The Devil's Orchard (8 page)

“Would you zip me, please?” Emma asked as she held her hair out of the way. The dress was new, and Kevin, her personal shopper at Saks, had rushed her alterations so it would be perfect for tonight. It wasn’t often that the families got together to talk a little business and have dinner together, so she wanted to look her best as Mrs. Casey, for Cain’s sake. Not that she thought of herself as a cute arm decoration, but frumpy wouldn’t do, even if she felt that way at the moment.

“Can I have this job in reverse when we get home?” Cain asked as she zipped her dress gently.

“I was hoping you’d volunteer.” Emma gave Cain a fast kiss when she finished. “How did it go with Jasper today? Anything new?”

“Jasper is a man with problems, and I might have a solution for him if Vincent is in a frame of mind to listen tonight. If not, our friend down the street might make more of an impact than I’d like.”

The last thing she had left to do was slip in the three-carat diamond earrings Cain had surprised her with shortly after they found out they were pregnant again. The square, princess-cut stones felt heavy, but she loved them because they showed how happy Cain was about this baby.

“If by friend you mean that snake Hector and his spawn, then I’ll tie Vincent to a chair and beat him with breadsticks until he gives you what you want. It irritates me every time I think of them living a few blocks away.”

Cain dropped her jacket onto the bed and put her arms around her. She lowered her head when Emma gazed up at her and very lightly pressed her lips to hers so as not to mess up her lipstick. “If I had enough manpower they’d be gone by now. You know that, right?” She nodded as she slipped her fingers into the hair at the base of Cain’s neck. “Right now that’d be a waste on our part since I have other things to worry about, but I don’t want to give Hector too wide a berth. He strikes me as the kind of guy who takes a thousand miles for every inch you give him.”

“You’re going to talk Vincent into letting Vinny partner with Jasper, aren’t you?”

“They’re friendly now, but there’s still bad blood between Vincent and Fats, never mind that Fats has been dead for nine years. I sided with Vincent on that because Fats double-crossed him for a few bucks, so that he agreed for Vinny to work with Jasper was a minor miracle.” Cain put her jacket on and held her hand as they walked down the stairs. “Asking for more than I got already might be suicidal, but I think it’s the best solution. Having two people I know and have friendships with control that crap is better than the alternative.”

“If anyone can charm them into cooperating, it’s you, baby.”

“Thanks, but I’ll keep the breadstick threat in my back pocket in case what I have planned doesn’t work out.”

The noise level from the back room made them both stop and laugh. Both kids would be fine with their housekeeper Carmen and Ross, but Merrick and Katlin had volunteered to join in until they got back. Katlin usually went with Cain to meetings like this, but tonight Muriel was filling in since Cain had expanded her role.

“Let’s hope there’s no dog in whatever movie they’re blaring back there,” Cain said. “If there is, your rugs are toast.”

“
My
rugs?” She pointed to her chest. “Any dog that comes into this house is going to live in the study.”

Cain laughed as she followed her to the den. When they entered, the group was watching Hannah as she took her turn at the video game they were playing. Emma savored Cain’s smile every time she saw it. They spoke often before going to sleep, and every time Cain thanked her for the happiness she’d brought to her life.

Their time apart and the guilt because of why it’d happened faded a bit more each time Cain told her the kinds of things that were meant for her heart only. Through everything they’d experienced together and during their separation, she’d never lost sight of what a blessing and a gift her life with Cain and their family was. That her father was here with them to share this with her only completed the sense of family she’d always wanted.

“Mama, look, I’m doing good,” Hannah yelled as she swung her arm around with the game control in her fist.

Had Emma known Cain at this age, she probably wouldn’t see much difference from their daughter. Hannah and Hayden both had a competitiveness that reminded her so much of Cain it made her optimistic for their future. Like their mother, both children would excel at whatever they did for the clan, and they’d assure the business for the generation that came after them. It was too early to daydream of grandchildren, but she did sometimes, wondering what Cain would be like surrounded by small Caseys again while their children ruled the clan.

