Jillian's Promise

by Kristin Noel Fischer

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Now, listen. I’ll have my assistant call and arrange the details. If you need anything, and I mean anything, don’t hesitate to ask, okay?”

  “Thank you,” I repeated.

  “While I have you on the line, let me ask about Keith. How is his recovery coming along? Is his memory returning?”

  “He’s getting better every day.” A feeling of apprehension settled in my gut. Although I couldn’t put my finger on it, something didn’t feel right.

  “I’ve been meaning to call or stop by to see him, but my duties as governor and the campaign have consumed all my time.”

  “I’m sure Keith would love to see you. Just don’t be offended if he doesn’t know you’re the governor now because he might only remember you from the army.”

  Williams let out a hearty laugh. “I’ll keep that in mind when I remind him not to reveal any top secrets as his memory returns.”

  The uneasy feeling in my stomach grew, but the governor just laughed. Was Keith privy to a top secret? I’d always felt he was hiding something from me, but maybe that was a result of reading one too many suspense novels.

  “Well, thanks again for coming to my rescue,” I said, relieved I’d solved another problem on my long list of things to do today.

  “Ah, no thanks necessary, darlin’.”

  I hung up the phone, found a pen and piece of paper, and began making another list of everything needed to transition to the new venue.

  *

  Just as Bianca predicted, having Keith homeschool Matt turned out to be the perfect solution. I was thrilled to have Matt out of my office, and Keith was happy with his increased involvement in our son’s life.

  While Matt was neither thrilled nor happy, at least I no longer had to hear him complain all day or ask about getting another drink of water.

  The only problem continued to be Keith’s living situation. While I tried to avoid him as much as possible, it was difficult because he had to come inside to shower or eat. I often came home from work to find him at the kitchen table, petting Bella as he helped Matt and Drew with their homework. He also spent a lot of time playing chess with the boys and talking to them about sports and politics.

  On Saturday afternoon, I left Keith and the boys home and drove up the mountain to my family’s ranch to discuss the upcoming reception for Anna and Nick. I was excited about the event. Nick and Anna had exchanged vows at the courthouse the day before they left for Germany, so there hadn’t been a lot of time for celebrating.

  My mom placed a loaf of pumpkin-walnut bread on the table. “Did your sisters tell you we’re having a wedding ceremony at the church in addition to the reception?”

  “Really?” I said, surprised. I hadn’t heard anything about a wedding ceremony. Of course, I’d been so busy with the chaos of my own life, I’d had time for little else. “That sounds like a lot of work, Mom. Are you sure you want to take on an entire wedding?”

  “Definitely. Anna and Nick deserve a special church ceremony. Besides, Anna’s mother will be here to help.”

  “And we’ll help, too.” Vicki collected the butter dish from the refrigerator. She placed it on the table and took her usual seat. In fact, my sisters and I all sat in the same seats we’d claimed as children with me on the left-hand side of Mom, Bianca at the end, and Vicki next to the empty chair that had once belonged to Marcus.

  Mom poured each of us a glass of peach iced tea from the stone pitcher she’d made at a pottery class last summer. “I’m honored to do this for Nick and Anna. I’ve always considered Anna to be one of my daughters, and I want her to have the wedding she deserves.”

  My sisters and I traded pointed glances. Our mother hadn’t always embraced our sister-in-law. Back when Anna had announced her pregnancy and Marcus had dropped out of college to enlist in the army in order to support his new family, Mom had been furious. After he died, Mom and Anna had exchanged words both of them later regretted. Even though everything was fine now, it’d taken a while for those wounds to heal.

  Mom sliced an apple. “I know what you girls are thinking. I treated Anna unfairly, but that’s in the past. She’s forgiven me and you should, too.”

  “Of course,” we all said.

  Mom arranged the sliced apple on a fresh plate and set the core aside to be taken out to the compost pile. “Anna’s mother and I are handling the details of the actual wedding. I need you girls to help me with the reception.”

