Once in a Lifetime (15 page)

“I know.”

She rested her head on his shoulder, and as the night gathered, he held her closer. They sat there, holding each other and not speaking, as the fireflies blinked their approval, a frog croaked out a bass baritone, crickets made their presence known and two mockingbirds battled in song for preeminence in the night air.

Until now, the night sounds hadn’t meant anything to him; he’d always had them in his life and accepted them as a part of it. But as her breath warmed the side of his neck and her breast rose and fell against his arm, he felt himself a part of her and of all that surrounded him. In the light of the new moon, her skin glowed like a copper coin, and he listened to the river as it rushed along soft and soothing like a Duke Ellington tone
poem. He wouldn’t have been surprised if his heart had burst with the happiness that suffused him.

What he felt must have reached her, for her lips brushed his jaw, and she tugged him closer.

“Alexis. Sweetheart.” Her hand went to the back of his head. “Baby…”

She parted her lips and he sank into her and let her have him while she sucked his tongue deeply into her mouth and feasted. Heat plowed through him, blistering his veins and setting a torch to his groin. The sweetness. The pain.
Lord!
He thought he would explode. He tried to ignore her moans of pleasure, but when she began to cross and uncross her knees, he broke the kiss. He wanted to ask her to go away with him for a weekend, but he didn’t think the timing right. His mind would be on the construction of Eagle Park High School and hers would be on Tara. Church school would be out mid-August and… He’d better not make plans until the time was right—if ever it would be. With their arms locked around each other, they walked back to the house.

At the bottom of the stairs, she said, “We’d better say good night right here. Okay?” Then she brushed his lips with her own, and walked with lithe steps down the hall to her room.

She had mixed feelings about Tara’s increasing attachment to Telford. He hadn’t indicated that he wanted a more definite relationship with her, least of all anything permanent, and she feared her child might be hurt. Each afternoon, when Telford went to talk with Allen and inspect the day’s work, he took Tara with him. She rode her bike up and down the road while he spoke with his foreman.

“Ain’t nothing wrong with her lovin’ Telford,” Henry said when she mentioned her concern. “It’s good for both of ’em. Tel ain’t never happier than when he’s got that little girl with him. Like I said already, he needs her as much as she needs him.”

“But, Henry, when we leave here, she’ll be unhappy.”

He stared at her as one might look at a Martian. “You ain’t going no place, and if you had any sense, you’d know it.”

At supper that evening, Russ urged Telford to go back to Barbados and complete his inspection of the site for the Frenchman’s Village, and it occurred to her that Russ might use that as a ruse to put some distance between her and his older brother. She wasn’t convinced that he accepted her and Tara.

“Look,” Russ explained, “in another three weeks, the school will be finished and pristine clean. I can handle what remains to be done there, but we can’t start in Barbados until you check out that site, order the supplies and find a foreman.”

“Right. We may have to take some heavy equipment over there. That rock bed is going to be a problem.”

“You’ll know that after you check it out.”

“All right, but if there is one single snag with the school, phone me. That building is going to be ready on time.”

She made up her mind to speak to Telford about his passion to vindicate his father; no one could know happiness while harboring resentment.

“How long will you stay?” she asked, aware that her voice was less steady than it normally was.

“Maybe ten days. Less if possible. You can bet I’ll be back here as soon as possible.”

She hadn’t thought Tara would miss Telford as much as she did. Several times a day, she would ask when he was coming back. She ran to the front door whenever she heard a car and, disappointed to learn that it wasn’t the Buick Le Sabre, would become despondent.

Around four o’clock Saturday afternoon, Alexis intended to take Tara to the pool for a swim but couldn’t find her. She phoned Henry. “Is Tara at your cottage with you?”

“Why, no, she ain’t. You mean she ain’t with you?”

“I can’t find her.”

“I’ll git dressed and be right over.”

She thanked him and, after searching the entire house, paced the hallway trying to imagine where her child could
be. When she heard the Mercedes, she sped to the front door and unlocked it.

Russ walked in. “Hi. Surely you aren’t waiting here to greet… What’s the matter? Hey, wait a minute. Something’s wrong.”

“I c-can’t find Tara.”

He dropped his briefcase to the floor. “You can’t find…don’t joke. Where’d you look?”

