Windward Whisperings (20 page)

Kitzie invited the press to join their party at Duke’s. From a marketing perspective, things
worked in their favor. A photojournalist on the chopper captured a still shot of their fleet. She
suggested the caption: “Naiad Boatworks, a sailboat manufacturer in Landings Beach, California,
launches every boat they have.” The reporter interviewed the families. For candid shots, all wore
Duke’s’ T-shirts, bought by Garrett.

The next day at Naiad, orders for Starr-14s poured in. Like cars featured in movies, the gently
used fleet highlighted on the news went at premium prices. Stockholders’ dividends would be up at
mid-year. Garrett turned down their generous offer to stay on as Naiad’s chief executive officer.

He planned to move his headquarters from New York to Landings Beach. He listed his loft
building with Sara Feigenbaum and First Team. Kitzie said Sara was the best, and he believed her.
Then, he asked Kitzie if she’d like to buy back the family estate. She didn’t.

When his six months was up at Naiad, Edgar Wedemeyer would take over as CEO. A new
consulting project would take Garrett to Seattle. He’d miss the camaraderie of the place but needed
a challenge.
* * * *

He set down the morning paper and glanced toward her. “I’ve made decisions for us without
giving you an opportunity to discuss them.”
“We never said it was going to be easy. I can handle things here without much trouble. Piermont
is making a steady comeback. It’s been slower than your situation at Naiad, but I’m not dispirited.”
“Your Vectran product proved itself in the racing arena. I’m impressed you and Woody have
kept Piermont’s operating expenses in the black. Your start-up time was minimal. Good job, babe.”
“Thank you. Unlike you, I like it when work becomes clear and simple.” She refilled his cup and
thought of his grandparents. “Nana and Poppy might as well move into their apartment when they
come out. It has all the assisted-living amenities they’re used to. Plus, it allows cats.”
“I worry they’ll be a burden to you.”
“You’re not serious. They’re a bonus I’m getting by marrying you.” His grandparents had
warmed her heart when they asked her to call them Nana and Poppy.

Their wedding was a month later. Nana made a lovely matron of honor. The bride wore her
black hair in a French twist. She’d decided she deserved a shade of white and chose vanilla. Dyed-tomatch, her three-inch satin sandals had rhinestone ankle straps and a bow at the heels. Underneath,
she wore a gray satin garter belt and sparkling hose.

