The warmth and understanding flowing from the audience as Hannah finished her talk told her that this was the right thing to do. She lingered for a while after the meeting, sipping at a bottle of mineral water and chatting with Tracy McDowell. The talk had gone well and both women were pleased.
“I’m proud of you, Hannah,” Tracy said. “You’ve come so far.”
“I’m amazed at myself. I always thought role models were supposed to be flawless. I’m hardly that.”
“You’re a good example to these young women. It took you a long time to face what happened to you. But you did. And that’s what’s important.” Tracy hesitated a moment and then said, “I’ve been asked to speak to a group in Washington this next weekend. Why don’t you come with me?”
Hannah looked up in surprise. Washington. Would Will still be there? She was overwhelmed with a sudden longing to see him. So much had changed since he’d been gone. She had changed. And more than anything, she wanted to show him that.
“I’d love to go, Tracy,” she said.
That same week, Will began making plans for his future. He’d been on the phone with the bank that held the note on Tarkington’s Cove, discussing his proposition with the bank’s president, Leo Coleman. Will had made an appointment to meet with him on Saturday in Roanoke.
Since the afternoon he’d decided to pursue the idea, he’d been going nonstop. He’d gone to see Jim Edwards the next day and pitched his idea to him. The doctor had leaned back in his chair and looked impressed.
“You’re really serious about this, Will?”
“Yes, I am. I plan to continue my own education. But this is something I’ve put a lot of thought into. And I believe in it. Do you think it could fly?”
“I think it’s a wonderful idea.”
“Wonderful enough that you’d consider working there?”
Dr. Edwards’s eyebrows shot upward. “Me?”
“I don’t know where I could find a better headmaster. I want someone who’ll show these kids some compassion, but at the same time pump them up with the desire to stick with it. I happen to know you’re pretty good at that. Interested?”
“I’m flattered.”
“I know how important your work is, Jim. And if anybody can appreciate your abilities, I can.”
“I wasn’t expecting this. But I have to admit the idea is appealing. Peg and I have wanted to get the kids out of the city for some time now.”
Will smiled and stood up. “You think about it, all right? Discuss it with your wife. I’ll call and let you know how things go.”
Jenny was thrilled to hear that Hannah had agreed to go to Washington. She and Henry had managed to work things out, and Jenny all but glowed with happiness.
“Henry told me you’d come to see him,” she said to Hannah one afternoon before leaving work. “You know there’s nothing that would make me happier than to see you and Will together. Why don’t you get in touch with him while you’re up there? I know he’d love to hear from you.”
Hannah kept her decision to herself, but she called Fannie the next day and asked her for Will’s phone number and address. Once she’d gotten it, Saturday seemed as though it would never come. Hannah volunteered to drive. They arrived at the hotel just before eleven, checked into their rooms and had a light lunch before heading for the meeting room. She sat and listened to Tracy’s talk and then, at the other woman’s urging, got up and made a few remarks of her own. The group welcomed her with clapping and smiles. By the time she finished her speech, Hannah was glad she’d come.
It was five o’clock by the time she got back to her room. With a trembling hand, she pulled out the scrap of paper from her purse and then picked up the phone to dial Will’s number. She let it ring at least ten times, before placing the receiver back on the hook. She tried again before dinner and then again the next morning. When the phone continued to ring, she got up and dressed, leaving a message for Tracy that she’d be back by ten.
She drove away from the hotel and searched out the address she’d scribbled down. It was a beautiful old town house in the heart of Georgetown. She pulled up to the curb and fished for a piece of paper and pen from her purse, thinking for a moment before jotting down the message. The words were light and brief, basically just a friendly, “Hi, how are you doin’,” from one old friend to another.
She climbed out of the car and stuck the note in the door, wondering if she would ever have another chance to make it more.
It was after ten on Sunday night by the time Will got home. His agent, Dan, was waiting for him on the front doorstep.
“It’s about time you got here,” Dan said as he shivered in the chill air. “A man could freeze his—”
“What are you doing here?” Will interrupted with a quick grin, slapping his friend on the shoulder as he set his suitcase down.
“Got some things to show you. Figured I’d do better face-to-face.”
“And I’ve got some news for you,” Will said.
“What kind of news?”
“I’ve decided what I’m going to do once I finish here.”
Dan’s expression brightened. “Well, don’t leave me hanging.”
“I went to see a bank in Roanoke this weekend. Along with a couple of other investors I’ve managed to scrounge up, I’m buying a development on the lake. It’s been in bankruptcy for the last six months. I’m going to turn it into a school for young athletes with learning problems.”
Dan blinked. “You’re what?”
“You heard me.”
“Since when did you get the desire to be a teacher?”
“Since I learned there are a lot of kids out there who have the same problem I have. Since I realized I might have something to offer them. I’ve been working on raising the money. I sold the Ferrari. That was a start.”
