by Metsy Hingle
His father nodded and they continued to walk in silence. Yet his father’s words reminded him of the blackmail note he’d found in his pocket a week ago. He’d dismissed it and would do so again, he admitted. But listening to his father’s warnings now made him wonder who the author had been. He’d learned from Lily that it had been Bunny Baldwin who had given her the ticket to the ball. As the publisher of theEastwick Social Diary and a maven for gossip, he wouldn’t have put it past Bunny to have discovered that he was the father of Lily’s baby. But the blackmail note had shown upafter Bunny was dead, and unless Bunny’s ghost had decided to shake him down for cash, it had to be someone else.
Maybe someone Bunny had told?
Jack frowned. The note had appeared while he was at Abby Talbot’s home. Abby was Bunny’s daughter and the pair had been close. It was conceivable that Bunny had told Abby. Despite the fact that Bunny had always spoken highly of this counselor named Lily Miller, the scandal would have been hard for Bunny to ignore. In fact, it was just the sort of dirt that filled the pages of theDiary.
He recalled how distraught Abby had been following her mother’s death. Too distraught to execute a blackmail plan, he reasoned. Besides, Abby simply didn’t strike him as a blackmailer. Her husband, Luke, was another matter. An image of Luke on the day of the funeral, slipping away and disappearing into another part of the house, coming outdoors to speak on his cell phone, came to mind. While the fellow was pleasant enough, there was something different about him—something that Jack couldn’t quite put his finger on. The man had always struck him as a loner, but it went beyond that. Luke Talbot was…secretive. Maybe Abby had repeated what Bunny had told her to Luke in pillow talk. For that matter, Abby could easily have mentioned it to the Debs Club.
Jack thought about the five women given the nickname by the country club years ago. They were a close bunch and they had all been at the black-and-white ball. If Bunny had told Abby about him and Lily, Abby could have easily mentioned it to her friends at one of their luncheons. He thought about the other four women now—Emma Dearborn, Mary Duvall, Vanessa Thorpe and Felicity Farnsworth. All of them had been at Abby’s house following the funeral. As he thought about the violet-eyed Emma Dearborn, he couldn’t see her as a blackmailer. The woman had her own money. She had a successful art gallery and she was engaged to Reed Kelly. Where was the motive? As for Mary Duvall, the one-time wild child of the Duvall family had undergone a metamorphosis since her grandfather David’s stroke. She’d become devoted to the older man—hardly the actions of a blackmailer.
That left Vanessa Thorpe and Felicity Farnsworth. Stuart’s death had left his much younger wife, Vanessa, set for life. He could see no reason for the petite blonde to resort to blackmail. And as for Felicity Farnsworth…He had heard she’d had financial troubles following her divorce a number of years back. But from all accounts her wedding-planning business was doing great. If the lady was the blackmailer, she certainly didn’t act like one.
“You think Lily knows what a hornet’s nest your marriage and her pregnancy are going to stir up?”
“She’s a smart woman. I’m sure she has an idea,” Jack told him.
“You’re probably right. But whispers and innuendos…they tend to be harder on a female. How do you think she’ll handle it?”
“She’s a strong woman. She won’t let a little gossip bother her.”
“I sure hope you’re right, son. Because the way I see it, she’s going to get the brunt of the talk and she’s the one who’s going to have to do most of the adjusting.”
“Marriage is going to be an adjustment for both of us,” Jack pointed out.
“True. But it’s going to be her life that has to change the most. She’s going to suddenly be a wife, a mother and have to take on the Cartwright mantle practically all at once. That’s a tough assignment for any woman.”
“I’m going to do everything I can to make the transition easier for her,” he assured his father. “But like I said, Lily’s a smart and strong woman. She’s not going to let a few wagging tongues bother her.”
“Take it from a man who’s seen his wife through three pregnancies, it doesn’t matter how smart or strong a woman is, when she’s carrying a baby, you’re dealing with a whole other woman.”
“I’ll remember that.”
His father fell silent. He said nothing for a long time as they continued to walk. But Jack knew him well enough to know that he wasn’t finished. Whatever else he had to say, he would do so in his own time.
John took another puff on the cigar and as they approached the stream, he asked, “I ever tell you about the first time I met your mother?”
“She said you met at a dance,” Jack responded.
“It was at the military ball actually. I was a college senior and captain of my ROTC unit and she came with her cousin, Bess. I thought I was pretty hot stuff back then. And the truth is, I was. I had more than my share of dates and was in no hurry to settle down,” he continued as they stopped on the bridge that spanned the stream. “Then I saw your mother. There she was standing in the doorway—this slip of a girl in a long white dress with hair the color of coffee and sparkling green eyes. I took one look at her and it hit me.”
“What hit you?”
“The Italians call it the lightning bolt. And I guess that’s as good a way to describe it as any. Because I felt this jolt to my system. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. And I knew right then and there that she was the one for me, that she was the woman I was going to marry.”
