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“Don’t tidy. Don’t throw anything away.”
“I wouldn’t do that.” She heard clattering in the background. “What’s happening?”
“Josh, the hero, has organized breakfast for us. It’s just arrived. Goodness, what a feast!”
“Who is Josh?”
“He’s someone we picked up yesterday. A delightful man, and adept at procuring breakfast it would seem.”
Liza opened her mouth and closed it again. “You—picked up a stranger?”
“Well, he’s no longer a stranger. In fact without him I’d—” Her mother stopped talking.
“You’d what?”
“Nothing. I must go. You know I can’t bear cold oatmeal. And Liza, about Finn—”
“Yes?”
“Some of the rumors about him are true. He is charming, and absurdly handsome of course, but a little on the dangerous side, especially when it comes to women. Be careful.”
“I can’t believe you’re telling me to be careful. You picked up a hitchhiker!”
“I know. It’s only because I don’t want you to do something impulsive that you regret.”
Why would her mother say that? Liza had been with Sean since she was a teenager. She’d never been at all interested in another man. Had her mother somehow sensed how unsettled she was?
With a final goodbye, Liza put the phone down. Regrets? Right now she had a feeling that she was more likely to regret things she hadn’t done than things she had. And she had no reason to feel guilty or uncomfortable. She’d invited Finn to dinner, that was all. It was the neighborly thing to do in the circumstances.
There had been no reason at all to mention it to her mother.
14
MARTHA
SPRINGFIELD~KANSAS~TULSA
Martha put a loaded breakfast tray on the table and pulled it close to the bed while Josh poured coffee. She was grateful for his calm, steady presence. “Why didn’t you tell Liza the truth?”
“Because then she would have worried and this is the first time in as long as I can remember that my daughter hasn’t seemed anxious. She’s staying in the cottage on her own. Taking her paints to the beach. I have no intention of saying anything that will draw a gray cloud over her blue-sky day.”
Martha hoped it was the right decision. She still felt shaken up after the night before. The responsibility weighed on her. If she were Liza, she’d want to know. But she wasn’t family, so she had to respect Kathleen’s wishes. “All right, but you heard what the doctor said. You overdid it yesterday. Too much sun, not enough water. You were dehydrated. I’m blaming myself.”
“Why? I’m old enough to decide whether I’m thirsty.”
“Apparently not. And today I’m going to be nagging you to drink every half hour.”
“Does gin count?”
“No.” Martha piled fresh berries into a bowl, relieved that Kathleen appeared to be back to her usual outrageous self. “This breakfast looks delicious, Josh. Where did you find all this?”
“I raided the kitchen. Friendly people.” He pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down, nursing a cup of strong coffee. “I agree with Martha. I don’t think you should rush to go anywhere this morning, Kathleen. Take it slowly and see how you feel later.”
All the antipathy and suspicion Martha had felt had vanished. She had more than one reason to be thankful for the fact that they’d picked up Josh Ryder in Devil’s Elbow.
Josh had been the one who caught Kathleen before she could hit the floor, and it had been Josh who had located a doctor in virtually the same time it had taken Martha to settle Kathleen on the bed.
He seemed to have a way of making things happen, and for that Martha was grateful.
