Coming to Rosemont (13 page)

They were alone and the serene night enfolded
them.
This is the right time,
John thought as he took her in his arms
and slowly, increasingly, insistently kissed her. Hesitant at first, she leaned
into his embrace and explored the wonder of sensations that only a kiss can
produce. When their lips parted, she rocked back on unsteady legs, surprised
and delighted that first kisses still held a special magic, even at the
advanced age of fifty-five. She stayed put, hoping he would kiss her again.
Instead, he gently remarked that he had better let her get some sleep. Disappointed,
she bid him goodnight.

Chapter 19

Tuesday flew by in a frenzy of
activity. Maggie was busy at work. She also received dozens of emails about the
carnival. Judy was as good as her word and organized contributions from the
town square merchants. Ellen produced an engaging flyer, and by the end of the
day it had been posted in dozens of shops and businesses.

Maggie looked up from her computer at two o’clock
and realized she was famished. She retrieved a carton of yogurt from the
refrigerator and stood at the breakfast room window while she ate, surveying
the sloping back lawn and visualizing the carnival in full swing. “We’re going
to pull this off,” she told Eve. “And Susan is coming.” Susan was really
coming. Maggie lobbed the empty carton into the trash and turned to Eve. “Come
on. Let’s go upstairs and pick out a bedroom for Susan.”

Maggie had two of the rooms in mind. She wandered
through both of them, and settled on the one overlooking the back lawn and
library garden. It had a small balcony off of the attached sitting room and the
bathroom was charming, with a bay window next to a claw-foot tub. The bed
linens and towels had seen better days, however, and it could use some colorful
pillows and accessories.

Maggie loved anything connected with fixing up a
house and devoted herself to making the bedroom beautiful and inviting for
Susan. She spent every free moment during the next week running back and forth
to the mall, antique dealers, thrift shops, and consignment stores. Her
principle color scheme was restful aqua and cream—elegant and
sophisticated. They looked beautiful against the heavy dark mahogany bedroom
furniture and the taupe walls.

She found the perfect Aubusson rug in a floral
pattern at a local rug dealer. It was gently used and pricey, but much cheaper
than a new rug, and would be a stunning focal point in the room. Maggie
splurged and bought it. Determined to now stay within her budget, she found an
eight-piece duvet set (complete with bed skirt, pillow shams, and decorative
pillows) at a consignment store and got candlesticks and other decorative
accessories at the hospital thrift shop. She secured a donation from each store
manager and posted a notice of the carnival everywhere she went. Maggie also
found lots of beautiful and useful objects for the rest of Rosemont. With
uncharacteristic abandon, she bought everything that struck her fancy.

Like a bird collecting twigs for its nest, she
returned every afternoon with a car full of purchases and spent her evening
settling each newly acquired treasure into just the right spot. Rosemont now
bore her personal stamp—was more comfortable, more hers. For the first
time in her adult life, she had everything the way she wanted it, without
sacrificing to keep peace with the opinionated and uncompromising man she had
married. It was about time.

***

Susan looked tired and a bit
thinner as she came through the security checkpoint at the airport. Maggie
waved and opened her arms. “How are you?” she asked softly as they hugged.

“I’m okay. Glad to be here. I needed to get away
from everything and everybody. Actually, I’m pooped.”

“I’ll bet. You started your day really early to
get here. Do you have more luggage?” Susan nodded.

“Let’s collect it and get you home.”

The afternoon was sunny and mild as they made the
drive to Westbury. The trees were bursting forth in the vibrant green that only
appears in spring. Farmers were working their fields. Daffodils and tulips were
in evidence around every home. “Gosh, Mom, this is a bucolic paradise,” Susan
observed.

Wait until you see Rosemont,
Maggie
thought.

She decided to postpone giving Susan a tour of
Westbury. Susan was tired and it could wait. She would get her home and give
her a chance to nap before dinner. They turned onto the long, winding driveway
to Rosemont, and Maggie felt the anxious excitement of someone bringing their
sweetheart home to meet their family for the first time. As they rounded the
final bend and the house came fully into view, Susan gasped.

“Oh my God!” Susan exclaimed. “This is incredible,
Mom. The photos don’t do it justice.”

