Coming Unglued Read online

  Copyright © 2008 by Rebeca Seitz

  All rights reserved.

  Printed in the United States of America

  Published by B&H Publishing Group,

  Nashville, Tennessee

  Dewey Decimal Classification: F

  Subject Heading: SISTERS—FICTION SCRAPBOOKS—FICTION SELF-WORTH—FICTION

  Publisher’s Note: This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.

  Contents

  Acknowledgments

  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

  Epilogue

  For my husband, Charlie, who prays me through life’s difficulties and calls down God’s peace into our life. I love you.

  Acknowledgments

  Writing a story about betrayal and forgiveness is an extremely difficult and exhausting undertaking. Through conversations with friends and family members while writing this book, I learned just how prevalent betrayal is in our culture—and how destructive it can be. I also saw, though, the power of forgiveness to break a cycle of betrayal and bring beauty where sorrow stood.

  For that lesson, I am grateful and renewed.

  And, so, I’d like to thank each of you who had a hand in helping me write this story—from the technical aspects to the emotional portions. My sincere gratitude goes to:

  Karen Ball, an editor who cares enough to invest herself in these stories and grow me as a writer. I love God’s presence in your life, Karen, and how you let the rest of us see the ways He works in you. You’re a teacher without equal. I am incredibly honored to call you sister and friend.

  John and Marinilda Leatherman, a couple who embody God’s living love in a marriage. Mari, you have been there for me through deep betrayal and heart-wrenching loss over the years. You held my hand while I cried, and you laughed with me to stave off lunacy. And you cared enough to share your own losses with me, to let me see the hurting side of you. That day years ago when I begged God to bring me a best friend, I could never have imagined the blessing that is you. Thank you for your steadfast presence in my life and the gift of your friendship.

  The doctor in Vanderbilt’s burn unit who wishes to remain nameless—thank you for sharing details of your experiences with burn victims. The work you do saves lives and I appreciate your time and willingness to tell me about it.

  Mother, you’ve been such an amazing cheerleader with this series (once you got through the first fifteen pages—ha!). Thanks for telling everyone about me—well, about the better part of me. We’ll keep the rest of me just between us.

  Daddy, I remember so much of the wisdom you shared when betrayal entered my life. You held my hand, you told me it would pass, and you kept me looking toward the Ultimate Prize while things fell apart. I pray my kids never need me in that way, but if they do, I want to be like you.

  Christie, shoot, I don’t know where to start. I wouldn’t even be a scrapbooker if it weren’t for you! I’m still getting over the fact that you read my books at all when you’ve got forty-thousand other things on your plate, needing your attention. Of course, we both know you’re just checking to be sure I didn’t reveal too much of you, right? Ha ha! Thanks for sticking by my side, sister, even when I’m bullheaded, opinionated, and obnoxious. (Hey, those other two days of the year are great, though!)

  And for all of you who have lived through betrayal, know that you are not alone. There are millions of us. You will get through this. It is not the end of you or your story. It is a chapter. Close that page and choose to begin the next. From one who stands pages and pages from that dark time, know that your story can become a fairy tale. You need only talk to the One, Jesus Christ, who crafts your path. He loves you, more than any earthly man ever can or will. And He provides.

  One

  I mean it, Harry,” Kendra Sinclair let a bit of her fright and frustration leak into her tone.

  Harry’s chuckle mocked. “You know you don’t. Come on, everybody has to eat.”

  “Like I said, I’ve already eaten.” And I don’t need this kind of complication right now, even if I want it.

  “Dessert, then, Kendra. You don’t want to end the day without dessert, do you?”

  Yes, she did. No, she didn’t. Well, yeah, she did. She should. The sigh was out before she could stop it.

  “I heard that. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

  “But—”

  “See you soon.”

  Kendra slammed the phone down and stared at it, waiting for it to jump up and bite her. It might as well have, for all the craziness it had brought her life in the past two months.

  Okay, six months.

  But there was that two-month lull, so really, four months altogether.

  “Imparticular man,” she muttered, pacing away from the phone and back. Her purple toenails gave a nice contrast as her feet sank into plush carpet the color of a pure snowdrift. “Kendra Sinclair, you are not a conniving woman. What has gotten into you?”

  She plopped down onto the overstuffed couch the saleslady had called “polar bear” and pulled Miss Kitty onto her lap. Stroking the cat’s fur, she stared across the room. Tufts of fur fell onto the sofa, blending into the fabric.

  “Where’s Oprah when you need her?”

  The cat purred its approval of Kendra’s long fingernails and sank down further into its mistress’s lap.

  “Probably on some beach with Stedman, laughing at the rest of us who haven’t gotten it all figured out just yet. Right, Miss Kitty?”

  The motoring purr increased in volume, and Kendra smiled.

  The phone rang, and she jerked so hard Miss Kitty toppled to the floor.

  “Oh, sorry!” Kendra tossed the apology to Miss Kitty and jerked up the handset. “Hello?”

  “Hey, how’s Stars Hill’s finest lady tonight?” Darin’s smooth voice hummed over the line. Kendra’s heart did a double take, frantically downshifting from the previous call. She straightened on the couch, then felt stupid when she realized he couldn’t possibly see how out of sorts she was through the phone line.

