she said out loud with a groan. What the hell had she gotten herself into?