“For heaven’s sake, girls, what is the problem?” Billie said quietly. “This is a wonderful time. We’re all together, and Cary is going to be here any minute. Please, let’s not have him come home to a battleground. Now, you’re both drunk, and if there is one thing I cannot abide, it is a drunken female. I suggest both of you go to the kitchen and get some coffee.”
“Atta girl, Mam,” Maggie said tightly. “You tell ’em.”
“It was a suggestion, not an order,” Billie said, tears forming in her eyes.
“In that case,” Susan drawled drunkenly, “I’ll pass.”
“Well, I won’t,” Ivy said tightly. “I want both of you to sober up before the rest of the family gets here.”
Sawyer set her beer bottle down carefully on the bar. Her eyes were bleak, her hair in wild disarray. “I’m sorry, Ivy. It’s just that I felt I needed some bottled courage to face Cole, and before I knew it, I was half lit. I’ll get the coffee. Susan, do you want any?”
“Well, I certainly don’t want to embarrass our hostess, so I guess I will.” She tottered after Sawyer, her arms flapping about like a rag doll’s.
Billie sighed wearily. Where was Thad? Thad would have been able to handle this. She looked at Maggie. “What’s wrong, Maggie?”
For God’s sake, don’t you know, can’t you see? We’re devastated. Right now I want a drink more than I want to take another breath, but if I do that, I won’t be any good to anyone. “Susan and Ferris have split up. He pulled a Jerome on her, so Rand and Valentine Mitchell went after him. I’m happy to report, according to Rand, that Suse now has her small fortune intact and will be staying with me in Hawaii. She said she’d help run Billie Limited. It will be good for both of us. Seeing little Moss . . . I guess she thought about her daughter and . . . she’s been under a lot of pressure,” Maggie said defensively.
“And seeing me like this certainly didn’t help matters,” Billie said quietly. “Poor Susan, she’s been so unlucky in her choice of men.” Unbearable sadness engulfed her. She’d never had the opportunity to bond with her daughter, but thanks to Amelia, Susan had the life she’d always wanted, that of a concert pianist. Now, it was too late. She would never be able to help her daughter. Secretly she thought Susan incapable of loving anyone, and for that she blamed herself totally. Susan had never looked at her with love.
The inner trembling that warned of a collapse was starting. She had to get herself in hand or the family would see how weak she was. She brought herself back to the present to hear Maggie speaking.
“That too,” Maggie said just as quietly. “You should have told us, Mam. I feel as if we don’t count, that we weren’t important enough for you to share what you were going through.” There was a sob in Maggie’s voice that tore at Billie’s heart.
“Oh, no, darling, it was nothing like that. I just love you all too much to make you unhappy for even one second longer than necessary. If it’s any consolation to you, Thad badgered me every day. Right or wrong, it was what I wanted. Life goes on, Maggie dear, and when we’ve resolved the crisis that has drawn us together, Thad and I will return to Vermont.”
The steely sound in Billie’s voice startled Ivy. She wanted to clap her hands and shout, “Bravo, Billie.” Instead, she allowed a small smile to tug at the corners of her mouth as she offered Billie a sly wink.
They all came at once, Thad and Cary, Riley, Cole and Rand. First, there was the sound of three separate car engines, of horns blowing a greeting. Then came the verbal greetings. The men of the family were home.
Ivy ran to Riley, Maggie to Rand, Thad and Cole to Billie.
“Go to your grandmother,” Ivy whispered in her husband’s ear. She watched as the men crowded around Billie, tears shimmering in her eyes. Billie was so loved, so blessed with her family.
“Hey, what about me?” Cary shouted from the middle of the floor.
“Hey, yourself.” Ivy laughed. “What about you? You’re here, what more do you want?” she quipped.
“Tell ’em, Thad,” Cary ordered.
“We snatched him,” Thad grinned. “I couldn’t have done it on my own. Rand showed up, and between the two of us, we got him out un-dee-tected.”
“Oh, my Lord!” Billie squealed. “Cary, are you well enough?”
