Life After Perfect

by Nancy Naigle

  “All the rooms are all a little different,” Naomi said. “I’ve had a lot of fun decorating, and redecorating them over the years. My Marshall was such a sweetheart about letting me have my way with the house.”

  “Aunt Naomi did those pictures.”

  “Really? It’s like that scratchboard art, right? I noticed the sign out front is the same medium,” Katy said. Not to mention half the town.

  Naomi shrugged. “I was kind of known for that back in the day.”

  “Kind of,” Kelly Jo said. “She’s famous for it. Uncle Dillon wasn’t the only famous Laumann.”

  “You did all the signs for Main Street too?” Katy asked.

  “Most of them. Now they just have them made somewhere to look like the others. But yes, there was a time when I did all the signage for the town. It was fun.”

  “You are just full of little surprises. It’s a great look. It’s one of the first things I noticed when I drove through town.” Katy pulled the nightstand away from the wall so Kelly Jo could reach everything more easily on the tray.

  “Thanks, Katy. Sorry I was so much trouble this morning.”

  “Don’t be silly. I’m glad I was here to help. What else can I do for you while I’m here?”

  “Nothing.” Kelly Jo took in a deep breath. “I’m just going to rest.”

  Naomi leaned over and pressed a kiss to Kelly Jo’s forehead. “Love you, sweetheart.”

  She closed her eyes. “Love you, too.” Her mouth moved but no sound came out.

  Katy and Naomi walked back out of the room, and Naomi closed the door quietly behind them. “Bless her heart.”

  Katy wrapped an arm around her. “That’s got to be so hard. Are you all the family she has left? You and Nell?”

  “Well, and her husband, Todd. Remember. I mentioned him before.”

  “Where is he?”

  Naomi shook her head. “Oh, don’t get the wrong idea. He is an amazing young man. He loves that girl more than his own life. She just won’t let him see her like this.” Naomi raised a hand. “I know what you’re thinking. Believe me. I’ve said my piece about it. The girl is determined that it will be easier on him if he’s not here when she dies.”

  The breath caught in Katy’s chest. She wasn’t sure she could be that unselfish . . . heck, that brave, to go through what Kelly Jo was going through alone. How deep was a love that it would have you forge ahead alone to spare another. “She’s trying to protect him.”

  “Yes, well, who am I to judge? I just want her to be at peace.” Naomi’s eyes glistened. “Things change when people die, leaving us to pick up the pieces and reshape our lives. It’s not easy.”

  “When did Marshall pass away?”

  They walked back out to the living room. Naomi sat in one of the large wing-back chairs, crossing her legs and looking rather demure. She’d probably been a beautiful young girl.

  “Twelve years ago.” Her mouth puckered a little. “Never has been the same without him.”

  “Had he been sick?”

  She shook her silver-haired head. “No. He was older than me. He was resting in his lounger. He’d do that. Fall asleep in the chair watching CNN. One day, he just never woke up. I came in to share a cup of tea with him and he just didn’t respond.” Naomi stared off like she was reliving the moment. “I don’t know how long I sat there, kind of knowing but not wanting to know.”

  “There’s no easy way. Just before I came here one of my neighbors lost her husband. Same thing. No warning. Just didn’t wake up one day.”

  “We had a good life. He left me in good shape financially. Nell always tells people I’m living off of my Social Security, but that’s not true. I’d never be able to keep this place up on that pittance.”

  “I can imagine. The electricity bill alone has to be out of this world. You could rent the suite I’m staying in for so much more.”

  A gentle laugh filled the space. “It’s not about the money. It’s just nice to have someone to fuss over, to cook for once in a while. Really. It’s my pleasure.”

  “I’m sure you get a lot of repeat customers. I know I’d come back.”

  “Thank you. I’d like that too. Marshall left me plenty of money to keep this place going without renting out the rooms, but he’d always had them filled with people staying for one thing or another and it just was so darn lonely here by myself.”

  She wanted to ask Naomi if the loneliness after Marshall died was why she’d named the inn Lonesome Pines, but that seemed too personal. “Why don’t you sell this place and move to that little cabin on the creek you were talking about? Or build one on part of the land? It looks like you’ve got some acreage around here.”

  “I do. It’s about eighty acres.” She pointed to the bookshelf. “Bring those photo albums over. I’ll show you some things.”

  Katy got up and retrieved a stack of four photo albums, all bound in cordovan leather with a gold-leaf border. Naomi got comfortable on the couch and then patted the cushion next to her for Katy to sit down. Katy joined her and they opened one of the albums up across both of their laps.

  They spent the next hour with Naomi guiding Katy through pictures from her and Marshall’s courtship, and their wedding. She’d been a lovely bride. Marshall was good-looking, too. Naomi hadn’t exaggerated.

  The parties were like nothing she’d ever imagined. Fancy outfits, people mugging for the camera, beautiful flowers—grand in every kind of way. Ron would have loved that life. She might have, too, if there had been a couple tiny ones to chase around the yard and pick up after between parties. On the outside Naomi’s life looked perfect, but then she was renting rooms to strangers just to have company and someone to fuss over. Maybe her life would have been different had she and Marshall had children. That thought only made Katy yearn for children more. To hold that life in her arms. And Kelly Jo, so fragile. She ached to somehow help her.

