A Love for All Seasons (15 page)

Even when he collapsed he was careful to fall to her side, pulling her to him like he was afraid to let her go, even for a second.

 

“Jack?”

“Hmm?”

“Merry Christmas.”

“It must be after midnight,” he mumbled.

“Just a little.”

He stretched an arm across her middle, then raised it to rub her breasts. “Mmm. I've got a Christmas gift for you, if you'd like to have it now.”

She reached out, her hand clamping on his arousal. “I'd love to. And I might have a little something for you as well.” She threw the covers back and rolled on top of him, one hand stroking him tantalizingly until he gripped her hips and brought her down, turning the smile on her face into an expression of the exquisite sensation she felt.

 

She awoke Christmas morning with his arm draped around her waist. She lightly rested her hand on his, and he stirred in his sleep and shifted position, moving closer. She thought he was still asleep until he mumbled something she could barely understand.

“Whatcha gonna do today?”

“Just a quiet Christmas at home. We'll make the most of it, although it'll be difficult. Mom doesn't even have the energy to go downstairs anymore.” She rolled over onto her stomach. Something occurred to her just then, and she turned her head to face him. “Wait a minute. Aren't you coming with me?”

“Well, I don't want to intrude….”

“Of course you'll come with me. I know that Pete and Rhonda are with her family out in Hollis. What were you going to do, just stay home alone?”

He broke into a smile. “I'd rather be with you.”

“Then that's exactly where you'll be.”

Wonderful Christmastime

I
t
turned out to be a thoroughly enjoyable day. If anyone thought it strange that Alicia hadn't come home the night before they didn't comment on it. Coffee cake and a baked dish with eggs, cheese and sausage had been placed on the coffee table. A massive Christmas tree had been set up by one of the front windows, and Todd had just gotten a fire going in the fireplace. The mantel and surrounding stone wall behind it were covered with holiday greeting cards. A CD of diverse Christmas carols played on the compact Bose wave player. Jack decided it had to be downloaded; the selections were too far removed from each other for it to be commercial. One minute Johnny Mathis sang the religious hymn, “O Holy Night” and the next Eartha Kitt purred, “Santa Baby.”

The Timberlake living room brimmed with holiday spirit. Jack glanced around with admiration. How sad that Caroline was confined to her bed upstairs and couldn't join her family in this lovely room.

Alicia, who excused herself shortly after they arrived, returning a half hour later wearing jeans and a sweater, gifted Jack with a snazzy tie and hanky set, and he surprised her with a bottle of her favorite scent, having learned its name from Rhonda. He'd removed it from the inside pocket of his leather jacket and slipped it under the tree while she was upstairs.

To his surprise, Daphne handed him a small flat square package, saying, “Merry Christmas, Jack, from Todd, Fletcher, and myself.”

He didn't have to be a nuclear physicist to know the cheerful red-and-white wrapping paper contained a CD, but was delighted to see the latest by Peter White. He'd been a longtime fan of the jazz guitarist. “Thank you so much, Daphne, Todd. That was very thoughtful of you.”

Alicia handed him another gift. “It's from Martha and Marvin,” she said in response to his puzzled expression, her fingernail tapping the label.

“Oh, they shouldn't have.” He laughed at the dubious expression on Alicia's face. “Okay, so people always say that. But they really
shouldn't
have.”

“I think it's entirely appropriate. Martha and Marvin and their kids are like family.”

Neither Jack nor Alicia saw Daphne turn to Todd and make a face like she smelled something unpleasant.

“Well, in that case….” He tore off the wrapping, revealing a DVD of an old black-and-white Alfred Hitchcock movie that starred two legendary Hollywood actors. “This was an interesting choice,” he said, bewildered.

Alicia read the description. “I know why she picked this.”

“Why?”

“Look at the names of the main characters.”

He read the description. Sure enough, the female lead character's first name was Alicia, the male lead was named Devlin. “That was very astute of her.”

“That's Martha for you.”

“I suppose Martha is in the guest house with her family?”

“She's in the kitchen. I stopped to say hello to her on my way downstairs after seeing Mom and taking my shower.”

“I'd like to go in and thank her.”

“It's right through there.”

