This Heart of Mine (30 page)

"I'm fairly sure I'm near the creek. At the end of the path that starts right behind Jacob's Ladder."

"Creek?"

"The creek, Kevin! The one that runs from the woods across the meadow. The only creek there is!"

She was beginning to sound snappish. He took a sip of beer. "I don't remember a creek. Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure!"

"I suppose I'll recognize it when I see it." Kids were running around on the Common. He stopped for a moment to enjoy the sight, then returned to his mission. "The wind's really started to kick up. I can hardly see the path."

"It's not that bad here."

"Then maybe I'm going the wrong way."

"You took the path behind Jacob's Ladder, right?"

He tossed the rest of his sandwich into a trash container and stepped onto that exact path. "I think so."

"You think so? Aren't you paying attention?"

Definitely snappish.

"Just keep talking. Maybe I'll be able to tell how close I'm getting by the reception."

"Can you hear the creek?"

"Which creek is that again?"

"There's only one!"

"I hope I can find it. I don't even want to imagine how terrible it'd be if you had to spend the night in the woods by yourself."

"I'm sure that won't happen."

"I hope not. Whatever you do, don't start thinking about the Blair Witch."

"The Blair Witch?"

He managed a choking noise, then a monster moan, and disconnected.

It didn't take long for his phone to ring again.

"My ribs are aching from laughter," she said dryly.

"Sorry. It was just a squirrel. But it was huge."

"If you don't play right, I'm going home."

"Okay, but you'd better not be wearing anything more than shoes and a hair ribbon when I find you."

"I don't own a hair ribbon."

"That'll be one less thing for you to take off, then, won't it?"

As it turned out, she was still dressed when he spotted her, but that didn't last for long. They tumbled naked into the soft meadow grass, and as the rain began to fall, their laughter faded.

He drugged himself on her kisses, and as he entered her soft, welcoming body, he glimpsed something that felt almost… holy. But the illusion was too fragile to survive the primitive demand of his body.

The rain drummed on his back. Her strong fingers dug into his shoulders—demanding. The rain… this woman… Her pleasure spiraled beneath him, and he lost himself.

As one day slipped into the next, Molly behaved like a woman possessed. On Wednesday she lifted her skirt for Kevin in the office while the guests gathered for tea. That same night she escaped another of Phoebe's arrangements for a private chat and met him in the woods behind the cottage. The following morning he dragged her into the pantry just as Troy was coming through the kitchen door, then had to cover her mouth because she started making too much noise. Later she hauled him into a deserted cottage, but as he lifted her onto the kitchen table, her muscles finally rebelled from the strain of so many awkward positions, and she winced.

He pressed his forehead to hers and took a shaky breath, struggling for control. "This is nuts. You've had enough."

"Are you kidding? I'm just getting started, but if you can't keep up with me, I understand."

He smiled and kissed her. Oh, she loved those slow kisses. He caressed her breasts and her thighs, trying to take more care, but they were dancing with danger, and she wouldn't let him. Before long she forgot all about her aching muscles.

That evening they sidestepped the Calebows' dinner invitation by announcing that they had to drive into town for supplies, but when they returned to the campground, they discovered their luck had run out. Phoebe and Dan were waiting for them on the steps of the B&B.

One day this bad guy came to Nightingale Woods. He was realy bad and mean, but he pretended to be Benny's friend. But only Daphne knew he was realy bad. So she told Benny, "Hes not your friend!!!!!"

Daphne Meets a Bad Guy

by Hannah Marie Calebow

Molly heard Kevin's quiet curse and fixed a smile on her face. "Hey, you guys. Escape the kiddies for a while?"

"They're playing flashlight tag on the Common." As Phoebe came down the steps, she took in Molly's rumpled dress.

Molly needed her wits about her, but the fact that she was still missing her underwear put her at a disadvantage. "I hope Andrew's going to be all right. You know how fast he disappears."

"Andrew's just fine," Dan said. "There's not much trouble he can get into around here."

"You have no idea," Kevin muttered.

Phoebe tilted her head toward the lane that led past the beach. Her oversize Stars sweatshirt and jeans didn't quite hide the power player beneath. "Mrs. Long volunteered to keep an eye on all of them. Let's take a walk."

Molly flexed her shoulders. "I think I'll pass. I've been up since five-thirty, so I'm a little tired." From making love three times today. "Maybe tomorrow."

Dan's voice rang with Southern steel. "It won't take long. And there are a couple of things we want to discuss."

"Your vacation is almost over. Why can't you just relax and enjoy the rest of it?"

"It's a little hard to relax when we're so worried about you," Phoebe replied.

"Well, stop worrying!"

"Calm down, Molly," Kevin said. "If they want to talk, I'm sure we can spare a few minutes."

What a suck-up
. Or maybe he'd decided it was time to play a risky new game. She'd known from the beginning that he wasn't sneaking around because he was afraid of Dan and Phoebe. He was doing it because he loved taking chances. "You might have the time, but I don't."

