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After her mother’s death, he’d retreated into a shell, cutting off everyone. Including his twelve-year-old daughter, who’d desperately needed to know someone still loved her.
Sabrina had tried to fill the void left in the house. She cooked, cleaned, shopped for groceries and paid the bills. Her father never seemed to notice. After a while, Sabrina had stopped caring if he appreciated her or not.
Instead, she’d found acceptance by excelling at school. She participated in every sport, organization and club her small high school offered. Most people saw her as an overachiever. Only Tony had understood.
Dad pulled up in front of the large brick building that housed the nursing home and parked without even glancing at her. She reached out to touch his arm. “I’m not trying to be stubborn, Dad. I want to contribute my fair share.”
She was proud of the fact that she’d been able to support herself ever since Aunt Patty moved to a retirement community in Florida. She refused to be a burden to her dad’s limited finances.
She returned just a few minutes later. Dad shifted into Drive and pulled out of the parking lot before saying, “They aren’t hiring right now.”
Sabrina stared at him. “How did you know that?”
He shrugged. “I called last week.”
He’d called on her behalf?
“Never could figure out why you always worked in nursing homes.”
“The only thing I have going for me is my CNA certificate. I don’t understand. Nursing homes are always hiring.” Now what was she going to do?
“They don’t pay much anymore, anyway. Ever since the high schools started letting kids earn college credits and certifications through them, the market is flooded. CNAs are a dime a dozen around here.” He turned onto the main road that would lead them back to Salt Creek.
“How do you know so much about it?”
His eyes never left the road. “I’ve been watching for CNA jobs ever since Patty moved to Florida.”
Sabrina’s hand came up to her throat. The same time he’d started rebuilding the addition to the house. She swallowed hard. “Thanks, Dad.”
“Something’ll come up. Don’t worry.”
The ride back to Salt Creek was made in relative silence. Only the drone of country music blaring from the radio filled the void. The highway ahead split and Dad took the left lane, bypassing the little town of Salt Creek. A few minutes later, he turned off onto a farm-to-market road before taking the long stretch of dirt laneway that led to the farm.
After crossing a cattle guard, the truck topped a hill and it felt as if Sabrina’s heart broke into song. Waving grassland stretched for miles. The red flagstone farmhouse stood out against the blue Texas sky, a testament to old-fashioned ingenuity. It was a sight she’d never get tired of. Funny how she didn’t know how much she missed it until she came back.
Taking refuge in Houston with her dad’s sister, she hadn’t planned to stay gone long. Just long enough to figure out how to juggle college and a newborn. Then her uncle Troy had suffered a stroke. Aunt Patty had had her hands full working enough hours to keep her insurance and find a home health aide to care for her beloved husband.
The Certified Nursing Assistant certificate Sabrina earned in high school had been intended to give her an advantage over other nursing program applicants. Luckily, it also gave her the qualifications required by Aunt Patty’s insurance company—and a convenient excuse to stay away from Salt Creek.
Aunt Patty was the only one who knew who Levi’s real father was. When Sabrina’s letters to Tony were returned unopened, it was Patty’s idea to create a fictional relationship with her GI friend to place the blame on. At the time, Sabrina had been too distraught and heartbroken to care. After a couple of years, the lie became easier and easier to live with.
Did anyone else suspect the truth? Her father had run Tony off the farm enough times to know there was more going on than homework. Certainly her friends and half the town knew about the secret relationship that wasn’t much of a secret. Would anyone even care enough ten years later to put the pieces together?
The truck jolted to a stop as her father pulled up in front of the house. Before Sabrina could unfasten her seat belt, Levi barreled out of the cab and grabbed two plastic grocery bags.
She smiled. “Wow. I didn’t even have to ask. You’re good for him.”
Dad reached over the bed of the truck and scooped up several bags himself. “I saw Antonio pulling out when I dropped you off. Did you run into Tony in H-E-B?”
“I did. He stopped and said hi.” She kept her voice light.
He looked her straight in the eye. “Stay away from him.”
