Chapter Sixteen

“You’re late.”

Katie blew the hair out of her eyes as she rounded the corner of Gloria Burns’s mansion Saturday afternoon. They’d been lucky with the weather today. September temperatures could run anywhere from midsummer highs to early-winter lows. After yesterday’s rain, it was sunny but not too hot.

Dozens of people milled around the gigantic backyard that overlooked Lake Margaret. A huge dining tent covered one side of the lawn, and she could see the caterers scurrying around. Carter approached as if he’d been looking for her, as if he was angry that he’d had to wait for her to join the party.

He knew she hated being late.

“I was working,” she snapped. The photo shoot with Gloria’s extended family had been a lot of fun. It had taken more time to corral the different groups than actually taking the pictures. And her mind may not have been completely on the job at all times.

“The party started half an hour ago. Where have you been?”

Katie bristled. Was he serious, or had he decided to have the blowout right here and now? She’d wanted to put it off until they could explain to Worthington about Jasmine, but if that’s what he wanted… Several people sent them curious glances when Carter’s voice rose. She glared at him. “I’ve been working since noon. Give me a break.”

“You should have organized your time better. You wouldn’t be running around all crazy if you’d planned ahead.”

She stumbled in the grass at the harsh tone of his voice. Guess they were doing this now. She lifted her chin, not allowing him to see the pain his sharp words caused. “You should talk. You work all the time. I never even know where you’re going to be.”

“You knew I was going to be right here.”

Katie rolled her eyes dramatically. “Today, yeah. And you knew I was working, so you don’t need to be giving me a hard time.” She looked him up and down. “And what are you wearing? You couldn’t dress up for a party?”

Carter crossed his arms over his chest. He looked wonderful in his short-sleeved, button-down shirt, the slate blue contrasting well with his khaki slacks. “You told me it was casual and then look at you, all dressed up. What’s up with that?”

Katie fought a laugh. She was wearing a dress she’d had for years with flat shoes, the better to walk in the grass with. Carter had seen her in them both often. She guessed it was better to fight about things that didn’t matter in front of a crowd.

He grabbed her hand and tugged. “Well, come on then. Mom and Pop have been asking about you.”

She almost stumbled again with the sensation of her hand in his. She would miss it. Miss him. Even if they managed to remain friends, there wouldn’t be any more of those intimate touches. Katie hated the thought of fighting with Carter in front of his family. Hated fighting with him at all. All she had to do was get through today. Then she could retreat to her house and nurse her broken heart. But Carter lived right next door. How could she handle seeing him every day? So close, but out of reach. Maybe she’d have to move.

She yanked her hand out of his. “I can walk by myself. I don’t need your help.”

He huffed but studied her carefully. “You’ve made that quite clear.”

Katie wished she still had her camera. She’d hide behind it, from Carter, from his family, from the other guests. But her camera was locked up in the trunk of her car and she wasn’t going to hide. She held out her hand to the scariest person there. “Let’s go find your folks.”

Carter pulled her in close, wrapped his arm around her waist. He leaned in, his breath tickling her neck. “How did the photo shoot go?” he whispered.

Her stupid eyes teared up when she heard his gentle question. He didn’t hate her. She couldn’t bear it if he hated her. She hoped he’d realized she was right to set him free and not hold her decision against her. “Great. Lots of fun.” She glanced around. “Have you see Worthington yet?”

“Not yet. And I haven’t gotten an angry phone call from him so far.”

“Good.”

He kissed her cheek. “You sure you want to break up?” he whispered.

They stopped at the edge of the wide patio that ran nearly the length of the house. Katie scanned the crowd, looking for Carter’s parents. Like at the Labor Day picnic, kids raced across the lawn, weaving in and out of groups of adults holding glasses and conversations. “We have to.”

“Can’t we work it out?” They stood, shoulders touching, and watched the kids play.

“There’s no working this out.” She could almost feel the longing radiating from him as his gaze followed the children. She nodded to three young boys tumbling in the grass. “That’s why we have to break up.”

“Children.” Carter’s tone was flat, resigned.

“You want kids.” Bitterness escaped through gritted teeth. “More Colburns to carry on the family business.”

If she hadn’t overheard his conversation with Jasmine, would he have sprung his desire for children on her sometime later, after they’d committed to each other? Or would he actually have denied himself in order to make her happy? She didn’t want him sacrificing anything for her, and she’d live in fear of the resentment that would be sure to come later.

“Is there something wrong with wanting a child of my own?”

“Of course not.” Up until now, they’d managed to keep their voices down, but Katie raised hers as she swept her arm in front of him. “I’m sure there are plenty of young women out there who’d be happy to give you lots of babies.”

Carter studied her as if he was trying to decide whether or not this was part of the playacting. He clenched his jaw. “This isn’t the time to discuss this.”

