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Dinner was almost anticlimactic. Finley and I talked about all kinds of subjects. There was no real awkwardness between us, but something had shifted ever so slightly. When we got back to the house, he excused himself to go work in his shop for a couple of hours. I retreated to my room to read and write postcards.
I finally turned out the light at eleven.
Finley wasn’t coming to my room tonight. Perhaps never again.
He was an honorable man. Given what I told him about my feelings for him, it made sense that he would call a halt to our physical relationship if he thought I was a temporary fixture in his life.
* * * *
The second morning after I laid my heart on the line, I knew I needed to get out of the house and far away. Physical space might help me sort through my muddled thoughts. I gathered my sturdy walking shoes and sunscreen, preparing to head to the southern part of the island for a hike in the mountains.
After packing a few snacks from the kitchen, enough to hold me until dinner, I grabbed the keys to the Jeep. Finley had made arrangements to have my rental car towed out of the mud and cleaned up, but it wasn’t ready yet.
I wasn’t exactly sneaking around, though I didn’t go out of my way to say goodbye, and I didn’t leave a note. Maybe this was for the best. Finley offered me a guest room with no strings attached. It would be up to me to decide if I needed to move on and move out.
When I stepped out onto the front stoop, I nearly collided with a woman wearing a sunshine-yellow sheath reminiscent of Jackie Kennedy. Large dark sunglasses reinforced that notion. “May I help you?” I asked politely. I was eager to be on my way. I knew Finley rarely answered the door during his work hours. Now, the woman knew someone was home.
She seemed taken aback to see me. “Is this Finley Craig’s house? Or do I have the wrong address?” The words carried a deep southern accent.
In her presence, I felt like a scruffy teenager. “It is. He’s in his workshop right now. You could leave a message.”
“And you are?”
Her raised eyebrow made me feel guilty for no good reason. “Just a friend. My name is McKenzie.”
She tapped a foot shod in white snakeskin pumps. “I could use your help, McKenzie. It’s a matter of life and death.”
Apparently, she wasn’t joking. Her jaw was set, and I wondered if she had put on the sunglasses to disguise the fact she’d been crying. “What can I do for you?” I asked.
“Will you tell Finley I’m here? He needs to know it’s about his father.”
I had a very bad feeling about this. “Whom should I say is calling?” Great. Now I sounded like a butler from one of those old movies.
The woman’s lips tightened. A muscle ticked in her throat. “Vanessa Craig.”
* * * *
It’s a wonder I didn’t pass out from sheer panic. It’s also a wonder I didn’t say out loud what I was thinking. Oh, shit.
Finley’s house didn’t have a formal living room. I tucked the lovely Mrs. Craig beside the fireplace and the television. “Please stay here,” I muttered. “I’ll see if Finley can be interrupted.”
It’s a good thing I had already been granted access to the inner sanctum, otherwise I think I would have been too much of a coward to bother him. I knocked quietly twice, in case he was in the midst of a phone call. Then I opened the door and peeked in. Finley was standing on the opposite end of the room. A laptop sat open in front of him. Some fancy design program whirled through 3D images of motorcycles.
When he heard me, he dragged his attention away from the screen. “Duchess. What’s wrong? Are you ill?”
Was that the only good reason he could think of to justify my trespassing? “No. I’m fine. You have a visitor.”
“Tell them I’m busy.” His attention drifted back to the laptop. The man definitely knew how to concentrate.
“She’s here about your dad. It’s important.”
Now I had his full attention. His eyes went blank. “Who is it?”
I had trouble saying the word. I knew how much the woman in yellow had hurt him and I didn’t want to be the bearer of bad news. I had no choice. “It’s Vanessa.”
I thought he would take a minute to process. Or even refuse to see her outright. Instead, he brushed past me and went in search of his mother-in-law. When he found her where I had left her, Vanessa stood up. “Hello, Finley.”
I was right about the crying. Her eyes were red-rimmed.
