Page 45 of Tempest

He filled his fork with pasta and shoved into his mouth. He’d known she was going to become curious at some point. He just hadn’t figured it would happen now. When he’d finished chewing, he wiped his mouth and drained his glass of tea. “My mom left us when I was five. She came from a wealthy East Coast banking family and decided that rural life on a winery wasn’t for her. One day she was there and the next day she was gone. We didn’t get much of an explanation, and after a while, we quit asking if she was coming back. When I look back on it, I realize how well my father held it together. I think it was as much of a shock to him as it was to us. I give him a ton of credit. He raised four boys on his own while running a winery and had a good attitude about it.”

Ivy’s hand covered his, and it felt surprisingly good to get the story out. “Two years after she left, we were summoned to New York for a week-long visit. It went as well as you might imagine. Four boys ranging in age from twelve to five arrive in New York City accompanied by a nanny Mother hired for the trip. We were kids who were used to running around and playing hard. Our manners were good, but apparently not good enough for Mommy Dearest. We stayed at the Four Seasons and it was pretty much torture. We were not used to being cooped up in a hotel room and then spending the day in museums. My youngest brother, Ben, left a trail of broken glassware across the city. He was three when mom left and he didn’t have any real memories of her. All she was to him was a woman who kept telling him to be careful. It made him nervous, which made him clumsy, which made it worse.”

“God, Ryan. That sounds horrible. I’m not going to enjoy meeting her. The story makes me sick.”

“You won’t have to. She died about five years ago.”

“Oh, Lordy. I’m sorry.”

When she covered her mouth and looked stricken, Ryan slipped his arm around her. “We got to repeat the New York experience a couple more times before we all just gave up. She remarried when I was about ten, and we met her husband the last summer we went to the city. My youngest brother refused to go after the first two trips, and Dad didn’t make him. He figured it would be best if Ben stayed home. It’s funny, because he’s a doctor now and the least clumsy person you ever met. Turns out Dad was right about saving him from the torture of those trips.”

“So staying in fancy hotels isn’t your idea of a good time?”

“Absolutely not. When I was at the Ritz in Florida, my skin was itchy. I figured it was because I had been OCONUS for so long, but I think it had to do with all of the trips with Mother.”

He watched her stand and move in between his legs. Wrapping her arms around his middle, she kissed his chest. Which was exactly what he needed. “I guess you and I are lucky. At least we each got one good parent. Sometimes that’s all you need. Dad is as good a man as there is, and he’s my role model. Never once did I hear him complain about raising four boys on his own. I asked him about it when I was in college, and he said he considered himself fortunate that he never had to fight Mother for custody. He wanted us and made sure that we knew that from the moment she left.”

She patted his chest and stepped away. “I’ll let you finish your supper. Thank you for sharing the story.”

He started eating again and felt a lot lighter than he had in a long time. Being around Ivy seemed to soothe his soul, and something that had been empty was now full. Turned out the person he didn’t know he needed was sitting right next to him.

Glancing over, he noticed she wasn’t eating. “I have plans that are going to require some energy, so finish your dinner.” When she lifted her fork and dug into her pasta, he went back to his meal. His appetite for Ivy wasn’t diminishing. The more he had her, the more he wanted her. Now all he had to do was make sure she felt the same way.

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