“Probably not. It’s been four days. I would have signed myself out tomorrow anyway, so a few hours one way or another isn’t going to make much difference. Doctors don’t know everything. The bottom line is, I wanted to be here. After all, this dinner is for me. I appreciate you all coming like this. I really do. The one thing I have always loved and admired about you all is the way you come together, from all over the world, when one of you has trouble. You stick together like glue, and I’m so grateful to you for your support and love and making me a part of your family. I couldn’t have gotten through . . . hell, you know what I mean. End of speech.” Cary grinned.
“About time,” Susan said. “What would you like to drink, Cary?”
“Suse, is that you?” Cary said, stretching out his hand.
“In the flesh. What would you like?” she repeated.
“Whatever you’re having. My nose tells me Sunbridge stew and fresh bread is on the dinner menu. I don’t want to spoil my appetite.”
Susan’s eyes swiveled to Ivy, who smiled. “Soda pop,” Susan said. “I had a snootful a while ago and made an ass of myself. As usual. We do have cold beer, though.” The tenderness in her voice raised several eyebrows, including Billie’s.
“Beer sounds good. Everybody talk so I can get a feel for where you are.” Cary laughed when a gaggle of sound erupted around him. “Jesus, not all at once, one at a time. Where’s Moss? Ivy, is he here?”
“Afraid not, Cary. He caved in about an hour ago. I tried to keep him up, but he fell asleep in my arms. He might wake up. He does that sometimes when his dad isn’t here to put him to bed.”
“Here, Cary,” Susan said, placing a bottle of Budweiser into his hands. Ivy’s eyebrows rose when she noticed how Susan’s features softened and the way she touched her hand to Cary’s. Her voice was gentle and warm, and she spoke to him in a tone only the two of them could hear. It almost looked as if she was in love with him, Ivy thought.
Cole was the first to break away, his eyes filled with unbearable pain. “So, little mother, how’s it going?” he said to Ivy.
“It’s going. Some days it’s better than other days. The trick is not to get down because it’s just too damn hard to get back up. I kind of stick to the middle of the road,” Ivy said, hugging him. “How’s Sumi? I just know it’s going to be a boy. Or a girl.” Ivy laughed. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Sawyer approaching from the kitchen. Ivy moved off to stand by her husband. Immediately his arm went around her waist. She laid her head on his shoulder.
Sawyer saw Cole before he noticed her. She stopped. For the first time in her life she was uncertain of what she should do. She told him so.
“When I don’t know what to do, I just go with my instincts and say fuck it all,” Cole said quietly.
“Yeah, yeah, that’s pretty much what I do too,” Sawyer said hoarsely. “I ... I guess I got carried away that day on the phone.”
“Yeah. I did too. I’ve been going through a bad time lately. I’m ...” He wanted to say he was sorry, to take the miserable look from his sister’s face, but sorry was just a word. Sawyer wasn’t real big on words, not when actions were available. He closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms around her. Her sigh was like music to his ears. Now he could say it. “I’m sorry, Sawyer.”
“Me too. Let’s pretend it didn’t happen and start over. Boy, do I have things to tell you.”
“It can’t possibly top what I have to tell you,” Cole muttered.
“Tonight, when the others go to sleep, we’ll talk, okay? Down in Billie’s studio. God, I grew up there. I’d kill to have that time in my life back. She’s going to die, Cole, and there’s nothing I can do for her.”
Cole fe
lt like his heart was being wrenched out of his chest. “Smile; Sawyer, or I’ll straighten your hair myself. We owe it to Grandmam to be as brave as she is. It’s not easy, but you do it because you have to do it. I didn’t think I would ever get over Mr. Hasegawa’s death. You don’t get over it, you just go on. It’s part of life. It’s that simple, Sawyer. Life goes on.”
“But—”
“There are no buts. If we pull together, we’ll be able to handle it. God, what is that smell?”
“Stew,” Maggie said, joining them. “No matter how I try, I can’t make it the way it’s made here. I guess it’s the fresh meat. I plan to make a pig of myself, in case anyone is interested.”
“Of course we are,” Rand said, slipping his arm about his wife’s waist.