  Naomi pointed out a few celebrities in the grainy photographs. “That right there is a very young Loretta Lynn. She loved it out here. And look. Do you know who that is?”

  Katy shook her head.

  “Andy Griffith. He’s from over Mount Airy way. I was always surprised he gave up singing to pursue the acting, but he was equally wonderful at both.”

  “So people like that came here all the time?”

  “Not all the time, but any time. I never knew how many people we would be hosting. It was kind of like living on a party cruise.”

  “I can see why you wouldn’t want to just walk away from these memories.”

  “The memories are in here,” she said tapping the side of her head. “But I think this house isn’t done with its work. I’d always thought I’d leave the place to Kelly Jo. She’s the only one who ever loved it as much as I do. Marshall’s niece was Kelly Jo’s mother. She died very young. It was pneumonia.”

  “And you and Marshall never wanted children of your own?”

  “Marshall was dead set against it. Afraid the crazy would be passed to our children.” A wistful look cloaked Naomi. “I’d have given it a chance, but it wasn’t meant to be.”

  “Kelly Jo is lucky to have you.”

  “I asked Derek, Dr. Hansen,” Naomi corrected herself, “to come and talk to her. Not as a doctor, but as someone who has been through this. She’s already been to doctors all over this country. But Derek, he’s special. He knows what she’s going through. I think if he shares his story with her, about his sweet Laney, that Kelly Jo will be able to let go. If nothing else, maybe she will let Todd back into her life.”

  Maybe Katy could pray for that. Peace for the sweet gal trying to navigate the end of her life. How does someone even emotionally wrap her head around that?

  “Sometimes things seem so clear on the outside, but what’s happening on the inside . . . it’s a whole other story. I think sometimes people are just too brav
e for their own good these days. It’s okay for things not to be perfect.”

  Perfect. Lord, Katy knew a few things about trying to be perfect. But then even perfect didn’t last. Although Derek had described his wife as perfect, the short time they’d had together didn’t seem fair and seemed pretty far from perfect.

  “Love your life, my dear. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I know it’s something. I saw it in your eyes when you showed up. Don’t let the past haunt your future. Just let the world take you in its arms and the journey will unfold.”

  Tears welled in Katy’s eyes, blurring her line of vision. “I’m trying so hard to do that.”

  “Things happen for a reason. Though they sure aren’t easy to see sometimes. Like Derek. Him losing Laney seemed to have derailed an amazing career, but I’m willing to bet there’s something even better in his future. That’s the way God works. It’s kind of like me and my house. I know the right thing will happen at some point. Someone will come along who is going to carry this place forward in new and wonderful ways. I’ll know when the right situation offers itself.”

  “I’m sure you will.”

  “I hope you’ll stay for a while.”

  “Thank you. At least I can help while I’m here. I’m not used to sitting idle.”

  “My kind of girl.”

  “Good. Then, I’ll stick around and give you a hand.” And that honestly felt like the best thing she could do with her life right now. Make a little difference, ease a little burden, for people who needed her.

  When Derek drove up to the house, Katy was sitting on the front porch.

  She’d looked pretty upset at the clinic, but he wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t like he’d said he was a movie producer and tried to seduce her into an audition on his casting couch. They’d had a great night. Really great.

  He hoped she’d say something that might give him a clue as to what was on her mind. He stood at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for some indication of what he was in for.

  “You lied to me.” Her jaw pulsed.

  Was she mad or was she going to cry? Oh, he prayed she wasn’t going to cry. “I didn’t lie,” he answered cautiously.

  “You let me believe you worked for the fire department.”

  “And I do.”

  “Everyone does. Naomi said so.”

  “So, then it just corroborates my story. I’m on the volunteer fire department roster, and I’m a doctor.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I told you about Laney. I left my oncology work behind after she died.”

  “It caught me off guard. You seemed so nice. Honest. And then nothing you said seemed real. I mean what little I did know about you wasn’t what I knew at all. Or something. I don’t know.”

  “Look. I’ve been out of this for a long time. When I saw you at the gas station . . . something just kind of clicked. It was nice. I’m sure I’m going to say or do something wrong, but are you really mad at me? I didn’t lie to you. Do you think I was trying to be deceptive?”

  “It sounds really stupid when you say it out loud.” She shrugged. “Not exactly. But maybe.”

  “Well, everything I told you was true. Now add to that that I’m also a doctor filling in for his dad at his dad’s busy practice so his mom can have company marking some stuff off of her bucket list; and I’m still practicing medicine to maintain some part of my career as I figure out what my future looks like.”

  The tension in her jaw relaxed a little.

  “I really didn’t mean to mislead you. We never talked about what we did. It just didn’t come up. What do you do?”

  “I work in the financial industry. A project manager.” She laced her fingers. “This is so awkward. I don’t do that kind of thing. I mean, the other night. Random get-togethers. With strangers.” She groaned.

