by Mia Ross
His heart was overjoyed to know that the fatherless boy had taken to him so quickly. Maybe he wasn’t as far gone as he’d feared, after all.
“So, is this barber good with kids?” Holly asked, giving her son’s hair a fond ruffling. “This jack-in-the-box isn’t great at sitting still while people fuss over him.”
“Except when I was in the service, Hal’s given me all my haircuts since I was five.” She raised a suspicious brow, and he laughed. Since meeting the Andrewses, he’d been doing that more than he had in ages, and he had to admit it felt a lot better than brooding all the time. “I know I’m not much of an advertisement right now, but he’s really good. He’s got a grandson Chase’s age, along with seven others, so he’s great with kids and they love him.”
“That sounds reassuring,” she commented as they stopped beside her car.
To Chase, he said, “Cody, the one who’s your age, came up with the idea of keeping a video game console and snack bar in the waiting room at the shop. I don’t know who likes it more—the kids or their parents.”
“What a fabulous idea,” Holly said. “That’s one smart kid.”
“I wouldn’t mind meeting him sometime,” Chase said. “It’d be fun to have a friend to hang out with.”
Remorse dimmed Holly’s features, and she frowned. “I know you miss your old crew, bud. I wish we could’ve brought them with us.”
“It’s not your fault, Mom. I’ll just make new friends.”
After making sure she smiled, he grinned and climbed into the back seat of her car. Holly closed the door behind him and stared in at him with a pensive expression.
“That’s one amazing kid you’ve got there,” Sam commented.
Pulling her gaze away, she looked up at Sam. “He is, isn’t he? I don’t know what I’d do without him.”
“I’m thinking he gets all that spunk from you.”
Tilting her head, she gave him a long, penetrating look. “You think I’m spunky?”
He wasn’t sure what was going on in that mind of hers, but he saw no harm in being up front with her. “Sure do. Considering all you’ve been through, you wouldn’t have gotten this far without it.”
“God had a lot to do with that.”
Sweet and simple, the sentiment that comforted so many people made Sam’s skin crawl, and he struggled to mask his reaction to her unexpected confession. He didn’t quite manage it, though, and she frowned. “Did I say something wrong?”
“No.”
“You look like I just sucker punched you.” He didn’t say anything, and after a few moments, understanding dawned in those expressive eyes. “You’re not religious, are you?”
“Not anymore.”
He waited for her to ask him why, but again this beautiful, perplexing woman surprised him. “So, where do I find this barbershop-slash-video-arcade?”
“If you want, you can follow me into town, and I’ll introduce you to Hal.”
“That sounds perfect. Thanks.”
“No problem.”
She flashed him the kind of smile that made him more than happy to interrupt his day and give her a hand. The midmorning traffic was lighter than usual, and they found two spots right next to a single-story brick building whose swinging sign out front said Hal’s Barbershop. In the large windows, the owner had displayed posters of various hairstyles through the generations.
After commenting on the more humorous ones, the three of them headed inside. Bells over the door announced their arrival, and the familiar sound reminded Sam of his childhood. Clean and simple, the single room was painted a bright, welcoming shade of yellow, perfectly suited to the elderly man strolling through the rear door.
“May I help you?”
“I know we didn’t call ahead,” Holly replied, “but do you have a chair available?”
“I sure do.” Offering his hand to her, he added, “I’m Hal Rogers, and I’d know Daphne’s niece anywhere. And this young man,” he said, grinning down at her son, “must be Chase. She talks nonstop about you when my wife and I play bridge with her at our place, so I feel like we’re already old friends. What can I do for you?”
“Mom says I need a haircut,” the boy answered in a disdainful tone that clearly said he didn’t see what all the fuss was about.
Hal hummed, angling his head to examine one side of the kid’s head and then the other. With a completely straight face, he asked, “Which one?”
When Chase laughed, Hal turned to Sam and said, “See? The classics always work.”
“That’s ’cause kids haven’t heard ’em yet.”
“I have, Papa, and I still like them.”
Winking at a young boy reading in the waiting area, he said, “Thanks, Cody. It’s always nice to have a fan. Have you met Chase yet?”
“No, sir.” Without prodding, he walked over and offered his hand. “I’m Cody Rogers. Nice to meet you.”
“I’m Chase Andrews.”
“There was a half day of school today, so Cody’s keeping me company while his parents are working,” Hal explained, the fondness in his voice making it plain that he enjoyed the arrangement. “He’s a big help around here, but once summer rec starts, I’ll have to find myself another assistant.”
“What’s summer rec?” Chase asked.
“Beginning the last week of June, one of our teachers runs a day camp for kids from kindergarten through fifth grade.” Hal went over to the front counter and took a flyer from the rack next to the cash register. Handing it to Holly, he continued, “They have it at the high school, so there’s a pool and athletic fields for the kids to use.”
“And a couple days a week—” Cody picked up the thread “—we have field trips. We go to an amusement park, go-kart track, mini golfing, stuff like that. This year we’re gonna check out the new water park.”
