The Legacy Tree: Chapter 10
Story continued from our Premiere Issue
Click here to view the last installment
It seemed that all Robyn did these days was work and argue. This time it was her mother.
“Robyn Erin Douglass, you are coming to dinner Friday night. You’ve been hiding away long enough!” Melanie exclaimed.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about! I’m not hiding from anything.” she responded hotly.
“If you are not on our doorstep by six-fifteen I will send your father to collect you.” Melanie threatened. “And you will sit and enjoy a nice evening with us.”
“I have to work late Friday night.” Robyn protested.
“No you don’t. I will call and confirm it with your boss if necessary.”
“Why are you bullying me?”
Melanie softened her voice. “Because I love you. Enough is enough, Robyn. I’m willing to give you a little slack, but you need to make some effort.”
“I’m not good company.”
“We’ll forgive you.”
****
Robyn stepped up to her parents’ front door, then hesitated. As she wavered, the door flew open and her father engulfed her in a hug. “Hi, Dad.” her voice was muffled against his shoulder and for an instant, she was fourteen and mourning Peanut’s death. Her father had held her like this when sobs had wracked her body at her loss.
“Hi, sweetie.” he greeted her. “It’s so good to see you.”
“You look nice.” she said, noting the pressed slacks and multicolored sweater.
“And you, as always, are beautiful.” he responded.
She gave him a small smile. “Thanks.” Scooting inside, she waited for him to close the door then walked with him into the family room. As she moved into the room, she spotted her mother. “Hi, Mom.”
“Hello, darling.”
Glancing past her mother, Robyn stopped short. A tall, darkhaired man stood just behind the couch with a glass in his hands. For a nanosecond, she panicked, thinking it was Erik. But no, this man looked just a little older, and was broader in the chest. When she finally met his gaze, she noted his square jaw and warm smile.
“Robyn, this is Jake.” Melanie introduced them. “I’m doing some work for him and he stopped by to see how it was going. I asked him to stay for dinner.”
Robyn’s eyes flew to her mother’s face. She opened her mouth to protest, but her mother’s glare stopped her.
“Jake, this is our daughter, Robyn.” Melanie continued. “Would you like a drink, darling?”
Jake strode around the couch and reached out to shake Robyn’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Hello.”
“Robyn, some wine?”
“Sure.” she answered her father.
“Jake, refill?”
“No, thanks, Tony. I’m set.” Jake held up his half-filled glass.
Robyn accepted the blush wine from her father, then she slipped onto a flower-covered chair.
“Jake owns a construction company.” Melanie told her daughter.
Nodding, Robyn sipped her wine and seethed quietly. This was an old-fashioned straight-out setup.
“Robyn does web design.” Melanie spoke to Jake this time.
“How interesting.” Jake took the bait and looked over at Robyn. “Do you enjoy it?”
“It’s technical and creative, which gives me a lot of variety.” Robyn answered blandly.
He nodded in agreement. “I can understand that. It’s exactly why I spend at least six months on job sites so I don’t die of boredom doing paperwork in an office.”
Melanie filled in when they both fell silent. “That must be how you keep in such good shape, Jake.”
“Staying active all year is the best way to stay in shape.” He smiled charmingly at Robyn. “Your mother mentioned that you like to hike.”
“When I can find the time.”
Frowning at her daughter, Melanie stood. “I believe dinner is ready. Tony, why don’t you come help me while Jake and Robyn go sit at the table.”
With an apologetic look at his daughter, Tony followed his wife into the kitchen.
Sighing inwardly, Robyn stood and preceded Jake into the dining room. She saw that he hurried to hold out her chair for her. “Thank you.” she murmured.
Melanie and Tony reappeared with several serving platters.
“Did Jake tell you he has a house on a nice piece of land in Frederick?” Melanie asked as she passed Robyn the plate of roast beef.
“Right near the Sugar Loaf mountains.” he confirmed.
“With dogs, right?”
Robyn peeked at her mother from under lowered lashes. This was quite a sales job.
“Two dogs. I also have two horses and board a few more for friends.” he accepted a bowl of roasted potatoes from Tony.
“However do you have time to work?” Robyn asked sweetly. She immediately blushed when her mother frowned harder at her.
Jake seemed to take the ribbing in stride. “I don’t sleep very much.” he laughed. “And I have some part-time help with the horses.”
