Still the One (26 page)

He grinned back. Instead of easing the tension, her teasing seemed to accelerate it. “I appreciate your efforts to shore up
my fragile ego.”

There was nothing fragile about him. He’d changed into dry clothes as well, and looked so big and tough and strong in his
worn jeans and navy T-shirt that she felt weak-kneed all over again.

The doorbell rang, providing a welcome interruption. Zack opened the door, and Katie saw the Gantors on the porch, holding
a batch of warm brownies. The Chartreuse grapevine was apparently in full swing, relaying not only what had occurred to her
home but also her current whereabouts. Over the course of the evening, half the town trooped through Zack’s house—the police,
who reassured Katie they’d keep watch on her house throughout the night to protect her possessions; the fire chief, who told
her that the falling tree had caused an electrical fire in the hallway; and a parade of neighbors and friends, bearing cookies
and casseroles and offers of help.

Katie’s insurance agent, Gordon Stuart, stopped by to tell her he’d already seen the house and started the paperwork to file
a claim. She was relieved to learn that she’d only be out the deductible; her policy would cover all her losses.

And it was a good thing, because those losses would be considerable. The tree had crushed through the main support beams,
and the fire had ruined much of the rest of the house. Katie’s home would need to be rebuilt practically from the ground up—and
most of the contents were soaked.

“How long do you think it will take to rebuild the place?”

“It’s hard to say,” the insurance agent said. “I would guess about four to six months.”

“Six months!” Katie exclaimed after she’d signed the claim forms and Zack had closed the door behind the gray-haired man.
“Where am I going to live in the meantime?”

“That’s simple,” Zack replied. “You and Gracie will stay here with me.”

“No,” Katie said swiftly.

“Why not?” Zack demanded.

“No. It wouldn’t work.”

“Sure it would. This house has three bedrooms and three and a half baths, plus a garage apartment. There’s plenty of room
for all of us.”

There wasn’t enough room in the entire town for Katie to live with Zack, but she didn’t want to tell him that. “It’s not just
Gracie and me; Annette is planning to stay with me when she’s discharged from the inpatient rehabilitation next week.”

“Well, she can stay here too.”

Katie shook her head. “She won’t be able to climb the stairs.”

“So she can have the master bedroom and I’ll move into the garage apartment. We’ll make it work, Kate.”

“Zack, that’s really sweet, but I don’t think she’d be comfortable here. She doesn’t know you. And considering that you and
I… that we…” Oh, God. What was she about to say? Have a history? Are attracted to each other? Look at each other in ways that
make other people in town assume something is going on?

“That we what, Kate?” he pressed.

She swallowed hard and went for the least inflammatory remark she could muster. “We have a child together.”

“So?”

“So… she’s my mother-in-law.”

“You mean your ex-mother-in-law.”

Every time someone applied that prefix to Paul or Annette, it rubbed her the wrong way. “No,” she said curtly, shaking her
head. “Ex implies a divorce, and that’s not what happened.”

“Former, then. Or late.”

He was not going to negate or minimize her relationship with Annette. Anger flashed through her. “Annette will always be my
mother-in-law. She’s the mother I always wished I had. Nothing will ever change our relationship.”

“Okay, okay!” He held up his hands. “Look—I didn’t mean to upset you. I think it’s great that you two have such a strong bond.
I just don’t see why her relationship to you means we can’t all stay in the same place.”

He did, too, damn it. He was trying to force her to admit that Paul was in the past. He thought Paul was no longer relevant,
and he wanted her to think that, too. He refused to accept that Annette might be uncomfortable that her late son’s wife had—correction;
had
had—a relationship with another man. And he was doing it in such a subtle, low-key, rational fashion that she looked like
the unreasonable one.

Well, she would be the height of reason. She drew a deep breath. “Look—I really appreciate the offer, Zack. And I’d like to
take you up on it for the next few nights, but as for the long term… Well, my insurance will pay for leasing a place while
my home is rebuilt, and that’s what I’d like to do.”

“There’s no decent rental property in this town. I looked into that before I moved here.”

