Wellesley Wives (New England Trilogy) (37 page)

“Back soon,” she mumbled. Then she got to her feet and out of the little house as soon as she could.

The kitchen was all the distraction she needed. There was chocolate everywhere. The situation was so dire, it made Lily laugh. Natasha was already on a kitchen chair over the sink full of bubbles. The water was freezing cold, but Lily figured it was better than burning herself with scalding water.

She “helped” Natasha wash all the dishes and made the place look good again. The little girl was quick to remind her about the ice cream deal, and Lily intended to follow through on her promise. If she didn’t, Natasha would be slow to cooperate next time. Then they sat down to a plate of delicious chocolate cake and ice cream.

“So, Nat, you know the way Matilda has a sore back?” Lily asked gently.

“Mmhm.” Natasha nodded, mouth too full to speak.

“Well, I was wondering if you’d like to come to my house, just for a few nights, and stay with me and Uncle Jack. My back is great, and we could play all kinds of games. When grandma gets home, you can come back here and have the vacation you were going to have with her. What do you think?”

Natasha looked a little uncertain. “What about Tilly? If her back is sore, we should take care of her.”

“That’s a very good point. We’re coming back here tomorrow morning and maybe we can bring her a get-well present. What do you think?”

Natasha nodded enthusiastically and shoveled in more cake. When her mouth was full, she asked, “Is Uncle Jack living in your house?”

Lily nodded and smiled encouragingly as if to imply that this was an added bonus, but Natasha looked sullen and said, “Maybe we could stay here with Tilly.”

“What does Uncle Jack have to do with it? He’ll be at work most of the time. You won’t see him much, and you know he loves you,” she said.

Natasha shook her head. “I don’t think he does.”

Lily dropped her spoon onto her plate. “Whatever makes you say that? Jack loves you. Everybody loves you.”

“Not Uncle Jack. He’s always mad.”

This floored Lily. How could one so young come out with this stuff? Was it true? She was sure she remembered Jack making a fuss over Rosie when Natasha was born, but that was a long time ago, but she couldn’t recall a single time during family gatherings when Jack had held, or even spoken with, Natasha. Well, that was about to change. She was Lily’s niece and he would damn well bond with her whether he liked it or not.

“Let’s bring him some of your chocolate cake. Then he’ll go crazy for you. He’ll want you to live with us forever and ever!”

It worked. Natasha burst out laughing. “I can’t stay forever. Mommy and Daddy will be home soon. I have to go home to my house.”

“Oh, okay. You and I can play and maybe, if Jack is very nice to you, we’ll let him play, too.”

Natasha gave her aunt a thousand-kilowatt smile and said, “I’ll have to get my Moo first.”

“Good thinking. You go up to your room and get everything you’ll need, and I’ll follow you up as soon as I finish up here. Deal?”

Natasha nodded and was up and out in a flash.

Just as Lily finished up, the phone rang and she answered it.

“Lily, thank God you’re there. I just got Mom’s message. She’s stuck in Ireland?” Rosie said sounding like she was in serious panic mode.

“Hi, Sis. I know, but don’t worry. Everything is fine. Natasha is coming to my place tonight, and Matilda is resting.” Lily thought it wise not to mention the bad back situation. Her sister would only panic more. “Your daughter’s doing great. She really is a pleasure to be with, so full of fun. I can keep her for a few days—or however long it takes—and I have Tilly for backup. How are you? Having a good time?”

“Uh, yeah. The place is fabulous. The sea is the most incredible color of turquoise, and the beaches are so white you can’t believe it, but what about you? Will you be okay with Natasha? Should I talk to her?”

“I’m sure she would love to speak with you,” Lily said and then called up the stairs. Natasha came bounding down. “It’s your mom.” Lily handed Natasha the phone and the child squealed with glee.

“Mommy, Mommy,” she said. “We made chocolate cake and I even had ice cream with it. I love Auntie Lily.” Pause. “Yeah, silly plane.” Another pause. “It’s okay. Aunt Lily is taking care of me and I have my Moo.” She clutched Moo, a soft toy that was well-worn with love.

Lily remembered how it had started life as a brown cow with a black nose and big eyes. Now the eyes were gone, and it had lost its form almost completely, but for Natasha its value was incalculable. It would be a dark day when Moo disappeared.

“Here, Aunt Lily,” Natasha said and handed the phone back to her.

