“Mom, it isn’t like that. We—”

“Sweetheart, listen please. I know you once had strong feelings for that young man, and it hurt me deeply.”

“It hurt you?”

Her mother nodded. “Very much so, because I knew you’d be forced to make a choice between your family and Thom. I couldn’t bear the thought of you married to him or sharing my grandchildren with Mary Sutton. You saw for yourself how she feels about me. There’s no forgiveness in her. Really, is this the kind of woman you want in your life and the lives of your children? That’s the history I mean.” She kissed Noelle on the cheek and headed down the hallway to her room. “Good night now.”

Noelle shut her eyes and sagged against the wall. She’d been just a moment away from explaining that she was going to meet Thom in order to talk things out. Her mother sounded as though she’d consider it a personal affront if Noelle so much as looked at him. It was like high school all over again.

The only thing left to do now was sneak out the same way she had as a teenager. She couldn’t leave him waiting in the cold, that was unthinkable. Besides, this might be her one and only chance to sort out what had really happened, and she wasn’t going to throw it away. She didn’t intend any disrespect toward her mother or his, but she had to be there. If she didn’t show up, she’d confirm every negative belief he already had about her.

Carley was in bed asleep as Noelle passed her room. She went in to drop a kiss on her sister’s forehead, then softly closed the door. Noelle changed out of her party dress, choosing wool slacks and a thick sweater to wear to the park. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she waited for the minutes to tick past. With luck, her parents would be exhausted and both go directly to bed. Then Noelle could slip away undetected.

Finally the house was dark and quiet. The only illumination came from the flashing Christmas lights that decorated the roofline.

Opening her bedroom door, Noelle was horrified by the way it creaked. On tiptoe, she carefully, silently crept down the narrow corridor.

“Jake.” Her mother was instantly awake. “I heard something.”

“Go to sleep, honey.”

“There’s someone in the house,” her mother insisted.

Noelle froze. She could hardly breathe. Just imagining what her mother would say was enough to paralyze her.

“Jake, I’m serious.”

“I don’t hear anything,” her father mumbled.

“I did. We could all be murdered in our beds.”

“Sarah, for the love of heaven.”

“Think of the children.”