“Oh, man,” Dan moaned. “What about these offers I’ve got for you? Ever since you did that commercial for the Dyslexia Foundation, they’ve been coming in nonstop. But if you don’t soon jump on a few of them—”
“I intend to.”
Dan stared at him. “You do?”
“Yes. I do. What have you got? Other commercials?”
“Yeah, and a couple of other things. Speaking engagements, personal appearances.” Dan added suspiciously, “Why the sudden change of heart? This seems too easy. You know I’m wary of anything I don’t have to bully my way into getting.”
Will smiled. “I plan to put the money I earn into the school.”
“Hey, that’s cool. What you do with the money is up to you.” Dan reached for his briefcase and then pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Oh, by the way, this was on your door when I got here. I didn’t read it.”
Will unfolded the note, his gaze scanning the familiar handwriting. His heart quickened. Hannah. She’d been here.
“Too bad you missed her, huh?” Dan said.
He gave his friend a knowing look. “Thought you didn’t read it.”
“Thought it might have given some indication of your whereabouts,” Dan said with a grin. “Guess she couldn’t find you, either. Is she the little woman you’ve been keeping under wraps in Lake Perdue?”
Will ignored his friend’s question, suddenly anxious to finish up their business so he could try to figure out what Hannah’s visit had meant. “Let’s go inside and you can show me what you’ve got, Dan.”
“Translation, drop it,” his friend said with a mock salute. “Nobody ever accused me of not being intuitive.”
Chapter Sixty-four
Dan left sometime after midnight, headed for a downtown hotel where he’d booked a room. Will gratefully closed the door behind him and went upstairs to his bed where he lay in the dark with Hannah’s note clutched to his chest, his mind filled with uncertainty and confusion.
He’d reread the note no fewer than a dozen times, wondering what the brief message meant. Had she changed her mind about their being together? The fact that she’d come here seemed like a step in t
hat direction. But then, maybe that was only his wishful thinking.
In the past months his life had begun to come together in ways he never would have dreamed of. He owed a great deal of that to Hannah. But gratitude was the weaker of his feelings for her. Topping the list was love. And longing. He loved Hannah. He longed for the closeness he’d experienced with her that weekend. Nothing that had happened during the past few months had changed that love. It was there in his heart, strong as ever, coursing through him with a sureness that made him realize now that, regardless of all the good things that had happened to him, she was the best thing in his life. Without Hannah, everything rang hollow. His progress with Dr. Edwards. The school he planned to build.
All of it meant nothing without her.
He thought about what Aaron had said the last time he’d seen him. Just seems to me that if two people want to be together, then they ought to be. Simple as that.
Will sat up then, fired with a certainty that what he was about to do was the only thing possible. Go to her. Convince her they belonged together. He swung out of bed and headed for the shower. He wasn’t going to waste another minute.
A persistent knocking roused her from a restless sleep. She’d dreamed most of the night, half asleep, half awake, and thought for a moment that the sound was only in her mind.
But it grew louder, and then a voice called out her name again and again.
She sat upright in bed, running a hand through her hair, her heart pounding in alarm. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand. Four-thirty? Who could possibly be at her door at this time of night?
She grabbed a robe and made her way tentatively down the stairs, wishing she had a dog or a gun or—
“Hannah?”
Her heart stopped thudding. Will. That was Will’s voice.
She took the last few steps at a run, and without stopping to think she might be wrong, yanked open the door and stared at him. Just stared at him. Something inside her melted with the absolute assurance that as long as she lived she would never forget the sight of him standing there. He wore faded blue jeans, a white cotton shirt and his old leather jacket.
Just the sight of him made her throat tight, and she was overwhelmed with the desire to throw herself at him. It had been so long.
“Hannah?”
She didn’t stop to think or edit her response. Instead, she followed her heart, launching herself at him with all the longing inside her. “You came,” she said, half sobbing, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding on as if she’d never let him go again.
He folded her close to him, pressing his face to the side of her neck. “You knew I’d come, didn’t you?”
She shook her head. “No. It never occurred to me. Until just now. Now I realize how much I wanted you to. Hoped you would.”
He held her that way for a long time while she savored the steady thump of his heart, the reassuring feel of his body against hers. When he finally pulled back, he reached down and touched her cheek, his palm cradling her jaw.
She swallowed and said, “Come in. Please.”
She led him into the den where he sat down on the couch beside her, looking as though he didn’t know where to begin. “I…” He let out a sigh, closing his eyes for a brief moment. “I guess I should have waited until morning. But I couldn’t. I needed to see you too much. Hannah, I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you, too, Will. You can’t possibly know….”
He reached for her hand, entwined his fingers with hers as though the gesture might merge their strength for the questions that lay ahead. “Then why did you push me away?”
She looked down at their linked hands and struggled for the right words. “So much has happened since then. I didn’t see how I could ever be the kind of woman who could fit into your life. The kind of woman you’re used to. So I said things I didn’t mean, things I knew would hurt you enough to make you leave. I’m sorry for that now.”