  “Oh, I’m good. Good. Yeah, really good. How are you?”

  “Wow, that’s three goods in the first five seconds. Something wrong?”

  She propped her elbow on the arm of the couch and rested her jaw in her palm. Other women lowered their gazes and offered demure smiles when they were out of control. But Kendra? She stammered and fell all over herself with streams of words. “No, no, nothing’s wrong. Just sitting here talking to Miss Kitty.”

  “Lucky cat.”

  Kendra chuckled, feeling her heart rate settle back into the normal range even while her skin heated at the sound. “Tell her that. I knocked her off my lap when the phone rang.”

  “And she hasn’t clawed your eyes out yet?”

  “Declawed, remember?”

  “Oh, right. Anyway, I know it’s last minute, but I was wondering if you’d had dinner yet.”

  “Oh, um, no. Well, yes, but that was a couple of hours ago. I mean, not that I need to eat anymore today. Gotta watch my waistline and all—”

  His chuckle s
topped her mid-sentence. “I’ll be over in about fifteen minutes. See you soon.”

  She heard the click of the phone and stared at it. Not five minutes ago a different man had said the same words. Her silk caftan swirled as she jumped up and fled to the bedroom, praying the first caller hadn’t been serious and was just leading her on.

  Which in her heart of hearts she knew wouldn’t be out of character for him at all.

  Two

  Coming! I’m coming!”

  Kendra stuffed a red bangle bracelet on her wrist, layering it with other bracelets of varying red and orange hues. She made it to the front door and stared through the peephole.

  Thank heavens, it was Darin. She pulled open the door and smiled. “Hey, you.”

  “Hey, yourself.” The hallway light beamed off his bald head, and his dark chocolate eyes danced with mischief. “Sorry again about being so last minute.”

  “No worries. I was just sitting here, you know.”

  He quirked an eyebrow. “I can’t seem to imagine you ‘just sitting’ anywhere, but I’m glad you could come all the same.”

  She stepped out into the hallway and turned to lock the door. Stars Hill might be a small town, but a single girl living alone could never be too careful.

  “Hey, I sit every now and then. A girl’s got to stop long enough to get some inspiration.”

  “You have a new project in the works?”

  She scrunched her nose as they made their way down the stairs of the grand old Southern home that had been converted into apartments. “Not really. I’m trying to finish the painting for Tandy and Clay’s wedding, but I’m blocked.”

  Darin reached in front of her and pushed open the massive mahogany door. He followed her onto a wide, wraparound porch and held her elbow as they walked down the steps. “I’m sure you’ll come up with something. You always do, right?”

  She grinned, praying the desperation that rode at her side nearly every waking moment stayed hidden behind her eyes. “Yeah, I always do.”

  He opened the door of his Barracuda, and she slid onto the leather seat, inhaling the spicy yet soapy clean scent that was Darin. His car reflected his personality so well.

  What did such a man see in her? And how was it possible they were still dating after four months?

  “You know,” she said as he got in the driver’s side, “I’ll have to thank my sister for making me go on that blind date.”

  “You mean you haven’t yet?” Darin started the car, and she watched his long fingers on the keys, remembering how deftly they maneuvered the strings on the bass guitar he played. His cobalt-blue shirt pulled against a well-defined bicep when he shifted into reverse.

  She shook her head to clear it and sat back. “Nope. The only thing Tandy wants to talk about these days is her wedding. It’s all ‘bridesmaid’s dress this’ and ‘white lily that.’ I’m telling you, if I don’t wring her neck before she gets to the altar, it’ll be a miracle.”

  “They sure did get engaged fast.” Darin shifted again and pulled out into the street. “Four months? Man, that’s quick.”

  “Not really. They’ve known each other since junior high. I can’t believe it took Clay four months to pop the question. I thought for sure he’d do it the week she moved back to Stars Hill and started Sisters, Ink.”

  “Pop the question without a ring? You really think Tandy would have been okay with that?”

  “The woman moved the entirety of her earthly possessions for the man. I mean, she’s back in Stars Hill because he lives here now. I don’t think she’d let the absence of a diamond change her mind about him.”

  “Hmm. Maybe not, but he knew the proposal had to be worthy of the woman. And that meant a diamond.” Replication-antique streetlights illuminated the planes of his face when he shot her a smile and turned onto Lindell, the main street of Stars Hill. “It takes time to have a custom ring designed and made. I thought the guy was going to have a coronary before they got the thing finished.” He pulled the Barracuda into a parallel spot and stepped out. “Speaking of which, is Clay’s okay with you?”

  Kendra looked out the window at the navy and yellow Clay’s Diner sign hanging beneath a matching awning. If Clay was in there, chances were high that Tandy was nearby. Her sister rarely left Clay’s side for long these days. Normally, Kendra welcomed a chance to see her sister. But now …

  What if Tandy sensed Kendra’s stress? And what if she asked Kendra about … ? Then again, Tandy’s wedding focus seemed to have dimmed her sister radar like morning sunshine on the moon.

