by Force, Marie
“I want you to know I appreciate that you told me yourself when it would’ve been easier to let me hear it through the grapevine—and believe me, the grapevine tried to tell me.”
“I’m sure there were plenty of people trying to warn you away from me,” he said bitterly, even though he knew he deserved nothing less.
“I wouldn’t let them warn me away from you, and I won’t let you warn me away either.”
“You won’t?” David asked, floored.
She shook her head. “What you told me is upsetting. I won’t deny that. I can’t even think about how it must’ve been for Janey.”
“I don’t like to think about that either. I’m deeply ashamed of that. More than you can ever believe.”
“What if…”
“What, Daisy? Just say it. Whatever you want to ask. It’s fine.”
“What if something difficult or stressful happens again? Is that how you’re going to deal with it?”
“I can’t promise you that I’ll always do exactly the right thing, but I can promise I’d never be unfaithful to a partner again. It was an awful thing to do to her. I was extremely disrespectful of all the years we’d spent together, and I hurt her so badly. That’s the part I most regret.”
“It matters to me, greatly, that you’re ashamed and regretful and contrite about it. My father was never any of those things. He was belligerent about his right to be happy, to hell with who got hurt in the process. He never once apologized to my mother or any of us for what he did. And then he had the nerve to turn his back on me when I chose to be with someone he didn't approve of. Ironic, huh?”
“I’d say so.”
She looked at him with those big, doe-like eyes that had touched him from the first time Truck Henry’s fists landed her in the clinic. “We all have things in our past we’re not proud of, David. Even me.” Her lashes fell over her cheeks as she seemed to summon the fortitude to say what was on her mind. “I was married, briefly, when I was eighteen. That was the first in a string of bad choices I made where men are concerned.”
“Tell me,” he said. “I want to know you, Daisy.”
Although this was the last thing in the world she wanted to talk about—ever—he’d shared his past with her, so how could she do less than the same? “His name was Curt, and he was everything I wasn’t—brave and fearless and brazen. A typical bad boy, right down to the motorcycle with no muffler, the piercings, the tattoos, the torn leather and the long greasy hair. I lost my mind, among other things, over him my senior year of high school. My parents were divorced by then, but they came together in their mutual hatred of him.”
“Sounds like it got pretty rough for you.”
“It was horrible. The more they hated him, the more I dug in. Looking back at it now, I’m not sure if I married him because of him or because of them and wanting to defy them.”
“How did you end up married?”
“I refused to stop seeing him, so they kicked me out of the house where I grew up and told me I was on my own. I went to his place, if you could call a stall in his grandmother’s garage a ‘place.’ We stayed there until his grandmother decided she’d had enough of us, too, and then we hit the road on his bike. We were dead broke, but somehow we managed to survive for an entire summer by picking up odd jobs here and there. It was ridiculous when I think about it now. One night we got drunk with some guys we worked with, and they got the big idea that we ought to get married. I was so bombed that I have no memory of the so-called ceremony, but he had the marriage license to prove it was done.”
David noticed that her hands had begun to tremble, so he took hold of them.
“When I woke up the next morning, I couldn’t remember anything, but I was really sore… Between my legs. And the guys, they were acting very strangely. Looking at me differently… I don’t know for sure, but I think he let them take turns with me.”
Shock reverberated through him. “Jesus, Daisy,” he whispered.
She took a deep, trembling breath. “It didn’t take long to realize I’d married the kind of guy who’d let other men take turns with his wife. To say the marriage went from bad to worse, quickly, is putting it mildly.”
“Did you go home to your parents?”
She shook her head. “They wouldn’t have me. They said I’d ‘made my bed’ and I was on my own.”
“How old were you then?”
“Twenty—and pregnant.”
“God. The baby…”
“I lost it at nineteen weeks. It took me a long time to recover physically and emotionally from that. I kicked around for a while living on the charity of friends until I got a job at a hotel in Boston, and finally got a place with some girls from work a year after I left him.”
He put his arms around her and tucked her head in under his chin. “I’m so sorry you went through such an awful thing.”
Her hand on his belly had his full attention, and he had to remind himself her nearness was about comfort, not sex.
“How did you end up out here?”
“I answered an ad in the paper. I was tired of working in the city and commuting. It sounded like paradise out here, and it is, for the most part. The off-season is difficult for those of us who are seasonal workers.”
“I thought you were year-round at the hotel now.”
“It’s probationary for the summer. If I don’t get the job full-time, I may have to move back to the mainland so I can work in the winter. My rent is going up, and I don’t think I can afford it, unless I get the new job, and even then it’ll be tough.”
“You’ll get the job.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
David tightened his hold on her and let his lips slide over the silky softness of her fragrant hair, filled with relief that she knew his secrets and hadn’t run screaming from him. He wouldn’t have blamed her if she had.
“What time is our reservation at Domenic’s?” she asked.
“It was thirty minutes ago.”
“What time is it?”
“Almost eight.”
“How did it get so late?”
David’s stomach growled, loudly, making them laugh.
