The Challenge(47)

After he threw the cleverly disguised bottle of vodka into the trash, he went looking for her. He found her standing alone, looking lost in the midst of a crowd of people talking loudly about everything from baseball to their summer vacations to their cattle and a new vet. He gently led her away and found a chair for her to sit on.

“Thank you. I just couldn’t talk anymore,” she said in a whisper. Tom looked around, but he didn’t see Justin. He wondered where the boy was, but he wanted to stay with Marlene now for a while. She seemed overwhelmed, and it was slowly turning into more of a party than a funeral and she clearly wasn’t up to it. Apparently neither was Justin, given what he’d brought with him.

“Do you want something to drink?” Tom offered her.

“No, I’m fine. I want to go home soon.”

“Do you want me to round the boys up? I can drive you home.” She smiled at him gratefully and shook her head.

“The boys want to stay here tonight. It’ll be better for them. It’s too sad at the house. Anne and Pitt offered to let them stay here.” Tom hoped they would keep a good eye on them, particularly Justin, and he was sure they would.

“Just tell me when you’re ready.” He was her self-appointed guardian, but she didn’t object.

“Do you think it’s too rude if I go home now?” The reception at the Pollocks’ had been going on for three hours and showed no sign of thinning out yet. Their parties were always excellent, and the food extremely good. They were famous for it.

“You’ve had a hard day, Marlene. You can do whatever you want,” he told her, and she looked grateful again and stood up.

“Let’s go now, then. I can’t do this anymore.” She felt like she’d been run over by a train, but she didn’t look it. She had worn makeup, and the black dress looked good on her and showed off her figure. She was a pretty woman, even in the depths of her grief.

They said a brief goodbye to the Pollocks and quietly slipped away.

Tom led her out to the front of the house, and gave the valet the ticket for his truck. He brought it to him immediately. Marlene had come in a limousine from the funeral home, which they’d sent away once she got to the Pollocks’. Pitt said they could have her taken home, or he’d do it himself.

She got in Tom’s truck and appeared to melt on the seat. She lay her head back. She felt as though all the bones in her body had dissolved. She was so tired, she couldn’t even sit up as he drove her home. He glanced at her once to make sure she was all right, and she smiled at him.

“Thank you for taking me home. I just couldn’t talk to anyone anymore. I should have said goodbye to the boys, I think they were downstairs.”

“The boys will be fine. Just close your eyes and rest for a minute,” he said gently. She did as he said and was breathing softly by the time they got to her place. He woke her by stroking her hand, and then a feather touch with one finger on her cheek.

“Thank you, Tom,” she said softly, then got out of his truck, and he walked her up the front steps. She opened the front door with her key, and he followed her into the hall to make sure she got in all right.

“Will you be okay?” he asked her, but they both knew she wouldn’t. She nodded with the saddest eyes he’d ever seen. “Try to get some sleep.” He kissed her cheek and let himself out of the house quietly, as she began to climb the stairs to her room, looking as though she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. He hoped he could lighten the burdens for her in the coming weeks. It seemed like the least he could do for a friend.





Chapter 14


The Pollocks’ annual camping trip with their closest friends was as much fun as everyone said it would be. They had reserved tents in the best section of Yellowstone Park, as they did every year. Tom and Juliet knew almost everyone there. All of Juliet’s friends, the Granite Peak 7, were there, even Benjie.

Marlene had said she wasn’t coming, but Pattie and Anne had talked her into it, and said it would be good for her to go, and Tom thought she looked well. It was the last hurrah of the summer, and however hard it had been for some of them, everyone seemed to forget it for three days of games, barbecue, good friends, music, and revelry.

The kids played games and swam. The adults shared meals with old friends. There was a band and a hayride, and as the Pollocks did everything, they organized it beautifully. It was the invitation everyone wanted and waited for eagerly every year. It was a totally relaxing weekend, and every time Tom saw Juliet, he saw Peter with her.

“Should we just plan the wedding now and get it over with?” Pitt teased Tom. “Don’t forget, Anne and I were their age when we decided to get married. And it’s worked out pretty well for us.”

“Fine, have it your way. If he marries her now, will you pay for college?”

“Sure, why not?” Pitt said good-humoredly.

“It’s a deal then. I’ll have her bags dropped off as soon as we get home.” Even though it concerned both of them to some degree, it was sweet watching their kids. They were like two puppies playing. It was the epitome of first love, and it seemed innocent so far. Tom just wanted it to stay that way for as long as possible. “How did you two manage to behave, if you started at fourteen?” Tom asked him.

“Easy. Her father told me he’d kill me if I touched her before our wedding day, and he had the biggest rifle I’d ever seen,” he said, and they both laughed.