  She turned back and caught Darin watching her, brow creased. She reached up and smoothed a line, ignoring the small voice inside mocking her, telling her she didn’t have a right to such a wonderful man, that he deserved better than a conniving woman.

  “Sure, this is fine.”

  “You positive?” The line deepened as he wrapped long fingers around her hand and kissed the back of it. “We can go somewhere else if you’re not up for family tonight.”

  “Darin, you are way too good to me.”

  “Yeah, just remember we’re still in the courting phase. I’m supposed to be too good to you right now.”

  “Courting?” She laughed. “Has anybody used that word since Happy Days went off the air?”

  “Your dad used it just last Sunday when he was talking about Zelda.”

  Best to ignore that. Daddy was perfectly within his rights to date. He was, after all, a widower. It wasn’t his fault that—even ten years after their mother’s death—none of the sisters could completely reconcile the image of Daddy with anyone other than Momma.

  “Last I checked, mister, I wasn’t over fifty with red, spiky hair.”

  Darin unbuckled his seat belt and grinned at her, wiggling his eyebrows. “I don’t know. Dating a redhead might be kinda fun.”

  She yanked her hand from his and watched him get out, then walk around the front of the car to her door. “You are so not funny.”

  He pulled her out of the car and circled his arms around her waist in a loose hug. “Funny, no. Wild about you,” he dipped his head and wiggled his eyebrows again, “yeah.”

  His kiss felt soft and gentle, as undemanding as the man giving it. Kendra kissed him back, still unsure what he saw in her or why he stayed around. Maybe no one had given him the skinny on her yet. Hard to believe since they lived in Stars Hill where 98 percent of the population could give both the Reader’s Digest Condensed and Deluxe Expanded Editions of every one of the four Sinclair daughters’ life histories.

  She tried to push thoughts of her own worth away and focus on the magic of his lips on hers, but images of her childhood haunted her like ghosts on a Louisiana bayou. She felt his hand on her neck and the wisps of history curled along with his fingers. Why couldn’t she just let go and kiss him?

  Darin ended the kiss and stepped back, keeping his arms around her waist. “Is everything all right with you? You seem, I don’t know, preoccupied.”

  Kendra smiled and put her hands on his chest. “I’m fine. Just tired. Worried about getting this painting done in time for the wedding.” She nodded toward the huge plate-glass window of Clay’s. “I’m pretty sure Tandy will kill me if I don’t get it done.”

  Clay placed a quick kiss on her forehead, then turned them toward the door. “You’ll figure it out. I’ve got faith in you.”

  Kendra pulled out of his arms and moved toward the diner. Maybe she should run up to Barnes & Noble in Nashville for a book on forgetting your childhood. Weren’t bookshelves full of self-help titles like that these days?

  “Hey, Earth to Kendra.”

  She blinked and saw a yellow pencil waggling in front of her face. Her eyes followed the fingers holding it up a freckled arm to her sister’s concerned face. “Hey, yourself, Tandy.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “You okay? You were in another world there.”

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” Kendra slid into a booth. “Low blood sugar or something.”

  �
�Then you came to the right place.” Tandy tapped her pencil on an order pad. “Your choices are cheeseburger, cheeseburger, and cheeseburger.”

  “Clay order too much hamburger again?”

  Tandy’s eyes sparkled. “Yeah, I think he’s more focused on finding the perfect honeymoon spot than rechecking his food orders.”

  “Darin says he’s gone wedding crazy.”

  “I did nothing of the sort,” Darin defended. “I would never betray a buddy like that.”

  “Relax, hot shot,” Tandy patted his arm, “he’ll never hear it from me.”

  “Of course not, because there’s nothing to hear.” Darin slid back out of the booth and walked toward the kitchen in the back. “You ladies do your girl thing; I’m going to check on my man Clay. The one who—” he raised his voice—“is not so wedding crazy!”

  Kendra and Tandy chuckled as Tandy sat in the spot Darin had vacated. “So, seriously, you okay?”

  “Couldn’t be better.” Kendra waved away Tandy’s concern. “Just need to get some food in me so my brain can kick back into gear. Not the cheeseburger, of course. Did he manage to throw some veggie burgers on the order form?”

  Tandy smiled. “Yeah. He knows you’d have his head if he forgot your precious health food.” Tandy looked at her for a long second, and Kendra busied herself with the menu. Don’t ask … don’t ask …

  “Kendra Sinclair, you know every single thing on that menu, and you’re studying it like it’s got directions to a pot of gold. Now, spill.”

  She’d spill just as soon as she fit into jeans from high school. “Nothing to spill, Sis.”

  “You’re keeping something from me? Me? It’s gotta be something big.”

  “It’s nothing.” Nothing that anybody in this town needs to know. “Let it go. I’m just tired and cranky because I’m hungry and some overzealous sister of mine is sitting there grilling me instead of a veggie burger.” Kendra looked back at the menu.

  “See, that’s even more proof something’s up. You know I don’t cook, and here you are telling me to go grill you a burger like I would even know how to turn a grill on, much less produce something that isn’t either mooing or doing an imitation of shoe leather.”