“It sounds lovely.” Melanie told him.
Jake made eye contact with Robyn. “I’d love to take you horseback riding through the woods sometime.”
She blinked at his blatant offer. “That’s very generous of you.” was her noncommittal answer.
Melanie gave them both a bright smile, then moved on to explain the projects she was currently working on.
****
Shortly after having coffee in the family room, Jake announced that he had to get going.
“Robyn, why don’t you walk Jake out while your father and I clean up in here.” Melanie prompted.
Robyn dutifully stood and trailed Jake to the foyer.
He turned to face her at the front door. “I meant what I said. If you’re free this weekend to come out with me…”
“Thank you for the offer.” she told him. “But I’m pretty booked this weekend.”
Nodding, he pulled a business card from his pocket and handed it to her. “If you change your mind at any time, just give me a call. I always have my cell phone on me.”
She accepted the card. “It was nice to meet you.” she said politely.
“I hope to hear from you soon.” he said gently before exiting.
Robyn watched him lope casually down the sidewalk to his truck. With a quiet ‘snick’, she closed the front door.
Almost immediately, her mother appeared. “He’s a nice man.”
“Could you have been a little more subtle, Mother?”
Melanie grimaced at the sarcasm in her daughter’s voice. “I’m assuming that your prior relationship is no longer…and Jake is a handsome, single, young man. Can you blame me?”
“I’m sure he’s very nice, but he’s not for me.”
“You don’t have to marry him, Robyn! I just thought he could give you some companionship.” Melanie huffed before leaving her alone in the foyer.
Robyn stood silently for a moment. What was wrong with her? Jake was a nice guy, so why wasn’t she more interested? Had Erik ruined her for other men? He wasn’t part of her life anymore…if only she could convince him of that, then maybe she could convince herself.
Wait, maybe Jake had come into her life for a reason. She could use him as a wake up call. For Erik.
****
Late Friday evening, Erik sat on his bed, propped up against his headboard. He wanted to call her, but it was late…and their last conversation had not ended well. But damn, he needed to hear her voice.
Grunting, he picked up the phone and dialed.
“Hello?”
|
He clenched his jaw at the breathless way she answered the phone. “Hi.”
“Erik…it’s late.”
Had he caught her in bed? Would she be sleeping in that little tee shirt and shorts set like when they were together? Or maybe, please!, she was now sleeping in his missing gray shirt. His heart skipped a beat. “I’m sorry, did I wake you?”
“No. I was at my parents’ house for dinner and only got home about twenty minutes ago.”
She sounded like she was smiling. “Good dinner?” he asked.
“It was great fun. Mom had invited a client to join us and we got along famously.” she bubbled.
“Really?” He pictured an older woman with lots of expensive jewelry and humorous eyes.
“Oh yeah! Jake’s wonderful.”
Jake? Okay, maybe an older man with expensive Italian shoes and humorous eyes. “What did you guys talk about?”
“Jake has a great piece of property up in the mountains. He’s got a couple of dogs and some horses.” she told him.
There went the Italian shoes. “Is he a farmer?”
Giggling, she went on. “Oh, no! He owns his own construction company. And at such a young age!”
Erik felt his stomach clench. He didn’t want to hear any more. Before he could stop or sidetrack her, she broke his heart.
“We’re going horseback riding tomorrow.”
Letting out a gush of air, he tried not to alert her to his crumbling heart. “Oh?”
“I can’t believe someone just a few years older than me owns his own company. And Mom said he’s very successful.” Robyn enthused. “I’m really looking forward to seeing his house and his property. He loves to hike and says there are tons of areas to explore around his place.”
“Sounds like you’ll have a fun day.” he choked out.
“I’m glad you called…but I’m gonna scoot. I have to be up early because Jake is coming to pick me up.” she giggled again. “I’ll let you know how it goes!”
He cringed at her sing-song voice. “Have a good time.”
“Good night, Erik.” she chirped before hanging up.
Erik clicked the off button on his phone, then rested his head against the cushioned headboard. If she hadn’t been so gung-ho, he would have assumed that she was looking forward to spending the day with a good friend. But the smile in her voice and the breathless way she had spoken the man’s name made him think this was more than a casual day with a friend.