Something’s wrong, Sawyer thought. Rand was too stiff and his smile didn’t show in his eyes. Maggie didn’t look right. Sawyer moved away, her eyes full of worry, to where Billie was sitting. She squatted down at her grandmother’s feet the way she’d done ever since she was a child. “I’ve missed you guys. Has anyone heard from Julie?” she asked quietly.
“We’ve missed you too, but we do love getting the pictures of the girls. We have them lined up on the mantel. They’re precious, Sawyer, absolutely precious. And yes, we’ve heard from Julie.”
Thad lowered his voice so it wouldn’t travel to Cary and Susan. “She said she’s going to do a bit of traveling and then maybe open her own business in Burlington. She cared deeply for Cary, but like Cary, she was riddled with guilt over their affair. They discussed it all, and both of them agreed parting was the answer. I believe they will always be friends. When we go back, we’ll let her know about Cary, but that part of their life is over. Now, what else do you want to know?”
“How do I toilet-train a set of twins?” Sawyer asked ruefully.
“With a great deal of patience, stamina, and fortitude. If that doesn’t work, buy stock in one of those diaper companies. You were very difficult to train, darling. You were four years and two months when you finally managed to stay dry,” Billie said fondly. “I was about to give up on you.”
“But you didn’t,” Sawyer said softly. “Thank you for that, Grandmam. Did I ever really thank you for all the things you did for me?”
“Hundreds of times,” Billie said lightly. “You, my darling, were one of the best things that ever happened to me. I wouldn’t change one year, one month, one week, one day, one hour of the time we spent together.”
“I wouldn’t either. My happiest memories were here at Sunbridge. I loved living in the studio. Anyway, thanks again.” How husky her voice was. It sounded to her ears like she’d cried too long and too hard. “My God, I’m hungry. When do you suppose we’re going to eat?”
“Right now.” Ivy laughed.
The family sat down to dinner. Riley said grace.
“Dig in,” Thad said happily as he passed one of the three loaves of bread. Riley passed the stew and Ivy passed the salad bowl. Conversation was light, and there were smiles and good-natured bantering back and forth across the table.
When the meal was over, Ivy snapped her fingers. “We ate it all,” she chortled. “Every last drop, and we finished the three loaves of bread. Who has room for peach cobbler?” The chorus of groans and opened belt buckles caused a stir when Jonquil carried the plates to the table.
“Real whipped cream!” Sawyer squealed. “Pile it on, Jonquil. Tomorrow I diet!”
“Tuna fish and broccoli tomorrow.” Ivy laughed.
The moment dinner was over, the family retired to the huge room at the back of the house, coffee cups in hand.
It was time for family business. An uncomfortable silence settled in the room. Who, Ivy wondered, was going to go first? She nudged her husband.
Riley reacted. “Okay, family, I guess I should mention here at the start of this meeting that Cole and I have more or less come to terms with . . . our families. East and West. We’re going to merge these families as one, which was my grandfather’s intention all along. I expect things will be bumpy for a while, but I’m confident we can make the transition relatively painless. What all this means is that we will be able to finance Sawyer’s plane, and she won’t have to seek outside financing. Cole and I agreed to this on the trip back here, so it’s not something we thought of on the spur of the moment.”
“You’re too late,” Sawyer said quietly.
Ivy’s head jerked upright. Billie squirmed in her chair.
“You’re not going to go ahead with it? That’s just like you, Sawyer, get us all riled up, and then you pack it in without telling anyone,” Cole said tightly.
Sawyer’s tone grew more quiet. “As usual, little brother, you weren’t listening. I said you were too late. I didn’t say anything about packing it in.”
“What are you saying, darling? I’m confused, and I think the others are too,” Billie said, matching her granddaughter’s tone.
Sawyer was on her feet, her denim skirt swishing about her ankles. One booted foot tapped the oak floor. She moved again to stand behind Cary’s wheelchair. “Cary offered me all the financing we’ll need. I didn’t have to ask. He offered. I accepted. What that means, family, is it’s a done deed.”
“But—” Cole sputtered.
“No buts, Cole. I asked you first and you wanted to gouge the family. This doesn’t mean I love you any less, but any profits from this plane won’t go into Hasegawa coffers. Coleman Aviation is mine, and don’t you ever forget it. Correction,” Sawyer said smugly, “I have the controlling interest.”
