Chapter 3
As a little girl, when Sophy had been frightened by a bad dream or been sure there was a monster in her closet, she had always gone to Julia because Julia’s room was the closest to hers. Julia, then, would either let her crawl into bed with her or walk Sophy back down to her bedroom. She’d flick on the light, open the closet door, and show Sophy nothing was in there but clothes and toys.
Despite Julia’s pragmatic personality, apparent even as a young child, she had never laughed at Sophy’s fears. Instead, she’d done all she could to alleviate them with facts.
“Okay, Sophia Paige? Nothing in there but shoes and dresses.” Julia would push the clothes out of the way to show her little sister the back wall. “See, Sophia Paige?” And when facts wouldn’t work, she’d tell a sweet lie. “No back door for monsters,” she’d yawn. “Daddy made sure. No monster holes anywhere in the house.” And if Sophy still wasn’t convinced, then Julia would let Sophy come back to bed with her.
So it was tonight. Waking frightened from a half remembered dream, she lay in the dark breathing deeply, trying to slow her racing heart. Knowing she wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep, Sophy threw back the covers and padded out of her room, down the hall a few feet. She needed that comfort tonight. She did not bother knocking before entering Julia’s room. She felt her way to the bed and climbed under the covers, trying not to wake her sister.
“Wait, Sofe, Ellie’s in here too. We’ll all have to move over a bit,” Julia mumbled. After her graduation from veterinary school, Julia had treated herself to a king size bed, saying with a laugh that back-breaking work deserved a bank-breaking bed.
“What are you doing in here, Ellie?” Sophy asked snuggling down under the comforter. It smelled like baby powder. Sophy’s eyes filled with tears. It smelled like her mother.
“Nightmare,” Ellie whispered, moving a little to one side so that Sophy could have some of the pillow. Ellie snuggled into her and was comforted by the nearness of her sisters.
“Me too.” Sophy sniffled, and Julia handed her a tissue in the dark. Well, since it was dark, it was more like she shoved it in Sophy’s face. It made all of them giggle. “Thanks.”
“Do you suppose Jack and the boys are together in one of their beds?” Ellie murmured, sleep in her voice but a laugh in her tone.
“I remember Jack and you used to get in with Carter since his room was closer to yours. I don’t know about Sebastian, but Griffin would tough out any fears all on his own,” Julia said, coming more fully awake. She was grateful for the company, even if she did feel like a damned girl admitting it; having her sisters near always helped to ground her, to remind her of what was truly important in life. Things seemed so out of control right now; it was nice to have something normal happen. “Always had more courage than brains, that one.”
“Hey, I resemble that remark,” Griffin said in mock hurt from the doorway.
“Sure an’ it’s looking like The Sound of Music in here,” Jack said, his head popping up next to Griffin’s. “All we need now is a thunderstorm and a singing nun nanny.” He didn’t wait for an invitation, just climbed onto the foot of the bed and cozied himself against the foot board.
Julia reached over and slapped on the bedside lamp. “Three girls is hard enough. How in the shaggin’ hell do you expect to fit all the rest of you in here?” she muttered, using her mother’s favorite Irish swear.
“Easy, Jules,” Sebastian called from the hallway. “Carter and I brought our own bed. Now move your lazy ass, Grif, and let us in.”
They muscled another king size mattress in and dropped it to the floor with a loud thud. “How’s a body supposed to get any sleep with all this ruckus?” Julia growled, enjoying every minute of it.
Carter smiled. “You’re not. Be right back.” He and Sebastian disappeared into the hall but were back moments later, each carrying two twelve packs.
“Sleep is for pansies,” he announced. “Tonight we drink.” Carter sat down and opened a case.
“You only brought beer?” Jack complained. “Where’s the hard stuff?”
“We don’t want to be hung over tomorrow. Besides, little man,” Carter quipped, “you know you can’t hold your liquor.” Sophy sniggered. Jack was six three if he was an inch, but since Carter still had him by a good two inches, Carter naturally used it to his advantage any chance he had.
