A Second Chance
Page 49

Carlos made himself a piece of toast and found the bottle of Tylenol. He popped two in his mouth and cupped his hand under the faucet to fill it with water to wash them down.
Once the coffee had brewed, he poured two cups, sat down with his toast on a napkin, and looked at his wife. He didn’t remember much about undressing and climbing into bed, but he’d slept like a baby. One look at Kathy told him she’d been up all night.
Her skin was pale and her eyes darkened by tears and lack of sleep. He thought the morning after your wedding was supposed to be a happy one. How was it he was afraid to open his mouth?
He took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Are you feeling okay?”
She released the shards of the tortured napkin and looked at him. “No. No, I’m not okay.”
“What did I miss?” He tried to gather her hand again, but she pulled away, setting them in her lap. “Kathy, what is it?”
“We got married.”
He gave a little chuckle. “Of course we did. We planned it for months.”
“No. What I’m trying to say is, we shouldn’t have.”
Carlos shook his head. “I don’t understand. What do you mean we shouldn’t have?”
Kathy dropped her shoulders and stood. She paced the floor for a moment and then dropped her hands and looked down at him. “God, this is so hard.”
Carlos rose to meet her eye to eye.
She held up a hand to stop him from moving closer to her. “I was being selfish. I should have called the wedding off weeks ago. But I thought it was the right thing to do, to continue.”
He shook his head. He had no idea what was going on. He stepped another step toward her, but she retreated and walked around the table. She placed her hands on the back of the chair.
“I’m packed and leaving for Hawaii.”
“Okay. I’ll go get packed.” He nodded nervously, motioning toward the bedroom. “Is that what’s bothering you?”
“No. I’m bothered by the fact that you won’t be going to Hawaii with me. I’m bothered that I let this go this far.’
“Where am I going? Sweetheart, what the hell is going on?”
“I’m going to Hawaii without you. Carlos, I don’t want to be married.”
He moved to her, catching her hand before she could jerk it away. “You’re nervous. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“But I do.” She smiled and let out a breath. “It shouldn’t be a problem. The papers haven’t been filed. We don’t have to file the marriage. It’ll be as though it never happened. If they don’t accept that, we’ll have it annulled.”
“You don’t love me?”
“Oh, I love you. I love you too much to do this to you.”
The breath in his lungs escaped him as he focused on her smile. “What have you done?”
“Stolen you away from the woman you love.”
It was Carlos that retreated a step this time and sat down in the chair closest to him. Wasn’t she the woman he loved? Kathy was obviously having next-morning jitters. “What are you talking about?”
“Listen, since the day I met you, I knew your heart belonged to Madeline.”
Carlos’s shoulders dropped, and he was sure his chin had hit the floor. “Kathy…”
She shook her head. “For the past year I tried to convinced myself you loved me more than you love her. But I was wrong. So I’m going to Hawaii alone and you’re going to Mexico.”
He sat before her dumbfounded. The throbbing in his head increased and so did his heart rate. “Why are you telling me this now? What good does it do me now?” The moment the words hit the air, he wished he could retract them, but it was too late. “That’s not what I meant.”
She smiled and her eyes began to dry. “Oh, Carlos. You’re a good man. Too good to have me as your wife.” She laid a gentle hand on his arm. “You and I were trying to fill a hole. We each needed something. You needed to take care of someone, and I needed you to be there for me. You were.” She moved past him and paced the kitchen. “Madeline needs you too.”
“Kathy.”
“No.” She raised her hand to stop his protest. “First, I want you to know I’m not upset. This all comes from my heart. But when I watched you say good-bye to her the other day… When I watched you kiss her…”
He stood and she backed away. Oh, he hadn’t meant to kiss Madeline. He had to tell her that.
“Please, let me finish.” She moved again to create space between them. “Carlos, you need to be with her. And I needed a wedding. I got my wedding, and I’m so sorry to say I was disappointed.”
His brows drew together and his lips pursed. The woman had lost her mind.
Kathy picked up the towel near the sink and folded it, he knew, to keep her hands occupied.
“I love you. You’re such a wonderful man. But I think you belong with your family, and I should take some time to find the right person for me.”
He rubbed the ache in his forehead. Perhaps the champagne still pulsed through his veins, because he wasn’t feeling very steady. “Are you standing here in our kitchen telling me, your husband, that you don’t want to be married to me?”
“Yes.”
He threw his hands in the air. “Kathy, it hasn’t even been twenty-four hours. What’s wrong with you?”
Instead of crying, she began to laugh. “Don’t you see? Nothing is wrong. Except that we don’t belong together.” She dropped her hands to her sides. “Curtis and Simone had more going on last night than we did.”
He’d noticed that his little brother had his hands all over the French beauty, and she’d been reciprocating. Carlos pinched the bridge of his nose, hoping to release the pressure in his head. “Let’s give this some time. I’m sure it’s nerves.”
“No. Nerves got me to this point.” She neared him and touched his cheek. “Even I can see that you and Madeline should be together. You love her. It’s always been her. And she loves you.” She stepped back. “It’s been less than twenty-four hours. That’s a short enough time that we can tear up the marriage license and send back the gifts.” She turned to the kitchen table and picked up an envelope. “I leave for Hawaii in four hours. Then I’m headed to California. I’m going to move in with my sister for a bit and let my life take a new course.”