Secrets, p.22
Secrets, page 22
He buried his head in his hands. “I feel like I’ve failed you.”
Tori was shocked to hear his words. “What do you mean?”
“When I talked you into running away, I had big dreams for us. I wanted to give you everything you never had. A big house. A nice car.”
“We have a nice house and a big car,” Tori said, with a slight bit of humor.
He snickered. “That wasn’t exactly my plan.”
“I think that’s where we zigged when we should have zagged. We never had a plan. We were flying by the seat of our pants for years. Then when we got comfortable, we became complacent.”
“I still love you with all my heart. I honestly do.” His eyes were welling up with tears. Tori couldn’t remember the last time she had seen him express himself this way. “I know I’ve been a prig at times, but I’m just mad at myself. I should have done a better job providing for you.”
“That’s not what I wanted. I can provide for myself just fine.”
“Exactly,” he muttered.
“What I wanted was a partner. Someone to share my life with, not just a roof over my head. We never talk. We never do anything together.” She sighed. And then she realized that they were having the conversation her boss encouraged her to have. “We’ve made love maybe once or twice in the past eight months.” She was sure it was at least once.
“I thought you didn’t want me, and you were disappointed in me.”
“It’s the opposite. I want to share time with you. I want us to be together more. Look, I know you like hanging out with your friends, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have some quality time together.”
He looked up at her, wiping the tears with his sleeve. “Wow. We should have had this talk a long time ago.”
“I know, and I blame myself. I’ve always avoided confrontation. I thought if I brought up anything that you didn’t like, we would get into an argument. I guess I was hoping for magic thinking.” She used the term George Layton introduced to her during the conversation she had had with him.
“Huh. ‘Magic thinking.’ Yeah, that probably doesn’t work very much, eh?” He finally smiled. “So.” He paused. “Do you think there is a chance for us now?” He took her hand and looked into her eyes, pleading for her acceptance.
Tori almost fell off her chair. “Honestly? I would like to think there is, but I don’t really know.”
“Do you still love me?” His eyes were pleading.
“I’ve always loved you. The you I ran away with. This guy”—she pointed at him—“I’m not sure I know him very well.”
“I guess I got a little too macho from the job.” He nodded. “Then, when you got the job at the law firm and were making the same money as me, I really felt intimidated. I guess I’ve been acting out. And not in a good way.”
She held her breath, and asked, “Would you consider us going to couples counseling?”
“Really?” He blinked several times but seemed genuinely interested.
“Really. And we can keep it to ourselves. No reason to broadcast it to any of our colleagues or friends. Not that I have many.”
“I kinda blame myself for that, too.” He truly looked forlorn. “I expected you to be the dutiful wife while I was being a half-assed husband. It’s as if I had you in a cage.”
“Something like that.” Tori was happy the conversation was going in an unexpected direction. “I met some nice people today at the workshop. I discovered I like creative and artsy people.”
“Wow. You deserve so much more than I’ve given you.”
“Listen, I can only blame myself for keeping my thoughts and wishes from you.”
“Honey, I really mean it. I want to have a life with you. A life where we both feel secure.”
“OK. Who are you?” Tori grinned. “What have you done with my husband?”
“He’s in here somewhere.” He pointed to his chest. “Can we start over? Please? I really don’t know what I’d do without you in my life.”
“I’m willing to try if you are.” She lifted his chin and looked him straight in the eye. “Besides, we are having a baby. The child will need a father figure in its life.”
His head jerked back. “We are what?”
“Yes, you heard me. I’m pregnant. Imagine. At my age.”
“You’re still young. A lot of women have babies at thirty-eight now.”
“So I’ve been told.” She pulled her chair closer. “This is a big deal.”
“You ain’t kidding.” He put his arms around her. “I am so sorry you’ve been unhappy. I promise I’ll do better, and we will keep our family together.”
Family. Tori thought about her abandoned family and was overjoyed she wouldn’t be abandoning another one.
