A Small Town Fourth of July
highlight_author
Janice Carter
highlight_reads
17,1K
highlight_chapters
23
CHAPTER ONE
WHERE’S JAKE?
Maura Stuart dropped the pitchfork of hay into the stall trough, muttering at the same time. Stomping down the length of the barn to its opened doors, she stood for a moment, shading her eyes from the early-morning sun. No sign of him anywhere. Great. Just what I needed today. And no sign of Maddie, either. Too much to hope that she’d gone looking for Jake—the enticing aroma of coffee was probably just now luring her out of bed. She took a deep breath. Giving in to this constant frustration would gain her nothing, especially if they continued to be business partners. But there were moments—plenty of them—when Maura silently questioned her decision to bring her twin sister on board. Yet there’d be no business at all if she’d had to manage on her own.
She scanned the property, from the two-story farmhouse straight ahead and its adjacent garage, to the shed on the far side of the garage. It was closed up, so no Jake there. She knew the chicken coop behind the barn and the small, fenced riding ring next to it wouldn’t be a draw for Jake. Thankfully, he wasn’t trotting down the long gravel drive out to the road. Then her gaze drifted east, to their neighbor’s fields, overgrown with weeds. No sign of Jake, but she suddenly caught a glimmer of red through the thicket of vegetation separating the two farms.
Maura walked across the drive to the row of cedars along the property line and pushed through them into the adjacent land. She and Maddie used to come this way when they were kids, but the cedars had been newly planted then and only waist-high. Now they were taller than her shoulders.
Stepping onto what was once the Danby homestead felt strange. The elderly owners, Stan and Vera, had passed away several months ago, but the farm had been left derelict since their admission to a nursing home in Rutland two years before. When Maura and Maddie took over their own family farm a year ago, the Danby place was already run-down. The neighboring families had been close when the girls were growing up, but that gradually changed after the sisters left for college.
It was only natural, Maura knew. People aged, withdrew from community and old friends due to health or mobility issues, and lost touch with one another. She and Maddie had experienced a similar loss of contact after being away from Maple Glen for so long. But thankfully, they’d been able to reconnect with former schoolmates and other neighbors since their return.
Maura waded through the field toward the Danby farmhouse, realizing as she got closer that the flash of red was a car—a fancy sports car. When she reached the drive, she could hear the low rumble of a male voice. She paused for a second, debating whether to retreat or continue looking for Jake. The voice pitched nervously as she was rounding the back end of the car to see Jake standing between it and the closed barn door, his stocky frame blocking the object of his interest from Maura’s view.
“He won’t bite,” she said, stifling a laugh as she drew near. “He’s just curious.”
The man splayed against the barn door grimaced. “Maybe call him off?”
She closed in on Jake, wrapping an arm around his neck and gently pulling him away from his attempt to nuzzle the man. She recognized him then, despite the passage of years and his transformation from teenager to adult.
“Welcome back, Theo.” She kept her eyes on him, fighting to ignore the sudden throbbing at her temples, then turned Jake around, slapped him on the rump and ordered, “Home, Jake.”
Theo Danby watched the donkey amble off. “Thanks...uh...Maura?”
The fact that he was slow to identify her irked. “Yes,” she snapped.
He moved away from the barn door and unzipped his windbreaker. “Warmer than I remember,” he mumbled.
So he’s going for small talk. “Yeah, climate change and all that. Plus, it’s the middle of June.” She shifted her attention away from the well-toned chest muscles emerging through his short-sleeved shirt—muscles that the Theo she remembered hadn’t had. She felt her cheeks warm up as a trace of a smile crossed his face.
“Are you visiting your folks or...?” he asked.
“No, Mom died about three years ago and my father, last June.”
“I’m sorry.” His face softened, and she peered down at the ground, hiding unexpected tears.
“We moved back here more than a year ago,” she went on.
“We?”
She raised her head, meeting his dark brown eyes again. “Maddie and I.”
“Ah.”
“So...you’re here to...” she continued.
