One Night With You

by Gwynne Forster

  Her countenance darkened, and he thought she appeared sad. “I’m old-fashioned, Reid. You’re as important to me as the air I breathe, and no one, not even Claudine, who is my only living relative can boast that. To say that—”

  He grabbed her shoulders. “If you had my ring on your finger, would you object to my saying that I’m your man?”

  She sucked in her breath and something in the vicinity of her feet engaged her attention. “I guess not, but fiancé would be more appropriate.”

  “Ah, sweetheart!” He pulled her into his arms, and she snuggled against him, holding him tight. How had he ever lived without her? He took her hand and headed for the recreation area.

  “I wondered if you two had decided to fill up on love,” Max said.

  Kendra greeted Doris with a hug. “That comment seemed out of character for Max. Was he telling me something?”

  Doris’s smile showed her pride in her husband. “He sure was. Max is so fond of Reid, and he won’t be satisfied till he sees a minister pronounce the two of you man and wife. Girl, my husband is so romantic.” She patted the back of her hair, which looked as if she’d just left the hairdresser, and looked toward the ceiling. “After twenty-four years, he’s still the best, most eager lover a woman could want.”

  “That’s because you probably look and behave exactly as you did twenty-four years ago, a perfect size ten with everything where it should be. How do you do that and eat this great food you cook?”

  “I don’t overeat, and I swim every day in the year.” She took a deep breath. “Philip is really taken with Claudine. I never saw the like of it, and that sort of thing always happens to both people. I tell you, this is something! Take this cornbread out to the table, will you? Wait a minute? You think Claudine would agree to live here? We’re so isolated. Lord, I hope she’s flexible.”

  “Doris, they haven’t known each other an hour.”

  “I know, but, honey, I’ve known Philip since he was seven, and what he’s going through right now isn’t going to leave him during this lifetime.”

  Kendra didn’t know what to make of Doris’s words, but she had a hunch that the woman knew whereof she spoke. She hastened outside to observe for herself the interplay between Philip and her sister.

  “Excuse us for a couple of minutes,” Philip said to the group. “Claudine wants to change before dinner, and if we don’t hurry we’ll be on Doris’s black list.” He extended his hand and Claudine took it, rose from her chair with the grace of Aphrodite rising from the Aegean Sea, and didn’t even glance at her sister as she left the group, holding Philip Dickerson’s hand.

  “Well, if that doesn’t beat all,” Kendra said to herself. To Max, she said, “Something’s happening here. Does this place have magic? Reid certainly cast a spell over me when I was here before. What is it about the place?”

  “No magic here,” Max said, and stretched out his legs and fastened his gaze on his wife, who sat across the room from him. “The people here care about each other, down to the last man. No one here has anything to fear. We treat each other with respect and care for each other when there’s a need. Nothing here to get stressed out about.”

  When Philip and Claudine returned a few minutes later, Claudine wore white pants and a pink T-shirt, and Kendra thought that Philip’s color had heightened considerably. Doris said grace, and the three couples, along with Arnold, Philip’s father, who joined them for the meal, enjoyed barbecued fresh pork, stuffed baked onions, stewed collards and baked spicy cornbread and lemon tarts for dessert.

  Reid leaned back in his chair and said for all to hear, “Kendra, baby, you’re going to have to learn how to do this barbecue. I’ve tried to make it at least half a dozen times and screwed it up on every occasion.”

  “Just let me know when you’re coming, and I’ll show you,” Doris said, “but you have to promise not to give away my recipe.”

  “I’ll promise you just about anything,” he said.

  Arnold walked around to Claudine and extended his hand to her. “I see that my son is so taken with you that he’s forgotten to introduce us. I’m Arnold Dickerson, Philip’s father, and I am delighted to meet you.”

  Claudine stood and shook the man’s hand. “Thank you, Mr. Dickerson. I’m very happy to meet you, too.”

  At least she’s still got presence of mind, Kendra said to herself.

  “I suggest we all go over to St. Michael early tomorrow morning and take the cruiser out,” Philip said to the group. “What do you all say?” He turned to Claudine. “I hope you brought along a sweater. Early mornings are cool on the bay.”

