September Love Read online

  Beth unfolded the sheet and gave a low moan. “This can’t be right, Doug.”

  “I’m afraid it is. That’s exactly what I said when I first saw it, and then he explained.”

  “How could he explain this? It’s a fortune.”

  “He did explain it. If you go out in front and look at this house—it’s a showplace. It’s a beautiful, big, elegant old home. It has large rooms. And it all had to have a roof over it. Not to mention that it’s not a nice, flat, cheap roof, but has all those ups and downs—I forget what he called them. Just those dormer windows in front alone—well, each has a tiny roof over it. Do you follow me?”

  “I’m afraid I do,” she said weakly. She was remembering how much money she had just spent on Kayla’s new wardrobe and before that on the several—actually, many—things Adam had needed. How much was there left in her reserve? She’d better call the bank. That hollow feeling in the pit of her stomach seemed about to become a permanent thing. She must not burden her sons-in-law with this.

  “And you’re not going to do it alone,” Doug said, “so if that’s what you’re worried about, forget it. I’m not broke yet, you know. We’re not exactly rolling in dough, but we both have fairly good pensions, and I’m getting better and better money for my paintings.”

  “Yes,” she said vaguely. For some reason that she didn’t quite understand, she wanted to—somehow—pay cash for this job, not get a renovation loan. Now, why in the world wouldn’t she want to simply get a loan? It would be easy enough. The B and B was a modest but successful business.

  Then she realized why. The future was not as certain as it had been before Kayla had brought Adam into their lives. If it came to a choice between taking good care of Adam and giving up her business—it was no contest. Adam must have the time he needs. No matter what sacrifices they had to make.

  Doug was looking at her keenly.

  “I can make a good guess as to what you’re thinking.”

  “We have to pay it all, or as much as we can, and not have a loan hanging over our heads, in case—”

  “Are you sure about this?”

  He reached over and took the estimate.

  “Yes,” she said, her mouth feeling dry. “Call them.”

  Frantic ideas darted about in her mind. Suppose Kayla got a job she liked and went away—far away—leaving Adam. Or suppose Doug was right and Kayla became a good wife to Pastor Cooper. Or suppose—somehow— Kayla was gone, and she and Doug with Adam sold out the B and B and moved into Kate’s little gray house, which was still vacant. Could she really give up her B and B? There had to be a way out of this. Some way. Dear God, if You’ve given me this job to do, tell me how.

  It wasn’t until almost five o’clock that Pastor Cooper finally arrived. Kayla went into a small panic. She was at the kitchen sink, grating some carrots for a dinner salad, when the door chimes sounded. She liked Beth’s carrot, raisin and nut salad.

  “Both new guests are here,” Beth said, “so that’s got to be Pastor Cooper.” She put aside the nut chopper.

  “Look,” Kayla said, “you entertain Preacher-man in front, will you? I’ll go out back and get you the table flowers. Come on, Adam. Let’s duck out.”

  Beth agreed. “All right, if that’s what you want. But open the basement door and call down to your father. Tell him Pastor Cooper is here.”

  She had the pastor seated in the living room when Doug came up from his workshop. He looked rugged and outdoorsy in his work clothes of jeans and turtleneck sweater. No matter what Doug wore, he always managed to look imposing, Beth thought fondly.

  Pastor Cooper was in a business suit and carrying a leather portfolio, and after greetings, he came right to the point. “Bessie gave me your message, Beth. What is it? How can I help?”

  They told him, prompting each other, about Kayla’s latest failure. She couldn’t help but notice the quick look of sadness in his eyes.

  “And what made me call you,” Beth explained, “is that we’ve kind of hit a dead end. Kayla’s just given up. And she’s feeling guilty, as if she were imposing on us.”

  “Which she is, actually,” Doug interposed. “But she is my daughter, and there’s Adam to think of.”

  “And she wants to leave and—and take Adam with her,” Beth said.

  “And we can’t let that happen,” Doug added. “We can’t.”

