The Ride of Her Life (37 page)

“Please, Nick. I don’t know anyone else, and I can’t imagine walking all the way to a streetcar stop.”

He opened the door. “I have a roller coaster to run in the morning.”

“That will work perfectly, because I don’t have to go into the theater until the afternoon.” She pressed her hand to her head as if the conversation had exhausted her. “I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

Nick’s stomach soured. Maybe he should have let her find out.

Flopping into the chair in Mrs. Whitson’s boardinghouse parlor, Nick released a heavy sigh.

“Problems, boyo?” Sean looked up from the ship model of the USS
Constitution
he’d been working on since they’d finished the toy roller coaster.

“Ruby.”

“Ah, the old girlfriend’s takin’ up all yer time, eh?” He pointed to a board and handed Nick some sandpaper. “Make yerself useful.”

“When did I agree to work on your ship?”

“My frigate.” Sean chuckled and pointed to the book with the photo he’d used for inspiration. “Commissioned by President George Washington himself. And if yer wanting a listenin’ ear, then ya can help me out. I’ve sure helped ya plenty on yer project for the lass.”

Taking one of the three would-be masts in hand, Nick rubbed sandpaper over it until it was smooth. “Ruby is milking this sprained ankle and the bump on her head for all they’re worth. I have to go pick her up tomorrow and bring her to the lake.”

“And what does yer Lilly say?” Sean glued a tiny cannon onto its wheeled mounts.

“She says she understands.” Nick set the mast down, took the next long dowel mast Sean indicated, and sanded it.

Sean held his pieces in place while the glue set. “Is that so?”

Nick glanced up. “You don’t think she does?”

Sean grunted and shrugged.

“Lilly isn’t like most women.”

“Boyo.” Sean released the pieces he’d been holding and smiled when they stayed. “There’s not a woman on earth who’d be happy about the man she’s sparkin’ with spendin’ time with the woman he’d promised to marry. And could you blame her? How would ya feel if the tables be turned?”

The muscles in Nick’s neck knotted tighter. How did he explain to Sean that he shared Lilly every day? A part of her heart would always belong to Ben. But Ben was gone and Ruby was here.

Nick tipped his head to one side then the other, attempting to stretch the kinks out of his neck.

“So, laddie, where do ya feel God’s leadin’ ya in all this?”

“I don’t know. I guess I haven’t asked Him.”

Sean ran his hand along the hull of the ship. “Do ya know why the USS
Constitution
was so strong? Southern live oak made up her hull, and it was a wee bit denser than all the other woods. The hull was built twenty-five inches thick at the waterline. She took an acre of sailcloth and miles of riggin’. Can you imagine?”

Nick glanced at the picture in the book.

“Her nickname was Old Ironsides. But do ya know, as tough as she always was, if God’s hand hadn’t been on her, she’d have gone down.”

35

He’d failed.

Maybe not failed completely, but from the deep scowl on Claude Hart’s face, Mark had no doubts he hadn’t made the powerful man happy.

“We didn’t count on Ruby getting injured, but I must say she’s used the situation to her advantage.” Mark tugged on his waistcoat. “I can tell Lilly is having doubts about Nick seeing to our actress’s whims.”

The muscle beneath Mr. Hart’s right eye twitched. “But they are still a couple. You said they were at the ball together.”

“Yes, sir, but I think with a little more time—”

“Do I seem like the kind of man who likes to wait?”

Mark met the man’s gaze. “No, sir.”

Mr. Hart stood and walked to his bookshelf. He removed a heavy volume. “I believe you need another plan. To discredit Nick Perrin once and for all.”

“Wouldn’t that be a last resort, sir?” Claude Hart seemed to be pushing things. There wasn’t any hurry. It wasn’t like Lilly was ready to rush to the altar on the arm of Nick Perrin.

Mr. Hart dropped the book on his desk, making a thunderous noise. Mark jumped and the attorney laughed. “In view of your present success, I’d say it’s time for plan B.”

The knock at the back door startled Lilly. She dropped the tin measuring cup into the heavy pottery mixing bowl with a clatter, then wiped her hands on her apron. She turned as the door opened.

“Good morning.” Nick grinned, his blue eyes twinkling. “I couldn’t wait another minute to see you.”

“Don’t you need to go check on Ruby?” She winced at the sarcastic tone that layered her voice. She picked up her rolling pin and rolled out the biscuit dough with a vengeance, exasperated she’d revealed her jealousy. “I’m sorry. I know she needs your help.”

“I’m the one who’s sorry,” he said, removing the rolling pin from her hand and turning her toward him. “I haven’t been around much. I’ve let Ruby call the shots, and I haven’t been praying about what to do with her.”

“You’re doing what you have to.”

