Life After Perfect (14 page)

Chapter Twelve

Katy carried a tray with a pitcher of water, a cup, saltines, and a small mug of the tomato soup that Angie had brought over. Maybe Kelly Jo would be up to sipping a little of that.

“Knock, knock,” Katy said as she walked in the room.

Kelly Jo was sitting up in bed, and Naomi had tucked the covers in around her, like a burrito baby, just like Katy’s own mom used to do.

“This is a bright and cheery room,” Katy commented. “I love the artwork.” She walked closer to a set of two pictures of beautiful koi fish swimming with their fins fanning behind them. Almost like reverse sketches.

“All the rooms are all a little different,” Naomi said. “I’ve had a lot of fun decorating, and redecorating them over the years. My Marshall was such a sweetheart about letting me have my way with the house.”

“Aunt Naomi did those pictures.”

“Really? It’s like that scratchboard art, right? I noticed the sign out front is the same medium,” Katy said. Not to mention half the town.

Naomi shrugged. “I was kind of known for that back in the day.”

“Kind of,” Kelly Jo said. “She’s famous for it. Uncle Dillon wasn’t the only famous Laumann.”

“You did all the signs for Main Street too?” Katy asked.

“Most of them. Now they just have them made somewhere to look like the others. But yes, there was a time when I did all the signage for the town. It was fun.”

“You are just full of little surprises. It’s a great look. It’s one of the first things I noticed when I drove through town.” Katy pulled the nightstand away from the wall so Kelly Jo could reach everything more easily on the tray.

“Thanks, Katy. Sorry I was so much trouble this morning.”

“Don’t be silly. I’m glad I was here to help. What else can I do for you while I’m here?”

“Nothing.” Kelly Jo took in a deep breath. “I’m just going to rest.”

Naomi leaned over and pressed a kiss to Kelly Jo’s forehead. “Love you, sweetheart.”

She closed her eyes. “Love you, too.” Her mouth moved but no sound came out.

Katy and Naomi walked back out of the room, and Naomi closed the door quietly behind them. “Bless her heart.”

Katy wrapped an arm around her. “That’s got to be so hard. Are you all the family she has left? You and Nell?”

“Well, and her husband, Todd. Remember. I mentioned him before.”

“Where is he?”

Naomi shook her head. “Oh, don’t get the wrong idea. He is an amazing young man. He loves that girl more than his own life. She just won’t let him see her like this.” Naomi raised a hand. “I know what you’re thinking. Believe me. I’ve said my piece about it. The girl is determined that it will be easier on him if he’s not here when she dies.”

The breath caught in Katy’s chest. She wasn’t sure she could be that unselfish . . . heck, that brave, to go through what Kelly Jo was going through alone. How deep was a love that it would have you forge ahead alone to spare another. “She’s trying to protect him.”

“Yes, well, who am I to judge? I just want her to be at peace.” Naomi’s eyes glistened. “Things change when people die, leaving us to pick up the pieces and reshape our lives. It’s not easy.”

“When did Marshall pass away?”

They walked back out to the living room. Naomi sat in one of the large wing-back chairs, crossing her legs and looking rather demure. She’d probably been a beautiful young girl.

“Twelve years ago.” Her mouth puckered a little. “Never has been the same without him.”

“Had he been sick?”

She shook her silver-haired head. “No. He was older than me. He was resting in his lounger. He’d do that. Fall asleep in the chair watching CNN. One day, he just never woke up. I came in to share a cup of tea with him and he just didn’t respond.” Naomi stared off like she was reliving the moment. “I don’t know how long I sat there, kind of knowing but not wanting to know.”

“There’s no easy way. Just before I came here one of my neighbors lost her husband. Same thing. No warning. Just didn’t wake up one day.”

“We had a good life. He left me in good shape financially. Nell always tells people I’m living off of my Social Security, but that’s not true. I’d never be able to keep this place up on that pittance.”

“I can imagine. The electricity bill alone has to be out of this world. You could rent the suite I’m staying in for so much more.”

