Over You

by Christine Kersey

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to find out, but good luck with it.” He picked up his coffee and took a swallow.

  Jessica smiled. “Thanks.” She walked out to her car, thinking about the information she’d gathered. She decided to do a little more digging on Mitchell and Katherine Tobin. The letters to William ended when the boy was less than two years old, so it was possible the boy who drowned was William’s child.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Once home, Jessica searched the newspaper archives for the story of a boy drowning forty-seven years ago. It didn’t take long to find and she read the story with interest. It said that the child, James, had fallen head-first into a bucket of water that had been left by the side of the house. By the time his mother realized he had wandered off, it was too late.

  What a terrible accident, Jessica thought. And so sad. His mother must have been devastated.

  Uncomfortable with the idea of dredging up the past by talking to the boy’s mother, Jessica decided to research the other families first. She did a Google search on Charles and Teal Harrington. There were a number of hits, and as Jessica read the information she discovered that Charles was a successful businessman and owned a number of businesses. The articles didn’t say much about his wife, Teal, and Jessica was left wondering about the woman.

  She decided to look up the last couple, Lawrence and Judith Caruso. She didn’t find anything about them, but she checked her notes and saw they still lived in town. She wondered if Judith would be willing to talk to her. Maybe she’d even know something about the two other women who had sons born when hers was.

  Jessica pulled up the Caruso’s address on Google maps and got the directions to their house. It was getting a little late in the day to drop by, so she decided she’d drive to their house the next day, Sunday.

  The next morning after breakfast, Jessica first went to visit her aunt. She brought the letters with her so that Ellen could read them herself.

  “Very interesting,” Ellen said, as she set the last letter on the bed next to her. “I had no idea such drama had taken place in my house.” She laughed. “That’s probably the last time any drama has taken place in that house. There certainly hasn’t been much drama there since I’ve lived there.”

  Jessica smiled, then held out the list of baby names. “Do you know any of these people?”

  Ellen read the list of names. “I’ve heard of the Harringtons, of course, but I don’t know them and I don’t know who any of these other people are.”

  Jessica took the list back. “I’d thought I’d stop by and talk to Judith Caruso this morning.”

  “Do you think you should just drop by? She might prefer a phone call first.”

  “Yes, I suppose you’re right.” Jessica picked up her cell phone and dialed the number she’d gotten from the phone book. A woman answered the phone. “Hello, is this Mrs. Caruso?”

  “Why, yes it is,” an older sounding voice said.

  “My name is Jessica Stevens. I’m living here in town with my aunt, Ellen Parson.” Jessica caught her aunt’s eye and smiled. “I’m doing some research on the town’s history. I understand you’ve lived here a long time and I was wondering if I could come by and talk to you about some of the town’s history.”

  “I suppose so.”

  “Do you have time today?”

  “Yes, I believe I do.”

  “Would it be okay if I came by in about an hour?”

  “Yes, that would be fine.”

  Jessica hung up a moment later and turned to her aunt. “I have an idea. Why don’t you come with me? Mrs. Caruso might feel more comfortable talking to me if you’re along, don’t you think?”

  “Why, because I’m old like her?” Ellen said with a twinkle in her eye.

  “You’re much younger than she is. She must be well into her seventies.”

  “That’s very sweet, Jessica, but I do think it might be fun. And I’d love to get out of here for a little while.”

  “Do we need to bring your walker?”

  “Yes, I think that would be a good idea.”

  Jessica helped her aunt out to the car. A short time later they pulled up to a modest house with a tidy yard. After helping her aunt to the door, Jessica rang the bell. A moment later a woman with white hair opened the door.

  Jessica smiled. “You must be Mrs. Caruso.”

  “Yes.” Her face held a mixture of curiosity and caution.

  “I’m Jessica Stevens, and this is my aunt, Ellen Parson.”

  “Hello,” Judith Caruso said.

