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“Do you really believe he listened to you?” Valerie asked.
“I hope so,” she muttered.
Valerie frowned as she turned to stare out the car window. Steffie’s hands tightened on the steering wheel and she glanced around her. Wild rhododendrons blossomed along the side of the road, their bright pink flowers a colorful contrast to the lush green foliage.
“I’m worried about Dad.”
Valerie’s words surprised Steffie. “Why? He’s getting stronger every day. His recovery is nothing short of miraculous. I’ve heard you say so yourself, at least a dozen times.”
“All right, I’ll rephrase that. I’m worried for you.”
“Me? Whatever for?” As far as Steffie was concerned, her life had rarely been better. She’d applied for late admission to the Ph.D. program and planned to begin researching thesis topics soon. As for Charles…well, things were wonderful. Yes, she still had a lot of murky ground to cover with him, but there’d be time for that later.
“Dad’s riding high on success,” Valerie reminded her. “He seems to think that because everything fell into place with Colby and me, it should for you and Charles, as well. Remember he’s supposed to have dreamed all this.”
“I know. We’ve had our go-arounds on that issue. He’s told me at least twice a day for the past two weeks that I’m going to marry Charles by the end of the summer. Now I just smile and nod and let him think what he wants.”
“It doesn’t bother you?”
“It drives me nuts.” Possibly because she wanted to believe it so badly…
“Aren’t you nervous that Dad’s going to get impatient and say something to Charles?”
“No,” Steffie answered automatically. “Dad and I’ve been over this. He knows better than to say anything to Charles.”
Valerie nodded. “I wish I shared your confidence.”
Steffie put on a good front for the remainder of the drive, but she was growing more and more concerned. She knew one thing; she didn’t have the personality to take on the role of tragic heroine. She’d leave that to her older, wiser sister.
As soon as Valerie had checked in for her flight to Texas, Steffie headed back to Orchard Valley. As the minutes ticked away, she became increasingly anxious to get home.
It was just like Valerie to plant the seeds of doubt and then fly off, leaving Steffie to deal with the result—a garden full of weeds!
When she pulled into the driveway, Steffie experienced an immediate sense of relief. Her world was in order; her fears shrank to nothing. All was well. Her father was rocking on the front porch, the way he did every evening. He smiled and waved when he saw her.
“Hello, good-lookin’,” she said as she climbed out of the car. “How was your day?”
“I had a great afternoon. Every day’s wonderful now that I’ve got all these reasons to live. Oh, before I forget, Charles stopped by to see you. Guess he must’ve been in the neighborhood again.” A smile twinkled from her father’s eyes. “You might want to call him. I suspect he’s waiting to hear from you.”
Steffie froze. Doubt sprang to new life. “You didn’t say anything to him about…what we discussed, did you?”
“Princess, I didn’t say a word you wouldn’t want me to.”
“You’re sure?”
“As positive as I’m sitting here.”
Steffie went inside the house, reassured by her father’s words. Norah was busy in the kitchen, kneading bread dough on a lightly floured countertop.
“Did you happen to see Charles?” Steffie asked in passing. She opened the refrigerator and removed a cold soda.
“He stopped by earlier and sat on the porch with Dad. I think he was here for about fifteen minutes.”
Steffie swallowed a long cool drink. “I’ll give him a call.”
“Good idea.”
She waited until she was in her room, then sat on her bed and reached for the phone. Although it had been several years since she’d called Charles, she still remembered his number. The same way she remembered everything else about him.