And that had been just a few weeks ago. Katie’s spirits sank. The market was unlikely to have changed in that amount of time.
Still, maybe Eula knew of something. “One of my clients is a real-estate agent. I’ll give her a call.” Katie rose to get her
phone, only to realize that it was back at her house, along with her purse, her car keys, and everything else.

She had nothing. For the moment, she was completely dependent on Zack. “Can I use your phone?”

“Sure.”

“And your phone directory, if you have one.”

She sank onto Zack’s couch and called Eula.

“Oh, I heard, dear, and I’m so sorry!” Eula exclaimed. “I already have several places in mind for you.”

Katie’s chest relaxed. “You do?”

“Yes. The Mercer place is for sale, and there’s an adorable three-bedroom a couple of miles south of town…”

“Oh, I don’t want to buy a house. I just need to lease a place for six months or so while I rebuild my home.”

“You might want to rethink that, Katie,” Eula said. “The nearest rental is in Hammond.”

That wouldn’t work. Gracie needed to live in Chartreuse in order to attend the local school.

Katie extracted a promise that Eula would do some checking, but when she hung up the phone, her mind was already whirling
through other options. She knew Bev would take her in, but Bev and her husband lived in a tiny house with their son who’d
moved back after college, and they didn’t have room. Lulu and several of her other friends had a spare bedroom, but Gracie
needed her own space, and then there was the matter of Annette.

“This is a no-brainer, Kate.” Zack handed her a cup of hot tea and sank onto the far end of the sofa. “You and Gracie can
stay here, and Annette is more than welcome to come, too. I’ll be traveling a lot, so most of the time, you’ll have the house
to yourselves.”

He was right. It seemed like a perfect solution. But still…

“There’s no reason this can’t work, Kate. Unless…”

“Unless what?”

His dimple flashed as he smiled. “Unless you’re afraid you can’t keep your hands off me.”

Which was exactly what she feared. “In your dreams,” she scoffed.

“Actually, that
is
my favorite fantasy.” He grinned again, and then his eyes grew somber. “Seriously, Kate—let me help you out. I promise to
behave. Nothing will happen between us that you don’t want to happen.”

Oh, God. That was not a promise that would be of much help—because when she was around Zack, she wanted things she had no
business wanting.

“I’ll move into the garage apartment,” he said. “We won’t even be sleeping under the same roof. I won’t say or do anything
that might make you uncomfortable.”

She looked into his blue eyes, so clear and steady, and she believed him. Aside from the disappearing act—which she now knew
was not his choice and not his fault—he’d never let her down. He was a man who played by the rules and kept his word. She
could trust him.

She wasn’t so sure about herself.

“Besides,” Zack continued, “we’re going to have a seventeen-year-old chaperone living with us.”

That was true. There was no reason this couldn’t work. It was a logical solution.

And really, she didn’t have any other option. She slowly nodded. “Okay. We’ll give it a try.”

He gave her that smile, the one that made her melt. “Good. It’s settled.”

But Katie had never felt more unsettled in her life.

“Annette?”

“Sweetie!” Annette switched the phone to her other ear at the sound of Katie’s voice. “I heard what happened. Are you okay?”

“Yes, yes, I’m fine. How did you find out?”

“Dorothy went by the drugstore, and Nellie told her that your house was practically cut in two by a tree. I’ve been trying
to call you, but your cell phone went right to voice mail.”

“My phone is in my purse, which is still in the house. I literally only have the clothes on my back.” Katie gave a small laugh.
“Well, truth be told, not even that. My clothes are in the dryer, so I’m wearing Gracie’s clothes.”

“Oh, no! So all of your belongings…” All of Paul’s belongings!

“Yeah. But I did bring Paul’s ashes.”

Thank God.
Annette hadn’t wanted to ask. The topic was a sensitive one and she didn’t want to make Katie feel bad, but it bothered her
that Katie kept his remains in the house rather than putting him to rest.

“We’ll have to go back and get the rest of the stuff in the morning,” Katie said. “The fire marshal won’t let anyone back
in tonight. The thing I’m most upset about is the photos.”

All the photos from her wedding and marriage! Annette’s chest ached at the thought.

“A lot of them are in the part of the house that’s still standing, so I hope they’ll be okay.”