  “No. Of course you can’t,” Pastor Cooper said. “You both realize, don’t you, now that she’s drinking again, her personality will not be the same? If she’s sliding back into the out-of-control state there could be a lot of difficulties ahead. Addicted people tend to be users in more senses than one. They will do anything to protect their addiction.”

  Beth silently agreed, remembering the sly look in Kayla’s lovely eyes when she realized their vulnerability about Adam.

  Doug looked solemn. “There has been trouble in the past,” he said slowly.

  “I was afraid of this,” Pastor Cooper said, leaning forward. “And I’ve done a bit of phoning, asking questions. In this state, as legal grandparents, I’m sorry, but you don’t have much clout.”

  “What do you mean?” Doug asked. “She’s my daughter. Surely I have a right to protect her welfare. And my grandson’s.”

  “She is an adult, Doug. You really have no control over Kayla’s actions, her behavior or her decisions. And as for Adam, he’s her son. The courts almost always rule in favor of the mother of the child. There have been Supreme Court rulings on this. But you’re not alone, if that’s any small comfort. I’ve collected all of this for you.” He unzipped the portfolio he had on his lap. “Read it at your leisure. You’ll be shocked, but I hope also encouraged somewhat. There are unsung thousands of older couples or single grandparents in this same situation. People—older people, retired people—are raising their children’s children, taking on second families to raise. It’s happening all over the country.”

  “Good grief,” Beth murmured, taking the stack of leaflets, papers and one book that he held out. “It’s that bad?”

  “That bad, and worse, but there are some helps along the way. Support groups, seminars, resources when things get too rough.”

  “We were wondering,” Doug said tentatively, “if maybe we could talk Kayla into some sort of counseling or—” He stopped because a dull flush had risen in the pastor’s young face.

  “I’ve had to decide I can help only…in a very limited way,” Pastor Cooper said slowly, obviously dragging the words out. “In addition to being a clergyman, I’m also a licensed counselor. I should be able to help but I don’t think I’m the best one to work with Kayla. I’ve…” He paused, as if searching for the right words. “I’ve thought about it and, although I’ve only met Kayla twice, I think I can see where this is going, and I’m more sorry than I can say. This has never happened to me before.” He paused again. “But the plain truth is, I’m…attracted to Kayla. She’s a lovely woman. I’m bound by certain rules, ethics, if you will. It could become an awkward situation. Please understand.”

  “But Pastor Cooper,” Beth said in dismay, “what are we going to do?” The question burst out.

  “I’m sorry. I have no idea,” he said bleakly.

  Chapter Eleven

  After Pastor Cooper had gone, Beth and Doug talked about it. They spoke in low tones in case Kayla came back in.

  “Poor guy,” Doug said. “I had kind of hoped that he could help with counseling…or something. And I must admit, I admire a man who understands himself.”

  “And is honest enough to say so.”

  “Yes,” Doug said. “And he’s got his career to protect. He doesn’t dare…” He continued. “You know, it was losing Frank that really hit Kayla so hard. I think maybe if Frank had tried harder, had been willing to wait a little longer for her to straighten out… On the other hand, she had a problem when they married. We’d had trouble. But I think Frank was the real—maybe the only—love of her life. I never saw a woman so much in love as when
I went to Kayla and Frank’s wedding. I thought she’d made it for sure, but old habits die hard, I guess. She thought the sun rose and set out of Frank’s belly button. When Kayla lost Frank, I guess there was nothing left for her.”

  After a dull silence, Beth started leafing through the pamphlet and other items that Pastor Cooper had collected for them. “I think we’d better accept the fact that we’re going to have to take care of Adam,” she said finally. How? her mind wailed. How can we do that?

  “I think you’re right. I can’t stand the thought of…not doing it. What’s that stuff?”

  Beth handed him a leaflet. “We aren’t alone anymore,” she said. “But read that. Pastor Cooper was right. Kayla is Adam’s mother. Actually, it’s Kayla who has control of Adam. We don’t. That’s the account of a court battle of one set of grandparents for visitation rights only.”

  “Visitation rights? Did they win?” Doug frowned over the leaflet.

