“Sorry to crash the party,” Howard said. “But I haven’t seen nearly enough of our girl during this visit. I was afraid she’d get out of town before we had a chance to spend any time together.”
“Well, if I have my way, she’ll come home for good,” Mary Vaughn said.
“Mom, you know I don’t want to live here,” Rory Sue said with disdain, then regarded her grandfather apologetically. “No offense. I know this town means the world to you, but it’s boring.”
“That depends on what kind of excitement you’re looking for,” Howard said.
“I agree,” Mary Vaughn said. Her agreeing with anything Howard said was rare enough that both he and Rory Sue stared at her. She decided to stick with her plan.
Regarding her daughter with an unyielding expression, she asked, “Tell me this, have you found a job yet?”
“I’ve only been out of college a couple of weeks,” Rory Sue said airily. “Give me a break.”
“Actually, it’s been a month. How hard have you looked?” Mary Vaughn persisted. “I know you. You’re hanging out with your friends over in Charleston and probably haven’t set up a single interview.”
“I’ve had two interviews,” Rory Sue said triumphantly.
“Did either of them look promising?” her granddaddy asked.
“One woman called back, but I said no. The pay was lousy.”
“Entry level pay usually is,” Howard said. “You have to work for a while before you make the kind of money you’ll need to live in a city like Charleston.”
“Daddy said he’d help me out with rent,” Rory Sue said.
Mary Vaughn frowned. Sonny hadn’t mentioned a thing about that to her. She’d thought they were together on getting Rory Sue back here. She wondered just which of her many wiles Rory Sue had used to win that concession from him.
Undaunted by the setback, she forged ahead. “Okay, let me spell this out for you,” she told her daughter. “If you want to live in Charleston, you have until the end of the month to find a job and a place to live. And don’t be counting on help from your daddy and me. Whatever he agreed to give you toward your rent is no longer an option.”
Rory Sue’s gaze immediately shot toward Howard.
“Nor will you let your grandfather subsidize your living expenses,” Mary Vaughn added, shooting a forbidding look in his direction. For once, Howard didn’t argue with her.
Her daughter immediately pouted. “That’s not fair.”
“That’s the real world,” Mary Vaughn said sternly.
“And what if I don’t meet these deadlines of yours?”
“Then you’ll come back here and work with me. When you’ve saved up enough, if you still want to give Charleston another try, you’ll have the financial means to do it.”
“I think that’s a great idea,” Howard enthused, once again startling Rory Sue by agreeing with her mother.
Just then the waitress brought their meals. Mary Vaughn took one whiff of Howard’s rare steak and nearly gagged. She leapt up and ran for the ladies’ room, ignoring Howard and Rory Sue’s shocked expressions.
A minute later, when she’d thrown up and her stomach felt more settled, Rory Sue came into the restroom.
“Mom, are you okay?” she asked tentatively. “I’m sorry if I upset you.”
“I’m better now,” she said, splashing some cool water on her face. “It’s not your fault. It must be a touch of the flu.”
Rory Sue gave her a knowing look. “Or you’re pregnant,” she said quietly.
Mary Vaughn stared at her in shock. “At my age? That’s insane. Why would you even think such a thing?”
“Because I’ve seen the way you and Dad are all over each other,” Rory Sue said. “It’s weird. I don’t even know why you’d want me home. I’ll just be in the way.”
“You could never be in the way,” Mary Vaughn insisted. “Having all of us together again, at least for a little while, it’s all your daddy and I want.”
“You’re not going to feel that way once there’s a new baby in the house,” Rory Sue said. “Not unless you expect me to babysit all the time, which I am not going to do. I have a college degree. I need to have a real job.”
Mary Vaughn hid a smile. “Isn’t that exactly what we’ve been discussing? Real estate is a real job.”
“You know what I mean. A job in my field, on a career track.”
“If you find a job like that, you’ll hear no more complaints from me,” Mary Vaughn assured her. Her stomach rolled over again. “Oh, crap,” she murmured, as she threw up again.
When she emerged from the stall, Rory Sue had a damp paper towel ready for her. “I have some mouth spray in my purse, if you want it.”
“Yes, thanks.”
Rory Sue’s eyes sparkled as she handed the mouth
spray to Mary Vaughn. “I’ll bet you fifty bucks I’m right,” she said. “About you being pregnant, I mean.”
No way, Mary Vaughn said to herself, her knees suddenly wobbly. She walked back into a stall and sat down. It couldn’t be.
Then she thought of the day she’d sold that space downtown to Travis McDonald. She and Sonny had been in a rush. Too much of a rush to worry about a condom? More than likely.
