“Mom’s poor flowers,” Catherine mourned. “I’m glad she can’t see them. I also have my doubts about this being a prank, happening so soon after your wreck.”
“Maybe that’s why someone decided to do it. They thought I’d be more frightened after the wreck.”
“Maybe.” Catherine was obviously unconvinced.
“If you hadn’t called me, I was going to call you in a few minutes anyway,” Marissa said quickly. “I won’t be home for dinner tonight. Eric wants to go over a few things with me.”
“And you’re going to a restaurant to do that?”
Marissa braced herself, knowing how Catherine would interpret the information. “No, we’re going to his apartment. Eric didn’t sleep at all last night and he hasn’t stopped for two days in a row. He said getting out of that uniform, taking a shower, and relaxing would help him concentrate. Taking a shower to relax before we talk. Talk about evidence and…well, stuff like that.” Marissa rolled her eyes. “This isn’t a date or anything, Catherine. It’s strictly business.”
“Did I say otherwise?”
“No, but the tone of your voice spoke volumes.” Feeling ridiculously juvenile, Marissa asked quickly, “Will you give Lindsay her dinner?”
“I will. What television shows does she like? We’ll have a
whole
evening to occupy ourselves.”
“Not a
whole
evening, Catherine.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Don’t be silly. I won’t be gone all evening.” She paused. “Why don’t you call James and ask him to keep you company?”
“Call James! I just saw him last night! He’ll think I’m desperate and he’ll run for the hills.”
“I doubt that, but at least be certain to keep the doors locked.”
“Because you’re expecting more trouble?”
“No, because it’s a good idea.” Marissa needed to change the subject. “Why did Will call you?”
“He invited me to lunch. He said his mother had some presents for us—I guess she feels guilty because we’re orphans—and he said he could bring them over and then take me out for a leisurely meal.”
“Is he giving James a run for his money?”
“No. Will and I have been friends for a long time—not close friends, but friends. You know that. We’ll just do some catching up.”
“Have a good time,” Marissa said. “And pray he doesn’t bring his mother along.”
Catherine laughed. “I don’t think I have to worry about Evelyn Addison today.”
3
“Oh, Will, I haven’t come to Antonio’s for years!” Catherine exclaimed as they stepped through the door of the Italian restaurant. “It looks just like I remember it, though,” she said, gazing at walls designed to make the restaurant look like a wine cellar, the cozy booths covered in a moss green suede-like fabric, and the copper-plated ceiling, the hand-carved mahogany bar.
Will smiled. “I haven’t been here for a couple of years, either. Of course, neither one of us has spent much time in Aurora Falls lately.”
A waiter showed them to a booth, told them the specials of the day, and took their drink orders. Catherine ordered a white wine spritzer. Will ordered his usual martini.
“So you’ll be getting your degree in the spring?” Will asked.
“Yes. I’ve finished my course work and now I’m actually working, although under supervision. If all goes well, I’ll get my license in May.”
“And go to work in a hospital?”
Catherine frowned. “I used to think that’s what I wanted. Now I believe I’d like to join the practice of a friend.”
“Would this friend be male?”
“No, this friend would not. She’s a few years older than I am and has a practice in San Francisco. The city is so beautiful.”
“And so far away from home.”
The drinks arrived and Catherine ordered Chicken Alfredo and Will, after much pondering, selected Spaghetti Marvelo. After the waiter left, will leaned across the table and told her, “I can’t stand people who ask a dozen questions before ordering and then want this not overcooked and that not overcooked and a quarter-inch-wide piece of orange rind on the side. They drive me crazy! I was deciding if I wanted to get something with lots of onion and garlic so Mother would keep her distance tonight.”
Catherine laughed. “Poor Will. Your mother adores you.”
“I wish my mother had at least five other children to worry about—not just me. But I’ve given her plenty of reason to worry, I guess.”
“I don’t remember ever hearing that you’d gotten in serious trouble, Will. As for your higher education…”
Will grinned. “Stepped in it there, didn’t you? No one wants to talk about my higher education. I’ve dropped out of three universities before they could fail me. Then last year—well, last year was what Mother calls ‘a year of recuperation.’ This semester I started all over in a new university—the only one that would have me, I think. I’m supposed to be a changed man.”