“Lily, I can’t thank you enough. Do you want me to come home? I’m sure I could get a flight out.”

“No way. You just relax and enjoy your vacation. Mom will be home in a day or two and really I’m fine with Matilda here.”

“Oh, I forgot to tell Mommy that Tilly’s back is sore, and I’m sleeping in your house,” Natasha suddenly remembered, but Lily distracted her by pointing to an extra toy she’d left on the kitchen counter.

“Well, okay,” Rosie said, sounding only half-convinced. “Just call if you need me to come home. If anything is wrong, anything at all, just phone me, okay?”

“Okay.” There was no way she was going to let Rosie know if anything went wrong. She was determined to care for her niece for as long as was necessary. This was her chance to redeem herself in both her mother’s eyes, and her big sister’s. It was too good an opportunity to miss, and anyway, she loved Natasha. It would be fun to pretend to be a mom for a few days.

When Natasha was packed up and they’d said good-bye to Matilda, they headed off together. “You don’t have a booster seat,” Natasha said when they got to Lily’s car.

“Oh, does grandma have one we can borrow?” Lily asked as she headed to the garage. Her mom’s Mercedes wasn’t there. It was at the airport. Her new Ferrari was, though. The car her father had died in. It made Lily stop in her tracks.

Parked next to it was her dad’s older Ferrari. It was black and a little more understated, but not much. She doubted anybody had driven it since he died. The reminders were harsh and unexpected, and she felt a sudden jab of raw, real pain, like a knife going through her. Dad was gone, and it was her fault.

“Her car isn’t here,” Natasha interrupted her anguish. “You’re going to have to buy one,” the five-year-old announced.

“Where do you buy a booster seat?” Lily asked.

“At Toys“R”Us.” Natasha climbed into Lily’s car. “You don’t even have a back seat. Where will I sit?”

“It’s going to have to be the front,” Lily said. She hadn’t even left Cliff Road and already she was feeling overwhelmed. Lily GPS’d the closest Toys“R”Us and headed for it. Then she checked the time again. This was getting too close. The conference call was in fifteen minutes.

How would she manage Natasha and take the call? she wondered as she pulled into the parking lot and they entered the store.

“So tell me, do you like Toys“R”Us, Nat? I mean, I know they have so much stuff. There must be loads of good games and dolls here.”

Natasha clapped her hands. “They have every single toy in the world.”

“Well, I have a deal to make with you, kid,” Lily said. “You’re a smart chicken. I think you’ll like this. Auntie Lily has a business call she has to take. If you stay quiet, I’ll let you choose a reward. What do you think?”

“What kind?”

“You can pick out any toy you want, as a present, if you let me talk on the phone without interrupting me. Do we have a deal?”

“Yeah.” Natasha clapped again and ran off in the direction of the dolls. It was obvious that she knew the Natick store well. “She’s gorgeous. Is she yours?” a woman asked her.

“Yes.” Lily didn’t mean to lie. It just came out. Silly, really, but it just felt so right. She probably was, for all intents and purposes, Natasha’s mom for the next few days. Why not take the credit? A little naughty but no harm done. And anyway, it felt nice to be a mommy. She followed Natasha around the various aisles and glanced at her watch again. The call would come in at any minute.

“Now, Nat, you do remember our deal, right?”

“It might not be a doll,” Natasha said, looking panicky.

“That’s no problem. It can be whatever you like.”

As if by magic, Lily’s phone rang and she was transported to the world of Hong Kong derivatives, stocks, and shares.

She managed to focus on her call while shadowing her niece. She even managed to make a few constructive suggestions when asked, but what she didn’t manage to do was keep up with Natasha when she suddenly bolted toward the back of the store. Lily panicked. She was still pretending to listen while she half-walked, half-ran in the direction Natasha had gone. There was no sign of her. She risked putting her phone on mute for a nanosecond.

“Natasha,” she yelled.

“What do you think, Lily?”

She took the phone off mute. “Oh, yes. Maybe can we see this in writing first before we make a decision?”

“It’s just a follow-up call. Can’t you commit to that?”

Damn. “Uh . . . yes, that’s fine,” she said, still looking for Natasha. No sign of her. “Look I have to go. That’s fine.” She hung up even though she could hear they were impatient with her half-attentive attitude. She would deal with that later.