“Why didn’t you tell us about Cary’s offer?” Riley demanded.
“Listen, I’m not one to let something simmer if I can bring it to a boil. I talked about this to Cary a month ago, and then again the day Cole turned shark. I don’t beg anyone in my family to help me. Either you’re there for me or you aren’t. And let me remind you two,” she said, jabbing a finger first at Riley and then at Cole, “it was my husband who pulled your asses out of the fire with his property and his oil. Adam, with my approval—those are the key words, my approval—gave this family a chance to rebound. We didn’t argue about it, or fight, or make deals. You needed our property, and we sold it to you. I have this absolute, total, blind loyalty where this family is concerned. It was my mistake to think you had it too, Cole.”
“That’s not fair, Sawyer,” Maggie snapped.
“Oh, yeah, what’s not fair about it, Maggie? Don’t fight your son’s battles, he’s old enough to do it himself,” Sawyer snarled.
“Riley just said . . . you’re refusing to take their money, but you’ll take money from Cary, an outsider?” Maggie railed.
Billie was on her feet and halfway across the room in a second. The slap to Maggie’s face was like a gunshot in the quiet, stunned room. “I have never in my life been ashamed of you, but I’m ashamed now,” Billie said coldly. “You will apologize this instant,” she ordered.
Maggie reeled backward, expecting to find her husband standing behind her, but it was Cole who caught her arm. In all of her life her mother had never laid a hand on her. She was too stunned to do anything but stare at her family. What she saw registered on their faces was shock and disgust. She jerked free of her son’s arms and ran from the room. Cole started after her.
“No!” came the iron command.
Cole stopped in his tracks. He’d never heard that tone of voice from his grandmother.
Billie, with Thad’s help, walked over to Cary’s chair. With great difficulty she dropped to her knees and reached for his hand. “In my heart, Cary, I don’t believe Maggie meant what she said. I’m afraid this is all my fault, and I’m perfectly willing to take the blame. This is why I didn’t want anyone to know about my illness. It’s me Maggie is angry with. She’s angry . . . because . . . because she wants me to live forever, like I wanted Amelia to live forever. I think I was the only one who understood what Amelia was trying to do before she passed away. She wanted to spare us, and herself too. Bu
t, selfishly, we wouldn’t let her. You are not to think for one second that you do not belong to this family. You are this family. If you want a chorus of ayes, it can be arranged. Please, I beg you, Cary, don’t judge us by Maggie’s outburst. I know my daughter, and I know she’s already regretting what she said. Words spoken thoughtlessly or carelessly can carry a lifetime of hurt. I can’t change that and I have no right to ask you to forgive my daughter. I think it’s written somewhere that only a mother will forgive anything her children do because mothers love unconditionally.”
Cary took a deep breath. “There’s nothing to forgive, Billie. I know how Maggie feels.” The warm tears splashing on the back of his hands made his heart thump. He could deny this wonderful woman nothing. Next to Amelia, he loved her more than any other person in the world. He felt Thad lift Billie from her kneeling position.
“Now listen . . . family . . . if there’s a problem with my offer to Sawyer . . .”
“There’s no problem, Cary,” Sawyer said gently.
“Well, if there is, we can work it out. Isn’t that what families do?” Cary asked airily.
Riley’s eyes sparked in Cole’s direction. “No problem, Cary,” he said quietly.
“Carry on, folks,” Thad said. “I’m giving Billie a ride upstairs. She wants to turn in early. I’ll be down later. Cary, do you mind hanging around a bit longer?”
Susan answered for Cary. “No, he doesn’t mind. I’m going to take him for a walk in the garden. It’s a beautiful evening and I could use some fresh air.”
“That’s an offer I certainly won’t refuse. Bring some cigarettes, Susan.”
“They’re in my pocket.” Susan giggled. “Hang on now.”
“Anyone want a drink?” Rand asked.
“Is it hemlock we’re serving tonight?” Sawyer snapped. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that.”
“I can’t believe you accepted Cary’s offer,” Cole said tightly. “You know that means he has to either mortgage or sell Miranda. You’ll be stripping him bare. Is that what you want?”
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