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She introduced him to each child sitting around the table. One little boy seemed especially attached to Granny. He clung to her leg as she handed out papers.
“And this is Dylan. He’s my helper today.”
“I got to sign her cast,” Dylan told him proudly.
“Oh, let me see.” Bill checked out his scribbled name in purple marker. “Nice job.”
Granny ruffled the boy’s hair. “Dylan, why don’t you sit down and work the puzzle with the rest of the children.”
“Okay, Granny Bea.” He slid into a small wooden chair and began to connect the dots on the page. His tongue hung out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrated.
Granny beamed at Bill. “This is what I look forward to three days a week.”
Lindsay approached. “Granny Bea, now that the kids are busy, could you go ahead and start the bingo game for our adults?”
“Sure thing. Be back in a jiffy.” She hurried to the other side of the room, full of more energy than ever before.
“How long do the little ones stay?” he asked Lindsay.
“We feed them lunch, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches donated from our church right now. But your grandmother has applied for a federal grant for funding for a fuller meal.”
“She mentioned that. When do the older kids get here?”
“After school, around three o’clock. We feed them a snack, help with homework, then play educational games.”
“And the center is open three days a week?”
She reached over to pick up a crayon Dylan had dropped, then patted him on the back. “So far. We hope to move to five days a week in the next year or so. It was a small program we started as a ministry at the church one day a week, but we’re working with the county to get it fully funded. They’re already providing the building.”
“Impressive.”
“Your granny has had a lot to do with the success of the program. We really need her.” She stared at him as if in challenge. She appeared very determined.
So was he. “I understand.”
Granny walked up. “So, Bill, what do you think of our little community center?”
“It’s amazing what you’ve all done. Kudos to both of you.”
“Bea?” Mr. Kennedy tapped her on the shoulder.
She huffed as if irritated. “Yes?”
“Would you go out to dinner with me this evening?”
Granny slapped a hand to her chest. “Why, Mr. Kennedy, you can’t fraternize with the staff.”
“I didn’t ask you to fraternize. I only asked you to dinner.”
Obviously flustered, she sputtered, “I can’t do anything tonight. I have company.”
“Well, that’s the problem. I hear Bill may be moving you up to Boston, and I can’t bear to see you go.” He tugged on his bow tie, which left it slightly crooked.
Bill arched his brows at Lindsay. Seemed she’d been talking to Granny’s…not-quite-boyfriend.
“That’s none of your concern, sir.” Granny marched away and sat on a small chair at the table with the children.
A dejected Mr. Kennedy left the center.
“Nice try, Lindsay.”
“What do you mean?”
“If moving Granny to Boston is best for her, then that’s what I need to do. You can’t try to sway my decision by manipulating a poor old man who has a crush on her.”
She made no comment, but her face reddened. With her creamy, clear complexion, even the slightest blush had always sent streaks of red along her cheeks and down her neck. If the embarrassment or nervousness continued, she’d end up with hives on her neck and chest.
Never mind her scheming. He had work to do. “I’m going back to Granny’s to make some calls. You know, if Granny’s well enough to work, then she won’t need you helping her as much while I’m here. Why don’t you take tomorrow off?”
“I don’t mind coming—we have our routine, you know.”
“Enjoy a paid day off. Granny and I could use some time together.”
She frowned. “But she doesn’t pay me for weekends. I like to visit.”
That made it a little more difficult to keep her away. And truly, it wasn’t as if he didn’t want her around. He just didn’t want her meddling. “No, I insist you take a break from the extra responsibility. Rest. Get caught up at home.”
“Okay. I can take a hint.”
His own face burned, probably as red as hers. “What time this afternoon should I come back to pick up Granny?”
“I can bring her home when we leave at six.”
“She works the whole day?”
“It’s only three days a week. And she gets a break between one and three o’clock.”
“Does she go home to rest?”
“No, she usually hangs out here with me.”
“Helping you work?”
“You know, you should probably talk to your grandmother about her work schedule. I need to get back to the kids.” She walked away in a huff.
Of course, he had been somewhat accusatory. But he needed to make sure Lindsay wasn’t overworking Granny.
Past experience told him Lindsay wouldn’t do that. But he couldn’t let ancient memories sway decisions he needed to make in the present.
Chapter Three
The next morning, Lindsay reflected on how she had nearly messed up by pushing Mr. Kennedy on Granny Bea. The poor man hadn’t felt comfortable asking Bea out yet, so Lindsay had pretty much begged him to. Now Bill was on to them. She’d have to be more subtle.
So, she would do what Bill had insisted she do. She would stay away. Only for today, though.
She cleaned an already clean house. Washed two small loads of laundry. Ate frozen waffles heated in the toaster. Sipped a cup of coffee. Read the newspaper and clipped coupons. Watered the front-porch flowerpots full of begonias and impatiens. Swept dirt off the sidewalk.
And the clock on the mantel said ten o’clock.
A.m.
How would she spend a whole day without visiting Granny Bea or without taking care of Hunter and Chase? There weren’t any activities at church that day. Her dad was working in his yard.