“Na-ta-sha!” she yelled, now in a serious panic. She’d almost lapped the store and she still couldn’t find the little girl. How was that possible?

She felt a hand on her arm, gentle but firm. “Ma’am, have you lost a child?” It was a young male employee wearing a Toys“R”Us red T-shirt. His voice was calm, which kept her calm. In fact, she felt a little crazy. Natasha was almost certainly around a corner somewhere.

“Yes. It’s silly, really. She was beside me one minute, and then she just took off. I don’t know where she went.”

He took her to the front desk. “I’ll keep looking,” she offered.

“No, no,” he said and smiled. “We’d prefer you stay here. Now, tell me, was it a boy or a girl? How old? What were they wearing?”

The man mouthed something to another staff member, and then the metal shutters came down on the store windows and doors. Lily felt real-time slowing down as she tried to take in what was happening around her. She wanted to keep looking.

“Her name’s Natasha,” she said breathlessly as the intercom kicked into action.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, please bear with us. We have a code Adam. Repeat. A code Adam. This is not a drill. Our shutters will stay down until the situation has been resolved.”

Lily couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The man got her to focus. “We don’t want to give out her name, but it’s a little girl, right?”

“Yes.”

“Age?”

“She’s five with long blond hair and dark-brown eyes. Her daddy’s eyes.” It was good they didn’t give out Natasha’s name, she realized. If someone had taken her, they didn’t want to give the kidnapper the information. “Oh dear God,” Lily cried. “Where is she?”

A crackle came from a walkie-talkie.

“Restroom’s clear,” a voice said.

They were systematically searching the premises. This was all really happening. It wasn’t a movie. She had lost her niece over—over what? A stupid business call.

“What is she wearing?”

The intercom crackled again. “We’re looking for a five-year-old girl. She has long blond hair and dark brown eyes.”

What was she wearing? What was she wearing? Lily asked herself. She couldn’t remember and tried to think. When they’d walked in they were laughing, and she was tickling her.

“Chocolate! There’s chocolate all over her white T-shirt. She’s wearing blue jeans and a pink, puffy jacket.”

The words “blue jeans” and “pink puffy jacket” came over the intercom, but her blood was pumping so hard through her brain, that she was having difficulty standing or focusing.

Then she saw them. A lady in a Toys“R”Us T-shirt was carrying Natasha and walking toward Lily.

Lily didn’t wait. She ran and took her from the wonderful lady who’d found her irreplaceable niece. “Natasha, where did you go? I was so scared.” She was crying. This made Natasha cry, too. “Shhh, baby, shhh. Everything’s all right now. I have you and I won’t let you go.”

“Thank you. Thank you so much,” she blurted, squeezing Natasha tightly.

How could she have put Natasha’s life in danger? How could she have been that stupid? The store’s metal shutters glided up again.

Chapter 30 

The No Club

It was evening in Mexico, too. The first day of Rosie’s vacation had been surprisingly good. She’d hit the pool early that morning. In fact, before the restaurant staff had come on duty. That meant she got to have a good look around. She gave a lot of thought as to where they would spend the day and had finally settled on the two lounge chairs closest to the bar. Her reasoning was that it was public, and with any luck, she wouldn’t be propositioned if she sat there. So far, her plan had worked.

    Her husband had turned up sometime around mid-morning looking and sounding a little rough after his late night. She knew that he’d most likely had sex with another woman, or even several other women, the night before. But they couldn’t really talk about that now—not in public. He bent over and kissed her on the forehead just like he did at home.

“Hi, honey,” he mumbled, his voice deeper than usual from lack of sleep and too many cocktails.

“Everything okay?” Her voice had sounded higher-pitched than usual.

“Yeah.” He laughed. “I think so. What a night.” He’d plonked down on the lounge chair beside her. “You should have come; you would have loved it.”

Her husband was so casual about the whole thing. He wore his sunglasses and his swimming suit, and he’d obviously just taken a shower because his hair was wet and slicked back, but he still looked worn out.

“You want a coffee?” she asked, rather than discussing the night before.

Marcus looked around. The place had gotten a little busier by then. A few other bedraggled spirits had gathered around the pool but most were reading or snoozing in the sun. The entire decor was white, but the lounge chairs had deep turquoise-colored cushions for comfort, and the pool boy handed out beach towels in a paler shade of aqua. It was so luxurious, and the weather was perfect. “Coffee sounds great. You want?”