Page 24 of Trust in Truth
Was she overthinking it? She was beginning to sound like Anna. If it was a gift given to her by a friend, why would any of it matter? Katherine was beginning to feel that it hadn’t been given in such an innocent manner. The way Margaret had patted it on her chest had been uncomfortable. Perhaps Anna had been right all along.
She tried to recall conversations she’s had with Margaret and the interactions they’d shared. Margaret was always in close proximity and quite hands-on at times — well at every opportunity really if she was being honest, they could well have been flirtations. She couldn’t recall one time when she’d seen Margaret behave this way with anyone else in the office, despite having said as much to Anna. She’d just assumed she was like that with everyone.
A rush of warmth swept through her as she realised Margaret could very well have feelings for her. In desperate need of some fresh air, she opened the back door. Virginia shot out from under the garden table and ran past her into the kitchen, seemingly unimpressed by the snow that was now falling heavily.
Another check of her watch made her draw in a sharp breath. Her heart raced suddenly making her cough. Where the hell was Anna? She picked up her phone and called her, now determined to tell her about Margaret’s visit. She was met with the sound of Anna’s voicemail. Tears found their way to her eyes again. After all her expectations for Christmas, the only thing she wanted now was to wrap her arms around Anna and never let her go.
Chapter 11
Having gone to bed early the night before, Anna had woken early on Christmas morning. Still angry about their argument, she had resisted the urge to pounce on Katherine when she woke as planned. Instead, she lay beside her and watched her sleep.
She thought Katherine would always be on her side and was disappointed that she wasn’t when it came to Margaret. There didn’t seem to be a way to make Katherine see things from her point of view.
Even so, it had been difficult to leave her alone to go to the hospital. Christmas wasn’t going the way Katherine had planned, and Anna knew the disappointment she must be feeling. At least Rebecca would be along soon after she left. She would be able to understand the situation better than most and offer Katherine useful solutions.
Harry was asleep again when she arrived at his bed. She’d barely exchanged more than a few words with him since he’d been admitted. The nurses seemed pleased with his progress, however, and said he had been holding brief, albeit confused, conversations with them. She could have done with his chirpy attitude this morning, telling her everything would be all right as she knew he would.
She opened the Christmas card she had hurriedly written for him that morning and placed it beside his bed. With an eBook waiting to be finished on her phone, she leaned back into the hospital chair and began reading. She felt in no rush to get home. They wouldn’t be able to resolve their issues with Rebecca around. The rest of the day would involve them skipping around each other whilst trying not to let on to Rebecca they were having issues, both knowing full well that Rebecca was aware of the issue because Katherine would have already talked it over with her. Anna sighed and tried to focus on her book. Why did relationships have to be so complicated?
The arrival of various visitors to the other patients on the ward made her look up from her phone from time to time. They were laden with gifts, reminding Anna that she hadn’t given Katherine her present before she left. At one point she realised she’d dozed off.
“That you, love?” Harry asked softly.
Anna grabbed his hand and lightly squeezed it. “Yes, it’s me, Dad. Are you all right?”
“Did she ask you?”
“Did who ask what, Dad?” Anna questioned, unable to make out what he was saying.
“Bath. Did you say yes?”
Anna frowned and leaned in closer. “What did you say, Dad?”
He was asleep again. She resisted the urge to shake him awake and ask him to repeat what he’d said. Had he been dreaming? Did who ask her what? Did he mean Katherine was going to ask her something in Bath? What would Katherine ask her that her dad would expect her to say yes to?
Anna shot bolt upright. The bridge flashed into her mind. Katherine was about to ask her something when the phone rang. Then there had been flowers and champagne in the room on their return. It was all starting to make sense. Had Katherine been trying to propose on the bridge? Her heart pulsed in her chest, almost choking her. How could she have been so stupid?
Anna’s mind raced. If Katherine had planned to propose, why hadn’t she since? They had spent little time together since Harry went into the hospital. Was Katherine giving her some breathing space whilst so much was going on? Or had she changed her mind? Anna’s hand shot to her mouth, and she closed her eyes. All this time she’d been obsessed with Margaret, and Katherine had been wanting to ask her to marry her.You bloody idiot, Anna!
No wonder Katherine was so insistent that Margaret was just a friend. She couldn’t see what Margaret was doing because, despite Margaret’s efforts, Katherine wasn’t looking at her; she was looking at Anna. She’d never had a reason to be jealous, and now she wouldn’t be surprised if her actions had pushed Katherine right into Margaret’s arms.
If Katherine wasn’t going to ask her to marry her, then Anna was going to ask her instead. There was no better time to do so than during the fireworks at New Year’s Eve, first, there was a lot of making up to do to ensure Katherine said yes.
Chapter 12
Katherine paced the kitchen, grabbing a handful of tissues from the box on the island each time she passed it. The turkey had been left to cool on the side, and the vegetables, all prepared, were either on the stove, in water, or in the fridge. As she passed again, she took a large swig of champagne. A silly mistake, she knew it would only make her more emotional.
The sound of gravel alerted her to a car. She wanted to race to the front door, instead she held herself back. She’d already been disappointed once today. In a moment of panic, she envisaged it was the police arriving to give her bad news. She closed her eyes, hoping to clear her irrational thoughts. An image of the police visiting her in her hospital bed with the news of Helena’s death appeared instead.
Katherine lifted her head and gasped for a breath as she struggled to control her escalating thoughts. The relief she felt when she heard the key in the lock was overwhelming. The pounding of her heart pulsated through her entire body, making her light-headed. She reached out for a nearby stool to sit on before her legs gave way.
“Kat!” Anna called from the entrance hall.
Katherine could hear her, but the adrenaline rushing around her body fogged her head and seemed to prevent her from speaking. More tears fell from her puffed eyes.
Anna appeared at the kitchen door and dropped her bag. She ran to Katherine, wrapping her arms around her. “What’s the matter?”
Katherine rested her head against Anna’s chest and sobbed. It took a few minutes until she could find her voice. “I was so worried. I didn’t know where you were, and the snow is so heavy. I tried calling, but it went to voicemail. Did you turn your phone off to avoid me?”
