Falling to Pieces (12 page)

“And you shouldn’t. That would be like asking Bruce Wayne to go back to being the man he was before he was accused of murder. Why would anyone want that?”

I nodded. He was right, but Violet was still unhappy with me. I’d always been her pet project until I didn’t need her anymore. She’d seen my breakup with Joe as an opportunity to go back to the way things were before. Only I wasn’t cooperating. “She loves me. She really does.”

“Of course she does. No one’s disputing that. But she’s unhappy with her own life, Rose and she’s transferring that unhappiness onto you. That’s not fair.”

A gust of wind blew several strands of hair into my face, and I pushed it over my ear. “You sound like a psychologist.”

He smiled. “That’s because I am one. Licensed even.”

My mouth gaped. “I didn’t know that.”

“The license is under my old name. Before I changed my name from Jonas to Jonah. Which means I can’t use it.”

“Maybe you should quit hiding.”

He sighed and shook his head. “Rose.”

I looked up at him. “No, Jonah. You try so hard to make everyone else feel like they have a second chance. If you told them about your past, it would have so much more impact that they could change too.”

“Rose,” his voice lowered as he glanced at Bruce Wayne. “You of all people know how the people of this town would react if they found out about my criminal record.” He grimaced. “Henryetta might not be heaven, but I’m tired of running.”

“Exactly.” I grabbed his hand. “So stop running.”

He smiled but sadness filled his eyes. “I’ll think about it.”

As I watched the conflict on his face, I realized I needed to take my own advice. I was tired of running too. “I’d like to ask a favor.”

“Of course.”

I shook my head, grinning up at him. “You don’t even know what it is yet.”

“Honestly, I can’t imagine you asking something of me that I’d refuse. After what my mother did—”

I grabbed his arm, my fingers digging through his dress shirt to get his attention. “Stop. You don’t owe me anything, Jonah.”

He remained silent.

“Don’t say yes, just listen, okay?”

He nodded.

“I know you’re not a licensed psychologist as Jonah, but you can still listen to someone as a friend, right?”

“Well…yeah.”

“Mason suggested that I should talk to someone about everything I’ve been through the last few months, and I suspect he’s right. The only problem is that I don’t know who to talk to since all my troubles have something to do with my visions.” I swallowed, suddenly nervous. “I was wondering if you would be willing to listen.”

“Yes. Of course. But isn’t that what we’ve already been doing?”

I took in a breath. He was right. We might not have called it therapy, but he’d been listening to me talk about my sorrows for two weeks. “But I haven’t told you everything—like Daniel Crocker and the story of my birthmother.”

“You were adopted?”

My chin trembled. “Not exactly, but it’s a complicated story, and I haven’t really dealt with it. Would you help me?”

His eyes glassed over. “I’d be honored.”

“You were supposed to think about it before agreeing.”

“Okay, let me think about it for a moment.” His mouth lifted into a grin. “Yes, I accept.”

Shaking my head, I laughed and gave him a hug, clinging to him. He truly had become a lifeline these past few weeks. “Thank you, Jonah. For everything.”

His good arm tightened around me. “I’m not sure why you’re thanking me.”

“Because you’ve given me something I haven’t had in a few weeks.”

“And what’s that?”

“Hope.”

He leaned back and swallowed, struggling for an answer. Finally he gave me a lopsided grin. “Me too.” He took a deep breath and released it. “How often would you like to meet? Weekly?”

“Or more often if you’re willing.”

His eyebrows lifted in surprise. “You’re serious about this.”

“I think Mason’s right. I think I have a lot of issues to work through before I’m ready to move on.”

“You mean with someone else?”

Tears filled my eyes.

“I heard about Joe and his old girlfriend.”

Shock jolted my body. “What about them?”

Jonah looked horrified. “I’m sorry. I thought you knew.”

My heart hammered in my chest. “I’ve purposely avoided the news. I didn’t want any reminders of him, which included news about his campaign.”

“Rose, I’m sorry.”

“What is it? What do you know?”

His mouth pinched as indecision flooded his eyes.

“It’s okay, Jonah. You can tell me.” When he didn’t respond, I added, “I had a vision before we broke up. I saw Joe married to Hilary. I knew they would get back together eventually.”

