Abound in Love (17 page)

“What
do you mean?”

“Start
squeaking,” he said with a grin, and pulled her into a hug.  “You have rights,
you know.”

She
laughed.  “I do, huh?”

“Yeah,
you do.  You matter, Laura.  You really do.  So, squeak away.”

L
aura
sat in the living room, in the comfortable, old recliner.  She was weary from
cooking all day.  Dalton walked into the room and smiled, taking note that
she’d laid claim to his favorite chair with a quick lifting of his brows.

“My
chair,” she said, smiling.

“Yeah,
you’ve probably earned it,” he said, as he sat down on the couch.

Well,
you have too,” she conceded, but refrained from vacating the comfort of the
well-worn, cushioned seating.  “Is everybody still washing dishes?” Laura
asked.

He
nodded.  “Well, except for Candace and the kids.  They left while you were
talking to your mom, but they told me to tell you ‘goodbye’ and that they would
see you tomorrow.”

Laura
nodded.  “So Dan and Candace are both working tomorrow?  The day after
Thanksgiving.”

“Apparently.”

“Dalton?”

“Yeah?”

“Has
anyone actually come right out and asked Candace what’s going on with her?”

He
furrowed his brow in thought.  “I … don’t know.”

“You
haven’t?”

“No, I
guess I haven’t.  I guess I don’t know how I feel about delving into her
personal business.  She might not take too kindly to it,” he added, and made a
scared face. 

“You
mean, in the same way she behaved when anyone ‘stuck their nose into her
business’ as she called it, back when we were kids.”

“Well,
yeah, that.”

“She’s
a grown woman now,” she pointed out.

“True. 
I have to think Thomas has tried to talk to her…”

“I
have.  Well, sort of,” Thomas said, as he followed Macy into the room.  “Dishes
are done,” he added, and then flashed a grin at both Dalton and Laura.  “Thanks
for cooking dinner.  Please don’t ever do it again.”

Laura
glanced at Dalton.  “Imagine.  I’m actually not offended by that remark.”

“Me
neither,” he said good-naturedly.  “Relieved, actually, but definitely not
offended.”

“Okay,
you all.  You were discussing Candace when we came in,” Macy interrupted
pointedly, in a voice sterner than the group was accustomed to from her.  She
turned to her betrothed.  “And you have
not
had a real conversation with
your sister because she terrifies you.”  She whacked him on the arm for good
measure.

“What’d
I do?”

“Nothing,
other than continue to tip-toe around your sister, and that’s the point.  It’s
time we found a way to get to the root of Candace’s problems, preferably with
her here, but, since she isn’t…”  She spread her hands wide.

Thomas
detected the firm note in his fiancée’s voice.  He wasn’t accustomed to it. 
Macy had always been much like Laura—level-headed and kind—which was why he’d
been drawn to her in the first place.  Now, she seemed adamant and
determined—testy—more like Candace.

He sat
down on the couch and patted the spot beside him.  She joined him there and
turned toward him.

She sat
quietly for a moment and appeared to be gathering her thoughts.  Finally, she
said, “Look, I’m happy that you help your sister out.  If you didn’t, you
wouldn’t be the man I fell in love with.  And I adore my soon-to-be nephew and
niece, but I have to tell you,” she said, aiming a glance at Thomas and then
Dalton, “you two are pathetic.”

“What
do you mean?” Thomas gasped.

“Yeah?”
Dalton said.  “What exactly does that mean?”

“What I
mean is that you’re two grown men clearly frightened of Candace.  You won’t
really
talk
with her, because you’re sure she’s going to pitch a fit
like the Candace of old would have done.  But, she’s a grown woman now.  She
changed, guys.  Years ago, actually.  You somehow missed the memo.  You’re the
ones who continue to dance around her, as if afraid of being subjected to her
wrath.”

“I am
afraid,” Thomas admitted without apology.  “She’s scary.”

“She
used
to be scary,” Macy clarified, and turned to Laura.  “Laura, I’m sorry to have
to put you on the spot, but, you’re on the spot.”

“How do
you mean?”

“Your
sister needed you—
needs
you.  She sent that e-mail
to you
for a
reason.”

“I
know,” Laura said.  “To apologize to me, and she has.”

“No, I
mean, yes, there’s that, but she wanted her
sister
.”  She glanced around
at the group.  “Something is eating away at her, like a cancer,” she said
gravely.  “She’s literally withering away—physically, emotionally,
spiritually—in front of us, and you all aren’t seeing it.”

“But we
are,” Thomas objected.  “And Laura did come home,” he added.  “What more can we
do?  As you’ve pointed out, I’ve already picked up so much slack, it’s
affecting my relationship with … you!”

Macy
gave a withering sigh and turned away from him and toward her future
sister-in-law.  “Look, Laura, please talk to your sister.” 

She
turned back to Thomas and wagged a warning finger.  “I love you.  You know
that.  But I have a life too—one I want to spend with you.  At the rate we’re
going, we won’t be married until the kids graduate high school.”

Thomas
dropped his head.  “Honey, I am sorry.”

“I know
you are!  But you have to be more than sorry.  You have to be proactive.  This
family needs to
talk
, for Pete’s sake.  We need a clear picture of what
is going on with Candace.  It’s time to stop skirting the issue, whatever it
may be.”  She shook her head and laughed without humor.  “I’m not waiting
around forever, mister.  I’m getting older as we speak.  My biological clock is
ticking…”

Laura
rose from the recliner and draped an arm over Macy’s shoulders.  “Please, Macy,
just keep on ticking awhile longer and…”

“What?”
Macy said, chuckling.

“You
know what I mean,” Laura said, matching her smile.  “And you’ve been more than
patient with Thomas.  And I completely understand your losing patience now. 
Any girl would,” she added, giving her brother a dirty look.   “But for my
part, I promise I’ll talk to my sister.  You have my word.”

