Read Drowning the Daffodils (A Heavenly Highland Inn Cozy Mystery) Online
Authors: Cindy Bell
Drowning the Daffodils (A Heavenly Highland Inn Cozy Mystery) (11 page)
“
Now, you know that what Lawrence said was not true,” Vicky said quietly as she reached out to gently touch the woman's shoulder. “Simon did love you, and he wanted you to have everything he could offer you. But it was not your fault that he died. That was Lawrence's choice to commit such a horrible act.”
“
Maybe,” Jane sniffled as she looked away from Vicky. “But it doesn't really change anything, does it?” she asked as she looked back at Vicky wistfully. “Simon's still gone. One minute we're getting ready for the future, the next… there's no future at all.”
“
No, it doesn't change that,” Vicky admitted as she frowned. Jane's words made her think of her own conversation with Mitchell.
“
Thanks for being so understanding, Vicky,” Jane said quietly. “I'm so very sorry that Simon is dead, but I'm glad to be walking away from this family, if anyone could even call it that.”
Vicky arched her brow at that as she tended to agree with that comment.
“I used to be so envious of the Carters,” Jane admitted in a murmur. “I grew up in a very poor home and all I ever dreamed of was ending up in one of those huge houses, never wanting for anything. But now,” she laughed bitterly as she shook her head. “All I want is that tiny little house, and the people who actually cared about me. I just want to go home.”
Vicky gave Jane's shoulder a light squeeze.
“I'll arrange a cab for you,” she said softly. “I think it's time you had some peace.”
Jane gasped back a sob and nodded.
As Vicky turned to walk back into the inn, Mitchell jogged up the steps after her. He caught up with her just beside the front door.
“
Vicky, wait,” Mitchell said gently as he caught her wrist with his hand. “Can we talk for a minute?” he asked and met her eyes. She could tell from the determination in them that he wasn't going to take no for an answer. She had been trying to avoid this conversation for some time, but now it had to happen. “The other night,” Mitchell continued when she didn't answer, “I know we both said some things that might not have been said if I hadn't been pressuring you.”
“
You weren't really pressuring me,” Vicky countered as she searched his gaze. “It's just…”
“
You don't owe me an explanation,” Mitchell insisted as he let his hand drift from her wrist and close around hers. “I just jumped the gun, I see that now. It wasn't right for me to just assume that you would want the same things I did.”
“
Maybe not,” Vicky bit into her bottom lip and glanced away shyly. She knew what she wanted to say, she just wasn't sure how to say it. His hand around hers was so comforting that she could barely recall why she had been so determined to avoid him. “Or maybe, I just wasn't ready to think about it,” Vicky suggested and looked back up at him. “Sometimes I think we have forever, but forever often turns out to be a lot shorter than you expect.”
“
What do you mean?” Mitchell asked with a mixture of curiosity and concern.
“
Like Jane,” Vicky tilted her head towards the woman who was waiting for a cab to drive her home. She was sitting alone on a bench near the driveway.
“
Wait, what could you have in common with a woman who was sleeping with her fiancé’s father?” Mitchell asked with growing confusion.
“
Not that part,” Vicky shook her head, her hair tumbling down towards her eyes as she turned back to him again. “I mean, I doubt that she ever imagined she wouldn't have the chance to marry Simon. Before I knew everything that was going on behind the scenes, my heart broke for her. When I found Simon's body all I could think was that Jane would never have the chance to share that special moment with him.”
“
Oh,” he breathed out as he stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. “I can understand what you mean. I guess working the job that I do, I think about that a little more often than other people do.”
“
I can see why,” Vicky said softly. “Then today when Lawrence locked me in that shed, the very idea of me not having the chance to set things straight with you, it terrified me. I never, ever, want you to think that you're anything less than incredibly valuable to me.”
“
There's nothing to set straight,” he assured her and stared into her eyes compassionately. “I was expecting too much.”
“
Or maybe I was just not expecting enough,” Vicky countered as she slipped closer to him. She wrapped an arm around his waist and laid her head against his chest. He tensed for a moment as if he might not allow the connection, then his free hand drifted down over the back of her head and across her back. “When I said I wasn't ready for marriage and kids, that didn't mean that I didn't want those things with you,” she murmured. “When I picture my future, you're the only man I see in it.”
“
Vicky, that's all I need to hear,” he whispered and kissed the top of her head. “Whatever you decide, whenever you decide it, we'll take things at your pace.”
“
All I want right now is to know that your arms will always be around me,” Vicky sighed as she relaxed in his embrace.
“
They will be. That's something that you can always count on,” he murmured beside her ear. Vicky melted into his arms, so glad to have him to comfort her after such a harrowing day. Even though she had no phone, she had no way to reach him, he had managed to come to her rescue, as he always did.
As Vicky pulle
d away from him to go into the inn and call the cab for Jane she felt a renewed sense of hope for the future. In the past she had always avoided looking too far into the future, because she wasn't sure how she hoped it would unfold. But now she knew one thing for sure, she wanted Mitchell to be part of it.
The End
More Cozy Mysteries by Cindy Bell
Bekki
the Beautician Cozy Mysteries
Hairpin, Hair Dryer and Homicide
Heavenly Highland Inn Cozy Mysteries