She sighed, suddenly feeling guilty for breaking the tentative truce between the two of them. What would it hurt, spending an hour at most with him? For charity. “I can’t just leave, that’s all. My after-school help doesn’t get here until three thirty.”
There was a pause. “I could wait and go then.”
He was making a concession. An effort. And he was doing a good thing, so why was she fighting it so hard?
“Swing by and pick me up at quarter to four,” she said heavily.
“Forget it.”
She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Rick, let’s not make this into an argument. You want me to go and I’m going. Let’s just leave it, okay?”
There was a long silence. The clacking of dishes and cutlery was gone and she assumed he’d gone outside.
“Fine. I’ll see you later,” he muttered, and then clicked off without saying good-bye.
She would not let him get to her.
At precisely 3:45, Jess hooked her handbag on her shoulder and waved to Tessa as she left the store. When she got down the boarded walkway that Tom had built for her, she discovered Rick in his truck parked along the street, tapping his fingers impatiently against the steering wheel.
She hopped in and pasted on a smile, determined to start the drive on the right foot. “Hi. Again.”
His fingers stopped tapping. “Hey.”
He pulled away from the curb and at the next intersection, turned left onto Main and continued until they hit the exit to the highway, all without saying a word. If traffic stayed light, they’d reach the shelter in thirty, thirty-five minutes tops.
Over an hour when all was said and done. It would be the longest she’d spent with him since high school and even then they’d rarely been alone. Considering his apparent lack of conversational skills, an hour was going to feel like a lifetime.
“So,” she began uneasily. “You went through some of Roberta’s things.”
“I’m thinking of moving in.” He stared straight ahead. “No sense putting it off, really. Going through her clothes, I mean.”
“People grieve in their own time. I don’t think anyone should be held to certain rules, you know? If you felt like doing it, then it was clearly the right time.”
His shoulders relaxed a little. “At first I thought about putting the house up for sale.”
Jess considered the cute two-story house. Situated on one of Jewell Cove’s side streets, it had a splendid birch tree out front and a profusion of perennials—forsythia in spring, rhododendrons and lilacs, cosmos and phlox. She’d always thought Roberta’s house looked like something out of a magazine or book. “I’m assuming your mom kept it in primo shape,” she mused. “I bet it wouldn’t be on the market long.” In fact it would be perfect for a family. She could easily imagine a swing set in the backyard. A dog to fetch sticks or a tennis ball. A perfect family life for a perfect family.
“She d
id, until the last year or so when she started feeling tired and then was diagnosed.” Rick’s voice was tight, as if talking about it physically hurt. “But it won’t take long to fix up what fell behind.”
Jess studied his profile. His dark hair was a bit longer now that the jarhead look was gone, and curled slightly at his T-shirt collar. His eyes were dark brown, and his face was angular … at times it seemed harsh and unrelenting, especially when he had a shadow of stubble on it. Like now, when he clenched his jaw. His words were easily spoken but his face told the truth. He was hurting, and hurting badly.
“I’m so sorry, Rick. I didn’t mean to be insensitive.” She paused, and then carefully asked, “What about your dad? Have you contacted him? I mean, now that your mom is gone…”
He shook his head quickly. “You weren’t being insensitive,” he assured her. “And as far as my dad…” He hesitated, then let out a breath. “I haven’t spoken to him in years. And I don’t plan to either.”
The harsh tone was startling and she stared at him. “But … he’s your father. I mean, I know he left you and your mom, but so much time has passed. Surely it wouldn’t hurt to get in touch.”
Rick’s eyes blazed as he looked over at her. “He left and hasn’t bothered to stay in touch, ask about me, even pay any child support to my mom. I don’t owe him anything.”
She understood his anger, but family was important. Particularly since Rick no longer had any. Perhaps if they could make amends …
“Maybe not. Or maybe he just doesn’t know what to say after all this time. If you just—”
“Look, Jess,” he interrupted sharply. “The truth is, I’ve known since second grade that I’m adopted. A year after that Graham left. So you see, he wasn’t my father in any sense of the word. So what’s the point in calling him up now?”
“Adopted?” Shock rippled through her as her mouth dropped open. Granted, Rick had never really looked much like Roberta, but that didn’t really mean anything. “You’ve known all these years and never told anyone?”