Summer Secrets - Barbara Freethy [52]
Chapter Nine
Caroline walked into the Oyster Bar and paused, letting her eyes adjust to the dim light. She shouldn't have come, but her feet wouldn't go in another direction. She needed something to fill the gnawing hole in her gut. As she turned toward the bar, her attention was caught by a group of men in a far corner and a very familiar voice.
"Kate was the best at keeping us on course. She could steer by the stars," Duncan said in his big, booming voice. "And she never let herself get distracted. That girl was all purpose all the time. Ashley always had her head in a book or her eyes behind a camera. She was a watcher, she was. And Caroline, well, what can I say about my baby girl?"
Caroline wondered what he would say about her. She couldn't help but listen, hoping for something that she couldn't even put into words, but she knew it had a lot to do with approval. Duncan always raved about Kate's abilities to do just about anything, and he spoke fondly of Ashley as if she were a gentle creature that just needed to be loved. But what about her? What did he say about her when she wasn't listening? She wanted so badly to know, so she crept forward, hoping he wouldn't see her, because then he would surely shut up.
"That Caroline is a piece of work," one of the other men said. "A born hellion."
Caroline frowned. That wasn't what she wanted to hear. Speak up, Daddy, she silently urged. Tell him what I'm really like. Tell him how fast I was at raising the sails. Tell him how good I was at the wheel, how important I was in winning the race.
"Caroline was a loose cannon. I never knew what that girl was going to do. But I'll say this for her -- she always kept us on our toes." Duncan laughed and took off his well-worn navy blue cap.
Caroline turned away in disgust. She'd been a fool to believe she'd hear praise from her father. He'd never been proud of her, and he never would be.
"I will say this though, she could sing like a pretty bird," Duncan added, halting Caroline in her tracks. "Some nights I'd be alone at the helm, thinking the girls were all asleep, and I'd hear this song drifting across the waves 'like the sea was singing to me. Caroline sounded so much like her mother then." His voice broke, and he cleared his throat. "Another round for the boys," he called to the bartender.
Caroline blinked back the unexpected moisture in her eyes. She'd never heard him compare her voice to her mother's. At least he'd noticed something about her, something good instead of something bad. That was probably a first. What he never seemed to notice was how alike they were, how comfortable they both felt in dark, smoky bars, how much they'd both loved the sea.
Sailing around the world had been terrifying but thrilling, too. Maybe she needed to get back out there. What was she doing, spending all her days on this island? It was home, but it wasn't enough. She wanted more, but more what? Nothing seemed to fill the emptiness inside of her. God knows she'd tried filling it with just about everything she could find.
She cast another look at her father, wondering if she should join in their conversation.
"Did I tell you about the time Kate sewed up my hand with a needle and a thread?" Duncan asked his captivated audience. "It was incredible. I'd cut my hand, a huge gash, bloody as hell, dripping all over the deck. Caroline screamed bloody murder and Ashley looked like she was going to faint, but Kate just calmly went for the first aid kit ..."
Caroline sighed as her father's story took off. Another tale about Kate. She was definitely not in the mood to sing praises to her sister. Not that she could blame Kate for being her father's favorite. And it was impossible to hate Kate. She was too damn nice. And Kate had been more of a mother than a big sister. to her. She'd taken care of them all, even when they didn't want her to.
"Caroline, can I get you something?" Will asked as she passed by the corner of the bar.
She was about to answer when her cell phone rang.