“Damn, damn, damn,” she murmured, stunned. She was forty-three. Her daughter was twenty-one. And it appeared there was a very good chance she was about to have a baby. For a woman who thought she had her future all mapped out, wouldn’t that be a kick in the rear? As for Sonny, he’d probably run around town gloating or have a heart attack. It was hard to know for sure just what his reaction would be.
“Don’t you dare say a word to your grandfather or your father about this,” Mary Vaughn told her daughter. “I need to know for sure before I get anyone else all stirred up.”
“You can pick up a home pregnancy kit at Wharton’s,” Rory Sue said, her eyes alight with mischief.
“And have the whole town discussing it by nightfall? I don’t think so. I’ll have to take a run out to one of the big discount stores.”
“I can do it, if you want,” Rory Sue offered, suddenly solicitous. “Then if anyone happens to see me, they’ll just assume I’ve gotten myself into trouble. Again. They’ll never in a million years think it’s for you.”
Mary Vaughn knew there was a downside to that. If someone did see Rory Sue with a pregnancy test and
assumed the worst, Sonny or Howard were bound to hear about it. Right this second, she preferred that possibility to the reality she was facing.
“Go,” she said. “And please hurry. I’ll deal with your grandfather, and then meet you back at the house in an hour.”
Rory Sue started from the restroom, and then came back to give her a hug. “It’ll be okay, Mom. No matter what happens.” An impish grin lit her face. “And a baby brother or sister might be cool. Embarrassing, but cool.”
Mary Vaughn sighed. Embarrassment was the least of it.
S
arah finished her show on Friday morning and uttered a sigh of relief. It had been a very long week. Not only had there been the now-infamous kiss and the fallout from that, but Travis had been in a weird mood ever since the Sweet Magnolias had ganged up on him. She didn’t know quite what to make of it.
Now, for instance, he was lounging behind his desk in his usual laid-back posture, but something about the pose told her he was anything but relaxed. He looked moody and edgy. It didn’t help that his gaze seemed to be fastened on her.
“Is something wrong?” she asked finally.
“Not a thing,” he claimed.
“Then why are you staring at me like that?”
His lips curved slightly. “Because you’re prettier than staring at the walls of this place.”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
He was instantly on his feet, which had her instinctively pulling back. The last time he’d gotten a glint like that in his eyes and moved that quickly, he’d kissed her and stirred an uproar.
“Come on,” he said, holding out his hand.
“Where?”
“Trust me.”
The problem was, she didn’t know if she could. Okay, maybe what she really didn’t know was if she could trust him…or herself.
He frowned at her hesitation. “What’s the problem?”
“I just want to know where we’re going,” she said, balking at just taking off impulsively. “I have kids. I have responsibilities. I can’t just take off whenever I feel like it.”
“I wasn’t thinking of taking off on a Caribbean cruise, though the idea does hold some appeal,” he said, regarding her with amusement. “I need fresh air. You look about as jumpy as I feel, so I figured you do, too.”
Sarah bristled. “If I look jumpy, it’s because you make me nervous. You’re unpredictable.”
Naturally he looked a little too pleased by that, but he refrained from comment. He continued to hold out his hand. “Come on, sugar. I promise not to do anything you don’t invite me to do.”
“I hate to admit it, but that’s not especially reassuring,” she told him, still holding back.
His smile spread at her revealing comment. “In that case, it could be an interesting afternoon. We’ll take my car. It has more room than that little toy thing you own.”
The voices of six Sweet Magnolias sounded an alarm in her head. In the end, that’s what decided her. It was a Friday afternoon, blue skies and sunshine beckoned, and she was feeling a little reckless. She might not trust Travis entirely, but she did know he’d meant what he said. Nothing would happen that she didn’t want to happen.
“Okay,” she said eventually. “Give me a minute to call the house and make arrangements with the sitter.”
He nodded. “I’ll bring the car around front and put the top down.”
She held up a hand. “Just so we’re clear, this isn’t a date.”
“Whatever you say,” he said agreeably. “Call it a business conference, if it makes you feel better.”
She nodded. “That’s good, because Helen was very clear about what you can and can’t do when it comes to anything related to business, right?”
He nodded solemnly. “Very clear. She spelled out the legal parameters of sexual harassment in terms even I could understand.”
Somehow, she wasn’t entirely reassured, but she nodded. “Okay, then. I’ll meet you out front in five minutes.”
“Which means fifteen, if I know anything at all about women and their primping,” he said with exaggerated resignation.
Sarah beamed at him. “Why would I primp if it’s not a date? What you see is what you get.”
