“I’m okay with the part where we live on my salary and bank whatever you make from Sassie Lassie. I’m not okay with the Tyger money. I’ll help you with the foundation and any other charitable endeavors you want to explore. I have to pay off my student loans. Me. Not you. Not Isabel Tyger. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m a man of integrity.”
“Oh, I noticed. There isn’t one little thing that I didn’t notice about you. I set my cap for you, Sam. Isn’t it wonderful that it all worked out?”
“It’s a miracle if you ask me. So you’re going to do all kinds of good things with that money, huh?”
“You bet.”
“I checked your web site while you were in Los Angeles. You’re going to be up to your neck in belly chains. You are going to have to hire some help. It’s mind-boggling. Whoever would have thought a belly chain would be so popular.”
“Sam, do you remember how I told you I used to pass a fancy lingerie shop on the way home from school? Well, one time there was a mannequin dressed like a Greek goddess in the window. They had it dressed in a silky sheath with a shiny gold chain with a medallion that dropped below the waist. I just thought it was the most beautiful thing I ever saw. I was young and impressionable. I guess it stayed with me. It’s a fad for now. Kind of like those spike-heeled shoes.
“Sam, when do you think all the paperwork will be settled, and I can go back to being Helen Stanley?”
“I don’t know, Helen. What I do know is, we’re getting married the day everything is cleared up. I’ll keep tabs on those lawyers and the people who are dealing with Daniel Ward. I don’t want you worrying about any of this. All I want you to do is concentrate on me, the dogs, Sassie Lassie, and doing what Isabel Tyger wanted you to do.”
“You know what I want to do, Sam?”
“What?” He leered.
“I want to make love to you.”
“Best offer today. Is it today or is it tomorrow?”
“Who cares? It’s now that’s important.”
“God, I love you, Helen.”
“I love you more,” Helen said.
“Always and forever.”
“And into eternity.” Helen smiled.
Epilogue
“By this time tomorrow I will be Mrs. Sam Tolliver. Getting married on Christmas Eve is so special. I want to believe it was meant to happen this way. Best of all, Sam will never be able to forget our anniversary. I am so happy I could just . . . bust! Thank you so much, Julia, for agreeing to be my maid of honor.”
“You’re absolutely giddy, Helen. I’ve never seen you like this. I hope you will always be this happy. I want to thank you again for . . . my lottery winnings. And for the belly chain. You gave me a life I couldn’t have had otherwise. And on top of that, I met this wonderful man on that cruise you insisted I take. He’s arriving late this afternoon. I told him the whole story about my past. Like Sam, he said whatever came before doesn’t matter. You gave me the courage to leave the shelter and go back to my own identity. That was the biggest flaw, Helen. We are who we are. While this bravado may not be for all the people who walk through those doors, it works for some of us. Thanks to you. What in the world am I going to do with a million dollars?”
“I don’t have a clue, Julia. You said if you won the lottery you would know what to do with it. That’s how much the New Jersey lottery was the week I wrote the check. If that’s all you have to worry about in this new life of yours, then you’re home free.”
“Are you and Sam going to visit me and Tom?”
“Tom is it? You sound like you’ve made up your mind. Are you going to go back to Montana with him?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’m happy for you.”
“Is your mother coming to the ceremony, Helen? What about Daniel’s sister?”
“I’m not sure about my mother. I invited her. The boys found her for me. That’s how I think of Artie, Gerry, and Sam—the boys. 1 bought her a little house with a nice garden. I took her shopping for new clothes and furniture. I asked her if she could have anything in the world, what would she want. She wanted a face-lift. If the swelling and bruising go down, she might come. I’m not counting on it. I set aside money for her so she never has to work again. We’re civil to one another. There’s no motherly love there, and I have to accept that. I wish it were different. Isn’t it strange, Julia? We always want what we can’t have. Daniel’s sister never responded to the invitation, so we don’t expect her.”
