Becalmed: When a Southern woman with a broken heart finds herself falling for a widower with a broken boat, it's anything but smooth sailing.

by Normandie Fischer

  They were busy and having fun. A lot of fun. They were.

  And, no, he wasn’t protesting too much. It was true.

  Jilly had stopped asking about Tadie, although he occasionally caught her talking to Tubby about Beaufort. Yesterday, she’d said something about Jasper the toad and Penelope the fish, but he hadn’t caught the details. And she always asked God to bless Tadie and Isa.

  Fortunately for his peace of mind, he’d slept dreamlessly for the past month.

  It would soon be Christmas. They’d shared Thanksgiving with Liz and her husband, and they certainly had the option of going back there. But did he want to?

  “Jilly, honey,” he said, interrupting her math work. “I was thinking about Christmas. What would you like to do this year? You want to go back to Aunt Liz’s?”

  “We could.” She hesitated. “Do you want to?”

  “I’d like to do something special, but I’m not sure what.”

  “Is it supposed to snow this year?”

  “Let me see what the weatherman says.” He went online and hit the button for the extended forecast. It went out only ten days, but that was close enough. “I’m sorry. No snow. Rain, though.”

  “Baltimore is yucky when it rains.”

  “Shall we take a trip somewhere? Maybe the Bahamas?”

  “I don’t know, Daddy. The Bahamas without the Nancy Grace doesn’t sound like much fun, and we couldn’t sail there in time for Christmas.”

  “You’re right. What about finding someplace that has snow? Maybe the Poconos?”

  She tilted her head as if thinking about it. “You know where I’d really like to go?”

  He shook his head, waiting for her answer.

  “I’d like to go see Tadie.”

  Will’s heart sank. How could he tell her they’d never be able to go see Tadie again—all because he had been such a jerk? “I don’t know where Tadie is right now. Remember what Isa said? Tadie moved to New York.”

  Jilly nodded.

  “I wrote to her to say how much we appreciated all she’d done for us and how sorry I was we didn’t see her before we left. I’m afraid I haven’t heard anything back, so I don’t know how we can possibly visit her.”

  “Maybe Isa knows where she is. We could ask.”

  “If Tadie wanted to see us, don’t you think she’d write back?”

  “Of course she wants to see us. She likes us!”

  “I’m sure she does, but maybe she’s busy right now. Maybe she’s met some new people and is having fun with them.”

  “You mean, like a new little girl, someone she likes better than me?” Jilly lowered her voice and focused on the paper in front of her, probably afraid of the answer.

  “Of course not. How could anyone like someone better than you?”

  Her eyes brightened at that and a grin curled her lips. “You’re so funny, Daddy.”

  “I know it. The bane of my existence.”

  “The what?”

  “Never mind. Okay. The Poconos is out. Bahamas, no. The rest of the Caribbean, no for the same reason. Hmmm. Maybe we ought to go visit Aunt Liz.”

  “Dad-dy.”

  “You don’t like that idea?”

  “It’s okay. But that’s where we started. You said, ‘What shall we do?’” At the shake of her head, her pigtails shifted and one of her rubber bands loosened. He resisted the urge to fix it as she continued. “I said what I want, and you said we can’t.”

  “That about sums it up.”

  She put her elbows on the table and her chin in her palms. “I still think you haven’t tried hard enough. I think you should call Isa.”

  “Oh, Lord.”

  “Daddy,” Jilly said, shaking her finger at him. “You’re not supposed to say that. Not unless you’re praying.”

  “I know. Sorry.” He reached out to tug the loose band free, and she shifted to accommodate him. “Okay, kiddo. I’ll think about it.”

  “Just think quick, or it’ll be Christmas already.”

  * * * * *

  Jilly climbed on Will’s lap and grabbed his cheeks, turning his head in her direction. “What did Isa say?”

  He tried to bring his attention back to his daughter, but the coldness of Isa’s response had disconcerted him—even if he deserved it. “She said Tadie was home for a while because of family issues and now is back in New York, but she doesn’t know how long she’ll be there.”