“Sounds like someone needs to eat.”
“Want to go see if they held our table for us?”
“I’d love to.”
As they stood, he kept a hold on her hand and brought it to his lips. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For not running away from me when I shared the worst of myself with you and for trusting me with your story.”
She rested her hands on his shoulders and looked up at him. “I want to be able to trust you, David. That’s going to matter to me.”
“You can trust me. I swear you can. I hate myself for what I did to Janey. I never want to hurt someone like that again.” He slipped his arms around her waist. “Especially you, when you’ve already had enough heartache for one lifetime.”
“I won’t disagree with you there.” She went up on tiptoes to kiss him, her lips soft and sweet against his.
Desire streaked through his system like an out-of-control wildfire. He drew back from her so she wouldn’t feel the evidence of how badly he wanted her before she was ready to know.
“Do you mind if we stop at my place before we go to dinner? I was planning to get changed before I picked you up.”
“Not at all. I’d love to see where you live.”
“It’s nothing special,” he said as he ushered her out of the office.
“Yes, it is. You live there.”
David had no idea how he’d managed to get so lucky to find this lovely woman with the heart of gold, but now that he had, he was becoming more determined all the time to keep her in his life.
Chapter 6
Carolina stood next to Seamus at the ferry landing as the last boat of the day from the mainland cleared the breakwater and entered South Harbor. The sun was just beginning to set over the dunes, firing the water with vivid re
d, orange and yellow reflections and casting a glow over the town. At least the island was at its most lovely for Mrs. O’Grady’s arrival, Carolina thought, touching her hair to make sure everything was where it belonged.
“Stop fidgeting, love. You look beautiful.”
“I look old.”
He put his arm around her, drew her in close and spoke directly into her ear. “I’m starting a new list of grievances I need to address with my hand to your bum the next time I have the chance.”
Carolina shivered from the heat of his breath against her ear and the promise she heard in his tone. She was still recovering from the shock of how decadent their night in the tent had been.
“You do not look old. You, my love, look sexy and delicious and ripe and—”
She pressed her hand against his mouth. “Stop it. Right now.”
Naturally, he sent his tongue to do his dirty work for him. “You stop it.”
“You.”
His eyes danced with mischief and amusement. “No, you.” He stopped her from replying by kissing her senseless right there on the ferry landing where anyone could see them, including his mother, who was somewhere on the boat that was about to dock.
Oh my God! He drives me nuts! Never, in her wildest imagination, could Carolina have pictured a relationship quite like this one. Her quiet, satisfying—if somewhat lonely—life before him seemed like a hundred years ago when it had actually been less than a year. At times, she craved her former uncomplicated life. But would she want to go back to life before Seamus?
No, she thought, resigned to her fate with the big, burly, outrageous Irishman who made her heart beat fast and loved her with such abandon she could no longer picture life without him. She’d had absolutely no clue that a love like this even existed. Sure, she’d seen it portrayed in movies and in romance novels, but experiencing it firsthand had been an eye-opening journey.
At times she still felt guilty when she had to acknowledge that her marriage to Pete Cantrell had been nothing like her relationship with Seamus. While she’d loved Pete with her whole heart and soul and mourned deeply when she lost him so young, the quiet, respectful love they’d shared was very different from the fiery, all-consuming passion she had with Seamus.
“Why the deep sigh?” Seamus asked, tuned into her as always.
“No reason.”
“I hate that you’re so wound up over this visit, Caro. I wish I’d never let you talk me into it.”
He sounded so uncharacteristically defeated that Carolina decided it was well beyond time to let it all go. She loved this man. She wanted a life with him, and if his mother didn’t approve, well then, so be it.
“I’m sorry I’ve been such a wreck.” She looked up at him, swayed as always by the intense way he gazed at her, telling her with every look and touch and smile that she was his entire world. “I love you. I love us. I want this, and if she doesn’t approve, well then, I guess she doesn’t approve.”
Resting his hand on his heart, he shook his head as if he hadn’t heard her correctly. “Don’t tease me, love. If you don’t mean it—”
“I mean it.” She kissed him. “I love you. No matter how crazy I get, please don’t ever doubt that.”
He took a series of deep, dramatic breaths. “I might be hyperventilating.”
Carolina elbowed him in the ribs. “Knock it off.”
Laughing, Seamus kept an arm tight around her shoulders as they watched the boat turn around to back into port. “Look who’s at the helm,” Seamus said.
“I didn’t know Joe was on this boat.”
“I didn’t either. He must’ve swapped with someone.”
As they watched Joe competently align the huge ferry with the pier and back it smoothly into port, Carolina was filled with pride. “He’s so darned good at that.”
“He sure is. I remember the first time I did it here. Damn near crapped myself with that tight turnaround in the smallest harbor I’ve ever seen. But Joe stood right next to me and talked me through it. He showed me all the Gansett Island tricks in that one lesson.”
“I remember so well the first time my father taught him. They came home that night, and my dad was bursting with excitement. ‘The boy’s a natural,’ he said.”
“I wish I could’ve met your folks.”
