The Husband She Can't Forget. Patricia Forsythe

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СКАЧАТЬ They were certainly aware of her long-ago marriage to Luke, but they wouldn’t bring it up.

      Becky looked at Frances and said, “Thank you so much for inviting us. We haven’t been able to come in previous years, but we’re so glad we could make it this time. I love getting to know people. Where are you and your husband from originally, and how did you meet?”

      “She’s a born romantic,” Roland contributed. “She loves this kind of stuff.”

      “We’re from a small town about fifty miles from Houston,” Tom answered. “So we’re transplanted Texans.”

      “We always knew each other growing up,” Frances added. “Although Tom is far, far older than I am.”

      “Two years!” he objected, drawing a laugh from everyone.

      Frances put down her fork and reached over to take her husband’s hand. “He’d been asking me out for a year...”

      “And she always turned me down. I think I scared her.” Tom shook his head as if he was still mystified by that.

      “You definitely scared me. You were so serious. Until prom. I thought that would be a safe date, not too awkward, lots of other people around. I could hide out in the girls’ restroom with my friends if need be... And then the staircase happened.”

      “The staircase?” Luke, who obviously hadn’t heard this story before, looked from his aunt to his uncle.

      “The prom was held at a beautiful ballroom a couple of towns over from ours. It had a big, sweeping staircase and all of us had to give our tickets to someone at the top of the stairs, have our picture taken together, or with our friends, and then go down to the ballroom.”

      Frances paused for effect and sipped her water, her eyes laughing over the rim.

      “And?” Carly prompted when she couldn’t stand the suspense. “What happened?”

      “I was wearing my first pair of real high heels.”

      Carly and Becky groaned.

      “For days, I had practiced walking and dancing in those four-inch nightmares. I paid my little brother to be my dance partner. But it never occurred to me to practice going up and down stairs. After we got our picture taken, we turned to start down the steps.” Frances winced. “My heel caught on the carpet, my foot came right out of the shoe and I pitched forward.” Frances made tumbling motions with her hands. “I somersaulted all the way to the bottom without stopping—”

      “While I rushed along trying to catch her, but she was moving too fast.”

      The breathless audience stared as Luke asked, “Aunt Frances, were you hurt?”

      “Only my pride,” she answered on a sigh. “I lay there staring at the ceiling, trying to get my breath back, and this man—” she gave Tom a loving look “—this man whipped a twenty-dollar bill out of his wallet and said, ‘You win the bet, Frances. I didn’t think you’d have the nerve to prove you’re head over heels for me.’”

      Everyone broke into laughter and applause.

      “I was the belle of the ball,” she concluded. “And I was so sore the next few days I could hardly move. I learned my lesson, though. I haven’t worn four-inch heels since.”

      “Best twenty bucks I ever spent,” Tom said smugly. “We got married six years later.” He leaned over and kissed his wife, who happily kissed him back.

      “I’m only glad I wasn’t the cause of you taking that tumble,” he went on. “I was so awkward and nervous, I’m surprised it wasn’t my feet you tripped over. You never would have gone out with me again.”

      “Absolutely true,” Frances said.

      Carly’s gaze flew to Luke. He was looking at his relatives with pride and humor, but he must have felt her attention on him because he turned his eyes to meet hers. A shadow passed over his features and he twisted away.

      She and Luke certainly didn’t have a story like that, full of drama, but also sweetness. Theirs had consisted of overwhelming attraction, pain and recriminations.

      Suddenly desperate to get away, Carly began gathering her silverware and stacking it on top of her two empty plates. “If you’ll excuse me, everyone, I know Frances’s chocolate cake is over on the dessert table and it’s eager to be my new best friend. I think I’ll take a piece into a dark corner and show it some appreciation.”

      Becky smiled as she asked, “Cake, too? Sounds wonderful. I wish I could eat like that.”

      “You might have to work as hard as Carly does,” Luke said. “She owns Joslin Gardens and does most of the work herself.”

      “Oh, that’s right,” Becky said, giving a small wave of her hand as if to shoo away her previous error. “I knew that. And you refinish furniture, too, right? I’ve been looking for a small table and a couple of chairs for my breakfast nook. The one I’ve got is too big and too modern-looking for my house. I like retro.”

      Even though she wanted to get away, Carly couldn’t resist an opportunity to talk about her other business. “As a matter of fact, I do. I recently completed a rebuild of a little gateleg table with two chairs. I painted it pale yellow. It looks like something straight out of the 1950s.”

      “Sounds perfect,” Becky said. “When can I see it?”

      They arranged a time for her to come out to Joslin Gardens and Carly was at last able to stand and begin making her escape, but she stopped when Tom asked, “You’re going to open a shop in town, right? To sell your furniture and other pieces?”

      “That’s right, although I haven’t settled on a space yet. I’m calling it Upcycle because everything will be reclaimed and repurposed.”

      “Excellent,” Becky said. “I’ll probably be a regular customer.” Her husband squawked an objection and she gave him a playful punch on the arm. She turned her smile on Luke. “And what about you? Will you be going back to Dallas after the holiday?”

      He sat back, stretched out his legs and looked at Carly as he said, “I’ll be around for a few days, then back to Dallas. I am buying property in this area, though.”

      Carly’s face felt as frozen as a Siberian lake in winter. Her heart pounded and a wave of distress swept over her. She hoped that didn’t mean he planned to buy a house nearby. If he did, she might run into him anytime.

      * * *

      DISMAYED, LUKE WATCHED as Carly gave everyone at the table a bright smile. “It’s always nice to have more people in Reston,” she said before she hurried away. The Halls followed a few minutes later, heading toward the dessert table, as well.

      He hadn’t meant to spring it on her like that. He’d only decided today, when he’d received the reports from the engineers, that Reston would be the perfect place for his project.

      “Well, that wasn’t as awkward as it could have been,” Frances said, her sympathetic gaze following Carly.

      “It was awkward enough, and I suppose I could have told her before I made СКАЧАТЬ