Poppy accompanied her down the aisle in his wheelchair and locked in for the groom.
At the Church of Our Redeemer, the groom looked dashing in his tux. After they exchanged
simple gold bands, the minister pronounced them man and wife. Garrett kissed her with a fever that
left her breathless.
Kitzie tossed her bouquet. Tommy caught it and gave it to Sedona. She kissed him as she held
their baby boy.
The reception for three hundred guests was held on the church lawn. Massive tents covered
rented tables, chairs, china, silver, glassware, creamy linens and flowers. From cocktails and hors
d’oeuvres to deliciously prepared salads, entrees, and wedding cake, Woody’s Event Specialists
showed off their new signature style.
Woody needed to keep his staff busy. At present, his and other buildings around the wharf were
under construction. Much of Landings Beach required cleanup. Other than smoke damage, the
trailer park and low rent stucco apartments were intact.
Just when Kitzie thought she’d finished attending to guests, Vinny Devine rushed toward her.
Holding his jacket over a shoulder, he kissed her on both cheeks. “You’re selling sails. I’m selling
boats that need them. It seems we’ll be doing business.”
“It will be a pleasure doing business with you, Vinny.” In her peripheral vision, she saw a
woman hook her arm around the neck of a man in pleated tuxedo pants. Cherry.
With the breeze hot and humid, he had removed his jacket. The shirt he wore was a twohundred-dollar Armani. She knew the shirt. Garrett brought his gaze around to her and stopped
talking.
He walked directly in front of Vinny and offered his hand. “Hello, Vinny.”
The salesman shook it. “There’s someone you should meet. Really needs a job, she said. She’s
crashed your wedding to get one.”
“I’ll catch up, Vinny.” Garrett took Kitzie’s hand and squeezed. “Hello, babe.”
She said, “I was afraid you were mad, me talking to Vinnie.”
“I’ll always be mad when you’re talking to another man.” He leaned down and gently bit her ear.
“Vinnie’s standing by Cherry Sixkiller.”
“I was just talking with her. Thanked her. She helped Leviticus and the cops find Bud Logan.”
“Maybe we should help Cherry out, with her daughter coming back to town and everything.”
“I can’t push Cherry off on Edgar. Should I ask her if she knows how to sew?” He winked as he
walked away.
It started to sprinkle. Kitzie put her hands out to feel the rain and walked toward her
grandmother-in-law. She leaned her head back and opened her mouth. The rain tasted better than
the champagne. “This is glorious, isn’t it, Nana?”
“The rain, yes, sweetie. It’s a portent of better days.” With a hand curling around a flute of
champagne, Nana motioned her toward a tent. Underneath, Millie Pugh Woodster hustled toward
them.
Millie shuffled back and forth, perhaps feeling the effects of the champagne. She sucked in an
audible breath. “The whole thing was arson.” Teetering, she took a moment to regain balance. “The
cops found the Biltmore couple the day of the fire. Lana confessed to shooting Garrett. Both
confessed to setting the fire to collect insurance. He’ll go to trial for crimes that include the murder
of your parents.”
Nana’s mint green pillbox hat tipped off-center. “We don’t want to dampen Kitzie’s spirits
today, Millie dear.”
“I’m sorry, Kitzie.” Millie pulled her lacy shawl tight and held her flute under her chin. “I hear
Leviticus and Woody talking about it all of the time. I’m sick about it but don’t know what to say. I
know it’s none of my business.”
“It’s all of our business.” Kitzie put her arms around their shoulders, not wanting them to spill
their champagne. “I’m grateful we can talk freely. In fact, I might have to force you two into
listening. I’m seeing a psychiatrist, Dr. Pugh. Isn’t he a cousin of yours, Millie?”
“Yes, Philip Pugh is my cousin. Is he telling you it’s healthy to express pain?”
“If I start rambling, let me know when you’ve had enough.”
Nana pulled off her slipping hat and set it beside her patent leather bag on a table. “Every time
there’s a new trickle of information, it brings up the past.”
Millie looked flustered. “Kitzie, my mind keeps roaming to a conversation your mother and I
had a few days before the accident. She told me they’d invested in the Paradise at St. Lucia project,
but she also showed me a portfolio for a golf theme condominium development. I believe she
expected they’d move to Phoenix. She wanted Woody and me to visit. She gave me the heads-up on
something.”
“What about?”
“Well, they wouldn’t have a private pool. Of course, we wouldn’t care a hoot about shared
amenities. I told her it’d be like a country club. My point is this. She was doing okay.”
Nana twisted a thin sterling chain around her finger and then slid a green frog pendant back and
forth. “Kitzie, were they distant the day they left for that fake barge party?”
“Not at all, they were excited, happy.”
“I remember hearing about their terrible accident.” Millie shook her head. “Moments later the
metal doors of all the shops on the wharf rolled down.”
Kitzie said, “Woody hated being the bearer of the bad news but came to find me anyway. We
drove across the harbor in his Chris Craft.” Her mind flashed through visions she’d wanted to
forget. Behind her eyes, the colors came with brown, charcoal green, but mostly red. It’d been a
perfect seventy degrees on the harbor. Temperature was indifferent to shock and horror. “I dream
about my parents now, happy dreams.” She cleared her throat, but her eyes welled up.
Nana picked up a linen napkin and handed it to her. “Here you are, sweetie.”
Kitzie took it, dabbed her eyes and looked out at the afternoon sky, a beautiful shade of gray.
With sprinkles turning to rain, drenched guests headed for cover under tents. Millie eased onto a
chair. “I hope someday you’ll find closure, Kitzie.”
“I’ve found it.” Suddenly, the gentle rain gave the earth took on a new scent.
Nana sat on one of the few chairs available. Kitzie scooted her over to sit on the same chair.