He rested his head on her chest. Tori stroked his hair, and said, “We’ll both do better. I promise I will never keep any secrets from you ever again,” except for the psychic she was still planning on seeing. Tori wanted to get her take on it before she succumbed to a false sense of security. That had happened once. Not again.
* * *
The next morning, Luna woke up in the afterglow from the night before. She quickly replayed the night in her head. Had it really happened? Could it have been a dream? No, it was real. She pinched herself just to make sure. She and Gaines had made love for the first time. The passion they unleashed could have brought the power grid back to life, yet it was warm, sweet, and tender at the same time. They were enveloped in the sweet desire that had been kindling for a long time.
It started as slow dance building to a crescendo in a well-choreographed tango. It was the stuff movies were made of. She smiled, thinking about the scene in an old film with Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. It was To Catch a Thief, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. In typical Hitchcock form, he left a lot to one’s imagination. As Cary Grant kissed Grace Kelly, the camera zoomed in on fireworks against the Parisian sky.
She rubbed her neck. Two people sleeping on the sofa was romantic, but not necessarily good for the posture. She stretched and looked around. She could smell the aroma of good coffee. She pulled on Gaines’s soft comfortable shirt and walked into the kitchen. He was wearing a T-shirt and jogging pants. “Good morning, sunshine,” he said over his shoulder.
“Good morning.” She resisted the temptation of rubbing her eyes. Sleeping with contact lenses is never a good idea. She blinked several times, urging her tear ducts to snap to it. “Coffee smells good.”
“Someone who owns a café encouraged me to buy one of these newfangled machines.” He nodded to the Ne-spresso coffeemaker.
“She must be a genius,” Luna cracked wise.
“I would have to agree.” He leaned over to give her a kiss, which she was more than happy to accept.
“How did you sleep?”
“I’m not sure if I did.” She stood behind him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and rested her head on his back. “When did the power come back on?”
“About an hour ago.”
“I must have been sleeping because I don’t remember hearing anything.”
“You were out like a light. Ha. No pun intended.”
“We seem to do that a lot, don’t we?” Luna observed, and let go of her affectionate death grip.
“We do. So, what would you like for breakfast? Bacon and eggs? Scones? Croissants?”
“I’ll start with coffee for now.” She took the cup from him and sat at the dining-room table. She looked at what she was wearing. His shirt. So much for the $500 she had spent on silk pajamas. She peered through the two-by-fours. “What’s on your agenda today?”
“Whatever you want.” Gaines brought his coffee into the dining area.
“I didn’t want to monopolize your day.” Luna was testing him.
“You are here. You are my guest. You have my undivided attention.”
“I appreciate that muchly.” And she did.
“Do you think we could spend a little time talking over my project?”
“You mean the mystery trunk?”
“I do.”
“Absolutely. By the way, you can stay as long as you want. If you want to go back tomorrow, that’s OK with me. I don’t have to be in until ten.”
Luna thought about it for a quick minute. “I need to get back.” She really didn’t, but she also didn’t want to overstay her welcome. They had finally reached a new level of intimacy, and she wanted to keep him wanting more. She remembered her mother’s favorite expression, “Don’t make yourself too available. Keep them chasing you until you’re ready to catch them.” As much as she wanted to spend more time with him, she didn’t want to come off as clingy. So many women do that after they cross the line of a sexual encounter. Especially if it was mind-blowing sex. Which it had been.
“Like I said, whatever you need to do.” He kissed the top of her head and took a seat across from her. It was as if this was something they did often.
Her tote bag was on the mismatched chair next to her. She immediately went into recounting her meeting with the woman named Tori. She described the rough sketches, too. “Wish I had brought them with me, but I do have this.” She put on the pair of latex gloves she carried and took the diary out of the plastic bag, followed by the note.
“How was her body language?” Gaines asked.