“Every room and closet in this house, including downstairs and all over the garden. I walked around calling her. She isn’t here, and she’s not with Henry.”

He plunged his fingers through the curls on his head. “Let’s look at this thing logically. Let me think. She’s been out of sorts ever since Telford left here. First, let’s look at the things they did together.”

She went down the list, ending with their visits to Bart’s ice cream parlor and daily afternoon trips to the warehouse.

“I see. Can I get you to go someplace, sit down and stay there, maybe work on your sculpture, while I look into this? Will you?”

What could she say? “Thanks. I’ll be in my room.”

In his first true gesture of empathy toward her, he patted her shoulder. “I’ll find her.”

Russ went upstairs to his room, changed into a T-shirt, a pair of jeans and boots. Then he loaded a rifle, went to the garage and got a hammer, hatchet, screwdriver and flashlight, all of which he loaded into the pickup truck. She wouldn’t know the way to the ice cream parlor, so he headed for the warehouse.

The men knocked off at five, and according to his watch, it was six-fifteen. He didn’t like this. Giving Tara that bicycle might not have been a smart idea. He parked a few feet from the hard-hat area, got out, slung the rifle over his shoulder, put the hatchet in its holder across his hips and started his search. An hour later, deciding that he might have to go back home, get a hard hat and go in the building area, he walked across the
old bridge and stopped, all five of his senses on alert. Where had that hissing sound come from? He picked his way around the massive old olive tree and stifled a gasp. Tara. And coiled three feet from where she sat was a poisonous snake. With his heart in his mouth, he eased away to get a better angle. At least she didn’t see the snake and wouldn’t move. He took the hatchet from its holder, aimed and let it fly. A second later he had Tara in his arms. His dad had impressed him and his brothers that if you saw one, another was nearby, so he didn’t waste time getting out of the way.

“Tara, it’s Russ,” he said when she screamed. “Honey, your mother’s out of her mind with worry.” He hugged her close as he raced from the bridge to his truck.

“Mr. Russ, you scared me. Did you throw something at me?”

If only she knew. “Honey, you know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you. I saw a little animal there, and I threw my hatchet at him.”

“Oh. Is he all right?”

“Yeah. Perfect.” It was against the law, but he had no choice but to put her beside him in the front seat.

“It’s fun sitting up here, Mr. Russ.”

Suddenly, he had to stop the truck. His heart pounded like a speeding freight train, and his hands shook so badly that he had trouble steering. After taking some deep breaths, he turned to Tara and spoke with all the calmness he could manage.

“Tara, I know you miss Telford, but he’ll be back in a few days. If you want to come out here, ask me, and I’ll bring you. What you did was bad and very dangerous. You could have been…ki…in serious trouble. How’d you get down here?”

“I rode my…” She slapped her hands over her mouth, signifying her excitement. “Mr. Russ. We forgot my bike.”

He turned the truck around. “Just show me where you left it.”

He put the bike in the bed of the truck and headed home. In the garage, he lifted her from the truck, and when she smiled up at him, he hugged her. “All of us love you, Tara. Telford,
Drake, Henry, your mother and me. We love you. Please don’t ever do anything like this again. Don’t get on that bike unless we know where you’re going.”

She hugged him and kissed his cheek. “Okay.”

He took her hand, went into the house and didn’t stop till he reached Alexis’s room. When she opened the door, he picked Tara up, handed her to her mother and, without a word, walked swiftly away. At the end of the hall he bumped into Henry.

“You found her?”

“Yeah. Three feet from a coiled rattler. If anybody had told me I’d be willing to trade my life for that kid, I wouldn’t have believed them. I don’t want another scene like that one.”

“Whew! You don’t think it upset her?”

“As best I could tell, she didn’t see it. But it bears watching.”

Henry scratched the few strands of hair on his head. “Yeah. Looks like that little girl’s an angel sent here to brighten our lives. I ain’t never seen nothin’ like her. You just can’t resist her.”

“Tell me about it. She…she’s real special. And Telford… Henry, if Alexis leaves here, that child will go to pieces.”

Henry waved his hand as if dismissing the idea. “Alexis don’t strike me as being that stupid, but you never can tell.”