  “Yes, I did. Thanks.”

  Arnold returned to his seat beside Kendra. “Your sister is also a lovely woman. I’m tempted to ask if there are any more Rutherford women.”

  “Thank you,” Kendra said. “We’re all that’s left. Our mother passed a couple of years ago.”

  “I’m sorry about that. You know, it saddened me that Philip didn’t meet you before Reid did, but well, that was that. Philip and Reid are brothers. They’ve been through a lot together, and as stubborn as Reid is, he wasn’t so intractable as to ruin their relationship, because Philip stands his ground. You can’t imagine how happy I am to know that Reid’s ship is upright again. He’s a terrific man.”

  “Thanks for telling me this,” she said. “How do you feel about this obvious attraction between Philip and my sister?”

  “She’s a beautiful, elegant woman. I’ve never seen him this way. Reminds me of myself when I fell in love with his mother. I hope she’ll love him as deeply as Ellen loved me.”

  These people take some getting used to, Kendra thought as she sat around the pool with them later, sipping a mint julep and staring at the fire in the barbecue pit. She knew from the sound of the bird’s song that the singer was a mockingbird, although she had never heard it before. The smell of gardenia blossoms wafted among them and night creatures seemed to greet each other and to respond to the many different noises. Crickets chirped, frogs croaked and somewhere an owl hooted. What a heavenly oasis!

  “That was an owl, wasn’t it?” she asked Arnold.

  “Absolutely. They can sound eerie, too, on a dark night when the wind is ominous. If you’re not accustomed to ’em, they’ll scare the living beejeepers out of you.”

  Kendra turned to Reid. “I could get used to country living. Nobody can find this much peace in the city.”

  He reached for her hand and held it. “This place gave me a second life. It’s so tranquil. Here, a man can think, explore himself, appraise his life and find his salvation.”

  “Oh, honey,” she said and put her arms around him because she couldn’t help it.

  The poignancy of the moment was broken when Arnold said, “Reid, I hear you got a great offer of a contract from Reginald English. I hope you’re going to accept it. That’s an old and solidly placed family. I remember that my father had some dealings with Reginald English Senior, a lot of years ago, before the man got into the oil and gas business. I think he bought lumber from one of his mills, couldn’t meet his payments and offered to work it off. Old man English erased the debt. It wasn’t huge, but it sure meant a lot to my father. Anyway, you deserve your own company, and that deal will cement your status.”

  “If I have to get up at five,” Kendra said, “I’d better crawl in. Thanks, Doris, for this wonderful meal, and, Philip, thanks for the best—and first—mint julep I ever tasted. Its reputation for putting people in a stupor is well earned,” she added, drawing a round of laughter from the group. She patted Arnold’s hand. “I’m always glad to see you.”

  Reid rose and reached for Kendra’s hand. “Kendra’s turning in, and I’m going to walk with her to her room. I’ll be back, Philip, to finish this dynamite drink you mixed. By the way, everyone, I’ve decided to leave Marks and Connerly and strike out on my own.”

  “Right on, man,” Philip said. “I knew you’d do it.”

  “Yeah. Now that I’ve made up my
mind, I can’t wait to get started. Thank all of you for the support you’ve given me. Be back shortly.”

  “Are you surprised?” he asked her as they walked up the stairs.

  “Not a bit. You’re loyal, but you’re also logical, and because you want to regain your status, this is the proper road. I’m proud of you, and when I get some privacy I’m going to give you a proper kiss.”

  “Not tonight, please, sweetheart. If I don’t go back there, they’ll know why.”

  “I can still kiss you. A little self-control is good for a man.”

  “When I repay you, be sure you remember how I incurred the debt.”

  At her door she stroked the side of his face. “I’m so proud of you. I would have accepted your decision if you had decided to stay with Jack, but I’m glad you chose to leave. Not because of the money, but for the man you are. You’re the best, and you don’t need to bow to any man. See you in the morning.”

  “Aren’t you gonna kiss me?”

  She knew that her grin had all the elements of deviltry. “If you want me to.”

  When he released her, she stumbled into the room, closed the door and fell across the bed.

