There. She’d said too much, of course she had. For which she’d probably have hell to pay with Kevin. She’d probably made Taylor defensive, and she wouldn’t blame her. So Annie looked down at the bread and said, “I’m so sorry, Taylor. I shouldn’t have said anything. I’ve been trying to find a way for us to be better friends, but I suppose I just blew my chances. Just because I’m over fifty now, doesn’t mean I know when to shut my mouth. And if you want to change your mind about playing at my wedding, I’ll understand.”
Taylor said nothing. She did, however, tuck her auburn mane behind her ears and stare out the window. And then teardrops spilled over her lower lashes.
“My bully of a brother,” she said quietly, “is trying to steal my house.”
Chapter 14
The trademark mugs and the crab cakes arrived. The server set them down and, with a pleasant smile, asked if they needed anything else. When they said no, thanks, he sauntered away.
Annie was glad for the momentary intrusion, as it gave her time to try to process the latest glut of information. And though she wanted details, she didn’t want to antagonize her sister-in-law. So she simply said, “I don’t understand how Rex thinks he can steal your house.”
“Neither did I. But he lost his restaurant in the height of the pandemic. He claimed that few people wanted ‘takeout flambé,’ which I suppose makes sense.” She raised her head and stretched her neck but didn’t wipe the tears from her dark amber eyes. Maybe she thought Annie hadn’t noticed; maybe she thought she should appear unflappable, rather than as a weeping woman.
“After a while,” Taylor continued, “Rex had to turn his restaurant back to the bank. Next went his waterfront condo. I expect he’d made tons of money over the years, but material things were important to him. He once told me if you look successful, people will think you are. He said it was a big part of why his business had taken off. He let people think he was a great businessman as well as an amazing chef. Turns out he was one but not the other.”
Annie wanted to interject that few small businesses had been prepared for the onslaught of COVID-19, but she didn’t think defending Rex would be a good idea.
“What about your house?” Years ago, Annie had been on the hamster wheel of having a lot of money, needing more, getting more, needing more. Thinking about that still put her at risk of developing a migraine. She decided to swing the conversation back to the issue at hand. “He can’t just ‘steal’ it, can he?”
Taylor resumed a small interest in lunch. She lifted her fork, picking at a crab cake, then at the greens around it. “Yes,” she said. “He can.”
“But it’s your home. Wasn’t it your mother’s? Didn’t you grow up there?” Kevin seemed to enjoy living there, not far from the Inn, with plenty of space for family and friends, especially Francine and Jonas. Maybe he even dreamed of having grandkids race around the lawn, the screen door slapping behind them in summer.
“I grew up in that house,” Taylor answered. “But so did Rex.”
“Can you find a compromise?” Maybe Rex wanted to sell it so he could take half the money and start over again. Maybe, somehow, Kevin could buy him out. Then maybe Rex would move away and leave Chappy—and everyone on it—intact. Maybe, maybe, maybe.
Taylor shook her head. “He insists that it’s already his.”
His?Annie scowled. “But you’ve lived there for years. You gave up your career to come back to the island and take care of your father when he got sick. Am I right?”
Taylor stopped stirring and looked at her curiously, as if Annie had said more than she should have known. Annie swiftly searched her mind, wondering if, indeed, she’d been told those things in confidence. By Kevin. Or maybe by Claire.
“It’s true that while Rex was busy making a name for himself and his restaurant, I gave up my life and came back here. I was a good cellist. I played with the symphony.” Taylor’s voice was louder, stronger. But beneath the surface, a small waver indicated that the teardrops were about to make a comeback.
“Your family was more important to you,” Annie said gently. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Taylor’s eyebrows lifted, then lowered as if in a shrug. “You know the story about Jonas. How his father died before we could get married. How Jonas went to live with his father’s parents.”
Yes, Annie knew that story. She nodded.
“The truth is,” Taylor continued, “I came home to try and ‘atone for my sins,’ which is what my mother called it. My father didn’t call it anything. In fact, he hardly spoke to me. He died still hating me for what had happened. Even though I’d done as he’d demanded—I left the island, went to Boston, had my baby, my Jonas, in secret.” She sat, staring into the fireplace, her eyes glistening, the orange flames reflected in them. “All that time, my father refused to support me. He claimed he didn’t have any money. So I moved in with Rex.”
“But I thought Jonas’s grandfather gave you money . . .”
“That came later. After I gave them Jonas. I’d planned to keep him. I wanted to stay in Boston, get a job, and raise my baby. I never wanted to see the Vineyard again. Back then, Rex worked a hundred hours a week trying to save money to start his own restaurant. He paid my doctor bills. And the hospital bill. I have to give him credit for that. But a couple of weeks later, he said he was done giving me a free ride and that he wasn’t going to support my kid as well. Plus, he had a girlfriend who wanted to move in. So I had to leave.”
Annie lowered her head. “Were you in a position to be a single mother?” She was reminded how, even twenty-five years ago, society still frowned on that, still made it difficult for a young woman who wasn’t lucky enough to have a family helping out.
Taylor snorted. “I didn’t have a dime to my name or a place to live. That’s why I turned to Derek’s parents. Derek, you might remember, was Jonas’s father, who drowned before Jonas was born. Anyway, I figured they’d love Jonas. And keep him safe. They were rich summer people who had a ton of money, but I didn’t ‘sell’ him to them. A little while after that, Jonas’s grandfather—Roger Flanagan—gave me a big check. I was stunned. I felt guilty for taking it, but I had little choice. I still can’t believe I told people that Roger offered to keep me—and my family—financially solvent forever. I guess in my teenager’s brain it sounded more acceptable to say that instead of admitting I gave Jonas to them.”
“Where did you live after Rex booted you out and before you got the check?”
“In a homeless shelter.”
Annie stifled a gasp.
“I got a housekeeping job at a hotel. But it wasn’t enough to live on, even by myself.”
