Love Beyond Reason(26)
"Sure. Rest well."
"Good night then."
"Good night."
An hour later she was still tossing on the narrow bed when Jace opened the door to the bedroom. A fan of light arced across the bed, as he stood silhouetted in the doorway.
"Mrs. Manning," he addressed her.
Her heart leaped to her throat and instinctively she pulled the sheet higher under her chin.
"Y-yes?" she stuttered.
"About that other bedroom—"
"Yes?"
"We have a problem."
"What?"
"There's no bed in it."
Katherine put her fingers over her lips to cover a laugh. "Oh, Jace. I didn't think! I'm sorry. When I moved in, I knew I would sleep in the same room with Allison until she was older. I bought this bed, but haven't—"
"Enough said," he sighed. "Well, I'd probably kick the slats out of the crib, and both of us would never fit on that," he indicated her day bed. "Or if we did, I could never uphold the terms of our agreement," he added huskily. He sighed a second time. "So, I guess it's the sofa for me."
Before he left he said, "A bed is right up there on the top of our shopping list along with a new car. I don't fit one damn thing in this whole damn house."
He slammed the door behind him, but Katherine knew it was out of exasperation and not anger.
She chuckled once again before turning over and falling into a restful sleep. Just on the brink of oblivion, she assured herself yet again that her responses to him the evening before had been out of gratitude. Her emotions had been highly charged and were running close to the surface. There was nothing else to it. She was positive of that, no matter what Jace wanted to read into it.
* * *
Chapter 6
?^?
It was hard for Katherine to determine when she first began to lose her initial wariness of Jason Manning. For the first few days after their bizarre marriage ceremony, she was constantly on guard, weighing each word and rehearsing each gesture.
Jace didn't countenance her nervousness. He was scrupulously considerate, courteous, and helpful. He allowed her times to be alone, intuitively guessing correctly that she valued privacy.
Allison was a strong common bond between them. Watching Jace in the process of developing a relationship with his niece was delightful, and Katherine was relieved to know that his being a good parent would- n't be a source of concern. Indeed, Allison sometimes preferred his company over hers.
"I think we'd better get dressed and go to church this morning," he said from behind the Sunday newspaper the morning after their marriage. He had come to the breakfast table painfully stretching the muscles that were cramped from sleeping on the sofa. Katherine laughed when she saw his grimace and heard his bones popping and cracking. For her display of levity, she received a quelling look.
"Church?" His suggestion surprised her.
"Yes. Happy's out in her backyard and has been for the past twenty minutes or so. She's done just about every odd job one can do in a backyard. She's glaring up at us in righteous indignation and censure. No doubt she's noted that my jeep was parked here overnight and probably thinks we're engaging in something illicit."
"Oh, I'd forgotten about that," Katherine anguished.
"We'll go down and make our announcement to her as soon as you're ready."
"Do you really want to go to church?"
"Yes. Unless we find our beliefs incompatible. I'm a Christian, a Protestant. Any problems there?"
"No, no, it's just that—"
"Katherine, have you thought about there being some gossip over the young Widow Adams suddenly marrying her long-lost brother-in-law? And the young Widow Adams having a baby only a few months old? If the Mannings are going to live in Van Buren, I want it known right away that they are moral pillars of the community. I'll protect you any way I can from erroneous or slanderous speculation. We have absolutely no- thing to hide except Allison's true parentage, and as soon as we can legally adopt her, that will no longer be an issue. And the best defense is a good offense." He looked at her from behind the newspaper and smiled. "Okay?"
"Thank you," she murmured. Tears were prickling her eyelids as she rushed out of the kitchen to take a bottle of milk to a demanding Allison. She didn't want to be obligated to him, but he made it necessary for her to be grateful. Didn't he ever overlook anything? Forget something?
Jace was happy to learn that some businesses were going to be open on Labor Day to take advantage of holiday shoppers. He bought a bed at one of the larger department stores and made arrangements for it to be delivered the following day.
"But, Jace, a king-size bed won't fit in that small room!" Katherine protested when she saw his choice.
"I'll make it fit to the exclusion of all other furniture. Any other size doesn't accommodate me." He laughed and squeezed her arm. "I promise not to mess up your decorating scheme too much."
He bought a new station wagon, and, much to Katherine's dismay, paid cash for it. Coming from a home where ev- ery penny had been stretched to its limit and budgeting was a way of life, Katherine couldn't conceive of someone having that much cash at one time.
The thought plagued her. She hadn't been cured of her aversion to the Mannings even though she was now married to one and bore that name herself. The thought that she was living on their money was repugnant. She broached the subject as they drove home from their shopping expedition.