***
Baron checked his voicemail before he boarded the plane.
There was a message from his secretary to cal the office. He used the airplane phone after they took off.
“A Mr. Tim Bryant wants you to cal him back. He said it was urgent,” Gena said without preamble.
Tim was Mrs. VanderMarck’s lawyer.
“Thanks Gena.” He dialed the lawyer’s number. “What’s going on, Tim?”
“Mrs. VanderMarck instructed me to cal you. Jake broke into the house in Idaho. I’m here trying to figure out what he wanted and how to keep him from coming within an inch of the property again. Mrs. VanderMarck said you’d want to stay abreast of what’s happening. I hear you’l be staying here for a couple of weeks.”
“Yeah. Cataloguing her colection.” Baron leaned back against his seat and clenched his teeth. He didn’t need VanderMarck’s son screwing up his plans because of a vendetta.
“I’m supposed to fly out on Wednesday. Did he destroy or take anything?”
“I’ve walked through the house with the cops and nothing’s broken. Whether he took anything is another story. Bridget said she sent you an inventory of the colection.”
“It didn’t cover everything. She was supposed to send the rest before I left.”
“Cal her and see if she has it. The cops keep asking me if anything was taken.”
“I’l be there later today.” Baron hung up and resisted the urge to punch something. His plans for the next two weeks would be nul and void if that idiot messed with the colection. He and Kara were meant to be together. He would not alow anything to stop that from happening.
The next cal was to Gena to book the earliest flight to Spokane, Washington, and rent a plane to Sandpoint. Finaly he caled his brother. “We’re on our way, should be there in forty minutes.”
“I’m on my way to the airport. My team didn’t cancel the flight, just pushed it for later. You took care of your problem?”
“Yeah.”
“You don’t sound too sure.”
Baron smiled. Lex had a knack for reading people, a real pain when someone wanted to keep things private. “That’s not it. It just seems like every time I think I’m where I want to be, something screws it up.”
“Anything I can help with?”
“Nah, I have it covered.”
“Is Kara stil with you?”
Baron frowned. “Been checking on me, Luthor?” Jade had once accused Lex of being like Lex Luthor from the Superman series, with his nose into everything and nothing ever escaping him.
Lex laughed at the nickname. “I spoke with the crew before you took off and someone let it slip you had a companion.”
“Someone? Don’t you mean Cousin Teal, super spy slash flight attendant?” Baron raised his voice knowing ful wel Teal could hear him. “It’s a shame when a man can’t have a few secrets.” Lex laughed. “Is Kara a secret?”
“Not in the way that laugh of yours implied. But sometimes a man needs some privacy when he’s courting a woman.”
“Courting?”
Baron chuckled. “What else did Teal tel you?”
“Why?”
“So I can decide how long to yel at her.”
Lex laughed, enjoying a joke Baron wasn’t privy to. “Yeah, good luck with that. Did you realy push her into the crew’s cabin and order her not to come out unless the plane’s about to crash?”
“Just a sec.” Baron looked toward the cockpit. “Teal?” Within seconds, their cousin stuck her head out of the crew’s cabin and cocked an eyebrow. “Do I need to parachute out of here?”
“Smart ass. You’re officialy kicked off my team at the next family picnic.”
She flashed a grin. “Then we’l have a gender-based game.”
“Is that supposed to scare me?”
“If Kara’s on our team, you bet. Haven’t you noticed the way my husband tiptoes around me when I’m with the opposing team?” She ducked out of sight.
Yeah, he’d noticed the way
all
the married men slacked during a game of the sexes. And who said Kara would be at his next family gathering?
Shaking his head, Baron brought the phone back to his ear.
“I’l see you when we land, Lex.”
“You are planning on bringing Kara to the family picnic on Saturday, right?”
Family could be such a curse, but his topped the chart.
Baron hadn’t planned on taking Kara to meet his family, not until she had his ring on her finger. He loved his family, but it was big and loud, and would probably scare her off.
“We’l be out of town, big bro,” Baron said into the phone.
“Before you ask anymore questions, mind your own goddamn business.”
