by Kathi Daley
“I imagine that he is right about that. In the meantime, maybe you should take a break.” I couldn’t help but notice how completely exhausted Kyle looked. He’d only been out of the hospital for a day, and while I knew that he was as motivated as anyone to figure out who was behind the bomb, I didn’t want him to overdo.
“I suppose I could use a break.” Kyle glanced out the window. “The rain and snow showers have stopped, and the sun is out. Maybe we can bundle up and sit on the back deck while the dogs get some exercise.”
“That sounds like a perfect plan. I’ll grab some blankets.”
The estate Kyle owned was located in an isolated cove on Paradise Lake. Jeremiah Collins, the man who brought residents to the area when he opened a lumber mill more than a hundred years ago, had built the huge home. Kyle had inherited the estate from his grandfather, Zachary Collins, four years ago. He’d completely remodeled it since then, but the exquisite location amongst the only grove of old growth trees left in the area was really something to behold.
“This is nice,” I said after tucking a blanket around Kyle and then snuggling in beside him. “Things have been so hectic since the explosion. And so stressful. I feel like I really haven’t had a chance to catch my breath.”
“Things have been intense. I feel like I am missing an entire chunk of time.”
“The explosion was just three days ago. Not all that long in the grand scheme of things, but with everything we’ve had to deal with, it seems a lot longer.”
Kyle wove his fingers through mine. “I guess I missed Gracie’s presentation at school on Wednesday.”
My youngest sister, Gracie, had been assigned a presentation relating to the history of the Paradise Lake area, and she’d chosen to do her speech about Kyle’s family and the impact they’d had on the entire area when they brought commerce and jobs to the area.
“I talked Hunter into releasing me from my overnight stay in time to make it to the presentation,” I informed Kyle. “She did really well. The information and photos you provided to her made her speech by far the best of any of those presented.”
“I’m really sorry I missed it.”
I tucked the blanket up under my chin to ward off the slight breeze. “Me too but there will be other presentations to attend. In fact, I think Ashley has a founder’s day event after the first of the year, and, of course, Gracie has the Thanksgiving play in a couple of weeks.”
Kyle adjusted his position slightly. He was trying to put on a brave face, but I could see that he was still in a fair amount of pain. Deciding that leaning against him probably wasn’t the best position for us to be in, I got up and sat down on a chair across from him. The fact that he didn’t argue for me to remain by his side confirmed my suspicion.
“Speaking of Ashley, how did her date go?” Kyle asked after I was settled in the chair. “The poor thing was about as nervous as I’ve ever seen her when she left on Tuesday.”
“I think it went well. If you remember, there were eight of them, four couples. Jenna dropped Ashley and Kristi off at the burger place next to the movie theater. Ashley said the food was good, but the movie was boring, although it didn’t seem she really cared that the movie was boring. She said she had a good time.”
Kyle smiled. “She is growing up so fast. I still remember the little girl I met on that first Halloween. She was so concerned about how to fit in and what sort of costume was best for someone who was most definitely no longer a baby.”
“Not being seen as a baby has always been a big theme for her,” I smiled at the memory.
“She’s had a tough go of it, but she found a way to fit into her new life after your mom died. It seems like only yesterday she was trying to find her way on that first Halloween and now she is dating. It’s crazy.”
“She’s not dating in the conventional sense,” I countered. “Jenna dropped her off and picked her up. She attended the dinner and the movie with Kristi and six other friends. I mean, technically, the friends did pair up, and the outing was referred to as a date, but it wasn’t actually a date. Was it?”
Kyle grinned. “I think it was.”
I groaned. “I guess you’re right. Our baby is growing up so fast. Before you know it, she’ll be going off to college and then we’ll never see her.”
“We’ll see her. She told me that she wants to go to Stanford. That isn’t all that far away.”
I made a face. “Even if she gets in, which is far from being a given, Stanford is pretty pricy. I’m not sure I’ll be able to swing that even with the money I’ve squirreled away to pay for the girls’ college.”
Kyle paused. He made a face I couldn’t quite read but seemed to convey hesitation. “I know we agreed to take things slowly, and I’m very willing to do that, but I sort of hoped that by the time Ashley was ready for college, our relationship would have matured to the point where we would naturally pay for her college together.”
I frowned.
“Ashley won’t go to college for almost six years,” Kyle pointed out. “Surely, you see us being married by then?”
I leaned back into my chair as I tried to gather my thoughts.
“Tj?” Kyle asked.
I glanced at the man sitting across from me. The longer I took to respond, the more serious his expression grew. I could sense the tension between us exponentially increase as he waited for my answer, yet I still couldn’t find the words to end his torment.
“Tj?” Kyle asked once again.
I took a deep breath and forced a smile. “Yes, of course, I see us as being married by then. I’m not sure why the whole thing caught me off guard. I guess I just never stopped to really think about a timeline.” I furrowed my brow as I tried to wrap my head around things. “Have you? Thought of a timeline that is?”