“Have a look at this place before I sell it.”
Of course. She’d been expecting that from the day she and Maddie first returned home and had seen that the Danby homestead had been left to ruin. Though she couldn’t figure out why it had taken Theo so long to return after his aunt and uncle passed away. She was about to ask him more about his plans when a slamming door and a young voice got her attention.
“Dad?” A boy who looked to be a preteen was standing on the farmhouse veranda, his face wrinkled in disgust. “This place is a dump!” He caught sight of Maura and hesitated before descending the porch steps and walking their way.
Maura shot a glance at Theo. He flushed slightly as he said, “My son.”
Maura scolded herself for automatically assuming that Theo might still be single, too. The boy heading their way was a near replica of a young Theo—same thick dark hair and eyes. He sidled up to his father but kept his eyes on Maura.
“Uh, Luke, this is Maura—” The last part of his introduction dropped off, as if he were unsure of her current surname. “Her family owns the place over there.” He gestured to his right, though the boy kept his attention on her.
“It’s Maura Stuart. Nice to meet you, Luke.” She held out her right hand, and after an elbow nudge from Theo, the boy shook it. “My sister and I knew your father years ago, when he used to spend his summer vacations here, with his aunt and uncle.”
“Dad told me about that, but he made it sound more interesting than—”
“What you see here?” Maura smiled. She resisted glancing at Theo, but thought she heard a faint sigh.
“Yeah.” He looked at Theo and asked, “So now what?”
“Well, uh, I thought after we looked around, we could go into Maple Glen for some lunch and then talk about our plans.”
“Our plans? It wasn’t my idea to come here.”
Maura took in the disgruntled face and voice. Time to head back to the farm, she decided. “Okay, well, nice to see you again, Theo and Luke... The bakery in the village sells sandwiches and pizzas, but if you want anything substantial, you’ll have to drive to Wallingford.”
Theo’s smile was strained. “Thanks, Maura. I think a bite to eat will help us both. And...uh...is there a place to stay? It’s been a while since I was last here.”
“Maybe you remember the Watsons? Bernie used to manage the gas station at the junction to Route 7, but he bought the old Harrison place about ten years ago and turned it into a B and B. The Shady Nook. I hear it’s quite nice. If you’re planning to stay in the area for a few days, of course.” When Theo failed to respond, she added, “Unless you’d rather stay somewhere with more to offer, like Rutland or Bennington.” Theo was staring, and she realized she’d been babbling. “Okay, well, I better go.”
She was about to turn around when he finally spoke. “Thanks, Maura. Um, my plan is to stick around until I can make a decision about my aunt and uncle’s place. A few days, anyway—maybe more.” He shot Luke a quick look. “Nothing definite yet. But maybe we’ll see you around. And Maddie, too, of course. Say hi for me.”
“Sure.” She managed a smile and headed off, taking the same route across the weed-filled field and through the cedars, feeling two sets of eyes tracking her. Her mind buzzed with random thoughts and questions. Theo Danby is back. He has a son. Presumably he’s married. Or was.
But the important question was, how long would he be around?
The very thought of Theo spending any amount of time in Maple Glen made Maura’s stomach churn. Was it too much to hope that Theo Danby would just drop out of their lives again, as he had twenty years ago, and never discover her secret?
By the time she reached the barn, Jake had instinctively headed for his stall and was munching the hay she’d deposited. She took a moment to inspect the stall door and noticed the hasp was loose enough to give way with a solid push. A small thing to fix, but one more item on the long list of jobs. The other two donkeys, Matilda and Lizzie, were too busy eating to give her more than a half glance, their long ears twitching as she walked by their stalls.
Maura decided that after the encounter with Theo—and his son!—a second cup of coffee was definitely on the day’s agenda and headed for the side door of the farmhouse that led through a tiny mudroom into the kitchen. Maddie was sitting at the table eating cereal and skimming through yesterday’s Rutland newspaper. She looked up when Maura entered the room.
“What’s up?” she immediately asked.
