Marry Me (11 page)

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That evening, Julia arrived at the house only to find several cars parked out front. Avoiding the front, she slipped in the kitchen door. Voices drifted out from the living room. Women's voices. Curious, she drifted down the hall and peeked around the corner.

She'd barely gotten a chance to eavesdrop when a baritone voice whispered in her ear.

“What are you doing?”

Julia nearly jumped out of her skin. Even as she spun around, a hand clamped over her mouth. Seth's blue eyes twinkled down at her. Julia glared with all the fury she could muster. He dipped his head back toward the kitchen and proceeded to drag her down the hall. Once they were safely in the kitchen, Julia punched him in the arm. It felt good, so she did it a couple more times.

“Ouch,” Seth complained over his laughter, even as he held up his arms in an attempt to protect himself.

“You scared me to death.”

“I couldn't resist,” he said. “I came in to check out the leftovers, and I saw you skulking around at the living room door.”

“I wasn't skulking.”

“What were you doing then?”

“It's not like they were passing state secrets,” she said, drawing herself up to full height. “I was curious.”

He arched a single brow. “About Grace's Bible study? I didn't think you were interested in religion.”

“I'm not.”

“Just interested enough to listen in at the door?”

Julia glared at him again. “Maybe, but I'm still not buying into the whole God thing.”

“I know, I know,” he said, holding up his hand in surrender. “You're much too logical to believe in things like faith and love.”

She ignored the sarcasm. “Love is a nice concept, but I'm not sure it exists outside of movies and novels. I've certainly never seen proof of it.”

“Never?”

“No.”

Even as she said it, a picture of Todd and Annie flashed through her mind.

Seth must have noticed the change in her expression because his own gaze sharpened. “Something come to mind?”

“Do you know Annie Truman and Todd Baldwin?” she asked, looking away.

“Sure. They're members. I've counseled them since the accident. They're an extraordinary couple.”

“I'm planning their wedding.”

“They certainly do represent the picture of true love. Makes you rethink your “love doesn't exist” motto, doesn't it?”

Julia sputtered, trying to think of a cutting remark, but even she couldn't deny Annie and Todd had something rare.

“It's all right to let yourself believe in something, Julia,” Seth said, in an extremely gentle voice, like an animal rescue activist trying to calm a wild bird.

“What is it you think I should believe in?”

“You could believe Grace and Sarah love you, and always have. You could believe there is a God who loves you, too. You could believe you're an amazing woman who deserves His love.”

He'd drawn closer during his speech until he was standing directly in front of her, and just like at the park that first day, their blasted soundtrack started up again. He must have heard the music too because she saw, rather than heard, his quick, indrawn breath. As if in a trance, he reached out and twined a lock of her hair around his fingers. The touch seemed to transfer from his hand right to her scalp.

Voices cut through the stillness. The Bible study had finished. In an instant, Seth moved across the room. All four women came to an abrupt halt when they realized the kitchen was already occupied. So abrupt they ended up banging into one another like characters in a slapstick comedy. Varying degrees of the same curious stare flashed across their faces.

Julia recognized Sarah's mother-in-law, who looked interested if a bit puzzled. Grace's neighbor, Mary-Ellen Carter, was among the group, and she was definitely on the scent of gossip. Julia could see the woman's nose twitch as she sniffed for a tidbit.

Julia's gaze switched to the last member of the group. This one was a stranger. A hostile stranger. Then she realized the beady-eyed, edge of insanity stare seemed familiar. She absolutely recognized the store window display get-up. De-age the woman by about thirty years, and she'd be looking at Amy Vining.

Which explained why the woman looked as though she wanted to plunge a knife in Julia's back. No doubt Mrs. Vining knew about her daughter's obsession and figured Julia was the competition.

“Well, hello,” Grace said. “I didn't know you two were home.”

Seth leaned against the counter. “I came to scrounge in your refrigerator and found Julia already here.”

Grace smiled. “I'm glad you got a chance to visit. Julia, I think you know everyone here, except for Sylvia Vining. I believe you met her daughters, Meredith and Amy.”

Hunch confirmed, Julia held out her hand. “Yes, I have met them.”

Mrs. Vining's glare was worthy of a queen, but deeply engrained Southern manners compelled her to take the offered hand.

Man, the woman sure knew how to drop the temperature in a room, Julia thought. No wonder Meredith had been so anxious to get away.

“I wasn't aware you had met Meredith,” Mrs. Vining said.

“She's planning the music for a wedding we're doing. We hit it off, and I met her for breakfast the other day. You must be so proud of all she's accomplished. Such a rare talent.”

Mrs. Vining practically quivered with rage. “Of course I'm proud of Meredith. Both of my daughters are accomplished. Amy is going to be an example in the community one day.”

“How nice for her.”

“Young people like my daughter and Seth will be the beacons of leadership for the next generation.”

Julia glanced at Seth, who looked a little dazed at the prospect of being a “beacon of leadership”. Her gaze flitted back to the Bible brigade, in time to see the other women roll their eyes in unison. Something told her Mrs. Vining had made such grandiose statements before.

Grace broke into the awkward silence. “Well, ladies, it was delightful as always.”

The women took this as their cue and filed out the back door.

“Sorry about Sylvia,” Grace said, once her friends were gone. “She's always been a bit too involved in Amy's life.”

“From what Meredith said it's more like an obsession. I'm sure it's a big reason why she left in the first place.”

“It's unfortunate when a parent favors one child so heavily over another,” Grace said, not bothering to deny the assertion. “Anyway, I left plates for you both in the refrigerator. All you have to do is heat them up. I'm off to check on John, then I'm going to bed. You two carry on with whatever you were doing.”

The last line was delivered with a little wink, which made Julia shudder. Surely Grace didn't know what was going on in here before she came in.

Grace paused for a moment. “And Julia?”

“Hmm?”

“Next time, come on in and join us in the Bible study,” she said as she slipped through the doorway.

On second thought, Grace probably did know.

Julia glanced at Seth, but he wouldn't look at her. Instead, he went to the refrigerator and pulled out the two prepared plates. He shoved one in the microwave and punched out numbers in a quick staccato motion. Then he stood there with his arms folded across his chest watching the revolving dish.

The microwave dinged and he repeated the same procedure with the second plate. He still didn't pull his gaze away from the appliance.

“What's gotten into you?” Julia asked.

“Nothing.” His voice was as blunt as his fingers.

“Are you mad at me?”

“No.”

“Are you mad at yourself then?”

His head swung around, and she reared back a little at his harsh expression. “I think it's probably best if we don't talk about this right now.” He picked up the first plate and headed for the back door. “Your dinner will be ready in a minute.”

“Where are you going?”

“My apartment. Tell Grace I'll bring her plate back in the morning.”

“Wait—”

The only sound was the crack of the screen door as it slammed shut.