The excitement he obviously felt was reflected in Chase’s expression, and he looked up at his mom with a hopeful expression. “That sounds like a lot of fun. Do you think I could sign up for that?”
“I don’t know, honey.” She stalled, flipping the paper over in an obvious attempt to buy herself some time. When she found what she was looking for, her eyes widened in surprise. “This is the total cost? For a whole month?”
“Yes, ma’am,” the barber assured her, nodding. “The director knows folks around here don’t have money to waste, and she wants to make sure they can afford some fun for their kids. It’s especially nice since we had to close down our youth baseball program.”
“What?” Sam broke in. “We’ve been running that league since I was a kid. What happened?”
“The usual,” Hal answered with a frown. “We used the land as a favor from the owner. When a developer came through and offered him a small fortune for it, the league had to clear everything away so the acreage could be sold.”
Bored from the conversation, the two boys ran off to play video games. But Sam couldn’t focus on anything else. His mother and grandmother always made it a point to keep him updated on the goings-on around town, and Sam couldn’t imagine how they’d managed to drop the ball on this one. Granted, he didn’t always pay attention to what they were chattering about, but he definitely would have registered the fact that the baseball fields were gone. He and his buddies had just about grown up there, and knowing that they were gone was like a kick in the gut.
Aiming for a light tone, he casually asked, “How’d Gran and Mom miss that one?”
Hal’s frown deepened, and he shot a hesitant glance Holly’s way. Sam had quickly learned that she was more perceptive than most, and she smiled. “Don’t mind me. I’ll just go check out the snacks.”
“You don’t have to run off,” Sam assured her before nodding to the barber. “Go ahead, Hal.”
“It happened last year.”
Sam felt as if someone had dropped a load of bricks onto his shoulders, and he searched for something coherent to say. The best he could come up with was, “Oh,” and the sympathetic look on the older man’s face made him want to crumple himself up and disappear.
He’d done plenty of that since coming home, and he’d gotten pretty good at it. But just as his heart began to sink, he felt a comforting hand on his arm. Looking into Holly’s pretty eyes, he found something there he’d never thought to see again.
Understanding.
“Things get by us sometimes,” she said gently, telling him that she could relate to the emotions he wrestled with every day. “The important thing is, how are we going to replace those fields? I can’t imagine summer without baseball and softball games, and I’m sure most of the families around here feel the same way. There’s a lot of wide-open spaces around Liberty Creek. There must be another plot of available land somewhere.”
“My granddaughter Lynette was just starting to get the hang of that underhand softball pitching style,” Hal added helpfully. “She’d love to get back into it over the summer, but the league over in Waterford is half an hour each way and costs twice what she used to pay here. With Cody in baseball and their younger brother in T-ball, their parents just couldn’t swing the fees.”
“They could use some coaches, too,” Cody piped up, wandering into the conversation with Chase in tow. “Then we could have more teams.”
“Sam would make an awesome coach,” Chase suggested, throwing him under the bus without hesitation. “And since he was a catcher, he could help the pitchers get better.” Turning to his new buddy, he made a sour face. “If yours are anything like ours were in Boston, they’re really bad.”
“Dude, you have no idea,” Cody muttered.
“I’m not sure about that, Chase,” Sam hedged, wary of making a commitment he wasn’t sure he could honor. “Playing and coaching are two different things.”
“Could you think about it?” the boy pleaded, eyes begging as much as his voice. “Please?”
It was tough to resist that face, and Sam finally relented a bit. “That I can do. And I promise that if I decide I’m not right for it, I’ll ask around to see who else might want to help out.”
“Okay.”
The kid was obviously disappointed, and Sam felt like a complete heel. But in the end, he realized that declining was better than letting everyone down.
“Getting more kids to participate lowers the cost for everyone,” Holly commented cheerfully, clearly trying to change the subject. “Our program in Boston worked well that way. The softball angle is a good selling point, since not all leagues offer it. If you get some parents to donate food, you can run concessions at the games. The supplies are free, so the money you make is pure profit.”
“You sound like you know what you’re talking about,” Sam commented, not the least bit surprised. He’d quickly learned that this young military widow was easily one of the most upbeat, capable people he’d ever met.
“I was in the booster club for Chase’s league the last two years.”
“She was president,” her son chimed in proudly. “We even had our names on our jerseys.”
“We’ve got a good group here, too,” Hal offered in a helpful tone. “Once the word gets around, I’m sure you’d have no trouble putting everything together.”
“That’s sweet of you, but I’d have no clue where to start. I haven’t met anyone other than you, Cody and Sam.”
“Sam can help,” Chase suggested brightly. “He grew up here, so he must know everyone in town.”
Two pairs of blue eyes swung to him, and Sam didn’t have it in him to decline the way he normally would. “Kids should be able to play baseball, so I’ll help out however I can.”
She and Hal kept batting ideas around while Sam did his best to keep up. He got the distinct impression that he was being swept along by the wave of ideas, and he had a tough time following along.