He laid his hand on her arm. “But not what I want to do. As long as you understand that. Surely you know you can trust me.”

She blinked away the tear threatening to escape. “With her, yes.”

“What do I have to do to prove myself to you?”

She leaned her cheek against his chest, hearing the solid, steady heartbeat beneath her ear. She could ask him to not see Ruby again, but would that really make her trust him completely? The problem wasn’t him. It was her.

Fear or faith. The preacher had said every storm required one of those responses. She was so tired of being afraid. Afraid of losing Levi. Afraid of being alone. Afraid of her world crashing in on her again. How could she explain to Nick the tempest raging inside her?

Nick kissed the top of her head. “Why don’t I take Levi with me after lunch today? I haven’t seen much of him either.”

Lilly pulled back and looked into Nick’s lethal blue eyes. “He’d like that, and it will be good for him. He hasn’t moved more than a foot from that toy roller coaster since you gave it to him.”

He traced her lower lip with his finger. “I love you.”

“And I love you, but what if that isn’t enough?”

“My beautiful, pragmatic, sensible Lilly, we can make this work.” He cupped her chin, nudging it upward so he could claim her lips.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she leaned into the kiss. Oh, how she wanted to believe. Thankfully, Nick could be quite convincing.

After giving Lilly one last kiss, Nick slipped out the back door. Eugenia and Nora would arrive soon, and he didn’t want to embarrass Lilly by being caught there alone with her.

Nick plucked a blade of grass from the ground, the color reminding him of the dress Lilly wore on the day they first went out for breakfast together. Over the last couple of days, he’d had a lot of time to think about their relationship. He wished Lilly understood that seeing Ruby again only reminded him of how lucky he was to have Lilly in his life. While Ruby was concerned about herself and her career, Lilly was concerned about helping others any way she could. While Ruby made him feel like he was never quite good enough, Lilly made him believe he could do anything. While Ruby seemed like a dozen other women he’d met at one time or another, Lilly was one in a million.

He rounded the corner and stopped short. Who was the broad-shouldered man kneeling beside Levi?

Nick sauntered over. When Levi spotted him, he jumped up and ran to him.

“Hi there, Chipmunk. Who’s your friend?”

“This is Mr. Whiskers.”

The full-bearded man stood and turned.

With a chuckle, Nick held out his hand. “Hi, I’m Nick Perrin, and I’m assuming your name is not Mr. Whiskers.”

“No.” The man grinned. “My name is Clifford Black. I was admiring your son’s roller coaster. Did you make it?”

Nick didn’t correct the man’s assumption about Levi. “Yes. He likes the real one so much I thought he’d enjoy having one of his own.”

“Oh, you’re the roller coaster designer, right? I heard about you.”

“And if I don’t get over there, I may be the unemployed roller coaster designer.”

“I want to go with you.” Levi looked at Nick with pleading eyes.

Nick took off his hat and ran his hand through his hair. “I already talked to your mama. You’re coming with me after lunch.”

“To ride the roller coaster?”

“To
see
the roller coaster.”

“But I’m bigger today.” Levi wobbled as he stood on his tiptoes.

“Not big enough.” Nick tapped his nose. He glanced at Mr. Black, surprised the man had not excused himself and gone inside to eat. A strange sensation tightened inside him. He was becoming as paranoid as Lilly. Perhaps the man simply didn’t want to be rude by slipping away during a conversation. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to make sure Levi was with his mother before he left.

He squeezed Levi’s shoulder. “Why don’t you head on in? I think your mama has your breakfast ready.”

“Yes, sir!” Levi galloped up the steps and let the diner’s screen door bang shut behind him.

Nick tipped his head toward Mr. Black. “Nice meeting you, Mr. Black.”

“You too.” He nodded. “If building big roller coasters doesn’t work out, you could always consider making toys.”

Nick smiled. “Thanks. I may do that.”

“Hello, sister dear.”

Marguerite smiled at the sound of her brother’s voice as he joined her on the Midway. She paid the salesman and sniffed her bag of freshly roasted peanuts. “Morning, Mark.”

“Cravings already?”

“Who told you?”

“Trip.” He snagged a handful of nuts from her bag.

She swatted his hand. “But I wanted to tell you.”

“Sorry. He said it seemed like everyone knew except him, so he thought I did too. Congratulations.” He cracked the shell of a peanut and dropped the insides into his mouth. “What brings you to this side of the lake?”

She started down the sidewalk toward the diner. “I wanted to speak with Lilly.”

“Why?”

“And here I thought you graduated with honors,” Marguerite teased.

“I did.”

“Then you should already know why I want to talk to her. She’s my best friend. I tell her everything. By the way, shouldn’t you be working?”