Lex chuckled.
Once he hung up, Baron tried to imagine Kara among his family. She’d fit right in. Jade and Ashley already knew her quite wel since they were al into the art scene. His brothers liked her, Chase a little too much for Baron’s peace of mind. He might have to shield Kara from his Aunt Vivian though. He loved his aunt but she tended to assess a person’s worth based on what their parents did for a living or their ancestry. Kara’s blue-colar parents couldn’t pass her prejudicial scrutiny.
Baron frowned. Kara always brought out his protective instinct. He’d felt it from the first day she started working for him. It had scared the hel out of him, made him erect barriers to keep her at a distance. Because of that he’d wasted five years. The two-week affair he’d proposed would give him the opportunity to show her they were meant to be together. He couldn’t predict where things would end with them, but he’d make sure he didn’t give her a reason to leave him. He’d be happier if her feelings for him were stronger by the end of their stay in Idaho, but plans and Kara just didn’t go wel together. He’d go with the flow here, let her lead.
***
Kara waited outside for Penny’s Camry to pul up. Her mother in a nurse’s assistant cranberry top and matching pants stepped out of the car and smiled.
“Kara, what a surprise finding you here.” Penny gave her a hug then glanced toward the house. “Briana didn’t lose—?”
“No, Mom. She’s okay, just resting.”
“Thank goodness. The sily woman who took Jim’s phone cal forgot to tel me until thirty minutes ago. I drove like a crazy woman to get here, especialy when I tried caling but couldn’t get through. If she’s okay, what are you doing here?”
“I came to see her, Mom. That’s al.”
From Penny’s expression, she wasn’t buying Kara’s explanation.
“Let me go and talk to her.” She entered the house and went upstairs. Kara stayed behind, her tension mounting with each second that passed.
A half-hour went by before Penny came back downstairs, alone. She chose a sofa and patted the area beside her. “Sit by me, dear. Let’s talk,” she said, scowling.
Kara braced herself for the worst.
“I don’t understand why a mother is always the last to hear these things,” Penny started, her tone accusatory. “Briana told me a very disturbing story and I’m very disappointed that you chose not to share it with me when it happened.”
Must be blame-it-on-Kara day. “What is it?”
“Is it true Jim was your boyfriend before he met and fel in love with Briana?”
Kara gawked. Of al the things she’d expected Briana to tel their mother, past transgression wasn’t one of them.
“It’s in the past. I wasn’t in love with Jim and the relationship hadn’t become serious.” Too embarrassed to say they hadn’t had sex, Kara waved at the picture on the display above the fireplace. “They’re perfect for each other.”
“That’s beside the point, Kara. What Briana did was wrong. I know there’s a rule somewhere about not messing with your sister’s boyfriend. What’s worse, she’s never apologized for it.
Why didn’t you say something?”
Kara resisted the urge to point out that Penny always sided with Briana but the support now touched Kara. Emotions blocked her throat.
“It doesn’t realy matter, Mom.”
Penny shook her head. “It does, especialy if you don’t want to stay with her because of what she did.” The switch from disappointment in Briana for stealing Jim to blaming Kara for refusing to stay with Briana because of that same incident blindsided Kara. For a moment she stared at her mother without hearing the rest of her diatribe. The betrayal cut deep, but it was her fault for expecting Penny to change. Her mother and Briana were too alike to change overnight. She tried not to listen to the rest of the words pouring from Penny’s mouth, but bits and pieces filtered through.
“…you’re older and smarter…Briana’s clueless when it comes to many things…as the oldest, you must look out for your sister…lost two children already…can’t lose another…” Kara felt the noose tighten around her neck. She’d never break free from Briana. Was she being selfish to want a life outside her controling mother and manipulative sister?
The events from earlier this morning came back to haunt her. Lex Fitzgerald, the oldest son, had come to Baron’s rescue without question. How was her mother’s demand any different?
Briana needed her. Not next week or month, now. She could always push the trip back by a few weeks or…months. Kara gulped, disappointment making it hard to swalow.
Her mother’s hand on her arm brought Kara back to the present.