Kyle hesitated. He appeared to be taking a moment to think about his response before answering. Eventually, he spoke in a slow and level tone of voice. “No. Not really. Or I guess I should say, not specifically, but when I look into the future, I see us — you and me and Ashley and Gracie — living together as a family. And I will admit that when I spoke to Ashley about Stanford, it never entered my mind that we wouldn’t be married by the time she went off to college. Am I to assume by your complete surprise when I suggested as much, that I’ve imagined things differently than you’ve envisioned?”
I had no idea what to say. The conversation had taken a turn I really wasn’t expecting, and while I really did want to respond to Kyle, my mind simply wouldn’t form the words needed to prevent this conversation from becoming even more awkward than it already was.
“It’s okay if you haven’t thought that far ahead,” Kyle assured me. “I really didn’t mean to bring up such a delicate subject at this particular point in time.”
“No, it’s okay.” I paused and then continued. “While it is true that I have not looked quite as far into the future as you have, I do love you, and I do think about us being a family one day.” I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “I’m not sure why the whole thing hit me wrong. Of course, I want to marry you, but not now. Dad and Rosalie are getting married next month, and we don’t want to overshadow their wedding, but maybe next summer, or even in the fall.”
Kyle raised a brow. “Next fall? Are you ready to talk about a date?”
I glanced at the man who had he always been there for me. I felt nothing but love for the man who’d followed me across the country and back when I’d been so torn up about another guy that I’d decided to leave Paradise Lake. I felt my heart skip a beat as I thought about Kyle’s patience and kindness. I smiled and nodded. “I suppose discussing a date might seem abrupt. I realize there is a protocol which most feel should be upheld, and I know that technically I am bypassing the whole you getting down on one knee followed by a syrupy speech thing, but I don’t need that. To be honest, I don’t even want that. We’ve both had c
omplicated relationships in the past, but to this point, our relationship has been mostly easy and uncomplicated. You are my best friend. I love you. I think that on some level I have always loved you. I want to spend my life with you. We could wait and do things in a more traditional manner, but my heart is telling me that if we both want to get married, we should cut to the chase and get married.”
“Just like that?”
I nodded. “Just like that.”
Chapter 6
Saturday, November 11
It had been a week since Harriet’s funeral. Lloyd had been buried the day after Harriet, and Bookman had awakened the day after that. Hank was still in a coma and not expected to awaken at this point. As for our spontaneous engagement, Kyle and I had decided to wait to make an announcement until everyone was together on Thanksgiving. I could tell that Kyle was thrown by our sudden decision to move from dating to planning a wedding, but he wanted me to be happy, and I assured him that a no muss, no fuss sort of transition was what I wanted. He offered to buy me any ring I wanted, but I decided that the ring I wanted to wear was the ring Zachary had given to Kyle’s grandmother, Mary, even though they had never been legally married. Still, the ring was gorgeous, and given its history, it made me feel close not only to Kyle but also to his heritage. Of course, since we hadn’t told anyone that we were engaged, I couldn’t wear the ring yet, but waiting to tell everyone at our Thanksgiving feast seemed like a good idea, so I was happy to delay the unveiling until our special day.
“Can I come in?” Gracie poked her head in through a crack in the opening of my previously closed bedroom door.
“Sure honey. Come on in.” I pulled a corner of my heavy comforter back so that Gracie could snuggle under the covers with me. “You’re up early.”
“Pumpkin needed to go out, so I had to get up. I think her stomach is feeling rumbly.”
Pumpkin was Gracie’s golden retriever.
“Have you been feeding her people food again?”
“Not a lot. I guess I gave her some cheese last night. And I let her lick my ice cream bowl when I was done eating.”
“Pumpkin has a delicate stomach, so you need to be careful about what you give her. She doesn’t seem to do well with dairy products, so cheese and ice cream probably weren’t a good idea.”
Gracie laid her head on my shoulder. I wrapped my arm around both her and the stuffed bunny she’d clung to. She’d always been my snuggle bunny, and I dreaded the day she would decide she was too old for these heart-to-heart talks, but so far, she seemed to enjoy them as much as I did.
“Will you make her chicken and rice?” Gracie asked after a minute. “The last time she was sick, you made her a big pot of it, and by the time the pot was gone, she was feeling better.”
“I’ll make some before we go into town. Are you still going over to Kari’s?”
“Actually, Kari is coming here. Kristi too. Jenna is going over to her mom’s house to sit with Bookman while Helen goes to the hairdresser.”
I frowned. “I thought Helen hired a nurse to help out when Bookman came home.”
“Ashley said that Bookman said no to a nurse. She told me that at first Kari’s grandma wasn’t happy about having to take care of Bookman all by herself, but Kari told me yesterday that Helen was so happy to have Bookman home, that she decided she didn’t really care about having help.”
“I guess if Kristi and Kari are coming over here today, I’ll need to change my plans. I’m kind of surprised that Jenna didn’t call and let me know about the change ahead of time.”
“You don’t have to change your plans. Rosalie is watching us. In fact, it was Rosalie’s idea to have Kristi and Kari over so that Jenna could help her mom out.”