  “Hi there,” Ellen said. “I don’t think we’ve met before, but I live over on Sycamore Drive.”

  Judith Caruso seemed to relax. “Oh yes. I thought you looked familiar. Won’t you come in?”

  Jessica and Ellen followed Judith into the house. She led them into a small living room and invited them to sit on a couch.

  “Thank you for letting us come by on such short notice, Mrs. Caruso,” Jessica said.

  “Please, call me Judy. And I’m always happy to have visitors.” She paused. “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “I’m fine,” Jessica said. Ellen agreed.

  “Now, what was it you wanted to know?”

  “Well, like I said on the phone, I’m doing some research on the town’s history. Specifically, about fifty years ago.”

  “That’s certainly a long time ago. In fact, that’s about the time my oldest boy was born.”

  Jessica nodded, pleased that Judy had brought the subject up. “Tell me about your son.”

  Judy’s face lit up as she began talking about her son. “Edward is the joy of my life.” She paused. “Especially since we weren’t able to have any other children.”

  Interesting, Jessica thought. Could this be B? Was her husband infertile and she only had the one child because of her relationship with William?

  “He’s an attorney,” Judy continued. “A very successful attorney, I might add. He doesn’t live as close anymore, but he still comes to visit at least once a month and he brings those wonderful grandchildren with him.”

  “It sounds like you have a great son. It must have been difficult to not have other children,” Jessica said.

  “Oh yes. We call Edward our miracle child. The doctors didn’t think I’d be able to have any children, but they were wrong.”

  The comment didn’t help Jessica decide if Judy could be B or not. It sounded like Judy was the one with infertility issues, but that could just mean she wasn’t worried about becoming pregnant when she was with William and ended up surprised. “Tell me what it was like, back then, raising a child. Did many women work outside of the home? Did you?”

  “Oh no. Most women with children stayed home with their babies. Including me. And for the most part, I loved it. Of course there were many times I wished I could trade places with my husband. He always seemed so happy when he left for work in the morning.”

  “What did your husband do?” Ellen asked.

  “He’s an electrician,” Judy said.

  Jessica suddenly realized how she could know for sure if Judy was the mysterious B. “Did he need to travel much for his job?”

  Judy smiled. “Oh no. He was home for dinner every night.”

  Jessica nodded, certain that Judy was not B. But she wondered if she might know who B was. “Tell me about some of the other women who had babies when you did. Did you spend very much time with the other mothers in town?”

  “Oh sure. There were a group of us that would get together.”

  “How often did you get together and where did you meet? At each other’s houses?”

  “We’d get together a couple of times a week. When the weather was nice, we’d meet at the park. But if it was cold or stormy, we’d meet in each other’s homes.”

  “I’m planning on talking to some of the other mothers from that era. Do you know Katherine Tobin or Teal Harrington?”

  “Katie Tobin was part of the group. At least until her sweet little boy die
d. That was so sad. Such a difficult time for everyone.”

  “I can’t imagine,” Jessica said. “How did they deal with it?”

  “Some tragedies tear a family apart and some bring them closer together. Mitch and Katie, though, it brought them together.”

  “Did they have other children?”

  “Yes. They had a girl who was older than James—that’s the boy who died. Later on they had another boy.”

  B’s child was her first, so clearly Katie Tobin wasn’t B. “What about Teal Harrington? Did you know her?”

  “I knew of her, of course. But I wasn’t part of her social circle.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “The Harringtons associated with the wealthier members of our community.” Judy laughed. “The ladies in my group were not among them.”

  Butterflies fluttered in Jessica’s stomach as she listened. It was sounding more and more like Teal Harrington could be the mysterious B. “What do you know about Teal and her husband, Charles?”

  “Not much, really. Like I said, I didn’t know her personally. I just know she and her husband seemed to be financially comfortable. He owned many businesses. I think his son took over most of them when Charles died.” Judy paused. “I have to get ready for church now.”

