Home In Carolina

Despite the slip about Ty’s father, the genuine sympathy Annie heard in Grace’s voice, to say nothing of her indignation on Annie’s behalf, brought tears to Annie’s eyes. “Thanks, Grace,” she murmured, not looking up. “But could we not talk about this, please?”

“Of course,” Grace said, immediately apologetic. “I know the whole situation is upsetting, but I wanted you to know how people around here feel. You’re a strong young woman. You’ll get through this.”

“Thanks.”

“And with a little time, maybe the two of you will be able to work things out,” Grace added, regarding her hopefully.

“Not a chance,” Annie said flatly.

Grace seemed taken aback by Annie’s fierce declaration. “Well, then, just so you know, he’s been coming in here around this time of the morning for breakfast, and he usually has his son with him.”

Annie fought a sudden desire to bolt. Before she could weigh her options, though, Grace added, “If he comes while you’re here this morning, I’ll send him away. It’s the least I can do.”

Annie bit back a groan at the thought of the gossip that would stir up. “No, don’t do that, please, Grace. Just bring me a bowl of oatmeal with some milk and honey. With any luck, I can eat and be gone before he gets here.”

Grace looked vaguely smug, though Annie had no idea why.

“Are you sure?” Grace continued, her tone solicitous. “I’ll be happy to stop him at the door.”

Annie knew she meant it, too, but then word would be all over town by lunchtime that Ty had been banished from Wharton’s because of her. She thought back to what her dad had said about the town taking sides. Here was the first taste of what that would be like.

“No, just hurry with the oatmeal, okay?”

Grace patted her hand. “Whatever you say, dear.”

She scurried away and returned in less than a minute with Annie’s food. “Now, you take your time. I’ll be on the lookout. I’ll let you know if Ty’s heading this way. You can even scoot out the back door, if you want.”

“Thanks, Grace. Leave my check, okay?”

“It’s by the register. I’ll get it for you in a sec,” Grace promised. “Or you can just pay me next time you come in.”

Despite Grace’s offer of a warning, Annie practically gulped down the piping-hot oatmeal, burning her tongue in the process. Just one more thing she could blame on Ty, she thought bitterly.

Just then she looked up to find him standing beside her table, wearing snug, faded jeans and an old Duke T-shirt that fit him like a glove, emphasizing every muscle in his well-toned body. His dark hair was rumpled, and he held Trevor in his arms, the boy still wearing his pj’s from the looks of it.

So much for the early warning system, Annie thought in despair. Where the devil was Grace now? And why did Ty and Trevor’s sudden appearance, looking as if they’d rushed over here, immediately stir her suspicions?

“Hi, Annie,” Trevor said, his tone chipper. “Are me and Daddy gonna eat with you?”

She looked around desperately for Grace, but the woman was suddenly nowhere to be found. Nor was Annie’s check.

“It’s okay,” Ty said, his expression somber. “No need to make up excuses. We just stopped to say hello. We won’t interrupt you.”

For the second time in less than twenty-four hours, he’d innocently managed to put her on the defensive. Annie was sure he was trying to make things easier, but instead he made her feel guilty because she was incapable of pretending things between them were fine. If they’d been nothing more than old friends, an invitation to join her would have come naturally. Instead, the expected polite words lodged in her throat.

“I was just leaving,” she finally managed to say, scrambling to dig money out of her purse. She found herself rambling on, to Ty’s obvious amusement. “I usually don’t eat here, but no one’s around at Sullivan’s to feed me. I suppose I should have just grabbed a muffin at the spa.”

Ty grinned, reminding her of the boy he’d been when she’d first fallen wildly in love with him. Back then she would have done just about anything to coax that beguiling smile out of him.

“Apparently margarita night got out of hand,” he explained. “Your mom and mine spent the night at Helen’s. The way I heard it from Cal, Erik’s trying to cope with a whole houseful of women with hangovers.”

Despite herself, Annie chuckled. “I’m not surprised. Have you ever had one of Helen’s margaritas? They could knock a linebacker down for the count.”

“They’ve never offered me one. It sounds as if you have personal experience, though.”

She nodded and surprised herself by continuing to exchange small talk rather than bolting for the door as she’d planned. “They invited me to a margarita night right after I got back to town. They said it was time the next generation of Sweet Magnolias was indoctrinated into one of their rituals. It took me at least a day to recover, and I was careful. I only had two.”

