If You Ever Tell (46 page)

“Are you going to let me ride Eclipse?” Celeste asked excitedly.

“Just wait and see,” Teri answered cryptically.

The inside of the barn was bright with sunlight glowing through the skylights. Still, Teresa flipped on a couple of the artificial lights so that every horse stood out clearly. Celeste wandered past the stalls, greeting Bonaparte, Conquistador, Fantasia, and Sir Lancelot. Just before she reached Eclipse, she stopped abruptly and gasped. A cream-colored Morgan with a graceful neck, a narrow, elegant head, and melting dark eyes whinnied, then pushed her muzzle into Celeste’s outstretched hand. “Meet Snowflake,” Teri said. “She’s all yours.”

Celeste’s mouth parted slightly. Her eyes met Teri’s. Then, in a tiny voice, she asked, “She’s mine? Really mine?”

“Yes, honey,” Teresa said. “I know she’s not white, like the original Snowflake, but she’s a very light cream with only a couple of dark markings. I hope you’re not disappointed.”

“Dis… disappointed?” Celeste ran from the horse, threw herself into Teri’s arms again, and cried, “Oh, thank you, Teri! Thank you, thank you—”

“Okay!” Teresa laughed. “I guess she meets with your approval?”

“I never thought in my whole life I’d have a horse like her! I can’t believe it! Daddy won’t believe it! Daddy will pay you—”

“No, he won’t,” Teresa said firmly. “Snowflake is
my
gift to you.” She looked down into the girl’s brimming eyes. “Now go pay attention to your horse. She misses you already.”

In a moment, Celeste stood in front of Snowflake, stroking her, talking to her, dripping tears onto the horse’s muzzle, which Snowflake did not seem to mind at all. Sierra, unable to contain herself in moments of joy, stood beside Celeste, twisting, turning, and frantically wagging her tail.

“Buying that horse for Celeste was wonderful of you,” Mac said. “I know it cost a fortune.”

“I am a wildly successful woman. I’ll have you know I gained two new students this week, now that everyone knows I did
not
kill anyone.” She sobered. “Not even Carmen.”

“She deserved what she got, just like Byrnes did,” Mac said.

“And how’s your mother?” Teri asked.

“She’d been going downhill the last week because Celeste’s talking and Byrnes’s recanting his confession upset her. She wasn’t sleeping much, and when she did, she had nightmares. She kept mixing up your mother and Hugh with Carmen and Hugh. In her subconscious, she knew about the affair—I think she even saw Hugh and Carmen having some breakup scene at your house, but she wasn’t sure of what she was seeing. Down deep she’s always known about them, though, and it’s been eating her alive for years. She’ll be all right now that we know what was troubling her. My mother is a survivor.”

“I wish mine had been. I can’t even give her a proper funeral. We have no idea where Carmen buried her. The police dug all around the igloo and found nothing, and no one is going to let us dig up half of TNT looking for her.”

“But you said you’re going to put up a monument for her here at Farr Fields—something small and pretty, just like she’d want. We’ll have a service. You and Mom and I will be here. Kent and Daniel and Sharon.”

“Sharon only if she’s out of the ‘convalescent’ home, as Kent insists on calling it,” Teri said. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing that this nervous breakdown happened. Sharon has needed help for a long time. Kent was just terrified she was going down the same road as my mother.”

“And he didn’t want it to affect his public image,” Mac said sourly. Teresa shot him a stern look. “All right. I promised I’d try to resurrect my friendship with Kent.” Mac paused. “Especially since he’s going to be my brother-in-law.”

Teresa raised an eyebrow. “Oh, is he?”

“Isn’t he?”

“I don’t know. Is this your way of proposing, Mac? If it is, I can’t say much for your style.”

Mac immediately dropped to his knee, pulled a ring case from his pocket, snapped open the lid, and held up a sparkling solitaire set in platinum. “Teresa Lynn Farr, will you do me the honor of marrying me?”

While Teresa pretended to think about it, Celeste dashed to her side, her eyes twinkling. Teri put her left arm around the girl’s shoulder and said, “The answer is yes on one condition.”

“And what’s that?” Mac asked.

“That Celeste will agree to be my maid of honor.”

“Oh, Teri, really?” Celeste cried. “This day just gets better and better. Yes, I’ll be your maid of honor! Oh,
please
marry Mac! You have to, Teri; you really do!”

Teresa looked deep into Mac’s eyes—the eyes she’d loved since she was sixteen. “Yes, I guess I really do.”