Page 55 of Her Property

Jake and Cat both startled and turned. Alfred’s eyes were open, his gaze on Jake. “Stella would have wanted you to stay.”

“Alfred!” Cat exclaimed, once she’d gotten over her shock. She rushed to his side.

“I’m fine!” he snapped, and Cat nearly laughed. Only Alfred Jones would wake up from a heart attackandcar crash and say he was fine. Then she sobered as she realized he was still looking at Jake.

“I’m sorry, son, for everything that happened to you. My pursuing this case is the second poorest choice I made in my life.” He took a wheezing breath. “The first was listening to my father.”

“Alfred,” Cat said, reaching for his shoulder. “You don’t need to talk about this now. You should rest.”

But Alfred shook his head, grimacing as one of the wires on his temple tugged at his skin.

“I can rest when I’m dead, and I’m not dead yet.”

“What did you mean, listening to your father?” Jake said, his voice stiff. “When he told you there were more important things in store for you than dating Stella Colson?”

“Yes, actually. And we weren’tdating.” Alfred’s jaw quivered like he was fighting tears. “Stella was mysoul.” his voice broke on that final word, and Cat held her breath, her eyes flooding with tears of her own.

“The previous owner had a gentleman’s deal with your great-grandfather about the road. It was an easement—they’d agreed the road could go where it went and the hall could be built where it was—the best place for both on the property. But there was no paper trail, and my father, the attorney, said he could reclaim that property anytime he wanted. He told me Stella Colson would ruin my life and my future. We were going to elope, but when he found out, he said he would sue for the whole property. He would force the closure of the camp and her parents would have to foreclose on their home. He said when that last summer was up, I had to leave her and cut off all contact with her. If I did that, he would leave the property issue alone.

“So I did. And god help me, instead of destroying her parents’ lives, it destroyed both of ours.”

A tear did run down Alfred’s face then, and the sight made Cat have to bite back a sob. “I couldn’t return her phone calls or letters—I knew my father would find out. He had investigators for that sort of thing. It tore my very heart out and hers too. But I didn’t give up. I resolved I would work for my father until I earned enough money to help her parents buy a new property. But the last shred of hope disappeared when Stella ran off with that other boy. I died inside when my father told me. He was practically gleeful about it.

“See?”He’d said. “I told you what kind of girl she was.”

Cat turned to Jake and saw his jaw working. “She held that pain in her for her whole life,” Jake said, his voice low and hard. “And passed it on to her sons.”

Cat caught a glimpse of Alfred moving beside her, and when she looked back, she saw his hand was shaking. His eyes were streaming with tears.

“I’ll never forgive myself,” he said. “And I’ll make it right—” he coughed, and Cat’s hand went back to his.

“Alfred,” she said. “That’s enough. Jake, you should go.”

When Jake looked at Cat, his face was so stricken it was just like the last night they’d been together at his place. She wanted to run up to him and wrap her arms around him. To tell him he was going to be okay. Instead she leaned over and pressed the nurse’s call button.

Jake nodded. “I’m sorry for disturbing you,” he said to Alfred. “Cat…” he said, looking at her again, but he didn’t finish his thought. He shook his head and left the room.

Cat had to bite her tongue hard to keep from calling his name; to keep from running down the hall after him.

But she had to clear things with Alfred.

“I’m sorry Alfred, for not telling you about me and Jake,” Cat began. “I never meant for it to happen—I was trying to make things better, I—”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Catherine Jones,” Alfred said. “I do. I was furious about you digging into my past. I knew you must have been talking to Colson—why else would you have decided to get involved? I was terrified of what he might tell you about me. I’m ashamed to say I considered firing you. It was only then that I realized how unraveled I’d become. That I’d be willing to lose you over this. You’re like a daughter to me.”

Catherine swallowed down the swelling knot in her throat. Alfred had never actually said those words before.

“It was… despicable,” he continued. “Almost as vile as hitting Colson with that lawsuit. I’ve always told you the law shouldn’t be personal. And yet, I made it personal. I drove up here to tell you and Colson I was dropping the lawsuit. And to tell you that you should think about scaling back. You shouldn’t waste your life the way I have.”

“You haven’t wasted your life,” Cat said. “You’ve been everything to me.”

Alfred’s jaw shook again and Cat reached for the box of tissues by the bed after taking some for herself. She kissed him on the cheek. “You better use these, and then seriously, go to sleep.”

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“There’s someone I need to see. To tell him his camp’s a go.”

“What do you know?” Alfred said. “You’re doing something right, for once.”

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