Sadness filled his eyes. “I don’t want to hurt you anymore than you already have been.”

“Joe left
me
. He made it clear that we are done. I knew he’d move on, and it’s no surprise he’s with Hilary. It’s what his family wants.” I paused trying to catch my breath. I felt like I was drowning. “Now tell me what you know.”

Jonah still looked uncertain. “When Joe announced his candidacy, he did it on the steps of the state capital with big media coverage. Hilary was at his side.” He paused. “As his fiancée.”

I took a step backward. “
Oh
.”

“I’m sorry.”

I shook my head, but I was lightheaded and the movement made me stumble.

Jonah reached out and grabbed my elbow.

Bruce Wayne rose from the flower bed he was working on. “Miss Rose?”

I forced a smile. “I’m fine. I just tripped.”

“Maybe you should sit down,” Jonah suggested, leading me toward the front steps.

“I’m fine.”

“Rose, if you’re going to talk to me a couple of times a week about your past and your feelings,
now
is not the time to start lying to me.”

Tears filled my eyes. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” I sat down on the front steps, Jonah sitting next to me. I shivered from the wind and the shock, and Jonah pressed his leg closer to mine.

“I know it’s startling, even if you expected it.”

Startling was an understatement. I felt numb. “The day after he broke up with me?” My voice quivered. “Are you sure?”

“Very sure. I was shocked after what you told me about him. But I have to say, he’s getting slammed by the media. After their first couple of appearances, they haven’t been very affectionate.”

I sucked several deep breaths to try and clear my fuzzy head. I could see Joe pretending to be engaged to her, but they’d been affectionate. My heart was breaking all over again. “They were worried about him running against the other candidate as a single man. I guess they didn’t waste any time.”

He leaned toward, me, taking my hand. “I’m so sorry. I wish I hadn’t told you.”

“No.” I shook my head, my voice firm as I looked into his eyes. “We’re not together. He can do what he wants. I’m glad I know.”

“Do you want to go home?”

Home to my empty house? Where memories of Joe permeated everything? “No, there’s no reason to.” I forced a smile. “I’ve got plenty to do here.”

“Rose.”

My jaw clenched. “Jonah, really. I need to work.”

“Okay.”

I spent the rest of the afternoon concentrating on nothing but the dirt and the plants. I knew that the fact I could block everything out so effectively wasn’t normal, but it was a coping mechanism I’d learned early in life. It had helped me through more heartache than I thought I could endure, and I was especially thankful for the life skill now.

The overcast sky had threatened rain all day and by early afternoon it finally broke loose. Bruce Wayne and I waited in my truck for half an hour before we gave up and called it a day.

“The forecast is better for tomorrow,” I said. “We’ll just meet at eight again. With any luck at all, the rain will make it easier to dig out those overgrown shrubs.”

“Sounds good, Miss Rose.” Bruce Wayne stared out the front window, his jaw working. “If you need to take some time off, I can do this without you.”

I knew this was his way of saying he understood what I was going through and wanted to help me. “I’ve taken more time off that I want. I need to work.”

He nodded and opened the truck door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

As soon as Bruce Wayne climbed into his car and pulled away, I grabbed my cell phone out of my pocket and called Neely Kate.

“Rose, is everything okay?”

“He’s engaged to Hilary,” I said in a breathless rush.

“Oh no.” There was a second pause. “How did you find out?”

“Jonah. He thought I knew.”

“How could he get engaged to her so quickly? He just asked
you
to marry him a couple of weeks ago?” she growled.

I fought to keep from crying. “It’s not a real engagement.”

“How can you be sure? You know that witch has been waiting to get her claws back into him.”

The devastation on Joe’s face when I told him about my vision of him and Hilary still haunted me. “I know.” But Jonah had said they were affectionate. I envisioned Hilary in the red dress she’d worn the night of Joe’s parents’ dinner and Joe in his tux. The image of Joe kissing her filled my head and I released a small gasp of anguish.

“I’m coming over tonight.”

I’d been trying to become less dependent on her and everyone else, but I didn’t want to be alone. “Okay.”

“It’s going to be okay, Rose. I promise.”

I knew she was right, even if I didn’t believe it right now.