As he listened to his father, Jack couldn’t help thinking about his own reaction to Lily the first time he’d seen her. There had been something about her that he hadn’t been able to resist, too. And the truth was he hadn’t been able to forget her either. Even with the shock of learning about the baby, the pull was still there.
“Unfortunately, your mother didn’t feel quite the same way and it took me a while to convince her that I was the right man for her,” his father added.
“How did you manage that?”
“I gave her some space and time to figure out for herself what she wanted. Once I took off the pressure, she realized what she wanted was me.” He paused, looked at him. “I got the impression that Lily isn’t quite as sure as you are about this marriage.”
“She isn’t,” Jack admitted and the truth was that while he knew marrying was the right thing to do for the baby’s sake, he had his own misgivings. “But unlike you, I can’t give Lily the time to figure out that marriage to me is the right thing.” Because if he gave her time, he wasn’t at all sure she wouldn’t change her mind.
Four
Maybe Jack had been right. They should have simply gone to the justice of the peace’s office, Lily thought as she sat at the table in the Cartwrights’ library. How did something that sounded so simple become so complicated? Once Sandra Cartwright had reached Felicity Farnsworth, the wedding planner had offered to come right over with books, pictures and everything needed to plan her wedding.
Her wedding.
Lily’s stomach pitched. She still couldn’t believe she’d agreed to marry Jack. In truth, she still found it hard to believe that he’d asked her. No, not asked, she reminded herself. He’d all but insisted.
He might have insisted, but you agreed, Lily girl.
It was true. Shehad agreed—for the baby’s sake. She was doing it for the baby, she told herself, so that her child would have what she’d never had—parents, a family. Not just any family, she reminded herself. Her child would be a member of the Cartwrights.
They had not been what she’d expected, Lily admitted. When she’d first seen their home, she’d wanted to turn and run. She probably would have, too, had Jack not been there to stop her. Oh, she’d rubbed elbows with rich people before because of her job. She’d even visited a mansion or two for fund-raising. But she had never been a part of that world, never been welcomed into it with open arms—literally. She could still remember the shock of being hugged
by the elegant Sandra Cartwright. She hadn’t expected that. No, she had expected Jack’s mother to be cool, to treat her as the unsuitable woman who was ruining her son’s life. But Sandra hadn’t. Nor had Jack’s father or sisters. In fact, they’d all been so nice to her that she’d been on the verge of blubbering—another side effect of her pregnancy.
“We’ll need to decide on what type of wedding cake you want,” Felicity said, breaking into her thoughts. “Do you have anything special in mind, Lily?”
“No, not really,” she told the voluptuous blonde who had breezed into the Cartwright home more than two hours ago with enough energy and enthusiasm to power a ship. Dressed all in black, Felicity Farnsworth had been as cheerful as the butterfly clips she wore in her hair.
“Not to worry,” Felicity said and flashed a smile that lit up her green eyes. She pulled out another thick binder from her arsenal and plopped it on the table. “Let’s see if we can find something in here that you like.”
“Ooh, that one’s lovely,” Sandra said.
“So is this one,” Courtney said enthusiastically. “And this one.”
“That one looks like a Barbie-doll cake,” Elizabeth said dryly.
Lily sat back and watched the exchange. There was something warm and endearing about the dynamics of the Cartwright family, the way they reacted to one another, the affection beneath the squabbles, the sense of belonging. They were a real family. She looked over at the twin fireplaces and the mantels filled with family photographs. More pictures fought for space on the desk and library shelves. Beyond the library, which spilled into the living room, she saw the baby grand piano, its gleaming top covered with more photos of Jack as a boy, at graduation, of Elizabeth at her sweet sixteen party, of his parents celebrating their anniversary, of the family gathered around the Christmas tree. Someday her baby’s picture would be there. Her baby would be a part of this family. Her child would belong. It was the reason she was doing this, Lily reminded herself again. She just wished that she didn’t have to mess up Jack’s life to make it happen.
“This one is beautiful,” Sandra Cartwright declared. “What do you think, Lily?”
Lily blinked at the sound of her name and realized all eyes were on her. She looked down at the book and there was the photograph of an elegant white wedding cake trimmed with sugar roses and real white tea roses. “I think Sandra’s right. It’s beautiful.”
“So do you want to go with this one?” Felicity asked.
“Yes,” Lily said and once again she was hit by the realization that she was getting married.
“Do you have any preference to the filling? Almond and butter cream are the most popular, but we can have the pastry chef do just about anything you like,” Felicity informed her.
“What about one of those cakes where every layer is different?” Courtney suggested. “Tiffany Aldrich had one at her wedding. The cake had six tiers and each one was a different flavor. I had a slice of the Italian cream and it was to die for.”
“Well, we can certainly do that if that’s what Lily wants,” Felicity announced. “Do you think you’d like the multi-flavored layers for your cake?”
