Sealed With a Kiss (33 page)

“I’m fourteen, and I’m very reliable. So if you need a sitter sometime, or maybe someone to run errands or something, I’d be glad to do it without charge. Reverend Logan could give you a reference.” He wondered what had given the boy such a guilt complex, but he wouldn’t pry.

“Thanks, I appreciate the offer, and I may call on you, but I’ll pay you the going rate. Never offer charity where none is needed, son. I hear my boys running around upstairs. Come, I’ll introduce you.” Sometime later, he dressed the boys for their trip to the library, listening to their chatter about their new friends, Grandpa and Aaron. What had prompted Aaron to seek him out? He remembered seeing him in the school gym, a bright, inquisitive kid, but the boy had never said a word to him. And he sensed Aaron’s protectiveness toward Naomi. But why? Strange, that he’d never seen evidence of him in her apartment.

Rufus arrived at the
Journal
the next morning, a few minutes early for his appointment with Hector Shaw, its editor-in-chief. He’d left the boys with Jewel’s husband, but he had been tempted to ask Aaron to stay with them. Hector rushed in at precisely nine o’clock.

“Sorry, Cat, but there was an accident, and I had to make a detour. Let’s check the police headquarters and see if we can find out anything. There appeared to be several cars involved.” He picked up the receiver, dialed and got down to business. It was routine, a part of the job.

“How old is he? Did you get his name? How do you spell that? Thanks.”

He hung up and turned to Rufus. “A bad accident, but no fatalities. Routine stuff. A kid on in-line skates. They took him to the hospital center. I’ll put Joyce on it. She’ll get the human interest aspect. Those skates are dangerous.” He puffed on his stale pipe.

Rufus saw nothing routine about a kid getting hit. An odd sensation pricked the back of his neck. “How old is the boy?”

“Early teens. Why?”

Rufus knew that he only pulled at his chin when he was disturbed. He resisted doing it, but for some reason, he had an unaccountable edginess. “What is the boy’s name?”

Hector checked his notepad. “Hopkins.”

Rufus turned on his heel with the speed for which he was famous. “I’ll speak with you later on. Right now I’ve got to get to that hospital,” he called over his shoulder.

He found Naomi and Rosalie huddled together in the waiting room, frightened. “I’m Rufus Meade,” he told Rosalie. Naomi’s tear-streaked face and sad, reddened eyes clutched at his heart as she looked at him. “Rufus, this is my friend Rosalie Hopkins. We don’t have any news yet. A car side-swiped him, and two other cars collided to avoid hitting him. He’s in surgery. How did you know about this?”

“I was at the
Journal.
” His mind raced, searching for a logical explanation of the relationship between the two women and Aaron. Hours later, a doctor informed them that Aaron had suffered internal injuries and a sprained knee, but would recover fully within a few weeks. He advised them to go home; the boy was in intensive care and wouldn’t be allowed visitors for twenty-four hours. Naomi had said she was an only child and that she’d never married. Rosalie and Aaron had the same last name, but Aaron resembled Naomi, not Rosalie. Somewhere in there lay Naomi’s reason for secrecy, he’d bet on that.

Naomi walked zombie-like into her bedroom and sat on the bed. Rufus had insisted on bringing her home, and she was grateful. The chill in her chest had nearly disappeared when she saw him coming toward her in the hospital, confident but concerned. “I think you should undress and try to sleep,” he advised her. “I’ll phone Judd. Then I’ll run over to Jewel’s to look after my boys, but I’ll come back and see that you get dinner.”

She tried to keep the weariness out of her voice so that he wouldn’t think she was asking for his sympathy. “I don’t expect that from you, Rufus, though I do thank you for being there today. It meant more to me than you could imagine. But I’ll be all right.”

His gaze seared her, and she shifted nervously under its impact. “I said I’ll be back here. Give me your keys, and I’ll let myself in.” She gave them to him, wondering why he’d bother.

She awakened at his urging two hours later to a lobster dinner complete with white wine and chocolate mousse for dessert. He had set her kitchen table for two, adding candles and three calla lilies he’d brought her. He reached across the table, took her hand in his, and said grace, then proceeded to eat as though it was their daily routine. She loved lobster, but salty tears impaired its taste.

He spoke for the first time. Lovingly. Compassionately. “Don’t worry, Naomi. The doctor said he’ll be okay, and that there won’t be any aftereffects.”