  “That was a real party Philip put on yesterday,” Reid said to Kendra as they pointed their horses toward Bachelor Bay on Dickerson Estates, on Sunday morning. “I never cared much for those big boats. He was always trying to get me to go out with him, but I wouldn’t. That’s one sweet cruiser.”

  “Yes, and that weekend house is nothing to sneeze at. The entire day was memorable. Imagine, the man who owns Dickerson Estates actually sitting down and scaling fish! Max said Doris wouldn’t think of cleaning fish.”

  “Half the time, Doris is more like his mother than his housekeeper. She raised him from the time he was seven.”

  “Without the moonlight to put scales over their eyes, Philip and Claudine seemed even more mesmerized by each other,” Kendra said. “What do you think about it, Reid?”

  “I think they’re both almost as lucky as I am. Don’t worry about your sister. Philip Dickerson is not going to hurt her.”

  “She’s pie-eyed, and not in the thirty-seven years I’ve known her—except when our parents died—have I seen her this serious for periods longer than thirty minutes.”

  “Have you talked with her?”

  “When could I? He hasn’t let her out of his sight.”

  He had thought that Philip and Claudine would be attracted to each other, especially because of Philip’s deep appreciation for intellectual wit, and on the short ride from Caution Point to Queenstown, he had discovered that Claudine was a very witty person. But it pleased him immensely to know that Claudine had destroyed whatever interest Philip might have had in Kendra.

  “If I was smart, I wouldn’t let you out of my sight, either. Are you comfortable on that horse? She seems a bit agitated.”

  “I’m okay,” Kendra said. “I don’t ride often enough to be good at it, but I’m comfortable.”

  He hadn’t often ridden to this part of the estate; during his stay here, he’d spent most of his spare time planning for the day that he hoped was at hand, the day he would face Brown and Worley in court once more. The day of vindication. The acres through which the bridle path roamed were resplendent in wild flowers that grew among the peach trees and pecan groves. He wanted to stop his horse and pick a bouquet for Kendra. At last, they reached Bachelor Bay. He dismounted, and then helped Kendra dismount.

  As soon as the others arrived, Arnold, Philip and Max built a fire, put up a table and set it for a meal. “I’ll cook,” Reid said, “that is if you don’t mind eating gourmet food.”

  “Since when can you cook?” Doris asked him.

  “Since before you met me, and after eating your cooking, my standard went up, and I got better at it. I had to because I couldn’t stand lousy meals.”

  “Then, let’s the four of us cook,” Philip said. “Here’s the bacon, the sausage and a frying pan, Reid.” What a difference having a woman he cared for and who cared for him could make in a man, Reid thought as he watched Philip use every opportunity to touch Claudine. And how her eyes adored him! He walked over to Kendra.

  “I’m damned proud of myself. I thought up this trip just to get those two together. I’m a helluva smart man.”

  Her eyes sparkled, and the low, sexy laughter that he loved trickled out of her. “It isn’t the first solid evidence I’ve had of your cleverness, sir.”

  “You mean that I stayed after you till I got you in bed? That sure was clever of me.”

  The group passed jokes among themselves, ate a breakfast of blueberries, grits, eggs, waffles, bacon, sausage and coffee, and after the men cleaned up, they all lay down on straw pallets and dozed in the morning sun.

  Glancing around, Reid saw that Claudine lay in the curve of Philip’s arm, while his friend gazed down at her, then bent over and kissed her lips. A smile altered the contours of his face. Reid didn’t do it often, but he couldn’t help thanking the Lord. Life was good.

  The sun climbed and the temperature rose. “It’s time we packed up and started back,” Philip said at about nine-thirty. “By the time we get home, it’ll be hot.”

  Reid rolled up Kendra’s mat and his own, singing “Shenandoah” in his deep baritone as he did so. Then he packed them on Casey Jones, his favorite horse, and he and Kendra joined the others for the trip back to the mansion.

  Sitting on his horse, Monument, a big chestnut stallion, Philip called to Reid, “In all the time I’ve known you, I had no idea that you could sing. You never sang here.”

  “No. I don’t suppose I did.”