“The hell I can’t,” Jack grumbled good-naturedly, reaching for the bottle Sebastian offered him.
Sophy took the beer handed her eagerly. Conversation drifted from the stable to Sebastian’s new book to medical school, and Sophy just sat back and listened. Despite everything, she was glad she was home. She had needed to come home for awhile, but she’d put it off, thinking she had plenty of time to see her parents, to loaf on the couch while her mother played the piano and her daddy tapped the beat.
As the beer continued to be passed around, Sophy felt her tongue loosen. There was a slight lull as one of her brothers fumbled opening another case, and figuring now was as good a time as any, and since Adam was sleeping safely in New York, she announced, “I have something to tell you.” All eyes turned expectantly, quizzically, to her, and she smiled a little. “No more bad news, so don’t worry about that. I just wanted to tell you that after the funeral, I’m going to call off the wedding.”
Griffin fumbled his drink and spilled beer on his t-shirt. “That’s not bad news?”
Julia looked at her little sister thoughtfully. “No, I can see it makes her very happy. Tell us what’s going on.”
“I can’t really pinpoint it,” Sophy began. “Anytime I started thinking about actually going through with the wedding, I’d have almost a panic attack. I tried to convince myself it was just nerves, but it finally occurred to me that I just don’t feel strongly enough about him to marry him, and you know Mama didn’t much care for him.” She paused before dropping the real bombshell. “And I think he’s more interested in my name and money than in me.”
There it was. It was all out on the table. Despite everything, Sophy felt better than she had in days. She took another pull from her third, or maybe it was her fourth, beer. Her head had that funny, swimmy feel to it. When she turned her head, her vision had trouble keeping up. She decided she liked the blurring. It was like having a Monet painting in her head.
Ellie hugged her tightly. “And he didn’t turn you on.” Sophy elbowed her in the ribs.
“That is not stuff brothers need to hear, Elinor. What happened to sister solidarity?” Sophy felt the heat in her cheeks as Ellie snickered and chugged the rest of her beer.
“Happily, it appears to be nonexistent,” Sebastian said.
Jack handed Ellie another and clinked her bottle in a toast. “Good going, Elinor. Sophia Paige’s been holding out on us.”
“And on Adam,” Griffin added smartly. Sophy gave him a dirty look while her siblings laughed.
“So what’s with keeping us in the dark?” Jack admonished her lightly.
“I hardly thought that would be an appropriate topic of conversation. Where does it fit into the dinner chit chat? ‘Pass the potatoes, Adam doesn’t make me hot?’”
“Do tell, Sophia Paige,” Julia said with obvious interest. “I’m in a bit of a dry spell myself.” She thought intently of a certain next door neighbor with dark eyes and wide, calloused hands.
“Dry spell, ha,” Carter laughed. Living with her, he was well aware—as she was with him—that the action had been slow lately. “It’s been so long, Julia wouldn’t remember what to do with a guy even if there were one available.” Julia stuck her tongue out at him then ruined the effect by nodding in rueful agreement.
“But just because I don’t pick up bimbos at bars doesn’t make me forgetful, Carter. It makes me classy.” She knocked Ellie’s empty against her own, signaling for more.
Griffin handed one over and saluted. He was the mediator of the family, and to his way of thinking, the more beer, the better. Whittakers were happy drunks.
Carter laughed again, tossed his gorgeous dark hair out of his eyes. “Touché. I love women. All women. Makes no difference to me whether I meet them at a bar or at church. I’m a lover not a fighter.”
“You’re a something all right,” Sebastian murmured, making them all laugh.
“Why, yes,” Julia began, “I believe the phrase is man-wh—”
Griffin interrupted pleasantly. “We all know what phrase comes to mind.”
That was another thing Sophy loved about her family. There was nothing she couldn’t tell them, even her brothers. While they liked to tease their sisters about their boyfriends or…whatever, they had no problem with their sisters being full-grown, and acknowledged that as beautiful as the sisters were, they were bound for a life of carnality. It was a joke among them, really, because the girls felt the same way about their brothers.
