The Inn in Rhode Island, page 16
“Well, you look better,” Jesse said.
I bent down and kissed Jesse on the back of his head. “Good morning. How long did Teresa say you had to shack up down here?”
Jesse looked at Dan. “Yep, she’s awake! Hey, I was thinking I’d bring my friend Sherry by for dinner.” He kept his gaze to one side.
I rolled my eyes at him. “The woman from the little gift shop? You like her—”
“Not like that! You know I’m not the marrying type. Do you want to meet her or not?”
“Easy, Elvis!” I laughed at my own words. I haven’t had to say that to him in a long time. “Tonight would be just fine. I’ll.” I thought for a second. “I’ll need to let Michael know right now.” I picked up my cell phone and sent him a text message. Instantly he replied, “You got it!”
My cell phone beeped. “Four o’clock. We have a full house.”
“Michael says four—”
“She gets off at four,” Jesse whined.
I took the fork out of my mouth. “Um, we either have to eat at four or after all the guests are served.”
“I get it. I’ll tell her another time.” Jesse stood up, and I knew his feelings were hurt.
“Jesse, why don’t you invite her to dinner on the twenty-ninth?” I looked at Dan. “Would you mind instead of us all going to George’s of Galilee, we stay home?”
“If that’s what you want.” Dan reached over and took our plates to the sink.
“I would like that. Then everyone can meet her. In the meantime, how about you bring Sherry by tonight and the four of us will have a late dinner here.”
Jesse’s eyes lit up. “O-kay.”
“Good, I’ll grab whatever Michael is making and we’ll have our own little party.” When I texted Michael back to cancel the family style dinner, I read Lynnae’s message, Barry’s doing so much better. I’m in the cafeteria. He’s with his speech therapist. Some hot chick! LOL! I think it’s time to bring him home. NO LOL! Love you.
I texted her back: Love you more!
The phone rang. Dan picked it up. “Hello. Sure hang on a second.” He motioned to me. “Teresa’s on the phone.”
“Good morning, is everything okay?”
“Fine. Do you want me to drive Erin to her appointment?”
“No, thanks. I’m on my way up,” I said.
“Okay, because she’s sitting in the lobby with her coat on.”
“I’ll see you in a bit.” I hung up the phone and declared, “I need three more of me.”
We all headed up to the inn together. Dan said he was meeting with Kevin this morning. Dan put his hand on my shoulder. “When’s the next meeting?”
“In the spring,” I replied.
“We’ll need to go over these numbers before that,” he said to me, looking very serious.
“Okay, when do you want to get together?” I asked, trying to keep up with the two of them.
“Next week, you, me, Jesse, Kevin and Kourtnee.”
I thought for a second. “No, if I’m having a meeting it’s with my entire staff. I have enough elephants in the room right now. I don’t need any more problems or hurt feelings.”
Dan put his arm around my shoulder. “You’re right. Let us know what day. If we’re going to do this, we need to file for the permits by February.”
“Dan, have you spoken to Frank? He’s more than willing to help and he knows all the right people,” I said.
Dan and Jesse both stopped walking.
“What?” I pleaded.
“Nothing,” Dan replied and continued toward the inn.
Chapter 37
Dan went in search of Kevin and I needed to get Erin to Rose’s in the next few minutes.
On most days, the inn ran smoothly. Everyone worked in great harmony. Lately, though, it seemed like trouble was brewing everywhere.
“I’ll start your vehicle,” Jesse said to me as I peeked in the door, looking for Erin.
Teresa was smiling and speaking to three women about where to go shopping in Newport and about tonight’s dinner menu. I didn’t see Erin. Perhaps she was in the kitchen. When I walked past Kourtnee’s office, she was on the phone. I heard her say, “June of 2012 is available. Great, as soon as we receive your deposit, I’ll block the entire weekend off.”
I entered the kitchen and found it to be empty. It didn’t feel right. I looked around, wishing the walls could talk. Then I heard arguing. Christine and Michael were in the food pantry.
