The Spring at Moss Hill (21 page)

“That's okay. I can sympathize.”

“Do you have brothers?” he asked her.

“A younger sister.”

“What about you, Russ?” Justin asked. “Any siblings?”

“An older brother. He's only eighteen months older, though.”

“It counts,” Chris said. “Is he full of advice for you?”

“Other way around.”

Justin and Brandon pounced on that one—the younger brother as the pest instead of the picked-on. After a few minutes, Mark rolled his eyes at Russ. “All we need now are Eric, Adam and Heather Sloan, and you could see what it's like around here. I grew up with these guys. Where does your sister live, Kylie? Around here?”

“Boston. She's in veterinary school at Tufts. Her name's Lila.”

“A vet? No kidding.”

“My father's a vet,” she added. “My mother runs a dog training and grooming business.”

She didn't remember ever saying so much about herself—not that she'd had many opportunities, given her solitary ways.

When the morning session ended for a short lunch break, Daphne headed straight for Russ. “Did I have an actual stalker?” she asked him in a loud whisper.

“No, Daphne,” Russ said. “You didn't have a stalker.”

“I saw you big guys go all tough and mean and wondered. Was he after you, Kylie? Of course I don't wish such a thing on anyone, but being rescued by Russ and a couple of Sloans can't be a bad thing.”

Kylie bit back a smile. “It was just a guy who worked on this place and wanted to see it now that it's finished. I recognized him.”

“There was no rescue,” Russ added.

“Well, it was exciting while it lasted.” Daphne fought a yawn. “I wish I could help myself to wine now, but I'd better wait until after the master class this afternoon or who knows what I'll say that will get me into trouble. Olivia and Dylan promised to make me a French martini tonight. I should have Marty send them his recipe. This first session went well, I think, but I'm drained. A potential stalker, though. That will be enough to reenergize me.”

Ava and Ruby eased in to either side of Daphne, whisking her off to introduce her to more of their friends and professors.

Russ stood close to Kylie, his own cup of coffee in hand. “My guess is Daphne's giving this her all because she's never doing it again. How would Morwenna handle a public appearance?”

“She'd channel Daphne Stewart. What a pro.”

“That she is. I doubt anyone else has a clue what this is taking out of her. What would you do if Morwenna had a stalker?”

“Call in Sherlock Badger,” Kylie said lightly. “He's not in every book. He only visits Middle Branch once in a while. He'd be available.”

“Is Middle Branch named after the Middle Branch of the Swift River?”

She tried to hide her surprise. “Yes, as a matter of fact.”

“I've been reading that book on Quabbin in my apartment.”

And he'd really read it, she thought. The damming of the Swift River had allowed the valley to flood, creating the reservoir and forever changing Knights Bridge.

Daphne wandered back, iced-tea in hand. She was visibly more subdued. “You're an artist,” she said to Kylie. “You must have ways you protect your work. Even if you're just starting out—maybe especially if you're just starting out—you have to keep your focus where it belongs.”

“It's easy to get distracted,” Kylie said, neutral.

“Mmm.” Daphne eyed her as if she suspected she'd hit a nerve. “Well. I suspect you and I aren't that different. I love what I do as much as I did when I was hiding in the library attic. I thought I'd love teaching, but I don't. Other people are better suited than I am. I'll get through the afternoon class—it's more hands-on, more about what I do day to day now versus the past. But I can share my knowledge and experience in other ways. I'm glad I did this today, but I truly don't need to do it again. I put my dear Colt Russell through his paces because I couldn't face my own ambivalence.”

Kylie smiled. Russ ignored her.

Daphne grinned, a mischievous glint in her deep green eyes. “Don't you think he looks like a Colt? He told you about his brother, Marty? I called him Colt Martin and almost got a martini in my face. They're a tough pair. You wouldn't think Marty's tough because he's such a dreamer and a nice guy, but he is. Not that Russ isn't nice. But you know what I mean.”

“Quit before you dig your hole any deeper,” Russ said.

She laughed. “I always take your advice.”

Kylie doubted that was true. Ava and Ruby joined them as the crowd dwindled. “Where's your firefighter?” Daphne asked.

“He left with his brothers,” Ruby said.

“Good,” her twin sister muttered.

“I remember their father as a young man,” Daphne said. “He was quite the stud, too. It's so easy to get caught up in love and romance and put aside our own plans for the future. I almost quit the business and moved to Copenhagen with my third husband. Lovely city, but can you imagine?”