“Back to you, Sophy,” Julia said, taking control of the conversation again. “Give up the dirt.”
“I don’t have anything to tell, really. I just never could bring myself to do more than some heavy-duty making out.” Okay, well, that was embarrassing, she thought, given her brothers’ reputations. Maybe she should censor her tongue around her siblings. Another beer persuaded her otherwise.
“All of this time, and that’s it?” Carter said with the disbelief of a man who had never had to wait for sex. “No wonder you’re calling it off. The real wonder is that he isn’t.”
Sophy giggled, quite foxed now. “I told him I had religious beliefs that prohibited carnal knowledge before certain vows were taken.”
“You didn’t!” Ellie and Julia gasped in unison. Her brothers burst out laughing.
“And he believed you?” Sebastian asked, also unaccustomed to having a woman say no.
“He most certainly did. We are Catholic, you’ll remember. And what was he going to do? Accuse me of lying?” Sophy bit her lip thoughtfully. “But I suppose I do believe that to a certain extent. I mean, I wouldn’t have sex with anyone I wouldn’t at least consider marrying.”
“Hardly the same thing,” Sebastian noted dryly. “You did consider marrying him, after all.”
“Oh shut up, you damn womanizer,” Sophy retorted, throwing a pillow at him.
Sebastian finished off his beer, denying, “Carter’s the womanizer, not me.”
“A womanizer is someone who uses women only for his own pleasure and tosses them aside when he’s done.” A chorus of groans met that declaration, but he continued, “I, on the other hand, give as much as I receive—”
Julia made a gagging noise. “Shut up!”
“And I have never tossed anyone aside. I just move on before any one of them gets attached so’s I can continue spreading the love throughout the South,” Carter finished, confident he was telling the truth.
Sophy’s eyes met Julia’s. Then they both threw pillows at him. Catching them neatly, Carter tossed one to Jack and Griffin and settled down on the mattress.
“Sounds like a rationalization to me,” Ellie replied. “Good ol’ Catholic guilt forcing you to turn your bad behavior into a charitable mission.”
“And that way, he makes sure none of them sticks to him,” Jack murmured, earning agreement from all corners.
“Point, set and match. Night, y’all,” Carter laughed, and they finally settled down to sleep.
Chapter 4
“Honey? We’re finally here. Kayla managed to clear my schedule for next week too, just in case you needed me.”
Sophy looked to the statuesque blonde standing beside Adam. Part Amazon, part cheerleader, Kayla exuded a confidence that had nothing to do with arrogance and everything to do with ability. Sophy knew from personal experience what a wonderful assistant she made. When it came to keeping Adam organized, Sophy gave Kayla top marks. The woman was a dervish about keeping things orderly. She possessed a great wit and a discerning eye for theatre, not to mention a sense of timing that couldn’t be beat. Sophy had had several lovely salary offers bump up drastically because Kayla had laid a restraining hand on Adam’s elbow. Sophy would be very surprised if Kayla didn’t throw her hat into the producer’s ring very soon. She had obviously been born for that world.
“Kayla,” Sophy said warmly, tiredly, as they leaned toward one another for an air kiss. “Thank you for coming down. I know this isn’t exactly 5th Avenue or the best circumstances.”
“Are you kidding?” Kayla said gently. “You know you’re like family to me.” Then she gestured toward the gracious hallway in which they stood. “You have a beautiful home, Sophy.”
“Thank you. I’m partial to it.” Taking the handle of Kayla’s suitcase, Sophy said, “Let’s get you settled in. I hate to tell you, but we’re currently in-between housekeepers right now. My brother and sister tend to scare them off before a week’s out, and I just haven’t had the opportunity to hire another. That being said,” Sophy gestured toward the kitchen, just visible from where they were climbing, “you are more than welcome to anything you can find to eat or drink. We keep the pantry and liquor cabinets fully stocked. Just make yourself at home.”