“I love you. I’m not giving up on you. Not now or ever,” Michael’s voice was loud and grumbling. Then I heard him say, “Christine, please.”
“Yeah, well, right now, you’re stressing me out,” she hollered. “Baking gives me peace. I’ll bake whatever the hell I want!”
My heart sank. I left the kitchen before they saw me, feeling bad for both of them. I was standing in the hallway, staring at the tan, green and cranberry oval rug – I could not lose Michael…
“I’m ready,” Erin said as she waved her wet hand in front of me.
I glanced up at her. “Why are your hands wet?”
“Oh!” she wiped her hand on her pants. “Snowball fight with Jesse. I just came from the daycare. I told Kyle I was going into town with you and that I wouldn’t be having lunch with him. That’s when Jesse hit me with a snowball.”
“So you fought back.” I reached out and tapped her on her arm. “Good for you.”
As soon as we stepped outside, we saw Jesse motioning to us to hurry.
“One day it’s raining and then next it’s freezing cold. I can’t wait for spring,” I said as I watched Erin get in the backseat.
“This is a beautiful car,” Erin said as she rubbed her hands together. “Burr.”
“Want me to turn the heat up?” Jesse asked her.
“No, I’ll be fine in a minute,” Erin told him.
“Thank God for Kevin. He’s so good at salting the walkways. Otherwise we’d be on our derrieres,” I said jokingly.
Jesse drove down the driveway, turned onto the main road, and asked Erin, “How’s school coming along?”
“Great. My instructor seems to be happy with my work. Julie?” she cleared her throat. “I learned the name of my birth mother and father.”
“Really? Erin, that’s great!” I said, smiling.
She took a deep breath. “According to Ancestry, my birth mother’s name is Margaret Murphy. My birth father’s name was William McInerney. He died three years ago.”
“Erin, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” I said, glancing back at her, wishing I could give her a hug.
“Yeah. At least one of them is still alive,” she said, pressing her lips together.
Jesse remained stopped at the traffic light, until the driver behind him blew her horn. “How’d you figure that out?” he asked her.
Erin answered him. “Julie gave me Ancestry for Christmas. Ancestry connects people. Both my mother and father were registered. They ranked over three-thousand. Meaning child/parent relationship. Julie, the woman who adopted me, her maiden name was Murphy.”
Jesse pulled the car over about a block away from Rose’s office, turned around and asked Erin, “Do you think?” He tilted his head.
“They were related?” she said as she sat up closer and rested her hands on the back of our seats. “They could be, right? I mean maybe that’s not just a coincidence.”
“Murphy is a very common name in Ireland,” I said. “Erin, how did you learn about your father’s death?”
“I Googled his name. Three men in Ireland died with the last name McInerney. William’s obituary said he leaves behind his companion, Margaret Murphy. Both Margaret and William are a one-hundred percent match as my biological parents.”
“Erin, I’m so proud of you for working on finding your real parents,” Jesse said, as he pulled away from the curb. “Good job, woman!”
“Thank you,” she replied, and sat back.
A minute later, Jesse parked the car and said, “I’ll wait right here.”
Erin and I walked into Rose’s office. She was leaning against a desk in the reception room. “Come right in. Julie, it’s nice to see you again.” Rose extended her hand to me and then to Erin. “You must be Erin.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Rose grinned as she said, “Julie, can you give us an hour?”
“Um, I want Julie to stay,” Erin replied rather hesitantly.
I inhaled deeply. “Erin, Dan assures me you’re in expert hands. I’ll sit out here. I promise.” I shook my head. “I won’t leave.”
Erin winced. “Please come in with me?”
Rose spoke up. “I don’t see any problem with you coming in. If that’s what Erin wants.” Rose held her hand out and we both stepped into her office. She sat down across from us. “Julie, I’m glad you came today. I’ve been meaning to send you an invitation to speak with me.”
I flipped my hair back. “Me?”
“Yes.” Rose tilted her head. “I thought maybe you and I could speak about some of your old memories.”