  “No. Read that last line. All they wanted to do was see that the child wasn’t suffering abuse from the stepfather. The court ruled against them.”

  He muttered, “And it says here there was a history of abuse. And the court kept giving the child back to the mother.” He paused. “I can’t really see Kayla abusing…”

  “No, but I can see her neglecting, overlooking, forgetting, you know, things Adam needs. I don’t—” She said firmly, “Doug, I don’t really want her to take him to Cape Cod and let him roam around on some beach.” Was she saying too much?

  “No, I don’t, either,” he agreed.

  At that moment Adam peeked around the door. He was holding a single daffodil. “Mommy says Peachy man gone?”

  “Yes, he’s gone,” Beth said, smiling. “Tell Mommy.” Adam disappeared and they heard him running toward the back door again.

  “I guess I’d better get back to preparing dinner,” Beth said, sighing.

  “Here,” Doug said. “Give me that stuff. I’ll go stash it in our room. We can look it over later.”

  Kayla had not only cut fresh flowers, she had been on the service porch arranging them and had done a good job of it.

  They had finished dinner and Beth was putting the dishes into the dishwasher when the phone rang. She answered it in the kitchen.

  “Hi,” a husky voice said. “Is Kayla there? This is Wanda.”

  Beth turned to Doug. “Will you tell Kayla that Wanda’s calling?” And while he went to find her, she listened until Kayla picked up the extension in another room. As she hung up she couldn’t help but hear Wanda say, “Are you busy tonight, kiddo? If you’re not, I can fix us up with…” before she replaced the receiver.

  Silently she went back to her task. Was this another crisis coming? Wanda and Kayla were not a good combination, but how in the world did you advise a grown woman about her friends? She tried to push aside the thought, but it wouldn’t go away.

  At the end of the day, when she and Doug were together in their room, they went over the information Pastor Cooper had collected for them. Kayla had indeed gone out, so they had the child monitor on in case Adam woke and needed them. Pastor Cooper’s information was grim.

  “I get the feeling this one is going to be useful,” Doug said, leafing through the book Pastor Cooper had left. It was a survival manual for grandparents raising a second family. It pulled no punches. He read parts of it to Beth, and both sank into discouragement.

  “I can understand the laws protecting parents’ rights,” Doug said, tiredly putting the book aside. “But they are all based on the idea that the parent in question is able and willing to care for the child and keep the child safe. When the parent isn’t able… Do you think we should talk to an attorney, find out what our rights actually are?”

  “Oh, Doug. Surely it won’t come to that,” Beth said. “Kayla means well. It’s just—” And then she, too, was at a loss for words. Where was Kayla now? What was she doing? Would Doug need to go and find her somewhere and bring her back? Should we encourage Kayla to go to Cape Cod and leave Adam? Instantly she rejected this idea. How would she have felt if someone had tried separating her from either of her two daughters? No, that wasn’t the way to go. There had to be some other solution. Please, God, there must be some other solution.

  The next morning, just as the breakfast rush was over, Jill called. Feeling a sudden sense of foreboding, Beth assumed her brightest voice.

  “Mom,” Jill was saying, “we need to talk. Both Kate and I think so.”

  “Absolutely,” Beth agreed, pretending to misunderstand. “We haven’t had a good gabfest for a long time. We’ll just have to make time.”

  “No, Mom. It’s about this Kayla situation,” Jill said firmly. Jill had been a very successful, hardheaded businesswoman, and when she wanted to get to the point, she got to the point.

  “I don’t understand what you mean, dear,” Beth said, still evading.

  “Kayla’s back, isn’t she? You can’t stay on this merry-go-round, Mom. We’re going to have to find a way out of it. Kate and I have decided that we’ve got to step in. And you know Kate is stuck at home, so we’ll have to go over to her house. What are you doing this afternoon?”

  “This afternoon?” Beth asked, stalling for time. “You know I’m so busy I can’t really just take off an afternoon just like that with no notice.” She would need to talk to Doug first.

  “Quit hedging, Mom. What afternoon can we get together? We’ve got to have a family conference. We’ve got to work out something.”