Will reached for his martini, immediately downing more than could be considered a sip. Catherine looked at him. Only one year younger than she, he had some noticeable vertical lines across his forehead, a slightly crinkled look at the corners of his eyes, and a few gray hairs at his temples. He could smile and laugh and not look happy. The new university wouldn’t work out for him, either, she thought. His “year of recuperation,” which most people believed had been several months of rehab in Europe, hadn’t helped. Catherine wondered what had happened to this handsome, intelligent, charming young man when he was seventeen or eighteen to change him so much.
Will narrowed an eye. “You’re analyzing me.”
“No, I wasn’t.” Catherine took a sip of her spritzer. “Well, maybe just a little.”
Will stuck out his hand and turned the palm up. “What do you see?”
Her mouth opened slightly, she looked at the hand, and then she looked at the glint in his eyes. “Uh, that’s not quite how we do it, Will.”
“Oh, phooey,” he said as if deeply disappointed. “No palm reading? No looking into a crystal ball? No phrenology?”
“Thank goodness no phrenology. I can just imagine feeling the bumps on people’s heads all day.”
“Yeah, some people have dirty hair. Then some people have filthy hair and
lice
!”
Catherine laughed. “Will you stop before my food comes?”
“Maybe if you won’t completely break my heart by telling me you don’t read tarot cards.
I
can read tarot cards, I’ll have you know, and I thought if this latest university didn’t see what a superior mind I have and asked me to leave, I could go into business with you. Not fifty-fifty, of course. You wouldn’t need me for every case. But for the ones calling for tarot card readings I could be a lifesaver.”
“If you don’t stop, I think I’ll make
you
my first patient.” Catherine giggled.
“I’ll stop teasing you if you’ll answer a serious question.” Catherine waited a moment and then nodded. “Do you think you’ll ever come back here like Marissa did?”
Catherine frowned. “I don’t know. When I left, all I could think of was seeing the world. Now I’m not certain how I planned to do that and work at my chosen profession, too, but it’s what I wanted. Mom and Dad were alive and it seemed as if they would be forever. But they’re both gone and I spent so little time with them the last few years. Now there’s only Marissa. Of course she came back to take care of Mom—I would have helped, but they don’t allow extended leaves in doctoral programs; still, I feel guilty that I wasn’t here to help. And I think so often of those last months of my mother’s life that I missed.
“At first Marissa said she was only going to stay here until we got all the legalities settled,” Catherine went on. “Then she got a job. Now she says she should stay at least a year. Changing jobs frequently doesn’t help you get another one. I feel there’s more to her wanting to stay than her career, though. This is home to her.” Catherine sighed. “She’s been home since late June. She’s had time to settle back into life here. Since mom’s funeral, I’ve only been here for this Christmas break. I know we said we were
not
going to talk about any of the awful things that have happened this week, but they’ve made me wonder if I could make this home again. Right now, I have this strange feeling I’m in the horror house at the carnival.”
“Well stated,” Will said, finishing the rest of his martini. “This place is like a horror house. Or being trapped in a nightmare that won’t let you wake up.” He went silent. Catherine noticed the slight twitch beside his eye and he curled his fingers in and out of his damp palms.
“Hello, Catherine.”
She looked up to see James Eastman standing beside the booth, his face solemn. “James,” she said in surprise. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to have lunch.”
“Oh yes, of course. What a stupid question. James, you know Will Addison, don’t you?”
James gave him a stony look. “We’ve met several times. How are you, Will?”
“Same as always,” Will said jovially. James’s gaze fixed on the empty martini glass and Will tried unobtrusively to shove it away. “Won’t you join us? Catherine and I haven’t seen each other for ages. Well, actually, we saw each other Monday but only for a few minutes. We’re just catching up on old times.”
“Thank you for the invitation, but I’ve already had my lunch and I’m expecting a client at the office in ten minutes. I wouldn’t want to interrupt your reminiscences, anyway.” He gave them each a stiff smile. “Maybe another time. Good-bye, Will, Catherine,” and he was on his way out.