Erin turned to face me. I could feel her eyes on me.
I was staring directly at Rose. “What you call memories, I refer to as wounds. I’m good.” I made a clicking noise with my tongue. A sign indicating, at least to me, I was pissed off. I hated her! And this was only our second encounter. It wasn’t my normal way of handling things. But at that moment, I was stressed out to the max. “Thank you for your concern.” My lips flattened into a thin line.
“That’s fine. Perhaps in the future.” Rose picked up her pen and held it to her chin.
I heard Erin clear her throat.
“Erin, why don’t you tell me something about yourself.” Rose glanced down and wrote something on her notepad.
“I was married for almost five years, but I left my husband because he beat me.”
“How often did he hit you?” Rose asked, with deep concern.
“Just once,” Erin replied as she fiddled with her sleeve.
Rose glanced up from her paper. “I’m so sorry,” she said, shaking her head.
“He punched me in the face, kicked me between my legs and…” Erin stared down before continuing. “He beat me so bad I had to crawl up two flights of stairs to reach my son.” She started to cry, but somehow continued. “When he was sleeping, I grabbed my four-year-old and ran.”
I reached over and touched her arm. “It’s okay,” I whispered. “You can do this.”
“Erin, you did the right thing,” Rose said. “I commend you for getting the hell out when you did.”
Erin reached over and took a tissue, wiping her nose and nodded.
“Can you tell me what happened next?” Rose asked as she set her pen down and leaned in closer toward us.
Erin shook, quivering in her seat. “It was the middle of the night. I believe one or two in the morning.” She closed her eyes then opened them and cried, “I carried my son as far as I could…”
Rose picked up the pen. Her head moved from side to side as she wrote feverishly. Then she looked up from her writing. “How far did you have to run?”
Erin wiped her tears away. When she blew her nose, I answered Rose, “She ran from Scarborough Hills to the end of my driveway in Point Judith.”
I felt Erin’s eyes on me. She cleared her throat. “We took pictures of my bruises.”
“Who? Very clever, by the way,” Rose said, swallowing as if she had a rock-hard lump in her throat.
“Julie did.”
I smiled at Erin; I was so proud of her.
“Julie’s friend told us to take the pictures.” Erin sat back in her chair.
“I asked a dear friend of mine, Frank Freeman, if he knew someone in the judicial system who could help us. I had to know if Josh could accuse Erin of kidnapping. Frank’s friend, Judge Abrams, instructed us to take the photos.”
Rose stopped biting the tip of her pen. “I know Frank. He couldn’t have put you in better hands. Judge Abrams plays golf with my husband. Abram’s tough, and best of all, he doesn’t tolerate domestic violence.”
Erin sat up. “I don’t want to lose my son.”
“Why do you think you’ll lose your son? Do you have the means to take care of him?” Rose asked.
Erin bit her bottom lip and her chin began trembling.
I intervened and said, “Yes! She has a job, a home and a new family.”
Erin’s face lit up. A relaxed expression suddenly appeared.
Rose smiled at Erin. “As long as you can support your son, provide a good home for him and give him a proper education, I don’t think you have much to worry about.”
Behind Rose was a credenza. There must have been twenty photos on it. All family photos. When our eyes met, she picked up the one on her desk and handed it to me. “Taken Christmas morning.”
Her children took after her. Her husband appeared to be much older. A good-looking man in his late fifties.
“You have a beautiful family,” I said as I showed the photo to Erin and then set it back down.
“My husband’s an attorney. He specializes in divorce. Most of all, he too despises domestic violence.” Her eyes narrowed. “Erin, I wish more women reacted the way you did. I can’t say it enough. I’m proud of you for making the decision to get away when you did.”
Chapter 38
Erin and I said goodbye to Rose. When I opened her front door, I almost stepped on Jesse. He was sitting on the front step.
We got in the Explorer, and Jesse asked me, “Where are we going next?”
“I need to stop at the drugstore and pick up something for Christine. I’ll only be a minute,” I replied.