She brushed away the tears and forced a smile. “If I’d known you could cook like this, I’d have asked you to marry me. With this kind of talent, I’d take a chance.”

He looked steadily at her. “I’m glad you feel like joking, even if it’s at my expense. And incidentally, if I can cook like this, why would I want a wife?”

She laughed; he could give as good as he got, though she figured he felt about as much like teasing as she did. She looked at him.
Oh, Lord. He wasn’t joking.

“I’m sorry.” Poor recompense, she knew, but it was what she felt. They finished the meal, and he insisted on straightening up the kitchen. She took the flowers from the table and thanked him for them. He only nodded, and she realized too late that he wasn’t a man to diminish his standard of behavior no matter what anyone else did. He would be gracious and considerate even if he wanted to throttle her. She walked out of the kitchen slowly, dispirited; from the way he acted, she could be a woman he’d just met.

She put the flowers beside her bed and crawled under the covers. “Life begins tomorrow,” she told herself, “and if I can’t have him, I’ll just get along without him.”

Her heartbeat accelerated wildly at the sound of his soft knock. “Yes?” Emotion clogged her throat, nearly strangling her. Was he asking to come in? He couldn’t be!

“If you need me, Naomi, I’ll be in your guestroom. I’ve just spoken with the doctor at the hospital. Aaron is comfortable and not in any danger. Good night.”

“Goodnight, Rufus. And th-thank you.”

Hours later, she turned on the light, unable to sleep. Was this how Rufus felt when she refused to tell him what kept them apart? When she got downstairs the next morning, Rufus had already left.

Each morning she joined Rosalie in Aaron’s hospital room and sat there with her most of the day. And she watched the door impatiently every afternoon until Rufus arrived. She and Rosalie noticed that Aaron was brighter and more responsive during Rufus’s visits. And Naomi became increasingly conscious of the bond that had begun to form between her and the woman who had nurtured her son. She gasped in astonishment at Rosalie’s suggestion that Aaron recuperate at her apartment, explaining that she had lost two weeks’ pay and couldn’t afford to lose more.

Naomi remembered that Rosalie was a nurse and would have been the more logical choice as caregiver for Aaron. Her common sense told her that Rosalie’s financial circumstances must be more modest than she had thought, and the knowledge saddened her. But she gloried in the chance to care for Aaron and to help him stay abreast of his schoolwork. She expected that Rosalie would be attentive to Aaron, visiting him daily. But she could not have imagined that Rufus would care for them and nurture them as he did, calling in advance for her shopping list, even cooking on occasion. She looked forward to his daily visits and especially to those times when he brought the boys with him. But the deep, aching need that spread through her each time she saw him remained unappeased when he left. How could he be so impersonal? Friendly. Caring. Considerate. And still so detached. She’d catch him looking at her and see the hot desire in his eyes immediately turn to cool disinterest. Chills coursed through her as she thought of him sitting beside her in Aaron’s room or passing within inches of her, always with a smile that barely reached his lips and always avoiding touching her. He hadn’t made a semblance of an overture toward her since that awful night, and she knew he wouldn’t.

Judd visited Aaron nearly every day, and one afternoon, he followed Naomi into the living room. “He’s giving you a hard time, isn’t he, gal?”

“Oh, Grandpa, I made a terrible mistake. I just know it. He is completely unselfish and caring. I believe he might have understood if I’d given him a chance. He quietly takes care of us; if we need anything, we don’t have to ask him, he just seems to sense it.”

“You’re being foolish not to tell him what’s in your heart, gal.”

“I can’t, Grandpa. All those times he gave me the chance, I didn’t take it. If he’d given me even a little sign, I’d go for it. But he keeps me at a distance.”

Judd raised one eyebrow. “In my days, if a man cared for a girl, she could get him to do just about anything short of dishonoring himself. What’s the matter with you young people?” Shaking his head, he left her standing there and went to the kitchen where Rufus was changing a recessed light bulb in the ceiling.

Rufus looked down from his perch on a ladder. He’d been expecting Judd to corner him for an inquisition. The old man looked up and squinted. “You’re good about letting my Naomi depend on you, boy, but you’re still giving her a hard time. I want to know exactly why you’re here every day.”

