Untangle My Heart (Tangled Hearts) (8 page)

Although there was room on the couch next to Kate, he didn’t make his presence known and leaned against the wall until the movie ended. The room must have held close to thirty kids in addition to the adult staff. They all sat close to the television, which he figured was no larger than twenty-six inches and not even a flat screen.

The room was pleasant enough with an old stone fireplace that added to its character. Mismatched couches and chairs were pulled close to the TV along with several tables and colorful lamps.

When the movie ended, kids scattered everywhere, as though they couldn’t stand to be cooped up any longer. As he strode across the room, Edward watched Kate whisper into the boy’s ear right before he climbed onto her back.

She glanced up as he approached. “Hey, you made it. Did you just get here?”

“No, I’ve been in the back for a little while. I didn’t want to disturb everyone watching the movie.”

“This little monkey on my back here is Lucas. Lucas, this is my friend, Edward.”

The boy leaned over and whispered in her ear.

She laughed. “He says you have a funny voice.”

“I can see why you may think so. I grew up in England. Everyone there talks like this. It’s nice to meet you, Lucas.”

The boy hid behind Kate’s hair. Clearly he wasn’t making an impression on the boy.

“What do you say, Lucas?” Kate prompted.

“Hi,” came a small voice from behind her head.

“I missed most of the movie. Maybe you can tell me what it was about,” Edward said.

Lucas’s small face peeked out. “It was awesome. It was about a boy who captured a dragon, but he let it go instead of killing it. Then he trained it.”

Edward smiled at the speed at which Lucas spoke, the words almost all gushing out in one large breath. “That sounds pretty fantastic. I’ll have to watch the whole movie sometime.”

“You can watch it with me and Kate. Can’t he, Kate?”

“Yes, he certainly can,” Kate said. “I think it’s time for you to go up to bed. Let’s go, little Jedi. Say good night to Edward.”

“Night, Edward. Come back again soon,” Lucas said with a yawn.

“Good night, Lucas. It was nice to meet you.”

Kate adjusted the boy’s weight. “I’ll get him settled and be back down,” she said to Edward.

They walked away and Lucas stole a glance back at Edward. “Is he your boyfriend?” he heard Lucas ask Kate. Edward didn’t hear her reply, but it must have satisfied the boy because he placed his head on her shoulder.

While Kate was with Lucas, Edward spoke with Father Dominic, who gave him a thorough understanding about the running of an orphanage. Edward found the architecture of the hundred-year-old converted mansion fascinating and agreed to a tour the next time he came by.

Thirty minutes later, Kate returned looking tired but happy.

“Lucas didn’t give you any trouble going down, did he?” Father Dominic asked.

“No problem. He wanted me to read him three stories.”

Father Dominic laughed. “No surprise there. He’s always trying to get the older kids to read to him. I think it must remind him of when his mother or father read to him.”

“I didn’t mind,” Kate said. “I’ll be back tomorrow to continue with the decoration making. Oh, and I think my mother is going to measure the kids for the robes for the pageant.”

“I’ll let Sister Theresa know.”

“Lucas asked a million questions about the new restaurant. I wanted to see if it’d be okay to bring him by there tomorrow afternoon to see what we’re doing,” Kate asked Father Dominic.

“I’m not sure a construction site is the proper place for a small child,” Edward interjected.

“He’s not going to touch anything, and besides, you’re only getting started.”

“True, but there are ladders and equipment set up. I wouldn’t want him to get hurt.”
Or get in the way.
The last thing Edward needed or wanted was a small child underfoot.

“Maybe another time, then,” Father Dominic suggested.

Kate flashed Edward an annoyed look. “Fine.”

Edward sighed. Without intending to, he’d managed to say something wrong.

They spoke with Father Dominic a few more minutes before heading out to the car.

Kate marched ahead, annoyance vibrating from her. Edward had to admit the woman wore anger well, if that was even possible. Her hips swung more than usual, and the purse of her lips made him want to kiss her until she forgot about being angry. Too bad there wasn’t any chance of that happening.

He touched her arm when she reached the passenger side of his car. “Kate, I’m sorry if it seemed I didn’t want Lucas at the restaurant.”

