Band Room Bash (17 page)

Had I made a mistake when I married Max? Was I denying his children their true birthright just by being their mother? Or worse, had he been so desperate for his kids to have a mom that he settled for the first available woman who came along at church? Max and I had some problems in the past, but nothing like this. Our love and passion had been enough to overcome our differences, and I’d assumed we’d always have that. But now I wasn’t sure. I wondered if his recent secretiveness, combined with his lack of attention, was an indication that his decision to marry me had been nothing more than rebellion against his upbringing. I’d always had that fear in the back of my head. That he’d get over his initial attraction to me and be sorry we got married. Was that happening now?

Tears spilled down my face, spotting the shirt that stretched over my swollen tummy. I felt another twinge, and the baby kicked. I closed my eyes, praying in desperation.

Several minutes later, when I heard the distinctive purr of Max’s car pulling up to the barn, I wasn’t surprised. He knew me well enough to eventually figure out where I’d go. I sat up straight and waited.

Chapter Sixteen

The rumbles of Max’s voice and Daddy’s angry replies came up through the floorboards of the hayloft. During each lull in their argument, I expected to hear Max’s steps on the ladder, but then they would start all over. Gradually, though, I heard only murmurs.

When Max finally climbed up to the loft and appeared through the square entrance in the floor, I turned my face away from him.

He walked across the wood floorboards and stopped in front of me, looking down. “I’m sorry.”

A blanket apology. Was that supposed to make everything okay? I refused to meet his eyes, just stared at his feet, thinking how strange his shiny black shoes looked on the rough, dusty floor. I studied his laces in an effort to distract myself enough to avoid crying or losing my temper. I was in danger of both.

Max shifted from foot to foot, but I didn’t invite him to sit down. “Your father reamed me out.”

“Yeah, I heard.”

I wasn’t sure what to say next, and he must not have been either. The silence stretched into several minutes as I pulled pieces of hay from the bale under me, bent them in half, then crushed them and tossed them to the floor.

I couldn’t stand the silence any longer. “You should have told me everything. You don’t trust me.”

“That’s not true.”

“Then why couldn’t you tell me about any of this?” I asked through clenched teeth.

Max sat on a bale of hay next to mine, but he didn’t touch me. “I didn’t tell you about the housing development because we were still trying to figure out if it was feasible.”

“And you couldn’t talk to me about it?”

“I knew how you’d feel, and. . .” He paused and took a breath.

“And what?” I asked.

“I knew how you’d react.” He glanced at me and shrugged. “I didn’t want to fight about it until I knew there was a reason to fight. I’m sorry. I just wasn’t up to that.”

“You didn’t want to fight. . . . Am I that hard to get along with?”

“Honestly? Sometimes. Especially lately.” He shifted on the bale. “We’re both a little touchy right now.”

“What about Charlie and the boarding school? Were you afraid to tell me that, too?”

Max shrugged. “As far as I was concerned, that was a nonissue. The idea was Mother’s, and there was no way I was ever going to agree to it. I didn’t even think it was worth mentioning.”

“You should have told me anyway.”

He inhaled. “Yes, probably. But. . .”

“But you were worried about my reaction to that, too?”

“In a word, yes.”

I could add this to my recent list of failures. Not only was my husband holding back the truth from me because he was afraid I’d overreact, but my best friend wasn’t talking to me because I’d hurt her feelings with my big mouth. My mother thought I was a bad influence on the children. My mother-in-law agreed with that, too, which led, of course, to her implication that Tommy was a criminal. Not only that, but I wasn’t working on a Bible study I so obviously needed. I felt like the biggest loser in the whole world—and that made me even madder.

“And. . .there’s something else,” Max said.

I looked up at him, so angry I felt sick. “What else could there possibly be?”

He took a deep breath. “Well, Dad wants to partially retire. He wants to turn more of the business over to me.” Max glanced at his watch. “In fact, that’s what this board meeting is about. I have to leave pretty soon.”

That figured. Even now, in a crisis, business would come first. I knew I was being unfair, but I couldn’t help my thoughts, which only served to prove that Max’s comment about my irritability was right. “Well, can you spare sixty seconds to tell me why your dad wants to semiretire?”

Max ignored the sarcasm in my tone. “He had a scare not too long ago. He thought he had cancer.” Max paused and swallowed. “When the doctors said the tumor was benign, Dad decided it was time to start enjoying life.”

“The tumor?” I felt like the bottom of my world had fallen out, but anger surfaced again. “And you couldn’t tell me that, either? Something that bothered you so badly?”

Max spread his hands. “Dad didn’t want me to tell anyone. Not even Mother. She just found out, which is probably why she had that outburst in my office.”

For once in my life, as impossible as it seemed, I felt sorry for my mother-in-law. “So that’s where you get your secrecy from? Your father? What is this? Some sort of secret, manly Cunningham society, even though we agreed—no more secrets?”

Max blinked, and his eyes glinted bright green. “I don’t think it’s secrecy. I just don’t see the reason to address issues until it’s necessary.”

“As far as I’m concerned, they become issues as soon as you become aware of them.”

“Sorry, I don’t agree.” His lips snapped shut. He was as angry as I was.

“I’m your wife, Max.”

His cell phone rang. He sighed, pulled it from his belt, and looked at the screen. “That’s Dad.” He gave me a quick glance. “I need to get it.”

“You do that.” I stood to my feet.

He reached for my hand. “Trish.”

I backed away before he could touch me. The phone kept ringing.

