Pathway to Tomorrow

by Claydon, Sheila

  Wondering how best to find out what was going on, he pulled out a chair and sat down. Luke ignored him. He was far too busy shading the undersides of the leaves on the tree he was drawing. Marcus watched him, surprised by the speed of his hand as it flew across the page. He wished Luke could apply that level of skill and concentration to something more useful than drawing birds and trees but he knew it was too much to ask. He was good though. Jodie was right. Even the bird feeder hanging from a twiggy branch was drawn in exquisite detail, and the tiny blue tit hanging upside down as it pecked at the seeds inside was so lifelike it almost looked as if it were moving.

  “I like your picture,” he spoke slowly, wondering how best to bring up the subject of Jodie and the birdfeeders. Luke preempted him by offering some unexpected information.

  “It’s for Jodie,” he said, swiftly adding another bird as he spoke.

  Glancing back at the tree Marcus saw that another bird had joined the first one and that Luke was drawing the tree in live time. It wasn’t just a cleverly executed sketch; it was a narrative of what was happening in front of him.

  “It’s very good. Do you always draw like this or do you sometimes just remember things and draw them later?”

  From Luke’s non-reaction he knew he wasn’t going to get an answer to something that was probably self-evident to his son so, after a brief pause, he tried another tack.

  “When are you going to give it to Jodie?”

  “At six o’clock when she brings Bucky.”

  “She’s bringing Buckmaster here! How often does she do that Luke?”

  “At six o’clock. She always brings him at six o’clock.”

  Marcus glanced at his watch. It was five-thirty. He’d left London as soon as he could, anxious to be back in time to see Jodie before bed. Now it seems, he had a rival.

  * * *

  Jodie leaned down from Buckmaster’s saddle and pressed the entry phone. She was expecting Mrs. Cotton to pick up, so when Marcus answered she was surprised. He’d said he might be late and she had already reconciled herself to one of his midnight phone calls.

  “It’s Jodie, Marcus. I wasn’t expecting you to be back so soon,” she could already feel the tingle of attraction she felt every time she heard his voice.

  “So I gather,” his response was cool as he pressed the switch that opened the gates.

  She frowned. Now what? He’d been moody ever since the move. Part of it, she knew, was because despite only living two miles apart they still rarely managed to spend much time alone. This was something more though, and for some indefinable reason she had a feeling it was about Luke and her visits with Buckmaster. Well he could go hang if that was what it was all about because he’d promised she could try to introduce him to the riding program, so that was what she was doing. With a sigh she guided Buckmaster through the gates and set off down the driveway as they closed behind her. Whatever his problem he would have to deal with it because she wasn’t going to give up on Luke, and she wasn’t going to let Marcus give up on him either.

  He met her at the end of the drive with his arms folded across his chest and a scowl on his face. “When were you going to tell me about Luke?”

  She stared at him. “If you mean the six o’clock visit I make each evening I’m not sure it has anything to do with you?”

  “So my being his father counts for nothing does it?”

  “Don’t be silly, of course it does, but I’m not going to take him anywhere if that’s what you’re worried about. I’m just getting him used to the idea of a horse…and before you say anything else, I cleared it with Mrs. Cotton and she’s built it into his activity program. She even seems to think it might be a good idea, unlike his father!”

  They locked eyes for what seemed an eternity, and then what might have been the trace of an apologetic smile flitted across Marcus’s face.

  “I might have known going to California was a bad idea. Not only did I miss you like crazy but I left the way open for you to start indoctrinating my son into the ways of everything equine!”

  Jodie met him halfway. “If you think Luke can be indoctrinated into anything he isn’t interested in then you don’t know him very well. He is considering visiting Bucky’s stable though.”

  “How did you manage that?”

  She laughed as she slid down from the Buckmaster’s back and folded herself into Marcus’ arms. “By telling him about the house martins that live in the roof, and the robin who steals food from his feeding trough.”