“You didn’t seem anything. You flat-out said it was a bad idea.” She pulled her arm out of his grasp.

“I’m concerned for his safety. A work site can be a dangerous place for a small boy. Besides, too many people underfoot will delay getting everything complete by New Year’s Eve.”

She considered his words, and the sparks emanating from her eyes lessoned to burning embers. He took that as a good sign.

“What if next weekend we see how things are progressing and you bring him over during the crew’s lunch break?”

“You don’t need to do me any favors. If you don’t want him there, that’s fine.”

“I don’t want anyone getting hurt. That’s all.”

She nodded. “Fine.”

Hopeful to have redeemed himself, he took a chance to see if his luck continued. “Are you hungry? The pizzas were gone when I got here and I’m famished.”

“There’s bar up the avenue where we can get something.”

He hid his surprise and pleasure that she accepted his offer and opened the car door for her. “So, it looks like you have a new best friend in Lucas.”

“He’s a great kid. He’s shy at first, but once he opens up he doesn’t stop talking.”

“You both seemed very comfortable during the movie.”

“You’re not jealous of a six-year-old are you?”

“Certainly not.”

He closed the door and walked to the driver’s side. It seemed as though he was going to have to find a way to catch Kate’s attention if he had any chance of changing her mind about them. And given Kate’s fondness of the boy, he’d have to find a way around his discomfort with children, too, if he had any hope of accomplishing the former.

****

The next morning, Edward awoke early and decided to go for a run to recharge his mind after another restless night of sleep. He slipped into sweats and headed toward the kitchen when he heard a noise by the front door. Kate was adjusting a hat on her head, and one quick glance at her clothes indicated she was going jogging as well.

“Good morning. I guess we both had the same idea,” Edward said, walking toward her.

She jumped. “Hi. Yes, I won’t be long.”

“If you give me a minute to grab a bottle of water, I’ll join you,” Edward said.

“I’m kind of in a hurry. There’s a spare key in the flowerpot so you can get in when you return. I gotta run.”

And that fast she disappeared out the door.

“I always yell at her for running alone this early in the morning. It’s too dark out,” Carmen called from the bottom of the stairs. “But what do I know, I’m only her mother.”

Edward followed Carmen into the kitchen.

“I offered to join her, but she was in a hurry to leave,” Edward said.

Carmen studied him and then opened the refrigerator and removed a bottle of water.

“It doesn’t take a genius to know where my Kate has gone. You can catch up to her. Turn right out of the house and go for around six blocks. There will be a cemetery on your left. It shouldn’t be hard to find her once you’re there.” Carmen thrust the water bottle into his hands.

A cemetery. Why would she jog in a cemetery?
There was more to the story than Kate going out for a run, and clearly Carmen wanted him to follow her. What was Kate up to? Well, there was only one way to find out. He clasped the bottle.

“Thanks, Carmen,” he said and headed toward the front door.

The biting cold December air hit him and he was grateful for the black knit cap he’d worn. He turned at the bottom of the stairs and headed in the direction Carmen told him. He didn’t like the thought of Kate out alone and quickened his pace.

At the end of the six blocks, he crossed the street and headed toward the cemetery. It was mostly dark, but the first hint of daylight teased at the horizon. He was going to throttle Kate for going out alone.

He followed one of the paths for several minutes. Up ahead on his left, a lone figure crouched down by a grave. Kate. Her head was down as though she were praying.

Edward stepped out from the shadows. “Your mother said I would find you here.”

He expected her to jump at the sound of his voice, but she didn’t.

“Why am I not surprised?” she said, rising. “Mama needs to mind her own business.”

She turned to face him, tears streaking her face. He frowned with concern.

“What’s wrong?” He removed a glove and ran a finger along her cheek to dry her tears.

His gaze moved past her to the grave over which they were standing. The name on the headstone read Anthony Joseph DiSilva, beloved son. The dates were June 1, 2007, to September 19, 2009. The name didn’t ring any bells.

“You wanted to know what’s been bothering me. Well, here it is.” She pointed to the grave, but her eyes never left his face. “Meet my son.”