In the past, she had told him all about her dates and steady boyfriends. He guessed he should be pleased that Robyn still trusted him enough to share with him…but it wasn’t really what he wanted anymore. How could he compete? This…Jake…he was right there and Erik was hundreds of miles away. He was worried and she hadn’t even gone on a date with Jake yet. Maybe, he thought, she would have a terrible time. Yeah, he would call her tomorrow night and commiserate with her on a bad first date. If she was going early, she was bound to be home relatively early.
****
She wasn’t home. It was eleven thirty and she wasn’t home yet. What if something had happened? What if she had been thrown from a horse? What if good old Jake had just plum refused to take her home?
He spiked a hand through his hair and paced the length of his living room. Where was she? Grabbing up the phone, he dialed her house again.
****
Robyn pulled her pillow up over her ears to drown out the ringing of the telephone. This had to be the tenth time he had called, though she had stopped counting at seven. Actually, she was surprised that Erik hadn’t started calling until close to nine o’clock.
She had spent the day cleaning her basement so she was exhausted. But every time her eyes drifted shut, the phone woke her. Deciding it was time to end this, she snatched up the phone.
“Hello?” she called breathlessly.
“Robyn!”
“Oh, hi.” she purposefully did not say his name. “I just walked in.”
“Are you all right?”
Lowering her voice, she tried to act nonchalant. “Sure.”
“You’ve been out all this time?”
“Sure have.” she paused. “Look, can I talk to you tomorrow?”
“What?”
She could hear the disappointment in his voice. “I just got home…I heard the phone ringing from outside.” When he didn’t respond, she cleared her throat, whispered, ‘Be right there…’ away from the phone mouthpiece, then spoke more clearly into the phone. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Good night, uh…” she trailed off.
“Good night, Robyn.” he said softly.
She clucked her tongue into the phone, then hung up. It was so hard to lie to him. How much longer would she have to do this? Pretending that there was a new and exciting man in her life? She would have to be creative and hope that Erik would get discouraged quickly.
****
“It was just great.” Robyn said into the phone in a happy voice. “The mountain air is so crisp and the trails are easy to hike side-byside.”
“You had a good time?” Erik asked dully.
“Absolutely.”
“What about work? I thought you were working overtime to hold onto your job.” Or at least that’s what she had told him several weeks ago. He remembered the crushing disappointment he’d felt when she told him she had no time to see him over a weekend.
“Jake’s been so great…he’s turned me on to a whole new industry and he’s passed my name along to a lot of his colleagues.” she rambled on. “So not only am I working on a new site for Jake’s company, but I have several other companies I can talk to.”
“That’s great.” Just great, he thought. Jake is such a great guy…solving her problems, filling her weekends…filling her bed? The thought made him suck in a gasp of air and concentrate on not throwing up.
“He’s so sweet…he always comes to pick me up so I don’t have to drive my car up into the mountains.” she laughed loudly. “He swears he doesn’t want to set foot in my little car…but I’m going to get him in there! He’s a big guy, but I’m sure he’ll fit.”
Erik knew it was wrong of him, but he jumped in anyway. “He complains about your car? Sheesh, he doesn’t even trust you to drive it to his house?”
She tsked at him. “It’s not like that at all, Erik. He makes me feel cared for.”
His heart fell. “I see.”
“Don’t worry, Jake knows I can take care of myself.”
“I should hope so. If he’s looking for the good little domestic woman, he’s got the wrong gal.” Erik laughed snidely.
Sighing loudly, Robyn took the next step in her plan. “Well, guess what?”
“What?”
“Jake’s taking me fishing.”
He was silent for a moment. “Isn’t it a little cold to be fishing?”
“Actually, Jake has a little cabin and a boat in South Carolina that he shares with some friends. We’re going to take a long weekend and drive down.” she injected a healthy dose of enthusiasm into her voice.
They would be sharing a ‘little cabin’? “Oh, meeting his friends, huh?”
“Um, no, it will just be the two of us.” she murmured.
“You don’t know how to fish!” he exclaimed, grasping at anything that might change her mind.
“No one has ever offered to teach me. Until now.” she finished softly.
That was it…she had completely fractured his heart. He wished now that he had forced her to discuss their own budding relationship months ago. But he hadn’t and now he would live to regret it. “When do you go?”
“We’re leaving Friday.” |