  “Can we go to New York?”

  Will ran his finger down Jilly’s nose and rested it on her chin. “No, honey, we can’t. We don’t even know where in that huge city she might be. If she wants to talk to us, don’t you think she’ll answer my letter?”

  “But if she came home and then went back, maybe she never got it.”

  Will closed his eyes. This was way too hard.

  He felt the touch of her hand on his cheek. “It’s okay, Daddy.”

  His eyes slowly focused on his daughter’s face. What lay beneath her words sounded weighty, much too weighty for a child. And he’d done it to her.

  “If you feel so strongly about it, why don’t you write to her? Maybe she’ll answer you.”

  Her lips opened slightly on an, “Oh,” and then, full of exuberance, she said, “I will. I’ll write to her right now.”

  She climbed down and went in search of her notebook. Taking it and a pen, she tucked into one of the settees and started writing.

  It took her three hours to get her thoughts on paper. She wouldn’t accept help with more than the spelling of a few words, and she kept it far from his eyes. “It’s between me and Tadie,” she announced as Will handed her an envelope. He printed out Tadie’s name and the Beaufort address for her to copy and tore a stamp out of the book in his wallet.

  “Can we—I mean, may we—go mail it now?”

  “If you want to. I was thinking we might eat out tonight anyway. Why don’t we wander down to the ferry and hitch a ride across the harbor?”

  “O-kay!” She added a few more lines to her paper, sealed the envelope, and grabbed her jacket.

  He sure hoped Jilly would receive some sort of reply. Even if Tadie had to let her down gently.

  Chapter Thirty-one

  “We’re leaving much too soon,” Hannah said as she and Tadie fought traffic south, a cappuccino for each of them in the cup holder. “I haven’t even been to Broadway yet.”

  “You were too busy at Barney’s, not to mention H&M. They’re going to miss your credit card.”

  Seeing pre-Christmas New York with Hannah had been a completely different experience from being there on her own. Hannah had agreed to zip through a couple of museums, but she’d wanted to shop. So shop they had.

  Now they had to figure out how to get on the turnpike and away from the money pit. “You keep an eye out, please.”

  “I am.” Hannah studied the map and watched for directional signs. “Next exit.”

  “I sure am glad you started shipping stuff home,” Tadie said, flicking her turn signal to ease onto the ramp. A taxi honked, but not at her. At least, she didn’t think he meant her. She accelerated into the flow of traffic.

  “Are you going to give up your lease?” Hannah asked. “I mean, maybe if we plan ahead, we can find something we want to see that isn’t sold out.”

  “You can’t expect me to keep an apartment just so you’ll have a place to shop and see musicals. You want a pied a terre in the city, you’ll have to rent it.”

  “Like I can afford one.”

  “You think I can?”

  “You did.”

  “I rented the apartment instead of going to a shrink. It’s not something I’m going to continue doing.”

  “What if you’d decided to stay here?”

  Tadie shot a quick eyebrow hike in Hannah’s direction. “Then I’d find some way to augment my income. I can’t imagine keeping the Beaufort house and a New York apartment going full-time. That’s an absurd waste of money.”

  Hannah finished her coffee and
dug in her bag for a tissue. Tadie pointed to a supply between the seats and held out a palm for one to wipe her own lips.

  “I’m glad you’re coming home,” Hannah said. “I missed you terribly when you were away.”

  “I missed you too.”

  “You’ve certainly spoiled me on this trip. I can’t believe I’m going back so Matt can yell down the stairs for his slippers.”

  “You love it.”

  “It’s true. He’s turned into an old coot, but he’s my old coot.”

  Several hours later they had to make a directional choice. “I vote I-95 this time,” Hannah said. “See something different.”

  “Fine, but we ought to take 301 to by-pass the DC-Richmond mess.”

  “What do I know? I’ve never driven that way.” Hannah laughed at herself. “Well, I’ve never driven any of it. I was just thinking two lanes on 17 late in the day didn’t sound like a good idea.”

