course. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I’m not used to you being out so late and not taking my calls.”
“Sorry. I was at the hospital, sitting with a woman whose husband underwent emergency surgery.”
“Did everything go well?” he asked, already having a pretty good guess at the answer. His aunt was too upbeat for things to have gone poorly.
“Yes, the man has a good prognosis. So, dear, how are things going in San Francisco?”
This was his opening to find out what exactly was going on here. “I got back late last night.”
There was a quick intake of breath followed by silence. He wasn’t going to help his aunt out of this mess. She owed him an explanation of why a stranger was living here in his home without his permission. He might love his aunt dearly, but this time she’d overstepped.
“Oh, dear. Umm...I meant to call you—”
“So you’re admitting you invited Kate to stay here without consulting me?”
“Well, yes. But I knew you’d understand.” Uncertainty threaded through her voice.
If Connie were an employee, he’d let her have an earful and then some. But this was his aunt, the only family member who’d ever worried more about his happiness than the company’s bottom line...or having the Carrington name appear on the society page with some splashy headline. He couldn’t stay angry with her, even if he tried.
“It might be best if you ask in the future, instead of assuming.” He made sure to use his I’m-not-messing-around voice.
“I’m sorry. She doesn’t have any family for support or anywhere to go. And I would have sent her to my place, but you know after the last person I took in, my roommate insisted I never bring home anyone else. How was I to know that woman liked to borrow things?”
“Without permission and without any intention of returning them.”
He was so grateful that his aunt had Pauline to look after her. If it weren’t for Pauline, he’d never feel comfortable enough to leave town on business. His aunt was too nice, too unassuming. As a result, people tried repeatedly to take advantage of her to get to the Carrington fortune.
“Kate isn’t like the others,” Connie insisted. “She has a good heart.”
“Still, you shouldn’t have sent her here. This house...it’s off-limits.”
“I thought after all of this time you’d have let go of the past.”
He’d never let go. How could he? It’d mean letting go of his little girl. A spot inside his chest ached like an open, festering wound every time he thought of how much he missed seeing Carrie’s sweet smile or hearing her contagious laughter. But he didn’t want to discuss Carrie with his aunt...with anyone.
Hoping to redirect the conversation, he asked, “What do you know about Kate?”
“Didn’t she tell you?”
A knock at the back door caught him off guard. He wasn’t expecting anyone as he never had visitors. And if it was some sort of salesperson, they’d go to the front door.
“I’ve got to go. Someone’s at the door. I’ll call you back later.”
“Lucas, be nice to Kate. She has more than enough on her plate. She can use all of the friends she can get.”
And with that the line went dead. What in the world had that cryptic message meant? He didn’t have time to contemplate it as the knock sounded again.
He let out a frustrated sigh as he set his phone on the center island. So much for getting any answers about Kate. Now all he had were more questions.
The knocking became one long string of beats.
“Okay! I’m coming.”
Lucas strode over and yanked open the door. A cold breeze rushed past him. His mouth moved, but words failed him.
There standing in the rain, completely soaked, was Kate. Her teeth chattered and her eyes were red and puffy. This certainly wasn’t the same determined woman he’d dropped off at the hospital. Where her hair had once been styled, the wet strands clung to her face. What in the world was going on?
Without thinking he reached out, grabbed her arms and pulled her inside. His mind continued to flood with questions, so many that he didn’t know where to start. But finally he drew his thoughts into some semblance of order and decided to start at the beginning.
“Why didn’t you call?” He slipped her purse off her shoulder and set it on a kitchen stool. “I’d have picked you up.”
Were those tears flowing down her cheeks? Or raindrops? He couldn’t be sure. Obviously he’d have to hold off getting to the bottom of this. His first priority was getting Kate warmed up.
“We need to get you in a hot shower.” She started to shake her head when he added, “No arguments. You’ll be lucky if you don’t catch pneumonia. If you hadn’t noticed, it’s awfully cold to be walking around in the rain.”
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