“Looks to me like you have it all.”
“Oh, God, Julia, I do have it all. All my dreams have come true.”
“What about Daniel?”
“That’s a long, depressing story. Don’t ask me why, but I went to see him. I guess I wanted to see for myself that he wasn’t going to be a threat to me any longer. He didn’t recognize me. I almost didn’t recognize him. He’s got a beard and a mustache and he wears those one-piece suits and slippers. He more or less shuffles his way around, if you know what I mean. I found out he was a ward of the state. His mother refuses to have anything to do with him. His father more or less closed up shop. He was paying for him until his money ran out. The foundation is paying now. I know, I know, don’t say it, Julia. It was Sam’s idea. I balked, but he said it was the humane thing to do, and he was right. I guess he’s happy, if that’s possible, in his own little world. I’m told he pecks away at a computer all day long. That chapter of my life is gone now. I try not to look back.”
“I hope you two are talking about me,” Sam said, taking Helen in his arms.
“We were. We said only the nicest things. That’s because there wasn’t anything bad to say.”
“I want to show you ladies something,” Sam said, turning the television on for the noon hour news.
“What is it?” Helen asked anxiously.
Sam snorted. “I think it’s a last hurrah of some kind. Those are screaming, yelling, fighting-mad mothers who have been waiting in line for Boots and her puppies. This particular store just got a shipment of twenty-five thousand and of those twenty-five thousand, ninety-nine percent of them were rainchecks, which means if there’s a mother fighting for one and she doesn’t have a raincheck, she isn’t going to get it. Boots is the biggest toy seller of all time according to the people who track things like this. How did you know, Helen?”
“I didn’t know. I did it as a tribute to Isabel Tyger. That little dog meant the world to her just the way Lucie means the world to me. I guess it will put Tyger Toys on the toy map. I hope she knows.”
“I’m sure she does, honey.”
“I don’t even have one. I was going to keep the prototype, but Artie got the bright idea to auction it off at Thanksgiving for the Leukemia Marathon.”
“I’m going to head off for the airport. Can I bring anything back for either of you?” Julia asked.
“Nope. See you at dinner. Julia’s going to Montana after the wedding, Sam.”
“Good for you, Julia. See you at dinner.”
“I’m all yours, Sam.”
“Promises, promises.”
“I’m so nervous, Julia. Do I look all right? Did I put too much hair spray on? Do these earrings go with my pearls? I think the hem of this dress is an inch too long. What do you think? Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. I think I have it all. Do I, Julia? Oh, you look so pretty. Tom is a handsome guy. I like that rugged look. I have too much rouge on. This lipstick isn’t the right color. What was I thinking?” Helen babbled.
“Hold it right there. You look perfect. Trust me. I would not let you go to your wedding if one hair was out of place. You’re just jittery. All new brides are jittery. We have five minutes. Take a deep breath. I bet Sam is more nervous than you are.”
“Sam? Sam could be under fire, and he’d be cool. He doesn’t get rattled like I do. Okay, I’m ready.”
For one split second Sam thought he swallowed his tongue. She was so beautiful he had a hard time drawing a breath. He wanted to
say something but all he could do was stare at his soon-to-be-bride. In just five minutes she would be Mrs. Sam Tolliver. He would have a wife in five minutes. A wave of dizziness threatened to overcome him.
And then she was standing next to him, Artie and Gerry behind them, Julia and Les, Sam’s favorite student, to the right of them.
“Dearly beloved, we are . . .”
“Who gives this woman . . .”
“We do,” Artie and Gerry chirped in unison.
“Helen, do you take this man, Sam Tolliver, to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
“I do.”
“Sam, do you take this woman, Helen Stanley, to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do.”
“I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
When Helen could catch her breath, she turned and gasped. “Mom, you came.”
“Well . . . I wasn’t sure . . . you look so pretty, Helen. I used to look like you,” she said sadly.
