Had it really been for Sammys sake that shed hidden his existence from Tyler? She struggled to say the truth, at least to herself.
Shed been so distraught when shed come home from Baltimore, her marriage in tatters, that she hadnt even realized what was happening to her body. By the time she did, shed already been served with the divorce papers. The trek shed made to Baltimore in a futile effort to see Tyler and tell him had only convinced her that their marriage was over.
She crossed her arms, hugging herself against the breeze off the water. Shed made her choice. This was the world for her sonthe secluded island, the patient pace of life, the shabby inn, the sprawling Caldwell clan whod accepted him without question as one of them.
Now Tyler was back, with his money and his power and his high-pressure life. He wanted to see his son.
What if he tried to take Sammy away? The question ripped through her on a tidal wave of panic. She wasnt as naive now as shed been at eighteen, but she still knew that power and money could sometimes overcome justice.
The Winchester wealth might dazzle Sammy. She couldnt compete with all the things Tyler could give him.
Worse, Sammy could risk loving him, as she had. What were the chances Tyler would walk away again, leaving broken hearts behind?
Tyler pulled into the shell-covered driveway of the Dolphin Inn that evening, his lights reflecting from the eyes of a shaggy yellow dog who looked at him as if deciding whether to sound an alarm. His sons dog?
That was one of the many things he didnt know about his child. Maybe that was why he hadnt been able to stay in his room at the islands only resort hotel.
Hed never intended to start a family. The example his parents had set would be enough to sour anyone on the prospect of parenthood. It was too late now. Hed fathered a child.
Deep inside a little voice said, Run. Go back to Baltimore, forget this ever happened.
Tempting, but impossible. Would he eliminate those days with Miranda if he could, even knowing how their relationship would end?
Of course. Their marriage had been a mistake, pure and simple, born out of sunshine and sultry breezes.
He got out of the car, his footsteps quiet on the shell-encrusted walk. The dog, apparently deciding he wasnt a threat, padded silently beside him. He rounded the building and had to force himself to keep walking.
Mirandas family waited on the wraparound porch, at least the masculine portion of it. Shed told them.
Tension grabbed his stomach. They had no reason to welcome him. They couldnt stop him, but they could make this more difficult if they chose.
Evenin. Clayton Caldwell didnt offer his hand, but at least he didnt seem to be holding a shotgun.
Mr. Caldwell. He stopped at the bottom of the porch steps. Is Miranda here? Id like to talk with her. Has she told our son about me?
Mirandas youngest brother shoved himself away from the porch railing. Maybe she doesnt want to talk to you.
The kids name floated up from the past. Theo. Theo had the height of all the Caldwell men, even at seventeen or so. Dislike emanated from him.
Thats enough, Theo. Claytons soft Southern voice carried authority. He eyed Tyler for a moment. Mirandas down at the dock.
Tyler jerked a nod, then spun away from their combined stares. He walked toward the dock that jutted into the channel between Caldwell Island and the mainland, aware of the mens gazes boring into his back.
Miranda stood with her hands braced against the railing, her jeans and white shirt blending into a background of water and sky. She must have heard his footsteps crossing the shell pathway, then thudding onto the weathered wooden boards. She didnt turn.
Caldwell boats curtseyed gently on the tide on either side of the dock as he approached Miranda. Her slim form was rigid.
Slim, yes, but there was a soft roundness to her figure. The bronze hair that had once rippled halfway down her back brushed her shoulders.
Its been eight years, he reminded himself irritably. Neither of us are kids any longer. If they hadnt been kids, fancying themselves Romeo and Juliet when their families tried to part them, maybe that hasty marriage would never have happened.
Then thered be no Sammy. The thought hit him starkly. That would be a harsh trade for an untroubled conscience.
Miranda turned toward him, her reluctance palpable. He looked at her without the anger that had colored his image of her earlier.
Her shy eagerness had been replaced by maturity. She probably had a serene face for anyone but him.
That serenity had been the first thing that attracted him to her. Shed worn her serenity like a shield even while she waited tables at the yacht club, taking flak from spoiled little rich kids. Like he had been.
