Spring at the Barncastle Page 6

  He had no idea what to say to Sadie when he saw her today. Likely she’d be helping out with the activities and running the shop; still, he couldn’t avoid her. Not that there was anything to say.

  She’d already told him she was looking for a job near Boston, once the shop took off and someone else could run it.

  **

  Sadie just knew if she turned the wrong way, she was going to knock something, or someone, over with the brim of her wide hat. She liked the bright color, a happy shade of coral, with a darker coral ribbon bow. Anything to boost her mood today, after last night’s events.

  Her 1800s costume had a high neck, perfect to sport an antique cameo broach that Jayne lent her. She felt like she’d stepped off the set of Meet Me in St. Louis, with her swirling skirt and petticoat, high top boots.

  “I can’t help with the eggs and carry a parasol at the same time,” she told Jayne, who was loading the eggs into large baskets with the kids’ help, although Hank had started rolling one egg across the kitchen floor.

  “That’s why you have a gigantic hat.” Jayne wore a similar gown, except in navy blue, with her hat a natural straw with a wide brim. A navy blue ribbon under her chin held it firmly on her head.

  “Do we have our kid-count?” Sadie kept putting eggs in the basket in front of her. Would Peter and Marin show up? After last night, she’d made a hasty retreat after Luke arrived with the ladder to get Marin out of the tree. She yawned.

  “Besides my kids and the guests’ children, we’re prepping for about twenty more. We have Nate, Kayla, and Alex—although Alex is still a baby and not walking.” Jayne paused and looked at Sadie. “Late night?”

  “Not really.” Sadie glanced at Andy, who wore khaki pants and a white shirt, along with a striped clip-on tie. He’d managed to somehow arrange his unruly hair.

  He tugged at his collar. “Mom, may I go outside to see if anyone’s here yet?”

  “Yes.” Jayne looked up from the eggs. “If you could, please bring two pitchers of lemonade out to the refreshment tent? We’ll start serving as soon as the egg roll is over with.”

  “Okay.” He left the basket of eggs on the table, with Hank running after his older brother.

  “Keep an eye on Hank, too,” Jayne called after him. Then, she looked at Sadie, her eyes filled with concern. “What’s wrong, Sade? Something happened last night…”

  “It’s Peter—and Marin.” She tried not to sigh, but it came out anyway. “I was confused, but last night, after Marin ran off and got stuck in the tree, I saw how he’s not ready to move on. No matter what he says, or does, even.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “He—uh, we—kissed the other night, before we went out to eat.” Sadie rubbed the long sleeves on her dress. “But now he said last night, they would always want Kate back. I was thinking, maybe, especially after that kiss, he was ready to move on. Not leave the memory of his wife behind, but maybe, see a life with me in it? Plus, Marin likes me, but I know she doesn’t want me as a mother figure.”

  She sank onto a nearby chair. The brim of her hat struck the wall, jarring her. “Ow.”

  “But Luke and I thought you would only be around temporarily, for the store? Maybe until the end of the summer?”

  Sadie nodded. “That was the idea. At first.”

  “And now…”

  “Nothing now. Not after last night. Like I said, it’s clear to me that he’s not ready.”

  “Did you ask him if he was ready?”

  “No.” She didn’t want to think about the answer to that painful question. Kate Appleman stood but a few steps below sainthood, the way Marin spoke of her mother. Talented, crafty, a good cook. A stunning beauty, Sadie had noted that one night she’d had supper with Peter and Marin.

  She didn’t want to share the man she loved with someone else, someone Sadie wasn’t.

  The man she loved. She barely knew Peter, but in some ways felt like she’d always known him.

  “Luke and I had our own obstacles to overcome.” Jayne fetched an empty straw basket from the shelf. “You know, when I came home, my MBA in tow, I never imagined I’d end up with a readymade family, although I did have dreams of a family someday.”

  Her cousin had been married nearly eight years and had blended right into the Gilbert family. Hank had her caramel-colored hair, whereas Andy resembled his father.

  Sadie swallowed her words, and let her cousin continue.