“Have you eaten anything, Miss Doing Good?” Cain asked her when she picked her up and threw her in the air. Hannah squealed in delight since, like her brother, she loved to roughhouse with Cain whenever she was around her. With Cain there to catch her, Hannah was fearless.

“We ordered pizza,” Merrick said. “And wine for later, in case they don’t calm down from all this electronic stimulus.”

“You’re a funny woman,” Emma said as she kissed Hannah’s forehead when Cain held her out. Hayden had stood and put his arm around her waist and a hand on her growing belly. “Give him more time and he’ll say hello.”

“It’s a boy?”

“It’s a guess. Your mom and I are split on our choices. She says girl, and I say boy. Do you have a preference?” she asked, surprised she hadn’t before now.

“Hannah and I are split too. She wants a brother, but I think another sister would be cool.” He hugged her and kissed her cheek before he took Hannah from Cain. “Maybe one more so all of us will be happy if it’s not what we wanted.”

“Maybe,” she said, “but let me survive the heat first.”

“You guys have fun and try not to stay up too late,” Cain said as she took Emma’s hand again. “And tell your mama how beautiful she looks before we go.”

Everyone, including Carmen, said something.

“Thank you, and be good,” Emma said after she’d kissed Cain for her thoughtfulness. It was hard to not let her self-esteem deflate a little the bigger she got, but Cain derailed those thoughts before they could take hold. “I want you to know something,” she said when they were alone in the backseat.

Cain had her arm around her and held her hand. “Last-minute advice?”

“No.” She rested her head against Cain’s shoulder. “It’s really an apology.”

“You haven’t done anything you need to be sorry for.”

“Let me finish, honey.” She let Cain’s hand go so she could spread her palm out on her lap. “I’m truly sorry for ever believing anything Barney Kyle ever told me. I remember that now, and I don’t understand how I could’ve been so stupid. Running away from you, from us and Hayden cost us so much, and dwelling on it makes me insane.”

“Lass, you really have to put that mess in its grave. That’s where it belongs.” Cain placed her fingers under Emma’s chin so their eyes met. “We’ve both made our mistakes, and I mean
both
of us. What you have to know is my heart has no secrets from you. It knows you are what completes me, and in this lifetime and beyond there’ll be no other who can take your place. Because of that truth, I don’t want to waste my time on things that aren’t important. All that happened, but it taught us what’s important, didn’t it?”

She gazed into Cain’s eyes, trying to get the lump in her throat to dissolve. The tears were so close, and that wasn’t what she wanted to do, considering where they were going. “This isn’t me rehashing old hurts. Really, it’s not,” she said after a few deep breaths. “I’m apologizing because I want it to be the last time I do it. The stupidity I showed was colossal, but you’re right. I want it to be a dead subject. Before we truly put it to rest, though, I want you to know that I’d die before hurting you like that again. What happened isn’t something I take lightly, so don’t think I do if I never talk about it.”

“I’m glad we’ve come full circle, then.” Cain kissed her before she went back to her original spot with her head on her shoulder. “As painful as living through that was, we’re better together because of it. Had we gone along the way we did back then, maybe we wouldn’t be here now.”

“I love being your partner and helping you with the load you carry. I’m so grateful you and Hayden forgave me.”

“We had no choice. You mean too much.”

Lou drove slowly down the street Vincent’s restaurant was on, so Cain kissed her again. “I didn’t mean to be such a downer before dinner, but I had to get that out before it choked me.”

“We’ve got a lot of good stuff to look forward to, so I’m glad you made that decision. If it makes you feel better about it, I accept your apology only if you accept mine for putting those doubts in your head to begin with.”

“I never blamed you—well, not after I thought about it rationally. Unfortunately for me, by then it was too late, and the mistakes got easier after that. Besides, my mother’s harping didn’t help.”

“Has Ross heard from her at all?”

Carol Verde had been vicious in her letters and phone calls when Ross had first moved in with them. She’d threatened everything she could think of when Ross both ignored her and informed her divorce attorney she couldn’t move back to the farm. The property had been in the Verde family for years, and her grandfather had done Ross’s thinking for him before he married a woman he didn’t approve of. Her dad had a prenup even when most of his friends didn’t know what that was. The place would pass first to Emma, then her children once her father died, an eventuality she hoped was years away.