Dan reached out for her arm just as he'd done since she was fifteen, but Kevin shot forward and blocked his way. She didn't know who was the more astonished, herself or Dan. Had Kevin interpreted the gesture as a threat?

Phoebe recognized the signs of antlers clashing, and she moved to her husband's side. The two of them exchanged one of their glances, and then Dan set off toward the lane. "Right now. Let's go."

The moment of reckoning was finally here, and there was no escaping it. Molly could imagine the questions they were going to ask. If only she could figure out how to answer them.

They headed silently past the beach and the last of the cottages, then along the edge of the woods. When they reached the split-rail fence that marked the end of the campground, Dan stopped. Kevin stepped slightly away from Molly and rested his hips against a post.

"You've been here for two weeks," Phoebe said as she let go of Dan's hand.

"Two weeks ago Wednesday," Kevin replied.

"The campground is beautiful. Our kids are having a wonderful time."

"It's nice having them here."

"They still can't believe you bought all those bikes."

"I enjoyed doing it."

Dan lost patience. "Phoebe and I want to know what your intentions are toward Molly."

"Dan!" Molly cried.

"It's all right," Kevin said.

"No it's not!" She glared at her brother-in-law. "And what kind of sexist Southern crap is that anyway? What about
my
intentions toward
him
?" She didn't exactly know what those intentions were beyond keeping the real world at bay by staying in Nightingale Woods for as long as she could, but she had to face Dan down.

"You were supposed to be getting an annulment," Phoebe said. "Instead you ran off together."

"We didn't run off," Molly replied.

"What else would you call it? And every time I try to talk to you about it, you dash away." She jammed her hands into the pockets of her jeans. "This is the fire alarm all over again, isn't it, Molly?"

"No!"

"What fire alarm?" Kevin asked.

"Never mind," Molly said hastily.

"No, I want to hear this."

Phoebe betrayed her. "When Molly was sixteen, she pulled the fire alarm at her high school. Unfortunately, she hadn't seen any sign of a fire."

Kevin regarded her curiously. "Did you have a good reason?"

She shook her head, feeling sixteen all over again.

"So why did you do it?"

"I'd rather not go into this now."

He tilted his head toward Dan. "You always talk as if she's perfect."

"She is!" Dan barked.

Molly smiled despite herself, then bit her lip. "It was an aberration. I was an insecure teenager testing Phoebe and Dan to make sure they'd stick by me no matter what I did."

Kevin's eyes took on a speculative gleam. "So did they evacuate the school?"

Molly nodded.

"How many fire trucks?"

"My God…" Phoebe muttered. "It was a serious offense."

"It's a Class Two felony," Molly said glumly, "so it got fairly nasty."

"I'll bet." Kevin turned back to the Calebows. "Fascinating as this is—and I'll admit it's pretty fascinating—I don't think that's what you want to talk about."

"This isn't a big deal!" Molly exclaimed. "Two weeks ago Kevin showed up at my place because I'd missed an appointment with the attorney. I hadn't been feeling well, and he decided some fresh air would do me good, so he brought me up here."

When Phoebe wanted to, she did sarcasm better than anyone. "You couldn't just take her for a walk?"

"Didn't think of it." Unlike Phoebe, Kevin wasn't going to tell Molly's secrets.

But Molly had to be truthful about this part. "I've been seriously depressed, but I didn't want you to know how bad it was. Kevin's a fairly dedicated do-gooder, even though he tries to fight it, and he told me if I didn't go with him, he'd drive me out to your place and dump me on the two of you. I didn't want you to see me like that."

Phoebe looked crestfallen. "We're your family! You shouldn't have felt that way."

"I'd already upset you enough. I'd been trying to pretend I was all right, but I just couldn't do it any longer."

"She wasn't all right," Kevin said. "But she's gotten better since she's been here."

"How long are you planning to stay?" Dan's expression was still suspicious.

"Not much longer," Kevin replied. "Another couple of days."

His words made Molly's chest hurt.

"Do you remember Eddie Dillard?" Kevin went on. "He used to play for the Bears."

"I remember him."

"He wants to buy the place, and he's driving up tomorrow to check it out."

Molly's stomach turned over. "You didn't tell me that!"

"Didn't I? I guess I was preoccupied."

Preoccupied having sex with her. But there'd been plenty of time between their erotic workouts for him to have mentioned this.

"We can leave right after that," he said. "I just talked to my business manager this afternoon, and he finally found someone in Chicago to take over for the rest of the summer, a married couple who've done this before."

He might as well have slapped her. He hadn't even told her he'd asked his business manager to look in Chicago. She felt more betrayed than when Phoebe had mentioned the fire alarm. He knew she'd hate this, so he'd neglected to mention it. There was no real communication between them, no common goal. Everything she didn't want to accept about their relationship was right there in front of her. They might share sex, but that was all.