  “Of course, Andy was a bit younger than Marin is. He took to me right away. It was very—natural.” Jayne pulled open a drawer in the butler’s pantry and rummaged through the silverware. “We have some good, sturdy spoons to use. I would have used plastic, but this is a grand occasion.”

  “Mom, the guests are starting to arrive for the parade and egg roll,” Andy said, entering the room. His voice had lowered an octave or two.

  “Time for the egg roll!” Hank said, hot on his brother’s heels.

  Jayne smiled. “Wonderful! Now, everyone, remember, this is a fancier time period, for the Easter parade. Our inn guests should be assembled on the lawn in their own finery by now. Andy, if you could help carry the basket of spoons?”

  Sadie picked up her own basket of colored eggs. She’d never participated in an egg roll, or even seen one before. The rear lawn of the inn had been roped off and a series of “lanes” marked on the grass where the competitors would roll their eggs.

  Her hat slipped off the back of her head, the ribbon jerking against her throat. How in the world did women manage in these get-ups? It was miles away from the hoopskirt days, and she should be grateful no one wanted a Civil War era or Gone With The Wind theme for a getaway.

  They paraded out the back door of the inn. The Easter weekend guests waited in costume, and not quite a dozen more people clad in their Sunday best stood beside them. Including Peter, and Marin.

  Chapter 9

  Peter’s mouth went dry. He tried to remember if he’d ever seen Sadie in a dress and couldn’t. Nothing like this, that was for sure.

  The pinkish-orangish number hugged her curves in the right way, with a snug waist and a long skirt that topped white lace-up boots that peeked out from under the skirt’s hem. She wore white gloves, and she wrestled a hat, wider than a Mexican sombrero, back onto her head. Her blonde hair, caught back into a poofy style on the back of her head, showed off her slim neck.

  “Wow, Daddy, Sadie looks beau-ti-ful.” Marin’s voice held admiration.

  “Yes, she does.” He’d always thought Sadie pretty, but now, stunning seemed to be a more fitting word. She flashed the guests a smile, then caught him looking at her. Her smile wavered for a millisecond.

  Okay, so he should say something. Explain. Take back his words. Or not.

  He needed to figure out what he wanted. Kissing her had been unfair, and they’d talked about that. Why couldn’t today be just about dressing up and letting the kids take turns rolling eggs across the yard, then having lemonade and cake?

  Lord, we had a simple life, once…

  “Greetings, guests,” Luke said, looking mighty dapper in his dark gray walking coat, striped vest, and dark gray trousers. His coordinating bowler hat blocked the sun from his eyes. “My wife Jayne and I extend to you our thanks for coming today to our Easter parade and egg roll. This is a time-honored tradition that we enjoy sharing with you. If you would be so kind as to accompany us to the lawn, as the band plays.”

  Peter heard the brass band before they exited the barn, crossed the parking lot, and joined them at the rear of the house. The band had a bass drum that kept time as the quintet marched toward the rear portion of the lawn.

  The Gilberts fell into step behind them, with Sadie, Ted, and the guests as well.

  “Come on,” Peter said to Marin. “Time to roll some eggs.”

  Marin pumped her arms as she marched, her head tilted back, and Peter wished he’d brought his camera with him to capture the moment. So determined, so strong.

  They m
arched joyfully toward the place for the egg roll contest. The lineup indeed made for a fine parade, everyone in their best, costumed or otherwise. The Gilberts had erected a white tent with a set of tables underneath. Peter could see a clear glass dispenser containing lemonade, and a two-layer cake stood beside it.

  Jayne smiled as she faced the crowd. “Thank you, thank you. Young ladies and young gentleman under the age of twelve, we’d like you to step up first and select a spoon.” She touched a basket nearby. “Then, each of you should select an egg from one of the baskets.”

  Marin glanced at Peter before joining the other kids lining up at the table behind Jayne.

  “Go get ‘em, Marin,” he called out.

  Sadie, in character, gave him a sharp look. “Sir, this is a friendly competition.”

  “But of course.” He nodded in return.

  The kids lined up, each at the end of one of the marked lanes on the lawn. The finish line lay a good twenty-five yards beyond them.

