The Delaney Woman by Jeanette Baker Page A

filled with curious people was too much.
    It was Heather who saw her first. “Kellie, look at the cake Gran made. She said I can ice it as soon as it cools.”
    Kellie walked into the room, leaned over the cake and sniffed appreciatively. “It’s lovely and it will be even more lovely when it’s iced.” She touched the little girl’s bright hair.
    Heather skipped across the floor. She stopped at the door. “I’m going to play with Sam and Willie. Call me when the cake’s cool.”
    Susan wiped her hands on a towel. “I’ll call you the very minute it’s ready.” She smiled. “Did you need something, Kellie?”
    â€œI wondered if you could use some help. It’s a big crowd you’re feeding.”
    The woman’s eyes were bright and probing. “I’m accustomed to it but I imagine it’s hard on you to meet them like this, all at once.”
    â€œA bit.”
    Susan opened her mouth to speak, changed her mind and then changed it again. “I invited them all tonight because I wanted you to be done with it, to recognize everyone if you see them on the street. They’re naturally curious and protective of Tom. Tonight will be awkward for you but then it will be over. Do you understand what I’m saying, Kellie?”
    These people were impossible. She smiled politely. “Thank you for caring, but you’ve misunderstood. Tom and I are acquaintances,” she reminded the woman. “That’s all. There’s nothing more between us.”
    â€œPerhaps that’s all there is for you, but I can tell you he hasn’t asked me to cook a meal for a woman since he married Claire. What do you think that means?”
    Kellie felt as if her skin was peeled back and every nerve exposed. Be calm , she told herself. Honesty is always best. Be honest whenever you can . “I know that for some reason you think Tom needs a wife. Perhaps he does, but it won’t be me. I grew up in a community like Banburren and it simply isn’t going to happen. I can’t live here. I don’t belong. Do you see that?”
    Susan was silent for a long time. Finally she spoke. “You’re a far better woman than the one who left him seven years ago. I can see it and apparently Tom does as well, to his credit.” She smiled brilliantly. “Heather tells me you cook. How are you at peeling praties?”
    Dinner was surprisingly pleasant. Kellie was seated between Maggie, who’d obviously called a truce, and the warm and lovely Kate. Eileen, another sister completely caught up in her infant son, sat across the table beside her husband, a large man who had the thick hands of a farmer. Mary Catherine, the youngest of the Whelans and the first to graduate from university, kept the entire family entertained with tales of her new job as a chemist in nearby Ballybofey. Tom was at the other end of the table near his mother and the children. Somewhere between the soup and the lamb, Kellie began to enjoy herself. The conversation was lively and the people far more decent and warmhearted than she’d expected under the circumstances.
    â€œTom tells us you’ve a degree in literature,” said Kate after the plates were cleared away and the two of them had moved back to the sitting room. “Perhaps, if you’ll be staying awhile, you’d be interested in helping out at the library while you’re here. The librarian is a friend of mine and I’ve heard they need someone. The position doesn’t pay well but it’s something.”
    Kellie looked across the table at Tom. He must have told them he was working her too hard. “It sounds lovely. Shall I call your friend?”
    â€œI’ll tell her I’ve spoken with you. That way she’ll expect you.”
    â€œThank you, Kate.” Kellie was humbled and ashamed. She hadn’t expected such complete acceptance so soon. These people were