“But you stayed away last night,” he said, studying her. “Was that because of me, because you thought it would be more awkward between your mom and mine if you were there as a reminder that I messed things up between us?”

“Not everything is about you,” she said, because she didn’t want him to get the idea that he had that much influence over her life, her moods or anything else these days. To reveal that he did after all this time would be pathetic.

“Dammit, that is why,” he said as Trevor’s eyes widened.

“Bad word, Daddy,” his son announced.

Ty winced. “Yes, it was. Pretend you didn’t hear that, buddy, and whatever you do, don’t tell your grandma.”

Annie had to hide her amusement over Ty’s obvious fear that his son would tattle on him. She was in no mood to let him think she’d enjoyed anything about this encounter.

“I have to go to work. Bye, Trevor,” she said, pointedly excluding his father as she left without trying to track down her check. She’d pay Grace when she picked up her lunch later.

“Bye-bye,” Trevor called after her.

Ty merely watched her go. She could feel his knowing gaze on her all the way out the door, and sure enough, when she glanced back once she was on the street, he was still watching her. What bothered her the most, though, wasn’t that he couldn’t seem to tear his gaze away, but that his expression was so undeniably sad. That was something she understood all too well.

“Well, that went better than I’d expected,” Grace Wharton said to Ty after Annie had gone. Miraculously, she’d emerged from the kitchen the second Annie was out of sight. He suspected Annie wouldn’t be pleased about that sudden reappearance after Grace’s timely absence.

“Thanks for calling to let me know she was here,” Ty told Grace. “I know everybody in town is on her side, you included, but all I want is a chance to make things right. The only way that’s going to happen is if we keep running into each other. Sooner or later I’ll chip away at all that anger. For a minute there, we had an actual conversation.”

“If you ask me, I think you’re being overly optimistic,” Grace told him. “I think it’s going to take a grand gesture, not two minutes in public with the two of you trying to be civil with each other.”

Ty shrugged. “I have to start somewhere.” He met Grace’s gaze. “You’ll let me know next time she’s in here?”

“As long as I don’t see any evidence that you’re making her miserable. If Annie’s upset, our deal is off. Like you said, much as I like you, I’m on her side.”

Ty nodded. “Fair enough.”

“Now, shall I bring this young man a pancake? And scrambled eggs with bacon and whole-wheat toast for you?” she asked.

“Thanks, Grace.”

She started away from the table, then came back. “Don’t you hurt that girl again,” she warned. “If this is just some game to occupy you while you’re doing rehab, stop it right now or, at the very least, leave me out of it.”

He couldn’t blame her for thinking the worst. Ty held her gaze. “It’s no game, Grace. I swear it.”

She studied him intently, then finally nodded. “Okay, then.”

Grace had barely walked away when Ronnie Sullivan slid into the booth opposite him. “What are you and Grace in cahoots about?” Ronnie demanded, even as Trevor scrambled into Ronnie’s lap, rubbed a hand over his shaved head, then gave it a little pat. “Did I hear right? Does it have something to do with my daughter?”

Ty groaned. “Where’d you come from?”

“I was grabbing a cup of coffee at the counter when I overheard just enough to send a chill down my spine.” He sipped from his take-out cup and said slowly, “Now, I’m not likely to take Grace apart limb by limb, but I can’t say the same where you’re concerned.” He leveled a threatening look into Ty’s eyes. “Clear enough?”

“Ronnie, I’m not the enemy,” Ty swore. “I’m trying to fix things with Annie. I miss her. You know how it was when you were trying to make things right with Dana Sue and nobody wanted to cut you any slack? Well, that’s how it is with me right now. I screwed up, and thanks to the tabloids, the whole world knows about it. I can’t change that, but maybe with time I can prove to Annie that it will never happen again.”

Ronnie’s gaze narrowed. “And that really matters to you? You care what Annie thinks of you?”

“Always have,” Ty declared.

“You had a damn strange way of showing it,” Ronnie said.

“Nobody knows that better than I do.”

Ronnie studied him intently, clearly trying to gauge whether or not Ty could be trusted. Eventually, like Grace, he seemed to like what he saw. He nodded. “Okay, then, I’ll give you a break for the time being. But if you make that girl cry or upset her in any way, all bets are off.”