  “Remember sportsmanlike conduct and no pushing. If any of you push anything, it should be an egg, not anyone else in another lane. Prizes will be awarded to the first, second, and third place finishers,” Jayne said. “Mr. Gilbert, if you would, please.”

  “With pleasure, Mrs. Gilbert.” Luke pulled a whistle from his coat pocket with a flourish. “On your mark, get set—go!” He gave a long blast on the whistle and cheers rose up from the other parents.

  Peter joined in, clapping, then whistling through his fingers.

  “Really, Mr. Appleman, one would think you were at a horse race,” came Sadie’s voice beside him. A light floral scent drifted on the breeze. It came from her.

  He fought to keep his gaze on the race. “Well, I’ve taught my daughter when you race, you race to win.”

  “That’s an admirable quality.” She stood, her hands clasped in front of her.

  “Go, Marin, go!” Peter clapped again.

  Marin, hunched over, tongue stuck out, focused on the egg on the lawn. It tumbled end over end along the grass as she tapped it with a spoon. A boy about her age—likely one of the inn’s guests—had already passed her. His shirt came untucked from his trousers, and one suspender dropped from his shoulder.

  She kept glancing from the egg to the boy and back again.

  Peter cheered. “You’re catching him, Marin!”

  But the finish line lay less than three yards away.

  The little boy’s egg crossed first. “I won!” He jumped up and down, nearly stepping on his egg.

  Marin stood up straight, barely a yard from the finish line. “No fair!” she growled, then kicked her egg. Shell sprayed across on the grass. Marin stomped away, her hands clutched into fists. She slung the spoon onto the lawn and headed off toward the main house, yanking from her hair the purple ribbon she’d been so proud of moments before.

  “Marin Kaye Appleman!” Peter called out. “Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert, my apologies. I’ll collect my daughter and have her clean up the mess, and apologize as well.”

  Peter didn’t miss Luke’s sympathetic look. He hurried off after Marin.

  What was he going to do? Marin had a flair for the dramatic, but he didn’t recall her ever acting out quite like this. Not in anger, anyway. He picked up his pace and caught up with her. Tears poured down her face.

  **

  “He’s definitely got his hands full with that young lady,” Luke said as they poured cups of lemonade.

  “Yes, it looks like it.” Sadie’s hand shook as she picked up an empty cup.

  “You’re doing the right thing, you know.”

  “How so?”

  “Giving the man some time.”

  “I don’t know.” Sadie fanned herself with her hand. The warmth of the day still found its way under the tent. She should have added a frilly fan to her costume. “I hope I am. Last night he seemed to make it clear what he wants. If he’s not ready, he’s not ready.”

  “Last night, he was worried about his daughter.”

  “Of course, as he should be. But, Luke, I don’t want to be second, or even third priority to the man I love. I don’t want to feel as if I’m competing with a child for his attention.” The guests sipped lemonade. Oh, to be so carefree. Someone brought out the croquet set, and Andy kept busy hammering wickets into the ground on the lawn that showed green shoots of spring. “I know it was a similar situation with you and Jayne, but still it was different.”

  “I still had to be ready, though. When I met Jayne, I knew I was.” He smiled, as though traveling down memory lane. “My in-laws, especially my mother-in-law, took the news a little hard at first. They thought I was trying to replace Edie, Andy’s mother. But I wasn’t. No one can replace another. However, I knew when the time was right, I wanted Jayne in my life, for keeps. At first, when Andy woke with night terrors, he’d cry for Edie. That hurt Jayne a little, but she understood. But now, you see them together—it’s as if she’s always been in his life. I think Edie would have liked that, very much.”

  Her cousin had married a fine man. Of that, Sadie had no doubt. She also knew Peter had those same qualities.

  “Thanks, Luke.”

  Here came Peter and Marin, her face flushed red after her father had made her clean up the mess she’d made by kicking the hard-boiled egg. Peter’s brow furrowed, but he held Marin’s hand tenderly.

  “Marin.” He glanced down at his daughter.

  “Mr. Gilbert, I’m very sorry.” Marin’s lip quivered. “I was a poor loser. I’m sorry for making the mess, and I’m still upset for not winning.” She glanced over to where young Patrick Donnelly tore into his prize candy basket for winning the race.