They’d always been good at reading one another, Maura knew. Even though they were nonidentical twins, there was still that inexplicable twin connection. At least, until the summer they’d turned eighteen, when they’d withdrawn from one another and begun new, separate lives.
Maura sighed. There was no point postponing the inevitable. “Jake got out of his stall—it’s okay,” she quickly put in, seeing Maddie was about to ask how. “I’ve figured it out. We have to fix the stall gate. Anyway, he’d wandered over to the Danbys’, and I followed him.” She paused. “Someone was at the house.”
Maddie put her spoon down. “Who?”
“Theo.”
Their eyes locked for what seemed ages. “He’s come to get the place ready to sell,” Maura added. “And he has a son who looks to be about eleven or twelve.”
Maddie’s impassive face revealed nothing. “Okay,” she said and resumed eating.
That went well, Maura thought. Clearly her sister was still unhappy with her after last night’s disagreement over the ongoing plans for the business, as well as finances. She poured herself a coffee and sat across from Maddie, whose head was still bent over the newspaper. The kitchen filled with the silence that had fallen between the sisters seventeen years ago, and Maura hoped it wouldn’t last five years this time around, too. Not if you do something about it right now, she told herself.
“Look, Mads, Theo is ancient history. We were all teenagers the last time we were together, and presumably—” she attempted a half laugh “—we’re a whole lot smarter now. I got the impression he and his son are here only long enough to sell the farm. Then he’ll be gone.”
Maddie finally looked at her. “I’m not worried about any of that, Maura. Like you said, that last summer is ancient history. I’ve moved on, and I hope you have, too.”
Maura felt her face heat up under her sister’s penetrating gaze. She bit down on her lower lip, quelling an instant rise of hurt. She wasn’t going to be drawn into a debate they’d both sworn to put behind them. “Okay,” she mumbled. “You’re right.” She got up from her chair and rinsed her coffee mug, letting the tension seep out. “So, who have we got riding today?”
IT HAD TO HAPPEN. Theo parked the car in front of the Shady Nook B and B and sat, unmoving. He’d known from the start that meeting up with the Stuart sisters—or at least one of them—was a possibility, but he wished fervently that it hadn’t happened under such humiliating circumstances. Trapped by a donkey, for heaven’s sake! Only to be rescued by one of the sisters. Worst of all, for a second he couldn’t recall which was the redhead and which the raven-haired. They weren’t identical twins, so it shouldn’t have been so difficult. When he was a boy and then a teen, he’d never have made such a mistake.
“Are we going in or what?”
Luke’s grumble finally registered. Theo blinked. He was back in Maple Glen. Thirty-six years old, divorced and on leave from his job. With a twelve-year-old son he barely knew who didn’t want to be there any more than he did. He sighed. Those few minutes back at the farm with Maura had been a cold-water-shock reminder that time didn’t change everything. Her stony expression and clipped voice took him immediately back to his last summer in Maple Glen countless years ago.
“Dad? Jeez!”
“Yeah, yeah. C’mon. We’ll leave our stuff here until we know if we can get a room.”
“Why don’t we go back to the highway? I saw some motels there. Maybe we could get one with a pool, like we did yesterday.”
Theo ignored Luke’s plaintive tone, which had been incessant since he’d made the decision to take a road trip to Maple Glen and finally deal with his inheritance. Reconnecting with his son was meant to be part of a new, postdivorce direction in Theo’s life, but he had a sinking feeling he’d already taken a wrong turn somewhere and now was lost. Like the rookie hikers on the nearby Appalachian Long Trail that the locals used to complain about.
At least the B and B looked like a welcoming place, with its smoky-blue clapboard siding, white gingerbread-trimmed veranda and wicker chairs and tables. Theo vaguely recalled the original Colonial-style home had been painted white, but any memory of the people who’d lived there—the Harrisons, Maura had said—escaped him. Though come to think of it, had there been a boy roughly his own age?
“Well?” Luke was staring up at him from the bottom porch step.