Maggie pulled to a stop in front. The proper way
to see Rosemont for the first time was through that front door, just as she had
done only weeks ago, though it seemed a lifetime.

Susan leapt out of the car as soon as it stopped
and grabbed her bags. Maggie unlocked the door and Eve bounded out to say
hello. “So you’re Eve? I’ve heard a lot about you. You’re a friendly girl,
aren’t you?” Susan dropped to one knee and indulged Eve’s effusive greeting.
“Okay, okay, I need to get in there and see this place,” she said as she gently
pushed Eve away.

Maggie held her breath as she closed the door
behind them and watched Susan, waiting for her initial reaction. Would it be
anything like her own?

Susan stood stock-still, clutching her luggage,
surveying the scene before her. She cautiously lowered her suitcase to the
floor and stepped slowly into the living room. “Holy cow,” she breathed over
her shoulder, “I’m in love with this place already. It’s gorgeous. Solid.
Comforting. I get it now, Mom. Why you wanted to stay here.”

Gratified and encouraged, Maggie commenced the
tour. “Feel free to open doors and cupboards and explore it all later,” she
said. “I know you’re tired. I thought you could lie down and rest before dinner.
I was planning to take us to a little place in town. Nothing fancy. Or I can
scramble some eggs—breakfast for supper kind of thing. You choose.”

“Going out will be fine, Mom,” Susan said
distractedly. “I want to see every inch of this place right now.” Maggie
smiled. Susan had always been naturally curious. After a thorough inspection of
the first floor, they headed upstairs. She saved Susan’s room for last.

“I’ve got Alex and Marc staying here, as you know.
I picked this bedroom for you,” she said as she opened the door to the room she
had so lovingly prepared. “If you would rather have one of the other bedrooms,
just say so. My feelings won’t be hurt.” Which, of course, was a lie. Maggie
would be disappointed if she had misjudged her daughter’s taste.

Susan whistled softly as she rolled her suitcase
into her room. “OMG, Mom. This is perfect! I feel like I’m on a movie set.
Upstairs,
Downstairs
. And I’m Upstairs. Look at these gorgeous fresh flowers. Awwww.
Thanks, Mom.”

Maggie gave her a hug and kiss and announced,
“This now concludes your official tour of Rosemont.” Susan smiled. “Why don’t
you settle in and come downstairs when you’re ready to go to dinner? I have
some work to finish up. You don’t need to change, we’re going casual,” she said
as she attempted to collect Eve.

“Leave her with me, Mom. She’s so sweet,” Susan
said as she scratched Eve’s ears. “I’ll be down in a bit. I don’t feel tired anymore.”

***

Alex and Marc met at Pete’s for
dinner. For the first time since the fire, both men were relaxed. They were
lingering over coffee and dessert when Maggie and Susan arrived.

Pete ushered them to a table by the window. As
they were situating their purses and coats on the back of their chairs, Alex
and Marc came over. “These are the friends who are staying with me,” Maggie
explained as she introduced them to Susan. “The ones who suffered those
horrible fires.”

“I remember, Mom,” Susan said as they shook hands.
“What a terrible thing to go through. I’m so sorry for you.”

“We’re recovering,” Marc said and filled them in
on their home’s progress. “And we’re excited about the Easter carnival. I’m so
glad that you could come out for it. Laura tells me that Alex and I are in
charge of hiding the Easter eggs?” Maggie nodded. “Terrific. I thought we would
go buy supplies tomorrow.”

“I’ll get all of that,” Maggie said. “You don’t
have to spend any money on this.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Alex asked. “We’re living
with you for free. I think it’s the least we can do.”

“We need something fun to focus on,” Marc assured
her. “We’ll buy the candy and get the eggs all set up. We were talking about hiding
four or five hundred.”

“Seriously?” Maggie gasped. “Do you think we’ll
get that many kids?”

“If we get one hundred kids, that’s only five eggs
each,” Alex replied. “I think we’ll get at least that many. Everyone in my
office is going. Our court reporter is bringing her nephew. And the town clerk
will be there with her daughters. This thing has sparked a lot of interest.
Maybe we’ll do six hundred,” he said. “We’re going to head home. I’m
exhausted.” Alex shrugged into his coat, and they said goodnight.