  He pulled her close, answering laughter rumbling in his chest. “Okay! I accept you seem to know how to deal with my son far better than I do but don’t expect too much Jodie. Meeting Bucky in his own garden is one thing, sitting on a horse in a strange place and surrounded by other people is entirely another.”

  “I know,” she accepted his kiss with enthusiasm. “Now are you going to come and see what I’ve achieved so far or not?”

  * * *

  Luke was still drawing when they walked around the house to where he was sitting. He slanted a glance towards them, looked back at his drawing and then started to put his pencils away. Jodie smiled at him.

  “Your dad wants to say hello to Bucky today too. Is that okay Luke?”

  He nodded as he snapped his pencil box shut. Then he stood up and handed Jodie the sketch he’d been drawing. She looked at it for a long time before she replied. When she did there was a slight catch in her voice.

  “Thank you Luke. It’s a lovely picture. I’m going to pin it on my office wall so everyone who visits me can admire it.”

  “No! No! No! It’s just for Jodie.” He shook his head fast, his voice rising in pitch with every word.

  She waited until she was sure he was listening before she answered him. “I know it’s just for me Luke. Thank you. I’m not going to give it to anyone else; I just want other people to be able to see it as well because it’s so beautiful. May I do that? May I show it to other people as long as I don’t let them touch it?”

  He pondered her suggestion for several minutes while Marcus watched in fascination. Eventually, after double-checking she definitely wouldn’t let anyone else touch the picture, he nodded.

  She smiled her satisfaction as she returned it to the table and secured it with Luke’s pencil box to stop it blowing away. Then she held out her hand. “Come and see Bucky now. It’s past six o’clock so he’ll be waiting for you.”

  To Marcus’ complete amazement Luke reached out and grasped Jodie’s fingers. “How did you do that?” he whispered. “Normally he won’t let anyone touch him.”

  Jodie ignored him, as did Luke. Slightly put out to find himself relegated to the sidelines, he followed them to where Jodie had tied Buckmaster to a tree. The horse gave a soft whicker of greeting as they approached.

  Luke made a very similar sound deep in his throat. Then he laughed. Jodie smiled at him. “Are you going to pat Bucky now?”

  Immediately he backed away although he still kept hold of her fingers. Completely unfazed, Jodie rooted around in her pocket with her other hand and produced a carrot.

  “Okay. You can do it later.”

  She held out the carrot as she spoke and Bucky seized it from her hand with his usual delicacy. As he munched it Luke shifted from one foot to the other making more noises, each one uncannily like Bucky’s welcoming whicker. Jodie smiled at him.

  “Are you talking to Bucky?”

  He nodded and then pointed to her pocket. She pretended ignorance. “What do you want?”

  “Bucky wants another carrot.”

  “Give it to him then?” Jodie pulled a second carrot from her pocket and offered it to him. For a moment Marcus thought he was going to refuse but then he reached out with his free hand and took it from her. Then, pulling his fingers from hers he placed the carrot on his flat palm with the precision Jodie had used, before moving closer to Buckmaster.

  The big horse waited quietly. He didn’t make any attempt to take the carrot. It was almost as i
f he could sense Luke’s trepidation and was determined not to frighten him.

  Jodie kept her voice low as she encouraged Luke to move even closer. “He won’t hurt you. See how he’s just waiting for you to give him the carrot. He knows it’s rude to snatch.”

  Finally Luke’s hand was underneath Buckmaster’s nose. Jodie held it steady as she murmured softly. Immediately the horse dipped his head and took the carrot. His whiskers tickled Luke’s hand, startling him for just a moment. Then he laughed and it was a normal, joyful, boy’s laugh. Jodie smiled.

  “Well done. See how Bucky’s nodding at you. When he nods he’s saying thank you.”

  Luke stared up at the big chestnut for a moment then he put out his hand again and touched his flank very gently. Buckmaster swung his head round to look at him and as he did so he made a soft whickering noise again. Luke laughed and then he patted him several times as he made answering sounds in his own throat.

