Lilac Wedding in Dry Creek. Janet Tronstad

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СКАЧАТЬ with a bottle of water, and Jake pulled away.

      “I have a refrigerator in the storeroom so I can keep things cold,” the man said, not seeming to notice the tension in the air. “I have a microwave, too, if you’d rather have hot water.”

      “Maybe later,” she said. “I have some crackers in my purse and I could …”

      She saw Jake scowl and start to rise.

      “Cold water is perfect now, though.” Cat braced her arms so she could push herself up into a sitting position on the couch. Then she reached for the water. “That’s just what I need.”

      “What you need is a big steak and a baked potato,” Jake muttered. By now he was standing and glowering down at her. “When did you eat last? And I don’t mean crackers.”

      She had forgotten how it was with Jake. He liked to rescue damsels, but he was opinionated as he did it. She didn’t have energy to challenge him now, though. “I had something on the airplane coming out here.”

      “Pretzels, I suppose. They’re not any better.”

      Cat leaned her head back and took a drink. At least Jake believed it was hunger that had made her faint. That would satisfy him for a while. Give her time to think. She hadn’t quite expected the surge of tenderness that struck her when he was so close. She hoped it wouldn’t make it more difficult to ask him what she needed to when the time came.

      “You’re here on a stopover then?” He hesitated. For a moment he looked vulnerable. “How long do you have?”

      “As much time as you have to spare.”

      The tension left his eyes. “Well, when you finish with that water, I’m going to see about getting you something to eat, then. I’m surprised that wind didn’t blow you away out there.”

      “I don’t want to be any trouble.” Even as she said it, she knew it was too late for her to be anything but that. She just hoped she didn’t disrupt his life too much.

      “What does Lara like to eat?” he asked, turning to leave but not yet stepping away.

      “She eats almost anything except peas.” Cat was glad the conversation wasn’t about her anymore.

      There was a rustle at her side, and she saw her daughter wiggle in between them again, now that Jake was standing.

      “Peas are ugly,” her daughter announced, looking up at Jake defiantly. When he didn’t say anything, she started to talk faster. “And, I’m a princess, so if I get peas under my mattress, I won’t be able to sleep all night long. And, they make me burp.” She paused and looked down at the floor. “Well, sort of—sometimes.”

      Cat had struggled to teach Lara the difference between truth and lies, even before she got the book of fairy tales. At first, Cat thought the book was good because it helped Lara learn to read, but she was beginning to wonder if Lara really believed she was a princess when she said things like that.

      “Don’t worry. I’ll get you carrots,” Jake said as he squatted down to her daughter’s level. His voice was gentle and he seemed to really be looking at her. “I’m not that fond of peas, either.”

      Lara beamed at him.

      Jake just looked at the girl for another minute.

      “How old are you, Lara?” he finally asked.

      Cat felt her breath clutch. She suddenly realized he was asking the question as if he didn’t know the answer. She’d taken for granted that he’d known that much. She wasn’t ready to tell him everything, but he must know who Lara was. She hadn’t even worried about that on the way here.

      “I’m four,” her daughter answered, and held up the required number of fingers with the confidence of her preschool training. “And three months.”

      Cat saw the shock wave go through Jake and she reached her hand out to stop him from saying a word. She hadn’t told her daughter anything, but surely Jake had known.

      “Lara, will you take the bottle back to the nice man at the counter?” she asked as she held the plastic water bottle out to her daughter.

      Fortunately, Jake knew what she intended and waited to say anything until Lara had walked over to the older man and he lifted her up on a stool.

      “Who’s her father?” Jake’s voice was low and impatient.

      Cat took a quick breath. “I thought you knew. It’s you.”

      “Me?” Jake turned to stare at her fully. She couldn’t read his face. He’d gone pale. That much she could see. And his jaw was tense.

      She nodded and darted a look over at Lara. “I know she doesn’t look like you, but I promise I wasn’t with anyone else. Not after we …”

      She didn’t even have any proof, she realized. She hadn’t thought she would ever need any. She hadn’t put his name on the birth certificate, either.

      “Of course you weren’t with anyone else,” Jake said indignantly. “We were so tight there would have been no time to …” He stopped and lifted his hand to rub the back of his neck. “At least, I thought we were tight. Until you ran away.”

      His voice had drifted, but it was still loud enough to be overheard and she lifted her hand to ask him to lower it. But then he went completely silent, just crouched there looking at her. Soon his black eyes warmed until they were filled with golden flecks. She’d forgotten they could do that.

      “She’s really mine?” he whispered, his voice husky once again.

      Cat nodded. “She doesn’t know. Although she doesn’t take after you—her hair and everything—she’s got your way of looking out at the world. I assumed someone on the staff at the youth home must have told you about her …”

      His jaw tensed further at that.

      “You think I wouldn’t have moved heaven and earth to find you if I’d known you’d had my baby?” Jake’s eyes flashed. He’d obviously forgotten about being quiet. “I made several trips back to the home to try and trace you. They said you didn’t want to be found so I finally accepted that. But if I’d known I had a daughter, I would have forced them to tell me where you were. I’d have gotten some high-powered lawyer and made them talk.”

      Cat suddenly realized why she’d been so sure he knew. “But you’ve been sending me money. No letters. Just the money. Why would you do that? I thought it was like child support in your mind. That you wanted to be responsible even if you didn’t want to be involved with us.”

      Jake shook his head. “I didn’t put down any words because I didn’t know what to say. I thought the money spoke for itself. That you would write when you were ready. And the money—it was like a tithe.”

      “A tithe? You’re going to church?” Cat asked in relief. Maybe God had worked things out better than she had hoped. If Jake was a Christian, then she would feel so much better about him raising Lara if it came to that.

      He shook his head. “Churches never have been any use to me, you know that. But I remember something СКАЧАТЬ