Contents ( 66)
- Cover
- Books by Valerie Fraser Luesse
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Map of Florida
- one
- two
- three
- four
- five
- six
- seven
- eight
- nine
- ten
- eleven
- twelve
- thirteen
- fourteen
- fifteen
- sixteen
- seventeen
- eighteen
- nineteen
- twenty
- twenty-one
- twenty-two
- twenty-three
- twenty-four
- twenty-five
- twenty-six
- twenty-seven
- twenty-eight
- twenty-nine
- thirty
- thirty-one
- thirty-two
- thirty-three
- thirty-four
- thirty-five
- thirty-six
- thirty-seven
- thirty-eight
- thirty-nine
- forty
- forty-one
- forty-two
- forty-three
- forty-four
- forty-five
- forty-six
- forty-seven
- forty-eight
- forty-nine
- fifty
- fifty-one
- Epilogue
- Keep Reading for a Preview of Valerie Luesse’s Next Book!
- Prologue
- one
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Back Ads
- Back Cover
“What about Daddy? Does he know?”
Aunt Gert nodded. “They managed to keep it from him for a long time, but then when he was about fifteen years old, he was rummagin’ through his daddy’s closet, lookin’ for a fishin’ hat to carry with him to summer camp, and he uncovered a shoebox full o’ pictures, includin’ one o’ George and Julia with a baby in her arms—a baby with eyes just like hers. Later on, Marshall told me he just had a feelin’ about that picture—like it was answerin’ a question he’d always had but never asked.”
“If he was fifteen—that’s the year he rode his bike to Key West.”
Aunt Gert slapped her knee, pretending surprise. “You know, you’re right!” She laughed. “Came right through St. Augustine and met a pretty girl on a sandbar.”
They gazed out at the sea together, listening to the water sigh as it rolled onto the shore. Peyton finally broke the silence.
“Does Mama know?” he asked.
“She does. And no, I do not agree that keepin’ it from you was wise. And yes, you’ve got a right to be aggravated as all get-out with both of ’em. Years after they married, your mama told me that they talked about it that very first time they met on the beach. He told her he had just found out his mama wasn’t his mama, and he was takin’ this bike ride to try and sort things out. By the time you came along, Marshall was so tangled up in the family business that Katie knew y’all would likely be livin’ amongst the Cabots. She just didn’t want you to know anything that might make you feel like an outsider—which is how they always made her feel. I told her she oughta shout ‘glory hallelujah’ that you and your daddy are cut from a different cloth than the rest of ’em. If you ask me, that’s somethin’ to celebrate, not somethin’ to hide.”
“Why do you think Daddy let ’em do it—tangle him up in the family business, I mean?”
“Because he respected his father, and he knew the rest of ’em didn’t have sense enough to preserve what your granddaddy worked hard to build. He also knew the rest o’ the Cabots didn’t give a flyin’ rip about all the poor families who depended on your granddaddy’s cotton mills for work.”
They listened to the water lap against the sand before Peyton said, “I’m glad you told me. I really am. It feels weird to know I’m not one o’ the Cabots, but—”
“Now hold it right there. That’s not what I said. You are one hundred percent one o’ the Cabots. You just don’t have any o’ that crazy Kelly blood from Celia’s side o’ the family, which is all to the good, if you want my opinion. And somewhere in Louisiana, you’ve got some family you never even met. Prob’ly Cajun. You feel particularly musical all of a sudden?”
Peyton laughed and kicked off his sneakers so he could shove his feet into the cool sand like Aunt Gert. “No, ma’am.”