Gift of Wonder (13 page)

“Oh, my.” Dotty shook her head. “And let me guess why. No one believed her over the powerful sheriff and his stepson, so she never had her day in court?”

“It never got as far as anyone ever believing her, although this is the reason she left,” Alice said. “Esther went to the locals for help, but instead of investigating, they immediately reported things to the sheriff in the next parish—knowing Sonny was his stepson. Esther was probably trying to keep it from her father and brothers, but the sheriff called her in and shut her up with threats before she could ever accuse Sonny publicly. According to the retired sheriff, he didn't believe her story, so he managed to hush her up and stop the rumors—probably through more threats and intimidation. He said her daddy and brothers came to him and Sonny intent on blackmail, but somehow he held them off—and kept this quiet for over thirty years, apparently. And he did it by buying out the Mayeaux. He gave them a large check and told them to leave this area, but he never did anything with the land. Later, he sold their land and made a tidy profit on it, from the way he talked. So this is why no one's heard anything or seen them all this time. He paid them off and told them to get out of Louisiana.”

“So Jonah's mother was pregnant when she left?”

“That's about the gist of it. But Sonny Sheridan is dead. He was killed in a motorcycle accident years ago,” Alice replied. “Sheriff Guidry didn't mention a
baby, so I didn't dare tell him that Esther had a son. But at least now I know how Jonah got the Sheridan name. His mother gave that as his official name when she dumped him at the orphanage. Even though his father wasn't named on the birth certificate, she gave him the name Jonah Sheridan.”

“Why did she leave him there at the orphanage?” Dotty asked, her brow furrowed.

Alice shook her head. “That's the one question I can't seem to find an answer for, and I couldn't ask the sheriff to clarify things since he's clueless, or so he seemed. But I intend to find out. I'm going to find Esther Mayeaux and get to the bottom of this. I have to, for Jonah's sake. And somehow, I have to tell him what I've found.”

Dotty rubbed a hand across her face. “That might not be such a good idea, suga'.”

“What do you mean? He has to know the truth.”

“Are you sure?” Dotty asked, her dark eyes penetrating Alice's numb shock.

“I'd want to know,” Alice replied. “He needs to know so he can just…get on with things.” She couldn't admit it to Dotty, but she was so afraid Jonah would bolt if all of this was accurate. And she didn't want him to go away.

Dotty shook her head. “Or maybe the best thing he can do is let this go, once and for all.”

“I can't believe you're suggesting that. You're the one who taught me the truth has to be told.”

Dotty leaned over the table, her eyes bright with regret. “Trust me, honey, some things are best left
unsaid. Sometimes the truth is much worse on a person than not knowing.”

“But—”

“Alice, baby, please listen to me. Why do you think I left New Orleans, anyway?”

“I have no idea,” Alice said, wondering what other revelations she was about to discover.

“A man, honey. It's always about a man,” Dotty said. “I fell fast and hard and I wound up in the same shape as Esther, poor and pregnant. Then later on, I got married and had a pretty good life until I decided to go messing in the past. I wanted things between my new husband and me to be on an even keel, so I was blunt and told him the whole truth—that I had a child and gave that child up for adoption.”

Seeing Alice's gasp of shock, she shook her head. “Yeah, he was shocked to hear that, too. I expected him to accept things, though, and help me find my child. But he turned cold and angry. A few weeks later, I found out I was pregnant again and I was so happy, thinking our baby would soften him. But it was too late. He dumped me before I could tell him about the baby, and I lost my baby—had a miscarriage after he left me high and dry, not only pregnant but holding the steep loan payment on our publishing company. And we were
married
and happy, except for the part about him not liking my past. I thought I could fix the past. But my man didn't want any part of that. And so, he left me.”

She rubbed her hands together as if she were freezing cold. “I can't tell you how many times I wished I'd never gotten pregnant, wished I'd never told him
about the baby I gave up. If I'd just left things alone, I might not have had the miscarriage.”