“They’re only things,” Annette said. “The important thing is that you and Gracie are all right.”

“We’re fine.”

Annette hesitated, then charged ahead. “I heard you’re staying at Zack’s house.”

“Yes. He has two extra bedrooms upstairs, and he’s moving into the garage apartment. You can stay in the master bedroom downstairs
when you’re discharged.”

“Oh, Katie—I don’t want to put him out.”

“It was his idea. He’s going to be traveling a lot, so…”

The thought of staying with a man she’d never met—the father of Katie’s child—made her stomach cramp. “Oh, Katie. I don’t
think…”

“Really. It’ll be fine.”

She didn’t want to upset Katie any more than she already was. For heaven’s sake, the poor girl had just lost her home.

The home she and Paul had built together. Annette pressed her hand to her stomach. Oh, dear Lord—Paul had put so much time
and work into that place. Every weekend, it seemed, he and Katie had tackled one project or another.

“We’ll worry about that later,” Annette said. “Right now, you just need to focus on yourself and Gracie. Is she okay?”

“She’s fine. She’s been pretty much hiding out in her room, which is the same thing she did at my house, but she came out
and ate dinner with us. You wouldn’t believe the food people have brought over here.”

That was one of the advantages of living in a small town, Annette thought; people cared for one another. In times of need,
neighbors fortified each other with a timeless symbol of support and nurture: food. When Paul had died, she and Katie hadn’t
had to cook for a month.

Katie filled her in on the details of the house’s damage.

“I’m so glad you’re okay, dear,” Annette said. “I was terribly worried.”

“How about you? How are you feeling today?”

“Oh, I’m fine. I walked the full length of the corridor three times today using a walker. Blake is a slave driver, but he
says I’m making progress.”

“That’s wonderful!”

“I’m about to go downstairs and have dinner with Dorothy and Harold in the dining room. I’m taking the elevator, of course,
but it’s a much-needed change of pace.”

“Have a great time. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Katie, I’ll understand if you miss a day. You’re going to be awfully busy.”

“I’m never too busy for you.”

Annette hung up the phone and sighed. She loved that girl, and she knew Katie returned the affection. So why did she feel
as if she was losing her?

No, that wasn’t what she was feeling at all. She felt like
Paul
was losing her. Which made no sense, but it grieved her heart all the same.

•   •   •

“We’re so glad you could join us for dinner,” Dorothy said as Annette shuffled into the dining room using her walker. The
hostess led them to a table by the window, and Harold pulled out Annette’s chair. Dorothy folded the walker and set it to
the side, then smiled as Harold pulled out her chair in a courtly fashion.

Annette never failed to be impressed by Harold’s impeccable manners. He had early stage Alzheimer’s and often forgot things,
but manners were never one of them.

Annette smiled at the couple as she unfolded the black cloth napkin on her lap. “Thank you for inviting me. It’s so nice to
get out of my room for a change.”

“Have you talked to Katie?” Harold asked.

“Yes.” Annette was filling them in on the details of her phone conversation when the waitress stopped by their table. “Will
there just be the three of you this evening?”

“No, dear,” Dorothy said. “We’re expecting someone else to join us.”

Annette’s eyebrows rose in surprise.

Dorothy looked up and grinned. “And here he is now.”

Annette turned to see Dave standing behind her, tall and handsome in a navy sports jacket and open-collared shirt. “What on
earth are you doing here?”

“Actually, dear, Dave arranged this dinner.” Dorothy’s eyes gleamed with mischievous excitement. “He thought you wouldn’t
come if he just invited you to dinner himself.”

“He was right about that,” Annette muttered. Despite all logic, her pulse thrummed at the sight of him.

Dave pulled out a chair and sat down next to Annette. The spicy scent of his aftershave kicked her heart into a faster gear.
“I thought it was time to get you out and about.”

“That’s right,” Dorothy said, nodding vigorously. “It won’t be long before you’re a goner.”

“What?”

Dave smiled. “I think she means before you leave here.”

“Oh! Right.” Annette smiled at Dorothy.

Dave picked up the cloth napkin and unfolded it. “Sorry I’m late. I stopped by to see Katie.”

“How was she?” Annette asked.