Page 39 of A Family Affair: The Ring
“I’m sure I would.”His voice shifted, drew her in.“I guess it’s all about knowing what you’re looking for and then going after it.”
She glanced from his hand to his face, caught him staring at her lips.“I guess it is.”
He leaned in, so close.Finally, he was going to—
Will pulled back, cleared his throat and mumbled something about old habits and getting caught up in the past.
And then the moment was gone.
There wasno sense pretending she hadn’t wanted Will to kiss her, but he’d pulled back so fast, it was obvious he hadn’t felt the same.Shocked?Embarrassed?Disturbed?Maybe all of those, but who knew when the man did such a good job hiding his emotions?Melanie peeled another apple, tossed it in a mixing bowl.Since arriving home after the awkward encounter with Will at the park, she’d been rummaging through her grandmother’s recipes, making a list of must-bake items, starting with Grandma Esther’s famous apple cake.Next up she’d make pumpkin chocolate chip bread, then applesauce.
Anything to keep her busy and not think about the kiss that almost happened.
When her phone rang, she grabbed it, hoping it would be Will.They needed to talk about what didn’t happen and why.
But it wasn’t Will.
“Hello, Melanie.”
She almost didn’t recognize the hesitant, doubt-filled voice on the other end of the line.Where had the self-assured, ever-cheerful tone gone?“Mom?”
A double throat clearing and then “I need to speak with you.”Her voice cracked, wobbled.“I..I am so sorry for the harm I’ve caused you, for all of the pain you suffered because of me.”
Melanie clutched the phone, stared at the apples in the mixing bowl.Why was her mother really calling?Was there an angle buried in there somewhere?Susannah Russell never apologized or expressed remorse aboutanything.“What do you want?”
“I want to apologize, and I also want to explain.”
“Explain?You don’t need to explain anything.”Anger burst through her as she recalled the way her mother manipulated people and situations for her benefit.What did she want this time?
“Melanie, please—”
“Save it.I know what you did, and it was all about saving yourself.”
A sniff, a pause and several seconds later, her mother spoke.“You’re right.I thought you were young and Will Callahan was an impulse you’d get over once you graduated college and started your life.I never thought it would cause you such harm.”
“You never thought?Of course you didn’t because you only cared about yourself.Welovedeach other.We had a plan for a life together and you made me choose, made me question his integrity, pitted us against each other until there was nothing left.”
“I am so sorry.Please, what can I do to make it up to you?”A sniff, a desperate plea.“What can I do to help?”
“Help?You can’t do anything.”
“I’ll talk to him...I’ll tell him what I did, explain how much you cared but I coerced you to side with us.”
As if that would matter.“Don’t you see it’s too late?It only mattered when I had a chance to stand beside him and didn’t.”
“There’s something else I need to tell you.I love your father; I’ve always loved him.”
That was too much.“Save it for someone who’s going to believe your lies, because I don’t.”
“Your father has a quiet strength about him that most people don’t recognize at first.They mistake it for shyness, but that’s not true.He’s thinking about the questions people ask and isn’t going to offer words that sound good yet mean nothing.He’s going to assess, analyze and consider the person he’s talking to so he can be as honest as he can without telling them what to do.I didn’t understand this for too many years because I wanted to be seen, to be adored, receive red roses and champagne...and excitement.Yes, I grew bored with the routine of loving your father.”
“I do not want to hear any more.Please stop.”Of course, when had Susannah Russell ever listened to what another person wanted?
“I swear on your life, I was only with Joe Callahan, never anyone else and never after that day at the hotel.”
Melanie closed her eyes, blinked to keep the tears from falling.“Well, isn’t that just wonderful?”
“I will never forgive myself for what I did to your father.I didn’t realize how much I loved him and his steadiness and constant support until he threatened to leave me.You never heard about that, but the day after Will told him what he’d seen, your father said he wanted a divorce.There were no tears, no anger...there was nothing.In that moment, I understood that I had tossed away the best person I’d ever known, the only one I would ever truly love.I begged him for a chance, begged him to open his heart and let me show him my love, my dedication, my commitment.”