  We agreed, and for the next hour, we discussed everything. “I’m not going to be much help until after the charity gala,” I said, exhausted, thinking about all I had to do. As I’d told them earlier, changing the venue of the gala was more extensive than sending out a mass e-mail to ticket holders. We’d been forced to remove the flyers from around the island, update our social media sites, and revise our agreement with the caterer and party rental company.

  “Anyway,” I continued, “unlike Kate Tate, I’m horrible at multi-tasking. Only one crisis at a time for me.”

  Bianca groaned. “Do not compare yourself to Kate. I sincerely believe one of these days we’re going to discover she is actually a set of identical triplets.”

  My sisters and I laughed and Mom patted my hand. “You work too hard, sweetheart. It’s not good for you.”

  “Oh, brother. This again?” Bianca rolled her eyes and nudged Vicki.

  I grinned. “I’m okay, Mom. Life has been a little crazy, but it’ll settle down.”

  “So, how is the new roommate situation working out?” Bianca asked, her voice intending as usual to stir up trouble.

  I shrugged. “It’s fine.”

  Vicki winked at Bianca. “Is that why you finally let Bianca cut and color your hair last Thursday?”

  I refrained from touching my hair. “No, she’s been pestering me forever and she finally wore me down.”

  “True,” Bianca conceded, “but you didn’t agree to change it until Keith came back.”

  “She’s right,” Vicki said.

  “I changed it for the gala. Besides, Bryan loves it.”

  Bianca groaned. “Well, if Bryan loves it, that’s all that matters.”

  “Mom.” I spoke in an over-exaggerated whiny voice. “They’re picking on me. Tell them to leave me alone.”

  Bianca and Vicki burst into laughter and my mother smiled. “Don’t let your younger sisters get under your skin. I think you look very nice, honey.”

  Pretending to be deeply hurt, I rested my head on my mother’s shoulder, feeling warm and safe, like a little girl again. “Thanks, Mom.” I breathed in my mother’s familiar scent of vanilla and tried not to feel guilty that I hadn’t been able to give Matt and Drew the same stable childhood I’d enjoyed. My parents had been married for years, and they still held hands in the movie theater and left each other sweet notes.

  “How are things going between you and Keith?” Vicki asked, buttering a slice of pumpkin bread. In spite of owning the bakery, she seldom ate carbs, so I was surprised to see her indulging. Then again, my mother’s cooking was impossible to resist as she made everything from scratch, often including ingredients from her garden.

  “Things are going well,” I said. “Mostly, I’m grateful to have Matt out of my office and home with Keith.”

  “I don’t understand how they could expel that boy on his first offense,” Mom said, believing wholeheartedly in her grandson’s goodness.

  I sighed. “Me neither, but it’s fine. Actually, better than fine. I’m finally having my fence painted because of it.”

  “How’s that?” My father breezed into the kitchen, searching for something to eat. He reached for a piece of pumpkin bread, but Mom swatted his hand and offered him a slice of cheese. “The bread has too many carbs, Walter. Eat this instead.”

  Dad examined the cheese with disgust, turning it over in his beefy hand. “A man can’t live on this revolting diet. Cheese is not enough food for a man like me.”

  Mom patted his arm. “You’l
l feel better in the long run, and once you lose the weight, you can have the occasional treat. You heard what the doctor said. That extra weight isn’t healthy.”

  My father shook his head, and Bianca, who was at least fifty pounds overweight, set down her own piece of pumpkin bread. Dad sank into the chair at the head of the table and looked at me. “What does Matt’s expulsion have to do with getting your fence painted?”

  “It’s part of Keith’s homeschooling curriculum,” I explained. “Practical life skills. It includes activities like cooking, laundry, yard work, and painting the fence.”

  “Goodness!” Bianca exclaimed. “Keith’s amnesia is really working out well for you, isn’t it? Next thing you know, you’ll be remarrying him, and we’ll be planning your wedding.”

  My stomach did a little flip-flop as I pictured Keith standing at the altar in his military uniform, watching me walk down the aisle. I pushed the compelling image away and focused on reality. “We’re not getting married again. I’ve explained this a thousand times. Keith and I are divorced, remember?”