“I know where CVS is,” Jesse said and drove down the road. Then he asked Erin if she was okay.
“I’m scared. What if something were to happen to me, who would take care of my son? Josh never even held Kyle. He didn’t even pick him up when he was crying. He said babies made him nervous.” She rubbed her hands together, tapping on the driver’s headrest. “I don’t want Kyle to be an orphan.”
When I turned around, I noticed she was making eye contact with Jesse in the rearview mirror.
“He’ll never be an orphan!” Jesse said aloud.
Erin smiled at him and rested her hands on her lap.
“I hope you’re right,” she said and looked out the window before adding, “Julie, thank you for saying I have a family.”
“The Lord works wonders. All we have to do is recognize them. Erin, I’m glad you ran in my direction.” I tapped Jesse on his leg. “I’m grateful Jesse found the two of you.”
Jesse stopped the car in front of the drugstore.
Before I could get out of the vehicle, Erin suddenly ducked down in the backseat. “Oh, my god,” she whispered. “That’s one of Josh’s clients!”
“I’ll come back later,” I said.
“No, go in. He doesn’t even like Josh. He probably won’t say anything,” Erin said, keeping her head down.
“Are you sure?” I said.
“I’m sure,” she replied.
Jesse spun around to face her. “Did you make eye contact with him?”
“I don’t know,” she replied, then added, “yes.”
Jesse told me to wait until the man drove away. Then he looked back at Erin and said, “Relax, it’s not like he knows Julie or her vehicle.”
When I got back in the car with Christine’s pump and vitamins, I said, “I pray he didn’t see you.”
We rode in silence for several miles.
Jesse put his blinker on for Mallard Way and we all breathed a sigh of relief.
“Julie?” I heard her say from the backseat. “Thank you for going in with me.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Julie, do you think my mother didn’t want me because she wasn’t married?
“I don’t know, sweetheart.” I looked at Jesse, he was shaking his head and I thought I saw tears trickling down his face.
Chapter 39
Jesse parked the Explorer in the inn’s employee parking lot and said, “What else does she have to deal with?”
I almost replied what do you mean, until I saw tears falling from behind his sunglasses and running down his cheeks.
As soon as we stepped inside, Kyle ran to Erin and Lady rushed past everyone and came to me. I bent down, gave her a hug, and told her I loved her. She must have missed me because she gave me more kisses than usual. I stood back up and greeted several people passing through the lobby. I loved it when the inn was overflowing with guests. I thanked God for keeping me busy.
“I’ll be over at two for story time,” Erin said as Amanda, Sam, Max and Kyle turned to leave.
“Wait a second.” I bent down and held my arms out. “I need a hug.”
First Sam, then Max, and Kyle. I stood up and gave Delilah and Brin each a kiss. Then I hugged my baby girl again. “Love you,” I shouted. I smiled as I watched them argue over whose coat was whose. For so long, I was afraid to get close to babies and small children. I guess my heart just ached for my own. Now, I was grateful for every one of them.
Amanda took the children back to daycare. And Erin and I headed for the kitchen. The aroma was amazing. Erin turned to me declaring, “Something smells delicious.”
When we popped into the kitchen, everyone was sitting at the table except Kevin. Michael immediately asked us if we were hungry. “Care for some soup?”
“What kind?” Erin asked.
I glanced down at Jesse’s bowl. “Yes, please.”
“Sweet potato and pear. I also made fresh croutons. Sit, I’ll serve you.”
“No.” I waved Michael off. “We can get our own. Oh, my, this looks so good!”
Erin inhaled. “I smell brandy.”
I turned to face her. “Can you still eat it?”
“Oh, yeah! Irish girl? Brandy? Julie?”
We sat down. “Where’s Kevin?”
Kourtnee pounded her fists on the table. “You’re the third person to ask me. He’s doing Delilah’s laundry. Don’t worry, he ate.”
Michael laughed. “He ate the last of the beef and vegetable soup.”