“Seems perfectly reasonable to me,” Ty said, swallowing hard as he considered the certainty that Ronnie meant exactly what he’d said.

Ronnie’s gaze didn’t waver. “However, I can’t speak for Dana Sue. You understand that, right? She may not be inclined to be as generous.”

“Which is one reason I’m not stepping foot inside Sullivan’s until Annie and I make peace. I’ve seen your wife handle the knives in that kitchen, to say nothing of all those skillets,” Ty said with a shudder.

Ronnie chuckled. “Yeah, who knew a skillet could be used as a weapon of feminine destruction? I learned that one the hard way.”

Ty barely contained a grin. “I remember.”

Ronnie stood up with Trevor still in his arms, then set the boy back down in the booth. “For what it’s worth, if you really are the man you used to be, then I hope this works out. I’ll never forget the way you looked out for Annie when she was sick. You stood up to her then, got through to her in a way no one else had been able to. You were there for her when a lot of kids your age would have turned their backs. You banked a lot of points with me for doing that. That man is someone I’d trust with my daughter.”

Ty felt a knot form in his throat. “Thanks, Ronnie.”

“Doesn’t mean I won’t beat the crap out of you if it turns out you’re not that man,” Ronnie said, then walked away as the warning hung in the air.

Grace returned and set their plates on the table. Based on her timing, it was evident she’d been waiting nearby for the confrontation to end.

Ty gave her a hopeful look. “I know you heard all that,” he said. “Do you think you could keep it to yourself? It won’t help my cause if Annie knows her father’s tried to put the fear of God into me. She’ll think that’s the only reason I’m on my best behavior around her.”

“Or maybe it’ll stir up her sympathy,” Grace said.

“I think we’d better go with my theory,” Ty told her. “Can we forget this scene ever happened?”

“I can keep my mouth shut,” Grace said indignantly, then shrugged. “Of course, there are other customers in here, and what they couldn’t hear, they’re likely to make up.”

Ty groaned at the accuracy of her assessment. “Just do whatever you can to keep this quiet, okay?”

He had an uphill battle ahead of him as it was. Proving to Annie that he could be trusted was going to be tricky enough without her wondering if he was being nice only because he was scared of her daddy.

Unlike her mom, who was still best friends with the women she’d grown up with, Annie hadn’t stayed in touch with the two girls she’d been closest to in high school. Because of the anorexia, she’d wanted to put those tough times, those awful memories, completely behind her. And since she, Sarah and Raylene had gone to different colleges, it hadn’t been all that difficult to break the ties without anyone’s feelings being hurt. That didn’t mean she didn’t remember them fondly. Like Ty, they’d stuck with her during her difficult recovery from her eating disorder.

The last Annie had heard, Raylene was married to a bright young orthopedic surgeon and living in Charleston. It was exactly the match her very socially connected grandparents in Charleston had hoped for when they’d arranged for her to attend a debutante ball. Annie had met Raylene’s husband, Paul Hammond, at a couple of professional gatherings, and he’d even recommended her to a few of his patients, but she and Raylene had rarely crossed paths during the brief time Annie had spent in Charleston after college. When they had, she’d noted that Raylene had looked every bit the young socialite, a role she’d come to late but adapted to nicely.

Sarah had been engaged by her junior year in college, and after graduation had moved to Alabama to be near her fiancé’s family. To Annie’s surprise, no wedding invitation had ever arrived in the mail. Nor did anyone in town seem to know if Sarah had actually gotten married. Her parents had moved away a few months ago, just before Annie’s return to Serenity.

When Elliott called from the front desk at the spa to tell Annie that her next client had arrived, she was stunned to find Sarah waiting for her. She was even more startled by the amount of weight her friend had gained and, even more shocking, her dull eyes and unkempt appearance.

“I’ll bet I’m the last person you expected to see,” Sarah said, forcing a smile that never reached her eyes.

Annie tried to hide her initial reaction. She held out her arms and embraced her. “You definitely are, but it’s a wonderful surprise. How are you?”

“How do I look?” Sarah asked, her tone bitter, then waved off her own question. “No, don’t tell me. I can’t take brutal honesty right now.”