  My father leaned back in his chair, clasped his hands, and placed them behind his head. “That can easily be fixed, my dear.”

  “Dad!”

  “What?”

  “I thought we were past this.” I felt the familiar frustration I experienced every time my family talked about reconciliation with Keith. They only knew part of the issues with his drinking, and only Vicki knew about Lyla Gray.

  “I’m sorry,” Dad continued, “Keith made life difficult for you, but I still like him. And in the eyes of God, you’re still married. Keith went down a dark path after we lost your brother. We all did. I say forgive him and move on. He’s already living in your house, can’t you take the next step and invite him back into—”

  “Walter!” My mother swatted Dad’s arm. “Jillian is with Bryan now. Bryan is a good man. He helped her buy her house and he makes her happy.”

  “Does he?” Bianca narrowed her eyes.

  I lifted my chin in an attempt to push away the nagging doubt that’d begun to plague me. “Of course. Bryan and I make each other happy. We’re very compatible and enjoy each other’s company.”

  “Well,” Bianca said sarcastically, “that sounds incredibly passionate and thrilling.”

  Both my father and Vicki laughed.

  “Ignore them,” my mother said. “I like Bryan.”

  Dad nodded. “Yes, just ignore us, because compatibility is much more important than passion.” He stood and planted an embarrassingly passionate kiss on my mother’s lips. Then he swiped a piece of buttered pumpkin bread off her plate and scooted out the kitchen before she could stop him.

  “That man.” My mom’s cheeks reddened ever so slightly.

  Chapter 19

  Jillian

  When I returned home later that afternoon, I was pleased to see Matt had finished painting the fence. He’d also touched up the front door, weeded the flower bed, and cleaned out the gutters.

  Yesterday, I’d asked Keith if he was making Matt work too hard, but he’d just laughed. “After being expelled from school for drinking? No.”

  Drew met me at the front door, his little face beaming with excitement. “Come on, Mom, you have to see the tree house we built today.”

  “A tree house?” I followed him through the house to the backyard, imagining a few boards randomly nailed to the big oak tree, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. The tree house boasted a roof, two cutouts for windows, and a wraparound porch.

  Above me, Keith leaned against the railing of the tree house and grinned. “Well, what do you think?”

  I thrust a hand to my hip. “What I think is that someone still recovering from surgery shouldn’t be building or climbing into tree houses.”

  “You sound like Hannah,” he said with mock disgust. “Anyway, the kids did all the work. I directed them and climbed up when they finished.”

  I tugged on the rope dangling from the tree. “Is this the only way up? Don’t tell me you climbed up with just one good arm.”

  “I used my good leg, too.”

  Hannah, followed by Matt, stepped from the inside portion of the tree house to the porch. “I told him not to do it, Ms. Jillian, but he climbed up when I went inside to get a drink of water.”

  “I had to,” Keith protested. “I couldn’t complete my inspection from the ground.”

  I raised my hand to block the setting sun. “How in the world did you build this and finish the fence on the same day?”

  “The fence only took about an hour,” Matt explained. “We’ve been cutting boards and collecting the materials for the tree house all week. Besides, both Hannah and Drew helped.”

  Drew smiled, thrilled to be appreciated by his older brother. “Come on, Mom,” he hollered, leading the way up the rope ladder.

  I ran a hand over my dress. “Let me change first.”

  I started to walk away, but Keith called after me. “There’s no dress code to climb the rope ladder. What you’re wearing is fine.”

  I turned around to see his self-satisfied smirk and my insides tingled. “I’m wearing a dress.”

  “I noticed,” he said, his voice deep.

  Even though I willed myself not to blush, heat inflamed my cheeks. What was wrong with me?

  “Come on, don’t be a chicken,” Keith persisted. “If I could climb with one arm and one leg, I think you could manage in a dress.”

  “It’s not that I can’t—”

  “Chicken,” Drew hollered, a gleam in his eye.

  Hannah leaned over the railing. “Come on, Ms. Jillian! Women throughout history have ruled the world in a dress. Surely you can climb one small rope.”

