McKettricks of Texas 1 - Tate by Linda Lael Miller

Author:Linda Lael Miller
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: HQN
Published: 2010-07-10T18:30:00+00:00

Libby figured there no use pointing out that she’d just offered to whip up some scrambled eggs and hadn’t planned to serve them on the front porch. “Of course you can come in,” she said, rising.

All this time, Hildie had been standing on the walk, head tilted to one side, studying Marva as though she had sprouted out of the ground only moments before.

“Whose dog is that?” Marva fussed, though she’d made Hildie’s acquaintance at least once before. “I don’t like dogs. It will have to stay outside.” She made a go-away motion with the backs of her hands. “Scat! Go home.”

“Hildie is my dog,” Libby said carefully, a sick feeling congealing in the bottom of her stomach. “She lives here.”

“Shoo,” Marva said, paying no attention to Libby. Most of her conversations were one-sided; she did all the talking and none of the listening. “Go away.”

Hildie hesitated, then backed up a few steps, confused.

“Mother,” Libby said, annoyed, as well as alarmed, “don’t. Please. You’re scaring her.”

But Marva had turned her head to stare at Libby. “Did you just call me ‘Mother’?”

Libby wasn’t sure how to answer. Years ago, before she’d packed a suitcase and left, Marva had hated being addressed by that term, or any of its more affectionate variations.

“It doesn’t matter,” she finally said. “Let’s go in and I’ll start the scrambled eggs.” Then, more firmly, she called her dog. “Come on, Hildie.”

Hildie hesitated, uncertain, then lumbered toward Libby, full of trust.

“I won’t be in the same house with that horrible creature,” Marva warned.

“Then you’ll have to eat your supper out here,” Libby replied, very quietly, “because Hildie is coming inside with me.” And, furthermore, she is not a “horrible creature.”

Marva began to cry, sniffling at first, then wailing. “You hate me! I’m all alone in the world!”

The truth was, Libby didn’t hate Marva—she’d shut that part of herself down a long, long time ago—but she couldn’t have said she loved her, either.

“Come inside,” Libby urged gently. “I’ll brew some tea. Would you like a nice cup of tea?”

Marva stepped over the threshold, stood in the small, modestly furnished living room, looking around. She didn’t seem to notice when Hildie slunk in behind her and took refuge behind the couch.

“I lived here once,” Marva said, as though she’d just recalled the fact.

“Yes,” Libby confirmed, at once suspicious and sympathetic. “You lived here once.”

And then you left. Even though Paige and Julie and I begged you not to go.

“Where did he die?” Marva asked. Her mascara had run, and her hair was starting to droop around her face, but the expression in her eyes was lucid. “Show me where he died.”

Libby moved to stand where her father’s rented hospital bed had been, during the last months of his life. “Here,” she said. “Right here.”

I was holding his hand. Paige and Julie were here, too. And the last word he said was your name.

“On the living-room floor?”

“In a hospital bed.”

“Well, I’m not surprised. The man had no imagination.”

Libby struggled to hold on to her temper.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.