  “Okay. Well, I sure appreciate you letting us come by and talking to us.” Jessica stood, then turned to her aunt to help her stand.

  “Yes, thank you,” Ellen said to Judy. “It’s fun to talk about old times, isn’t it?”

  Judy stood too. “Yes, I always enjoy reminiscing.”

  The three women walked to the door, and Jessica helped her aunt to the car.

  As she and Ellen drove back to the long-term care center, Jessica looked at her aunt. “What do you think?”

  “I think you need to find out more about Teal Harrington.”

  “That’s exactly what I thought.” Jessica smiled.

  A few minute later they pulled up to the center. Jessica helped her aunt from the car, and walked with her inside. “Do you want me to take you back to your room?”

  “Oh no. Some of the others are meeting in the main room to play games. At breakfast I told them I’d join them.”

  Jessica met some of her aunt’s new friends, then said good-bye and drove home. After eating lunch, she booted up her computer and Googled Teal Harrington. She didn’t find much. Just a few mentions of her in newspaper archives related to social events she attended, as well as the announcement of her death. Jessica was surprised to see that Teal had died when she was in her forties. Jessica studied the picture in Teal’s obituary and tried to imagine what the woman in the picture would have looked like when she was in her twenties. Even in her forties Teal Harrington was very attractive, and Jessica could understand how William would have fallen in love with her and risked his heart even though she was married. Jessica reread the obituary, looking for some indication that this woman was B, but her middle name was Katherine.

  Though she hadn’t found much, Jessica felt she was getting closer to solving the mystery of who B was and felt pleased that she’d gotten as far as she had. And though she hadn’t found any indication that Teal was called ‘B’ by anyone, other things seemed to fit: Teal’s first-born child was a boy born at the right time, and Teal’s husband was a prominent businessman. It wasn’t enough to be certain, but through the process of elimination, Teal was Jessica’s best bet.

  She would go to the diner the next morning and see if Thomas Naylor was there, then press him for more information.

  But first, Jessica thought as her heart suddenly pounded, she’d have to face Kyle when he came to work on the house in the morning. She thought about the pictures Melanie had brought by and found herself opening the desk drawer where she’d placed the envelope. She couldn’t stop herself from putting the disc in her DVD drive, and a moment later she was scrolling through the photos. This time, knowing what she was going to see, rather than being immune to the feelings of hurt and shock, she found her feelings amplified. Tears filled her eyes as she looked at the happiness so clearly etched on Kyle’s face. This time she studied the little girl’s face, trying to find her resemblance to Kyle, but she couldn’t be certain. She looked so much like Melanie, Jessica had no doubt the girl was hers. The question foremost in her mind was whether the child was also Kyle’s.

  When she got to the pictures of the three of them, she thought they looked like a complete and happy family. She wished she could be happy for Kyle, but instead she felt a crushing disappointment that it wasn’t her in that picture with him instead. Though she couldn’t deny her feelings for him, she refused to allow him to know how she felt—she could not abide the thought of him pitying her. She would rather him think she was completely over him than have him know she still had strong feelings for him.

  What good would it do anyway? He’s with Melanie now. And if the little girl is his, she thought, I wouldn’t want to be responsible for breaking up her parents.

  Jessica closed the pictures and put the disc back in the desk drawer, then turned to her job to get her mind off of Kyle. Though she normally didn’t work on Sundays, she was desperate to do something to keep her mind occupied and knew that work was a sure way to forget her troubles, if only for a while.

  The next morning when she heard a knock on the door, Jessica took a deep breath in anticipation of facing Kyle. She turned the knob and opened the front door, but it wasn’t Kyle who stood on the porch.

  Jessica’s eyes widened as her gaze met those of the person standing in front of her.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Alex,” Jessica said, shock evident in her voice.

  “Hi, Jessica.” His smile showed his uncertainty.

  “What are you doing here?” Jessica glanced over his shoulder to see if Kyle had arrived yet. That’s all she needed—to have her ex-fiancé and ex-boyfriend show up at the same time.