“Six tiers sounds like a lot of cake,” Lily remarked as she looked again at the photograph of the rose wedding cake, which consisted of only three layers and a small bride and groom on the top.
“That depends on how many people you plan to have at the wedding,” Felicity explained. “Do you have an idea of the number of guests you expect?”
“I hadn’t really thought about it. I just assumed it would be small, Jack and me and his family, maybe a few friends.”
“But, Lily dear, surely you realize that Jack has a great many friends and associates, not to mention the friends of the family who would expect to be invited,” Sandra said. “Why, I think at a minimum we’ll have three hundred guests.”
“Three hundred!” Lily repeated and she could feel her stomach drop at the thought of all those people watching her.
“There’ll be no more than thirty,” Jack announced.
Lily swung her gaze to the doorway where Jack stood. He was wearing charcoal-gray slacks and a white shirt, having ditched his jacket and opened his shirt collar. And she had never been so happy to see someone in her life, Lily thought. His eyes never left her face and as he walked toward her the knot in her stomach eased. He stood behind her, placed his hands on her shoulders. He gave her a gentle squeeze and Lily could breathe again.
“Thirty?” Sandra Cartwright said aghast. “You can’t possibly be serious, Jack. Why, my garden club alone has thirty.”
“Your garden club isn’t going to be invited, Mother.”
“But, Jack—”
“Save it, Mother. Lily and I want something small and intimate with just family and a few friends. If you can’t do that, then we won’t have the wedding here. We’ll just go back to the original plan and get married in the justice of the peace’s office.”
“Lily dear, try to talk some sense into my thick-headed son,” Sandra said. “Explain to him that it would be an insult not to invite our friends to celebrate your wedding.”
“Actually, I’d rather we kept it small,” she admitted.
“But—”
“You heard the girl, Sandra,” John said as he joined them. “She and Jack don’t want to turn their wedding into a circus. And I can’t say I blame them. If they decide they want to have a big reception later, then we’ll throw them one.”
“Well, I can see that I’m outnumbered here,” Sandra said. She turned to Felicity. “Evidently we’ll need a cake to feed thirty.”
Felicity jotted down details in her notebook. “All right. Now that we’ve taken care of the wedding cake, we’ll need to decide on the groom’s cake. Most grooms like a chocolate cake, but we can do just about anything. Do you have any preference?” she asked Jack.
“Chocolate’s fine,” Jack told her.
“Great. Now what about the menu?”
Lily could feel herself starting to fade. Yet every muscle in her body was tense as Jack continued to rest his hands upon her shoulders. Suddenly she flashed back to that night in his hotel room. She’d been both nervous and excited when she’d first arrived at his room. She couldn’t remember how long she’d stood there waiting, debating whether or not to use the key. Sanity had returned for an instant and she’d turned around, prepared to go. Indecision had her still standing there when the door opened behind her. Jack had said nothing. He’d simply come up behind her and rested his hands on her bare shoulders. Then gently he’d turned her around, lowered his head and kissed her. And all thoughts of leaving had melted beneath the touch of his mouth.
“…we had talked about mini beef Wellingtons,” Sandra Cartwright was saying.
“Lily, do you want the beef Wellington?” Felicity asked.
“I tell you what,” Jack said before she could answer. “Mother, why don’t you and Felicity work up a menu? I’ve got a busy day tomorrow and I’m guessing Lily does, too. I’m sure whatever you decide will be fine with us. Right, Lily?”
“Right,” she said, grateful to him for arranging an escape.
He pulled the chair back for her, and Lily stood. “Just remember, no quiche, Mother. Lily and I are going to need you to help us with everything else.”
“All right,” Sandra said. “I’ll make the quiche Lorraine for you after the wedding,” she told her.
“Thanks,” Lily said. “I’ll look forward to it.”
Ten minutes later, after saying her good-byes and agreeing to speak with Felicity the next day, Lily was in Jack’s car driving through the iron gates.
“I’m sorry for leaving you to the wolves like that,” Jack told her. “Tom Carlton is an old family friend and he had some business to discuss with me before he left town. Unfortunately, it took a lot longer than I’d expected.”
“It’s okay,” she told him, because he seemed genuinely concerned. “I liked your family. They’re not at all what I expected.”
He glanced over at her. “Should I ask what you expected?”
“I don’t know. I guess I didn’t expect them to be so…so nice to me. I mean given who they are and who I am and…and the circumstances.”
His expression darkened. “They’re just people, Lily. As for the circumstances, you didn’t exactly make the baby on your own. We both did. If they were going to be upset with anyone, it would be with me.”
“But—”
“But they’re not upset. The truth is I think my mother is excited. She’s been wanting a grandchild for years. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard her complaining that her friends are all grandmothers two and three times over and she doesn’t have even one.”
“Yes, I think I did hear her mention something about that.” Which had surprised Lily. “And she wanted to know what colors I was going to do the nursery in.”