Jarrod paused with his hand on the door. He almost didn't want to go in, knowing the reception he would get, but steeled his resolve and turned the handle. He was hanging his hat on the coat rack when his wife came down the stairs, suitcase in hand. It was only then he noticed the trunks in the foyer.
"Beth, what's all this?" he asked in confusion.
"I'm leaving, Jarrod. I'm going back east, like I should've done a long time ago." The soft tone he fell in love with held the sharp edge that had become more prevalent over the past few years. "You can't even be bothered to get me some decent help and that brat of yours getting sick all over me was the last straw."
"Beth," Jarrod tried to explain, the realization not sinking in yet, "I was interviewing nannies all day." It wasn't his fault Mrs. Jackson had to leave to take care of her ailing daughter, but Beth had screamed at him when he left the house that morning, cursing him for having to take care of their daughter for the day by herself. He would have stayed home, but he had an important court date and business meeting that just couldn't be postponed. Then another part of her statement hit him. "Chloe's sick?" he asked in concern.
"I suppose," his wife said in an offhand manner as she donned her gloves. "The doctor came by and said something was going around." The rattle of hooves pulling up in front of the house was heard. "Anyway, there's my carriage. Goodbye, Jarrod." Beth opened the front door and directed the driver to load up the trunks as Jarrod could only stand and watch in stunned disbelief. She was leaving. His wife of almost five years was just taking off and leaving him and their four-year-old daughter behind. While a part of him screamed that he should stop her, should do something, the other part was relieved. That was, until he remembered the precious girl who was still in the house.
Jarrod closed the front door as the carriage pulled away, took the stairs two at a time and rushed to his daughter's bedroom in time to hear her start crying. He gathered her into his arms and brushed her fever-damp hair off her forehead. "Shh, kitten, it's okay, Daddy's here." He was reassured that although she was a bit warm, Chloe wasn't actually hot.
Her crying slowed, but she whimpered a bit as her eyes opened. "Daddy? My tummy hurts."
"Do you think you're going to be sick?" he asked with gentle concern.
Chloe shook her head before she went pale and threw up all over his suit. It was too late to contain the mess, so Jarrod just kept his arm around her while she continued to heave. Finally, nothing else came up and his daughter started crying again.
"I'm sorry, Daddy," she sobbed as Jarrod took a clean edge of the blanket and wiped her face. "Please don't be mad at me."
"It's okay, kitten," he said soothingly while trying not to retch at the awful smell. "You're sick; it's not your fault."
Chloe sniffed. "Mama was mad at me," she whispered.
Jarrod closed his eyes and took a deep breath to compose himself. How could anyone get mad at a little girl for being ill? "Well, I won't, Chloe," he said gently. He picked her up. "Let's go to the bathroom and I'll get us both cleaned up."
Chloe was quiet as Jarrod took off her soiled nightclothes and stripped himself down to his underwear before running some hot water over a cloth and cleaning them both. He wrapped her in a clean nightgown and kissed her head softly. "Feeling a bit better?"
She nodded but didn't say anything.
"Do you want to go back to bed or would you like to sit up with me for a bit?"
Chloe reached up to put her arms around his neck. "I want to be with you, Daddy."
"Then that's what we'll do, kitten." Jarrod picked her up and carried her downstairs. A fire was glowing softly in the fireplace and he grabbed a throw from the back of the sofa to drape around them before he settled into one of the comfortable armchairs with his little girl cuddled to his chest. It wasn't long before he heard her deep, even breathing and was grateful she'd fallen asleep without asking where her mother was.
Not that she wasn't used to her mother not being around, Jarrod thought bitterly. Beth was far more interested in making the social rounds, using the prestige of being Jarrod Barkley's wife to get invited to all the most sought-after functions than in being a mother. He attended with her when they were first married, but after Chloe was born, Jarrod wanted to spend more of his free time with his family. He tried to convince Beth to stay home, to be with him and their daughter, but she shrugged him off and Jarrod ended up staying with Chloe while she went out, only going when he got tired of her nagging that that they keep up the proper appearances.
Jarrod readjusted the precious bundle in his arms and Chloe burrowed in closer. How had it gone so wrong? It wasn't the first time he'd asked himself that question and the answer was the same as it always was. Beth had swept him away on that train ride to Denver; he'd been beguiled by her charm and elegance. The fact that they read all the same books, enjoyed all the same music and plays captivated the lawyer. Her laugh was enchanting and if he had to be honest, it was the way she made him feel like he was the center of her world that finally ensnared him. He'd married her on a whirlwind of impulse, but he didn't really know her.
No, Beth's true personality didn't surface until after the bullet Cass Hyatt meant for him wounded her instead. She'd been hysterical, adamant that she wouldn't feel safe until Hyatt was gone and made Jarrod swear he'd get revenge on her attacker. He was so blinded by his infatuation with Beth that he turned against his basic nature at her request and hunted Hyatt down like a rabid dog. If Nick and Heath hadn't shown up… Jarrod thanked his lucky stars for his brothers' timely intervention and was shocked to return home and find his beloved furious that he hadn't killed Hyatt in cold blood.
At the time, he told himself if was the shock of almost dying that made her act that way, but more time revealed the callous, self-centered nature of the woman he married. She had expected from the Barkley reputation that they would be living in a fine mansion but even though the house was almost up to her expectations, living on a ranch was not. She didn't ride, hated horses and preferred parties to the outdoors. She distained charitable work and was barely civil to Heath when she found out the circumstances of his birth. Jarrod eventually gave in to her wishes and bought the large house in the exclusive Nob Hill area of San Francisco, hoping to make her happy. He missed the ranch and his family, but Beth was his wife, for better or for worse.
Jarrod shifted Chloe when his arm started to fall asleep and cradled her closer. As much as he wished he had seen Beth for who she truly was, he knew he wouldn't go back even if he could. His daughter meant the world to him; she was his reason for getting up in the morning and he was thankful for the one blessing that had come out of his train wreck of a marriage to Beth.
Not that she had seen it that way. She cursed him for doing that to her, accusing him of making her fat and ugly and for having to put the social whirl that was her life on hold. She'd refused to have anything to do with their daughter after Chloe was born, sending Jarrod scrambling for a wet-nurse and then a full-time nanny. The marriage had been over long before that, but that was when it really hit him. He'd moved out of their bedroom, not that Beth really wanted anything to do with him any more other than retain the prestige of being his wife. Jarrod never admitted to anyone what things were truly like; his pride prevented him from admitting his marriage was just a sham.
But he honestly never expected Beth to pack her bags and just walk out on them. He'd thought she had some love for her daughter, if not for her husband, but when she referred to their precious child as 'that brat of yours' and Chloe told him how she'd gotten mad when she was sick, Jarrod knew he'd been wrong.
Jarrod blinked back the tears that threatened. How was he ever going to explain to his treasured little kitten why her mama wasn't there any more? He couldn't tell her that her mama didn't love her; it was devastating enough to him, he couldn't imagine what it would do to his little girl. Jarrod closed his eyes against the heartache and took comfort in the small body nestled against his. He was sure Chloe was going to be fine for the moment so Jarrod let himself drift off to sleep. It was late and he was tired. There would be time to figure everything out in the morning.
