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.She was pregnant.She wasn’t sure he’d want to marry her, and she’d needed some time just to forget.She thanked me for that—for helping her forget.That’s how I know Petey isn’t my kid.Libby married Petey’s father a week later.”“Ernie—”“There’s more, Hannah.I want you to hear it.I stood there and read that letter.Over and over, but it still said the same thing.I … couldn’t believe it.My pride was hurt, and I was furious with myself because I knew better.I knew better, and I still let her do that to me; and worse than that, I’d been dumb enough to tell people we were getting married.People were going to know what a damn fool John Ernest Watson was.“But Libby didn’t make me start drinking.I was … humiliated, and drinking was the way I chose to deal with it.I wanted a hole to hide in and I found it.The funny thing is, I never was much of a social drinker before then.I could take it or leave it.But I started making the rounds, hitting all the honky-tonks and looking for women who’d make me feel better for a little while at least.It got to the point where I was staying more drunk than sober, and all of a sudden I couldn’t just take it or leave it anymore.I knew I couldn’t, but I lied to myself and to anybody who tried to talk to me about it.Two-thirds of what happened to me then I don’t even remember.You know your moment of truth? Well, I was doing everything I could to hide from mine.But … I had some good friends.Mac McDade and his old man.My old man.They got ahold of me one day, and they made me look at myself, made me see what they were seeing.They took me to a place where I could get some help—hell, they even went in with me.So now I go to AA, and I take life one day at a time, and I—” He didn’t go on, and she lifted her head to look at him.“Until she left Petey with me, I’d only seen her once since that time in Chimayo.”“At Mim’s,” Hannah said.He frowned.“How did you know that?”“I saw the picture in Mim’s album.” The picture that showed so clearly that he’d once again forgiven Elizabeth.The phone rang sharply, and because she was closest, Hannah moved to answer it, taking Ernie’s plaid shirt with her and slipping it on.She turned around to look at him as she picked up the receiver, smiling a bit at his overt appraisal of her lack of attire.He cares about me.He’s crazy about me.He thinks he loves me …He folded his arms behind his head and gave her a playful wink.“You’re doing a lot for my shirt there, Hannah.”“Hello?” she said into the phone, her smile broadening.Regardless of what he felt for her, he had a way of making her feel good about herself, too, for all his long history with Elizabeth.There was silence on the other end of the line.“Hello?” she said again, listening a moment for some clue as to whether anyone was there.She heard nothing, and she frowned at the receiver a moment, then hung up.“Who knows we’re here besides Mim?” she asked.“Half of Tahlequah, I imagine.” He sat up on the side of the bed and put on his jeans, then went to work on the wood stove.She watched him, brazenly admiring the ripple of muscles in his back and arms as he stoked the fire.“Come here,” he said when he had the fire burning again.He didn’t have to coax her; she went to him, kissing him on the neck and cheek and pushing up the long sleeves of his plaid shirt before she wrapped her arms around him.He sat down on the chair where she’d hung her jacket and took her into his lap, sliding his hand up under the shirt to caress her bare hip.“I am never going to get enough of you,” he said gruffly, his mouth seeking hers.The phone rang again, and he sighed heavily.“I’ll get it this time,” he said, shifting her off his lap.There was no one on the line.Ernie broke the connection and dialed a number.“Mim,” he said after a moment, “did you just call? No, nothing.You haven’t heard anything, have you? No, I’m going to stay here tonight with Hannah.”Hannah raised her eyebrows a bit at that last part, and Ernie grinned.“Yeah,” he said after a moment, and then, “Hi, Pete! Yeah, Anna-Hannah’s here.Has she got on her nightie?” He looked Hannah and his plaid shirt over carefully, making her grin.“Nope.No nightie.Did you brush your teeth? Good girl.Don’t you go eating cake, now, after you’ve got your teeth brushed, okay? Yeah,” he said, beckoning to Hannah, who was already coming closer.“Give me a kiss, then.Here’s Anna-Hannah.”“Hello, dear sweet Petey,” Hannah said, taking the phone.“Hello, dear wheat, Anna … Hannah,” Petey responded, punctuating it with the soft giggle Hannah loved.Hannah stood in the circle of Ernie’s arms, leaning against his bare chest, lifting her mouth a bit to receive the soft kiss he was about to offer her.“Are you ready for bed?” Hannah asked, trying not to laugh at Ernie who was nodding vigorously.“Kiss me good night, then.I’ll see you in the morning.Pleasant dreams … good night … dear sweet Petey.”Ernie took the receiver out of her hand, making sure Petey had hung up before he replaced it.“I love that little kid,” he said unnecessarily.Petey was all tangled up in the reason for his pain over Elizabeth, Hannah thought, but because of the kind of man he was, he clearly loved her anyway.She looked up at him, and he smiled, but the smile didn’t quite reach his dark eyes [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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.She was pregnant.She wasn’t sure he’d want to marry her, and she’d needed some time just to forget.She thanked me for that—for helping her forget.That’s how I know Petey isn’t my kid.Libby married Petey’s father a week later.”