Rufus grinned. He cared a lot for Naomi’s grandfather, but he wasn’t going to let him treat him like a child. “You’re meddling again. But I suppose it’s too late to stop you; you’ve made a lifelong career of telling people what to do. Naomi is mine, Judd, and I am going to take care of her. And if you’re smart, you’ll refrain from tattling.”

He watched Judd walk away with a pretended indifference, but he knew that his words had pleased the old man. Let Naomi figure out for herself the mistake she’d made with him. She was ready for a reconciliation, but he wasn’t. He needed her. His body ached for her, and he missed her weird humor, and their warm camaraderie. But for the first time in his life, he appreciated the virtue of patience. He wasn’t giving an inch until she came to him, opened her heart to him, and let him know that she trusted him completely and needed him.

Chapter 18

N
aomi opened the door for Rufus, mumbled, “Hello,” and left him to trail her as she walked back to her room. “Why didn’t you let yourself in?” she threw at him over her shoulder, and blanched at his smooth retort.

“I was reminding myself that I don’t really live here.” She’d asked for that, but being with him constantly while he treated her like a discarded shoe was wearing on her. Nothing seemed to ruffle him.

She turned to him, tossing her head arrogantly. “Have no fear.
I
hadn’t forgotten it.” He grinned, and tremors shot through her as she stared at the dancing lights in his eyes and felt his blatant masculinity leap at her. But as quickly as he’d turned on the charm, he extinguished it, reminding her that they were still at odds.

“I’d like to take Aaron over to my place this afternoon, give him a change of scenery for a while. And he thinks he’d like to try using my on-line computer service, make friends with some fellows his age in Texas, California, or wherever.” He paused, and her hair crackled with electricity as he eyed her knowingly, like a man going in for the kill. “Whose permission do I get? Yours, or Rosalie’s?” She turned away, uncertain as to her next move.

“I’m too tired to go right now, Mr. Meade,” Aaron called from his room, letting them know he’d heard their conversation.

She fought against the tension that churned within her as Rufus’s mouth curved in a mocking grin. “He’s very protective of you. I wonder how he got so tired this early in the day while lying in bed. Preston could have thought up a better one than that.”

Naomi sucked in a deep breath. How had it come to this? She tried to hide her vulnerability to him and lowered her eyes to prevent his seeing what she knew they mirrored. When she looked up at him, her heart pounded furiously at the pain in his eyes, the pain of a tortured person. Her hand went out to him of its own volition; taken unawares, he grasped it and clung to it for a moment. Then she watched unhappily as a curtain of indifference seemed to descend over him. Wordlessly, he turned and went into Aaron’s room.

She went into her own room, closed the door, and telephoned Rosalie. “What shall I tell Rufus? If Aaron wants to go with him, do you mind?” She waited anxiously for Rosalie’s answer, for this clue to their future relationship, for the first evidence she’d have of how far Rosalie would allow her tie with Aaron to go.

“Naomi, when Aaron is with you, he’s responsible to you. If it’s a question of policy, of course I must be consulted, but ordinarily, you decide. As time goes on and we get to know each other better, it’ll be easier.” Naomi wondered at her long pause before she continued in the same gentle voice. “I am definitely not suggesting that we share parenting; that wouldn’t make sense. But I want Aaron to have a good, healthy relationship with you, and that means obeying and respecting you. So far, our relationship has been good for all of us. I’ll be over after work.”

Naomi paced the floor. She’d have to find out what Aaron wanted; then she’d speak with Rufus. He had deliberately put her on the spot, indirectly challenging her to explain the relationship between Rosalie, Aaron and herself, though she was certain he’d figured it out.

She found Aaron alone, pensive and anxious for her. He raised up and braced himself on his right elbow. “Noomie, I don’t want you and Mr. Meade to be mad at each other because of me. I called my mom, and she said I can suit myself if you agree, so why don’t you tell him I’ll go to his place after lunch? I like him, Noomie, and I want to see those little rascals of his.” He took her hand in his. “You have to make up with him. Promise.”

Joy swelled within her. He cared for her, wanted her to be happy. She looked at her son, shook her head at the changes in him, and asked him a question that Rufus had once asked her. “I promise, but whatever happened to your gnawing wit? You’ve gotten so serious lately.”

He placed his hand under his chin, knitted his eyebrows, and pretended to be an old sage. “We’re dealing with serious stuff here, Noomie.” Her musical laughter filled the room, and he laughed with her.

