EIGHTEEN:
I was sitting in the living room trying to work up the nerve to go and visit Aunt Sara and May. The only thing stopping me was that I didn't know what I would tell them as an explanation for my disappearance. Holly had taken the dogs for a walk along the beach and she'd invited me to come along but I just hadn't felt like it. I heard a car come up the driveway and it sounded familiar. 'Kenneth must be back already' I thought excitedly, getting up and going out the front. Then I stopped dead. Cary was getting out of his truck. His eyes locked with mine.
"Melody, I don't suppose we could have that talk you mentioned yesterday?" He asked me.
I took a deep breath, and determined to remain calm and in control. "Come inside." I said.
Once we were both seated in the lounge room Cary sighed as he looked around. "I came here often after you left. I guess it was like a tie with you. Where did you go anyway?"
"New York for a bit, and then LA." I replied.
"To see your mother?" Cary asked and I nodded. "Tell me Melody, yesterday when I said you were like your mother you sounded really angry. Why?"
I sighed, and pushed my hair away from my forehead. "Are you ready to hear it all? Why I left?" I asked instead of answering.
Cary looked like he wished he didn't have to, but he nodded.
"When my mother was leaving she told me something; she said I couldn't marry you. When I demanded to know why she told me to ask the judge. I made that excuse about having to see him about wedding stuff because I didn't know what I was going to hear, and I had to hear it alone. What he told me was this: when my mother found out she was pregnant she actually went to him first. Despite her claims to hate the man after the way he told her he was her father she went to him. She knew Grandma Olivia and Grandpa Samuel were going to be disappointed and angry with her, so she wanted his support. What she told him was that even though she thought that Teddy Jackson was the father of her child, she thought it could also be Jacob." I paused and saw Cary frown, but before he could speak I hurried on. "The judge told me that it was unlikely of course and that he thought we should still get married, but the thought that you could be my half-brother shocked me to the core. I couldn't tell you this Cary- I didn't want to be the one to give you a reason to hate your father! So I left. Rather than stay and tell the truth and hurt you. Rather than stay and lie and hurt you. I know I hurt you doing what I did, but I couldn't stay here knowing we couldn't be married."
Cary shook his head. "My own Father? I can't believe him. No wonder he hated your mother so much. She didn't pick him!"
"There's more to the story. I tried to get you out of my mind but I couldn't. So Christmas Day I went to LA determined to find out the truth. I bribed my mother, something I am not proud of. I told her that if she told me the truth about who my father was I would give her money. At first I wasn't going to tell her that I'd also called Teddy Jackson and asked him whether he'd consent to a paternity test. I told her that if she lied she wouldn't get the money, but then in a moment of weakness I told her about what Teddy Jackson had also consented to. So she told me the truth: She never slept with your father. She just didn't want her parents, or her brothers, to try and get money out of Teddy, or blame him for anything. Teddy Jackson is my real father, and we are not related." I finished.
Cary was in shock. "I don't understand. Why would your mother do all this to us?"
"I don't know to be honest. But we had a big argument when she told me this and I told her I never wanted to see her again. As far as I am concerned I have no mother. So then I came here hoping it wouldn't be too late. But I guess it is." I sighed.
Cary looked confused. "Why do you say that?" He asked.
"You and Theresa." I replied.
His face went red. "Oh. That." He said.
"Yes, that. But I know I can't blame you for that Cary. I should have stayed and faced the truth and you. But I was too scared. And I also knew that I couldn't be around you knowing we couldn't be together." I explained.
"Look Melody about me and Theresa, l want to explain." Cary said.
"You don't have to." I assured him. "I hate the thought of you with someone else Cary, but I don't want you to be unhappy either."
"Theresa gave me an excuse to forget about you. I told myself I hated you and that I never wanted to see you again after how much you hurt me. When Theresa started hanging around me all the time I had no idea what would happen, but when it did I thought well why not? It might help me get over you. I thought that had happened but when I saw you yesterday my heart told me differently. I can't help myself Melody, I love you. And now I know you didn't leave because you didn't want to marry me, but because you thought you couldn't, I love you even more." Cary said, and now he looked up and at me.
"You do?" I managed to say.
He laughed and got up to come over to me. Taking my hand he pulled me to my feet. "I do." He repeated. "I wonder Melody, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
I laughed. "The honor is all mine Cary Logan." I told him.
"We should probably go and see Ma and May." Cary said. "They'll be so glad to see you back."
There was a noise outside, and then Holly came into the house. She looked exhausted from her walk, but at seeing us standing there holding hands, she looked happy. "So the stars were right." She said with a smile. "I thought they would be. They've never proved me wrong yet!"