Will looked at Catherine and raised an eyebrow. “Friendly fellow, that James Eastman.”
“Well, he usually is,” Catherine said faintly, feeling as if she’d done something wrong but not sure what it was. “Maybe he doesn’t feel well or he’s dreading the client he’ll be seeing or—”
Will burst into laughter. “Or he doesn’t like seeing his girl dining out with another man.”
“His
girl
! Will Addison, I am not James’s girl. We’ve had exactly two dates.”
“
Two!
I only knew about the one in the Larke dining room. When was the other one?”
“Not that it’s any of your business and not that it was really a date, but we were going to your mother’s party together.”
“Then Marissa had to blow things by having that silly wreck.”
“You’re awful, Will Addison. And I’m not James Eastman’s
girl.
”
“Judging by the look on his face when he saw you with another man, I think you’d better tell
him
you’re not his girl. He became the town’s most eligible bachelor after the lovely Renée vanished, but I don’t think he’ll hold that title for long. I believe he has again found love.”
Catherine blushed. “You are too silly for words, Will. James is not in love with me.”
“Are you in love with him?”
“What? That’s ludicrous! Did you see that in your tarot cards? Will, really!”
“Settle down, Catherine. I just know when another man is feeling territorial.”
“Oh, that was beautifully stated. I feel like the neighborhood female dog in heat.”
“Equally lovely. Perhaps we should just run away and become poets.”
Catherine was about to answer when they brought the food, smelling unbelievably good, and Will ordered another martini. Catherine closed her eyes and breathed in the hot chicken, Alfredo sauce, and Parmesan cheese. When she opened her eyes, Will was staring at her intently.
“You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen,” he said softly.
“Oh. Well, thank you.” Catherine felt thrown off balance. She and Will had always shared a casual friendship without a hint of romance. “I suppose this wonderful food is bringing a twinkle to my eye and color to my cheeks.”
“You think I’m leading up to a joke. I’m not. I’ve never seen blue-green eyes like yours, almond-shaped eyes, high cheekbones, perfect lips. You could have been a model. Or an actress. Instead, you used your impressive intelligence to propel yourself through a grueling course of training leading to a serious career. You don’t know how much I admire that about you.”
Now Catherine’s cheeks were burning. Will looked at her solemnly, intensely, and his voice sounded slightly husky.
“I wish things had been different, Catherine. I wish
I
had been different. Maybe I could have pursued you and you would have taken me seriously if I hadn’t always been a screwup.”
“You’re not a screwup, Will.”
“Yes, I am. You’re too nice to say it, but you know it. Still, you’ve continued to be my friend. Even when we were in our teens, when age differences mean so much, you always treated me as an equal although I was a year younger than you.”
Nervously Catherine picked up her spritzer and took a large sip. She felt as if she’d come into the restaurant with one man and was now sitting with another. She’d never seen Will so serious, so…earnest.
“Will, I have to be honest. I think you’re getting maudlin. You’re handsome. You come from a family with money. You might have left a couple of universities—”
“Three.”
“Okay, three, but a lot of young people bounce around before they decide what they really want to do in life. You’re only twenty-seven. You have so many opportunities if you’ll just take advantage of them. When I met you twelve years ago, you seemed ready to take on the world.” She paused. “There’s something I’ve always wanted to ask you.” He raised his eyebrows. “Why did you change when you were seventeen? Before, you seemed genuinely to enjoy life. Ever since, you seemed to be pretending, acting. And you’re not a good actor.”
Will looked surprised and grabbed his martini. “If I changed, I wasn’t aware of it,” he said with complete lack of sincerity.
“Yes, you are. Did a girl break your heart?”
He said barely above a whisper, “A boy broke my heart.”
“Oh.” Catherine stared at him. “
Oh!
I didn’t know it was that way for you. Why have you always kept it a secret?”
Will smiled. “I’m not gay, Catherine. I didn’t mean a boy broke my heart in a romantic sense. I meant—”
“Well, for heaven’s sake, of all the coincidences!” Will and Catherine looked up to see Evelyn Addison, Will’s mother. “I didn’t know you were having lunch together!”