“Hannah-”
“Please. I want you to know.” She hesitated, then went on, “I couldn’t believe what happened between us that weekend. I wouldn’t allow myself to believe that it had been real or that it would last. The truth is I didn’t think I was worthy of you. Maybe I still felt somewhere inside that I deserved what Tom Dillon did to me. But I’ve made some changes in my life. I’ve been going to this support group—”
“I know,” he interrupted gently. “Aunt Fan’s kept me posted. I think it was the best thing in the world for you to do.”
She met his approving gaze and smiled. “It has been. I’ve made some wonderful friends. I think I’ve finally figured out I’m not so bad. And that I can’t go on letting the past affect the rest of my life.”
“Did you also figure out somewhere along the way that what we had was right, that it deserved a chance?”
“I realized how much I wanted you back.”
With his other hand, he brushed her cheek. “You’re one of the few people in my life who knows who I really am, who’s seen all my imperfections and shortcomings. You know what I am. What I hope to be. And if you can accept that….”
“Oh, Will,” she said, her voice breaking, “they aren’t imperfections or shortcomings. You’re the bravest man I’ve ever known. I’m so proud of you.” She looked down and then added, “Fannie kept me up to date on your progress, too. She told me about the school. I love the idea.”
He smiled. “She always was a busybody.”
“She loves you. She also told me about your father. About his not allowing Mrs. Tate to confirm her suspicions about your dyslexia.”
“My father’s tried to run my life for a long time. I won’t let that happen anymore.” He reached out a finger and tilted her chin up. “And all that matters now is getting you to believe that nothing in my life means anything without you. You put the magic in my life. I love you, Hannah. And I’ll do whatever it takes to show you that we belong together.”
A rush of happiness washed through her. “Will, what are you saying?”
“That I want to marry you. I want to take care of you, live with you, make love to you, be the father of your children.”
She swallowed, and her eyes filled with tears. She felt for a second as though she’d wake up any moment and find herself in her bed upstairs, mournfully aware that Will’s declaration was part of a dream. But it wasn’t a dream. He was here in this room with her. “I—” Her voice broke when she tried to speak. She swallowed and tried again. “Oh, Will, I love you so much.”
He pulled her to him then, his strong arms encircling her. “From now on, what matters most is what we feel for each other. And the rest will be okay, too, as long as we work on it together.” He gazed down at her with love and understanding in his eyes. “I just want to look at you. Make sure you’re really here.”
“I don’t ever want to be anywhere else.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her face to his chest. “Aunt Sarah’s going to be so happy.”
“You don’t think she’ll object to having me in the family?”
“There’s nothing she’d like better. Maybe we could go see her today.”
“I’d like to ask her permission to marry her niece,” he said on a more serious note.
Hannah’s throat tightened with emotion. “She would love that.”
He leaned back and cupped her face in his hands, pressing his mouth to hers in a gentle kiss that smoothed away the pain of the past months, leaving in its place the certainty of a future they would face together. Side by side. Hand in hand.
“I’m not going to be very patient, you know,” he said in a tender voice.
“About what?”
“Marrying you.”
“Oh, is that so?”
His mouth found the vulnerable pulse at the side of her neck. “Two weeks at the most.”
A shiver of anticipation went through her. “Two weeks, hmm?”
“That’s it. I want you with me, Hannah. In my bed at night. By my side when I wake
up in the morning. And speaking of that, where would you like to put that bed?”
“You’d need to be at the lake with the school, wouldn’t you?”
“Some of the time, but if it’s all right with you, we could keep your house, too. Since it was Sarah’s, and anyway, I always wanted a house in town.”
Surely there could not be another man on earth like this one. Hannah pressed her face to his neck, cherishing the fact that he was hers.
He pulled back, looked down at her for a moment, then settled his mouth firmly on hers, kissing her with tenderness and an appreciation for what they’d found. She kissed him back, her heart full with the same gratitude and love.
A few minutes later, when he finally raised his head, he said, “What would you think about having the ceremony in the gazebo at the lake?”
She smiled. “I think it sounds perfect.”
His gaze became intent and searching. “And the pitter-patter of little Kincaid feet? What do you think about the sound of that?”
His face blurred before her eyes. She blinked away the tears of happiness then pressed her cheek to his chest. “The sweetest sound in the world.”
They remained that way for a long time until he pulled back and kissed her with a tenderness that left her weak. And then suddenly the kiss changed, and she went weak with feelings of another sort. They were hungry for one another, mouths working desperately with the awareness that they had almost lost this precious gift.
“Oh, Will,” she murmured. “I thought we’d never be like this again.”
“Neither did I,” he admitted. “We’ve got the rest of our lives to grow tired of one another.”
“I don’t think that’s going to happen,” she said with a smile.
“Then I fully intend to wear us both out trying.”
Hannah laughed. She wrapped her arms around his neck. Outside the living room window, the Madam Butterfly rosebushes glistened under the rising spring sun, their blossoming petals all but eclipsing the thorns beneath.
Truths and Roses Page 23