Their morning jog took them to the launching area of the Landings Beach Yacht Club. Thor
took off for a clump of trees. “Get back, Thor,” Kitzie called.
The dog whimpered once and then sulked back beside her. Before leaving for Seattle, Garrett
wanted to see the dozen Starr-14s. Edgar agreed to donate them with other tax write-offs.
Thor lifted his snout and then pranced off again.
Garrett hunkered down and sat on his heels, eye level with a hull. He smoothed a hand over the
white fiberglass. “These were manufactured with your bag method.” He sought her eyes on the
opposite side of the boat. “I’m glad you convinced me to donate these.”
“For the longest time, I’d tried to figure out how to make sailing affordable. Believe me. I’m
ready for some lighter moments. They’re about to begin, thanks to having these Starrs available.”
Still examining the boat, he lifted a tarp and checked out the wooden flooring of the cockpit.
“I’m going to need a better thank you than that.”
She came around smiling. Standing behind him, she leaned over and planted a kiss on his open
mouth. Her hand was moving from his arm to his chest. “I love your brains, but your brawn drives
me crazy. I’d like to eat you for breakfast.”
“I think you would.” He turned, stood up, and pulled her into the circle of his arms. Looking
beyond her, he tugged her around to face a clump of trees, three kids, and a yellow lab.
“I know those happy bunnies, and you do, too.”
He lifted an arm and waved at Miguel and Maria’s kids. “They know your class won’t start until
two. They’re here to check out the situation, make sure it’s going to happen.”
The kids returned his greeting and then headed toward their double-wide at Terrace Park.
She patted her leg, and Thor trotted back. She walked to the white board and began to write.
The
F
in
Free
was loopy with a long tail. He let her write
Sailing Lessons, two o’clock today
and put away
the marker before he came up behind her. “My flight isn’t until tonight.”
Her supple hips swayed. “Would you like to see what Nana has done with our Piermont office?”
“I’m guessing wallpaper.”
“Grass cloth, very tasteful.”
“I’m pressed for time. We’re taking them to dinner. Maybe Nana can bring samples.” He turned
her around, pinned her against the building, and kissed his way up and down her neck. Apparently, it
tickled.
It look awhile before she recovered from the giggles. “Seriously, I’m impressed with Nana’s
talent. She started with large pieces of sailing photos in primary colors. She did wallpaper several
wastebaskets with the grass cloth. Did you know she’s been commissioned by wharf shops?”
“I love you.” He placed a meaningful kiss on her lips.
“I love you, too.”
“I want to wrestle with you in the Avalon.” He took her hand and pulled her toward the wharf.
Thor pranced along behind them. “Stay, boy.”
“Good thing Louie is here to cart Nana around. By the way, his wife is now a staff nurse at the
senior residence.” She slowed. “I just realized something. We don’t have the key to
The Windswept
’s
cabin. Let’s go back to the yacht club. We’ll find a boat and fool around in a cockpit.”
“Just like old times.” He spread his hands through her heavy, black hair and raked his fingers
through it.
She slipped her hand inside his shirt and stroked him until his skin sizzled. “I’m going to give
you a real thank you.”
“It turns out I’m having more trouble leaving than I expected, babe.” He squeezed her shoulder.
Their path was before them, and they’d reached a kind of equilibrium, he thought. At that moment,
he was in a comfortable place between mind, body, and soul. Sometimes, like now, they headed in
the same direction. But there would be many paths, each one individual with untold futures. He felt
in his pocket and took hold of a small velvet case.
“I’d like to fly up for Seattle’s July Fourth celebration.”
“You do that, Mrs. Mackenzie.” He pulled out the case, opened the lid, and held it for her
inspection.
Her eyes grew wide as she gazed at the yellow diamond. “Oh, Garrett.”
He slipped it on her finger.
“It fits with my gold band.” She held out her hand and smiled.
“It’s a set. The jeweler didn’t have a canary marquis in stock when we bought our bands. I hope
you like it.”
“Yes, yes, and yes.”

Kathleen’s fictional characters think they have it together when they’re broadsided. Someone or
some twist of fate turns their lives into a deadly game. Try as they might to fight their way out,
they’ll never achieve what they had before. Heroines and heroes have at least one major flaw but can
readily fall in love. When they do, they learn to make their relationships work and get what they
need. They seldom get what they think they want.