“I could use a good laugh.” She glanced up as Rufus entered the room. Did his eyes always sparkle like diamonds, and did she feel seduced every time she saw him smile? Emotion muffled her words as he walked toward her, carelessly self-possessed. Her hand clutched her throat as she forced herself to speak calmly.

“Aaron wants to go with you, and there’s no reason why he can’t.”

“None?” he asked sardonically.

Aaron heaved himself up in bed. “Mr. Meade, if Noomie says it’s okay, it’s okay.” The both stared at Aaron; the testiness in his voice was unmistakable.

Rufus grimaced slightly. The boy could be touchy. “I’ll be ready when you are, son.”

Rufus observed that Aaron was unusually quiet. He had a right to be irritated; blood was thicker than water, he’d always been told. The boy knew he’d been putting pressure on Naomi, and he suspected Aaron knew why. He admired her strength, her old-fashioned grit. Strong men would have fallen under what she’d endured during the past month: his discovery of her secret; Aaron’s near-fatal accident; her peculiar arrangement with Aaron and Rosalie; having a man she loved so close every day and so detached. He doubted that he’d have borne it all as gracefully. She was vulnerable and raw on the inside, and he was half mad with her for refusing to relent and talk to him. Lord, how he wanted to comfort her, hold her, love her. He sighed deeply. Stubborn woman!

Naomi used her afternoon of freedom to visit Marva. She needed to talk to someone who would give her the blunt truth. Judd had already voiced his thoughts, but he seemed to have taken out a life membership in the Rufus Meade for everything club and was biased. She knew immediately that she wouldn’t be able to speak candidly with her friend. She found Marva knitting booties and unable or unwilling to consider any topic other than her marvelous pregnancy, as she called it. She left Marva, disappointed.

A letter in her mailbox gave Naomi cause for celebration. She telephoned Linda at home to tell her that if she maintained a B average until she finished high school, she’d have her choice of at least three universities with a full scholarship. Linda’s screams and confessions of love must have attracted her mother’s suspicion, because Linda’s mother took the phone and inquired, with some hostility, as to the caller’s identity. To Naomi’s amusement, the woman’s reaction to the news was identical to her daughter’s. She couldn’t hold back the tears that streaked her cheeks and colored her voice; Linda had a chance at a fruitful, happy life. It was up to her, and Naomi didn’t doubt she’d seize the opportunity. Naomi had a sense of triumph, of having finished a difficult task, when Linda’s mother invited her to have a meal with them. It had not been easy, but she’d made a friend.

She sat in a leather chair in her living room, sipped mint tea, and contemplated the changes in her life over the past half year. Her euphoria at Linda’s good news disappeared. She hadn’t known she’d felt so alone until Rosalie arrived.

“Why are you sitting here without lights, Naomi? Are you all right?” Maybe it was the concern with which she spoke, or even the quiet, compassionate way she had of talking. She seemed to invite confidence. A floodgate sprang open and within seconds, Naomi found herself pouring out her soul to this stranger who’d become her friend. She omitted nothing.

“What’ll I do, Rosalie? I love him with every fiber of my being. He is my world, my life. I thought I could get him out of my mind and out of my heart, but now I know I can’t. I love Aaron, and I need Rufus. I made a terrible mistake.”

Rosalie walked over to the sofa, sat beside Naomi, and put her arms around the mother of her adopted son. “You carried a terrible load for a long time, Naomi, and because of unfounded fear, you kept it all inside. Just when the load got bigger, you found someone with whom you could share it, but you couldn’t let go of the fear. You couldn’t trust. Rufus hasn’t been here for you night and day since Aaron got hurt just because he doesn’t have anything else to do. Have you asked yourself why? My mother used to tell me that ‘pride goes before destruction and a haughty stumble before a fall.’”

Her deep-set brown eyes misted, and for a moment, she seemed to be reliving a treasured experience. “I wouldn’t let pride keep me out of the arms of a man like Rufus Meade.” She went on. “Stuff your pride, Naomi. Let him know you have faith in him, that you trust him. It’s all you need to do.”

Naomi watched Rosalie’s suddenly brilliant smile. “Now I know we’re friends; you’ve never told that to anyone else. Well, I’ve always wanted a sister, and you’ll do nicely.”

“No, I haven’t,” Naomi, confirmed. “And now that I know what I’ve missed, never having had a sister, I’m definitely going to cherish the one I’ve got now. Let me get you some more coffee.” They talked about their lives and familiarized themselves with each other until Rufus brought Aaron back.