  “You’re forgiven, Miss Appleman.” Luke held out a cup of lemonade. “Now, for some lemonade. There are also plates, finger sandwiches, and cake at the other side of the table.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Gilbert.” Marin flicked a glance at Sadie, who didn’t miss the flash of pride in the little girl’s eyes.

  “Go get some cake, and some sandwiches,” Peter said. “I must speak with Miss Barncastle for a few moments.”

  Marin frowned and stepped toward the food.

  “Oh, you must speak with me?” Sadie asked as he offered her his arm. “I can spare a few moments, Mr. Appleman.”

  “Yes, only for a few moments.” He covered her hand with his, and they stepped away from the tent, out of earshot of everyone else. “Okay, we don’t have to stay in character here.”

  “No, we don’t.” Her pulse pounded in her throat. “Peter—”

  “About last night—”

  “I care for you Peter, I can’t help but care. If you’re not ready, you’re not ready.” She swallowed hard. “I can’t and won’t force that.”

  “I care for you, too. It’s only been a few weeks, but everything has changed.” He reached a hand up, as if to touch her face.

  “Please, don’t. It’s hard enough for me right now…” She bit her lip. Don’t cry, don’t cry. “I won’t compete for your affections with a ten-year-old. I’m not saying forget about Kate, or ignore Marin, but—”

  “You’re not competing for my affections. Marin has nothing to do with us.” He took both of her hands in his.

  “Yes, she does. And she will. If I take you, I take her too. I’m not saying I expect her to be one-hundred-percent in favor of you and me, together. Not right now, anyway. She’s lost her mom, left her home. But, I want you to be one hundred percent in favor of us.” She allowed herself to squeeze his hands back.

  “Oh, Cousin Sadie, would you please fetch more napkins from the pantry?” Jayne called out across the lawn.

  “Yes, Cousin Jayne,” Sadie responded. “Peter, I need to go.” She forced herself to pick up her skirt with one hand and scurried toward the rear entrance of the house.

  Chapter 10

  Well, he deserved that from Sadie. Sort of.

  The remainder of the day dragged with an afternoon of yard games culminating with an egg hunt. Marin had a foul mood, but
Peter wasn’t about to give in or sympathize with her. Yes, losing stunk. But so did bad behavior and sore losing.

  “I don’t want to go to the sunrise church service tomorrow. I want to go to the big church in Brattleboro,” Marin announced that evening, flouncing into Peter’s office and flopping onto the chair in the corner.

  “Thank you for your input, but we’re going to the Barncastle service.” Until then, he hadn’t decided what he was going to do, come Sunday morning: Go to their usual church, or visit the inn and support his neighbors. He also really wanted to see the prayer garden Luke had built to honor Jayne’s late mother.

  “It’s so early.”

  “You get up earlier than that to make it to the bus stop for school.” He saved the current document, and closed his email. One personal policy he’d adopted was whenever Marin entered his office, he’d put work on hold and spend time with her.

  Maybe he ought to tweak that policy a little. Peter regarded the brunette thundercloud sitting on the easy chair, her arms crossed over her chest. She’d grown a bit demanding. Part of him wanted to spend as much time with her as possible, but then again, he didn’t want her to become a rude, demanding—dare he think the word about his own daughter?—brat.

  “Humph.”

  “We’re still going. It’s a special service, and we’re going to have church by the pond. I think you’ll like it.”

  “Okay.”

  “Still love me?”

  “To there and back again,” Marin replied with a smile. She left the chair, hugged him, and left the room.

  Peter turned to face his computer screen again.

  “I won’t compete for your affections with a ten-year-old.”

  Of course not. Marin needed him, though. He didn’t have someone else to shoulder the responsibility with. His parents, and Kate’s, helped when they could, but they weren’t her mother, or father.

  Really, competing for his affections? He clicked on his email, pulling his focus to one last bit of work, so he could afford to take the day off on Monday to spend with Marin out of school.

  Sadie had a point, though. He needed to be one hundred percent in favor of the two of them, despite Marin’s attitude. He had no doubt Marin liked, and even admired, Sadie—as long as it didn’t involve Sadie being romantically involved with her father.