H
er face awash with tears, Alexis clutched Tara to her breast and prayed words of thanks. When tremors racked her body and she shivered uncontrollably, she felt Tara’s little hands cup her face.

“What’s the matter, Mummy? Did I do bad?”

“I’m just happy you’re all right. Where did Mr. Russ find you?”

“Under the big tree near the bridge. He told me I can’t go back there, but Mr. Telford always took me there.”

“You can’t go anywhere alone on your bike. Do you understand? If you do, I’ll punish you.”

“I won’t, Mummy. I told Mr. Russ I wouldn’t. When is Mr. Telford coming back?”

“A week, maybe. I’m not sure, honey. But stop worrying about him; he’s working, and when he finishes the job, he’ll come—”

Now who could that be? Still holding Tara in her arms, she reached for the phone thinking that the caller would be Russ, but the voice she heard belonged to Jack.

“How’s it going, babe? Thought I might drop over there in a couple of days.”

“We have to settle on a specific day and a precise time. The best time is between two and four in the afternoon.”

“You playing hardball, babe?”

“You’d know; you’re an expert at that.”

“Look, I have to check out of here. Ring you back in a few days.”

“Don’t you want to speak with her?” He’d hung up. She stared at the receiver, unable to believe he’d done that a second time. When the phone rang again, she prepared herself to give him a piece of her mind.

“What is it this time?”

“Hey! Who rattled your cage?”

When she recognized Russ’s voice, shame poured over her. “I’m sorry for snapping at you, Russ. I’ll explain that when I see you; it won’t do for all ears.”

“You mean Tara?”

“Yes.”

“I see. How’s she doing?”

“She’s fine. I’m the wreck. Apparently, she went down to the warehouse site because she goes there most afternoons with Telford.”

“Yeah. She misses him. You make certain, Alexis, that she never does that again. I cautioned her, but she can’t hear it too often. If necessary, keep her in your room. That was dangerous.”

She wondered at the roughness of his voice and its tone of command. “Russ, I don’t know how to tell you how much I appreciate your finding her and bringing her home. I was going out of my mind. She’s—”

“Don’t thank me, Alexis. She’s…special to all of us.” He hung up.

For all his blunt manners and toughness, he’s a tender man,
she mused. “Come with me while I set the table for supper, Tara.”

“Can’t I practice?”

“Not now. Come with me.” She couldn’t bear to have Tara out of her sight. Another experience like that one and she’d be ready for her grave.

“You care to finish our conversation?” Russ asked her after dinner, while they sipped coffee in the den, and Henry entertained Tara in the kitchen.

“Tara’s father had just called suggesting he’d like to come for a visit. That’s twice in the last three weeks, but on neither occasion did he ask for a specific date and time, nor did he inquire about Tara or say he wanted to speak with her. I thought he was calling back.”

Russ walked over to the bar and poured himself a snifter of cognac. “Maybe Tara isn’t the reason why he wants to visit.”

She sat up straight, uncrossed her legs and braced her hands on her knees. “Russ, I was Jack’s first wife. From what I hear, he may have number three, and I assume he was no more faithful to the second one than he was to me. Every child ought to know his or her father, and that is the only reason I’ll suffer Jack Stevenson’s presence. He’ll have to visit her here, because I will not allow him to take her out of this house or that garden.”

“You have sole custody?”

She nodded. “Bought with half of our joint property. That was the bargain. He didn’t even specify visitation rights.”

His whistle bruised her eardrums. “Supervised visitation is more than he deserves. Set his visits for a time when you know Telford, Drake or I will be here.”

Later, sitting in the garden, she shaved the bark from a piece of walnut and tried to envisage the face of Martin Luther King, Jr., emerging from that wood. She enjoyed a sweet serenity, knowing that her precious Tara was safe and unharmed in the next room practicing scales on the piano. She rushed inside when Tara called to her.

“Mummy, somebody’s at the door.”

“Russ! What is it?” she asked when she opened the door.
Russ had never knocked on her door until that afternoon when he brought Tara to her.

“Telford’s been ringing you for the past ten minutes. He asked me to find out if you and Tara are all right.”

She knew he caught the excitement in her voice. “Thanks. I heard it and didn’t hear it. It’s that way sometimes when I’m starting work on a new piece.”