A gentle laugh filled the space. “It’s not about the money. It’s just nice to have someone to fuss over, to cook for once in a while. Really. It’s my pleasure.”

“I’m sure you get a lot of repeat customers. I know I’d come back.”

“Thank you. I’d like that too. Marshall left me plenty of money to keep this place going without renting out the rooms, but he’d always had them filled with people staying for one thing or another and it just was so darn lonely here by myself.”

She wanted to ask Naomi if the loneliness after Marshall died was why she’d named the inn Lonesome Pines, but that seemed too personal. “Why don’t you sell this place and move to that little cabin on the creek you were talking about? Or build one on part of the land? It looks like you’ve got some acreage around here.”

“I do. It’s about eighty acres.” She pointed to the bookshelf. “Bring those photo albums over. I’ll show you some things.”

Katy got up and retrieved a stack of four photo albums, all bound in cordovan leather with a gold-leaf border. Naomi got comfortable on the couch and then patted the cushion next to her for Katy to sit down. Katy joined her and they opened one of the albums up across both of their laps.

They spent the next hour with Naomi guiding Katy through pictures from her and Marshall’s courtship, and their wedding. She’d been a lovely bride. Marshall was good-looking, too. Naomi hadn’t exaggerated.

The parties were like nothing she’d ever imagined. Fancy outfits, people mugging for the camera, beautiful flowers—grand in every kind of way. Ron would have loved that life. She might have, too, if there had been a couple tiny ones to chase around the yard and pick up after between parties. On the outside Naomi’s life looked perfect, but then she was renting rooms to strangers just to have company and someone to fuss over. Maybe her life would have been different had she and Marshall had children. That thought only made Katy yearn for children more. To hold that life in her arms. And Kelly Jo, so fragile. She ached to somehow help her.

Naomi pointed out a few celebrities in the grainy photographs. “That right there is a very young Loretta Lynn. She loved it out here. And look. Do you know who that is?”

Katy shook her head.

“Andy Griffith. He’s from over Mount Airy way. I was always surprised he gave up singing to pursue the acting, but he was equally wonderful at both.”

“So people like that came here all the time?”

“Not all the time, but any time. I never knew how many people we would be hosting. It was kind of like living on a party cruise.”

“I can see why you wouldn’t want to just walk away from these memories.”

“The memories are in here,” she said tapping the side of her head. “But I think this house isn’t done with its work. I’d always thought I’d leave the place to Kelly Jo. She’s the only one who ever loved it as much as I do. Marshall’s niece was Kelly Jo’s mother. She died very young. It was pneumonia.”

“And you and Marshall never wanted children of your own?”

“Marshall was dead set against it. Afraid the crazy would be passed to our children.” A wistful look cloaked Naomi. “I’d have given it a chance, but it wasn’t meant to be.”

“Kelly Jo is lucky to have you.”

“I asked Derek, Dr. Hansen,” Naomi corrected herself, “to come and talk to her. Not as a doctor, but as someone who has been through this. She’s already been to doctors all over this country. But Derek, he’s special. He knows what she’s going through. I think if he shares his story with her, about his sweet Laney, that Kelly Jo will be able to let go. If nothing else, maybe she will let Todd back into her life.”

Maybe Katy could pray for that. Peace for the sweet gal trying to navigate the end of her life. How does someone even emotionally wrap her head around that?

“Sometimes things seem so clear on the outside, but what’s happening on the inside . . . it’s a whole other story. I think sometimes people are just too brave for their own good these days. It’s okay for things not to be perfect.”

Perfect. Lord, Katy knew a few things about trying to be perfect. But then even perfect didn’t last. Although Derek had described his wife as perfect, the short time they’d had together didn’t seem fair and seemed pretty far from perfect.

“Love your life, my dear. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I know it’s something. I saw it in your eyes when you showed up. Don’t let the past haunt your future. Just let the world take you in its arms and the journey will unfold.”

Tears welled in Katy’s eyes, blurring her line of vision. “I’m trying so hard to do that.”