Just now her body was tight with apprehension, her face wary. She stood outlined against the darkening sky, and the breeze from the water ruffled her hair.
One of them had to break the awkward silence. Should I have called before I came over?
She shook her head, the movement sending strands of coppery hair across her cheek. Its all right. I thought youd probably come back tonight. A ghost of a smile touched her lips. We have things to settle, I guess.
Yes. He bit back the horde of questions he wanted to throw at her. Why didnt you tell me? She still hadnt answered that one to his satisfaction. I take it youve told your family.
I didnt have a choice. You cant come back to a small place like Caldwell Cove after all these years and not cause comment. You must remember what the grapevine is like.
We were summer people. The island never included us.
Her face shadowed, and he almost regretted his words. Summer people. The wealthy visitors who owned or rented the big houses down by the yacht club had always maintained a clear division between themselves and the islanders.
I guess not, she said carefully.
Did you tell Sammy?
She rubbed her arms, as if seeking warmth. I told him.
How did he take it? He didnt know if he wanted his son to be glad or sorry he was here.
He was upset. Confused. She shook her head, and he saw the stark pain in her eyes. I tried to explain.
I hope you did a better job of explaining it to him than you did to me.
Thats not fair.
Funny, but I dont feel too much like being fair, Miranda. The anger hed thought he had under control spurted out. It isnt every day I find out a girl from my past had a baby she never bothered telling me about.
I tried to tell you.
He raised an eyebrow. Tried how? I wasnt that hard to find. A letter or phone call would have done it.
Some emotion he couldnt identify flickered across her face. Once hed known the meaning of her every look, every gesture. At least hed told himself he did. Maybe that had been an illusion.
I came to Baltimore, she said slowly, not looking at him. Not long after Id gotten the papers.
He didnt need to ask what papers. His mother had wielded the Winchester clout as easily as his father. Shed pushed the divorce through in record time.
You didnt oppose the divorce. That wasnt what hed intended to say, but it just came out.
No, I She stopped, seeming to censor whatever shed been about to say. That doesnt matter now.
No, I She stopped, seeming to censor whatever shed been about to say. That doesnt matter now.
He leaned against the weathered railing next to her, studying her down-tilted face and wishing he could see her eyes. If you came to Baltimore, I didnt see you.
I changed my mind, she said carefully. I did what I thought was best for all of us. Maybe I was wrong, but its too late now.
He stared at her, frowning. He wanted to push for answers, but maybe she had a point.
All right, forget what we did or didnt do then. He didnt think he could, but hed try. Lets talk about now. Is Sammy angry about his father showing up after all this time?
Not angry, no. Her grip on the railing seemed to ease. Confused, as I said, but hes a much-loved, secure child. He can deal with this.
None of that love and security in Sammys life came from his father. Well, fair enough. Tyler hadnt had that from his father, either.
Again he had the urge to walk away. All he could offer this child was money. Hed lost the capacity to form close relationships a long time ago, if hed ever had it.
He couldnt leave until hed talked with Sammy. He owed both of them that much, at least.
When can I meet him? He threw the question at Miranda.
Her soft mouth tightened. I suggested tomorrow, and he said hed think about it. Id like to let him agree without pressuring him.
Was she trying to get out of it? I have a business to run, Miranda. Tomorrow after school. Ill be here.
Her head came up, and she glared at him, then jerked a nod. Ill talk to him about it.
Tomorrow after school. Ill see you then.
He pushed away from the railing. Hed gotten what hed come for. He had no reason to linger.
Miranda took a quick step, stopping him. I said Id talk to him, Tyler. Im not going to force him to do something he doesnt want to, just because youre in a hurry.
He swung toward her, and they stood only inches apart. He could read the expression in her eyesshe was wishing for distance between them. He reached out and caught her wrists in his hands, feeling smooth, warm skin and a pulse that thundered against his palms.
Its already been his lifetime, Miranda. I wont wait.
Fine. She jerked her hands free, and fierce maternal love blazed in her face. Just you be careful of what you say to him. If you hurt Sammy, I promise you, Ill make you regret you ever heard of Caldwell Cove.