His expression was a mix of frustration and concern, which made Theo feel a tad guilty. He hadn’t been paying full attention to him since leaving Maine. Perhaps their road trip’s destination should have been somewhere more exciting than a small place like Maple Glen, Vermont. He reached down and tousled Luke’s hair. “C’mon,” he said and opened the screen door.
Theo’s eyes were adjusting to the cool darkness inside the entryway when a voice called out from somewhere farther inside. “Give me a sec!”
The interior gradually took shape, from the hall table with a vase of flowers and a small display of tourist pamphlets, to the staircase straight ahead. There were rooms to the left and right off the entry, and Theo spotted tables and chairs in one of them. A good sign, he thought. Even if there wasn’t a room available, maybe they could get a bite to eat. Breakfast had been early, at a fast-food place on the highway.
Luke was fidgeting beside him, but at least he wasn’t complaining. Not yet. Theo was about to reassure him that the next town, Wallingford, was only minutes away and they could always get some lunch there when a large, gray-haired man wearing an apron over baggy pants and a T-shirt emerged from a room at the end of the hall and lumbered toward them.
“Had to pop my bread rolls into the oven,” he explained, his big, welcoming smile shooting from Theo to Luke. “What can I do for you folks?”
“We’d like a room, if you have one.”
“Aha! That I do. You came at the right time—it’s Sunday and I’ve just had two checkouts, plus the Fourth of July holiday is a couple of weeks away. How many nights are you thinking?” Before Theo could reply, the man headed for one of the rooms leading off the hall and, after a second’s hesitation, Theo and Luke followed.
The room still exhibited its early days as a parlor, with a cluster of seating arrangements and an impressive bowlegged table with a Tiffany-style, stained glass lamp in the center of the bay window that looked onto the veranda. The man—Bernie Watson, Theo assumed—was rifling through a drawer in the table. Pulling out a small ledger book and pen, he swung around to say, “Here we go. Have a seat there—” he gestured to a chintz-upholstered wing chair “—and fill in the information I need while I go check on my dinner rolls.”
Theo grasped the book and pen that were thrust at him and, casting a quick grin at Luke, sat where he was told. He wrote his name and address on the page headed with the day’s date, hesitated over the “length of stay” column before jotting 2-3 nights and hoped Luke, now standing at his elbow, hadn’t noticed. He had yet to tell the boy that his plan was to fix up a couple of rooms in the farmhouse for them until the meeting with the Realtor.
Despite Luke’s disparagement of the house as a “dump,” the place had been dusted and aired only the week before their arrival by a company from Rutland that Theo had hired. The Stuart sisters obviously hadn’t noticed the recent activity there, though the weeds in the fields between the two places could have hidden the cleaning agency’s vehicle. Maura’s search for her donkey had likely been the only reason for her to discover he was back. A donkey! Theo was pretty certain the Stuarts had never had animals larger than goats.
“Dad? I’m hungry.” Luke was pulling on his arm.
Theo roused himself from thoughts that were leading nowhere. He was hungry, too, and the heavy footfalls along the hallway were reassuring. They’d be getting a room and, hopefully, lunch as well.
“Excuse my bad manners,” the man was saying as he reentered the room. “I’m Bernie Watson, the owner, general manager as well as cook here.”
Theo shook his hand and passed the sign-in book to Bernie, who peered down at it.
“Good heavens,” he exclaimed. “Theo Danby!” His beaming grin faltered immediately. “I was sorry to hear about Stan and Vera.”
“Thank you,” Theo murmured. Luke shuffled impatiently, and he added, “Is it possible to get some lunch?”
“Definitely. Go get your things from your car. It’ll be okay parked out front for now. I’ve got a small lot behind where you can move it later. As for lunch, I don’t have any other patrons at the moment, but I can rustle something up for you two.” He turned to Luke. “How about a grilled cheese sandwich with fries? I can even manage a chocolate milkshake, if you’re up to it.”
The smile on Luke’s face was the first Theo had seen since the motel with pool they’d stayed at. “I think he’s up to it,” he said.