“Mrs. Stanley, you’re still as pretty as your daughter. I almost can’t tell you apart,” Sam said gallantly.
“That might be a bit of a fib, young man, but I’ll accept the compliment. I brought you a present, Helen. It isn’t much. I know you have everything. It’s just a little . . . what it is, is your baby bracelet when you were born. I thought you might like to have it and your first baby shoes for your own child.”
“Oh, Mom,” Helen said, her eyes filling with tears. “Come on, let’s have a toast.”
“I can’t stay, Helen. I . . . I promised to . . . please don’t laugh ... but I promised to sing in the choir for midnight Mass. We’re having an early rehearsal.”
“Mom, that’s great. Will you come for dinner tomorrow?”
“I’d like that, Helen. I’d like that very much. Congratulations to both of you.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Tears rolled down Helen’s cheeks. Sam kissed them away. “That’s the nicest she’s ever been to me, Sam.”
“Maybe it’s the way things will be from now on. This is the season of miracles, isn’t it? Look around, Helen. What could be more perfect than this? The Christmas tree is glorious, the house smells heavenly. Our best friends are here. The dogs are happy and healthy and together. I go back to teaching starting next month. We’re a couple now. We have a good life and so many tomorrows to look forward to.”
“I’m just so happy, Sam.”
“Me too, honey.”
“We’re leaving, too, Helen,” Julia said. “Tom wants to go to church before we set out for Montana. I’ll say good-bye now. We’re going to drop Les off at the airport. He said he doesn’t mind hanging out at the airport for an extra hour.”
“Promise you’ll write and call.”
“I promise.”
“We’ll be on our way, too,” Gerry said, his face wistful.
“Oh, no. You two are staying right here with us. We’re going to change and take a little walk. All four of us. All six of us if you count the dogs. Then we’re going to come back here and open presents. That’s some pile,” Helen said, pointing to the gifts piled high under the tree. “I spent hours and hours wrapping those presents. I want to be appreciated. Furthermore, you’re staying here tonight and we’re celebrating Christmas together. In other words, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Tolliver request the honor of your presence for the holiday.”
“We accept,” Artie said.
“Do we ever,” Gerry said.
“This is the first time in all the years of coming here that I don’t feel like I’ve been kicked in the gut,” Gerry said.
“I think you made it right, Helen,” Artie said.
“I hope so. If I could have any wish in the world right now, it would be that Isabel knows I did my best. Boots and her little family of collectibles will live on forever. Sam said they made toy history.”
“She knows,” Gerry said.
“Yes, she knows,” Artie said.
“It’s late, we should be getting back,” Sam said, an uneasy feeling settling between his shoulder blades. “It’s almost Christmas morning.”
The dogs trooped ahead, the others following in single file.
“Egg nog, a chorus of ‘Jingle Bells,’ and we’re off to bed. The presents will have to wait for morning,” Artie said.
“I second my friend here,” Gerry said.
“I’ll pour,” Sam said.
“Wait just a minute. Okay, which one of you managed to get me the year’s hottest toy and leave it under the tree?” Helen demanded as she picked up the stuffed animal and all the little pups nestled in a wicker basket. “There’s kind of a glow to it.”
“You can’t beg, borrow, or steal one of those,” Artie said. “We know, we tried to get you one.”
“I did, too, honey. No luck,” Sam said.
“Julia didn’t leave it, and my mother didn’t leave it. It wasn’t here when we went down to the cemetery. Why is it glowing like this? Can you see it? Or is it me?”
“I told you she knows,” Artie said gruffly.
“You could never keep anything from Izzie. She knew everything,” Gerry said.
“I didn’t know the lady,” Sam said lamely.
“Merry Christmas, Boots,” Helen whispered.
And then they were alone.
“Sam?”
“Shhh. It’s whatever you want it to be. Let’s sit on the couch and enjoy being Mr. and Mrs. Sam Tolliver.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.” Helen laughed.