Phoebe nudged a clump of chicory with her toe. "And then what happens?"

She couldn't stand hearing Kevin say it, so she said it for him. "Nothing happens. We file for a divorce and go our separate ways."

"A divorce?" Dan asked. "Not an annulment?"

"Grounds for an annulment are limited." Molly tried to sound impersonal, as if this had nothing to do with her. "You need to prove misrepresentation or duress. We can't, so we'll have to get a divorce."

Phoebe looked up from the chicory clump. "I have to ask…"

Molly knew right away what was coming and tried to think of a way to stop it.

"The two of you seem to get along…"

No, Phoebe. Please don't
.

"Have you considered staying married?"

"No!" Molly jumped in before Kevin could respond. "Do you think I'm crazy? He's not my type."

Phoebe's eyebrows shot up, and Kevin looked annoyed. She didn't care. She was filled with an awful desire to hurt him. Except she couldn't do it. Phoebe was Kevin's boss, and his career meant everything to him.

"Kevin didn't have to bring me up here, but he did it anyway because he knew I needed help." She took a deep breath and reminded herself he'd forgiven her and that she owed him this. "He's been wonderful, extremely kind and sensitive, and I'd appreciate it if the two of you stopped being so suspicious of him."

"We aren't—"

"Yes you are. It's put him in a difficult position."

"Maybe he should have thought about that when he was dragging you into the woods on Sunday," Dan drawled. "Or was he too busy being kind and sensitive?"

Kevin got that tight look around his jaw again. "Exactly what are you trying to say, Dan?"

"I'm saying that if helping Molly was just a humanitarian gesture on your part, you shouldn't be sleeping with her."

"That's it!" Molly exclaimed. "You just crossed the line."

"It's not the first time, and I'm sure it won't be the last. Phoebe and I watch out for our family."

"Maybe you should watch out for somebody else in your family," Kevin said quietly. "Molly's asking you to respect her privacy."

"Is it her privacy you're worried about or your own?"

Antlers were clashing again, but Molly didn't care. "You keep forgetting that I'm not accountable to you any longer. As for my relationship with Kevin… In case you haven't noticed, we're not even sleeping under the same roof."

"And I wasn't born yesterday," Dan said stubbornly.

Molly could no longer hold back. "How about some simple courtesy, then? I've spent the past twelve years pretending I don't see the two of you grope each other, pretending I don't hear the two of you at night when you make—believe me—
way
too much noise. The fact is, Kevin and I are married at the moment. We'll be getting a divorce soon, but we don't have one yet, so whatever is or isn't going on between us isn't a topic for discussion. Do you understand me?"

Phoebe was looking increasingly upset. "Molly, you're not the kind of person who can take sex lightly. It needs to mean something."

"You're damn right it does!" Dan whirled on Kevin. "Did you forget that she just had a miscarriage?"

"Back off." Kevin's lips barely moved.

Dan saw he wasn't getting anywhere there and zeroed in on Molly. "He's a football player, and it's part of the mentality. He may not intend to, but he's using you."

Dan's words stung. He understood what it was to love a woman, so he recognized how shallow Kevin's feelings for her were.

Kevin shot forward. "I told you to back off."

Molly couldn't let this go on any longer, so instead of crying as she wanted to, she went on the attack herself. "Wrong. I'm using
him
. I lost a baby, my career's in the toilet, and I'm broke. Kevin's my distraction. He's my reward for twenty-seven years of being a good girl. Now, do you have any more questions?"

"Oh, Molly…" Phoebe chewed her bottom lip, and Dan looked even more upset.

Molly lifted her chin and glared at both of them. "I'll give him back when I'm done with him. Until then leave me alone."

She'd almost reached Lilies of the Field before Kevin caught up with her. "Molly!"

"Go away," she snapped.

"I'm your
reward
?"

"Only when you're naked. When you have your clothes on, you're a cross to bear."

"Stop being a wise-ass."

Everything was falling apart. Eddie Dillard was showing up tomorrow, and Kevin had found someone else to run the campground. Even worse, there was nothing that could make him care about her in the same way she cared about him.

He touched her arm. "You know they mean well. Don't let them get to you."

He didn't understand that they weren't the ones who were tearing her apart.

Lilly refused to look at the clock as she moved away from the window. The Calebows had finally managed to corner Kevin and Molly, but she couldn't imagine that the confrontation had been productive. Her son and his wife didn't seem to know what they wanted from their relationship, so she doubted they could explain it to her family.

Lilly had liked the Calebows immediately, and their presence these last five days had helped lift her heavy heart. They obviously loved Molly and, just as obviously, saw Kevin as a threat, but Lilly was beginning to suspect that Kevin was as big a danger to himself as he was to Molly.

Nine-thirty
… She headed for the armchair in the corner where she'd left her quilting but picked up a magazine instead. She hadn't been able to work on her quilt since Sunday, when Liam had issued his ultimatum. And now it was Thursday.