CHAPTER THREE (#ubd1f6704-cb28-576d-96db-ab50cfcebb0e)
TONY’S AFTERNOON HAD been filled with more doctor appointments and medical tests. All the way back to Salt Creek, his knuckles had been white from gripping the steering wheel. The tightness in his chest had nothing to do with his injury and everything to do with the woman who’d walked away from him in the grocery store that morning. He stretched his fingers, but it did little to relieve the tension, or the ache in his jaw from gritting his teeth.
Why was it that the pending investigation at his department didn’t bother him nearly as much as seeing Sabrina? As a police officer, he was accustomed to noticing details others missed. Sabrina’s appearance screamed at him. Her faded jeans, thin from so many washes. Shoes with soles worn down to nothing. She even carried herself differently. Shoulders slumped, as if she had given up on the world. He’d never wanted to see her like that. Dejected. Sad.
When Tony pulled up to his grandparents’ house, he saw Papa sitting in an old rocking chair on the porch, holding a chunk of wood.
Tony gingerly climbed the weather-beaten steps.
“Hello, mijo.” The old man didn’t look up. He opened his pocketknife and began to whittle. “How was your visit with your friend?”
“Fine.” Sitting next to his grandfather’s chair, he let his legs dangle over the edge of the porch. Tony watched with fascination as wood shavings began to fall to the ground. “I wish I’d learned to do that when I was a boy.”
“You can still learn.” Pausing from his work, the older man reached into a bucket next to him and brought out a scrap piece of wood. “Here. Whittling is good for clearing your mind.” He looked Tony over with his sharp eyes. “You may need a bigger piece. You saw her today, didn’t you?”
“Am I that obvious?”
Neither had to say her name. Papa leaned back in the chair, his hands a blur as he carved.
“Yes.” Tony’s hands twisted the wood around and around, wondering what he was supposed to see in it.
“Hmph.”
“She isn’t doing well. What if it’s my fault?”
“We all make our own choices in life. Fault lies within ourselves.”
“Sometimes choices are made for you.” By leaving, what choices had he forced her to make?
Ten years ago Sabrina had had a bright future and he’d had nothing to offer: no job, no home, no money, no hope. When he got a job offer working for a construction company in Louisiana, it was for more money than he’d ever made in his life. But she’d wanted to put college on hold and go with him.
So he made the decision for both of them and broken up with her.
“She hates me.”
“Maybe.” Papa paused from his whittling. “Emotions are like that block of wood. You can look at, examine it, think about it. But until you cut into it, it can never reach its potential. You might cut yourself. You might bleed. But until you cut, you can never shape it into what it could be.” Standing up, he handed his wood to Tony and walked into the house.
Tony stared at a perfectly carved bear.
After a few stabs at his own wood with his pocketknife, he gave up.
Sabrina deserved to know the truth. But which truth? That he’d never gotten over her? That not a day went by that he didn’t wish he could take back what he’d said to her?
Sabrina might hate him even more when she heard the truth, but until he could sit down and explain the real reason he’d left, he’d never be able to move on.
* * *
SABRINA’S GUT TWISTED as she hung up the phone. How naive of her to think that moving here would give Levi a chance to start over.
“What was that about?” Dad took his hat off the deer antlers mounted on the wall.
“Nancy Beal.”
He turned from the door to face her. “The principal? What did she want?”
“To let me know that the school had received Levi’s records and they have some concerns about him attending a regular class.” Tears welled in her eyes.
Dad hung his hat back on the wall. “What else is there besides a regular class? He doesn’t need special education.”
“She thinks I should consider the alternative school.” Her breath caught in her chest. “How am I going to tell my son that he’s not wanted here, either?”
Dad pulled her in for a hug. “They can’t do that. We’ll go to the school board if we have to.”
Levi was already convinced the world was against him. She only hoped this didn’t push him over the edge.
“Where is he, anyway? I haven’t seen him since he fed the pigs this morning.”
“He went fishing at the pond.” Sabrina glanced at the clock on the wall. “I’m going to town to talk to Mrs. Beal in person. Maybe I can change her mind.”
“Want me to come with you?”
Her father stood poised for battle. He wasn’t known to have a quick temper, but once he was riled...
“Thanks, Dad, but this is something I should do on my own. Can you keep an eye on Levi? I don’t want him to know what’s going on. Not yet.”