“She was nervous. Kept twisting her napkin. But she seemed sweet. Kinda innocent but troubled. There was a sadness about her. Something in her past is haunting her, and she has a lot to think about for her future.”
“About how old?”
“Late thirties I’d say.”
“When are you going to see her next?”
“Within the next two weeks.”
“I can hear your wheels turning,” Gaines teased her.
“Yeah. Yeah.” Luna smiled up at him. “But I would bet there is a link here. Somewhere.” She opened the diary, got up, and walked behind him. Leaning over his shoulder, she continued, “There are very few entries, but there’s a similarity in the scrawl.” Luna then went on to explain how she had tracked down the carnival company and narrowed down the time frame. “Ellie and I are going to go to the library this week and check the newspaper archives for fires that took place back then.”
“You are becoming quite the detective.” Gaines squinted at the note and the diary. “It’s really hard to tell. The R and the T look similar, but the diary is signed with a V. And the note is signed by someone named Tori.”
“Yeah, that’s one thing that is throwing me off.”
Gaines was reading her mind again. “Do you want me to recommend a handwriting analyst?”
“How did you know?” she asked coyly.
“I wouldn’t expect any less from you.” He grinned. “I have a guy in the office who does this for us. I’ll make a copy of both the page and the note.”
“Really?”
“For you? Absolutely. Besides, I know you won’t stop until you put it all together. I’m just trying to save you some time.” He gave her a wide grin. “And me as well.” He chuckled.
“You are the best!” Luna threw her arms around his shoulders and kissed him on the cheek.
“So, what are we having for breakfast?” he asked.
“Something easy. Scones?”
“You got it. We’ll grab some lunch later and take it to Freedom Park. How does that sound?”
“Sounds perfect, but it will have to do.” Luna was over the moon, and Gaines seemed to be traveling at the same speed of light.
Chapter Fifteen
The weekend wrap-up
On her drive back to Asheville, Luna called Chi-Chi, using her Bluetooth. In unison, they asked, “So? How did it go?” Both laughed out loud.
“You go first,” Luna encouraged Chi-Chi. “You created quite a stir.”
“I can’t really say.” Chi-Chi was hoping Luna would understand that she couldn’t discuss anything at the moment.
“Nosy brother?” Luna chirped.
“Oh. That is not all.”
“Now you have to tell me. What?” Luna was hoping it would be about her brother.
“I will have to call you back.”
“Wait! You can’t leave me hanging.”
“I have to make coffee for my guests.”
“Cullen? Abeo? Speak, woman, speak!” Luna was practically shouting.
“I cannot say.” Chi-Chi was being cryptic, but she knew Luna would get it eventually.
“Is Cullen there?” Luna thought she was in a taffy pull.
“No,” Chi-Chi answered.
“So Cullen isn’t there but Abeo is and there is someone else?”
“That is correct,” Chi-Chi replied. “By the way, do you remember that show we always talk about?”
“Show?” Luna was scouring her brain.
“Yes, the friends that live together?”
“Friends?” Luna knew that wasn’t the correct answer. Then it came to her. “You mean The Golden Girls?”
“Yes, I believe that is the one.”
Luna let out a yelp. “Whoa!”
Chi-Chi had to pull the phone away from her ear.
“Yes, dear. I must get off the phone now.”
“No! Wait!” Luna protested.
“But I must,” Chi-Chi said.
“OK, but you will meet me at my house at six tonight. Understood?”
“Yes. I will see you later.” Chi-Chi clicked off the phone and returned to her houseguests. She was in a state of disbelief. Jennine had nailed her brother. Literally, as the saying goes.