“To us,” Sam said, clinking his wineglass against Helen’s glass.
“To us,” Helen said.
Please turn the page
for a preview of
Fern Michael’s new novel
KENTUCKY RICH,
the first in a new trilogy,
featuring beloved characters
from the Texas and Vegas series, and
coming from Kensington Books in October 2001.
Prologue
The two brothers watched from the window as a black limousine crunched to a stop in the middle of the gravel driveway. In silence, they watched a uniformed driver step out and open the rear passenger door. Their jaws dropped when they saw a slender, long-legged woman dressed in brown-leather boots, well-cut jeans, and white shirt emerge and look around. A sun-darkened hand reached up to adjust tinted glasses before she tipped the brim of her pearly white Stetson to reveal a mane of thick sable brown hair.
“Who the hell is that?” Rhy Coleman demanded of his brother.
“How the hell should I know?” Pyne said. “Whoever she is, she’s coming up to the porch. I think you should open the door.”
When his older brother made no move to greet their guest, Pyne started toward the door, but it opened before he could reach it. The strange woman blew in like a gust of wind. Without a glance in the brothers’ direction, she headed straight for the stairway leading to the second floor.
“Hey! Just a damn minute!” Rhy shouted. “Who the hell are you to walk in here like you own the place?”
She turned to face them and smiled as she lowered her glasses. “I do own it, Rhy, at least a third of it. Don’t you recognize me, big brother?”
Rhy’s eyes widened with shock.
Pyne walked toward her. “Nealy! Is it really you?”
“In the flesh,” she said, thinking it funny that neither one of them had recognized her. She’d known them the moment she’d seen them, not by the family resemblance but by the slump of their shoulders. Her smile vanished as she glanced back at the stairs. “Where is he?”
Pyne’s head jerked upward.
Nealy nodded. “You two stay here,” she ordered. “This is between me and him. I have something I want to say to him, and I don’t want either of you interfering. Do you understand? This is my business, not yours.”
When there was no response, she repeated her question. They nodded reluctantly. Nealy stared at the two men. They were strangers to her; she felt absolutely no emotion for them�
�not love, not hate, not even curiosity. They were just two men standing side by side in the hallway.
It had been almost thirty years since she’d seen her brothers and her father. Almost thirty years since she’d left this house with Emmie in her arms. Almost thirty years since she’d set foot on Coleman land. And now, after all this time, here she was, back in Virginia.
Home.
The word made her shudder. She turned her back on her brothers and gazed at the staircase that led to the second floor. As a child, she’d climbed those stairs a hundred times, maybe a thousand. Usually to run and hide so she could whimper in safety.
Shoulders stiff, back straight, she mounted each step with the same mix of confidence and caution she used when mounting her horses. At the top, she stopped and looked down at her brothers, who appeared to be debating whether or not to follow her. “Go about your own business while I take care of mine.” She hurled the words at them in a cold, tight voice to ward them off. Nealy remembered another day, long ago, when they’d stood in the same spot watching her. She glared at them now as she had then and waited until they walked away before making her way down the hall.
Nealy hesitated only a moment outside her father’s bedroom, then opened the door and walked in. The room was just as she remembered it, gray and dim with ineffective lighting, a few pieces of battered pine furniture, and worn-out, roll-down shades covering the two windows.
Her nose wrinkled at the smell of dust, mold, and medication. Hearing a groan, she turned her gaze toward the bed and saw a mound of quilts . . . her father, the man who had banished her from this very house thirty years ago. How old was he? She tried to compute her father’s age but gave up because she simply didn’t care.
As she walked toward the bed, she sensed rather than heard someone follow her inside the room. One of her brothers no doubt. Damn, didn’t they know an order when they heard one? Of course, they knew, she reminded herself. If there was one thing Pa was good at it was giving orders.
What You Wish For Page 33