“It will never be the time.” Didn’t he know that? Didn’t he know her?

Dark disappointment shadowed his face. “I never thought you’d be this selfish.”

She shared his frustration. And his anger. “I guess we’re both selfish then.”

Katie turned and stalked away. He didn’t call her back.

…

Carter watched the woman he loved leave him. People glanced at him side-eyed, keeping their distance. Well, if nothing else, they’d succeeded in convincing the gossip mongers that they were breaking up. He knew they were supposed to pretend to be together for one more day, but Worthington would either accept his explanation or not. Better to get it over now.

He’d paced for nearly an hour before she showed up, and when Carter saw Katie in that little blue-and-white dress, looking so pretty and out of reach, all his frustrations rushed to the surface. The words to start the argument popped out of his mouth. Was it possible they’d reached an irreconcilable impasse?

He tried to remember all that was said. The other day and now. Selfish? How could she call him selfish?

Laughter rang out, and Carter couldn’t stand to listen to it. Right now all he wanted was to get the hell out of there. He’d find Worthington and explain about Jasmine. Then he’d wish Gloria a happy birthday and leave.

He ran into Sean first.

“What’s going on?” Sean pulled Carter under a large maple that had already started to change from green to gold. “I hate you and Mom fighting.”

“We can’t seem to help ourselves lately.” They used to talk about everything but rarely fought about anything. He’d lost his best friend as well as the woman he loved.

“Is it because I came back home?”

Carter blinked. He had to focus on Sean and what he was saying. “What? No. Nothing at all to do with that.” He put his arm around Sean’s shoulders. “I’m glad to see you. I know your Mom is, too. She just—we both worry about the school thing.”

“I know. I think I’ve finally it figured out.”

“Good.”

When he didn’t volunteer any more information, Carter decided not to push it. Sean would tell them when he was ready.

They stood side by side and took in the view. “You brought me over to this place once when I was little, didn’t you? I remember seeing the lighthouse across the lake from up here. I think it was another party. I remember lots of balloons and toys.”

Carter chuckled, was surprised he still could. “It was one of Gloria’s grandson’s birthday parties. Or maybe a great-grandson. I can’t remember. Your mom had to work, so she couldn’t take you.”

Sean nodded and was quiet for a moment. “You did that a lot. Took me places when Mom couldn’t. Or stayed with me when she was working.”

He shrugged. “I loved spending time with you. Still do. She worked hard to build a good life for you. I was happy to help whenever I could.” Selfish? Katie didn’t have a selfish bone in her body.

“You spent a lot of time with us when she wasn’t working, too.” Sean looked over the lake as he continued to speak. “Like when the three of us went to the beach together in the summer or sledding in the winter, and…and I used to pretend we were a real family. I used to pretend you were my dad.”

Carter swallowed to get rid of the lump in his throat.

“I remember when you taught me to ride my bike, and Mom was biting her nails on the front steps. She kept crying out for me to be careful, and you kept telling me to try it again. Kept telling me I could do it. And I did it. Because you were there for me.” Sean chuckled softly. “I probably still wouldn’t ride a bike if Mom had tried to teach me.”

As strong as Katie was, she could be a softie, too. “It was tough on your mom to raise you all by herself.”

“But she didn’t raise me all by herself.” Sean turned to face Carter then, looking so much like the man he’d soon become. “You were there. You raised me, too.”

In that moment, Carter felt a heavy load of guilt lifted from his shoulders. He had raised Sean for all those years, but he’d always felt as if he was merely a stand-in for his father. But today, Carter could let go of the guilt. He had really been Sean’s dad all along.

“I’m sorry I got all mad when I found out you and Mom were dating. I was gobsmacked, but now that I’ve had time to think about it, I think it’s great. Kind of inevitable, really. You and Mom are perfect for each other.” Sean threw his arms around Carter in a bear hug he’d rarely given him since he reached his teens. “I love you, Dad.”

Carter stiffened, surprised, but thrilled to hear Sean call him that. He hugged him back.

Sean cleared his throat and stepped away. “I used to call you Dad when I was little, remember?”

Carter had nearly forgotten, but he nodded.

“Mom finally explained to me that you weren’t my real dad. That my dad had died, and I had to call you Carter. It was hard because you’re the only dad I’ve ever known. I don’t want to lose you.”

“You’ll never lose me. You’re my Sean-man, no matter how old you get or how much I fight with your mom.”

“Don’t fight. No one’s happy when you’re fighting.”

So true. They had to get this over with. But before Carter could step away and look for Katie, Sean cleared his throat again.

“So I was going to tell you and Mom together, but I can tell her later. I’ve decided I’m going to go back to college, but I’m going to change my major to business management.”

“That sounds like a good choice.”