I was sitting in the living room trying to work up the nerve to go and visit Aunt Sara and May. The only thing stopping me was that I didn't know what I would tell them as an explanation for my disappearance. Holly had taken the dogs for a walk along the beach and she'd invited me to come along but I just hadn't felt like it. I heard a car come up the driveway and it sounded familiar. 'Kenneth must be back already' I thought excitedly, getting up and going out the front. Then I stopped dead. Cary was getting out of his truck. His eyes locked with mine.
"Melody, I don't suppose we could have that talk you mentioned yesterday?" He asked me.
I took a deep breath, and determined to remain calm and in control. "Come inside." I said.
Once we were both seated in the lounge room Cary sighed as he looked around. "I came here often after you left. I guess it was like a tie with you. Where did you go anyway?"
"New York for a bit, and then LA." I replied.
"To see your mother?" Cary asked and I nodded. "Tell me Melody, yesterday when I said you were like your mother you sounded really angry. Why?"
I sighed, and pushed my hair away from my forehead. "Are you ready to hear it all? Why I left?" I asked instead of answering.
Cary looked like he wished he didn't have to, but he nodded.
"When my mother was leaving she told me something; she said I couldn't marry you. When I demanded to know why she told me to ask the judge. I made that excuse about having to see him about wedding stuff because I didn't know what I was going to hear, and I had to hear it alone. What he told me was this: when my mother found out she was pregnant she actually went to him first. Despite her claims to hate the man after the way he told her he was her father she went to him. She knew Grandma Olivia and Grandpa Samuel were going to be disappointed and angry with her, so she wanted his support. What she told him was that even though she thought that Teddy Jackson was the father of her child, she thought it could also be Jacob." I paused and saw Cary frown, but before he could speak I hurried on. "The judge told me that it was unlikely of course and that he thought we should still get married, but the thought that you could be my half-brother shocked me to the core. I couldn't tell you this Cary- I didn't want to be the one to give you a reason to hate your father! So I left. Rather than stay and tell the truth and hurt you. Rather than stay and lie and hurt you. I know I hurt you doing what I did, but I couldn't stay here knowing we couldn't be married."
Cary shook his head. "My own Father? I can't believe him. No wonder he hated your mother so much. She didn't pick him!"
"There's more to the story. I tried to get you out of my mind but I couldn't. So Christmas Day I went to LA determined to find out the truth. I bribed my mother, something I am not proud of. I told her that if she told me the truth about who my father was I would give her money. At first I wasn't going to tell her that I'd also called Teddy Jackson and asked him whether he'd consent to a paternity test. I told her that if she lied she wouldn't get the money, but then in a moment of weakness I told her about what Teddy Jackson had also consented to. So she told me the truth: She never slept with your father. She just didn't want her parents, or her brothers, to try and get money out of Teddy, or blame him for anything. Teddy Jackson is my real father, and we are not related." I finished.
Cary was in shock. "I don't understand. Why would your mother do all this to us?"
"I don't know to be honest. But we had a big argument when she told me this and I told her I never wanted to see her again. As far as I am concerned I have no mother. So then I came here hoping it wouldn't be too late. But I guess it is." I sighed.
Cary looked confused. "Why do you say that?" He asked.
"You and Theresa." I replied.
His face went red. "Oh. That." He said.
"Yes, that. But I know I can't blame you for that Cary. I should have stayed and faced the truth and you. But I was too scared. And I also knew that I couldn't be around you knowing we couldn't be together." I explained.
"Look Melody about me and Theresa, l want to explain." Cary said.
"You don't have to." I assured him. "I hate the thought of you with someone else Cary, but I don't want you to be unhappy either."
"Theresa gave me an excuse to forget about you. I told myself I hated you and that I never wanted to see you again after how much you hurt me. When Theresa started hanging around me all the time I had no idea what would happen, but when it did I thought well why not? It might help me get over you. I thought that had happened but when I saw you yesterday my heart told me differently. I can't help myself Melody, I love you. And now I know you didn't leave because you didn't want to marry me, but because you thought you couldn't, I love you even more." Cary said, and now he looked up and at me.
"You do?" I managed to say.
He laughed and got up to come over to me. Taking my hand he pulled me to my feet. "I do." He repeated. "I wonder Melody, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
I laughed. "The honor is all mine Cary Logan." I told him.
"We should probably go and see Ma and May." Cary said. "They'll be so glad to see you back."
There was a noise outside, and then Holly came into the house. She looked exhausted from her walk, but at seeing us standing there holding hands, she looked happy. "So the stars were right." She said with a smile. "I thought they would be. They've never proved me wrong yet!"