Gideon watched from the doorway of the living room as Adam let Sophy handle the busty blonde’s baggage. What a jackass, he thought to himself in disgust. Sophy handled it just fine, though, apparently having no trouble getting the bulky case up the steps. Deciding it would embarrass Sophy if he went and carried the damn thing up himself, he sighed and turned back to whatever Sebastian was saying.
Sophy opened the door to a lushly appointed guest room. “All right. This is all you. I’m just down the hall if you need anything, but you’ve your own bathroom, and hopefully all of the comforts from home. If you need anything and can’t find me or Adam, just ask anyone. They’ll either be one of my family, or the next best thing.”
Kayla smiled at Sophy. “Thank you. I think I’m going to lie down for awhile. The flight gave me a killer headache.”
“I understand that. There should be Advil and Tylenol behind your bathroom mirror, if you haven’t anything of your own. Feel free.” Sophy shut the door behind her and walked with Adam down the hall.
“You holding up?” he asked.
When would the pain ease? she wondered. “I’m doing okay. I’m glad that I can be home for awhile. I’ve been needing to come back.” Chin trembling, she said, “Oh, Adam, why did I have to wait so long before coming home?” His arms slid around her, and she went into them easily, all her previous doubts about him forgotten.
“Oh, darling, that’s hindsight. It’s a mistake we all make—thinking we have more time than we really do.”
“I guess so,” she said, her guilt still fresh and strong.
He pressed a light kiss to her forehead and then released her. “It’ll be fine. You’ll see.” She nodded and wiped at the wetness on her cheeks. Adam glanced around. “I’ve got to do some paperwork, so I think I’m going to head down to the library. Do you think Carter would mind?”
“No, it’s fine. He’s not in there today. He’s taking—” but she didn’t have to bother finishing her sentence because Adam was already on his way downstairs.
“Unbelievable,” Sophy said to herself, disgusted that in a moment of weakness she had forgotten the number one reason she wasn’t going to marry him—he didn’t care about her.
Oh, he cared about her voice, her health, her looks, sure, because they were his bread and butter. But despite everything, despite how thoughtful he appeared to be, on the morning of her parents’ wake, he had left her crying on the stairs. Classic.
Turning on her heel, she decided she would take a page from Kayla’s book and have a much needed nap.
“I know Mr. Wynfield means well, Griffin, but if I have to talk to him one more time, we’re burying them beneath the gardenias, and that’s it.” Sophy stood in front of her childhood dresser, fastening a pair of black pearl earrings. She handed Griffin the matching double strand necklace. “Could you—?”
Standing behind her, Griffin tried to work the delicate clasp. “I know you’re frustrated, Sophia, but the man’s just trying to do his job.”
“I know that. But you tell him that we don’t want the burial any earlier. We’ve got Mass at ten. If Mass is at ten, how could they be buried at nine?” She met his eyes in the mirror. “Please. For whatever reason, he seems to think the fact that I have breasts makes me an idiot. Tell him this is nonnegotiable. If he balks, tell him that we will kindly pay his fee and take our parents somewhere else. And,” she shook her finger at him, “he doesn’t come back here tonight to get them until ten. By ten, please remind him that I don’t mean a quarter ’til.”
The funeral director seemed to have his own ideas about how the funeral was going to play out, and he and Sophy had been butting heads for the last three days. For whatever reason, the man’s professionalism seemed to have deserted him.
She was pissed, Griffin thought before letting out a hiss of satisfaction when he finally made the lobster catch work. The whole situation was kind of funny. He knew Sophy didn’t think it was, however, so he went ahead and placated her. That was all she really wanted anyhow. “I’ll take care of him.”
“You better do more than that,” Sophy threatened, but then relenting, added, “Please make sure he stays away from me.”
Her big brother squeezed her shoulders lightly. “You got it.”
“The canapés are ready,” Julia said quietly, sticking her head in the door. “I can’t believe I just said that. I don’t even know what the hell a canapé is.”
“I think it’s hors d’oeuvres,” Griffin said helpfully, now fastening a bracelet for Sophy.
Julia shot him a nasty look. “Looks like Encyclopedia Brown has taken up residence.”