His left eyebrow shot up. “Telford’s like that when he’s working on his wire sculptures. He’ll call you in a few minutes.”

When the phone rang again, she raced to answer it. “Telford. How are you?”

“Great. What about you? You miss me?”

“Of course I miss you.”

“Listen, woman, that is not what I asked. I asked whether you
miss
me.”

She couldn’t help laughing, though she well knew that part of the euphoria she felt was nervous release, a reaction to the three hours of terror she’d lived through.

“I wish you were here. That better?”

“A little,” he grumbled. “Where’s Tara? Let me speak with her.”

With a lump in her throat, she called Tara to the phone and, for the first time, wished she’d met Telford Harrington before she became involved with Jack. This man had become father to her child. She stood nearby while Tara chatted with Telford, eventually telling him of her adventure that afternoon.

“I won’t, Mr. Telford. I promised Mummy and Mr. Russ I wouldn’t. I love you, too. Are you coming back soon? I will. Kisses. Bye.” She handed the phone to her mother and went back to the piano.

“I suppose you and Russ will tell me more about Tara’s mishap when I get home. I want you to put that bike in the garage till I get back. She promised not to stray away from the house, but she’s only five. I—”

“Henry stored it downstairs in the game room. Don’t
worry. Do you think you’ll be able to put up that apartment complex?”

“Yeah, but I’ll have to stick close to it for the first couple of months. Fortunately, the school will have been completed before we begin work over here.”

She hadn’t wanted to ask him the question that pressed most heavily on her mind, but when he didn’t volunteer the information, she had no choice. “When will you be home?”

“In a couple of days. Probably Friday night or Saturday afternoon if my luck holds. I’m waiting for some samples of roofing material.”

“I’ll…uh…” Her voice was a mere whisper, so she cleared her throat. “I’ll be glad to see you.”

“Same here. I…uh…I’ll get back to you soon as I can. How about a kiss?”

Her eyes widened, and she swallowed with difficulty. What did that mean? She made the sound of a kiss. “You’ll find a lot more where that one came from.”

“Glad to hear it. I hope the supply is inexhaustible, because you’re talking to a needy man.”

“I don’t know how to react to that,” she said, and she didn’t. “So I suppose I’ll have to play it by ear.”

His laughter warmed her. “Not to worry. I won’t steer you wrong. Good night, sweetheart.”

“G-good night, love.”

She hung up quickly, because she didn’t know how to deal with what had just happened. He hadn’t said much, yet what he’d implied filled her heart till she thought it would burst. She went back to the wood on which she’d been working, and marveled that it seemed to glow. Foolishly, she hugged it to her and twirled around. She needed to share it, to tell someone that she loved him, so she rushed into Tara’s room and stopped. Suddenly sober. She had to move with care, because her child’s well-being depended on her using common sense.

She switched gears. “You’re learning fast, Tara.”

“I make a lot of mistakes, Mummy, and I don’t want Mr. Telford to hear my mistakes.”

“Everyone makes boo-boos sometime, honey.”

“I know. Mr. Telford told me that.” She looked up, her face shining in a brilliant smile. “I love Mr. Telford, and he loves me, too.” She played a few more bars and stopped. “And I love Mr. Henry, and Mr. Russ, and Mr. Drake and you, Mummy.”

More proof that if she left Harrington House, she’d break her daughter’s heart. “And all of us love you,” she whispered, her joy of minutes earlier only a memory.

Telford stepped out of the taxi, hooked his finger in the handle of his wardrobe case, grabbed his briefcase and dashed to the house. He didn’t mind getting wet in a summer downpour, but he’d rather not be fully clothed. He couldn’t get his keys out without setting his luggage on the wet steps, so he leaned on the doorbell.

“Why didn’t you tell somebody you was coming?” Henry asked him.

He threw an arm across the old man’s shoulder in response to as warm a greeting as he ever got from Henry. “So you could cook cabbage stew?”

“Now, that’s a thought.”

He dropped everything in the foyer and headed down the hallway to Alexis. Her hair looked as if she’d been pulling at it in frustration; she wore a gray smock that he supposed she worked in while sculpting; her face was free of makeup; and the odor of turpentine perfumed her surroundings. But he didn’t care about her disarray, nor did the scent of turpentine, which he disliked, offend him. She was here, looking at him, gaping in surprise, the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen.