Maybe she could visit Donna Rae. See if she could help her around the house for a while. She must have a ton of work to do with that houseful of kids.
She pulled a pound cake out of the freezer to take to them. She always made two so she’d have an extra on hand to give away. Today seemed like a good occasion.
When she arrived, Vinny’s car was gone. But he usually showed houses on Saturday, so she wasn’t surprised.
She walked in the front door without knocking. They hadn’t knocked on each other’s doors for twenty years, if ever. “Hello.”
“In here,” Donna Rae called from the kitchen. She was elbow-deep in dishwashing suds. “Oh, hey, Lindsay. What brings you by?”
“I come bearing sweets.” She set the cake on the counter.
“Oh, I hope it’s a chocolate pound cake.”
“Not chocolate. Sour cream.”
“Yummy. I’ve been craving chocolate, though.” She bit her lip and wouldn’t look at Lindsay.
No way. “You’re kidding, aren’t you? A late April Fools’ Day joke?”
“April Fools’ was a month ago.”
“So you’re not kidding. You’re pregnant? Again?”
She smiled a radiant smile. “Yes, number five, and I’m thrilled. So don’t look so shocked and disappointed.”
She held up her hands in surrender. “Hey, I’m happy if you’re happy. That’s all that matters.” She hugged her friend and tried to be genuinely happy. But sometimes she battled the green-eyed monster.
“Don’t tell anyone yet. We want to wait a few more weeks, then tell our family.”
“Okay. Are you sick yet?”
“No. And maybe, God willing, I won’t be this time.”
Lindsay practically snorted. “Yeah, right.”
“On to better subjects. Has Bill asked you out yet?”
She did snort a laugh that time. “Are you kidding? He arrived, spent about five minutes with Granny Bea, then decided that she needs to move up there to live with him.”
“Well, you’ve always said he needs to be thinking more about taking care of her.”
“I meant for him to move home to do so.”
“Can you blame the guy? He has this illustrious career up there. Why would he move back to Magnolia?”
“You have a point. I guess he’ll have to trust us to watch over her.”
Donna Rae looked away as she slowly dried her hands on a dish towel. “You could help him take care of her. Up there in Boston—one of the places you’ve always wanted to visit, if you recall.”
“Don’t tell me you have pregnancy mush-brain already. This is a record. It’s hitting in the first trimester.”
Donna Rae turned and grabbed Lindsay’s hands, serious all of a sudden. “I have a feeling about this. I’ve always had a strong sense that you two were meant for each other.”
Scary, because whenever Donna Rae had strong “senses,” she was almost always right. Maybe it came from being such a prayer warrior—always in close contact with God. “Why didn’t you ever mention it before?”
“I didn’t want to say anything before it was God’s timing for you two. But ever since you said his name yesterday, I’ve had chills up my back when I think of it.”
“Well, stop it. Your ideas about The Forever Tree and this chill-bump thing, they’re worrying me. Because there’s no way I could ever move up there. I can’t leave Chase and Hunter. They need me.”
Donna Rae sighed, then shook her head. “I know. I guess God will figure it all out if it’s in His plan.”
Plan, my foot. The only important plan at the moment was the one that would keep Granny Bea in Magnolia. “Come on. Let’s go find something to do.”
Donna Rae cackled. “Find something to do?” She snatched a piece of paper from under a magnet on her refrigerator door. “Here’s my ‘Honey Do List.’ Go for it.”
Lindsay took the mile-long list and decided to number the items to prioritize them. When she finished, number one on the list was fix the dripping showerhead in kids’ bathroom. She’d done that at her own house, so she headed outside to Vinny’s workshop to see if he had the right tools. As she tromped back through the kitchen toward the stairs, Donna Rae hollered, “Thanks, honey!”
Cute. Real cute. But at least she had something to occupy her for a few hours.
Bill wanted to throttle Granny. He was beginning to think he’d been totally mistaken. The woman was obviously capable of ordering him around as she went about her daily housework. Maybe she was okay on her own after all.
He glanced at the hastily scrawled directions Granny had given him. He pulled into Donna Rae’s driveway, and Lindsay sat on the front steps, looking perturbed. She didn’t seem any happier once she climbed in his car.
“I’m sorry Granny interrupted what you were doing.”
“It’s okay. I was only helping Donna Rae around the house—doing a little plumbing work. The next item on the list was dusting the ceiling fans, so I guess I should thank you.”
He tried not to smile at the vision of her under a sink with a wrench. “Granny was insistent that you help me pick out the carpet. I guess she doesn’t trust my judgment.”
“We’ve looked at samples before, so she knows I have an idea of what she likes.”
“I called and tried to arrange a day for Arnie’s Carpets to come. They weren’t very helpful. Didn’t have anything open until two weeks out. As it is, I’m afraid I’ll be here a week.”
He thought Lindsay grinned, but then she turned toward the car window as she spoke. “I imagine Molly made the appointment. She might be able to work you in sooner if I’m with you today.”