He crossed the large living room and stepped into the kitchen, where Martha stood at the sink rinsing cooked macaroni noodles in a large metal colander. “Merry Christmas, Martha!”

“Jack! Merry Christmas to you.” She hugged him warmly.

“I got your gift. Thanks for thinking of me.”

“Don't mention it. Had you seen that particular movie before?”

“Actually, I haven't. I think the only Hitchcock films I've seen are the later ones, like
The Birds
and
Psycho
.” He paused. “I was a little puzzled as to why you chose that one, but Alicia pointed out that the lead characters have our names.”

“That's exactly it. Also, it happens to be a very good movie. The most romantic film Hitchcock ever made, I think.”

“I'll be sure to watch it.” He looked around the kitchen. Before Martha had gotten up to drain the macaroni, she'd been snapping green beans. “It looks like you're cooking.”

“Yes. We're going to have a wonderful Christmas dinner.”

“Don't you ever get a day off?”

She laughed. “Sure I do, but just like I clean my own bathroom on my day off, I take care of the ones here as well. I suppose I've been spending more time here since Miss Caroline has been failing, but for me it's worth it.” She smiled at him. “You know, Jack, I'm so glad you're in Alicia's life. She's never brought anyone home before, you know.”

Marvin had said something similar that night at the hospital last month, but Martha's words surprised him nonetheless. “Not even for the holidays?”

“Never. Miss Caroline was so worried about her. I saw how you comforted her at the hospital last month. She's going to need you more than ever when….” She trailed off.

Jack saw the distress on Martha's face and quickly deduced she referred to Caroline passing away. “I'll do whatever I can to help.”

“Funny. When Mr. Fletcher died it was so sudden. Miss Caroline tried to be strong, but she was devastated. She told me later she always expected she would be the first to go and he would have to bury her. Daphne, well, she didn't even try to hold it together. She cried for days. We were all so worried about her because she was pregnant at the time.

“But Alicia, she was the glue that held everyone together. Funny,” Martha said with a baffled shake of her head. “Caroline's passing was as expected as Fletcher's was sudden, but Alicia seems to be taking it much harder.”

“Maybe she felt closer to her mother,” Jack suggested. “Girls often are, aren't they?”

“Alicia's always been an independent young lady,” Martha replied. “I've never known her to be all that close to anyone.”

Jack nodded knowingly. He had come to the same conclusion in his brief period of knowing her.

“Anyway, Jack, I'm very glad to see you here today. Alicia is going to need a shoulder to lean on while she copes with Caroline's loss. I hope you're up to it.”

He grinned confidently. He liked the way the housekeeper looked out for her like an older sibling. Alicia and Martha seemed much more like sisters than Alicia and Daphne.

 

Alicia, Daphne and Martha went upstairs every so often to sit with Caroline, who also had an LPN stationed in her room. With keen observation, he noticed that whenever Alicia went up Daphne followed. That seemed strange to him, since the sisters didn't seem to have much contact with each other under normal circumstances. He decided that Daphne wanted to give Caroline the feeling that her two girls were united. He certainly couldn't fault her for that. It would give her mother some peace.

Martha was in and out of the kitchen, checking on the turkey. When she wasn't in the kitchen or sitting with Caroline she was in the guest house with her family. Initially Jack missed Marvin's presence, but then Todd invited him to watch the football game with him. The Timberlake living room did not include a television set, so Jack followed Todd downstairs to the comfortably furnished basement.

He looked around in awe. The basement contained every fun activity he could think of. One corner featured both pool and ping-pong tables. A few feet away was an eight-sided game table with leather chairs on casters. The U-shaped bar sat eight and was attached to a full kitchen. An extra refrigerator stood in a far corner. A sectional reclining sofa was positioned opposite a wide plasma TV. Shelves mounted on the wall held DVDs and a big binder with spines marked “Karaoke CDs.” The basement also featured a jukebox and a pinball machine. It was truly a leisure lover's dream. The entire house had a comfortable lived-in look while being both stylish and spotless. How did Martha manage to keep the multiple rooms of the house so clean?

“Wow,” he said. “Now,
this
is a basement.”

