CHAPTER 91: THE FAMILY HEIRLOOM
Five years later I was cleaning out the attic when I found it.
The box was tucked behind old Christmas decorations and photo albums, covered in dust thick enough to write my name in. I almost threw it out with the other junk until I saw my mother's handwriting on the side.
"For Kate, when she's ready."
My hands shook as I opened it. Inside was a locket I'd seen my mother wear a thousand times but thought was buried with her. Gold and delicate, with tiny flowers etched into the surface.
I opened it carefully. On one side was a photo of my parents on their wedding day, young and impossibly happy. On the other side was a photo of me as a baby, no more than a few months old.
A note fell out when I lifted the locket.
"My darling Kate, if you're reading this then I'm gone and you've survived everything we feared might happen. This locket belonged to your grandmother and her mother before that. Four generations of Jones women who loved fiercely and fought for what mattered. You're the fifth. Wear it and remember that you come from strength. All my love always, Mom."
I didn't realize I was crying until tears hit the paper, smudging the ink.
"Mommy?"
I looked up to see Evelyn standing in the attic doorway. Five years old now with my eyes and William's stubborn chin. Behind her was her little brother James who'd just turned three, clutching his stuffed dinosaur.
"Are you sad?" Evelyn climbed into my lap without asking. "Why are you crying?"
"I found something that belonged to Grandma Jones." I showed her the locket. "See? That's her and Grandpa."
"They look happy." She touched the photo gently. "Like you and Daddy."
"Yeah baby. Just like us." I hugged her close, breathing in her strawberry shampoo smell. "Go find Daddy and tell him I need help carrying boxes down. Can you do that?"
"Come on Jamie." She grabbed her brother's hand. "Daddy's in the office being boring."
They thundered downstairs, their voices echoing through the house we'd bought two years ago. Bigger than the mansion, closer to the city, with a yard where kids could actually play.
I sat in the attic holding that locket and finally felt something settle in my chest. Peace maybe. Or just the knowledge that my parents would be proud of who I'd become.
"Kate?" William's voice came up the stairs. "The kids said you were crying?"
"Happy crying." I showed him the locket. "Look what I found."
He sat beside me and studied the photos. "Your mom was beautiful."
"She was." I fastened the locket around my neck. "I'd forgotten this existed. Thought it was gone forever."
"Nothing's really gone." He kissed my temple. "It just waits for the right moment to come back."
Evelyn appeared again. "Daddy, can we have pizza for dinner?"
"We had pizza yesterday." William reminded her.
"But I want it again." She put her hands on her hips exactly like I did. "Please?"
"Ask your mother. She's the boss."
"I thought you were the boss." I raised an eyebrow.
"That's what I let you think." He grinned. "Makes you feel important."
I shoved him and he laughed, grabbing Evelyn and James who'd followed their sister up. "Pizza it is. But you two have to help set the table."
"Deal!" They ran back downstairs.
"They're getting big." I said it like it was news even though I saw them every day.
"They are." William helped me stand. "Soon they'll be teenagers and hate us."
"Can't wait." I laughed. "At least we'll have each other to complain to."
"About that." He stopped me at the top of the stairs. "I have something for you. A surprise."
"Another island?" I teased. "Because one is honestly enough."
"Not an island." He looked nervous suddenly. "Close your eyes."
"William—"
"Please?"
I closed them. Heard him moving around, something clicking, his breathing close to my face.
"Okay. Open."
He was on one knee holding a ring box.
"What are you doing?" My heart started racing. "We're already married."
"I know." He opened the box revealing a simple gold band with a single diamond. "But I never actually proposed. Not for real. The first time was a contract, the second time was a vow renewal. I want to do this right Kate. Choose you properly."
"William, we've been married for six years. We have two kids."
"I know all that." He smiled. "But somewhere between contract marriages and near death experiences and building a life together, I forgot to ask you the most important question."
Tears were already falling. "You're insane."
"About you, yes." He took my hand. "Kate Jones Dray, will you marry me? Again. For the third time. But this time because I'm so completely in love with you that I want to promise it properly."
"You already promised at the vow renewal."
"That was for our anniversary. This is just for us." He squeezed my hand. "So what do you say? Want to spend the rest of your life with someone who drives you crazy?"
"I already am spending my life with you." I pulled him up and kissed him. "But yes. I'll marry you again. For the third time. Even though you're ridiculous."
He slid the ring onto my finger next to my wedding band. "Perfect fit."
"Did you measure my finger while I was sleeping?"