Chocolate, vanilla or something more exotic? Tyler lifted his eyebrow as he asked the question, and Miranda tried not to let that simple movement affect her. She was immune to Tyler Winchesters charmshed gotten there the hard way.
She concentrated on the list of flavors posted behind the counter in the ice-cream shop. Ill have the peanut-butter ripple.
Taking a walk through town with Sammy after school had been her idea. It seemed so much less intimidating than pushing the boy into a face-to-face interview with a father he didnt know.
Shed suggested to Sammy that they show Tyler around Caldwell Cove, not that there was much to see. The village still lay in a sedate crescent along the inland waterway, anchored by the inn at one end and Uncle Jeffs mansion at the other. The spire of St. Andrews Church bisected the village. Little had changed since Tyler was here last, except for the new resort hotel down near the yacht club.
She had an ulterior motive for this walk. She wanted Tyler to understand that Sammy belonged here. Sammys happiness didnt depend on anything his father could give him. Maybe when Tyler realized that, he could go away with a clear conscience.
Tyler handed Sammy a chocolate cone, then took a small vanilla for himself. Conservative, she thought. When had Tyler become conservative?
When hed been drawn back into the Winchester way of life, probably. Hed slipped into his fathers place as CEO of Winchester Industries, apparently forgetting that hed ever had other dreams.
Concentrate on the present, she ordered herself. Dont succumb to the lure of the past.
They stepped onto the narrow street bordered by the docks, and she looked for an inspiration to give them something to talk about.
Sammy, why dont you tell your father about the boatyard.
Her son didnt seem too enthusiastic about his role as tour guide. He licked, then pointed with an ice-cream daubed finger toward the docks and storage sheds lining the quay.
Thats Cousin Adams boatyard. He fixed Grandpas fishing boat when the motor died.
Adam took all of us on the schooner for Pirate Days, remember? she prompted.
Enthusiasm replaced the caution in Sammys face as he turned to Tyler. That was really cool. I got to help put up the sails and everything. Cousin Adams going to give me sailing lessons this summer. He says me and Jenny are big enough to learn.
Jenny is Adams little girl, she explained. You must remember Adam, dont you?
I remember Adam. His expression suggested the memory wasnt a happy one. As I recall, he, um he glanced at Sammy suggested it would be better if I didnt see you.
She felt her cheeks grow warm and hoped hed attribute it to the March sunshine. I didnt know that. It made sense. Adam, Uncle Jeffersons older son, belonged to the rich branch of the family, the one that sometimes frequented the yacht club. He would have heard the rumors that his little cousin, who was supposed to be waiting tables at the club, was instead dating a wealthy summer visitor.
Your ice cream is dripping. Tyler reached out with a napkin and dabbed at her chin just as she ducked away from his touch. His fingers brushed her cheek instead, and her skin seemed to burn where they touched.
Ill get it, she said hurriedly, hoping the napkin she raised to her lips hid her confusion. She couldnt be reacting to Tyler. She was immune to him. Remember?
Mines getting away from me, too. Tyler licked around the top of the cone, where the ice cream had begun a slow trail toward his fingers. Id forgotten how hot it can be on the island in March.
Summers on its way, she said, then regretted that shed mentioned the season. Tyler wasnt to know it, but summer always brought back memories of him. She glanced at his face involuntarily, then wondered how often this adult version of her first love indulged in something as simple as an ice-cream cone.
Tyler licked a froth of vanilla from his lips, drawing her gaze. Hed always had a well-shaped mouth. He didnt smile as easily now as he had when shed known him, and she didnt think that was entirely due to current circumstances. Maybe Tyler didnt find much to smile about anymore.
It probably would be an excellent idea to stop looking at Tylers lips. Next shed be remembering how they felt on hers, and things could only get worse from there.
They strolled along the tabby sidewalk, uneven from the shells that formed part of the concrete, worn by a century or two of foot traffic. Live oaks shaded them, and Sammy hopped carefully over a crack in the walk.
Concentrate on what youre doing, she commanded herself. Dont you want to tell your father about your school? she asked.
Sammy flicked a faintly rebellious look toward her. Thats it. He waved at the white frame building, set in its grove of palmettos, that had served the islands children for over a hundred years. Im almost done with second grade.