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.”
Suzie heaved a dramatic sigh, then flounced off, her skirt bouncing as she walked.
As Janie turned to him, Luke held up his hand as if in defense. “I didn’t lure them over here. Promise. I was just cleaning up.”
Janie shot a quick glance over her shoulder, as if to make sure her children were in the house, then turned back to Luke. “I’m sure you didn’t, but at the same time, I would prefer it if you could keep your distance.” She caught one corner of her mouth between her teeth, effectively ruining her lipstick, as if she was biting back other things she wanted to say.
“I understand your reluctance,” he said, though he felt slightly annoyed. “But you don’t need to worry about me around your kids.”
“I think I’m a better judge of what to worry or not worry about. So just make sure you and that dog stay on your side of the fence, and we’ll get along fine. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go to church.” Janie gave him a curt nod then left.
Bert came to stand beside him, watching Janie as she strode down the cracked and broken sidewalk to the house.
“She’s kinda cute, ain’t she?” he said with a grin.
“Yeah. Kinda,” Luke conceded, though she’d be cuter if she didn’t look at him like he was some kind of lecher or make Cooper sound like some kind of rabid animal.
“The other day that little boy was asking if he could help us. Said he knew how to pound nails real good.” Bert laughed. “The little girl wanted to help, too. She reminded me of my own girl.” Bert was quiet for a moment. “You got kids?”
“No. I don’t.” And to his surprise, the simple question raised a twinge of pain. Luke spun around. “Let’s get back to work.”
By early afternoon, Luke was feeling more confident about the progress of the job. If he hadn’t been busy with that other house back in Calgary, he’d have been up here sooner. Obviously the crew needed the influence of the boss around to keep things going.
“So, anyone up for a coffee?” he said as the crew settled onto the deck for lunch.
“Black, two sugars,” Dave said.
“Cream and one sugar,” Bert said.
“Okay. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.” Luke had seen a coffee shop on the main street when he’d scouted the town, and from the looks of the customers filling it, he figured it was one of the better places in town to grab a coffee.
He headed down the walk to the front of the house where his truck was parked, whistling. As he got in, he glanced over to the neighbor’s house.
The flowerpots that Cooper had tossed over had been righted, but the plants in them looked broken and bedraggled.
He said he would replace them, and in spite of Janie’s protests, he knew he had to do something.
Once he got things going far enough on the house, he’d take care of it.
“Why didn’t you skip church to clean up?” Dodie called out from the back of the shop.
“I need church.” Janie dipped the mop into the pail. “I need the nourishment I get there. My fellowship with fellow believers.”
“And the serving coffee after church? Was that fellowship with fellow believers?” Dodie asked.
“I said I would help Mrs. Dodson.”
“You could have skipped it, but of course, that wouldn’t look good.” Dodie dropped her pail of water on the table. “Janie Corbett is far too concerned with what other people might think if she possibly shirked even one second of what she perceived was her duty.”
Janie didn’t bother with a comeback. Dodie had never been one to care what people thought of her, and it showed both in the way she dressed and in the choices she made in her life.
“There are worse things you could accuse me of,” Janie said, swishing the mop over the floor. She cocked one ear, listening for the kids. She heard Todd’s muffled laughter and Autumn’s singing. She guessed Suzie was with them.
“I also could accuse you of being too independent. If I hadn’t been so nosy, I wouldn’t have found out you were going to come here and clean all alone.” Dodie’s voice held an accusing note.
“I would have done this on my own.”
“You would have been exhausted. Honestly, you don’t have to do everything by yourself.”
Why not? She’d fallen into that role out of necessity ever since she married Owen. Dependable and Owen were not words that belonged together.
“And I’m sure right now, you’re hoping Mom doesn’t find out you’re working on a Sunday afternoon instead of having dinner with her.” Dodie tut-tutted as she rinsed out a cloth and started wiping the tables.
“She won’t if you keep your big yap shut.”
“And your kids? What did you tell them to make sure they don’t spill?”
“I told them Grandma wouldn’t like it if she found out. Which, of course, meant I had to have a long conversation with Autumn about what would happen if Grandma did find out.” She frowned at her sister. “Could you put the cinnamon and chocolate sprinkles on either side of the sugar container? And don’t roll your eyes at me. This is my coffee shop and I like things in order.”
“I’d think you have a lot more to be concerned about than sugar container placement.” Dodie made a show of setting the containers in place, framing the scene with her hands then moving them a fraction to one side. “I can’t believe you’re still thinking of expanding. You have enough going as it is.”
“I’m like a shark,” Janie said. “I need to keep moving or die, which means I need to expand—” she stopped there. Her own father’s business was successful mainly because he kept expanding, kept moving onward and upward. The only difference was Dan Westerveld didn’t have a spouse who had gambled away all available equity in the house and business.
But Janie kept that information to herself. Neither her sister nor her parents knew how dire her financial situation was.
“What do you mean? And you’re kind of struggling as it is.”
“And that’s why I need to expand. I’m just trying to make sure I can sustain my current lifestyle, which is hardly extravagant.”
“I’ll say. I can’t believe that beater of a car of yours is still running.”
“Regular maintenance helps.” And prayer, Janie thought. Something she spent a lot of time on these days. “Although each time I bring it in for an oil change, they find something else wrong with it.”
“You should marry a mechanic/carpenter. You wouldn’t have to worry ’bout your car, or your house.” Dodie moved to the next table.
“He should be a gardener, too,” Janie muttered.
