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As their eyes held that twinge returned, but she ruthlessly quashed it. Single mom. Three kids. As if she had any space for even the faintest hint of flirtation.
“Just make sure you keep that dog away from my kids, okay?” she said, disliking the harsh tone that self-preservation had put into her voice.
Luke held her gaze, as if surprised at her anger. Well, he could stay surprised. She didn’t need to explain anything more to him.
But in spite of herself, she watched as he made his way down the walk, his six-foot-something frame bent over the dog to control him.
“Oh, my. Look at the mess,” Tilly said as they stepped back in the house. “This has got to be cleaned up immediately. And if you want to keep those flowers outside in good shape, they’ll need to be dealt with, as well.”
Janie would have preferred to deal with the flowers and ignore the mess in the house.
But her mother was already picking up the coatrack and clucking about the relatively minor mess.
“Cooper was hilarious.” Todd plopped onto the couch, a grin splitting his face.
“When I came upstairs, he was on my bed.” Suzie was still chuckling as she pushed a tossed pillow aside and sat on the floor.
“Was he jumping?” Autumn asked.
“No. Just standing there, his head tipped to one side, looking like he was laughing.” Suzie’s smile shone like sunshine on a cloudy day.
“That man had to drag him away,” Todd said. “I think the dog wants to play with us.”
“You should have seen him in the kitchen after he’d been drinking out of the toilet,” Suzie continued. “He came running off the carpet and couldn’t stop. He slid right into the cupboard, feet up in the air. It looked so…so…” Suzie couldn’t continue, she was laughing so hard.
Janie’s heart contracted at the sound of her children’s laughter, at their smiles and sparkling eyes. How long had it been since they’d been this happy?
Since before Owen left, that’s when. In spite of his many failings as a husband, he could, at times, have fun with the kids. Make them laugh. Do goofy things with them.
Things Janie never had time to do.
“But then I had to bring him downstairs.” Suzie glanced at Janie, and she saw her daughter’s mirth subside. As if it was her fault the fun had ended.
“What did the dog do on the bed?” Janie asked, trying to maintain the moment.
“Nothing. He didn’t do anything.”
Her voice had taken on a defensive tone that usually set Janie’s teeth on edge, but in this case, it cut her like a knife. Suzie had misunderstood Janie’s question.
Suzie held out her hand to Autumn. “Let’s go play upstairs.”
Janie felt a palpable cooling of the atmosphere as Autumn and Todd walked with their sister up the stairs.
Messed up again, she thought.
And for a moment the loneliness of parenthood settled on her like a musty old cloak. Always the boss. Always the cop, judge and jury. Always the one to end the fun.
“I think I’ll be going,” her mother said, brushing her hands on a handkerchief. “You should check upstairs. I’m sure there’s going to be dog hair everywhere.” Tilly shuddered.
“Thanks for coming on such short notice.”
“That’s what mothers do when babysitters leave you hanging.” Tilly’s amber eyes took stock of her daughter. “You’re sure you’re okay?”
“Mother, you’re making more of this than necessary.”
“I’m a little worried about that dog being next door.”
“The town has a leash law. If Luke doesn’t keep him tied up, he’ll have the cops to reckon with.”
“Well, he better keep it under control. The fence between the two yards isn’t that strong. He could easily cross it. And then who knows what will happen?”
Janie had her worries as well about the fence and the dog, but if her concerns were put in order, these would be at the bottom of page four.
For now, she had a family to keep going, a business to keep above water, a loan to renegotiate, a hot water tank that needed replacing, gutters that needed cleaning, a roof that needed to be reshingled, a wall that needed repairing…
And stop. Focus on the now.
“…and your father is going to be gone most of this month on some business, so if you need anything, I’ll be glad to help,” Tilly said.
“Sure. Thanks, Mom. I appreciate the help.”
Tilly’s smile softened. “I want you to know I’m praying for you. I know it’s been a year and a half since Owen died, but I’m sure you still have your difficult moments.”
And again Janie kept her reply vague. Her mother still didn’t understand that Janie hadn’t missed Owen since he walked out on her and the kids three years earlier.
Owen around had proved to be more dangerous than Owen gone. Owen gone didn’t drain her bank account. Owen gone didn’t make her feel as if she and the children were a huge impediment to his happiness. Owen gone was a relief, and his death had morphed her from abandoned woman to widow, an infinitely more respectable situation.
“I’m sure there are times you wish you had someone, though,” Tilly continued, laying her hand on Janie’s arm. “I keep praying that the Lord will bring someone into your life. Someone who can be a father to your children and a support to you.”
And how was she supposed to answer that? The last thing Janie needed or wanted right now was a man in her life. A man would be one more obligation she didn’t have time for. A man would mean opening her life, once again, to the possibility of brokenness and rejection.
No thanks. Her life was chaotic, but as long as she kept a rein on her various obligations and duties, she was okay. One tiny change would disrupt the precarious hold she had on her life right now. Her children were her first priority, and there was no way she was going to push them aside for a man.
She gave her mother a smile to put her off the scent. “I’m so thankful for your and Dad’s support.”
“You know your father would give you more…”
“No, Mom, really. We’re fine.”
“Just a suggestion.” Tilly pecked her on the cheek. “Now go and take care of those lovely children of yours.”
And with that, Tilly left.