“I want to work for Colburn and Sons. I love it there. Do you think Sarah and Hannah are going to be working for the business when they get out of college?”

“Noah told me the girls aren’t interested. At least not now.”

“That’s what I thought. I figure in a few more years you older guys are going to want to retire, and you’re going to need someone who can step up and take care of the business. I want that to be me.”

There wasn’t much that brought tears to Carter’s eyes, but he pulled Sean close and let the tears fall. “We’ll be lucky to have you, son.”

…

They didn’t want the same things in life. It all came down to that.

Katie sat next to Pop and the other Colburns inside the gigantic tent, but she couldn’t concentrate on the conversation going on around her. Tables ringed the tent. There were dozens of other conversations going on. The tent was nearly bursting with Gloria Burns’s friends and family.

Carter hadn’t come after her. She hadn’t really expected him to. After their last argument, he had to realize that it wasn’t going to work long term between them. Hadn’t they known that all along? Why had they even tried to make it work?

“Katie?” The intensity in Ginny’s voice made Katie think that her name had been called more than once.

“Sorry. What?”

Ginny lifted her empty wineglass. “I’m going for a refill. Do you want me to get you one, too?”

Katie glanced at her empty glass. She didn’t even remember drinking it. “Yes. I definitely need more wine. Thanks.”

Sean slid a chair in between her and Pop. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and then turned to Pop. “I want to work at Colburn and Sons. I’m going to study business management at college so I can take over when all you guys get too old.”

Laughter broke out around the table. Katie felt a burst of pride. Her little boy had grown up. He was turning into an adult.

Pop frowned. “You think you can learn more from a fancy school than you can from me?”

“No offense, Pop, but there’s probably a lot of new info out there that you don’t know anything about.”

“There’s nothing I don’t know about running my own business.”

Sean shrugged. “But you’re never there anymore, so how could I learn?”

Ooh, her son was also very crafty.

Pop narrowed his eyes and studied Sean. “Okay, I’ll be there Monday morning. You be there at eight o’clock sharp and you’ll work hard, and I’ll teach you everything I know about the salvage business.”

“And pay me a full-time wage.”

“Full-time starting wage.”

“Deal.”

Pop held out his good hand, and he and Sean shook on it.

“So no more college?” Katie asked. No more empty nest? No more My Time?

“It’s early enough that most of the fees can be refunded, Mom. I’ve been checking out online courses I can take, too. And maybe I’ll want to go back after I learn all I can from Pop.” He looked more eager and excited than he had when he left for college. “And Brian, Jacob, and I were talking about renting an apartment together.”

Pride nearly burst out of Katie’s chest. “I guess you have it all figured out.”

“I tried to. I talked to Carter already, and he’s okay with it.”

Carter. For a few minutes, she’d forgotten about the way she left things with Carter. She glanced around and still didn’t see him anywhere. Had he left without saying goodbye?

Ginny came back with the wine. Her friend frowned as she handed Katie her glass. “Is everything okay? I heard you were fighting with Carter a little while ago.”

“What did that boy do now?” Pop snapped.

Word traveled fast. It was what she’d wanted, wasn’t it? “He didn’t do anything. We were having a disagreement, that’s all.”

“Nothing serious, I hope,” his mother said.

Katie shrugged. She didn’t want to be talking about it with his family. She was sorry things wouldn’t be the same between her and the Colburns after today. At least Sean would always have a place with them.

She was glad when Carter stepped into the tent. A few more angry words and it would be over.

“Colburn, I want a word with you!” Malcolm Worthington followed Carter into the tent. Evelyn was on his heels.

Katie jumped to her feet. She had to straighten things out with Malcolm before he did something rash. It wasn’t fair that Carter should lose the older man’s business because of their differences.

But Carter turned around and held up a hand to stop Worthington’s approach. “One moment, sir. I have to talk to Katie right away. If you want to fire me after that, fine. Katie and I have something to straighten out first.”

Conversations around them died.

Here we go.

Katie ignored the Colburns’ curious glances and rounded the table. She stepped out into the vacant area in the center of the tent that was going to be used for dancing later on. She knew she wouldn’t feel like dancing tonight. Carter met her in the center but stopped several feet away. It felt as if they were having their own showdown at the O.K. Corral.

“I have things to say to you,” Carter announced. “I want you to be quiet and listen.”

“Oh yeah. Well, I have things to say to you. Maybe I don’t want to be quiet.” Shit, they still didn’t know how to fight. Unless it was about things that were important enough to tear them apart forever.

“I don’t like taking second place to a purple notebook. That Katie list of yours is more important to you than I am.”

Whoa. Katie was shocked silent. That had come out of nowhere. “That’s ridiculous.” When she thought about the people and things that took priority in her life, her want-to-do list didn’t even hit the top three. In fact, for years now, Carter had been second only to Sean in her life.