“Can I come in?”

As if his words unlocked the door of her mind, she stepped back, opened her arms and gave him the warmth and softness of her body. Her fingers caressed the side of his face, and he stared down at her. He needed some proof, some verification that he was everything to her as he realized she was to him.

“If I’d known you’d be here today,” she said at last, “I’d have planned something nice, and I wouldn’t be wearing this—”

He held her closer, relishing her nearness. “I don’t care about that; it’s just window dressing. You’re what I need. Kiss me. Let me know I mean something to you.”

“You do. Oh, Telford, don’t you know how dear you are to—”

He didn’t wait for more, but squeezed her to him and bent to taste her lips. She parted them and welcomed him as he stroked her tongue with his own. It wasn’t enough. He needed more, and as if she knew it, she sucked his tongue deeply into her mouth and feasted until he lifted her and wrapped her to his body. Her arms tightened around him, and she straddled him, taking over the kiss, cherishing him. He’d wanted proof and she gave it, giving in to her passion. With seemingly great reluctance, she moved her mouth from his and let her lips caress his eyes, cheeks, neck and ears, his entire face as she murmured incomprehensible words to him. Her passion seemed to mount like an arising wind, and she opened her mouth, took in him, loving him while she rocked against him. Her bed stood four feet away, but the sound of the piano made a mockery of it.

Still holding her close to his body, he smiled down at her. “Now, that’s what I call a decent welcome.” He stroked her cheek. “You realize, don’t you, that we have to talk about this and do something about it? I want you to think about us seriously. Don’t try to guess what I think and feel, though I suppose you know.”

He walked a couple of steps away from her, turned and fixed his gaze on her eyes. “Take a good look at your life, how you feel about me, what you want for yourself and Tara and decide where you want to go from here. I think we both have to do this without each being influenced by the other’s needs and feelings.”

“I know what I feel.”

“But do you know what you want to do about it?” He held up his hand. “Don’t tell me now. Think about it.”

“Mummy, can I go on the back porch? Biscuit has to… Eeee, Mr. Telford, Mr. Telford.” She ran to him, her little arms outstretched and her face shining with happiness. “Mr. Telford.”

He picked her up, swung her around, hugged her and loved every one of the kisses she planted all over his face. “I think you grew while I was away.”

“I’m five now, so I’m bigger.”

“You are, indeed.”

“I been practicing, but I make mistakes.”

“I told you not to worry about that. If you practice, you will stop making mistakes, but that takes time.”

When her expression clouded, her next words didn’t surprise him. “Are you going to stay, Mr. Telford? I want you to stay.”

He put her down and hunkered beside her. “Sometimes, I have to go, Tara. I have to work. But I will always come back. Do you understand me? I will always come back.”

She stared at him, pensively, for a minute. Then, as if the meaning of what he said penetrated, she smiled and hugged him. “Okay. Wanna hear me practice?”

“He’s tired after his long trip, Tara. Maybe later, after he has time to rest.”

He thanked Alexis with his eyes. Tired hardly described how he felt; he hadn’t been in bed since the night before. “Let me rest a few minutes. I’ll phone you. Okay?”

“Okay,” she said, and he realized she trusted him to keep his word. How could so small a child make a man his age feel as if he could move mountains?

He didn’t want to eat dinner at home that night; he wanted to take Alexis into Frederick for dinner, but Henry would be offended. He had to find a way to treat her as she deserved. In that house, she did things for him. He paid her, but that no longer seemed adequate or, for that matter, desirable. He sprawled across his bed and gave in to his weariness. But his thoughts stayed with Alexis. The longer he knew her, the
further his unpleasant memories of his mother faded from his consciousness.

The next morning, he parked in front of the church school, got out and opened the back door for Tara. He realized she’d missed the classes as well as her schoolmates, for she jumped out of the car, then raced back to kiss him good-bye, something she’d forgotten in her eagerness to get inside the school building. The incident reminded him that she should be registered for school. He drove off wondering when he’d accepted that he needed more in his life, that he needed his woman and couldn’t imagine days without Tara.