“For someone who has only lived here a few weeks,
you sure know a lot of people. I always thought Dad was the outgoing one. I was
worried that you’d be here and have no friends. That you would stay in that
huge house all by yourself like you were retreating into a cave. I’d come to
visit and find you living with eighty cats and the blinds drawn. The place
would look like an episode of
Hoarders
,” she concluded.

Maggie laughed. “You certainly have a high opinion
of your mother’s coping skills. This move has been really good for me. I’ve got
lots of friends. Including the vet that takes care of Eve.” This seemed the
perfect opportunity to introduce the idea of John to Susan. “We’ve been to
dinner a couple of times. We even went ice-skating. To my surprise, I’m still
pretty good.”

Susan’s head snapped back to Maggie. “Whoa, Mom,”
she said as she held up her palm. She leaned forward and cradled her head in
her hands. They sat in silence as Susan assimilated this information. “So
you’re dating someone?”

“I don’t know if we’re actually dating. It’s no
big deal. He’s a nice man and a friend.”

Susan forced a smile. “You’re blushing, Mom,” she
observed. “I think you like this guy.” She sat back in her chair and let out a
slow breath. “You know, I never thought you’d date again. My assistant told me
she hoped you’d remarry, but I dismissed the idea. She adores you, you know,”
Susan added as an aside. “She said that you’re young and beautiful and so full
of life that it would be a shame if you didn’t find someone else. I guess I
thought that someone might be Eve,” Susan said sheepishly.

“I’m not marrying anyone, for heaven’s sake. I’ve
just gone out with him a couple of times. He’s working on the committee, too.
He’s very nice and good company. In fact, he wants to take us both to dinner
next week. Would you like to do that?”

“I most certainly would,” Susan declared. “Wait
until I tell Mike. He’d kill me if I didn’t check out this new man, friend or
not.”

“Now don’t you go exaggerating things or getting
Mike all stirred up,” Maggie warned in her best Mom voice. “There’s nothing to
be concerned about.”

They ordered their entrees and spent the rest of
the meal chatting about Susan’s latest case and the upcoming carnival. Maggie
finally broached the subject of her breakup with Rob. Susan turned her focus to
a car awkwardly attempting to parallel park outside the window. She cleared her
throat and faced her mother. “I’m too tired to get into all of that now. I want
to talk to you more about it later. I’m okay. I’ve wanted to call him but
stopped myself,” Susan said. “I’ve got questions, but it basically doesn’t
matter what the answers are. I’m so tired of waiting for him that I’m just
done.”

Maggie reached over and took her hand. “That’s an
excellent tack to take. I’m really proud of you. We can talk whenever you’re
ready.” Susan yawned and brushed the hair off her forehead, and Maggie recalled
the exhausted little girl that would nestle in her arms and resist sleep to beg
for just one more story. Her determined daughter would be just fine. Maggie
signaled for the check and was delighted to find that Alex had taken care of it
on his way out.

Chapter 20

Alex, Marc and Maggie were all
dressed and in the kitchen at Rosemont before dawn on Thursday. The TV morning
show nattered away in the background as they quietly and companionably ate
their breakfasts. Alex was scanning the paper and Maggie was checking her
email. She had postponed all of her conference calls until next week. With only
two days remaining until the carnival, she needed to focus on that. The
volunteers were all following through on their commitments. Maggie only needed
to quarterback everything. She decided to let Susan sleep in. Set-up wouldn’t
start in earnest until the afternoon.

Eve began barking as Joe Appleby and his
landscaping crew pulled up. Maggie shrugged into her jacket and went out to
greet him.

“Good morning, Mrs. Martin.” His usual energetic
manner and wide smile seemed a bit more so this morning. “We came early. We’re
going to spend the day helping you get ready.”

“It’s Maggie, please,” she said as she shook his
hand. “You heard about the carnival?”

“Of course. Everyone’s talking about it. We’ll
stay after and help clean up, too. No charge,” he added. “It’ll be our
contribution. We all want to do this.”

“That’s terrific. Very much appreciated. Are you
bringing your families?”

“Oh my gosh, yes. Between the three of us we have
ten kids under the age of nine. They’re all really excited. And we’re bringing
some of their friends. And cousins. You’ll have a crowd here.”