"Maybe." He grinned. "I've been planning this for months."
"Mommy! Daddy!" Evelyn yelled from downstairs. "The pizza place wants to know if we want extra cheese!"
"Yes!" We both shouted back.
"This is our life now." I touched the locket at my throat. "Pizza negotiations and surprise proposals."
"Better than corporate warfare and assassination attempts." William wrapped his arms around me. "Though I do miss the excitement sometimes."
"Liar." I leaned into him. "You love this."
"I really do."
---
Two weeks later I sat in my office at Jones-Dray Corp, the merged company that was somehow more successful than either had been separately. Quarterly reports showed record profits, ethical practices we'd implemented were being copied by competitors, and the charity foundation I'd started in my parents' name had just funded its fiftieth scholarship.
"Mrs Dray?" My assistant poked her head in. "Your 3 o'clock is here."
"Send them in." I closed my laptop.
A young woman walked in, maybe twenty-two, nervous and trying to hide it. "Mrs Dray, I'm Sarah Chen. I'm one of the recipients of the Jones Foundation scholarship."
"Sarah, please sit." I gestured to the chair across from me. "How's school going?"
"Really well actually." Her face lit up. "I'm graduating this year with a degree in engineering. And I wanted to thank you personally because without that scholarship I never could have afforded it."
"That's what it's for." I smiled. "My parents believed education shouldn't be limited by money. I'm just continuing their vision."
We talked for twenty minutes about her plans, her dreams, how the foundation had changed her trajectory. By the time she left I was crying again.
"You're emotional today." Tina walked in without knocking, a habit she'd never broken. "Good meeting?"
"The best kind." I wiped my eyes. "She's going to change the world Tina. And my parents helped make that possible."
"You helped make that possible." Tina sat down. "The foundation was your idea."
"Built on their dream." I touched the locket I now wore every day. "I'm just the follow through."
"Speaking of follow through." She pulled out her phone. "Liam and I finally set a date. June fifteenth. And before you ask, yes you're maid of honor."
"Obviously." I hugged her. "About time you two made it official."
"Says the woman who's been married three times to the same man." She laughed. "When's the next wedding anyway?"
"We haven't decided. Maybe when the kids are old enough to appreciate it."
"Or old enough to be embarrassed by it." Tina stood up. "I have to run but lunch next week?"
"It's a date."
After she left I sat in the quiet office, looking at photos of Evelyn and James on my desk, at the view of Greensville outside my window, at everything I'd built from tragedy and contracts and pure stubborn will.
My phone buzzed with a text from William: "Taking the rest of the day off. Meet me at home?"
I didn't hesitate. Grabbed my bag and left, ignoring three meeting requests and a board call.
When I got home, William had set up a picnic in our backyard. Evelyn and James were already eating sandwiches on a blanket, giggling about something.
"What's all this?" I kicked off my heels and sat down.
"Family time." William handed me a plate. "No work, no phones, no responsibilities. Just us."
"I like it." I bit into a sandwich. "We should do this more often."
"That's the plan." He pulled me close. "I'm cutting back my hours at the office. Liam can handle more of the day to day operations."
"Really?" I studied his face. "You're sure?"
"I'm sure." He kissed me. "I spent too many years building companies and not enough building a life. I want to be here Kate. For you, for the kids, for whatever comes next."
"About that." I set down my sandwich, my heart racing. "There's something I need to tell you."
His expression shifted to concern. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong." I took his hand and placed it on my stomach. "But in about seven months we're going to need a bigger picnic blanket."
He froze. "Kate, are you saying—"
"I'm pregnant." The words came out with a huge smile. "Surprise."
"Oh my God." He pulled me into his arms, careful but tight. "When did you find out?"
"This morning. I was waiting for the right moment to tell you."
"This is perfect." He was crying now. "You're perfect. We're having another baby."
"Mommy's pregnant?" Evelyn looked up from her sandwich. "Does that mean I get another brother?"
"Or sister." I laughed. "We don't know yet."
"I want a sister." She decided immediately. "Jamie's okay but boys are loud."
"You're loud." James threw a grape at her.
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
William and I watched them argue, our hands intertwined, a new life growing between us.
"This is everything." I whispered. "Everything I thought I'd lost when my parents died. Family, love, purpose."
"And it's just the beginning." William kissed me softly. "We've got decades of this ahead of us."
"Good." I settled against him, my kids bickering beside us, my parents' locket warm against my chest. "I wouldn't want it any other way."