Chapter Six

“Your son?” Edward repeated.

Kate brushed away the remaining tears with the back of her hand. “Yes, my son. Are you sure you want to hear this?”

He clasped one of her hands. “Tell me.”

She hated this. Hated explaining and reliving the memories. Hated that Edward may not understand and would judge her like others had or worse, feel sorry for her. But she couldn’t avoid him forever.

“Come, walk with me,” she said, pulling him away from the grave.

They strolled a few minutes in silence as she tried to collect her thoughts.

“I went to school with Mario DiSilva. My family has known his family since we were in kindergarten. He was my very first crush. We dated exclusively the second half of high school. After graduation, we both went off to college at St. Joe’s University. We married the year after graduation.”

Kate paused a moment and felt Edward squeeze her hand.

“The first couple years of our marriage were good. We both had decent jobs and were saving for a house. But after about two years, Mario got laid off. He struggled to find a job and spiraled into a major depression that led to him drinking. Then I got pregnant. It wasn’t the best timing, but we were both excited about the baby. Mario sobered up and started attending a culinary institute. Things were better for a while.”

“But they didn’t stay that way I take it?” Edward asked.

She shook her head. “No. Shortly after I gave birth to Tony things started going bad again. Tony had very bad colic and confused his days and nights. So while Mario was off learning to be a chef during the day, I tried to calm a fussy baby or slept. I was so grateful when Tony was sleeping that I didn’t even care that it was during the day. Mario would come home and expect a home-cooked meal and quiet. Then Tony would be up half the night screaming, which made it difficult for Mario to get sleep. Then we would fight, which just made Tony scream more.”

“That sounds frustrating for all of you.”

“That’s putting it mildly. I was a wreck the first three months of my son’s life. Some nights Mario would stay at his parents’ house just so he could get a full night’s sleep. Often my mother would come over after she finished working at the pizzeria to help me. She would let me sleep or bathe while she took care of Tony. She kept telling me that the colic wouldn’t last forever and I would forget his horrible first months.”

“And was she right?”

“Of course. Shortly after the three month mark everything started to click. Tony slept at night, although not through the night until he was almost nine months. It was much better, but by that time Mario had started drinking again. And sometimes he…” She paused.

“Sometimes he what?” Edward asked.

She stopped and turned to him. “Sometimes he would…smack me around.”

She stared at his chest, but not before seeing the horror and outrage that crossed his face.

“He beat you?” he all but roared.

“Yes,” she said in a whisper. Both embarrassed and uncomfortable at bearing her soul to him, she yanked her hand out of his and resumed walking at a quick pace.

“Kate, wait. Did you tell anyone?”

“Not for a long time. He was smart and never hit me in the face where anyone could see it. But I had bruises all over my body and even fractured some bones a few times. Eventually, my family figured it out. It’s pretty hard to explain why I wore long sleeves and pants in August. My brother Nick tried to get me to leave Mario, but I kept thinking it would get better. Each time Mario hit me, he’d cry and promise me it wouldn’t happen again. And I believed him because I wanted to. I was pathetic.”

“So what did you do? How did you get out?”

She fisted her hands at her side. “When Tony was two, I learned I was pregnant again. I was on the pill, but sometimes I’d forget to take it because I was so tired. When Mario found out, he flipped. He was still in culinary school and wasn’t doing well. I had gone back to work, but we had bills and his school to pay for. Money was tight.”

“Couldn’t you have asked for help?”

“I wanted to ask my parents for a loan, but the pig-headed Italian refused. Thankfully, I could breastfeed when Tony was an infant, because I don’t know what would have happened if we needed to buy formula in addition to diapers and all the other baby stuff we needed.”

She led him over to a bench and sat down.

“I’m a strong person, but being married to Mario sucked everything from me. He was jealous of my job and my success. It got to the point where I became afraid to tell him when I’d gotten a promotion because he’d somehow turn around and make it about him. He’d say I was trying to make him look bad, which was a crock since he was doing a bang up job of doing that himself.

“I became weak and completely overwhelmed with everything. I was afraid to ask for help because I was embarrassed about the abuse.”