She leaned back on the table, staring off into space. “I hate myself for what I did. And I can't forgive him. He didn't even care enough to see how I was doing. After he divorced me, I had nothing, nothing at all. So I had to come here and start over from scratch.” She shrugged as if she'd just told Alice she had a headache. “So I'm telling you from experience, Jonah might be better off not knowing the truth. It's just too painful sometimes. And no amount of prayer or hoping can change the ugliness of the past. I don't believe God can ever make me feel better about myself.”

Alice had to catch her breath. “Dotty, I had no idea. I'm so sorry.”

Dotty held up a hand. “I never talk about it and I don't want it mentioned again. It's over and I learned a hard lesson. I just wish I'd had the gumption to fight for my babies. Both my babies.”

Alice sat still, shocked at Dotty's story. Shocked but filled with a strong understanding of why Dotty hid behind that wall of toughness. She wanted to reach out to Dotty and tell her that prayer would help her. And that God could heal her. Instead, she just stared up at her friend, wondering if maybe Dotty was right.
Would
Jonah be better off knowing the truth? Or would the ugliness of it just make things all that much harder for him? Especially if she had to be the one to tell him?

How could she show him that God had brought him here for a reason? Maybe that reason was so he could let go of the past, rather than try to find it.

“What should I do, Dotty?”

“Leave it alone,” her friend said. “If Jonah wants to know the rest of the story, let him find it out on his own. That's the best advice I can give you.”

Then Dotty turned and walked out the door.

“A
lice, come and see!”

At the sound of her sister's excited voice echoing through the house, Alice dropped her purse and hurried through the door. “Where are you?”

“In the den,” Lorene called. “In my usual spot.”

Alice rounded the kitchen counter, relieved to see Lorene's smiling face peeking over the couch.

“You scared me,” she said. “Are you all right?”

“I'm great,” Lorene replied as she sat up on her cushions. “Just resting until you got here.”

Then Alice saw several wallpaper books and carpet and floor samples lying scattered here and there around Lorene. “Oh, my. Are you going to redo the whole house just out of boredom?”

“These aren't for our house,” Lorene said on a giggle. “They're for Jonah's model house.”

“What?” Alice sank down on the ottoman across from Lorene, her gaze scanning the pretty greens and
pale yellows of the paint samples. “What are you doing with them?”

“He called me, asking for decorating advice,” Lorene said, beaming with pride. “He told me he just needed me to look over these and put something together. No pressure and no getting up or straining myself.”

Alice lifted one of the thick wallpaper sample books. “These things are heavy.”

“I've been extra careful,” Lorene replied. “I had Jay put them all right here within reach.”

“Jay approved this?”

“He didn't seem so sure of the idea when he first came home and found Jonah and me poring over this stuff, but when he saw how excited I was…well, he caved. As long as I rest and as long as I don't walk across the bayou to supervise anything, both Jay and the doctor said it was okay.”

“Good advice, since you can barely walk into the kitchen.”

Lorene patted her stomach. “I love this baby and I'm gonna make sure he makes it into this world, you don't have to worry about that. But this…this is so much fun!” She held up a swatch of fabric. “It's something I've always wanted to do and now Jonah's letting me do it. And…he's paying me a reasonable salary. That will sure help with hospital bills and baby supplies.”

Alice didn't know what to say. “That was awfully nice of him, to think of you. You're perfect for this.”

“I think I am,” Lorene said with a confident grin. “And I have no idea how he knew. Did you mention it to him—about me wanting to be an interior designer?”

“I don't think so,” Alice said, getting up to pour a glass of water. “I did tell him about you never going to college—you know, the whole story.”

“You mean the story where you think I sacrificed everything so you could get a college education?”

Alice looked over at her sister and saw the smile on Lorene's face. “Yes, that story.”