  Jodie pretended not to see the tears gathering in Marcus’s eyes as she encouraged Luke to explore the short hair on Buckmaster’s shoulders with his fingers. Then she guided his hand upwards to his thick mane and let him explore the different texture. Finally she persuaded him to pat the horse’s nose and when he felt the velvety softness of the skin around Buckmaster’s nostrils Luke gave an exclamation of delight and rubbed his face against it.

  Gently Jodie disengaged him. “I think Bucky is tired now Luke. He needs to go home and go to bed. He’ll come and see you again tomorrow though. Please ask Mrs. Cotton for some carrots because I haven’t got any more at home.”

  Luke nodded. “Mrs. Cotton has lots of carrots. I eat carrots too.”

  “I know you do but I’m sure you can spare one for Bucky.”

  She vaulted up into Buckmaster’s saddle as she spoke. Then she looked at Marcus. “Is it okay if I leave Luke with you? Normally I would take him indoors and hand him over to Mrs. Cotton.”

  He gave her a wry smile. “I guess I deserve that. Sorry for not believing in you.”

  She grinned down at him. “You’re forgiven. I didn’t always believe in you if you remember.”

  “So you didn’t. You learned though.”

  “Mmm. So I did.”

  Their eyes met. Although the sun had dipped behind the trees it was still bright enough for Jodie to see his expression and what she saw made her breath catch in her throat. If that was how much he wanted her then it was time she did something about it.

  “You could always marry me.” He reached up and caught hold of her hand, able to read her thoughts despite the deepening gloom.

  She shook her head. “You know I can’t Marcus…but we’ll find a way and soon. I promise.”

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Izzie was sitting at the kitchen table when Jodie eventually made it back to the cottage in the stable yard. She shook her head as her sister sank down into a chair opposite her and pulled off her boots.

  “You and Marcus work too hard. Does he know about your daily visits with Luke yet?”

  “He does now.”

  “Good or not good?”

  “A bit of both. It took a while to convince him but he’s more or less onside.”

  “Well that’s something I suppose. I hope you like pasta bake…even though it doesn’t look like the picture in the recipe book,” Izzie dismissed all thoughts of Marcus as she got up and peered into the oven.

  Jodie stared at her in amazement. “You actually cooked something?”

  “Yep. I decided it was time I helped out a bit more.”

  “Don’t be silly. You already do more than enough. You help with the horses and the riding program. You do your share of the cleaning and tidying. You even produce meals from time to time.”

  “Yes. Cold ones. Cold cuts with chutney, and other exotic things like cheese sandwiches. Not real meals. Besides I need to learn to cook so I can look after myself when I leave home.”

  Jodie flinched at her words. Although she knew Izzie was going, and probably sooner rather than later, it was still something she didn’t want to think about until it actually happened. She didn’t want to think about it until she was sure her sister was able to sleep alone at night either.

  Izzie gave a wry smile. “Don’t look like that. I need you to believe in me.”

  Pushing herself up from the chair Jodie reached out and hugged her. “It’s not about belief, it’s about fright…my fright. I don’t want to let you go and yet I know I must.”

  Izzie hugged her back, hard. “Yeah…well you’ll soon get over it. The minute I’m gone Marcus will be here every night, unless you move in with him.”

  Jodie shook her head. “That’s not going to happen because I’m not going to leave the cottage.”

  “Why not? Letting somebody else move in here wouldn’t stop you being manager, and if you decided to give up altogether Carol would jump at the chance to take over from you.”

  “I know, but I just can’t. Don’t ask me to explain. It’s too complicated.”

  “No it’s not. Not if you really love Marcus, and you do, don’t you?”

  Instead of answering, Jodie changed the subject. “I’m going to have a shower now, assuming the pasta bake will wait.”