  As Baltimore loomed to their right, Tadie glanced over at Hannah and quickly scanned the city skyline. She couldn’t stare, but her thoughts were certainly centered on one red-haired child.

  And the father?

  Of course not.

  It wasn’t until they were approaching the exit to I-97 that Hannah said, “I wonder if they’re still there.”

  “Who?” Tadie asked, knowing, but wanting to hear Hannah say it.

  “Will and his daughter.”

  “That’s the address he gave. A post office box in Baltimore. But maybe he just uses it to check in. I don’t know much about him ... uh, them.”

  “But you liked them.”

  “Jilly. I liked Jilly.”

  “I liked them too. Both of them.”

  * * * * *

  “What do you think Matt’s going to say about all your loot?” Tadie asked, bags hanging from both arms as she followed her equally laden friend to her door.

  “He’ll be so happy to have me home, he won’t care. Besides, don’t you think he’ll enjoy seeing me dressed in something stylish for a change?”

  “You always look good.”

  “No I don’t. I’ve looked like a frump for years, and you know it.”

  “Well, honey, if you have, I have.”

  “We both needed a change.”

  “Maybe so.” Tadie set the things down inside the front door and leaned over to give Hannah a hug. “Call me.”

  Her own porch light greeted Tadie as she parked around back, but the house was quiet. Flipping the switch in the kitchen, she breathed deeply of cinnamon and picked up a note from the counter next to the pot of cider: Gone to meet the Levinsons. Be back Sunday. Please pray.

  “They’ll love you,” Tadie told the note. “How could they not?”

  She called to let Elvie and James know she was back, then filled a mug and set it in the microwave to warm while she carried her bag upstairs. Ebenezer greeted her at the landing.

  “Hey, big boy, how’s it going?” He rubbed against her shin as she stroked him, his tail flicking and curling around her calf. “Did you miss me?” she asked that swishing tail as he padded down the hall in front of her.

  Orange, yellow, and white mums winked from her bureau. Lovely, Rita.

  She ran her hand along the banister as she went down to retrieve her cup and returned to draw a bath. Easing into the foamy water, she picked up a book and settled back against her neck pillow.

  She was home.

  * * * * *

  Isa fluffed the feather duster in her direction when Tadie pushed open the shop door. “Good morning. You look like your trip did you some good this time. No more dark circles, so maybe Hannah wasn’t the only one who rested.”

  “Well, honey, I’m not sure how much resting we did, but we sure did shop. And eat.”

  “You needed to. And if shopping bought you that, you did well.” Isa looked her up and down. Twirling a finger, she said, “Turn.”

  Tadie modeled the fitted jeans and black suede jacket that zipped up the front. “Hannah talked me into it. You don’t think it’s too much?”

  “I like it. You won’t find anything like it in Belks, that’s for sure, but isn’t that what you wanted for the new you?”

  “Did I need a new me?”

  “No, but I got the feeling you thought so.”

  “Maybe I did.” Tadie unzipped the jacket. “The suede is so soft, but I wonder how often I’ll wear it.”

  “Does it matter? Wear it whenever you want.”

  “I could.” She glanced around the store. “So, what’s been happening?”

  “Did you see Rita before she left? She bought Jamie’s fish sculpture.”

  Tadie’s eyes widened, and she whistled a few notes. “To take to Martin’s parents? That was brave of her.”

  “I can’t wait to hear how they like it.” Isa tucked away the duster and pulled up a stool. “I got the feeling she wanted something to take their attention away from her, and this seemed perfect. Either they’ll love it because they have taste—which means they’ll love Rita—or they’ll hate it because they have none, and Martin will have to deal with that.”

  “So will Rita.”

  “She’s strong.”

  “Yes, but I wouldn’t want to face that kind of disapproval. We never have, you and I.” Tadie headed into the office to drop off her bag, thinking the conversation over.