Kylie had no idea if that was a true story and clearly neither did Ava and Ruby, but Daphne seemed satisfied when Ruby smiled. As the twin sisters chatted with Daphne, Kylie could see that Ruby especially had stars in her eyes about Hollywood.

“I can see why you two want to start a children's theater here,” Daphne said. “It's a great location.”

“It has potential,” Ava said. “But, I'm not sure we're ready.”

“Knights Bridge or you and Ruby?”

“All of the above.”

Ruby nodded. “I get excited thinking about the possibilities, but when I bump up against reality, my stomach twists right into knots. My ambivalence about the theater didn't help me see what was going on between Chris and me. I'm sorry so much of that played out in public. I've been a little high-strung lately, I know.”

Daphne waved a hand. “I've been married three times. You don't have to explain.”

Ava kept her gaze on Kylie. “I think Ruby and I pushed Daphne to do this. Come to Knights Bridge again, teach a class, talk to us about a children's theater.”

Daphne cleared her throat pointedly. “No one pushes me into anything.”

“But this isn't your thing, is it?” Ava asked. “Russ, you're skeptical, too, aren't you? About this theater?”

“I don't know enough about getting a community children's theater up and running to be skeptical,” he said.

“I don't either,” Daphne said. “Ava and Ruby probably know more than I do—”

“No,” they said simultaneously and emphatically.

Ava recovered first. “We have a lot to learn and experience before we can pull off our vision for a theater here.”

“I thought I wanted to come back to Knights Bridge after I get my master's,” Ruby said. “Now... I don't know.”

“You need your time in the bright lights and big city,” Daphne said cheerfully. “I knew I didn't belong in Knights Bridge forty years ago.”

Kylie wondered what Russ's life was like in Southern California. Nothing like the one he was witnessing now, in Knights Bridge.

“Well.” Daphne clapped her hands together. “No point dwelling on this. Today is a good day, and soon it will be done. People enjoyed my talk this morning. Now, some food then on to the afternoon session.” She smiled at Kylie. “And I did bring Russ Colton to town. I think he fits in, myself. Rugged, tough, good with the locals. The
Magnum, PI
shirt doesn't quite fit, but Marty will find an alternative.”

“That's what scares me,” Russ said.

Daphne winked at him. “We're not fooled, Russ. Nothing scares you.”

Kylie laughed, and Ava and even Ruby seemed to relax. Daphne made plans to ride back to Carriage Hill with Ava. “I'll go with you,” Ruby said. “Chris was going to join us for dinner, but he had to go to the station and canceled. I think I'm going to buy a clue.”

“I've always preferred the quick-but-painful lopping off of a relationship to the slow, miserable bleed,” Daphne said. “Be sure to come to dinner tonight, Ruby. I'll introduce you to the joys of a French martini.”

Twenty-Two

R
uss wasn't in Knights Bridge to mess up Kylie's life.

It was his singular thought as he arrived at the Farm at Carriage Hill.

She'd told him she would drive herself to dinner. He suspected she wanted to give herself a chance to change her mind. She had a thousand reasons to stay home, including her stubborn, ill-fated attraction to a certain private investigator—that being him—but the truth was, she wanted to go. He'd seen it in her eyes when she'd ducked up to her apartment.

Maybe her life could use a little messing up.

Dylan welcomed Russ into the house and offered him a beer. The dining room was set for dinner. Maggie and Brandon Sloan were spending the evening with their sons, but the Flanagans and Justin Sloan and his fiancée, Samantha Bennett, were gathered in the living room. A low fire in the center-chimney fireplace was taking the chill out of the evening air.

Daphne had changed into a simple black dress, with gaudy earrings that suited her over-the-top personality—or at least the over-the-top personality she liked to embrace as her own. She was seated by the fire, nursing a drink. “Marty better watch out,” she said as Russ stood next to her. “Dylan makes a damn good French martini, too.”

Ava and Ruby, sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of the fire, each had martinis. Ruby dove right into hers, but Ava discreetly set hers aside.

Daphne, of course, noticed. “We'll try again when you visit me in Hollywood, dear,” she said. “Russ's brother is better at making drinks than I am, but I'll bet you'll like my version of a French martini when we're sitting out by my pool in the Southern California sun. I've been freezing to death since the sun went down.”

The twin sisters both smiled, more because of Daphne's invitation to visit than the prospect of trying another of her martini concoctions.

Kylie entered the living room. Russ hadn't heard her come in. Olivia greeted her warmly. “I hope I look better than the last time you saw me,” Olivia said with a laugh. “I decided not to push myself today, with our dinner tonight, but I'm sorry I missed Daphne's class.”