But he liked it.
Once the awkward reference to his past had faded into the background, Sam found himself being drawn to the concept, knowing that it would be good for Liberty Creek and the hardworking families who lived there. They were the reason he’d enlisted in the Army years ago, why he’d trained so long and hard to become a Ranger.
He’d been devoted to protecting Liberty Creek and places like it, to keep the families who lived there safe from a world that seemed to be spinning out of control a little more every year. His service had left him battered in a way he’d never envisioned, but he’d always be proud of what he’d done for his country.
And now, a little boy was asking him to help in a different way. How bad could it be? Sam mused. He’d build a couple of dugouts, lay out some chalk lines, go cheer the kids on while they played. By the end of the summer, it would all be over, and he could feel good about being involved. This might be just the thing he needed to start feeling comfortable in his hometown again.
During a lull in the conversation, he screwed up his nerve and looked down at the boys. “I’ve got an idea for your team name. How ’bout the Liberty Riders?”
“Perfect,” Holly said approvingly, smiling as if he’d solved a thorny problem for her. “It’s got a nice historical feel to it, and we could work the bridge into the logo for their jerseys.”
“I’ll leave that up to more creative folks than me, but I’m glad you like it.”
The two boys whooped excitedly, bookending him in a fierce hug that pushed him back a step. Looking over at Holly, he was rewarded with a dazzling smile that threatened to knock him the rest of the way off his feet. When she mouthed, “Thank you,” the unspoken words hit him in a way that caught him completely by surprise.
Very firmly, he tamped down that unexpected reaction to his temporary neighbor. She and her son had been abandoned by a man who’d promised to care for them for the rest of his life. No matter how much he enjoyed their company, Sam was far too cautious to allow them to be hurt like that again.
At this point in his life, he’d reluctantly come to accept that while he was a lot better than he’d been, he still had a long way to go. It would be a tough slog for him, and he had no intention of dragging anyone along on that perilous journey with him.
Chapter Four
“Mom, please?” Chase begged, a juice box in one hand and a video game controller in the other. “Can I stay here with Cody?”
Holly wasn’t at all sure that was appropriate, considering the fact that they’d just met the Rogerses. Her son’s freshly cropped hair accentuated his bright blue eyes, and the pleading look in them made her want to agree.
“I don’t know,” she hedged, glancing to Hal for a hint of how he felt about the unexpected invitation.
His broad smile eased her concerns. “He’s more than welcome, Holly. Cody’s a great sport, but when I’m with a customer, he gets pretty bored.”
“Papa’s the best,” Cody told Chase. “When we play that racing game, watch out. He beats me every time.”
Stalling, she looked at Sam, who grinned back. “Looks like you’re outvoted.”
“I guess so. When should I come back to get him?”
“No need to make a special trip. I close at six tonight, so I can drop him off at Daphne’s when I take Cody home.”
“Okay.” She knew Chase would balk at a hug, so she settled for knuckling his shoulder. “Have fun, but behave yourself. You know my cell number in case you need me, right?”
Rolling his eyes, he rattled off the number just the way she’d taught him as soon as he was old enough to memorize it. “I’ll be fine. Me and Cody will have a blast.”
And with that, he and his new friend zoomed across the shop to resume their paused game.
She and Sam said goodbye to Hal and headed out the door of his shop. Holly hadn’t had
a free afternoon in so long, she wasn’t sure what to do. Sure, there was plenty of arranging and organizing waiting for her at the house, but it was such a nice, sunny day, the last thing she wanted was to be cooped up indoors. “I hate to waste such a gorgeous day on chores. Any suggestions for what I should do instead?”
After a moment, Sam suggested, “We could go scout a new location for those baseball fields.”
“Perfect.”
With a slight bow, he opened the passenger door of his truck for her to climb up into the cab. The balmy air rushed by the open windows as they drove out of town, and Sam nodded toward the radio. “Pick something to listen to if you want.”
“That could be dangerous,” she teased. “What if I like opera?”
He slanted her a look, then the corner of his mouth quirked with humor. “I’ll risk it.”
Laughing, she decided that her best option was to flip through the presets, assuming they were for stations whose music he enjoyed. She bypassed the jazz and talk radio, and when she landed on a channel playing a country ballad, she was more than a little surprised. “You picked this?”
“They play other stuff, too,” he informed her good-naturedly. “I like music where I can understand the lyrics.”
“I’m with you on that one,” she agreed, staring out the window as they made their way past the edge of town. The scenery that had intimidated her the other day struck her as lush and beautiful now, and she took in the view with a real appreciation for the wild beauty that surrounded Liberty Creek.
After years of always doing the responsible thing, it felt good to do something on the spur of the moment for a change. It was just what she needed, and it didn’t escape her that Sam had been the one to think of it. Even though they’d known each other such a short time, he seemed to understand her in a way other new acquaintances didn’t. Maybe the fact that they’d experienced similar tragedies gave him a unique insight about her.