Chi-Chi fought fervently to keep her cool. How could her brother, a guest of hers, bring a strange woman into her house? Strange. Yes, in two too many ways. Regardless of the culture, most men are the same. They cannot help themselves. It has to do with hormones. Chi-Chi tried to reconcile her brother’s behavior. She maintained a modicum of civility and offered Jennine coffee. Chi-Chi didn’t know how to move this situation along and out the door. She was dealing with Jennine. Jennine had no external radar. She was swirling in her own man-crazy tornado, displacing everything that came into her path. Again, Chi-Chi reminded herself that Jennine was not a bad person. She just had this over-the-top thing about men. Any man. Any age. Any height, weight, history, culture. She was her own stereotype. But as Luna would say, “As long as she is happy and not hurting anyone, better to have a happy crazy person than an angry crazy one.” Some consolation.
Finally, Chi-Chi had to step in. First deal with Jennine. Chi-Chi approached her in the kitchen. “Excuse me, Jennine. My brother and I must leave for church in thirty minutes. If you don’t mind, we need some time to get ready.”
Jennine might be a nymphomaniac, but she wasn’t dense. “Of course, sugar. I’ll get out of your way. Abeo? Thank you for a dazzling evening.” She blew him a kiss and addressed Chi-Chi. “See you ’round campus! Ta-ta.” She twirled her silk caftan and slithered out the door.
Abeo looked like he had just come out of a drug-induced coma and flopped on the sofa. Chi-Chi decided to accept it as something her brother engaged in. It wasn’t her problem, as long as Jennine didn’t become a fixture in her house. That’s when she decided to ask, “Abeo. How long will you be in town?”
“Sister, why do you ask?” he answered in a zombielike tone.
“Because you keep surprising me, and I would like to know how much longer I can anticipate disturbing behavior from my brother?” Chi-Chi folded her arms, waiting for an answer.
“I will be here two more days. Unless that is an issue for you?” he replied sheepishly.
“So you will be leaving on Tuesday?” Chi-Chi wanted it to be abundantly clear.
“That is correct, dear sister. Please accept my most sincere apologies for the discomfort I have brought upon you.”
“You have no idea.” Chi-Chi blew out a big burst of air. “That woman will never leave me alone now. Every day it will be, ‘How is your brother? Will he be coming back soon? Has he asked about me?’ It will be painful.”
“Oh, dear sister. Again, my most heartfelt apologies.”
“Tell me. How did you manage all of this? Or should I say, how did she manage all of this?” Chi-Chi folded her arms again, waiting for an answer.
“She plied me with alcohol.” Abeo shook his head.
“You hardly drink.”
“That is the problem.” He kept shaking his head. “The champagne was delicious and she kept refilling my glass. Before I knew it, I was getting tipsy. I did not want to drive. She offered.”
“And then she didn’t leave!” Chi-Chi was beside herself.
“Do not worry. Nothing happened.”
“I find that hard to believe.” Chi-Chi was standing over him now.
“It is the truth, dear sister. I passed out.”
“Thank goodness for small favors. Although that might mean she will want to take another shot at you.”
Now it was Chi-Chi’s turn to shake her head.
“Do you really think so?” Abeo tried to play innocent.
“I know so.” Chi-Chi sighed.
“I do not plan to come back for several months. Maybe she will forget.” Abeo attempted a smile.
“I doubt it,” Chi-Chi replied. “Come on. You need to go to church.” Chi-Chi hauled Abeo off the sofa and shoved him toward her guest room. “And please replace the sheets before you leave on Tuesday.”
“But I told you nothing happened.” Abeo was insistent.
“All the same. You will be doing laundry before you go.” She tapped his foot with her shoe. “Now clean yourself up and get ready for church,” Chi-Chi barked at him.
“Church?” Abeo’s eyes went wide.
“Church. If anyone needs it today, it is you.”
* * *
Luna pulled into Cullen’s driveway around five. She could hear Wiley yapping. “Mommy’s home!” Luna called out.
Cullen greeted her at the door. He looked like the cat who ate the canary. Or was that her own expression on her face?
“Well? So?” Both were sputtering.
“You go first.” Luna squatted to give Wiley a big hug.
“Well, you know part of it.”
“Yeah. And thanks a pantload for scaring the hell out of me!” She gave him an affectionate punch in the arm.
