* * *
THE NEXT MORNING Karin rolled over and blinked at the clock on her bedside table. Oh, good, she could sleep longer. It was before seven, and Mellie and Aaron weren’t coming until nine.
Last night had been awesome. She’d never eaten at a fancy place like the Meadowlark Inn. Well, except the Blue Bayou restaurant—it was super fantabulous, being in Disneyland. But the Meadowlark Inn was dandy, in an old house fixed up with sparkly cut glass in the windows and crystal chandeliers. It sat on a low hill, and all the trees around it were strung with little white lights.
She and Melanie had gotten her mom and Aaron to let them eat at their own table across the room and they’d felt grown-up, ordering hors d’oeuvres and salad and stuff. They’d gotten extravagant fruit drinks in funny glasses, and the waiter had brought piles and piles of French bread and butter.
Karin pulled the quilt around her shoulders and snuggled down, imagining going on a date at the Meadowlark Inn with a guy like Nick Jakowski. It was terribly romantic, and outside under the trees was the perfect place for a first kiss. Just because she was going to be a famous scientist and never get married, it didn’t mean she was going to ignore boys.
She heard the front door open and close and figured it was her mom, going out to work in the garden.
Jeez.
Mom never slept in, no matter what.
It was nearly eight when Karin woke up again. The house was quiet and she got out of bed, yawning. “Mom?” she called.
There wasn’t an answer, so she peeked out the window and saw her mother in the driveway.
She stumbled outside in her pajamas. “Whatcha doing?” she asked, blinking sleepily.
“I’ve washed the truck, and now I’m waxing it.”
Karin was suddenly wide-awake. Her mom hadn’t washed the truck in...well, she’d never washed the truck. It was Dad who’d always taken care of the cars, and the last time he had done it was the day of his accident. He’d said it was his job and that he always wanted them to look nice for his family.
Then that 18-wheeler had hit him.
“But...” She stopped. It hurt to see her mother polishing the fender.
“You’d better go inside and start getting ready, Karin. Aaron and Melanie will be here before long. Let me know when you’re ready for breakfast, and I’ll fix something.”
“Okay.”
She ran back into the house, gulping big breaths of air, wanting to cry. Nobody would understand why she was so upset, not when she didn’t understand it herself.
* * *
AARON LOOKED AT Karin and Melanie as they hurried through the Sacramento Zoo entrance and veered left following a short, whispered consultation. As usual, both girls were more interested in going off by themselves than hanging around the adults. His plan to “get to know Karin” was moving slowly because of it; he’d have to think of an activity where they all did something together.
“Karin was quiet on the drive into the city,” he murmured. “Didn’t she enjoy herself last night?”
“Very much.”
He glanced at Skylar; she’d been quiet herself. “You’re pale—is everything okay? We shouldn’t have come if you aren’t feeling well.”
Her smile seemed forced. “I’m not sick. I just have a lot on my mind.”
Aaron figured part of her problem was having him around Karin so much. There was an edge of watchful tension in her, as if she was worried about what he might say or do—the tension should have been a clue that she was keeping a secret from him, even before his father let the cat out of the bag.
What had Spence claimed...that if he’d cared Karin might be his daughter, he would have figured it out when he met her?
Aaron’s jaw hardened. He did care; it just hadn’t occurred to him to question the situation with so much going on at Cooper Industries, and with Melanie. Not to mention Skylar rattling his brain. Besides, Skylar had named her daughter after her mother-in-law, which was pretty close timing if Jimmie Gibson wasn’t Karin’s biological father.
But Aaron knew there was something else he hadn’t considered. Over the years he’d had so little faith in people, he’d never questioned whether they had any reason to have faith in him. He could try to keep dismissing Skylar’s actions as proof that women were untrustworthy, but should he blame her for not telling him about Karin, especially after his family offered her money?
He had treated her badly. He hadn’t thought she was someone he could introduce to his family. And he probably would have told her to take a hike if she’d told him she was pregnant, certain the baby couldn’t be his.
They stopped at the jaguar enclosure, and Skylar leaned on the railing, gazing at one of the big cats, sitting alert and watchful in the late-morning sunshine.
“They’re such powerful animals,” she said. “But as beautiful as they are, I hate seeing them in captivity.”
“There’s controversy over zoos,” Aaron acknowledged. “One faction argues it’s cruel to confine animals that should be free, and another claims zoos and wildlife preserves are important to conservation efforts.”
“I’ve heard that someday certain species may only exist in confinement.”
“One of my brothers talks about that—he’s a photographer who specializes in exotic locations.”
“Jake Hollister, right?” Skylar said, turning her head. “He won the Pulitzer for his work in Iraq.”
Aaron grimaced. “Don’t mention that to Jake. He never wanted to be a war photojournalist and doesn’t feel awards should be given for pictures of violence. Going to the Middle East was a onetime thing.”
“I’m not likely to ever meet him.”
Aaron wasn’t so sure. If Karin was his daughter, then his brothers and sisters were her uncles and aunts. Maybe they should consider having some sort of central gathering, like an annual reunion.
