Miss Goody Two-Shoes: Contemporary Romance

by Charlotte Hughes

  “I thought you looked smart the minute I laid eyes on you.”

  Kane chuckled. “Well, it can’t be easy with a husband and wife working together.”

  “There’s a secret to it,” Sam told him, then drained the rest of his coffee and set the empty cup on top of the printing press. “You’ve got to set rules in the beginning. This is my territory, and that is her territory.” He pointed to the curtain. “And you can’t let it bother you when she gets in a tizzy ’cause we’re behind. Sometimes, she pokes her head through that curtain and yells at me for not having an order out on time, but I let it slide right down my back. Otherwise, I’d have ulcers like folks in the big cities do. See this water pistol?” he said, picking up a plastic gun. “She starts sticking her head through that curtain too often, and I wet her down good. Makes her mad ’cause she has her hair done every week and has to keep it that way till her next appointment. Wraps it in toilet paper every night so it won’t get messed up.”

  Kane nodded, trying to keep a straight face. “How come you’re only running one press this morning when you’ve got such a workload?” he asked.

  “Aw, this’un is acting up,” he said. “Leaking brown fluid and making a mess on everything I try to run. I called a repairman, but he can’t make it out till sometime tomorrow. Reckon we’ll have to work with one, though it’ll put us further behind. I’ll have to fill up the gun.”

  “You got any tools?” Kane asked. “So I can take it apart and look at it?” He suspected neither press had been cleaned in a while.

  “Sure, I got tools. But I don’t have an inkling what’s wrong with it, and I never had much time to learn how to work on these things.”

  “Well, it’s lucky for you that I know everything there is to know about them,” Kane said, remembering how many times he’d watched the repairman take them apart in prison. He’d stayed and watched, because it had kept him from going back to his cell. “Besides,” he added, “I don’t think there’s much wrong with it that a good cleaning won’t take care of.”

  “A good cleaning?” The way Sam said it, one would have thought Kane had taught him a string of new French words.

  “Yeah, I don’t know for sure, but I have a feeling that somebody might have spilled a cup of coffee on it, and it got down in the parts.”

  A look of alarm passed over Sam’s face, telling Kane he knew he’d been caught red-handed. “Don’t tell the missus.”

  Kane grinned. He was going to like working there. “I wouldn’t think of it, Sam.”

  # # #

  Mel was cool toward Kane for the rest of the week, speaking to him only when necessary. Kane had never felt so miserable in his life. He wanted to tell her how well his new job was going, how pleased the Gould’s were with his work and the fact he’d been able to repair some of their equipment, but the look on her face didn’t invite conversation, so he kept his mouth shut. He arrived home after work and helped her with the chores, then, once dinner was over, walked Rover and sat with Wilton in front of the television set. Wilton wasn’t the same, either. Kane wasn’t sure what was going on with the man; he seemed preoccupied.

  # # #

  “Blair will be home next weekend,” Wilton announced at dinner on Sunday. “I called her to find out how the commercial was going. They’re supposed to wrap things up in a couple of days, and then she plans to spend a few days on the beach.” He paused. “She met a man. He’s driving her back.”

  “That’s nice,” Mel said, trying to keep the surprise out of her voice. Blair certainly hadn’t wasted any time finding someone. But then, she never did.

  “There’s something else,” Wilton said, his tone causing Mel to look up from her meal. “Your mother is going to join us for dinner next Sunday.”

  Mel gazed back at her father with a look of outright bewilderment. How could Adelle be coming to dinner? She lived all the way in Louisiana. “You’re joking, right?”

  “I’m perfectly serious. That’s why I put in a call to Blair. I want her here when your mother arrives.”

  Mel’s mind refused to register the significance of his words. He wasn't kidding. He must’ve called Adelle after he’d read the letters. “Daddy, how could you?” she demanded, a faint thread of hysteria running through her voice.

  Kane shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Do y’all want me to leave?”