  * * *

  Jodie mulled over Izzie’s words as the hot water sluiced over her. If only it were that simple but if she moved in with Marcus she would have to give up the cottage, and with it the one thing she had fought so long and hard for, her independence. That she would also be branded as his mistress and almost certainly considered a money-grabber was another factor, though a less important one. She could weather that even if she made the papers but she knew she would find it more difficult to cope with Mrs. Cotton’s disapproval and that of the rest of Luke’s care team. She also knew it wasn’t possible to live with someone as famous and as wealthy as Marcus without the rest of the world waiting for their relationship to fail, and now his new studio was often full of musicians there would be even more people judging her.

  She could always marry him of course. He’d made it very clear marriage was what he wanted, and from the outside it seemed the obvious solution, except it wasn’t. Deep down her distrust of marriage and long term relationships simmered and brewed. She had seen too much heartbreak to want to throw all her dice on the one square that was Marcus Lewis. Even though she loved him with a passion that was all consuming she was sure it wouldn’t last. It never did. Somewhere, sometime, he was going to let her down because that’s what men did. The thought brought her back to her present dilemma. How was she going to keep her promise to find time alone with Marcus while her sister was still living at home?

  * * *

  Izzie solved it for her when she returned to the kitchen by announcing she was going to the studio as soon as they had finished eating.

  “I’ve a session with a voice coach,” she said as she dished up the pasta. “Marcus says I need to learn how to protect my throat more before I start singing in public.”

  “How long is the session?” Jodie tried hard to keep her voice neutral.

  Izzie chuckled as she read her mind. “Long enough!”

  * * *

  When Jodie answered the knock on the door she was wearing a flimsy negligee that had once belonged to her mother and her raven’s wing hair was hanging down her back in a silken curtain. With a swift intake of breath Marcus picked her up and carried her upstairs without a word. By the time he found the right bedroom and lowered her onto the bed they were both trembling. Lying down beside her he began to kiss her, gently at first but then with a passion that made them both forget where they were as their whole world slowly spiraled into an all-consuming need.

  Much later, lying in a tangle of arms and legs, their faces only inches apart on the pillow, they smiled at one another.

  “Your sister has the best ideas,” Marcus whispered as he twirled his finger through a strand of Jodie’s hair.

  Immediately she stiffened in his arms. “This has nothing to do with Izzie e
xcept she happens to be out for once.”

  He gathered her closer, so their lips were almost touching. “Ah don’t Jodie. Of course it has something to do with her, why else would I be able to stay right here all night.”

  Twisting herself out of his arms she sat up and glared down at him. “What do you mean, stay here all night? That is so not going to happen Marcus, not with Izzie in the next room.”

  He stared up at her. “You mean you don’t know she’s staying over at my house tonight?”

  “Why would I when she hasn’t told me anything about it?”

  He laughed then and it was a genuine burst of amusement. “She’s going to be wasted on the stage you know. She could be a master criminal and rule the world if she wanted to, because she’s totally without shame.”

  “What exactly did she tell you?” Jodie didn’t join in with his laughter. Instead she resisted as he tried to pull her close again.

  He sighed. “She said her therapist thought it was time she tried to sleep away from home on her own. Apparently he said it ought to be somewhere familiar, and suggested my house.”

  “And you believed her?”

  “Why wouldn’t I? Besides she had already spoken to Mrs. Cotton about it by the time she told me. She told her all about her sleep problems too, and Mrs. Cotton said she’s perfectly happy for her to use my house as a testing ground. She said she had agreed on tonight because Izzie told her I wasn’t going to be there, so you see I have nowhere else to go unless you want to blow your sister’s cover.”

  “I can’t believe she’d be so devious,” Jodie ignored his attempt at humor.

  “What Izzie? Come on Jodie, being devious is her signature behavior. Besides, you have to admit it’s a good idea,” he maneuvered himself into a sitting position and tried to pull her back against his chest.

  She resisted, still frowning, and then reached for her cell phone. “But what if she isn’t alright? What if she has one of her nightmares? I’m not going to let her do it. If she wakes up screaming in a strange house in the middle of the night she could put herself back years. She should have tested it out here first.”