“It's great, isn't it? My father-in-law believed in playing just as hard as he worked. Many a Friday night we played bid whist or Pokeno at that table—” Todd pointed to the game table “—until well past midnight. And I understand that Daphne and Alicia had all their teenage parties down here. Fletcher and Caroline did a lot of entertaining here as well.”

Jack wondered what would happen to the property after Caroline's death. If it was sold it would likely bring in millions. The grounds didn't cover a particularly large area, maybe two acres, but it was right on the Sound, plus it had a guest house over the three-car garage where the Lewis family currently lived.

Alicia came downstairs at four. “We'll be eating in about half an hour,” she said. “Jack, why don't you come up with me to see Mom?”

“Sure.” He went upstairs with her, first to the main floor and then to the second. The basement stairs emerged near the kitchen, and upon emerging through the door his nostrils filled with the contrasting but pleasant scents of roasting turkey and baking ham. He followed Alicia through the kitchen and up the back stairs. Martha stood in front of the stove, stirring gravy.

“Smells good, Martha,” he said, flashing her a thumbs up.

“Thanks, Jack!”

The first thing Jack noticed about Caroline Timberlake was that she'd gotten even frailer than she looked when he first met her. Her beauty was unmistakable, but he knew she couldn't last much longer. He wondered if Alicia suspected.

He liked the way Caroline smiled at the sight of the two of them. “You two make a handsome couple,” she said warmly. “Did you have a nice birthday?”

“Very nice, Mrs. Timberlake,” Jack said.

“After lunch yesterday we took a walk and then went to the movies, and then we had dinner together in Stamford,” Alicia explained.

“Sounds wonderful. Did you have dinner yet today?”

“Martha says it's almost ready.”

“Make sure your sister behaves herself. I don't want her saying anything that will make it awkward for Martha and Marvin. This time she doesn't have Florence and Henry around to keep her in line.” Todd's parents were spending Christmas with their married daughter and her family in Westchester.

“It'll be fine, Mom. Don't worry.”

The nurse appeared from the hall, where she'd discreetly stepped to allow them some privacy. “Miss Timberlake, Mr. Devlin, I'm afraid I have to ask you to leave,” she said gently. “Mrs. Timberlake is under strict orders not to talk much.”

“I want you to come see me after dinner, Alicia,” Caroline said. “You and I must talk about something.”

Alicia walked to her mother's bedside and bent to kiss her cheek. “I'll be back, Mom. I promise.”

“Make it about eight,” the nurse suggested. “I'd like get her to eat a little, and then she should really nap for a while.”

Alicia nodded. “Eight it is.”

 

As they walked toward the back stairs, Jack said softly, “I take it there's no love lost between Daphne and Martha?”

Alicia gestured for him to stop walking. “My sister is an unbelievable snob,” she said in a stage whisper. “You should have heard her Thanksgiving, saying how she didn't think it fitting for the Lewises to join us at the table.” She turned sharply at the sound of rapidly approaching footsteps on the stairs on the other end of the hall. “Shh!”

Daphne's slim form appeared at the top of the front stairs, moving with the speed of someone trying to rescue a child from a burning building. She slowed down when she spotted Alicia and Jack in the hallway. “Have you been in to see Mom yet?” she asked.

“Yes. We're just going back down.”

“Did she say anything?”

Jack's brows knitted in confusion. Had Caroline been nonverbal earlier in the day?

“Say anything like what?” Alicia asked.

Daphne's entire demeanor changed, like someone had just run a veil over her face. Now she looked relaxed instead of anxious. “I mean, is she able to talk much?”

“Daphne, she's not going to get better,” Alicia said gently. “The nurse still only lets her talk for a few minutes at a time.”

“I guess I keep hoping for a miracle,” she said sadly.

Jack felt his heartstrings being pulled at like the rope in a tug-of-war. He had to try to comfort both sisters.

Holding Alicia's hand, he took a few steps toward Daphne and rested his hand on her shoulder. “Let's go downstairs,” he said quietly. “We'll be sitting down to dinner in about fifteen minutes.”

 

After dinner, they all returned to the basement, including the Lewis family. Melody Lewis brought various pies downstairs and placed them on the cloth-covered folding tables that lined a wall near the bar.

“I'm glad to see you sitting down for a change, Martha,” Jack said. “It amazes me that you do everything around here all by yourself.”