This Heart Of Mine

Dan's voice rang with Southern steel. 'It won't take long. And there are a couple of things we want to discuss.'

'Your vacation is almost over. Why can't you just relax and enjoy the rest of it?'

'It's a little hard to relax when we're so worried about you,' Phoebe replied.

'Well, stop worrying!'

'Calm down, Molly,' Kevin said. 'If they want to talk, I'm sure we can spare a few minutes.'

What a suck-up. Or maybe he'd decided it was time to play a risky new game. She'd known from the beginning that he wasn't sneaking around because he was afraid of Dan and Phoebe. He was doing it because he loved taking chances. 'You might have the time, but I don't.'

Dan reached out for her arm just as he'd done since she was fifteen, but Kevin shot forward and blocked his way. She didn't know who was the more astonished, herself or Dan. Had Kevin interpreted the gesture as a threat?

Phoebe recognized the signs of antlers clashing, and she moved to her husband's side. The two of them exchanged one of their glances, and then Dan set off toward the lane. 'Right now. Let's go.'

The moment of reckoning was finally here, and there was no escaping it. Molly could imagine the questions they were going to ask. If only she could figure out how to answer them.

They headed silently past the beach and the last of the cottages, then along the edge of the woods. When they reached the split-rail fence that marked the end of the campground, Dan stopped. Kevin stepped slightly away from Molly and rested his hips against a post.

'You've been here for two weeks,' Phoebe said as she let go of Dan's hand.

'Two weeks ago Wednesday,' Kevin replied.

'The campground is beautiful. Our kids are having a wonderful time.'

'It's nice having them here.'

'They still can't believe you bought all those bikes.'

'I enjoyed doing it.'

Dan lost patience. 'Phoebe and I want to know what your intentions are toward Molly.'

'Dan!' Molly cried.

'It's all right,' Kevin said.

'No it's not!' She glared at her brother-in-law. 'And what kind of sexist Southern crap is that anyway? What about my intentions toward him?' She didn't exactly know what those intentions were beyond keeping the real world at bay by staying in Nightingale Woods for as long as she could, but she had to face Dan down.

'You were supposed to be getting an annulment,' Phoebe said. 'Instead you ran off together.'

'We didn't run off,' Molly replied.

'What else would you call it? And every time I try to talk to you about it, you dash away.' She jammed her hands into the pockets of her jeans. 'This is the fire alarm all over again, isn't it, Molly?'

'No!'

'What fire alarm?' Kevin asked.

'Never mind,' Molly said hastily.

'No, I want to hear this.'

Phoebe betrayed her. 'When Molly was sixteen, she pulled the fire alarm at her high school. Unfortunately, she hadn't seen any sign of a fire.'

Kevin regarded her curiously. 'Did you have a good reason?'

She shook her head, feeling sixteen all over again.

'So why did you do it?'

'I'd rather not go into this now.'

He tilted his head toward Dan. 'You always talk as if she's perfect.'

'She is!' Dan barked.

Molly smiled despite herself, then bit her lip. 'It was an aberration. I was an insecure teenager testing Phoebe and Dan to make sure they'd stick by me no matter what I did.'

Kevin's eyes took on a speculative gleam. 'So did they evacuate the school?'

Molly nodded.

'How many fire trucks?'

'My God…' Phoebe muttered. 'It was a serious offense.'

'It's a Class Two felony,' Molly said glumly, 'so it got fairly nasty.'

'I'll bet.' Kevin turned back to the Calebows. 'Fascinating as this is-and I'll admit it's pretty fascinating-I don't think that's what you want to talk about.'

'This isn't a big deal!' Molly exclaimed. 'Two weeks ago Kevin showed up at my place because I'd missed an appointment with the attorney. I hadn't been feeling well, and he decided some fresh air would do me good, so he brought me up here.'

When Phoebe wanted to, she did sarcasm better than anyone. 'You couldn't just take her for a walk?'

'Didn't think of it.' Unlike Phoebe, Kevin wasn't going to tell Molly's secrets.

But Molly had to be truthful about this part. 'I've been seriously depressed, but I didn't want you to know how bad it was. Kevin's a fairly dedicated do-gooder, even though he tries to fight it, and he told me if I didn't go with him, he'd drive me out to your place and dump me on the two of you. I didn't want you to see me like that.'

Phoebe looked crestfallen. 'We're your family! You shouldn't have felt that way.'

'I'd already upset you enough. I'd been trying to pretend I was all right, but I just couldn't do it any longer.'

'She wasn't all right,' Kevin said. 'But she's gotten better since she's been here.'

'How long are you planning to stay?' Dan's expression was still suspicious.

'Not much longer,' Kevin replied. 'Another couple of days.'

His words made Molly's chest hurt.

'Do you remember Eddie Dillard?' Kevin went on. 'He used to play for the Bears.'

'I remember him.'

'He wants to buy the place, and he's driving up tomorrow to check it out.'

Molly's stomach turned over. 'You didn't tell me that!'

'Didn't I? I guess I was preoccupied.'

Preoccupied having sex with her. But there'd been plenty of time between their erotic workouts for him to have mentioned this.

'We can leave right after that,' he said. 'I just talked to my business manager this afternoon, and he finally found someone in Chicago to take over for the rest of the summer, a married couple who've done this before.'

He might as well have slapped her. He hadn't even told her he'd asked his business manager to look in Chicago. She felt more betrayed than when Phoebe had mentioned the fire alarm. He knew she'd hate this, so he'd neglected to mention it. There was no real communication between them, no common goal. Everything she didn't want to accept about their relationship was right there in front of her. They might share sex, but that was all.

Phoebe nudged a clump of chicory with her toe. 'And then what happens?'

She couldn't stand hearing Kevin say it, so she said it for him. 'Nothing happens. We file for a divorce and go our separate ways.'

'A divorce?' Dan asked. 'Not an annulment?'

'Grounds for an annulment are limited.' Molly tried to sound impersonal, as if this had nothing to do with her. 'You need to prove misrepresentation or duress. We can't, so we'll have to get a divorce.'

Phoebe looked up from the chicory clump. 'I have to ask…'

Molly knew right away what was coming and tried to think of a way to stop it.

'The two of you seem to get along…'

No, Phoebe. Please don't.

'Have you considered staying married?'

'No!' Molly jumped in before Kevin could respond. 'Do you think I'm crazy? He's not my type.'

Phoebe's eyebrows shot up, and Kevin looked annoyed. She didn't care. She was filled with an awful desire to hurt him. Except she couldn't do it. Phoebe was Kevin's boss, and his career meant everything to him.