“Will you stay for dinner? It’s not much, but there’s fried chicken.” She wanted him to stay, and she couldn’t keep the note of hope out of her voice. His leaving would have been easier to accept if he’d shown any reluctance, but he hadn’t.

“I promised Preston and Sheldon I’d be right back. We’ll have to do this again soon, Aaron; my boys and I enjoyed having you with us.” He nodded to Rosalie and Naomi. “Good night. I can let myself out.”

Rosalie had gone home, and Naomi sat by Aaron’s bed, listening to his excited account of his afternoon with the Meade family. “He’s a great guy, Noomie, Cat Meade practically walks on water.”

He slanted his head in a sly grin. “Of course, you do, too—walk on water, I mean.” Her eyes widened, and he patted her hand. “Don’t get a big head now.” She watched as his light olive toned face suddenly curled into a deep frown, his youthful expression becoming serious and strained. “What you told me about when I was born…you know…that stuff about the pressure those people put on you. I believe you. Now that I know you, I can’t imagine that you’d willingly have given me up for adoption. I love my mom, Noomie; she’s my mom. But I’ve got a real special place in here for you, too.” He pointed to his heart. “I’m lucky my mom is the kind of person she is; otherwise I wouldn’t know you.”

He used the corner of the sheet to wipe away his mother’s tears. “I’m going to try and be a son to you. I promise.”

His words warmed her as would a brilliant light, and comforted her, completing the catharsis that had begun with her confession to Rosalie. “I didn’t even pray for this, Aaron, because I didn’t think it possible for you to love me; I was just hoping you’d like me enough to be with me sometime. You…you’re my heart; you’re precious to me, and I care deeply for Rosalie, too.” She sniffled a few times and had to fight off her emotions. A woman’s tears made a man uncomfortable, and sensing that, like most of them, Aaron had low tolerance for heavy emotional scenes, she rose. “I’ll get us some ginger ale, or would you rather have a Coke with a couple of scoops of vanilla ice-cream?”

He rewarded the suggestion with a broad grin and his thumbs-up sign. “Noomie,” he called after her. “You, my mom, and me are straight. Now all you have to do is get it together with Mr. Meade.”

Rufus entered his house through the garage door and rubbed his arms vigorously. Washington wasn’t usually so rough in winter, but the entire East Coast was in the clutches of a cold wave. He called a taxi for the sitter, sent her home, and ran upstairs to let his boys know he’d returned. He went back downstairs and made hot chocolate for the three of them, got a tray, and stopped. He could have stayed and had supper with Naomi. She had wanted it so badly, and her wordless entreaty had nearly made him lose his resolve. But if he allowed himself to weaken, all would be lost and she’d never open up to him. Unless she came to him, she wouldn’t know that he didn’t want to judge her, only to have her complete trust.

He rubbed the back of his neck. Being around her constantly, looking at her, and brushing against her for almost four long weeks had tested his self-control, tried him to the limits of his willpower. But he was damned if he’d give in. He swallowed the saliva that had suddenly accumulated in his mouth. Memories of her woman’s scent in the heat of passion assaulted his olfactory senses, and he could feel again her long, silky legs rubbing against his, caressing him as she writhed uninhibitedly beneath him. His blood rushed through his body, telling him how long it had been since he’d loved her. Something had to happen; their standoff had to end, and soon. He picked up the tray and slowly climbed the stairs, deep in thought.

Naomi telephoned her grandfather early the next morning. He wasn’t going to like what she had to say, but as he’d said, there was no going back.

“Naomi gal, you can’t let well enough alone, can you? Why would you walk into that pit of snakes and present them with the ammunition they’ll use to kill your chances? If you take Aaron with you to that school board meeting, you’ll never be elected board president. You can find another way to let him know what he means to you.”

She had expected him to react that way, but she had to make certain that Aaron would never again think her ashamed of him. She told Judd as much.

“All right, gal. I think you might regret it, but being president of that bunch of snipers is nothing compared to what Aaron means to us. If you’d listened to me, I would never have known my great-grandson. You go on and do what you have to do. You always did, and I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks, Grandpa. Aaron loves us, and we’ve got to show him it’s mutual. His last name is Hopkins, but he’s family, and he accepts that. I’ll let you know what happens at the board meeting.”