“She needs us, baby.”
Kara wanted to scream. “What about Jim’s mother? She’s on her way already.”
“Nasty woman,” Penny said with distaste. “She and Briana don’t get along. We must convince her to go back and leave your sister in your capable hands.”
Yeah, that’s me, Ms. Capable, always taking care of
everyone but myself.
Kara watched her mother leave the room and couldn’t come up with a single protest. For a long time she just sat there, staring into space. A tear fel on her arm. She swiped at her cheeks, angry with herself for breaking down just because she had to play second fiddle to her sister once again.
Not this time. Not if she could help it. She needed a plan.
“Ms. Kara?”
Kara looked up. The housekeeper’s sympathetic expression indicated she’d heard the conversation between Kara and her mother. “What is it, Mrs. Marten?”
“Aurelia…Jim’s mother just caled. She missed her flight.”
“Please don’t tel me she’s not coming,” Kara said.
“She waited at the airport but the flights were fuly booked.
She said to tel you she’l be here Wednesday night.” Great, just what she needed
.
Kara closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. Goodbye to her plans with Baron, goodbye to her deadline on the Halè painting. In her line of work, one couldn’t promise a client results and not deliver. It was professional suicide. She’d worked so hard to have a reliable check mark next to her name.
Just freaking great.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Kara. I know you wanted to go home tomorrow.”
Wednesday night would have marked a new beginning for her, her first night with Baron, one of many to come. She’d imagined the two of them in a quaint, quiet, secluded little cottage, making love on a rug in front of a fireplace, the glow of the fire playing on his sculptured features, but some things were just never meant to be. Once she explained why she couldn’t make the trip, he would understand.
Kara swalowed her disappointment, opened her eyes, and gave the woman a forced smile. “It’s okay, Mrs. Marten. It’s not your fault. I can afford to stay for a few more days.” The housekeeper scuttled away. Instead of venting, Kara sat back and took one deep breath then another, but her bubbling frustration got worse. She jumped up and hurried to her assigned bedroom.
She paced, trying to come up with another solution.
Clear
your head first.
She rummaged inside her bag until she found a swimsuit. Changing, she hurried across the foyer, glancing up at the second floor landing for her mother and sister. But the two were probably stil closeted in Briana’s bedroom.
“I’m going for a swim,” she told Mrs. Marten as she cut through the kitchen to the French doors leading to the deck. She dropped her robe on a lounge and dove into the pool with a splash.
Lap after lap, Kara attacked the water but she couldn’t get rid of the tension gripping her or out-swim the problem her family had dumped on her lap. She should be used to being left holding the bag by now. Her mother loved to talk the talk but expected Kara to walk the walk. It wasn’t fair.
Kara didn’t know how many miles she swam before she saw her mother watching her from the deck. The answer, so simple and clear, came to her as she puled herself out of the pool. Kara picked up a robe and slipped it on.
Her mother studied her with an assessing expression.
“You’ve lost weight.”
Kara tied the sash of her robe and shrugged. She wasn’t sure whether the comment was a praise or criticism. “I’ve been known to hit the gym now and then.”
Her mother frowned. “No need to be prickly, dear. You look good. Your daddy and I miss having you around, though. Are you sure you don’t want to start your business closer to home?” Kara released her hair from the ponytail and finger-combed it. “I thought about it but my client base is in L.A. I’m not up to starting al over here.”
Penny dismissed her daughter’s comment with a wave. “I don’t understand this “client base” stuff. You’re good at what you do. Once you work on a piece, word of mouth wil bring you more business.”
A compliment from her mother? Wow. When her mother fel silent, Kara realized she expected a response. The fact was Kara had become attached to L.A., the people, and the lifestyle. Al her friends were there. Baron too, but he’d soon be out of her life.
“L.A. is the place for me, Mom.”
“But San Diego is your home. Our entire family is here.
When you’re ready to move back permanently, we’l be here.” She glanced toward the house and sighed. “Your sister is resting so I’l head back to work. I’m happy you came to see her. She misses you too, you know.”
Lay it on thick. Make me sweat with guilt.