“You know I don't care about all that,” Lorene said. “I have everything I want right here. But you and Jay seem to want to make me out to be more of a martyr than I really am.” She leaned forward, her smile as glowing as the late-afternoon sunlight streaming through the windows. “I didn't sacrifice anything, Alice. I chose something I loved—my husband and my home. You're the one who insisted on coming back here after college, when we both know you had big dreams of your own, so just get over that notion of me being the giving one, okay?”

“Okay, let's call it even. I came back because I wanted to. I'm happy here.” Alice put her empty glass in the sink and came back into the den. “But you did give up a lot for me. I don't think Jay has to feel guilty, but I sure do.”

“Which is why you might have mentioned this in passing to Jonah, right?”

“I didn't, I promise,” Alice said. “I haven't talked to him much in the last couple of days.”

“He told me you two are seeing each other later tonight.”

“Yes, we're supposed to.” She pushed at her hair. “I have to finish up the article.”

Lorene's smile changed to a frown. “Are you all right?”

Alice couldn't put a damper on Lorene's joy, so she nodded. Her sister didn't need to know the details of Jonah's parentage. “I'm okay. I just had a long day at work and I've got to burn the midnight oil to get this story in. Dotty's on the warpath.”

“Isn't she always?” Lorene asked. “Come sit with me and let me show you all these pretty colors for the model house. That'll cheer you up.”

“You're right. I think that will help. I can't wait to see the finished house.”

Lorene pointed to a sample book. “Bring that one over here. I like the light greens for the kitchen and living room and maybe some earth tones for the den. It's a three-bedroom with two baths, but when Jonah showed me the plans, I couldn't help but notice the similarities.”

Alice leaned forward to study the printout of the house plans lying on the table. “What similarities?”

Lorene looked surprised. “He said you'd seen this. Look at it. This house is like a miniature version of Rosette House.”

Alice grabbed the floor plans. “What do you mean?”

Lorene bobbed her head. “It's more modern and not quite as square and wide and it does have certain ‘green' stipulations, but this house has a lot of the same features as ours. I think that's kind of a sweet tribute, don't you?”

Alice stared down at the plans. “Yes, that is sweet. I glanced over the original plans but I didn't see the connection.”

“This is a revised version,” Lorene replied. “I'm telling you, you don't have to doubt Jonah's intentions. He's so thorough and so confident that he's doing the right thing, I have no worries that he's going to build the best community he possibly can. This means a lot to him.”

Alice swallowed back the lump in her throat. “Yes, it does mean a lot to him. I know that now. I can see it clearly in this beautiful house.”

“And I get to decorate it,” Lorene said. “Well, at least from a distance. But he did tell me that after the baby comes and if I'm up to it, I can work for him part-time, here from home. He wants me to oversee the interiors of all the houses. I still can't believe he's trusting me to do this.”

Alice certainly could believe it. Jonah was way more trusting with people than she'd ever been, even though he had a way of holding himself back from getting involved. And that was probably why he built houses. He could provide people with beautiful homes and live vicariously through them, without putting his own heart out there on the line.

Now he'd offered her sister the dream she'd always held in her heart. How could Alice not fall for a man who was that considerate and kind?

“I'm happy for you,” she told Lorene. “Just don't overdo things, okay?”

“I won't, I promise,” Lorene said. “All I have to do is pick out the colors and coordinate everything. I can do that sitting still right here. This will keep me busy for the next few weeks. And by the time I have the
baby and I'm back on my feet, the little one and I can walk over and see what's going on. Won't that be great?”

“It's wonderful,” Alice said, her joy for her sister overriding her concern for Jonah. “I'll go get dinner started. I thought I'd make us a salad and grill some chicken. And we have those fresh squash Paulette brought by. I can sauté them with some sweet onions. I think I can cook all that without burning the house down.”

“Sounds great,” Lorene said, her attention on the samples lying around her. “Thanks, honey.”

Alice went across into the big kitchen, glad that Lorene had something to focus on until the baby came. She heard the back door open and smiled as Jay walked in. “She's having a blast,” she said in a low voice.

