He wanted this—the house, the kids, the chaos. The phone rang and blended in with all the noise. He heard his brother-in-law, Ian, speaking to someone. Just as David was about to sit on the floor to put together one of Brandon’s toys, Ian waved him over.
“Phone is for you.”
“Me?” He couldn’t imagine who would call his sister’s house directly.
Ian’s mouth turned up at the corner. “It’s Kate.”
*
She heard all the noise in the background and wished she’d just left a message on his voice mail. No, she had to break out the list he gave her and call his sister’s house. Brilliant, just brilliant.
She’d heard another phone and David’s voice on the line. “I’ve got it, Ian. Thanks.
There was a click and a second of silence. “Kate?”
“Hi,” she said. “Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas.”
Now what? What should she say? Her heart was pounding and blood was rushing through her head. Don’t mess up, Kate, don’t mess up now.
“I’m glad you called,” he said. “But I thought you didn’t want to talk to me.”
“I didn’t think I did. But, um…” She drew a huge breath. Here goes, big jump. “I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you the other night. What happened with Chelsea? It wasn’t your fault, and I shouldn’t have blamed you. And I should have answered your texts, but I had to think and… and… I miss you, David. I miss you.”
She thought she heard a sigh of relief creep through the phone. “You shouldn’t be apologizing for anything. This is all on me. All of it. I should have told you everything.”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. But I’ll be home tomorrow, and we can sort it all out. God, Kate, I’m so sorry.”
“When is your flight? I can pick you up.”
“Flight comes in at five, but I have a car service coming.”
Disappointed, she nodded and squeezed her eyes shut. “Oh, okay.”
“I can be to your house by seven. Will that work?”
“That’s perfect,” she whispered. She couldn’t wait to see him, but it seemed only fair to warn him about the crowd. “My family’s here, including my parents.”
“I’d love to meet them.”
“Really?” Kate felt such relief, such happiness, that the worry and sadness of the last few days seemed very far away.
“Yeah. I’m so glad you called.”
Kate felt her eyes burn, as her feelings for him broke the surface. She’d promised herself she was never going to fall like this again, but she had, she was all in, and she didn’t care. Maybe it wouldn’t last, but Kate was tired of being afraid of everything. Fear had never been an option, and it wouldn’t be anymore.
“David, I…” There was so much to say, she didn’t know where to start. So she let the first thing that came into her head come out. “I don’t want to fight this anymore.”
“Thank God.”
Kate laughed softly. The words they’d exchanged had offered them a place to start and had given her a priceless gift.
“I left everyone at the dinner table,” Kate said. “I should go.”
“You won’t be sorry about this, I promise you that.”
“I know. Merry Christmas, David.”
“Merry Christmas, babe. I’ll be there soon.”
After hanging up the phone, Kate leaned back in her desk chair. She could see out the big window in her office to the pond at the edge of her yard. Her heart felt lighter, hopeful. In the chair that had been the location of so much of her crying over the past year, Kate spun herself around and smiled.
*
When she took her place at the dining room table, Trish’s husband, Greg, was serving ham. He stopped for a split second and over the top of his glasses, his eyes smiled. Kate was happy and he could see that. Trish, who was sitting to Kate’s left, leaned in.
“Well?” she asked.
“Stuck the landing.”
Trish grabbed her hand under the table and gave it a gentle squeeze before returning her attention to the dinner; Kate, however, found herself wishing the dining room chairs could spin.
Chapter 23
‡
Richard parked the Mercedes in the driveway behind Kate’s car and knew he was going to have company to deal with, specifically Kate’s family—the family that wanted his head on a platter. He didn’t consider he’d have to deal with them. He’d come to see Laura and try to finesse Kate a little, maybe mend some fences. He’d cut his ski vacation short and told Marie exactly where he was going.
She wasn’t happy and wanted to come with him, feeling she had as much right to see Laura as he did. That lasted about thirty seconds. Their plan to move Laura out completely backfired because of her screw-up, and he was going to limit their contact as much as possible.
He thought about going in the side door, like he always did when he lived there, but decided to honor the formality of their situation and made his way around the front of the house to the porch. He braced himself and rang the bell.
He heard very rapid footsteps that he guessed were Kate’s. She started speaking as she pulled on the door.
“You’re early! I’m so happy to see—”
She stopped talking as soon as she saw him standing there and her face which had been excited, dropped.
“Richard. What are you doing here?”
“Merry Christmas, Kate. I was hoping to visit Laura, and you, of course, especially since you’re happy to see me.” He smiled, hoping it would ease the tension in her stance, but she didn’t budge.
“Happy to see you? No. You’re supposed to be skiing in Vermont.”
“We came home early. I missed Laura, and I wanted to see how you were doing. You gave everyone a scare.”
“Is that so?” Kate leaned against the door jamb, and her expression was anything but welcoming. She looked gorgeous, though. She was wearing a soft pink sweater with a plunging neckline and her breasts swelled when she folded her arms. He told himself it was because of the cold, but she was also taking a defensive stance. The sexy cleavage was a nice side effect.
It was still civil until he heard Trish’s shrill voice come from the far side of the foyer. “I knew I smelled something.” Trish approached and stood next to her sister. They were a formidable pair, to say the least. “How are you, Richard?”
“Always a pleasure, Trish. Turn anyone to stone today?” He shifted his position and folded his hands in front of him.
Kate rolled her eyes as the two of them readied for another jab. “Richard, this isn’t a good time.”
“Ladies, I understand you may not care for me. However, I would like to see Laura. It’ll be a short visit.”
It was then that he noticed Kate’s eyes locked on the headlights coming up the driveway. The large SUV parked, and a soft smile teased her lips. Richard hadn’t seen the bloom that came into her cheeks since she was eighteen.
The temperature went up by degrees. Kate kept her wits about herself enough to look at Trish and ask her to get Laura from her room.
She barely acknowledged Richard as the occupant of the truck emerged. “Visit with her in the library,” was the last thing she said to him.
Richard watched his ex-wife walk past him, off the stoop, and down the walk. She stopped, wrapped her arms around her, this time to ward off the chill, and waited. The look on her face was pure adoration. It made Richard sick, because she’d never looked at him that way.
As the man moved toward her, Richard thought he looked familiar. He was big, dark-haired, and young. Approaching Kate, he placed a bag, which looked to be filled with gifts, on the walk. Then he reached for her and Kate walked into his arms.
It was enough. Richard didn’t need to see anymore.