"You know what we mean, dear," Sarah said. Tears were glistening in her eyes. "You're all we have left. We—"
"That's not so!" Jenny cried angrily, getting out of her chair. "You have Cage. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm ashamed of you both. Sarah, do you realize how you hurt Cage last night? You might not be pleased with everything he does, but he's still your son. You wished him dead!"
Sarah bowed her head and burst into tears. Jenny, ashamed of her outburst, sat back down. Bob patted Sarah's shoulders in a feeble attempt to comfort her.
"She was distressed last night when the two of you raced out of here," Bob explained to Jenny. "She realized what she had said and was sorry about it."
Jenny sipped her coffee until Sarah's tears subsided. Finally she set her cup in her saucer. "I've decided to leave."
As Jenny had anticipated, they were stunned. For several moments neither of them moved. They stared at her with blank, disbelieving eyes. "Leave?" Sarah wheezed at last.
"I'm going to move out of the parsonage and begin a life of my own. For years I've been living here, biding my time until Hal and I got married. Perhaps if we had married and had children…" She let that thought dwindle away. "But since we didn't, and since we never will now, there's no reason for me to stay. I have to make a future for myself."
"But you have a future with us," Bob argued.
"I'm a grown woman. I need to—"
"We need you, Jenny!" Sarah cried, clamping a damp, cold hand on Jenny's arm. "You remind us of Hal. You're like our own daughter. You can't do this to us. Please. Not now. Give us time to adjust to Hal's death first. You can't go. You just can't." She broke down again, burying her face in a sodden tissue.
Jenny felt a cloak of guilt closing around her. She had a responsibility to them, didn't she? They had taken her in and given her a home when she had had nothing. Didn't she owe them something? Time? A few weeks? A few months?
The thought of it depressed her, but then duty often did feel shackling.
"All right," she conceded dispiritedly. "But I won't live under Mrs. Hicks's censorship or anyone else's. I was engaged to Hal and I loved him, but he's dead. I've got my own life to lead."
"You've always been free to come and go as you like." Bob said, happy now that talk of her leaving was over. "That's why we bought you the car."
That wasn't the kind of freedom Jenny referred to, but she didn't think they would understand if she tried to explain it to them. "My other condition is that you both apologize to Cage for what you said last night."
When they would have protested, she stared them down. Their eyes fell away from her steady gaze. "Very well, Jenny," Bob said at last. "For your sake we will."
"No, not for my sake. For his and for yours." She stood up and headed for the door. "I think Cage will forgive you because he loves you. I only hope God will."
* * *
The grocery baskets crashed together. Jenny's rattled upon impact. A box of detergent toppled over. Canned goods rolled about noisily. A roll of paper towels bounced onto the carton of eggs.
"Hi."
"You bully. You did that on purpose."
His grin was slow, lazy, and totally unrepentant. "It's a great device to meet a pretty woman on a slow afternoon. Crash into her grocery cart. Then she's flustered, sometimes angry, but always at your mercy. Ideally I try to lock up the wheels of the carts." He glanced down and frowned. "You were too quick for me."
"You're without conscience, Cage Hendren."
"Absolutely."
"Then what happens?" Jenny asked him. "I'm fascinated."
"You mean after—"
"After you've crashed into her grocery basket and gotten the wheels locked together and she's flustered, etc. What do you do then?"
"Ask her to go to bed with me."
Jenny took that piece of information like a soft cuff on the chin. "Oh." She maneuvered her basket around his, which was empty, and continued down the aisle of pet food. Since the Hendrens didn't have a pet, the attention she gave the shelves was rather ludicrous.
"Well, you said you were fascinated," Cage said defensively, pushing his cart up beside hers.