He nodded. “I think I’ll grab my pole and join him at the pond.” Whistling, her dad put his hat on and strolled out the door.
She watched him heading to the barn. When was the last time she’d heard him whistling? Probably before her mother died. Was he finally getting over his grief, or were she and Levi bringing him out of his shell? She’d moved home because it was what her son needed. She’d never expected her dad might have needed it, too.
* * *
THE MEETING TOOK less than an hour and although Sabrina couldn’t claim victory yet, there was a glimmer of hope. All she had to do was enroll Levi in some counseling sessions and have the therapists evaluate him for anger issues.
Simple. Ha. Try explaining that to Levi. Slamming the door of her old Toyota Camry, she paused at the gate to the front yard. She could hear the faint drone of another vehicle approaching. Her heart caught in her throat. Could it be Tony? He’d never been good at taking no for an answer.
When a shiny, red Lexus came into view, she relaxed. She didn’t know what kind of vehicle Tony drove, but the fancy sports car didn’t suit him at all. She waited by the gate for the car to come to a stop behind her own.
A tall, slender woman got out and straightened her pencil tight skirt. “Hi, Sabrina.”
Sabrina took in the professionally dressed woman. She was older than Sabrina, but not by much. The woman waited, tapping her toes in three inch heels. “Marissa? Marissa Porter?”
Marissa was a couple of years older than Sabrina, but they’d become friends in high school, only to lose track of each other after Marissa went away to college.
“I knew you couldn’t forget me,” Marissa said. Reaching over the gate, she enveloped Sabrina in a giant hug.
“What are you doing here? How are your parents?” Sabrina hadn’t attempted to contact any of her childhood friends since moving home.
“They’re good. Dad retired and drives Mom crazy.” She wiggled her left hand in front of Sabrina, showing off the shiny diamond. “I’m Marissa Butler now. My husband, Jarrod, is a county deputy. We moved back a few years ago. I know, I swore I was never moving back to a small town...but here I am!” The slamming of her car door interrupted them.
Sabrina looked behind her to see a young boy about Levi’s age.
Marissa beckoned the boy. “Come on, Bradley, I want you to meet a friend of mine from high school.” The boy shuffled his way around the car. “Sabrina, this is my son, Bradley.”
“Pleased to meet you.” The boy reached out to shake her hand.
“Likewise, I’m sure.” Amusement tugged at her lips. She glanced at Marissa.
“Don’t let his manners fool you,” Marissa whispered, reading her thoughts. “Wait till he gets to know you. He really lets loose.”
“Mom,” the boy protested.
Levi ran around the back corner of the house. “Mom, where does Grandpa keep his trowel? We need to dig up more worms.” He stopped short when he saw their visitors. “Oh. Hi.”
“Levi, this is Mrs. Butler and her son, Bradley. This is my son, Levi.”
Marissa’s brow crinkled and she gazed from Levi to Sabrina and back.
Bradley didn’t seem to notice his mother’s silence. “Are you digging worms for fishing?”
Levi grinned. “Yeah. Wanna help? I have an extra pole you can use.”
Bradley looked at his mother. “Please?”
Marissa nodded. “Only if it’s okay with his mom.”
“The trowel’s hanging on the wall of the shed, to the right of the door,” Sabrina said.
“Thanks, Mom.” Levi took off like a shot with Bradley on his heels.
Shaking her head, she opened the gate. “It looks like the boys didn’t need any introductions. Would you like to come in and have a glass of tea?”
“I would love that.” Marissa’s high heels clicked across the stone sidewalk as she followed Sabrina inside. “How old is your son?”
Sabrina lifted her chin. There was no sense in lying. “He’s nine.”
She motioned for Marissa to sit at the kitchen table as she poured the tea. “What are you doing here? Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to see you again, but how did you know I was here?”
Marissa grinned. “Your dad has been telling everyone at the café for weeks that you were moving back. He’s your biggest fan. How long have you been home?”
Ah. The Eagle’s Nest Café. Every morning farmers and ranchers met at the café to drink coffee and solve the problems of the world. “About two weeks.”
“Are you still a CNA? Do you have a job yet?”
“How did you know I was a CNA?”