“Having trouble with the caterer?” Sophy asked, irritated that she had to intervene before it became a real fight. Julia had been even more prickly that usual today, understandably so. And if Sophy knew Griffin, and she was sure she did, he’d be more than willing to oblige Julia with a good, rollicking fight. He would see it as his duty, and Sophy didn’t feel like playing referee
anymore.
“Yeah. No.” Julia sighed. “Actually, everything’s done. I don’t know why I’m complaining. Now we just wait for the people to come.” Julia stepped out of the doorway so Griffin could slip out to call the wayward funeral director.
“As if they haven’t already been here all hours of the day since it happened,” Sophy muttered, almost jabbing the mascara wand in her eye with her vehemence.
Julia took the wand from her sister and calmly applied it for Sophy. “Hey, I know this is a dumb question, but are you okay? You’re starting to sound like me in the I-hate-people department.” With a brisk movement, she dipped the wand back in the tube and then applied some to her own lashes.
“I love people. I really do, but I am so tired of them right now. I would not mind living on a desert island by myself for the next six months.” With a conscious effort to shake off the spiteful mood Sophy felt encroaching, she applied some extra blush to Julia’s classic cheekbones and asked, “Nathan here yet?”
“Thankfully, yes. He came over with the rest of the Westmorelands about half an hour ago.” In a very unlike-Julia moment, she said, “How’d we get so lucky as to have them for our best friends?” Nathan and Julia had been attached at the hip, practically since birth.
“We must have done something good,” Sophy murmured. She put down the brush and fixed the drape at Julia’s neck. “You look so beautiful.”
Julia smiled wryly. “It’s the dress. I have it in red, white, and what the saleswoman assured me was known as ‘midnight.’ Now all of my special occasions are covered.”
“No,” Sophy countered. “It’s you. You’ve managed to get through the past several days so gracefully. You’ve even been nice to the well-wishers. Mean to us, mind you, but nice to everyone else.”
“I’ve been nice because Mama would have wanted me too. Otherwise, my foot would have been so far up their asses—” Julia trailed off. That brought a real laugh to Sophy.
“It’s nice to hear you laugh again.” Julia hugged Sophy tight for a moment then released her. The giant grandfather clock chimed the hour. “We better go make sure Carter remembered to actually dress for this. I don’t want to find him in his drawers in the study with a beer. If I’m dressed up, then by God, so is he.”
Pulling her door shut, Sophy descended the stairs behind Julia. Visitors had begun arriving. The Westmoreland clan, as Julia had said, was already there; Josie, Bobby, Carson, and Gillian were directing traffic and taking coats. Faith pressed a glass of wine into Sophy’s hand as Sophy automatically scanned the room to see who was there. Carter, fully dressed, thank God, was standing with Gideon, both with a Guinness in hand.
“Your mother would have liked this,” Faith murmured, reminding Sophy that this part of death wasn’t about the living.
“Yeah? I hope so. I’d hate to find out all this could have been skipped.” Sophy took a sip of the chilled wine, then, deciding what the hell?, tossed the rest back quickly. Maybe it would help.
“That would suck,” Faith agreed, taking the empty wine glass and replacing it with another. She would monitor Sophy carefully tonight, but right now, the woman definitely needed to loosen up. “Look, there’s Nathan.” Faith nodded her head in Julia’s direction. His arm was slung casually about her shoulders in easy affection and whatever he was saying was making her smile. Nathan, she knew, had been as much a rock for Julia as Gideon had been for Carter. Sophy felt a lump rise in her throat. She turned to her friend.
“Faith, thank you so much for everything. I don’t think we could have made it through this without you.”
“You would do the same thing for us.” Sudden tears stood in Faith’s eyes. “Hell, you’ve done the same thing for us. We love you.” When Sophy looked like she was about to break, Faith said gently, “Hey. I’ve been through something like this before, and if I can do it, so can you, honey. Drink your wine. This is an Irish wake, after all.”
With a watery smile, Sophy followed orders.