Annie heard a note of near hysteria in Sarah’s voice that cut right through her. “Let’s grab a glass of tea,” she suggested. “It’s a beautiful morning. We can sit on the patio and catch up.”

“Given the shape I’m in, maybe we should start right in with the exercise. It’s going to take a while to fix me.”

“You don’t need to be fixed,” Annie said fiercely, trying to combat the note of defeat. “Maybe just a little fine-tuning.”

“You’re a liar, but thanks.”

“Just so you know, I always start out spending time with a client to see what her goals are, so this is just routine,” Annie assured her. Unsure what her old friend’s financial situation might be, she added, “You don’t pay for this session, okay?”

“Money’s not an issue,” Sarah assured her. “I just don’t have time to waste.”

Again, there was a note of hysteria that set off alarm bells.

“We can talk about why that is, too,” Annie told her, leading the way into the spa’s small café, which sold a variety of drinks, smoothies, salads and pastries. The food was supplied by Sullivan’s.

Annie ordered two iced teas, then ushered Sarah out to the patio, choosing a table in the shade of an old oak tree. Two other tables were occupied, but they had relative privacy to talk. “So, you’re obviously married now, since I didn’t recognize the last name when you made the appointment.”

“For the moment,” Sarah said, her expression grim. “Walter says if I don’t get a grip on my weight, he’s through with me.”

Annie stared at her with shock. “Your husband threatened to leave you if you don’t lose weight?”

Sarah nodded, tears gathering in her eyes. “He meant it, too. He’s already seen a lawyer. To tell you the truth, I think he’s been looking for an excuse, and I handed it to him when I gained weight during my pregnancies with our two kids. I kept an extra twenty pounds after each of them.”

Annie was startled. “You have two kids already? When did you get married?”

“The week after we graduated. I was already pregnant with our first. That’s Tommy. That’s why you didn’t get a wedding invitation—his family thought it would be best if we didn’t make a fuss. We had a very small ceremony.”

Annie felt awful for her. She remembered how they used to talk about their weddings. Of all of them—even including Raylene’s social ambitions—Sarah’s dream had been the most lavish.

“You’d hardly be the first bride to be pregnant when she walked down the aisle,” she said, indignant for Sarah.

“Not in their town,” Sarah said. “At least that’s what you’d think to hear them tell it. Me, I think the whole place is a hotbed of people sleeping with anyone they can get their hands on. The Prices think they own the whole stupid town, which I suppose they do, if you consider they own the cotton mill that keeps a lot of folks employed.” She waved her hand. “Never mind. I don’t want to talk about them. They’re hateful people.”

“Have you moved back here, then?”

“I’m staying at Mama and Daddy’s place for a few months, while I ‘get a grip,’ as Walter says. It’s akin to hiding me in a closet. Thank heaven, Mama and Daddy had the foresight to see something like this coming and kept the house just in case I ever needed a place to come home to.”

“And your kids?”

“Tommy and Libby are here with me, at least for now. If Walter really does divorce me, it’s going to get ugly. He’s going to fight to keep Tommy with him.”

Annie regarded her with shock, certain she’d misunderstood. “Only your son?”

“Have to have an heir, don’t you know,” Sarah said angrily. “The family barely acknowledges that Libby exists. Seems my second pregnancy was a worse embarrassment than the first, coming so quickly on the heels of Tommy’s birth.” She leaned close and confided in an exaggerated undertone, “It suggests we had s-e-x.”

Annie had contained herself as long as she could. “Somebody needs to tell Walter what he can do to himself. I recommend Helen.”

For the first time, Sarah’s smile appeared genuine. “I was hoping you’d say that. I want to get fit, but I’m doing it for me, not Walter, no matter what he thinks. Then I intend to hire a lawyer like Helen, stand up for myself and teach him a thing or two,” she said with more spirit. “I can’t do that when I feel like such a failure.”

“You’re not a failure. And if you’re as determined as it sounds, you’ll be back in shape in no time. I’ll see to it,” Annie promised.

Sarah leaned forward. “So, how do we start?”

“Any health problems I should know about? You’ve seen a doctor?”

“The only thing wrong with me is the extra weight I’m carrying.”

“Have you been doing any exercise at all?”