  “You never smiled as much, either,” Doris said. “Next, you’ll tell me you can dance.”

  “I love to dance, Doris, and I think I’m pretty good at it.” He couldn’t help looking at Kendra. “Things are so different now. I feel like singing.”

  As they neared the house, a rabbit dashed out of the lettuce field in front of Kendra’s horse, spooking her, and the horse rose on her hind legs, throwing Kendra to the ground. She landed on her back and writhed in pain.

  “Philip!” Reid yelled as he jumped down from his horse and ran to Kendra. “Are you hurt? How do you feel? Oh, my God, baby. I’m so sorry.”

  “My back and my shoulder.”

  “I’ll get the doctor and a stretcher,” Philip said. “It’s best not to move her, because we don’t know where or how badly she’s hurt. Do you have any pain in your neck, Kendra?”

  “No. Don’t worry. I feel all my toes and my fingers. It’s my shoulder and my back.”

  Reid let out a deep breath. If she had feeling in her fingers and toes, she wouldn’t be paralyzed. Claudine and Doris hovered around her, but he refused to give way.

  “I’ll cancel my classes and stay with you,” Claudine told Kendra.

  “You don’t need to do that,” Reid said. “I’m going to take care of her. She won’t want for a thing.”

  “Are you sure?” Claudine asked him. “I don’t feel right going off and leaving her.”

  “You may stay if you like, Claudine. You’re her sister, but she’s my woman and my responsibility, and I am going to take care of her.”

  Chapter 9

  “She has a dislocated shoulder and three broken ribs,” the doctor said, “and she’s a very lucky woman. I’ve taped her up, and she should be able to travel tomorrow if she can lie down in the backseat.”

  “She can,” Reid said. “We can make her comfortable with pillows. Can you give her a painkiller, doctor?”

  “Yes. I gave Philip a prescription.”

  “I’ll take that to the drugstore, Philip.” Reid sat on the side of the bed in which Kendra lay, her face registering her surprise at the sudden change in her circumstances. “I’ll be back shortly, sweetheart. We’ll stay here tonight and leave sometime tomorrow. I’ll call my office. Do you want me to call your clerk?”

  “I don’t have his home phone number, but perhaps we can get it through
Information.”

  “You’re going to take her back to Queenstown tomorrow?” Philip asked him with a note of incredulity in his voice.

  “That’ll be fine,” the doctor said, “so long as he makes her comfortable.”

  “Tell you what,” Philip said to Reid. “You take the town car and leave your car with me. The backseat in my car is roomier, and it’s a heavier car, so she won’t feel the bumps.”

  “Thanks, brother. I’d do the same for you, and I’ll get it back to you as soon as Kendra’s well.”

  Philip’s offer surprised her until she remembered Arnold’s words to her the evening of their arrival. The two men were indeed brothers in their hearts, and they shared some admirable traits, too. She prayed that Claudine and Philip would love each other and build a life together. Thinking that she couldn’t wish more for her sister, she fought the drowsiness.

  “What did you give me?” she asked the doctor.

  “Something for the pain. If I hadn’t given it to you, you’d be in agony.”

  “Thank you. I’m sorry to be so much trouble.”

  “You’re no trouble,” Doris said. “I was just thinking how much fun it would be to throw a wild party right here in your room and out there in the hall.”

  “Don’t believe her,” Max said. “Doris hates loud parties.”

  “I thought you’d never wake up,” she heard Reid say. “Claudine and I are going to help you sit up, so we can get you out of those clothes and put on whatever it is that you sleep in.”

  She helped them ease her into a sitting position. “Reid, you can’t undress me.”

  “Really? Thank God, this thing buttons in the front.”

  “Claudine, get him out of here.”

  “Honey, don’t mind me. I don’t think he’ll get any surprises.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Don’t push me, Kendra, because you know I’ll tell it like it is. Tell you what, I’ll go out and let Reid do it.”

  Claudine left the room and Reid eased off her blouse, turned back the bed cover and removed her slacks and socks. “You are one sexy woman,” he said when he took off her bra. “Lord! Can I have just a little taste of this?” He flicked his tongue over her erect nipple and then pulled it into his mouth.