  “No, stay,” Wilton told him. He turned back to his daughter. “I invited Adelle because she has a right to see you girls after all these years.”

  It took a moment for his words to sink in. “She abandoned us; she has no rights.”

  “It was as much my fault as it was hers.”

  Anger raged through her. “How can you say that? You stayed and took care of us.”

  Wilton put down his napkin. His face was clouded with despair. “Your mother was unhappy, and I did nothing to change that for her.”

  “What were you supposed to do?”

  Wilton almost sagged with regret. “I was at the store all the time. I never took her anywhere. She was stuck in this house morning, noon, and night. I took her for granted.”

  “I’m not going to let you take the blame for this, Daddy,” she said, reaching across the table to cover his hand.

  “You don’t understand, honey. My marriage to Adelle was arranged by her father. She was only sixteen years old; I was almost twice her age. Her family was poor. It was a relief to them to have one less mouth to feed.” He paused and seemed to reflect. “She wasn’t happy, and I knew it. All I wanted was someone to take care of the house and the kids.”

  Mel swallowed the lump in her throat. It was unthinkable that her father should invite Adelle back after all these years. “You should have told me you were going to call her. I had a right to know. After all, I’m the one who had to take over when she left.” Tears filled her eyes.

  “It’s not right to hold grudges, Melanie.”

  She shoved her chair away from the table and tossed her napkin on her plate.

  “Where are you going?” Wilton asked.

  “Out!” Without another word Mel let herself out the back door.

  Wilton started to get up and go after her, but Kane stopped him. “I’ll see about her.”

  Kane found her sitting on the swing in the backyard. She glanced up at him, and he could see the tears in her eyes. “Daddy put this swing up when I was eight years old,” she told him. “Who would have thought it would last this long?”

  He knew she didn’t want to talk about an old childhood swing any more than he did. “Are you okay, Mel?” he asked softly.

  “No, I’m not okay. I’m mad as hell, that’s what I am. Daddy has no right to bring that… that woman into this house after what she did to us.”

  “That woman happens to be your mother,” he reminded her.

  Mel snapped her head up. “Don’t try to defend her, Kane. You said it yourself—anybody can give birth to children. The hard part is raising them. As far as I’m concerned, Adelle Taylor ... that’s her name now … has no right to disrupt this family.”

  Kane saw that she was trying desperately to keep from crying. “Maybe she wants to apologize.”

  Mel glanced away. “I wouldn’t accept her apology if she held a gun to my head.” When he didn’t say anything, she went on. “You don’t know how it was, trying to take care of everybody.”

  He reached for her hand and held it. “I can imagine, Mel. You’re still doing it.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “I despise the woman for what she did. It’s as simple as that. There’s no hope of reconciliation.”

  “No hope?” he asked. He glanced at the Doberman straining the chain in order to get closer. Kane walked over to him and unhooked the chain from his collar. The dog leaped up and put his front paws on Kane’s chest. He chuckled and stroked the animal affectionately.

  “You once told me there’s always hope,” he said, bending down to pick up a stick. “Just look at Rover here.” He tossed the stick, and the dog to
ok off, and then brought it back with his nubby tail wagging.

  Mel smiled at the sight. In a short period of time, Kane had won the dog’s trust, and they’d become best buddies.

  She gazed at him, taking in the handsome face, the powerful shoulders. She had missed talking to him, missed spending time with him, kissing him. She’d wanted to ask about his new job all week, but she was still hurt over how he’d reacted to Harper. As much as she appreciated him defending her, he had to learn he could not go through life using his fists every time he didn’t like something. She’d called Harper personally to apologize, but the man didn’t have much to say to her. She’d ended up talking with Amy instead, and they’d made plans to go out for ice cream the following week. She wasn’t about to let Harper stand in the way of their friendship.

  Mel watched Kane toss the stick once more. This time Rover took off in the opposite direction. She laughed out loud. Their gazes met and locked.

  “You still furious with me?” Kane asked.

  “No.”