I went home and took a bath then watched TV with Muffy, listening to the rain in my melancholy. I knew I had to tell Violet about Joe and decided to get it over with.

She listened then calmly asked, “Do you want to come spend the night with me?”

“Neely Kate’s coming over.” I paused. “Wait. Why don’t you sound more surprised?”

When she didn’t respond, the truth hit me. “You knew.”

Her silence was damning.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t want you to get hurt any more than you already were.”

“Violet, I had a right to know.”

“I know you did. I’m sorry.” Her voice softened. “You’ve just been through so much, you needed a break. I wanted to protect you.”

“I’m not eight years old anymore, Violet. You can’t protect me from life.”

She was silent for several seconds. “You’ll always be my little sister, Rose. Neither one of us can change that. I love you. I’ll always want to protect you.”

I knew she meant well, but this was one more sign of her smothering.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come spend the night?”

“No.” Even if I’d been tempted before—and I wasn’t—I definitely didn’t want to go now.

“How’d it go at Jonah’s today?”

I sighed. Back to a somewhat safe topic. “We got a lot of work done today before the rain hit.”

“Are you sure you’re ready to be doing all the manual labor? You’re still recovering.”

“My back hurts some, so I’m a lot slower than Bruce Wayne, but I like being there. You know that working in the dirt makes me feel better.”

“Okay. I just don’t want you to overdo it.”

“I’m fine.”

“Someone stopped in and asked about another landscaping job. Will you be in the shop tomorrow morning? I’ll give you the address and the phone number so you can set up an appointment.”

“Wow. Another? That’s great.”

“We’re really doing well,” she said, breathless with excitement. “We’ve already gotten landscaping jobs and business here at the nursery is picking up now that cooler weather has set in.”

“Look at the Gardner sisters,” I said. “Lucky in business. Unlucky in love.”

“Rose,” Violet’s voice was heavy with sorrow.

“I’m okay,” I said, sorry for my moment of wallowing and sorry for making her remember her own heartache. “This is a good thing. Really. Joe has moved on and so will I. It’ll all work out in the end.”

“Yes, it will. I have to believe that. For both of us.”

I knew she wasn’t talking about just me and Joe. Neely Kate walked in the side door carrying a bag. She stopped and put two containers in the freezer.

“Neely Kate’s here. I have to go. I’m meeting Bruce Wayne at Jonah’s at eight tomorrow. I’ll come by probably mid-morning to pick up the landscaping bricks and get the information about the new landscape job.”

“Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.” She paused. “I love you, Rose.”

“Love you too.” And I did. In spite of her shortcomings. Lord knew I wasn’t perfect.

Neely Kate set the bag on my coffee table and shrugged out of her jacket.

“Is it romantic comedies or action movies tonight?” I asked, leaning over to look in her bag.

She jerked it away from me with a laugh. “Neither. It’s time to step up your game since you’ve missed most major television events of the past decade.”

“So what is it?”

“
Grey’s Anatomy
. Nothing like Doctors McDreamy and McSteamy to cheer you up.” She set the DVD case on the table, then pulled out a Tupperware container. “And my grandma’s homemade potato soup. She heard about Joe and Hilary and whipped up a batch just for you.”

“She knows about Joe and Hilary?”

Neely Kate shrugged. “I was supposed to take her to get hot wings and then to the VFW bingo night.”

“I’m sorry.”

She rolled her eyes and put a hand on her hip. “Girl. Please. You saved me. Have you ever
been
to bingo night at the VFW?”

“No.”

“Well, don’t do it. Just
don’t
.” She went into the kitchen. “So when I told her about Joe, she let me off the hook and made you soup.” She had two bowls and spoons when she reemerged. “You obviously did me a huge favor. All the way around. I love her potato soup.”

“What about Ronnie?”

She sat down and lifted the lid off the plastic container. “He’s got poker night with the guys at the garage, which is how I got roped into bingo night. I’d much rather be with you eating soup and Ben and Jerry’s.”

“You brought Ben and Jerry’s?”

Her eyes widened in dismay. “What kind of friend do you take me for?
Of course
there’s Ben and Jerry’s.”

I leaned over and gave her a sideways hug. “You’re the best friend I could ever have.”