The Forgotten Room(103)
John stood and took my hands. “Were they not happy? Did you never see her laugh?”
“No, I mean, it wasn’t like that. My father always made us laugh. He loved us so much, and never stopped trying to make her happy. She must have loved him, in a way. He was just never . . . enough.”
He let go of my hands and walked toward the window, his movements agitated and jerky, like a flag in high wind. “Why didn’t our parents marry?” He sent me a wry look. “Don’t get me wrong—I’m glad they didn’t. But why? What happened?” His gaze fell on the black opening behind the bricks. “Maybe we missed something . . .”
His words were forgotten as he walked back toward the fireplace and reached his hand into the dark hole. He screwed his eyes shut for a moment as his hand traveled from corner to corner of the secret compartment, a blind man reading Braille. Then they popped open in surprise as Cooper withdrew something small from the hole behind the bricks.
“What is it?” I asked, but I could tell even from where I stood that it was a black velvet ring box.
Our eyes met as he walked back to the bed and sat down. After a brief hesitation, he lifted the hinged lid. I had already guessed it was a ring, maybe even a valuable one, but I’d never imagined it would be as stunning as the bauble staring up at us from its velvet cushion. The large brilliant-cut diamond nestled in a platinum setting, with tiny diamonds surrounding the larger stone like a queen and her ladies.
“It’s at least three carats,” Cooper said, his voice almost reverential.
I sat down next to him and reached for the ring. Gently I lifted it from the box, admiring how the designer had made sure that the view from any angle would show off the exquisite artistry of the ring. “There’s something inscribed on the inside,” I said, bringing it closer to my face, then reading the tiny letters out loud.
To O from H—Always—1-1-93
“He meant to marry her,” I said quietly, my heart stretching and pulling inside my chest, an old heartache brought to life again.
“But she married someone else instead, not even two weeks later.”
I couldn’t look at the ring anymore, a talisman for broken hearts and an always that didn’t mean what it should. I stuck it back in the box and closed it, then shoved it back into Cooper’s hands. “You should take this—it’s a family heirloom. You can give it to your fiancée.”
He regarded me for a long moment, his eyes narrowed and dark as if I’d just delivered a physical blow.
“So here we are,” he said finally. “Back to the place where it all began. It’s like fate has brought us together, to find the happy ending our parents and grandparents so desperately sought.” He shoved the ring box into his pants pocket, then reached for my hands.
I tried to pull away, but he wouldn’t let go.
“Don’t you see, Kate? We were meant to be together. From the moment I saw you, I knew. It’s always been you.” He let go of my hands so he could gently cup my face. “I love you, Kate. And I want us to be together. Come with me to Charleston. You can set up your own medical practice, be the best doctor you can be. And be my wife, the mother of my children. Please, Kate. Let’s make all that came before us make sense. Say yes.”
How easy it would be to say yes, to give in to everything I’d spent a lifetime fighting. I was an independent woman, my independence hard-won. I knew too much of my grandmother and mother now to believe that love lasted forever, that it would sustain you through an entire lifetime. Wasn’t the fact that Cooper and I were here testament to that simple fact?
I pulled away and stood. “And what about Caroline? You are engaged to be married, or have you forgotten? Surely you must have loved her enough at some point to want to marry her. Is she not enough for you now? And how would you know if I’m enough for you? That you won’t always be looking beyond me for someone else?”
He stood, too, but stayed where he was. “Kate, I love you. I think I’ve loved you my whole life. Please. Don’t do this. Don’t turn your back on something that’s taken three generations to make right.”
I shook my head, seeing my mother’s face as we stood on the sidewalk in front of this same building all those years ago, her expression one of disappointment and regret. Where had I heard that before? “No,” I said. “I am not Olive or Lucy. I am my own woman who doesn’t need a man in her life to survive. I don’t want to end up like them. If anything, their mistakes have been the best education for me.”
He took a step toward me. “Love isn’t a mistake. But I know true love is rare enough that when you find it you fight for it. Marry me, Kate. Come back to Charleston with me and be with me for the rest of our lives.”
I began backing up toward the door. “I can’t.” I shook my head, my eyes blinded with unshed tears.
He didn’t follow me, but his words were strong enough to hold me back. “Tell me you don’t love me and I will let you go. Just tell me that you don’t love me.”
I saw him through the haze of tears, imagined I could see his eyes, which were the color of winter grass. And I remembered my mother and her constant sadness. Disappointment and regret. I opened my mouth and let the words fall out before I could call them back. “I don’t love you.”
He didn’t move, didn’t make a sound. Maybe that was what being struck by a bullet was like, how you didn’t know you’d been hit until you began to bleed.