He took a step closer. “Don’t call me ridiculous.”

This wasn’t the time for filtering the words that came out of her mouth. “I will when you say stupid things.”

She stepped closer, her fingers curled into fists. “How can you not know how much you mean to me? More than any dumb list.”

“But it isn’t dumb, is it? Your Katie list? You’ve been waiting for years to live. You’ve been saving up that me time for when you finally had the chance to do everything you’ve ever wanted to.”

“What about you? You’ve been waiting for a long time to have a family.”

He raised his voice. “That was my choice, wasn’t it?”

Her voice grew louder, too. “Well, putting things off was my choice, too.”

Carter spread his arms wide. “Katie Kat, I don’t want to fight with you.”

He’d stirred her up, and she wasn’t backing down now. She took another step closer to him. “I won’t prevent you from having the family you’ve always dreamed of.”

“Well, I don’t want to tie you down when you have so many things you want to accomplish,” he shouted back.

She propped her hands on her hips. “Just because I want ‘me time’ doesn’t mean I want to do everything alone.”

“And I already have all the family I want—you and Sean.” He lowered his voice then. “I’ve had the two of you for years, but I was just too stupid to see it.”

Talk about a breathtaking feeling. Katie pressed her hand to her chest to keep all those feelings in. His intense expression told her he was completely serious, but she still had to ask, “Really? We’re enough for you?”

“You two are everything to me.”

She saw a beaming Sean hovering at the edge of the crowd that had gathered around them. “I’m gobsmacked!” he shouted.

Katie smiled through her tears at Carter. “See, I was right. You are stupid.”

“God, I’m in love with you.”

Laughter bubbled up. “I’m in love with you, too.”

Katie threw herself into his arms. Applause rang out around them. Flashes lit up the interior of the tent.

“Photos will be posted to the village page as we speak.” Carter’s breath was warm on her neck, his arms snug around her. “I love you, Katie Kat.”

She laughed into the crook of his neck. “I love you, too.”

Murmurs buzzed around them. Katie reluctantly lifted her head. “There’s at least a gazillion people all around, staring at us.”

Carter brushed his lips over hers. “Mm-hmm.”

“I suppose we have to talk to them now.”

“That’s what you get when you want a showdown in front of a crowd.”

They slowly released each other, and Katie looked around for Sean. Carter waved him over, and they had a quick group hug.

Worthington strode over, as if he was the first person they’d want to see, but all he did was shake Carter’s hand, give Katie a quick hug, and walk away. The crowd parted for Gloria to approach, cane in hand. She stopped in front of them and shook her cane.

“Upstaging my birthday?” Then Gloria smiled. “Thank goodness. It’s so boring to hear nothing but ‘happy birthday’ for hours. I’m so glad the two of you worked things out. Have I ever told you that you’re two of my favorite people?”

“Once or twice,” Katie said. Carter’s family swarmed around them, and they celebrated more than Gloria’s birthday that night. And Katie danced up a storm.

Sean went out with his friends after the party, and Katie went home with Carter. So much had happened in the past few hours that it was difficult to process it all. They lay in bed after celebratory sex, and Carter asked, “Do you think I’m ever going to get to see that list of yours?”

“I don’t know. A woman’s list is a personal thing.”

“How will I know if there’s anything in that notebook I could help you with?”

She nipped his shoulder where her head was resting. “You already helped me with my mojo problem.”

“Helping you was no problem.”

Katie chuckled and snuggled closer. “You took me out to a candlelit dinner, and you went with me when I got my tattoo. Actually, there’s a lot of the things on that list I could do with you. Although you may not be too thrilled with the mani-pedi.”

Carter cleared his throat. “I’ll let you handle that on your own.”

“There is one thing on the list I’m really looking forward to.”

“What’s that?”

“I want to swim in the ocean.”

He pulled her over so she was lying on top of him and they were face-to-face. “Sounds like the perfect thing to do on our honeymoon.”

Katie thought about pulling away, but his arms tightened around her, and besides, she liked being on top. “Is that your clumsy way of asking me to marry you? Because I distinctly remember telling you that getting married again was not on my list.”

“Come on. The only thing that would be different from the way we’ve been living all along is that we get to sleep together every night without shocking our son.”

Our son. Katie dropped a kiss on that wonderful man’s lips. Marriage to Carter didn’t feel so scary. He would never expect her to cater to him. He’d be beside her all the way. “True. I suppose your clients would rather have a steadily married attorney.”

“If my clients care about whether I’m married or not, they can take their business someplace else. But this attorney would rather be steadily married to his sexy and stubborn, warm and creative best friend.”

Katie kissed Carter again, looking forward to checking many more items off her list and living her life to the fullest with her best friend. “Well…as long as I get to swim in the ocean…with you.”