“I’m happy I could come. I’l borrow Briana’s car and come over to the house to see Daddy later today.”
“He’d love that. Don’t forget what we discussed earlier.” Discussed? She’d given the orders and expected Kara to folow them? “I need to think about it a little longer.”
“Think about what? Sweetheart, your sister—”
“Needs me, I know.” She shoved her hands in the pockets of the robe and squinted at her mother. She and Penney were about the same height, except her mother had added extra pounds in the last several years. She carried the weight wel for a fifty-year-old and her skin was stil smooth except for the laughter lines at the corners of her eyes. Her pale, ash blonde hair, like Kara’s, was cut short and styled. The pixie cut suited her rounder face.
I hope I age
like her.
“Then you understand it’s our duty to be here for her,” her mother continued. “You can at least stay for a few weeks.” But Kara would cut off her arm before she favored one of her children over the other. It stil hurt that Kara’s needs were always secondary to Briana’s. However, she was twenty-nine and past adolescent insecurities and jealousies. She had a life and was about to launch a business.
Kara steeled herself for her next move.
“I can’t, Mom. I have duties too, to my boss and my clients. I’m going back to L.A. on Thursday.” Her mother’s eyes widened. “What about Briana?”
“She can stay with you. When Jim’s home, she can come home.”
Penny’s mouth pinched with disapproval. “I’m too old to take care of your father
and
Briana.”
“And I’m too busy to babysit her,” Kara said, keeping her voice neutral.
Her mother threw up her arms in exasperation. “Why are you being so difficult? I expect your sister to behave like this. She’s a child. You, on the other hand, should know better.”
“Twenty-four is a hardly a child. Briana’s a grown woman and we must start treating her like one.” She sat on a deck chair and hoped her mother would take the other one. This was something they needed to discuss rationaly and come up with a solution, not hurl criticisms.
Instead of sitting, her mother crossed her arms and squinted. “Do you know how much I sacrificed to take care of my own brothers and sister?”
Oh, here she goes again with the famous speech she
pulled whenever she needs me to tow the line.
“Everything.” She said it in sylables to drive her point home. “I could have continued with my education, started a career, but I put them first. Then I met your father and had you. Once again, the two of you came first. I brought you up to understand the importance of family and…”
Kara blew out a breath and tuned the rest of the speech out. Her mother always talked about becoming a registered nurse, but never bothered to pursue that dream. Instead she’d spent the last twenty-odd years moving up the ranks as a nurses’ aid and now enjoyed a supervisory position. Kara was proud of her puling triple duty as a loving wife, mother, and valued employee at the hospital.
But this time Kara resisted the urge to give in to her demands and be the dutiful daughter. Yes, she was concerned about Briana, but she couldn’t stay in San Diego, not even for a few weeks.
“I know how much you sacrificed, Mom,” Kara said when her mother stopped talking. “No one appreciates that more than me. I promise to discuss things with Briana and come up with a better solution.”
From the dismissive look on Penny’s face, she didn’t put much credence in Kara’s assertion. “I don’t know what’s gotten into you. Instead of coming to the house, we’l stop by later tonight.
Maybe your father wil talk some sense into you.” Her mother left in a huff and Kara released a breath she hadn’t known she was holding.
Please let Daddy be on my side.
She could never refuse her father anything.
Kara massaged her temples and listened to Penny’s car start and pul away from the driveway. A migraine was brewing in her head and she was helpless to stop it. Mrs. Marten distracted her briefly when she came to talk about lunch. Kara joined her in the kitchen and helped her prepare soup and turkey sandwiches.
The simple chore kept her chaotic thoughts at bay.
Later, after popping a pain pil, she carried the tray with their lunch upstairs and ate with her sister. Kara decided not to spoil the mood with talk of leaving. They watched a DVD of the T.V.
series
Sex and the City
and guffawed at some of the antics of the characters, for once acting like sisters.