The fact that he didn’t seem one bit put off by that disconcerted her more than the invitation had in the first place. She wished like crazy she could see herself through his eyes, because what she saw in the mirror was still colored by Walter’s nonstop criticisms. Even if she trimmed down to a svelte 110, had her hair styled by the best of the best in a New York salon and wore designer clothes, on some level she’d still feel like a frumpy, overweight housewife who couldn’t do anything right. Not even Walter with all of his apolo
gies and well-meant attempts to put things right had been able to dispel fully the effect of years of verbal abuse.
With the top down on his very expensive red sports car and Sarah by his side, Travis should have been able to relax, but he still felt off-kilter. He’d gone on dates with supermodels that had been less stressful. Being with Sarah, knowing that she was unlike any other woman he’d ever known, that she wasn’t someone he could toy with and toss aside, made him edgy. He didn’t want to hurt her. Unfortunately, he couldn’t seem to make himself leave her alone, either.
Driving to the park seemed like a safe enough option. At this time on a summer day, it was crawling with moms and kids and older retirees out for an afternoon stroll. The swans were gliding across the lake. Ducks were following anyone who looked as if they might drop a few crumbs for them. It was a completely tranquil setting that usually soothed him.
Of course, that was when he was here in the evening alone, going for a run around the perimeter of the lake, or even accompanied by Tom, who knew how to keep quiet when the occasion called for it.
When he stopped the car, Sarah glanced over at him, looking vaguely disgruntled. “We’re going for a walk? In this heat?”
“Yep.” He gave her a considering look. “Unless you’d like me to check us into the Serenity Inn for an afternoon of hot, sweaty sex.”
She swallowed hard, but didn’t look away. “I thought we’d ruled that out.”
“Sugar, I never rule anything out. So, what’s it going to be?”
“We’ll walk.”
“Too bad,” he said cheerfully. “However, if you keep up and don’t complain about everything, I’ll buy you ice cream at the end.”
She looked mildly intrigued by the offer. “All the way around the lake?”
He nodded. “It’s only a mile. No big deal.”
“Are you hoping to sweat another five pounds off me?”
He frowned at her. “Why would you ask me something like that? There’s nothing wrong with you the way you are. Women are more attractive when they don’t look like skinny little scarecrows.”
She didn’t look as if she believed him. Travis shook his head. “Boy, that husband of yours must have been a real piece of work,” he muttered.
“He was just being honest.”
“He was being a jerk,” Travis said.
“You didn’t see me when I first got back to town,” she argued.
He stopped in his tracks, put his hands on her shoulders and looked straight into her eyes. “I might not have seen you then, but I can see you now. My eyesight’s twenty-twenty, and you look damn good.” He dropped his hands and backed off a step before he made the mistake of kissing her again just to prove the attraction was real. “A little too good for a man who’s supposed to be remembering that this is not a date and that sex is out of the question.”
Her mouth curved slightly at that. “Thanks.”
She sounded so pleased by that paltry little compliment, he wanted to track down Walter Price and slug him for putting such a dent in her self-confidence.
He slung his arm over her shoulders and nudged her with his hip. “Come on, Sarah, let’s relax and enjoy the scenery.”
They strolled along like that, the silence companionable. Sarah seemed to be oblivious to the stares aimed in their direction, but Travis wasn’t. He knew with gut-wrenching certainty that this walk, like the kiss, would be the talk of the town by nightfall. Which probably made it one more mistake that would wind up causing both of them grief. Somehow, though, he couldn’t seem to make himself regret it.
About a hundred yards before they reached the ice cream vendor, Travis broke the silence. “I’m thinking two large cones with chocolate and vanilla swirled together. What about you?”
Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she looked up at him. “You’re having two large cones?”
“Hey, I could handle it, but I meant one of those for you.”
“Make mine small,” she said.
“Is that because it’s really all you want, or because you’ll feel guilty if you eat a large one?”
“I’ll feel guilty,” she admitted.
“Well, I’ll feel guilty if I have a large cone and get you only a small one, so you’re just going to have to humor me this time.”
She seemed to struggle with herself for a heartbeat, then shrugged. “Well, if I have to, I have to.”
He grinned. “That’s the spirit.”
He bought their cones and they walked to an unoccupied bench in the shade. Watching Sarah run her tongue around the soft ice cream was almost his undoing. He hadn’t heated up that quickly in months. He blinked and looked away.
“Thanks,” she said eventually.
“For?”
“The whole afternoon. I never take time for myself like this anymore. If I have spare time, I think I should be home with Tommy and Libby. I’d forgotten that quiet pleasures can be good for the soul.”