  “Good.” He pulled her up from the swing so that she was facing him. “I’ve missed you, Mel. They threw me in solitary for two weeks once, and I don’t think it was half as bad as having you mad at me.”

  “Why were you put in solitary?”

  Kane suddenly wished he hadn’t brought it up. “I refused to snitch on someone.” He shrugged. “It wasn’t a big deal.” He slid his arms around her waist. “I try not to think about things like that. I’m sorry I brought it up.”

  Mel studied him for a moment in silence. “You can’t block out three years of your life, Kane. There must’ve been something positive out of the whole thing.”

  He thought about it. “I guess so. I would never have met Dave Resnick, the prison psychologist, who told me I had a chip on my shoulder. He believed I was innocent when nobody else did. Anyway, he’s the one who convinced me to start working toward a college education. Otherwise, I would have wasted those years.”

  “I’m glad he was there for you,” Mel said gently.

  Kane squeezed her hand. “He wasn’t the only one. You were there for me. You kept me going when I didn’t think I would be able to take another day.”

  “I’m glad I could help.”

  Kane gazed at her for a moment and wondered how she could ever think herself plain. “You know, I’ve fallen in love with you. I think about you all day, and then I lie awake at night and think about you. You’re everything I always wanted in my sorry life.”

  She was overjoyed at his announcement. She knew her own feelings were dangerously close to love. She wanted to make love to the man again and lie in his arms afterward. But she was afraid. What if he decided life in Hardeeville wasn’t what he wanted? What if his job at the printing company didn’t work out? What if she fell head over heels in love with him, and he left? She would never get over it. “I care for you, too, Kane,” she said at last. “But like I told you the other night, I need more time. To be sure.”

  He forced himself to smile. “Please don’t make me wait too long, babe.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  The following week dragged, during which time Mel said very little to her father. She could not remember a time when she’d been so angry at him. She was thankful they’d finished remodeling the store so she could return to the flower shop and Eunice’s questioning looks.

  She and Kane met for lunch every day, eating sandwiches on the rustic benches that lined the sidewalks on the courthouse lawn. They fed their leftovers to the squirrels. After three days people stopped staring when they walked by, and Eunice gave up trying to pry information out of her. It was obvious Melanie Abercrombie and her beau, Kane Stoddard, weren’t going to talk about their relationship until they were damn good and ready.

  In the evenings they took long walks, with Rover straining on a leash in front of them. Mel knew she wouldn’t be able to get rid of the dog even if someone showed an interest. Kane, who claimed he’d never had a pet growing up, was much too attached, and he turned into an oversized kid when Rover was around.

  On Tuesday they saw a movie in town and shared a large buttered popcorn.

  On Wednesday, with the chores behind them, they lay on Wilton’s massive hammock and gazed at the stars.

  They rented videos on Friday, old Clint Eastwood westerns, and stayed up half the night watching them and eating caramel corn.

  They bought groceries on Saturday, and Kane insisted on paying for half now that he was a working man.

  Mel realized she was growing to love him more each day.

  She awoke in the wee hours of Sunday morning, slipping out of Blair’s bedroom quietly so as not to wake her. The girl had arrived the night before with the new man in her life, a struggling actor who’d been chosen to play opposite her in the NuWave Wine Cooler commercial. From the way it sounded, both their careers had taken a turn in the right direction. Blair was even talking about taking him back to New York with her. Mel was glad when he didn’t stay. She had enough on her mind without having to entertain another guest.

  Mel turned on the kitchen light and went straight for the coffeemaker which she’d set up before going to bed. She flipped on the switch and listened as it gurgled to life. She waited for it to drip through as she thought about the day that lay ahead.

  Adelle Taylor had also arrived in town the night before. Wilton had driven to the airport in Pelzer to pick her up, then drove her to the Restful Lodge in Hardeeville. Mel had been terrified her father would insist Adelle stay at the house, but luckily, he hadn’t. Perhaps he knew it would be pushing things.