“You never know,” he said noncommittally. “Oh...speaking of photographs, would it be possible to see some early pictures of Karin? Perhaps you have an album I could borrow.”
Skylar tensed visibly with the question. “There are several family albums you could look at when it’s safe. Wait until you see the ones of Karin in her Halloween costumes.”
She went on, describing the costume choices Karin had made over the years, her face relaxing as she talked. Karin had never wanted to be a princess like her friends; Skylar’s maternal challenge had included creating costumes for a robot, an alley cat and a skunk. He enjoyed the account so much it was a while before he looked around for Melanie and Karin, only to find they’d disappeared from view.
He sighed. “Should we catch up with the girls?”
“It’s a small zoo—they’re not going to get lost.”
“I suppose.”
They wandered on, and Skylar pointed out the tiger exhibit, saying a Sumatran tiger had been born in the zoo in early spring, then began talking about a place she’d heard of called Tiger Island where they hand-raised the cubs, and visitors were able to interact directly with the animals.
Skylar’s knowledge had surprised Aaron several times in the past few weeks. For all that she’d dropped out of school, she seemed to be well-read, often knowing more about a subject than he did. Of course, she’d dropped out because she was pregnant, not because she couldn’t handle the academics.
“By the way,” he said, “I’ve been thinking about Karin’s education. If she sticks with her current plans, the cost for postgraduate school will be huge.”
“It’s more or less taken care of.”
“Skylar, you may have saved, but—”
“It’s taken care of,” she said sharply, yet a moment later gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry. Touchy subject. We’ve had a college fund since Karin was a baby, and I deposit all of her Social Security survivor’s benefits into
the account, as well. And...” She hesitated. “There was a settlement from the trucking company after Jimmie’s accident, not to mention a life-insurance payment. I paid off the mortgage and have enough set aside for a new truck and emergencies, but the rest is there and should be enough.”
“You could be using that money to make things easier. If nothing else, you could hire more employees and cut your hours at the Nibble Nook.”
Skylar shrugged. “I like working. We have enough to be comfortable, and this way Karin will have choices.”
They walked through another section of the zoo and found the girls in front of the giraffe exhibit. Aaron’s gaze moved between his sister and Karin. They did look alike, but was it anything more than similar coloring? Karin definitely didn’t favor Tamlyn or April; they were the image of their flamboyant mother, but Oona was another matter.
He made a mental note to email Oona in Italy, asking if she would send a photo of herself as a teen. Then again, she might wonder why, and he couldn’t explain.
Aaron sighed as the girls dashed away to another exhibit. For Pete’s sake, getting to know Karin was like chasing a hummingbird.
“What am I doing wrong?” he muttered to Skylar. “I thought going to the zoo was a family group activity...we’d walk around together and talk. But it’s as if they can’t wait to get away from me.”
“It isn’t you—it’s the age they’re at,” Skylar assured softly. “Friends become more important than parents when you’re a teenager. It doesn’t mean anything. They’re establishing their independence and individuality.”
Aaron cast her a long sideways glance. “Somehow, I don’t think individuality has ever been a problem for Karin.”
Skylar laughed and hooked her arm through his elbow. “Not really. Come on, let’s go see the kangaroos, and I’ll tell you about the time she was three years old and didn’t want her sandbox getting wet in the rain.”
Her eyes were merry, and Aaron grinned in spite of himself. “I have a feeling she did something drastic.”
“Boy, did she. And it was a hell of mess to clean up.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
KARIN SAT ON a bench and kicked her legs as she waited for Mellie. They’d eaten lunch at the zoo and were planning to go downtown to Sutter’s Fort, but her mom and Mellie had wanted to visit the zoo’s gift shop before leaving.
Usually Karin loved going into stores, but she hadn’t felt like it today.
“Is something wrong, Karin?”
It was Aaron. She shrugged.
“You’ve been quiet this morning.”
She eyed him, and remembered how nice he’d been when they were rafting, letting her talk about her dad and stuff. “You’ll think it’s dumb.”
He sat down on the bench. “I promise I won’t.”
“Well...uh...Mom got up and washed and waxed the truck this morning.” Heck, even she thought it sounded dumb.
“Yeah, I thought it looked shinier.”
Karin kicked a stick of gum someone had dropped on the ground. “Nobody’s washed the truck since...” She stopped and swallowed. “You see, my dad washed and waxed it the day he...he...you know.”
Aaron nodded, and she could tell he knew what day she meant, but he wasn’t all wigged out or worried or anything. That was the nice thing about talking to Aaron about her dad—it didn’t upset him the way it upset her mom or Grandpa Joe and Grandma Grace.
“We haven’t washed it since then,” she added. “I felt real funny when I saw Mom had done it. And it’s silly, because Dad wanted things to look nice.”
Aaron sighed. “Karin, I’ve never lost anyone special like your father, so I’m a little foggy on this stuff. But maybe it was like you had to say goodbye to him again. Or seeing your mother doing it was another reminder that he isn’t here.”
She scrunched up her nose, thinking it over. “Kind of both, I guess.”
“You should talk to her about it.”