  I laughed and succumbed to their pressure by slipping off my sandals and grabbing the rope. “Okay, here goes nothing.” Climbing proved harder than expected, but eventually I reached the top, victorious.

  Keith gave an approving nod. “You’re very pleased with yourself, aren’t you?”

  I grinned. “Of course, but I have a feeling my arms will be sore tomorrow.”

  We exchanged a warm smile that was interrupted by Drew’s enthusiasm over the future zip line. “It’s going to go here. Look inside. There’s just enough room for three sleeping bags. Dad said we could have a boys’ campout tonight.”

  “If it’s all right with your mother,” Keith interjected, looking to me for reassurance.

  “Sure,” I answered. “That sounds like a lot of fun.”

  Keith rotated his shoulder and winced. “Good because I don’t know if I can make it back down tonight.”

  “Are you serious?” I asked.

  “Not really.”

  I studied him carefully, trying to gauge if he was joking or not. “Do you need me to find a ladder or call the fire department?”

  He grinned and gave a dismissive wave. “No, I’ll be fine.”

  “Hey, Mom.” Matt opened a large ice chest. “Do you want a bottle of cold water?”

  “Sure.” I laughed, amazed by their ingenuity to drag the ice chest all the way up to the tree house.

  Matt held the lid open wide so I could see inside. “We have carrots and apples, too.”

  “I bought those,” Hannah explained. “I really think Mr. Foster and the boys need to eat more fruits and vegetables, don’t you agree, Ms. Jillian?”

  I nodded. “Definitely.”

  Keith and the boys made a face that caused me to laugh. Convincing them to eat spinach salad or kale was a constant battle. “I’m impressed you tried, Hannah.”

  “Thanks.” She turned to Matt. “See, I told you your mom would approve.”

  He winked at her in a way I found unsettling. Matt was too young to be so intense about a girl. I was still getting used to the fact he was shaving. I wasn’t ready for the issues that came with having a serious girlfriend.

  I glanced at Keith, wondering if he had the same thoughts. He grinned at me and pointed to something in the distance. “Can you see it?”<
br />
  “See what?”

  He reached for my arm and guided me to the railing. His touch sent tingles up my arm. Why didn’t I feel like this with Bryan? And why did I feel the need to constantly compare the two of them?

  I started to pull away, but when I saw what Keith was pointing at, everything inside me melted. “You gave me a view of the ocean?”

  He nodded. “Do you like it?”

  “I’ve always wanted to have a view of the water.”

  “I know. Now you do.” He moved his hand to my hip.

  The delicious smell of sawdust and sunscreen clung to his body, and it took everything in my power not to lean back into him. Why did he have to be like this? Kind, caring, and wonderful? Would it last? If I could be assured he wouldn’t change once his memories returned, would I give him another chance?

  And what about Bryan? I shuddered, ashamed I’d entertained thoughts of Keith when I was still dating Bryan.

  Guilt-ridden, I distanced myself from Keith just as the back door opened and Bryan stepped onto the deck. He looked up at me, standing next to Keith, and his expression fell.

  “Hi, Bryan.” Drew waved. “Come on up, the weather is perfect.”

  Bryan shook his head and forced a smile. “Maybe later. Jillian? Can you come down, please? I have something to show you.” He held up a garment bag, and I about fainted when I saw it was from Mrs. McMahan’s Dress Boutique.

  “I’ll wait for you in the family room.” He headed back inside.

  “Ms. Jillian!” Hannah squealed, gripping my arm. “Did you see the bag?”

  “I did.” My stomach felt queasy.

  “What’s going on?” Matt asked.

  Keith shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “I’ve got to go.” I climbed down the rope and met Bryan in the family room. “You went shopping?”

  “I did.” He lay the garment bag on the couch and pulled down the zipper to reveal the most exquisite ball gown I’d ever seen.

  The black dress had a tasteful neckline embellished with subtle floral embroidery and tiny pearl beads. I ran a hand over the silken fabric. “It’s beautiful.”