  Beth felt a lump in her throat. They were both worried. They were only trying to help. She gave in.

  “How about tomorrow?” she asked.

  “Tomorrow it is,” Jill said briskly. “Say, about one o’clock, right after lunch? All the kids are in school and you can bring Adam. He’ll love that play stuff in Kate’s backyard. Her kids don’t use it much anymore.”

  “All right,” Beth said. “Tomorrow at one at Kate’s. If I can’t make it, I’ll call—”

  “I’ll pick you up,” Jill said, with a note of grimness in her voice. “Ten minutes before one. Bye.”

  It was an especially busy morning. The unpredictable Seattle weather had suddenly turned bright, and Beth had sent Doug off to work on his painting. They would need all the money they could get, for the new roof. Kayla had slept in, not coming out for breakfast. Beth had handled that breakfast alone, as Doug had had to see to Adam, and she felt tired and vaguely discontented.

  And Adam was becoming impatient and fidgeted about, alternating between trying to “read” a book and reminding her that it was storytime. She put him off again for the bed making, and was sorry to see the old frown come back. A tantrum would erupt if she didn’t hurry, but she didn’t want to hurry. It was her fault, after all. She had let him become accustomed to the story reading, and today she didn’t have time.

  She wondered what was on his three-year-old mind. He was so used to being shunted into the background. Was he thinking that she was just like all the other grown-ups? She had forgotten how constant the needs of very small children were.

  She hurried desperately through the bed making and the tidy-ups, but it was past lunchtime when she finally had a moment to say, “All right, Adam. Which story do you want today?” He had his special favorites and sometimes he recited passages from memory as she read them. He was improving in so many ways with the care and attention she and Doug were giving him. She mustn’t let this good progress stop.

  It was past one when she went downstairs to find Kayla seated glumly at the kitchen table.

  “Sorry I couldn’t pull myself out of bed this morning to help out,” Kayla said. “But I’m a little hungover. We did too much celebrating, I guess.”

  “Have you eaten anything?” Beth asked, and Kayla made a face and shook her head.

  “Later, maybe.”

  “Celebrating what?” Beth asked before she could stop herself.

  “Wanda and John’s engagement. Mr. and Mrs. Hull are going to pay for the weddin
g. Wanda wants a proper wedding. It’s not going to be a big deal, just something simple, but a real wedding. Wanda insisted.”

  “Isn’t the wedding the bride’s parents’ responsibility?”

  Kayla laughed. “Well, Wanda isn’t that much into Miss Manners. Wanda’s okay. She’s really sharp. She knows what she wants. Mr. and Mrs. Hull didn’t really think John should marry her at first. Didn’t think she was good enough, I guess. Anyhow, Wanda just laid down the law. Told them off. John’s really besotted. When she and John threatened to just walk out, the old folks came around. It’s as Wanda says, they have a right to their happiness. I’m learning a lot from Wanda. She’s nobody’s fool.”

  Beth didn’t let herself answer, but busied herself preparing lunch. Wanda was the wrong person to influence Kayla. That was clear. Maybe she should talk to Doug about it. Absolutely, she must talk to Doug about it.

  Somehow she got through the rest of the day. There were extra phone calls, too, as the tourist season was coming on. She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Doug’s car drive in. He had finished the second Shilshole Bay painting. Now it only had to dry awhile in the basement until he could frame it.

  That night, when they were alone, she had a difficult time beginning. How could she tell him that her girls were worried? Would they try to interfere? Well, they already had. She was brushing her hair in front of the mirror.

  “You’re very quiet tonight,” he said, tying the cord of his robe. “What’s on your mind, love?”

  “Jill and Kate,” she said, plunging in. “I’m going to have to tell you something you may not like.”

  He grinned. “It won’t be the first time in my life I’ve listened to something I don’t like. What is it?”

  “I’m sorry about this, but the Bennetts have always been a close family and…well, we tend to interfere with one another’s decisions, I’m afraid. Always with the best of intentions, of course. You may remember how long I waited before I told the girls I was going to remarry only a year after their father died.”