“I do, too. My dad would’ve liked you.”
“Would he have approved of you and me?”
“Oh, God, yes. They begged me for years after Pete died to go out with someone else. They would’ve loved you and the way you boss me around.”
“I do not boss you around.”
She gave him her most withering look.
“I encourage you to expand your horizons. That doesn’t count as bossing.”
“Whatever you say.”
The cars and trucks came first off the ferry, followed by a flood of people with suitcases, bicycles and dogs on leashes.
Because he still had his arm around her, Carolina felt Seamus stiffen.
“Holy hell. What in the name of Jesus, Mary and Joseph is he doing here?”
“Who?” Carolina followed his gaze to a compact gray-haired woman accompanied by a young man—an extremely handsome young man.
“My cousin, Shannon.”
Oh perfect, Carolina thought. A surprise guest!
Seamus released his tight hold on her and walked toward the ramp to greet them.
Nora O’Grady’s bright blue eyes lit up at the sight of her son as the evening breeze lifted a lock of her gray hair.
Seamus scooped her up and swung her around. The pure joy she saw on his face as he hugged his mother told Carolina a lot about how much he’d missed her. His extremely handsome cousin stood next to them, taking in the town with an aura of disdain. Fabulous. His hair was a darker shade of reddish brown than Seamus’s and longer, Carolina observed, as Seamus hugged Shannon.
He was a bit taller than Seamus, at least five years younger, and lanky but muscular. He must have women falling at his feet, Carolina thought as the three of them came toward her with Shannon carrying a duffel bag and Seamus positively beaming as he pulled a suitcase on wheels.
Carolina had never seen him look so happy as he took her hand and squeezed it.
“Mum, Shannon, this is Carolina Cantrell, the love of my life. Carolina, my mother, Nora O’Grady, and my cousin, Shannon.”
As they all shook hands, Carolina felt the heat of Nora’s stare on her. How would it feel, she wondered, to meet the love of your son’s life and to discover she was nearly twenty years older than him? Judging by the shock Nora was trying hard to hide, her son had failed to mention the age difference to his mother. This just got better and better.
Joe came off the boat and walked over to them. “Hey, Mom, Seamus.”
Carolina smiled up at her son as he kissed her cheek. “Hi, honey. I want you to meet Seamus’s mother, Nora O’Grady, and his cousin, Shannon. This is my son, Joe.”
“And my fabulous boss,” Seamus added.
“Oh, hey, great to meet you,” Joe said as he shook their hands.
Nora’s sharp gaze darted between Joe and Seamus before finally landing on Carolina. “Well,” she said in a heavy Irish burr, “t’isn’t this going to be an interesting visit?”
* * *
As Janey got closer to her delivery date, Maddie started bringing dinner to her and Joe at least once a week. She remembered all too well how clumsy and cumbersome she’d felt toward the end, especially with Thomas.
She’d been on her own then, panic-stricken about bringing a baby into the world without the help of the child’s father. Those frightening and uncertain days seemed like a far-off time now that she was happily settled with Mac and their children, but it wasn’t all that long ago.
She knocked lightly on Janey’s front door, hoping she wasn’t disturbing her sister-in-law.
“Come on in,” Janey called.
Maddie walked into the foyer of the contemporary house Joe and Janey had bought a mile from wh
ere she and Mac lived. She absolutely loved having them close by. Janey’s dogs came rushing to see who’d come to visit. “It’s just me, guys,” Maddie said to them as they gave her a thorough sniffing.
“I’m beached on the sun porch,” Janey said.
Maddie put away the chicken, roasted potatoes, salad and brownies in the kitchen and went to find Janey stretched out on a chaise in the screened-in back porch. “What a lovely spot this is,” Maddie said, taking in the mature landscaping in the big back yard and the colorful pots of flowers Janey had put on the patio outside.
“We quite love it and so do the dogs,” Janey said. “Can I offer you something to drink that you’ll have to get yourself?”
Maddie laughed and collapsed into a chair. “No, thanks. As long as I can sit here long enough for Mac to get the kids in bed, I’ll be happy. It’s been a long day at the ranch.”
“What’s going on?”
“Hailey is teething and starting to cruise around, which means she can get into Thomas’s stuff, which means I have to be hypervigilant about what he’s playing with so she can’t get ahold of something she can choke on. And then she gets something of his, and suddenly that’s the thing he most wants to play with, and he forgets all about how much he loves his baby sister. Ahh, good times.”
Janey laughed. “Sounds like it. So my mom might’ve mentioned that you and Mac put on a bit of a show for Thomas the other night…”
“Ugh! Don’t remind me. I’m still recovering from the trauma!”
“And how is he?”
“Hasn’t mentioned it again, so we’re hoping we can leave that special moment in the past.”
“Tell me the whole thing, leaving out any disgusting details about my brother that’ll scar me for life.”
Maddie relayed the story in the least amount of detail possible, which made Janey howl with laughter.
“I’m going to pee my pants if I don’t stop laughing,” she said when she recovered her breath. “That is freaking hilarious.”