“Things happen for a reason. Though they sure aren’t easy to see sometimes. Like Derek. Him losing Laney seemed to have derailed an amazing career, but I’m willing to bet there’s something even better in his future. That’s the way God works. It’s kind of like me and my house. I know the right thing will happen at some point. Someone will come along who is going to carry this place forward in new and wonderful ways. I’ll know when the right situation offers itself.”

“I’m sure you will.”

“I hope you’ll stay for a while.”

“Thank you. At least I can help while I’m here. I’m not used to sitting idle.”

“My kind of girl.”

“Good. Then, I’ll stick around and give you a hand.” And that honestly felt like the best thing she could do with her life right now. Make a little difference, ease a little burden, for people who needed her.

When Derek drove up to the house, Katy was sitting on the front porch.

She’d looked pretty upset at the clinic, but he wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t like he’d said he was a movie producer and tried to seduce her into an audition on his casting couch. They’d had a great night. Really great.

He hoped she’d say something that might give him a clue as to what was on her mind. He stood at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for some indication of what he was in for.

“You lied to me.” Her jaw pulsed.

Was she mad or was she going to cry? Oh, he prayed she wasn’t going to cry. “I didn’t lie,” he answered cautiously.

“You let me believe you worked for the fire department.”

“And I do.”

“Everyone does. Naomi said so.”

“So, then it just corroborates my story. I’m on the volunteer fire department roster, and I’m a doctor.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I told you about Laney. I left my oncology work behind after she died.”

“It caught me off guard. You seemed so nice. Honest. And then nothing you said seemed real. I mean what little I did know about you wasn’t what I knew at all. Or something. I don’t know.”

“Look. I’ve been out of this for a long time. When I saw you at the gas station . . . something just kind of clicked. It was nice. I’m sure I’m going to say or do something wrong, but are you really mad at me? I didn’t lie to you. Do you think I was trying to be deceptive?”

“It sounds really stupid when you say it out loud.” She shrugged. “Not exactly. But maybe.”

“Well, everything I told you was true. Now add to that that I’m also a doctor filling in for his dad at his dad’s busy practice so his mom can have company marking some stuff off of her bucket list; and I’m still practicing medicine to maintain some part of my career as I figure out what my future looks like.”

The tension in her jaw relaxed a little.

“I really didn’t mean to mislead you. We never talked about what we did. It just didn’t come up. What do you do?”

“I work in the financial industry. A project manager.” She laced her fingers. “This is so awkward. I don’t do that kind of thing. I mean, the other night. Random get-togethers. With strangers.” She groaned.

“I meant for a living, but the other night was fun. And I’m not that strange. Am I?” He walked up the steps and turned to sit next to her. “I haven’t been out on a date since my wife died. I know what we had wasn’t technically a date, but it turned into one. Didn’t it? Kind of? Would you call it a date?”

“I’m so out of my comfort zone right now.” Her laugh sounded nervous, and that was attractive, and the truth was . . . he was nervous too.

“Me, too, but I’d like to see you again while you’re in town.”

She held his gaze, but for the life of him he didn’t know how to read her. He was almost afraid to continue. “If that’s okay.”

“I don’t know, Derek. My life is really complicated.”

“Whose isn’t? I became a doctor to heal. To make a difference. And what good is that if you can’t heal the ones that you love the most?”

“Her dying was not your fault.”

“She’d been sick for a long time. Fought hard, but then I made her fight way longer than she wanted to. Every cutting-edge trial out there, I got her into it.”

“Who wouldn’t? You loved her. You wanted to save her. Don’t apologize for that.”

“In hindsight it was so selfish.” He closed his eyes for a moment. He’d never even really talked about this with anyone. It had always been too hard. But then maybe since she didn’t know Laney, it somehow made it easier, because here he was talking about her again with this woman he barely knew. “It was foolish to have believed that medicine could outdo what God had already planned.” Not that God’s plan made any sense in this case. Maybe it never did, but Laney was one of His biggest advocates. She shared the word. Lived it. A shining example.