“Absolutely,” he agreed. “And you’ll be a better mom to your kids if you’ve taken some time to relax. You’ll have more patience.”
“I know you’re right, but that guilt thing kicks in and I run straight home.”
“It has to be tough being a single mom,” Travis said thoughtfully. “I know it was for my mother, and she had a lot of support.”
“Now that I’m back here, I have plenty of support, too,” Sarah said. “Raylene, whom you haven’t met yet, she’s staying with me and she adores the kids. She pitches in around the house, too. The situation’s a little complicated, but I love having the company. And, of course, you know how the Sweet Magnolias like to meddle in my life.”
“First hand,” he agreed. “They’re a scary bunch.”
“Not once you really get to know them. They’re just protective.” She sighed. “Then there’s Walter.”
“Your ex-husband,” he said, his tone disparaging.
“He’s not as bad as you’ve probably heard,” she said, jumping to his defense in a way that stirred Travis’s annoyance.
As if she sensed his disapproval, she quickly added, “Oh, he
was
awful, believe me. That’s why I left Alabama. Lately, though, he’s gotten away from his parents’ influence and he’s almost human again, the way he was when we first met back in college.”
Travis tensed. “With all this self-improvement, are you planning to give him a second chance?”
“No,” she said with conviction.
“But you said he’s more like the man you met, which means he’s more like he was when you fell in love with him, right?” Travis persisted, not quite sure why he wanted so badly to pin down her feelings for the guy.
“That doesn’t mean I’ll ever forget how he was after we were married,” she said. “Our marriage was broken beyond repair. It’s not as if it could be fixed at this late date. I don’t think I could ever trust him not to revert to that kind of behavior. At least, it’s not a chance I’m willing to take.”
She sounded dead-certain about that, but in Travis’s experience women could be fickle. And men could be slick. If Walter Price wanted her back and set his mind to winning her over, it just might work. There were two kids to consider, too.
Maybe he really did need to take a step back, not just for Sarah’s sake, but for his own as well. Why put his heart on the line for the very first time for a woman who might not be free of her past?
Of course, that was the sensible, self-protective side of his brain talking. He usually ignored it.
And, as he looked over at Sarah, saw the concentration furrowing her brow as she tried to keep up with
her melting ice cream, and felt his libido kick in, something told him this was going to be another one of those times.
On Saturday evening, Travis and Tom settled into comfortable chairs on the patio after dinner, beers in hand. Jeanette had driven to Charleston with Maddie and her kids to see a movie, leaving the two of them with a rare guys-only night.
“I need to start looking for my own place,” Travis said. “I’ve been intruding on you and Jeanette long enough.”
“It’s fine. You’re not around at night, which gives us time together when we need it. You don’t leave your dirty socks and underwear all over the house, so Jeanette’s not complaining.”
Travis grinned. “That’s her standard for a house-guest?”
“Pretty much. She’s a low-key kind of woman these days. And she’s very big on family, now that she’s reconciled with her parents. She even tolerates my folks and, believe me, they got off to a very rocky start.”
Travis didn’t have to feign his shock. He knew how impossibly stuffy Tom’s folks could be. “Jeanette must be a saint,” he said mildly.
“Tell me about it,” Tom said with feeling. “Look, if you find your own place, fine, but there’s no rush about it. We’re not going to need that room for a nursery for a while.”
Travis turned to find his cousin with a broad grin on his face. “Don’t tell me! Jeanette’s pregnant?”
Tom nodded. “It caught me by surprise, too. We’d
been talking about it. We’d even decided to start trying, but it took, like, fifteen seconds apparently.”
“That’s those potent little McDonald guys,” Travis said. “They’re great little swimmers.”
Tom’s expression sobered. “Which should be a warning to you.”
“Not to worry,” Travis replied. “My guys are not allowed in the pool. There will be no unprotected swimming. I’m not sure the world needs any more McDonalds from my side of the family.”
“That’s crazy,” Tom said. “I’ve seen you with your sisters’ kids and with all the children running around at the picnic over at Dana Sue’s on the Fourth of July.”
“I love kids,” Travis admitted. “But I don’t think I’m cut out to be a father.”
“Because your dad was so lousy at it, I assume,” Tom said.
“To be fair, he was a lousier husband than he was a father,” Travis said. “Other than disagreeing vehemently with just about every decision I ever made, he wasn’t all that bad as a dad. In some ways he was just an irresponsible, overgrown kid himself.”
“My father certainly wouldn’t take top honors in a daddy competition, either,” Tom reminded him. “But I’m hoping I learned from his mistakes.” He fell silent for a minute, then said, “That reminds me of something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about.”
“Oh?”