“Good. This has come together at the last minute,
and I’ve been worried that no one will show up,” Maggie confessed.

Joe laughed. “No worries on that score. Just the
opposite, Rosemont will be packed,” he predicted. “You’ll see.”

***

Deliveries began to arrive in the
early afternoon. Sam made several trips to deposit folding tables for the bake
sale and silent auction. When Maggie asked where he got all of the tables, his
reply was vague.
“
Here and
there. They
’
re all marked on
the bottom. Don
’
t worry
about it. I know where to return them,
”
he assured her.

Tonya’s husband pulled up with a popcorn machine
in the back of his truck. He introduced himself to Maggie, and he and Joe maneuvered
it to its spot by the back patio.

It was after lunch when Susan appeared, dressed in
one of Maggie’s old sweat suits. “I see you’ve made yourself at home in my
closet, just like old times,” Maggie remarked. “How’d you sleep? Did you get
something to eat?”

“Best night’s sleep in months. And I had a muffin
and a glass of milk. Don’t worry; I’m a big girl. If I’m hungry I can get
myself something.” She smiled over her mother’s shoulder at the busy scene on
the lawn. “What a glorious day this is,” she said and turned to look back at
Rosemont. “And what a magnificent setting. Mom, this Easter carnival idea is
perfect. Everyone is so excited. I’ll bet you raise a ton of money. And it’s
going to be a blast.” She regarded her mother intently. “I’m seeing a whole new
side of you.”

Maggie abruptly turned to the house, shielding her
eyes with her hand. Now wasn’t the time to get into this with Susan—if
there ever would be a time to get into it—but she was stung by the
familiar implication that Paul was the “fun one.” She always did the heavy
lifting to make Paul’s “spontaneous” fun happen. The fact that he accepted all
the credit and they thought of her as a dull tool was evidence of the
plagiarism that marked their marriage. She blinked back sudden, unbidden tears
and rooted through her purse for a tissue.

“Mom. What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

Maggie made an exaggerated show of blowing her
nose. “Nothing—just got something in my eye. It’s breezy out here.”
I’m
reading too much into this,
Maggie told herself. She couldn’t do anything
about it, anyway. Her kids loved her, and if they didn’t see her accurately
before, they would discover that side of her now. That was the way it always
was with children. They developed a whole new appreciation of their parents
when they became adults themselves. It would have to be good enough.

Her reverie was interrupted as Tim Knudsen called
her name. She turned and saw him striding across the lawn. He greeted her
warmly and introduced himself to Susan. It was evident he was in a people
business by his polished manner. “I’ve got two Porta-Potties for you,” he
announced. “I’ll bet nobody’s said that to you before.” He chuckled. “I thought
you’d need them, and I’ve got a friend in the construction business who’s
letting us borrow them for the weekend. The crew is here to set them up, and
they’ll pick them up first thing Monday morning. Show me where you want them.”

By dusk, most of the supplies had been delivered
and set up. Maggie and Susan were just stepping out to pick up dinner when a
police cruiser pulled up to the front door. “Oh boy,” Maggie muttered, “maybe
we need a permit, or a neighbor is complaining already.” Susan stiffened her
spine as Chief Andy Thomas stepped out of the car and greeted them with a
disarming smile. He told Maggie that he wanted to personally thank her for
hosting the carnival to benefit the pension fund.

“I don’t think we’re going to raise all that much
money,” Maggie said.

“That isn’t the point. It’s the fact that a whole
lot of people care. This has lifted morale and means more to all of us than we
can express,” he said. Maggie smiled and shrugged off the compliment. “We’re
going to patrol Rosemont heavily between now and when everything is taken down.
We don’t want anything stolen. So if you notice police cars in the area, don’t
be alarmed. And several of our off-duty officers have volunteered to direct
traffic and be a presence here.”

“Direct traffic? Do you seriously think that will
be necessary? Will we have that many people?” Maggie exclaimed.

“Oh, I think so,” the chief said as he stepped back
into the cruiser. “The whole town is talking about it. My wife, daughter, and
grandkids will be here.” With that, he pulled away, leaving Maggie and Susan
speculating wildly on how many would attend, did they have enough of
everything, and most importantly—how much money could they raise?