He pushed the button. “Hey, Dad. Hang on. . . . No, I’m not on my way yet. . . . Yes, I know I’m supposed to be there shortly.” Max put his hand over the mouthpiece.

“You go on and talk,” I said.

Max looked like he was deliberating then held the phone to his ear again.

“It’s fine, Max.” My voice cracked. “I have some things to do at work. Besides, I can’t talk about this anymore.”

I whirled around and headed for the big open doors at the front of the barn. I heard the thud of Max’s heels behind me, along with his voice on the phone. I knew I shouldn’t walk away, but I was hurt and—once again—acting out my anger. I needed to get away from him before I said anything I’d regret.

“I’ll tell you what,” Shirl said as I stepped into the office. “You should have been here for that showdown between Mr. C. and Lady Angelica. It was better than a movie.”

“I’m glad I missed it.” I pulled some bills from the mail on the counter.

“You’ve been crying, haven’t you?” She looked me up and down. “I’d like to give that woman a piece of my mind, what with you being pregnant and all. What was she thinking? Are you sure you should be here?”

“Yes. I’m better off working, believe me. Besides, after lunch I need to drop some forms off at the school for Carla.”

Shirl turned and glared at her computer monitor. “I’m not so sure I’m better off being here. I’ve got one fine kettle of fish to deal with.” Her fingers tap-tap-tapped on the desk.

I didn’t want to know what was wrong. I couldn’t care less right now, as upset as I was with Max, but I debated whether I should ask Shirl what she meant. If I did, it could end up in a very long conversation in which I didn’t want to be involved. Like about her herb business. Still, if I didn’t ask, she’d corner me at some point anyway. Besides, she’d stuck up for me this morning.

“So what’s wrong?”

“Connie’s check is bouncing all over the place.”

Of all the things Shirl might have said, I wasn’t expecting that. “I’m surprised.”

“Ha. You shouldn’t be. It’s a habit, I’m afraid.” Shirl slapped her palm on the counter and glared up at me over her glasses. “She said it would never happen again, and I believed her. She’s been good for a while now.”

“You mean she’s bounced other checks?”

“Yes. And I’m not going to cut her any slack anymore. From now on, it’s all credit card payments or she’s out of here. I don’t care if she does rent all those units.” Shirl’s chin trembled with indignation.

Shirl’s loyalty to me, Max, and our business was the reason I loved having her work for us. She might be annoying, spinning off in so many directions I could hardly keep track, but she was like a guard dog when it came to our finances and the business. When I took time off after the baby was born, I knew Shirl would run things just fine.

“I know you’ll do the right thing.” I took some bills from the counter and began to walk to my office when Shirl’s voice stopped me.

“And to make things worse, that Coach Kent Smith got out on bail.”

My stomach flip-flopped. Did that mean we had a murderer loose in Four Oaks?

When I heaved my body through the front door of the high school, I headed directly for the office, carrying my folder of forms.

There I saw Sue, one of the school secretaries, eating a candy bar. I didn’t recognize the other secretary.

She looked up at me with a frown. “Yes?”

“I’m here to deliver these to Carla. Can I leave them with you?”

“No, that’s not a good idea.” Her nameplate said Twila. Carla’s unhappy secretary.

“How come?” I asked.

“It would be better if you delivered them to her in person. If you leave them with me, she’s going to be mad because I saw them first. Or something stupid like that.”

Things were bad. “Okay, where is she then?”

“She’s gone to see if the rumors are true that Coach Smith was here talking to some kids. She also chasing down Connie Gilbert, who got here a little while ago, and she also mumbled something about seeing Marvin in the band room. Carla has nothing good to say about Connie. They recently had a telephone yelling match. And Connie was here to chase down Marvin Slade to get the play’s costume list from him.” She paused for a deep breath. “He gave his notice today and was cleaning out his desk. Lucky him.”

Sue nodded and swallowed a bit of candy bar as she nervously glanced toward the hallway through the glass wall. “She’s upset because her fiancé died.”

“Connie’s fiancé?” I asked.

“No,” Sue said. “Carla’s.”

“What?” Way too many people were dying.

Twila jabbed a pen into the blotter on her desk. “To tell the truth, I was surprised she even had a fiancé. I mean, who would want her?”

“Don’t say that.” Sue took a nervous gulp from a can of soda.

“Whatever.” Twila sniffed. “This school is like some sort of Peyton Place. Georgia admiring the coach’s muscles in the gym, dating him a couple of times, then having nothing else to do with him. Marvin sniffing after that costume woman, although that’s better than last year when he dated most of the females working here. And Queen Carla mourning over Ronnie. I wonder if he even existed. No one ever met him.”

“You better be careful what you say.” Sue glanced around as though checking for secret cameras.

Twila exhaled with exasperation. “I don’t care anymore. It’s always all about her. Her life. Her fiancé. Her, her, her. She’s so possessive. I don’t even dare touch any of her stuff. My first day on the job, I took her coffee cup from her office and washed it out, and you’d have thought I’d committed the unpardonable. Really, Sue. You and I should just walk out.”

“I can’t afford to do that,” Sue whined. “I got kids and haven’t gotten an alimony check in months.”

Twila rolled her eyes.

“Well, she’s going on vacation, remember?” Sue said. “Like tomorrow or the next day. Sort of spur of the moment.”

“So, what do you guys think happened to Georgia?”

They turned and looked at me as if they’d forgotten I was there.

Sue’s eyes grew round. “I think she was poisoned. By Coach Smith. For dissing him.”