“Nothing beyond chasing a couple of kids night and day. Does that count?”

“It’s definitely a start,” Annie told her, thinking of how worn-out her dad had been after his brief babysitting stint.

“What’s next, then?” Sarah asked eagerly, her expression more animated than it had been since she’d first hugged Annie.

“We’ll take it one step at a time,” Annie told her, “literally. Let’s get inside and get you on the treadmill.”

At the doorway, Sarah paused and gave her an impish grin. “Who ever thought things would turn out like this? Me having an eating problem and you being the one who’s going to help me conquer it. Talk about the tables being turned.”

“I know,” Annie said. “But you know the best part? Every time you have the slightest doubt, all you have to do is look at me and remember the mess I was. That’s all the proof you’ll need that anything is possible.”

Sarah pulled her into an embrace. “It is so good to see you, Annie. I’ve missed you. I’ve missed having a friend who knows all my secrets going clear back to preschool.”

Ironically it was having Sarah know her secrets that had made Annie want to forget the old friendship, but right this second she regretted having let it slip away.

“Do you ever hear from Raylene?” she asked Sarah. The three of them had once been as inseparable as the Sweet Magnolias.

“You mean the hoity-toity princess?” Sarah said with a chuckle. “Not so much. She sends out fancy Christmas cards and even scrawls a note on them about how fabulous her life is, but we haven’t talked in years. You?”

“I ran into her a couple of times in Charleston, but we definitely weren’t traveling in the same social circles. I had some business contact with her husband, who seemed like an okay guy.”

“Was he gorgeous?” Sarah asked.

“Ordinary, actually, but he had a terrific sense of humor.”

“And he’s rich, of course, and has that pedigree her family wanted,” Sarah assessed. She grinned. “I’ve missed this so much, Annie. When I heard you were back in town, it made the prospect of being banished here a whole lot easier.”

To her surprise, Annie realized she understood just what Sarah meant. It was as if a piece of herself had just clicked back into place this morning. “I know, sweetie. I know just what you mean.”

For the first time in her life, she understood why her mom, Maddie and Helen had stayed so close over all these years. Friends like these, who stuck together through thick and thin, were worth their weight in gold. It was about time she appreciated that for the blessing it was.

Chapter Five

It had been nearly a year since Helen had seen her mother, and she was shocked by the changes. Flo Decatur looked old and frail, asleep in her hospital bed, her complexion ashen, her gray hair badly in need of a perm. She was only seventy-two, but years of hard work and smoking had clearly taken a toll.

She moaned softly, then opened her eyes. Her expression brightened when she saw Helen.

“You came,” she said in a way that suggested she hadn’t believed Helen would take the time.

“Of course I came,” Helen said briskly, giving her mother a kiss on the cheek. “I had to see for myself just how much trouble you’ve gotten yourself into. How did it happen, Mom? How’d you break your hip?”

“Believe it or not, I was taking a class in line dancing at the community center,” Flo said, then added wryly, “I thought it would be good exercise. At my age you’ll try anything to keep your parts working.” She patted her hip. “I guess this one was already shot.”

Helen smiled at the image of her mother taking any kind of dance class, much less one involving country music. She’d always claimed to hate all those love-gone-wrong songs. She said she’d lived it, and it wasn’t worth glorifying. She’d also always had two left feet, or so she’d said. It appeared she might have been right.

“So, what happened?”

“Tripped over my own feet, if you must know,” Flo said, her expression chagrined at the admission of clumsiness. “Down I went. Took two other people with me.”

“Were they hurt, too?”

“Nope. They both had a few extra pounds on them. They bounced,” she joked, then coughed so hard, Helen handed her a cup of water. When she’d taken a sip, Flo regarded Helen intently. “Did they tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

“I can’t go back to my apartment.”

She didn’t sound as dismayed by that as Helen had expected. Still, Helen sought to reassure her. “The nurse mentioned you’d need some rehab, then maybe some help at home. Don’t worry about that. We’ll work it out, Mom. The nurse has already suggested a couple of places, and I’ll talk to the social worker and get some more recommendations. I’ll make sure you’re set up someplace really nice.”

Flo was shaking her head before the words were out of Helen’s mouth. “I’m not going into a nursing home,” she said flatly. “That’ll be the beginning of the end, and you know it.”