Family Secrets: A Classic Romance by Ruth Ryan Langan

Author:Ruth Ryan Langan
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: contemporary romance
Published: 2015-08-07T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

Ivy leaned back in the tub, allowing the warm water to soothe her taut nerves. Her mother’s cool reception reminded her once again how distant they had become. Did all families experience such troubles, she wondered. Or was her family a special case?

She thought of Gertrude St. Martin, a lonely spinster yearning for children of her own, and willing to adopt two little boys who didn’t have a family. It was sad that she never married and experienced the joy of her own children. Thank heavens for Darren and Caine.

Caine displayed more nurturing, more capacity to love than her own mother. He was a man who would always be counted on to help a younger, less disciplined brother. And his concern for Gertrude was genuine.

Draping a bath sheet around herself, she stepped from the tub and began brushing her hair. She ought to be grateful to her mother. It was probably Diana’s constant disapproval that had taught Ivy such early independence. She had always known she would have to stand alone one day. The loneliness of her New York apartment was nothing compared with the loneliness she had suffered at the hands of her mother after her father’s long illness and death.

Ivy slid her long legs into sheer panty hose, then pulled on a brief, silk teddy of palest green, the color of sea foam. This was one of her few extravagances. She loved the whisper of silk against her skin. Carefully applying makeup, she added a blush of color to her cheeks, and a hint of pale green to her eyelids. From the closet she removed a cocktail-length gown of emerald-green silk and slipped it over her head. She’d found this dress in the Village, in the shop of a friend who collected antiques, and had fallen in love with it. The sleeves were full to the elbow, then tapered to long, narrow cuffs with a dozen buttons to the wrist. The neckline was draped in front and dipped very low in back. The fabric molded to the soft curves of her body, then fell in gentle folds about her calves. She slipped her feet into matching strappy sandals, then brushed her hair loose and caught it behind one ear with a tortoiseshell comb. She wore no jewelry, except tiny pearl earrings. Adding a touch of gloss to her lips, she twirled for a final inspection.

What would Caine see when he looked at her? She dismissed the thought instantly, annoyed that it had crept unbidden into her mind. She had learned to live her life never caring what others thought. What mattered was how she felt about herself. Each day she grew stronger, more content within herself. The brief encounter with her mother had painfully brought back all their differences, all the old insecurities. But it was too late for Diana to destroy Ivy’s self-confidence now. She might slip and stumble, but she wouldn’t fall.

She forced herself to think of happier things. Tonight was Aunt Tru’s birthday party. A time of joy and celebration.

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