“My first, last and only master class,” Daphne said, tucking her feet up under her on the chair. “I'm debating whether to stay here another couple of days or go back right away. I'm considering several new projects. I had this fantasy of slowing down a bit when I turned sixty, but I hate to turn down work.”

“You're in your prime,” Olivia said.

“How nice of you to say so. We had quite a number of movie people in the crowd today. Word's leaking back to Hollywood that I used to live here. I managed to avoid a lot of that sort of gossip when I was here in September. Egad. People are going to find out my real name is Debbie Sanderson and there's a portrait of my great-great-grandfather in the local library. He looks a bit like George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge, don't you think?”

Russ didn't think so at all. From her expression, Kylie didn't, either. Ruby and Ava said George Sanderson reminded them of Colin Firth in
Pride and Prejudice
. “Older, of course,” Ruby said, “but just as handsome.”

“And as rich,” Ava added with a grin.

Daphne scoffed. “Well, I hope Darcy's wealth lasted longer than old George Sanderson's did. I've had to work myself to the bone my entire life. What do you think, did I show a lack of gratitude in changing my name to Daphne Stewart? I was always more of a Mary Stewart fan than Daphne du Maurier, but I do like the name Daphne.”

“I'm sure your great-great-grandfather would understand,” Olivia said.

“I hope so. I don't know why, but I do.” Daphne sipped the last of her martini. “Do you work under more than one name, Kylie?”

Russ felt Kylie's gaze on him, but he didn't come to her aid, change the subject or deny that he'd said a word to Daphne, which, of course, he hadn't. Finally, she nodded. “Yes, I do.”

“Really?” Ruby set her martini glass on a tray on a small table by Daphne's chair. “I had no idea.”

“Can you tell us?” Olivia asked, clearly intrigued.

“Yes, Kylie, please,” Jess said. “Tell us who you really are.”

She told them she wrote and illustrated children's books under the name Morwenna Mills. She was matter-of-fact, and she didn't explain her reasoning, her success or any details.

Samantha clapped her hands together. “Morwenna is the one who created
The Badgers of Middle Branch
, right?”

Kylie nodded without comment.

“I read them to Justin's nephews. They love them. They identify with the little badgers who are always plotting their next adventure. And they love Sherlock Badger. He reminds them of their Uncle Eric.”

“That's great,” Kylie said. “Thank you.”

“This is so cool,” Ruby said, swooping up her martini again. “Calls for one more sip of this thing.”

Laughter ensued, and in a few minutes, Olivia said it was time for dinner.

Russ edged closer to Kylie as she started into the dining room. “That wasn't so hard, was it?”

“It wasn't, but I think I'll try one of those French martinis.”

Dylan overheard and saw to it himself.

Russ suspected that Dylan McCaffrey, of everyone in the room except maybe Daphne, most understood what it had taken out of Kylie to admit she worked under another name, and a very successful one at that. Dylan had been a professional athlete and, after the premature end to his NHL career, had succeeded beyond anyone's expectations when he'd joined his best friend, Noah Kendrick, at Noah's fledgling NAK, Inc. Dylan's quick thinking and his instincts about people had helped tip the scales in NAK's favor. The company had gone public about the same time Morwenna's badgers had taken off in popularity, changing its founders' lives, putting them at a crossroads they were still trying to sort out.

“Today was a wake-up call,” Dylan said after he handed Kylie her martini and she and the other guests were taking seats in the dining room. “I have a family now—a baby on the way. I can't fool around. I talked to Noah. We'll set up a meeting.”

Russ nodded. “Anytime.”

“I rather like this,” Kylie said from the table, as she sipped the martini.

Daphne beamed. “There.” She gave Russ a victorious look. “I told you Kylie and I had things in common.”

“You're scaring me,” Russ said, grinning at her as he took his seat at the table. He noticed that Olivia and Dylan had put him next to Kylie. From the color in her cheeks, he guessed she'd noticed, too.

* * *

After dinner, Daphne started out to the terrace. She nodded to Kylie. “Join me, why don't you?”

It was a friendly command, Kylie thought. How could she refuse?

On their way through the mudroom, Daphne grabbed a barn jacket that must have belonged to Dylan. Kylie had already grabbed a throw from the back of a chair in the living room, trying not to think about last night's throw on Russ's balcony and how it had almost ended up in the river. She wouldn't have cared. She'd gone quickly past the point of caring.

“I do miss the night sky here,” Daphne said, looking up at the stars as she spoke. “I took a pseudonym when I moved to California because I was deliberately reinventing myself. George Sanderson was a generous and solid citizen but his great-grandson—my father—was a hard, abusive man.” She turned to Kylie. “But you're not escaping a troubled past, are you?”