The mourners were everywhere, Sophy thought later, exhausted. You couldn’t go anywhere without people stopping you, touching your arm, telling you how sorry they were. She appreciated their concern but wasn’t touched by it. Sure, she knew she wasn’t the only one in the world to lose her parents, but that thought offered no comfort. She was thisclose to screaming, “Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” to the next person who offered his sympathies.
One unexpected relief came in the form of Kayla. She had done a superb job fielding the press which had set up camp practically in the front yard. She and Griffin had put together a statement for them. Sebastian hadn’t been able to charm them into leaving, but at least the three of them had gotten the press off their backs for awhile.
The strong smell of lilies brought Sophy back, recalled her to what was presently occurring. Wakes were funny things in her mind. A sort of necessary evil for the family of the dead. The living came to laugh and to remember while the dead lay there, cold and unfeeling.
It creeped Sophy out. Her parents lay in the living room, and across the hall in the dining room, a long table was heavily burdened with food. People were milling around, eating mini-wieners on toothpicks, drinking punch or wine or beer, and talking quietly to one another. Some were laughing as they told stories of David and Elizabeth. Others were just catching up with each other. Her mother, as Irish as Jameson whiskey would have approved of what was going on, but it was just too much for Sophia.
“Ellie, I’m going to go lay down for awhile. I’ll have Grif come spell you, okay?”
Ellie, blue eyes identical to Sophy’s, smiled luminously. “That’s fine, Sofe. You okay?”
“I have a bit of headache,” she lied. It was more like a migraine. Too much wine, maybe. She squeezed Ellie’s hand and went looking for Griffin.
“Hey, darlin’.” Griffin came around the corner like a godsend. He was so handsome, she thought. His dark hair—no surprise there, all of them were dark—gleamed in the recessed lighting, and his shirt was still crisp. As usual, he looked like he had just stepped out of the pages of GQ.
“I’m going to lie down. I think Ellie might need rescuing from Mrs. Myrtle,” she said, pressing a hand to her temple.
“No problem,” he said, flashing dimples that had broken hearts across the state. “I’ll go get her.” He stopped her with a light hand to her shoulder. “They’ll be leaving soon.”
“Thankfully.” Sophy wondered vaguely where Adam had taken himself off to, but she was too upset to wonder for long. Still rubbing her temple, she climbed the grand staircase and made her way quickly to the room which had always been her sanctuary, the room where she had discovered Broadway musicals and her vocation.
Sophy strode in, anxious to lie down for a few minutes. Her eyes did not have time to adjust to the dark before she heard the tell-tale sounds coming from her bed. She flicked the light switch.
“Sophy!” Kayla gasped. Adam glanced over without stopping.
He didn’t stop.
Sophy stood there, nonplussed for a moment before turning on her heel and walking out calmly. Finding Sebastian and Carter at the top of the stairs, she murmured, “Would you kindly throw him the hell out of my room and out of our house?” Judging from her expression, they knew exactly who she was talking about and exactly what had happened.
“No problem, Sophia,” Sebastian said, his jaw tight. Carter nodded grimly, and they made their way down the hall to her room.
She couldn’t believe it. Her brain was reeling. She gave no thought to the guests, no thought to the scandal or even the humiliation. She only wanted him out, out of her home, out of her state, out of her goddamned life.
And she wanted all of that now.
The shocked whispering of the mourners reached her other brothers and sisters, and they were at her side moments later. Ellie grabbed her hand fiercely, knowing she needed to say nothing at all.
The look on Adam’s face as Sebastian and Carter carried him out of the room, down the stairs, and out the door, naked, was priceless. Kayla hurried after him a few moments later. Her brothers, ever the gentlemen, had allowed her the time to dress. Sophy wondered if there had a been a time limit attached to the condition, considering how Kayla’s blouse was only held shut by two buttons, and her hose trailed over her shoulder as she rushed out.
“Obviously, Kayla there didn’t have the same compunctions about copulating before marriage as you did, Sophia Paige,” Jack whispered, his arm deceptively loose around his sister’s shoulders.
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