“No.” She shook her head vigorously. “It makes people sad when I talk about Dad. And he was so terrific. You should have seen him when we went anywhere, having fun and getting people to join in.”
“You can tell me about your dad whenever you want.”
“You don’t mind?”
“Of course not. I’d love to hear your stories.”
Karin thought that Aaron meant it, so she told him about the time her father had climbed the tree to rescue Bennie when he was half-grown and had escaped out of the house. Bennie had inched away, staying just out of reach, until her mom had come out, shaking a bag of cat food.
“What happened?”
“Bennie jumped on my dad’s shoulder and used it as a launching pad down to the ground. Dad yelled, then laughed so hard he fell out of the tree.”
“Was he hurt?”
“Just his pride. He said most of it was in his butt, so it kept him from breaking his tailbone.”
* * *
SKYLAR LOOKED AT the stuffed animals in the gift shop window, keeping a covert eye on Aaron and her daughter outside. Perhaps she shouldn’t have washed the truck that morning—it had upset Karin more than she’d expected, but it had seemed symbolic. Karin had to move on, which meant she had to move on. Neither one of them would ever forget Jimmie or stop missing him, yet there was no pretending he wasn’t gone. In a way, that’s what the truck had represented.
No matter what she’d thought or said about being too busy, Skylar knew she could have kept it washed and waxed. But as long as she didn’t do it, it was as if Jimmie had just taken a trip or something. Or that it really hadn’t been months and months, and now more than a year, since he’d held her. It was the same thing with his T-shirt drawer—she’d gotten up at two in the morning and packed the contents into a box. Keeping that drawer untouched wasn’t going to bring him back; it just reminded her he was gone.
“What do you think about this one, Skylar?” Melanie asked, holding up a pretty necklace.
“It’s very nice. You have excellent taste, Melanie.”
The teenager blushed as she put it on and looked at herself in a mirror. “They have two of them. Do you think Karin would like it, too? Aaron gave me money, and we could wear them at the same time and be like twins.”
“I’m sure she would, but a gift isn’t necessary.”
“I know. I just want to get her one.”
Melanie happily went to the counter to buy the two necklaces, and Skylar looked out the window again. Karin looked happier. She was chattering away and Aaron was smiling at her. They really did look alike, particularly their eyes and smiles. Aaron had smiled so little since returning that Skylar had rarely been reminded of the resemblance.
“Mrs...uh, Skylar?” Melanie said again.
Skylar turned guiltily. “Yes?”
“This is for you.” She held out a bag from the gift shop.
“You shouldn’t have gotten me anything.”
“I want to thank you...for being so nice and helping with school and stuff. Even if I don’t get to come live with you and Karin, it’s really great being wanted. See if you like it,” she said eagerly.
Inside the bag was a pendant on a silver chain...a mother tiger with two babies at her feet. Skylar understood the message behind the gift, and her eyes burned as she hugged the teenager. She could strangle Melanie’s mother and father for not seeing what a terrific kid they had.
Parents didn’t have to knock their kid across a yard to wound them. Sometimes ignoring them was just as hurtful.
* * *
AARON WOULD HAVE preferred doing something with Skylar and the girls the next day instead of having lunch with his grandparents, but he needed to understand more about the Coopers and why things were a mess at the company.
The door opened as he walked up the steps of the Vict
orian, and they were both standing inside as if they’d been waiting for him to arrive.
“How are you, Grandfather?” he asked, gesturing to George’s bandaged hand.
“Fine, fine. A foolish thing to happen.”
“And where is Melanie?” queried his grandmother as she ushered him into the front living room.
“Spending the afternoon with a friend.”
Sarah touched the cameo pinned to her throat. “You should have brought her with you. We’d love to meet her.”
Aaron found that hard to believe, considering their attitude toward his father. “I’ll talk to her about it.”
“Of course, meeting two old people can’t be exciting to a child her age, but she’s an important part of your life.” Sarah handed him the inevitable glass of sherry. “We can tell how fond you’ve become of the child.”
“She’s a great kid and has been bounced around too much.”
“Perhaps you should think about giving her a home until she’s eighteen,” George suggested.
Aaron blinked. While it wasn’t a new idea, he hadn’t expected the Coopers to support the idea. Eliza, on the other hand, was certain to agree. She had run out of people she could ask to take her daughter, making boarding school the only remaining option.
“I’m already considering it.”
“You were always a good boy,” approved his grandmother.
Good?
Aaron nearly choked on his sherry.
George and Sarah had acted as if he was a juvenile delinquent who needed to be whipped back into shape. “That’s not how you treated me,” he said bluntly.
His grandparents exchanged glances and George cleared his throat. “We’ve been talking, and...well, you should understand the reasons we were so strict when you came to live with us.”
“Oh?” Aaron raised his eyebrows. This ought to be interesting. Another lecture about duty, perhaps?
George tapped his fingers on the arm of the chair, seeming nervous. “You see, by the time your mother came along, we’d given up hoping for children. We married young and thought we’d have a large family, but it was ten years before Celina was born. The doctor felt she would be our only child.”
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