  “I meant for a living, but the other night was fun. And I’m not that strange. Am I?” He walked up the steps and turned to sit next to her. “I haven’t been out on a date since my wife died. I know what we had wasn’t technically a date, but it turned into one. Didn’t it? Kind of? Would you call it a date?”

  “I’m so out of my comfort zone right now.” Her laugh sounded nervous, and that was attractive, and the truth was . . . he was nervous too.

  “Me, too, but I’d like to see you again while you’re in town.”

  She held his gaze, but for the life of him he didn’t know how to read her. He was almost afraid to continue. “If that’s okay.”

  “I don’t know, Derek. My life is really complicated.”

  “Whose isn’t? I became a doctor to heal. To make a difference. And what good is that if you can’t heal the ones that you love the most?”

  “Her dying was not your fault.”

  “She’d been sick for a long time. Fought hard, but then I made her fight way longer than she wanted to. Every cutting-edge trial out there, I got her into it.”

  “Who wouldn’t? You loved her. You wanted to save her. Don’t apologize for that.”

  “In hindsight it was so selfish.” He closed his eyes for a moment. He’d never even really talked about this with anyone. It had always been too hard. But then maybe since she didn’t know Laney, it somehow made it easier, because here he was talking about her again with this woman he barely knew. “It was foolish to have believed that medicine could outdo what God had already planned.” Not that God’s plan made any sense in this case. Maybe it never did, but Laney was one of His biggest advocates. She shared the word. Lived it. A shining example.

  And that just made Derek mad at God. Couldn’t He have done something? If medicine wasn’t enough, wasn’t it His job to step in?

  He shrugged, cutting off his own thoughts. “That’s my story.”

  “You’re right. It’s complicated. And sad. I’m sorry you went through that.”

  “Thanks.” He squeezed her hand briefly. “I liked being with you. It was easy.” Not like that. “Wait. That didn’t come out right. Not easy. You know what I mean.”

  She laughed. “Yeah, calling a girl easy is not the way to get a date.”

  “I told you I wasn’t good at this. And it’s not a date. It’s just . . . a thing.”

  “A thing?”

  “Dinner. In a public place?” He stood up. He was out of ideas. He’d been crazy to agree to see Kelly Jo. It was the last thing he wanted to do, but because it meant he might see Katy again, he’d agreed. And now here he was. His only chance. Come on, Katy, give me a break.

  “Okay. Just dinner. Not a date. How about you take me to the Blue Skies Cafe?”

  “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

  She stood up. “Okay then.”

  He nodded toward the door. “I promised Naomi that I’d talk to Kelly Jo.”

  “I feel sorry for her husband.”

  “You heard? Hell, I know exactly what that man is going through. Only, thank God, Laney never shut me out. He and I played ball in school years ago. I know this has to be tearing him apart.”

  “Why doesn’t he just come?”

  “I’m sure he’s trying to give her what she wants.”

  “Wow. I don’t know if I could do that,” she said.

  “Me, either. I admire him for it, though. I get it, too. I mean on one hand there’s so little that you can do, that doing anything, like giving Kelly Jo her way on this request, is at least something. There are no right answers in this. Every single situation is different.” He started toward the door. “I’m just going to . . .” He pointed to the door and then went inside.

  As the screen door closed behind him, he turned to her. “Think we could go as soon as I’m done? I’ll be ready for some good company.”

  She tossed her head back and laughed. “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You don’t waste any time.”

  “If th
ere’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that you can’t waste a precious moment.”

  “I’ll change. Take your time.”

  He had no idea what he was going to say to Kelly Jo, but he knew that he could do it a little better after talking to Katy. She gave him a lift. A spark. A something he hadn’t thought he’d ever feel again. And even if it was temporary, it was a nice thing to know that it might exist again. And it didn’t mean leaving those memories of Laney behind, either. There was room for both.

  Chapter Thirteen

  It had been over forty-five minutes by the time Derek came back down the hall from his visit with Kelly Jo.

  Naomi had fallen asleep on the couch, and Katy sat rereading the same page in the novel she’d started. Why had she agreed to dinner?

  Why hadn’t she just moved on after she saw Derek this afternoon? That would have been the right thing to do. She could have gone on up to Virginia Beach and been walking on the beach by now. Not that the beach in June was anyplace she’d ever really wanted to be. Maybe Skyline Drive instead. The mountains were always nice in the summer.

  There were plenty of people in this town to help Naomi around the inn. If she was trying to persuade herself that Naomi needed her, not that she wanted to stay, that reason wasn’t all that convincing . . . even to herself.

  When Derek came back down the hall from visiting with Kelly Jo, he had a pained look.

  That visit must have been a tough one. It had to be hard to go back to that place that held such pain in the not-so-distant past, especially when the scars were still not healed. The look in his eyes made her heart ache for him. Do those scars ever heal? Would her own? Maybe all experiences are baggage of some sort.

  She laid the novel down on the coffee table and met him halfway. “Are you sure you’re still up to going to dinner tonight?”

  He paused, then looked up for a moment. “Yes.” He held out his hand for hers. “More than anything.”

  She placed her hand in his and let him lead the way outside to his truck.