Macy
grinned.  “I knew I could count on you, Laura,” she said, enunciating the
‘you.’  “But as far as you two are concerned…”  She glared at the men and gave
a dejected shake of her head.  “Couple of scaredy cats…”

“What?”
the men gasped in unison.

“Scaredy
cats!” she repeated, and rose and retrieved her coat from the closet.  “I’ll
walk myself out,” she said, measuring her fiancé with a look.

“Oh,
no, you won’t,” Thomas said.

He
followed her out of the room, and sent a frightened glance at Dalton and Laura
from the doorway, before shutting the door behind him.

Dalton
began laughing.  “Good for Macy,” he said.  “I wish I had her gumption.”

Laura
gave him a curious glance.  “About what?”

“Wouldn’t
you like to know,” he said mysteriously.  “Wouldn’t you like to know?”   He
arched his brows, stood from the chair and stretched, and then walked wearily
up the stairs to his room. 
 

***

Laura
woke the day after Thanksgiving feeling stiff and tired.  Who knew a whole day
in the kitchen cooking a mediocre holiday meal could tire someone out so much?

She
stretched in the comfortable bed, thankful for it, and grateful to Dalton for
letting her use it during her stay. 

During
her stay…

How
long
was
she going to stay?  She hadn’t given the question much thought,
and hadn’t purchased a return ticket home as yet.  But now that Thanksgiving
was over…

Her job
beckoned.  She knew her boss hadn’t been thrilled when she’d originally
requested the time off, citing family responsibilities as a reason for needing
the vacation days.  She felt torn now, at the thought of leaving.  It was
simply too soon.

She had
promised Macy she would talk to Candace and attempt to get to the bottom of her
problems.  But she felt she owed something to her brother too—the gift of
availing herself to helping him out with the kids until they got everything
straightened out.  Thomas couldn’t do it alone.  She knew that.

And if
he continued on his present course, he might very well lose Macy.  And Macy
wasn’t being unreasonable in her requests of all of them.  Like Thomas, she had
given much of her time to babysitting and helping him run a household.  It
wasn’t her job.  Particularly when she had a wedding to plan.

But
then, whose job was it?  In a perfect world, Candace was responsible for her
own children.  But as Macy pointed out, Candace was falling apart before their
eyes.

Laura
had to admit, she had failed to see how sad a shape her sister was in until
Macy had forced her to really look.  And Macy was absolutely correct.  Someone
needed to take action soon since Candace was literally withering away.

Laura
hurried to take a shower, and then returned to her room and got dressed and
ready for the day.  She’d just finished when the doorbell rang.  Glancing out
the window, she spotted Dan, standing back and away from the porch, waiting for
someone to let the kids into the house.

Dashing
downstairs, Laura was surprised to find the house quiet.  Both Thomas and
Dalton were apparently sleeping in—a rarity with them.  She opened the door and
welcomed her nephew and niece into the house.  “The men are still sleeping,”
she told them, gesturing for them to be quiet.

“We
won’t be loud,” Kenny told her, as he and his sister stepped into the room.

She
smiled her thanks, and then said, “Hey, I’m going to have a word with your
dad.  Will you give me a minute?”

“Sure,”
they both agreed, and she stepped onto the porch and closed the door behind
her.

She
walked down the steps and met Dan, who watched her with a questioning look on
his face.

“Hello,”
she said, smiling.  “Did you have a nice Thanksgiving?”  The instant she asked
the question, regret flashed across her face. 

Dan
noticed and waved a conciliatory hand.  “Don’t worry about it,” he told her.  “We
all did the best we could yesterday, under the circumstances.”

Laura
took a deep breath and met his eyes.  She winced.  “That’s sort of what I
wanted to talk to you about,” she murmured.  “I mean, I’d like to talk to
Candace too, of course, but…”

“Good
luck with that,” he muttered ruefully.  “She certainly won’t talk to me.”

Laura
nodded.  “Dan, do you think the miscarriage might account for Candace’s…”

“Breakdown,”
he finished for her.

“Yes.”

“Yes, I
think that’s the core issue, but there’s more…”  He removed his cap from his
head and ran a hand through his hair.  He checked his watch.

“Dan,
I’m sorry.  I know you have to get to work.”

“No,
no, that’s okay.  I have a minute.”

Laura
sensed then that he wanted to talk. 

“I do
think the miscarriage is at the root of everything, but as I said, I think
there’s more to it.  After … it happened, she changed.”

“You
mean, she became depressed?”

“Yes,
but she also…”   He sighed and glanced around.  The morning was gray, and a
misty haze had settled over the land around them. 

Laura
suddenly registered the chill and wrapped her arms around herself, to stave off
the cold. 

“You
should get a jacket,” he urged.

“I’m
all right.”  She caught his gaze.  His eyes reflected so much pain, she found
herself reaching out to squeeze his arm.  “Dan, what happened after the
miscarriage?”

He met
her gaze dead-on.  “She began spending money,” he said with a shrug.  “She
maxed out three credit cards and…”

Laura
gasped.  “That’s why she’s working!” she said, grateful for the dawning of
understanding.  “And why you’re working yourself to death,” she added.  “Oh,
Dan, I’m sorry.”

“You
and me both,” he muttered, but quickly searched her face.  “I’m not angry at
her for that,” he was quick to assure her.  “I know it was a mechanism for coping. 
I think shopping because her ‘fix,’ if you know what I mean.”

Well,
better shopping than what they had speculated might be the problem, she mused
to herself.

“Is she
… still spending?”

“I
don’t think so,” he told her.  “In fact, she gave me a check yesterday, to put
toward the balance on one of the cards.”

“Okay,
okay, this is starting to make sense…”