“She’s been strangely quiet, which actually worries me more. The guy Muriel got to represent Daddy said she’d even stopped coming by his office to throw her weekly tantrum. Promise you’ll spank me if I ever get like that?”

“You have my word, but don’t worry, because you’re nothing like your mother.”

“Ready, boss?” Lou asked before he got out.

“That’s a loaded question if I’ve ever heard one,” she said, and Emma laughed. “I’m ready for something, but perhaps not this. Duty calls, though, so open the doors.”

Their people exited the other vehicle that had followed them there and joined the crews of the other families. These meetings didn’t take place often, but when the need arose it was good to have such good friends who shared views on so many levels.

“Cain.” Patty, Mook’s older brother and Vincent’s head man, held his hand out. “Miss Emma.” He took Emma’s hand next. “It’s good to see you both. I’ll make sure Mama knows what a good Catholic you’ve become, Cain,” he said with a large smile. “Though she’ll give me a lecture to be more like my buddy Cain and not practice birth control. Congratulations.” He kissed Emma’s cheek.

“I’m sure there’s a girl out there who’ll help you find religion. We haven’t given up on your little brother,” Emma said.

They followed Patty to the private room in the back, and Cain recognized two FBI agents sitting at a table toward the side of main dining room. Both had an iced tea and appetizer in front of them, but she didn’t believe this was a coincidence. Muriel shook her head from the door and waved her hand to get her walking again.

“They’re just trawling, cousin. Let it go because there’s nothing to fish here,” Muriel whispered in her ear when they were close enough.

“Maybe, and maybe not,” she said, but didn’t explain as she led Emma to her seat.

The only ones missing were Remi and Dallas, and Cain was interested in how Dallas would react to all this. They all trusted her being there after her past had been verified and taken care of, but still—she wondered how the reality of who Remi was would compare to what Dallas’s imagination had conjured up.

“Tell me again not to worry,” Marianna Jatibon said when she approached them. They’d talked about this more than once, so Cain knew Remi’s mother was happy she’d found love, but in their world that commitment and loyalty hadn’t been tested—not really.

She kissed Emma’s hand and pulled out the chair next to her for Marianna. “Do you need me to do it, or is this a job for Emma?”

“Go play. Your wife is who I need to talk to.” Marianna laughed as she spoke. “Maybe it is time for us to retire and let our children deal with things. Ramon and I have become nervous cats lately.”

“You’re no different from Therese Casey when we met,” Emma said. “Cain invited me to Sunday lunch, and Therese took pleasure in turning me inside out, even though I was the first girl this one had ever brought home,” she said as she tugged on Cain’s hand.

“My mother loved you and would’ve sainted you by now for the grandchildren who would’ve been the center of her existence.” Cain kissed Emma. Their conversation in the car had to have been responsible for the pain that flashed across Emma’s face, so she kissed her again. “I know Emma’s backing is important, but would you mind if I say something?”

“I’d appreciate it if you would,” Marianna said.

“It wasn’t that long ago that my life was adrift in every aspect except for my business.” Emma’s eyes became glassy as Cain spoke, but she didn’t interrupt. “I kept asking myself why someone who loved me would betray me and leave me alone. I never found an answer to make the pain go away until I finally figured it out. Emma came back, and in this woman I love lay the solution to everything I needed to be happy and complete.”

“I’m happy you found your way back to each other,” Marianna said.

“You’re a good friend who prayed for that more than once,” Emma said, emotion thick in her voice.

“I’m saying this because Dallas will never be perfect except for one thing. Her perfection in this life will be in how she loves your child. I can say that because I’ve found the same.” Cain scratched the back of Emma’s neck gently. “My mother would’ve told you the same had she been here,” she said directly to Emma. “Believe that, and, Marianna, give Dallas the chance to prove it to you. Considering where she and her sister came from, she’s going to cling to Remi closer than any of us will imagine. The freedom Remi’s given her and Kristen to live in peace is the cement that’ll bind her loyalty to your family.”

“You had something to do with that, my friend,” Ramon said from behind his wife.