  “Are you expecting someone?” Alex said, following Jessica’s line of vision before turning back to her.

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  “Oh, right.” He hesitated. “Your mom told me she came out for a visit last week.”

  She waited for him to go on, but he seemed to be formulating his story. She was surprised he hadn’t already come up with something. Maybe he had expected me to rush into his arms, she thought. “And?”

  “Did she say anything about me?”

  She frowned. “I think you know she did.”

  “Jessica,” he said, a pleading look on his face. “Don’t you have any feelings for me at all?”

  As she opened her mouth to speak, she heard the crunch of gravel and saw Kyle’s truck pulling up in front of the house. Sudden panic engulfed her as she watched Kyle in the cab of his truck.

  Alex turned to see who had arrived. After staring at Kyle for a moment, he turned back to Jessica. “Who’s that? Your new boyfriend?”

  Jessica dragged her gaze away from Kyle, who was climbing out of his truck, and met Alex’s eyes.

  His expression hurt, he said, “Well? Is he?”

  “No,” Jessica said with a calmness that belied her racing thoughts. “No, he’s just working on my aunt’s house. He’s a contractor.”

  Relief swept across Alex’s features. “Oh.”

  Jessica’s gaze shifted to Kyle, who was walking up the porch steps. She tried to look at him through Alex’s point of view. Muscular and handsome, Kyle carried himself with confidence. Jessica could understand why Alex would feel threatened. She only wished Kyle was her boyfriend. As her eyes met his, her heart pounded, images of him with the little girl and Melanie flashing through her mind. He looked away from her and seemed to be sizing up Alex. Something in Kyle’s expression made Jessica think he was not pleased to see Alex there. A thrill rushed through her.

  “Hi there, Jessica,” he said as he stepped toward the door as if he belonged there, ignoring Alex. “Can I come in?”

  She began to open the door wider to allow him to en
ter, but suddenly stopped. “Kyle, this is my, uh, friend, Alex.”

  “I think we’re a little more than friends, don’t you?” Alex said, glancing at Kyle before staring at Jessica.

  She was about to argue the point, until she saw the look on Kyle’s face. His sea-green eyes seemed to darken as his brows drew together. Jessica allowed a hint of a smile as she spoke. “I guess that’s what you’re here to talk about, isn’t it?”

  Alex suddenly reached out and stroked Jessica’s face, apparently thinking she was reconsidering the break-up. “That’s exactly right.” He smiled warmly and gazed at her.

  She held his gaze, but her mind was on Kyle and what he was thinking. After a moment she looked at Kyle, who was watching her, his expression unreadable. Jessica stepped back to allow Kyle to enter.

  “Best of luck,” Kyle said to Alex, then glanced at Jessica as he moved past her and into the house.

  She watched him as he climbed the stairs, wondering if she had taken things too far.

  “Jessica,” Alex said.

  She turned around, almost surprised to see him there.

  He smiled, a look of hope on his face. “Can I come in?”

  Confused about what to do, she hesitated.

  “Please. Just let me come in and talk to you. I’ll leave if you want, but at least give me a chance.”

  Not able to sort through the conflicting emotions washing over her, Jessica nodded and walked toward the sunroom. She heard Alex close the door, then follow her into the room, which was flooded with natural light. She sank into one of the chairs and curled her legs underneath her.

  Alex sat in the adjacent chair. “This place is great.” He looked around the room “So much character.”

  Jessica smiled despite herself. “Yeah, I love it here.”

  “How come you never brought me here?”

  Jessica knew exactly why. This place was where she and Kyle had spent so much time. It had never felt right to bring another man there. “I don’t know,” she said instead. “I guess I was waiting for the right time.” She paused. “How did you know where I was, anyway? Did my mom tell you?”

  “Well, not in so many words. But she told me enough about where you were that I was able to figure it out.”