  Mel poured a cup of coffee and sat at the kitchen table. The reunion with her mother hovered over her like a storm cloud. Why had her father insisted on bringing the woman back in their home after all these years? Had he lost his mind? It was like a knife in the back to Mel, who’d taken care of everything all these years

  Mel experienced a moment of guilt. Perhaps the reason her father had never remarried was because she had always taken care of him so well. Or maybe he hadn’t married because he would have felt uncomfortable bringing a wife into the house he shared with Mel. She’d always thought she was doing her father a favor by staying.

  “A penny for your thoughts,” a masculine voice said.

  Mel snapped her head up and found Kane standing at the opposite end of the table. “I didn’t hear you get up,” she said, feeling flustered. He wore a pair of jogging shorts and nothing else.

  “What are you doing awake?” he asked. “It’s not even five o’clock.”

  “I couldn’t sleep. You want a cup of coffee?” The way she said it suggested she needed companionship more than coffee.

  Kane noted the dark circles under her eyes and knew the reason for them. Instead of saying anything, he walked around to the back of her chair and raised his hands on her shoulders, where he began kneading the muscles. “You’re tense,” he said, leaning forward and brushing his lips along her nape. “I know just the thing to loosen you up.”

  Mel knew exactly what he had on his mind. Up till now he had heeded her warning that she needed more time, and he’d backed off. Perhaps he’d grown tired of waiting when it was obvious their relationship was growing stronger every day. “Someone might hear,” she said.

  He whispered in her ear. “There’s always the attic. We could put one of those quilts on the floor.”

  Mel felt dizzy at the thought of slipping upstairs to the attic with him. She realized they wouldn’t be discovered. Her father didn’t get up until eight or nine o’clock on Sunday, and Blair wouldn’t tumble out of bed till noon.

  “Okay.” She stood and reached for his hand. She held her fingers to her lips and they took to the stairs, trying carefully not to make any noise. Nevertheless, the wood creaked and groaned beneath their weight.

  Mel didn’t draw a breath of relief until they reached the small room upstairs. She turned to Kane. Suddenly, she felt very shy. She refused to make eye contact with him as she searched through
a large box. She found two old quilts that smelled of mothballs and laid them on the floor. Kane reached for her.

  Wordlessly, he eased her down on the blankets, and then pulled her close, cushioning her head in the crook of his arm. Mel pressed against him, loving the feel of his solid warm body. She had missed this. Even as close as they’d been all week, she knew this physical aspect was just as important in a relationship.

  His mouth was soft and warm on hers, prodding her lips apart with his tongue so he could explore. The kiss was slow and thorough, turning her thoughts to mush and awakening a need deep in her belly. Mel pressed her lower body against his and knew his need was as great as hers.

  Kane broke the kiss, and they both gasped for air. “I want you, Mel,” he said.

  “I want you, too.” Kane rained kisses over her face, against her fluttering eyelids, and down her neck. He moved one hand down the length of her, the flare of her hip, her sloping thighs, then slipped it beneath her gown. Her flesh was warm and smooth. He pulled the gown upward. Mel raised up so he could get it over her head. He tossed it aside.

  “Look how pretty you are,” he whispered and kissed her deeply.

  Their foreplay was made brief by their need. Kane entered her, easing his body slowly into her tightness so as not to hurt her. She felt no pain, only the exquisite pleasure of being filled by the man she loved.

  Afterward, it was several minutes before either moved. Kane slid off her body and gathered her into his arms as they waited for their breathing to return to normal.

  “You know what we forgot.” It wasn’t a question but a statement.

  Mel gasped as realization hit her. “Oh, no.” She rose up and reached for her gown. “How could I have been so stupid?”

  “Hey, wait a minute,” Kane said, pulling her back down. “It’s as much my fault as yours.”

  “But what’ll we do if—”

  “If you end up pregnant?” he asked. When she nodded, he smiled gently. “Would that be so bad, Mel?”

  “Of course, it would be bad. We’re not—” She didn’t finish.