Okay. On the one hand, I wasn’t sure how I felt about Rosalie changing plans I had set up without even checking with me. On the other hand, Helen probably did need a break, and it made sense that Jenna should focus on being there for her family. The reality was that I should have realized as much in the first place. “I guess we should get up and see how Pumpkin is doing. I’ll check with Rosalie and see if she needs help today. Once I do that, I’ll make chicken and rice for both Echo and Pumpkin. You know Echo isn’t going to want dog food once he smells the chicken cooking.”
“The cat’s like chicken as well,” Gracie pointed out.
I was beginning to suspect that Pumpkin didn’t even have a stomachache. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find out that Gracie made the whole thing up just to score a home cooked meal for the Jensen family animals on this cold and snowy Saturday morning. The reality was that making up a story to score a treat for the animals was precisely the sort of thing I would have done when I was her age, so I really couldn’t be mad about it.
By the time Gracie and I arrived in the kitchen, Grandpa had chicken boiling in a pot and pancakes on the griddle. I guess he must have heard about Pumpkin’s rumbly tummy as well. I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat down across from Ashley and Rosalie, who were talking about a sewing project.
“I understand there has been a change of plans and Kristi and Kari are coming over here today,” I said to Rosalie, who had the day off from the veterinary clinic she ran with her new partner.
Rosalie nodded. “I hope that is okay. I’ll be here, so you don’t need to change your plans.”
“It’s fine.” I took a sip of my coffee. “It was very nice of you to want to help Helen. Do you need help today?”
Rosalie shook her head. “I think we have it under control. Ashley and Kristi want to learn to make a jean purse like the one we saw in town. I thought I’d help them. Your dad is going to take Gracie and Kari to buy their costumes for the Thanksgiving play the school is producing and then to a movie since the resort is closed and he has the day off.”
“I wasn’t aware the school was asking the students to buy their costumes for the play.”
Rosalie nodded. “With the budget cuts, it seemed to be the best option. The staff purchased the costumes, and they will be on hand today for the students who have been cast to stop by with an adult to pay for the items ordered for them. Gracie is going to be a pilgrim girl.”
“Yes, she told me. And I am happy to take both her and Kari to buy their costumes. Dad doesn’t have to give up his day off.”
Rosalie put her hand over mine. “I think he wants to spend the day with the girls. These girls are growing up so fast that I know we both feel the need to get in as much grandparent time as we can before they are off to college, and we never see them anymore.”
Okay, that felt like a dagger to my heart. Hadn’t I just said the same thing to Kyle?
“By the way,” Rosalie changed the subject. “I ran into Frannie in town yesterday, and she mentioned Thanksgiving. I know that she is usually invited to the resort, so I assumed she was welcome at Kyle’s as well. I told her about the change this year, but you might want to follow up.”
“I will. Thanks. And yes, everyone who usually comes here will be welcome there.”
“I hoped you’d let me do the turkeys this year. I know you don’t like to cook, and Jenna seems to have her hands full.”
Okay, I experienced a flash of irritation that it seemed like Rosalie was trying to take the whole thing over, but she was right, I didn’t like to cook, nor was I particularly good at it, and Jenna did have her hands full. “Thank you. That would be very helpful. Kyle has double ovens, but we’ll need to use those for the sides. I guess a meal this size will be a bit more challenging since we won’t have the commercial ovens in The Grill that we normally use.”
Rosalie smiled. “I think we can manage if everyone pitches in. I am happy to help with pies and rolls as well. Really, if you need anything at all, you just need to ask.”
I forced a smile. “Jenna usually brings the dessert, so I’m sure she is planning on bringing the pies, but help with the rolls would be welcome
d. Thank you.”
“I’m just happy to be part of things.”
I smiled and nodded. Shortly after, Rosalie excused herself to head upstairs and get dressed. Ashley followed, leaving just Gracie and me with Grandpa.
“Did you already mention the change in our Thanksgiving venue to Doc?” Grandpa asked as he slid two fluffy golden pancakes onto my plate.
“I did. Jenna let Bookman and her mom know about our plans. I think she planned to call Bree and Pastor Dan. If she hasn’t, I will. Please do let me know if anyone specific comes to mind. I don’t want to miss anyone.”
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Grandpa asked as he handed me the warm syrup. “You already seem to have a lot on your plate with the investigation into the bombing.”
I nodded as I poured syrup over the pancakes. I picked up a piece of bacon and took a bite. “I’m sure I want to do this. It will be a lot of work, and at first, I was less than certain that we should take it on, but it was Kyle’s idea, and it seems to be important to him.” I sliced off a piece of the pancake and took my first bite of the drippy sweet cake. “These are delicious.”
“Same as I make every week.”
I took another bite. “And they are always delicious.”
“Grandpa makes the best pancakes in the whole world,” Gracie agreed.
Grandpa smiled. “Thank you, darlin’.”
“Do you have plans with Doc today?” I asked after Grandpa refilled my coffee without my even having to ask.
“The two of us are going to talk to some folks we figure could have been in the area when the town hall blew up. We know that finding anyone who actually saw anything is a longshot, especially since Roy and Kate have already canvassed the area, but we don’t feel right about sitting around and doing nothing.”
“I get that.”
“Folks keep telling us that we should let the professionals handle things. They say there is nothing we can do, but all this waiting around is for the birds.”