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her response.  With you.
As he scrutinized her, he tried to make sense of her
answer. He knew she was attracted to him, that she felt
the chemistry between them. He d dated enough wom-
en to recognize the signs. That wasn t the problem.
 Is it because of Campbell Publishing s interest in the
Gazette?
 No.
 Then what?
Instead of responding, she stood and moved toward
the sink, turning away from him. Once there, she
gripped the porcelain edge, her shoulders rigid, her
head bowed. Even from across the room, Mark could
sense her distress, knew she was struggling for control.
Scraping back his chair, he rose and moved behind
190 A Dream To Share
her. She went still as he approached, stiffening when he
rested his hands lightly on her slight shoulders. Beneath
his fingers he could feel her trembling, though her
muscles were as taut and unyielding as the synthetic
leather on the basketball he d bought at the local hard-
ware store.
 Abby& I m sorry. I didn t mean to upset you.
His soft, concerned voice close to her ear, his warm
breath on her cheek, the gentle touch of his hands,
threatened her shaky control.
 You need to go, Mark. Now, she choked out.
Ignoring her plea, he exerted pressure on her shoul-
ders, urging her to turn toward him. She resisted,
averting her face, but his glimpse of the silent tears
coursing down her cheeks jolted him. He was used to
Abby being strong and in control. This side of her
tore at his gut. Lord, help me deal with this, he pleaded
in a prayer born of desperation. I m way out of my
depth here.
 Why? he asked softly. Cupping her face with his
hands, he angled it toward him and wiped away her tears
with his thumbs, searching her troubled eyes for an
answer.  I don t understand.
 It wouldn t work between us.
 Because of my past? He hated to bring it up, hated
to even remember it, but he figured Abby suspected
that he d led a less-than-admirable life. For a woman
like her, that could be a huge stumbling block.  If I
could change it, I would. But all I can control is the
future. And I can promise you my wild days are over.
 It s not that. I don t think it s fair to hold someone s
Irene Hannon 191
past against them when they re doing their best to create
a better future.
 Okay. Relieved, he tried another tack.  Is it the
long-distance issue?
No response.
 Come on, Abby. Talk to me. He pried her cold
hands off the edge of the sink and enfolded them in his
warm clasp.
His gentle entreaty was hard to ignore. Yet Abby
wasn t prepared for this discussion tonight. One peek
at the resolute set of his lips, however, told her that he
wasn t going to give up until he got an answer.
Staring at a button on his shirt, she bit her lip and
took a deep breath.  We re too different.
Her reply was met with silence. When the silence
lengthened, she risked a look at him. He seemed confused.
 That s it?
 That s enough.
 I don t think we re that different. At least not any-
more.
She tried to tug her hands free, but he refused to re-
linquish his grasp.  Uh-uh. We need to sort this out.
What do you mean by different?
 It s obvious.
 Not to me.
 Mark, think about our backgrounds. She lifted her
chin and gave him an earnest look.  Small town, big
city. Rich, not rich. Man of the world, girl next door.
Cocktail parties with caviar, pancake breakfasts at
church. We live in different worlds.
 Okay. He mulled that over.  But different
192 A Dream To Share
doesn t mean incompatible. And none of those differ-
ences are insurmountable. We can deal with them if
things get serious.
 That s what my parents thought, too.
There was a world of pain in her response, and Mark
knew that he d at last gotten to the heart of her problem.
He had a feeling it wouldn t be easy to convince her to
share whatever unhappy memories stood in the way of
their relationship, but he also knew that he had to
succeed. Only when he found out what was holding her
back would he know how to fight her fears.
 Tell me about them, Abby.
 It s a long story.
 I don t have to be anywhere tonight.
Abby looked up into Mark s warm brown eyes, torn.
Her parents unhappy marriage wasn t a topic she d
ever discussed with anyone. It had seemed disloyal to
tell anyone else about the problems that they d kept
behind closed doors.
Now, however, she had a reason to drag those skele-
tons out of the closet. Like her parents, Mark seemed
to think that love would be enough to overcome their
differences.
But she knew better.
And it was time Mark did, too.
Chapter Thirteen
 Let s sit, okay? Abby tugged her hands free, and
this time Mark let her go. When he sat beside her a
moment later, she stared at the worn oak table and
traced the uneven grain with her finger.
 We always ate dinner together at this table. The
four of us my mom and dad and my brother and I.
 Are those good memories? He wasn t sure how to
interpret the tenor of her voice.
 Some are. Most aren t.
 Why not?
 Too much tension.
Patience had never been one of his strengths, but
he waited to see if she d continue. After a few sec-
onds, she did.
 Were your parents happy, Mark?
Her wistful question took him off guard.  Yes. Very.
 Did your mom and dad have similar backgrounds?
 Yes. They both came from middle-class families.
194 A Dream To Share
But Dad had great ambitions, and Mom believed in
him. They were a good team.
 That makes a big difference.
 Are you saying that your mom didn t support your
dad?
 I think she did the best she could. She and Dad met
when they were seniors in college and married a month
after they graduated, and she knew Dad would eventu-
ally take over the family business. But she didn t have
a clue what she was getting into when she came to live
in Oak Hill. Mom was from a wealthy family in San
Francisco. She loved art and theater and music. She was
a gifted pianist, and I m sure she would have been suc-
cessful in her field of fashion design. But there wasn t
much opportunity for her to pursue any of those things
in Oak Hill.
 I take it she was unhappy here.
 Yes. At least as far back as I can remember. Abby
turned away to check on Caitlin, envying the peaceful
countenance of the slumbering infant.  But, to her
credit, her disillusionment didn t keep her from being
a good mother. She always took pride in our accom-
plishments, and she was never too busy to read my
brother and me a bedtime story or take us outside to
stargaze or spend hours with us looking for cloud
pictures on warm summer days.
 It sounds like you loved her very much.
 I did. And I loved Dad, too. But he was also
unhappy. He felt like he d failed Mom. Yet, short of
selling the business, there wasn t much he could do to
change their circumstances. And that s never been an
Irene Hannon 195
option for a Warner. The paper has always been a sacred
trust passed from one generation to the next.
A shadow of distress darkened her features, and
Mark took her cold hand in his. He was grateful that she
didn t pull away.
 Anyway, it wasn t a happy marriage. They kept up [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]