When Kara left for downstairs an hour later, Briana was asleep. Once again, Kara found herself alone. Reading the romance novel she’d picked earlier crossed her mind but the book held no interest to her. The thought of going for another swim had no appeal either. She spent most of the afternoon on the pool deck, half dosing, half thinking about her life, Baron, and work. When she finaly went inside, she found a note from Mrs. Marten. The housekeeper had gone grocery shopping. It was almost four in the afternoon when she returned.
Kara was catching news in the media room with a euphoric Briana who’d just gotten off the phone with her husband. Her sister stayed upbeat through dinner and later when their parents arrived.
“I’ve missed you, Daddy,” Kara said as she gave Cliff Michaels a hug. His scent, Old Spice mixed with wood polish from the furniture company he worked for, brought back wonderful childhood memories—reading together, teaching her how to ride a bike and later drive, the beautiful wooden toys he’d whittle for her.
Her father was deft at creating intricate designs on wood, the reason his company kept him and a handful few after computerized machines replaced manual labor, and why he was the person she chose to design frames for her store.
“You’re looking good,” she added, happy to see the twinkle back in his eyes and his cheeks rosy.
“You realy think so?” He kissed her forehead and cocked an eyebrow.
“Absolutely.” It was the truth. A year ago he’d given them quite a scare when he had a minor stroke. It was a topic he hated to discuss, but he had to change his diet, exercise, and take medication to control his cholesterol. He lost a few pounds since then but her father was stil the lumberjack type: tal, big, and hearty. Nothing could ever bring him down. Even though Kara got her coloring from her mother, she often wished she looked more like him. He had abundant chestnut hair, now graying at the temples, and was always optimistic and ful of life.
“Staying active is the key, pumpkin.”
“Whatever you’re doing, it’s working.” She’d begged him to stop working for his company, but he wouldn’t hear of it. He was only fifty-four and lots of juice left in him, he often said. She couldn’t wait until her business took off, so he could retire and work exclusively on her frames.
Kara gave her mother a hug, again.
She looked ticked off, more so than when she’d left earlier, and the hug she gave Kara was mechanical. The reason didn’t become clear until later after Kara and her dad finished catching up and talking shop.
“I spoke with your mother, pumpkin,” Cliff said when there was a lul in the conversation.
Kara swalowed, not sure what to expect. She glanced toward the media room where Penny and Briana were watching T.V.
“When are you going back to L.A.?” he asked.
“Thursday. Jim’s mother wil be here by then.”
“Then you must go. You have a life and no one, not your mother or sister, have a right to interfere with it.” Her throat closed and tears burned the back of her eyes.
When it came to supporting her, he never missed the mark. She should never have doubted that now would be any different.
Kara gave him another hug, feeling his love.
“Thanks, Daddy.” She sounded tearful.
Cliff patted her arm. “Now, now, none of that. A little warning,” he added in a whisper.
Kara sat on the arm of the sofa adjacent to him and peered into hazel eyes identical to hers. “What is it?”
“Your mother wants you and your sister to come to dinner tomorrow night. She’s invited a friend over.”
‘A friend’ usualy meant an eligible bachelor for Kara. “Do I know him?”
“I think you went to high school together.” Her father patted her arm, again. “But you can do much better, pumpkin. A whole lot better.”
“What’s wrong with him?”
He chuckled. “Nothing. Now find your mother and tel her it’s time to go home.”
Kara laughed as she walked toward the media room. Her father often had something negative to say about the men her mother paraded before Kara. Either her daddy was biased or no man would ever be good enough for Kara. No, that wasn’t true.
Baron made a good impression on her father from their first meeting and her father had never said anything negative about him.
Kara stood by the door in the foyer, once more hugging her father then her mother. “You guys drive carefuly.”
“Oh, your father wil drive as he always does, hel bent on getting us home within the shortest possible time.”
“I’ve never wrecked us yet, dear.” He winked at Kara, a twinkle in his eyes.
“That’s because I pray,” Penny retorted.
“And navigate,” he added and kissed her forehead. She nudged him with her elbow, a pleased expression on her face.
Kara fought hard not to hide her smile. Penny loved the reckless streak in her father and often narrated his escapades with glee when he wasn’t around. Thirty years together and they stil adored each other. It was amazing.