“Fortunately, no. I created the badgers before I decided to use a pseudonym.”

Daphne sank onto a chair at a round wooden table. “And Morwenna just fit?”

Kylie nodded, sitting across from her. “That sums it up. I'd never both written and illustrated a children's book, and I didn't want to interfere with my regular work under my own name.”

“You hedged your bets. Makes perfect sense. Are you worried envy will be an issue when your artist friends find out?”

“It would be patronizing to assume anyone would be envious of me.”

“But professional jealousy exists even among people who draw cute, chubby animals for a living,” Daphne said. “Easy to think you're all in it together, but then one of you rises to the top. It can throw off the balance of friendships. It's not just when you blow past them. It's also when they blow past you and you get accused of envy when you couldn't care less.”

“Maybe so.” Kylie tightened the warm throw around her. “It's not something I like to think about.”

“Not everyone wishes you well in life. I learned that early on in Hollywood. Creative people aren't exempt from envy, jealousy and ambition and competitiveness carried too far. That includes those of us who don't get the major headlines.”

“You're very wise.”

“I've been around a long time. I've seen it all.” Daphne made a face. “I can't believe I just said that. Did Russ figure out you're this Morwenna Mills?”

“He did,” Kylie said.

“He's a suspicious and tenacious sort. I think he got shot at more than once while he was in the navy. Beverly Hills is a big change for him from San Diego. Knights Bridge is an even bigger change. It was my idea to drag him out here. He all but told me I was being stupid.” Daphne draped the barn coat over her shoulders. “I almost wish this guy today'd had it in for me. Well, no, I don't, but Russ can be annoyingly smug. Worse than Julius.”

Kylie laughed. Daphne obviously adored both men. “Do you think you'll ever come back to Knights Bridge?”

Light from the house hit Daphne's face, deepening the green of her eyes, the lines at her mouth. She looked tired, emotionally as well as physically drained by her appearance. “Everywhere I go there are ghosts. If you've lived here all your life or move back within a short time—or come and go...” She looked up at the night sky again. “But to be away for decades and then return, you can't escape the memories.”

“And they aren't all good memories, are they?”

“No one has only good memories.” She leaned back, eyed Kylie knowingly. “You and Russ—I noticed the way he looks at you. You don't have a man in your life?”

“I've been busy—”

“That's what we always say, isn't it? I keep saying I'm through with men. I don't want to marry again, that's for sure. Creatively, single is a great way to go. You get in the zone and stay in it unless you want to come out.”

“There are always distractions.”

“You're not going to tell me we have to find balance, are you? There's no such thing.”

Kylie wasn't sure if Daphne was serious.

“What about kids?” She waved a hand. “Don't choke. I say what's on my mind. A man like Russ will want kids. Mark my words. His brother agrees. Marty's a hunk, too. Ever been to Hollywood?”

“For a long weekend.”

“A private investigator and a children's illustrator. Not exactly your everyday couple.”

“Daphne...”

“Jumping ahead, am I? Blame the martini.” She sprang to her feet with a sudden burst of energy. “I hope you feel better for telling your friends here that you're Morwenna. I haven't told most of my friends about Debbie Sanderson. Maybe it's time.” She inhaled deeply, as if she wanted to take in the night air, and maybe all the memories of her Knights Bridge past. “I'm not staying. I'm not doing the children's theater. The timing is all wrong for Ava and Ruby—I think they'll be relieved when I tell them. Right now the theater they have in mind for Knights Bridge is a lovely dream. It's not a realistic goal and might never be.”

“And you don't want to do it, regardless.”

Daphne sniffed. “You sound like Russ now. He knew I'd bail before I did. Maybe I stuck with it longer because I wanted to prove him wrong. But I hated to disappoint Ava and Ruby—I hope I didn't look too happy when I saw how relieved they were that this wasn't meant to be. They need to finish school and experiment, figure out what they want, what they're good at.”

As if on cue, Ava and Ruby joined Kylie and Daphne on the terrace, followed by Olivia, Dylan and Russ. Olivia explained that the Flanagans and Samantha and Justin were cleaning up the dinner dishes, refusing any and all offers of help.

Kylie vacated her seat at the table. She was aware of Russ's eyes on her as she mumbled a good-night and slipped into the mudroom. She took her martini glass into the kitchen. She'd only had a few sips and wasn't worried about driving back to Moss Hill in the Knights Bridge dark.

It was time to make her exit.