“Ernie—”“There’s more, Hannah.I want you to hear it.I stood there and read that letter.Over and over, but it still said the same thing.I … couldn’t believe it.My pride was hurt, and I was furious with myself because I knew better.I knew better, and I still let her do that to me; and worse than that, I’d been dumb enough to tell people we were getting married.People were going to know what a damn fool John Ernest Watson was.“But Libby didn’t make me start drinking.I was … humiliated, and drinking was the way I chose to deal with it.I wanted a hole to hide in and I found it.The funny thing is, I never was much of a social drinker before then.I could take it or leave it.But I started making the rounds, hitting all the honky-tonks and looking for women who’d make me feel better for a little while at least.It got to the point where I was staying more drunk than sober, and all of a sudden I couldn’t just take it or leave it anymore.I knew I couldn’t, but I lied to myself and to anybody who tried to talk to me about it.Two-thirds of what happened to me then I don’t even remember.You know your moment of truth? Well, I was doing everything I could to hide from mine.But … I had some good friends.Mac McDade and his old man.My old man.They got ahold of me one day, and they made me look at myself, made me see what they were seeing.They took me to a place where I could get some help—hell, they even went in with me.So now I go to AA, and I take life one day at a time, and I—” He didn’t go on, and she lifted her head to look at him.“Until she left Petey with me, I’d only seen her once since that time in Chimayo.”“At Mim’s,” Hannah said.He frowned.“How did you know that?”“I saw the picture in Mim’s album.” The picture that showed so clearly that he’d once again forgiven Elizabeth.The phone rang sharply, and because she was closest, Hannah moved to answer it, taking Ernie’s plaid shirt with her and slipping it on.She turned around to look at him as she picked up the receiver, smiling a bit at his overt appraisal of her lack of attire.He cares about me.He’s crazy about me.He thinks he loves me …He folded his arms behind his head and gave her a playful wink.“You’re doing a lot for my shirt there, Hannah.”“Hello?” she said into the phone, her smile broadening.Regardless of what he felt for her, he had a way of making her feel good about herself, too, for all his long history with Elizabeth.There was silence on the other end of the line.“Hello?” she said again, listening a moment for some clue as to whether anyone was there.She heard nothing, and she frowned at the receiver a moment, then hung up.“Who knows we’re here besides Mim?” she asked.“Half of Tahlequah, I imagine.” He sat up on the side of the bed and put on his jeans, then went to work on the wood stove.She watched him, brazenly admiring the ripple of muscles in his back and arms as he stoked the fire.“Come here,” he said when he had the fire burning again.He didn’t have to coax her; she went to him, kissing him on the neck and cheek and pushing up the long sleeves of his plaid shirt before she wrapped her arms around him.He sat down on the chair where she’d hung her jacket and took her into his lap, sliding his hand up under the shirt to caress her bare hip.“I am never going to get enough of you,” he said gruffly, his mouth seeking hers.The phone rang again, and he sighed heavily.“I’ll get it this time,” he said, shifting her off his lap.There was no one on the line.Ernie broke the connection and dialed a number.“Mim,” he said after a moment, “did you just call? No, nothing.You haven’t heard anything, have you? No, I’m going to stay here tonight with Hannah.”Hannah raised her eyebrows a bit at that last part, and Ernie grinned.“Yeah,” he said after a moment, and then, “Hi, Pete! Yeah, Anna-Hannah’s here.Has she got on her nightie?” He looked Hannah and his plaid shirt over carefully, making her grin.“Nope.No nightie.Did you brush your teeth? Good girl.Don’t you go eating cake, now, after you’ve got your teeth brushed, okay? Yeah,” he said, beckoning to Hannah, who was already coming closer.“Give me a kiss, then.Here’s Anna-Hannah.”“Hello, dear sweet Petey,” Hannah said, taking the phone.“Hello, dear wheat, Anna … Hannah,” Petey responded, punctuating it with the soft giggle Hannah loved.Hannah stood in the circle of Ernie’s arms, leaning against his bare chest, lifting her mouth a bit to receive the soft kiss he was about to offer her.“Are you ready for bed?” Hannah asked, trying not to laugh at Ernie who was nodding vigorously.“Kiss me good night, then.I’ll see you in the morning.Pleasant dreams … good night … dear sweet Petey.”Ernie took the receiver out of her hand, making sure Petey had hung up before he replaced it.“I love that little kid,” he said unnecessarily.Petey was all tangled up in the reason for his pain over Elizabeth, Hannah thought, but because of the kind of man he was, he clearly loved her anyway.She looked up at him, and he smiled, but the smile didn’t quite reach his dark eyes [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]