Janie closed the door behind her mother and then leaned against it, sighing. What on earth had gotten her mother going on that particular tack?
Surely not the man who had come barreling into her life just a few moments ago.
Her thoughts slipped back to the man who had stood in her house. The man who had given her a crooked smile that seemed to hint at interest.
Now’s a good time to stop.
Then, as she pushed herself away, she caught the whiff of an unfamiliar scent that created the faintest sense of yearning.
Aftershave.
Chapter Two
“So this weekend’s the only time we’ll have to work on Sunday?” Bert heaved the sheet of drywall into the metal bin behind the fence of the yard.
“We need to get caught up.”
Luke had to get this place done in three weeks. His partner, Gary, had arranged for an open house and had promised that it was going to be a big splash.
No pressure. No pressure at all.
“My missus wasn’t too happy until I told her I was getting double time.” Bert tugged on his gloves as he grinned. “Couldn’t get me out of the house fast enough after that.”
They walked back to the yard, and as Luke bent over to pick up the second chunk of drywall, he heard a voice.
“Where’s your dog?”
Sounded like Todd, the kid from next door.
Luke looked around for the owner of the voice he barely heard above the din of the skill saw.
Bert poked Luke and pointed to the fence.
“Do you have him tied up?” Todd called out again.
Then Luke saw the hole where one of the vertical boards on his side had been broken off halfway up. The boy was kneeling, looking through the hole.
“I’ll be back,” he said to Bert, pointing to the rotting pieces of plywood lying on the overgrown grass. “Pile all of this up in that garbage bin and throw those bikes in there, too.”
Then he walked over to the fence and crouched down, to get on eye level with Todd. All he could see of the boy was one hazel eye, a freckled nose and a space where two top teeth used to be. “I have him in my holiday trailer,” Luke replied grinning at the boy.
“Doesn’t he like to run around?” Todd asked.
“Oh, yes. When I’m finished cleaning up this yard, it will be safe for him to run around in.”
“My mommy always said this fence was no good. We had to stay away from it when we had our other neighbors. They were bad.”
From the condition of the house and the yard, Luke wasn’t surprised at Todd’s assessment. “What was the baddest thing about them?” he asked, curious as to what constituted bad in Todd’s books.
“They drank beer. I don’t think they were friends of Jesus,” he said in a solemn voice.
Friends of Jesus. The quaint phrase made Luke smile. “So are you a friend of Jesus?”
Todd nodded, then smiled. “Are you?”
The question made a wave in the pool of guilt Luke had been mired in since his foster father’s death. When the God of all creation, the God who was supposedly so benevolent and loving took Al, the only person who had been true family to Luke, he stopped going to church. He couldn’t stand hearing the happy, joy, joy songs mocking his sadness. There didn’t seem to be a place for pain and loss in church.
And today was Sunday, as the men working behind him had told him a number of times. As if he didn’t know. He was pretty sure very few of them were friends of Jesus either. Sunday was for fishing, in their eyes.
“I think Jesus is a good person,” he said instead, reluctant to drag this innocent young boy into his own particular battle with God.
“Can your dog come over to play with us again?” Todd asked, his question coming from left field.
Luke’s knees were getting sore so he stood up and looked over the fence down to the boy below him, taking note of the flowerpots on the deck and the tidy yard. Not the best place for an overly playful lab. “I think it might be better if Cooper stayed in my yard.”
“But I like to play with your dog.” Todd’s grin faded away as he stood up.
Luke was pretty sure Janie wouldn’t let Todd come over to his yard, so he didn’t make that offer.
“Hey, Todd, we have to get ready for church.” Suzie, the oldest girl, came out onto the porch. Her clothing was more sedate for the occasion. “Mom says…” Her voice eased off when she saw Luke. With a grin, she came running over. “Is your dog with you?” she asked, grabbing the fence and leaning over it.
“Careful,” Luke said. “I don’t know how good this fence is.”
“Not good at all, according to my mom.” Suzie gave the boards a shake, and the whole fence listed farther.
“Mom said she was going to fix it,” Todd said.
“Except she can’t afford to,” Suzie added.
Todd frowned. “Don’t let Mom hear you say that. She’ll get mad.”
Then Suzie heaved a theatrical sigh. “Like she always does.” But Suzie let go of the fence. “Where’s Cooper?”
“Until I get this fence fixed, he has to stay in the trailer,” Luke said.
“He can play in our yard,” Suzie offered, a hopeful note in her voice.
Then the porch door opened again, and Janie appeared on the deck.
“Suzie. Todd. Come back to the house,” she called out, her voice sharp as she carefully made her way down the wooden stairs of her porch.
Janie wore a narrow brown skirt and shirt, and her hair fell in soft waves on her shoulders. All dressed up for church, Luke figured, the faint niggle of guilt returning.
Her eyes flicked from Luke to Todd to Suzie as she scurried over to her children, as if to protect them from the bad, dangerous stranger.
“What are you two doing?”
Todd looked down as he drew away from the fence. “I was just trying to see Luke’s dog,” he mumbled, toeing the grass with his shoe. “I’m sorry, Mom.”
Janie’s stroked her son’s hair. “That’s okay, honey.”
“We didn’t do anything wrong,” Suzie complained, her voice edging toward anger.
Janie’s mouth compressed into a thin line, then she forced a smile as she glanced at Suzie. “Of course not. But we do need to go to church.”