“I know,” Jay said, grinning. “She was so excited when I came in earlier and found Jonah here. I was worried, but I think she can handle this, don't you?”

“Of course she can,” Alice replied. “I just can't figure how Jonah found out about her talents.”

Jay scratched his head, then looked over at his wife. “I might have dropped a hint to him the other day.”

Surprised, Alice stared over at her brother-in-law. “Did you, now? Jay Hobert, I never knew you could be that innovative. Good thinking.”

“I just want my wife to have everything,” he said, suddenly shy again. “I wasn't so sure it would happen this fast when I mentioned it to Jonah, but then today when I came in and saw her so happy, I knew she'd be perfect for the job. And we called the doctor for approval.”

“So you pretended to protest just to throw her off the trail, huh?”

He looked sheepish. “Yeah, something like that. Don't tell now, okay?”

“I wouldn't dream of it. She's acting like a kid in a candy store.”

“Yeah, it's good to see her smiling.”

“You are a very wise man,” Alice said, giving him a gentle tap on his arm.

“Hey, what are you two cooking up over there?” Lorene called out.

“Oh, nothing, sweetheart,” Jay replied. “Just some squash.”

Alice laughed as she shooed him out of the kitchen. “Go in there and help her get all that stuff organized. And make sure she doesn't get too overworked.”

“I won't let that happen,” Jay said. “I just want to enjoy that pretty smile on her face.”

Alice watched as Jay hugged her sister close, her own heart leaping at the pure love they shared for each other. Lorene was glowing in spite of having to stay inside and off her feet. And Jay's eyes shined with a deep, abiding love. Why couldn't everyone have that kind of love?

As she cut up vegetables and made tea, Alice had to wonder if she'd ever experience the joy of marriage and children. She thought of Jonah and what she needed to tell him and her heart shattered in grief.

The picture she saw of her sister and Jay was a brilliant contrast to the picture she had in her mind of Jonah's mother and all that she'd possibly suffered.

How did you tell the man you were falling in love with that his father could turn out to be a monster?

 

Jonah turned off the engine of his car and got out. He walked toward the back door, then stopped to look through the big, wide windows of Rosette House, his heart filling with a kind of odd warmth. Jay and Lorene were sitting close together and laughing. The glow from a nearby lamp shone down on them like a halo, giving them a golden-washed aura. Lorene, reclining on two white ruffled pillows, pointed to the fabric samples on her lap, while Jay nodded and grinned.

It was good to know he'd been a part of making Lorene smile, of giving her a sense of purpose while she waited these last few weeks for her baby to be born.

Jonah watched the happy couple for a minute, then looked over toward the other side of the big room, past the wide granite counter, where through another window he could see Alice busy in the kitchen. She threw some sliced squash into a big pan, then stirred things around, her eyes downcast, her hair pulled back in that haphazard way with a bright orange clip. He watched as she glanced over at her sister and Jay, and he saw the tinge of remorse and regret in her eyes. He saw the bittersweet smile that just touched her lips.

Jonah stood there, his heart lifting up and out, as he wished a thousand times over he knew how to truly love someone. But he'd never been given the gift of unconditional love from family, so he wasn't sure what it really felt like to offer that same gift. Was this it? This pounding in his temple, this tightening in his chest?
This overwhelming need to cherish and protect and fight for someone else? He'd loved Aunt Nancy because she was so easy to love. But something had always held him back from giving in to that need for a deep, abiding, forgiving love.

Until now.

He let out a caught breath and started for the door.

And just as he reached it, Alice looked up and out into the dusk, her gaze locking with his. Her smile was tempered with all the doubt and trepidation Jonah felt right now. And he had a feeling she was battling the same emotions he kept pushing away. But she dropped what she was doing and rushed toward the door. Then she held it open and said, “Come in.”

Jonah walked toward her, knowing he was taking a path that he might never be able to turn away from again. And while he hoped he wouldn't regret it, he also prayed that this time he'd land in a place he never wanted to leave.