  Obviously, it wasn’t. Isa’s voice stopped her. “No, but then, you’ve never had to face anything other than being the rich, white valedictorian.”

  She turned to find Isa behind her in the doorway. Where had that come from? Was this their normally cheerful Isa?

  “Who told you that?”

  “What, the valedictorian part?”

  “I know Hannah said that. But you talk as if I’m some spoiled woman who never had any troubles.”

  “I’m sorry. That was rude.” Isa didn’t sound particularly repentant.

  Well, she certainly didn’t need Isa’s grousing, not on her first morning home. She’d just head on back to her studio and her work.

  She slipped around Isa into the shop. “Fine. Whatever. I just wanted to see how things were going here.”

  “I’m sorry,” Isa said, scooting to block her exit. “I don’t know what got into me.”

  “I don’t either.”

  “Can we forget it, please?”

  With a nod and a muttered, “Sure,” Tadie took one last look at Isa. Had those circles been there at Thanksgiving? Those lines around Isa’s mouth?

  She pointed Isa to the stool. “I’m the one who ought to be apologizing. You just sit yourself down right there.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me. We dumped it all on you, didn’t we? First when I left, and then when we both took off.” Tadie waved at the computer and toward the shop, all the things they’d piled on Isa. “I may have come back with circles under my eyes last time, but you’ve got them now. Why didn’t you complain? I can’t believe we took you for granted like that.”

  Isa tried to brush off the idea. “I didn’t mind.”

  “You must have on some level, or you wouldn’t have snapped at me. That wasn’t like you.” She retrieved Isa’s large bag from behind the office door and shoved it into her lap. “I want you to take off. Go do something fun this afternoon.”

  Tears pooled in Isa’s eyes. She swiped at them and said, “You really don’t mind?”

  “Of course not. We should have thought of getting you some help while we were off gallivanting. Especially the months I was gone.” Tadie felt a pang of guilt. Isa had always been there for them. And she and Hannah had barely given her a passing thought after they’d left. They hadn’t even bought her a gift.

  “Stefan invited me to go to the theater in Greenville, but I told him I couldn’t leave early enough to make it.”

  “So, things are going well with you two? Wonderful. Now call and tell him you’re coming. Go on, pick up the phone.”

  Isa wi
ped her face again, grabbed the phone, and punched in numbers. Tadie left the office to give her some privacy. What had happened to change Isa’s mind about a church-going man? As much as she’d like to know, this didn’t seem like the time to bring it up.

  “All set?” she asked when Isa replaced the handset.

  Isa nodded. “Thank you. I mean it. I’ll be back in on Monday.”

  “If you can’t make it—or don’t want to—just call me. It won’t hurt me to keep shop for a day or two.”

  “No, I’ll be here.” Isa fished what looked like a lunch sack from under the counter and reached up to hug Tadie. As she pulled on the front door, she turned. “I almost forgot. Will Merritt called. He wanted to know when you’d be back.”

  “He wrote to say Jilly misses me. I haven’t answered him.”

  Tadie surveyed the shop as the door closed behind Isa. She checked inventory, picked up Isa’s logbook, and went into the office. While she waited for her computer to boot, she called Hannah to say they needed to give Isa more time off.

  “What do you think about a raise?” she asked, distracted by a message box asking if she wanted to install some sort of upgrade to something she’d never heard of. She clicked Don’t Install. “And I don’t know why we didn’t bring her anything from New York.”

  She heard Hannah’s indrawn breath. “You’re right. I can’t believe neither of us thought of it. Look, why don’t I find something from my stash? Some of my stuff has already been delivered, and more’s on the way. Things I don’t even remember buying. Why did I?”

  “Greed?”

  “Lust. Pure, unadulterated lust.”

  “Among your lustful purchases, can you come up with something Isa will like?”

  “I will. And we’ll leave it for her to find on Monday.”

  “Thanks. I’ve never seen her wound so tightly.”

  “We did sort of dump things on her, didn’t we?” Hannah said. “Ever since you left the first time, because I was so caught up with Matt.”