“I heard about your plants and that dog.” Dodie’s chuckle turned serious. “Did A
utumn get over her scare?”
“She seems okay. Though I’m sure Todd will begin his dog campaign in earnest again.”
“Mom said the dog’s owner seemed a little odd.”
“No odder than most,” Janie replied, trying to sound disinterested. She was still a bit angry for the momentary tug of attraction she’d felt toward him.
But she’d set some firm boundaries this morning when she caught Todd talking to him. Start as you mean to go on.
“So I’m done with the tables. Now what?” Dodie swung the cloth back and forth as she looked around the shop.
“Maybe you could tidy up the storeroom and make sure my kids are behaving.”
Dodie saluted and picked up her bucket.
While Dodie kept the kids entertained, Janie finished up, forcing herself to keep going. She was so incredibly weary, all she wanted to do, after church, was go home and sleep. But she had served squares at the anniversary tea, smiling and chatting and then dragged herself back here and kept going. Sometimes she felt as if she kept pushing her exhaustion into a box and sitting on the lid. One of these days it would all jump out and overwhelm her.
Dodie had accused her of being independent. But what else could she be? She had three children, and she was their sole caregiver. She had messed up once and was determined it would never happen again.
When she was finished with the floor, she brought the cleaning supplies back to the supply cupboard. And sighed. Dodie hadn’t put the cloth back where it was supposed to be, nor was the cleaning solution capped.
If you want something done right, you’ve got to do it yourself, she thought, cleaning up behind her sister.
While she wiped out the pails and tidied up the rags, she heard Dodie and Todd talking to someone. She stepped out of the room in time to hear a familiar male voice.
Luke.
She pulled off the bandanna covering her head to fluff her hair, then stopped herself mid-primp.
What are you doing?
She retied her bandanna and strode out to the coffee shop area.
Luke stood just inside the doorway, laughing with Dodie. Sawdust sprinkled the burgundy corduroy shirt he wore tucked into faded jeans. He must have come right from the job site.
“Can I help you?” Janie asked, as she came nearer. Why had Dodie let him into the shop?
Luke glanced at Janie, and the smile animating his face slipped away.
“Sorry to bother you. Dodie just told me you’re not open today.”
“Not on Sundays.” Janie wished she didn’t sound so snippy, but she couldn’t seem to keep that tone out of her voice around him.
He unsettled her, and she didn’t like being unsettled.
“I just saw people inside and assumed you were open.” Luke straightened. “I was hoping to get some coffee for my crew.”
“Hey, Mr. Luke. Is Cooper in your truck?” Todd asked, pushing himself up so he could sit on one of the tables. “Can I see him?”
“I left him at home. I think he’s done enough damage for a few days.” Luke gave Todd a quick smile, his eyes drifting to Janie as if getting verification of that fact.
He was probably wondering if she was going to be issuing any more “stay away from my children” alerts.
She knew she had overreacted this morning, but she felt she had just cause. She didn’t know him, and her previous neighbors had been a rowdy bunch that she’d had to constantly watch out for. One could hardly blame her for making sure he understood the boundaries.
And there was Autumn to think of.
“Mommy, I’m here.” Autumn skipped into the coffee shop, then stopped when she saw Luke. And promptly burst into tears.
Janie crouched down, taking her little girl into her arms. “Honey, what’s wrong?”
Autumn sniffed, her head buried in Janie’s neck. “Is the dog here?” she asked, the fear in her voice tugging at Janie’s heart and reminding her again why she had cautioned Luke and his dog to stay away from her children.
“No honey. The dog is gone.” She stroked Autumn’s hair, wishing she had taken a bit more time to console her daughter yesterday. She truly thought she was okay.
Luke held up his hands. “Hey. I’m sorry. I had no idea the dog would be so rowdy. But he didn’t hurt her. I saw him.”
Janie gently smoothed the tears from her daughter’s cheeks. “Do you want a pop?”
Autumn sniffed. “I love pop.”
Janie knew. She seldom let her children have it; however, the situation required a bit of sweetening.
“Suzie, can you get Autumn a pop?”
“Can we have one, too?”
“Sure.”
Todd jumped off the table, his interest in Luke trumped by the unexpected treat.
“I’ll get them set up so they don’t make a mess.” Dodie turned her back on Luke as she gave her sister an arch look, which Janie ignored.
“I’m sorry. I can’t get you anything,” Janie said, turning back to Luke.
“Of course not. Can’t be breaking the fourth commandment,” he said, with a twinkle in his eye.
Her surprise must have shown on her face.
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy?” he prompted.
“I know the commandment,” she said.
“But you’re surprised that I do?” He effected a hurt look. “I used to go to church you know. You’re not living next door to a perfect heathen.”
“Used to go?” The phrase gave her a surprising sense of sadness.
“Yeah. When I lived with my foster father.”
And didn’t that little phrase create an intriguing hook?
“Mommy, Mommy, I made moose juice.” Todd came running toward her, and Janie turned in time to see him trip over the leg of a table.
With a sense of inevitability, she watched pop arc out of his cup, then drop to the floor in a spectacular splash of reddish brown fluid.
“I’ll get it,” Dodie said, holding up a hand to stop her sister. “Don’t even move.”
But Janie was already on her knees, helping her son to his feet, checking him for pain and injury and trying to avoid the spreading sticky mess.
As she looked up, she caught Dodie smiling at Luke.
And Luke was smiling back.
She was surprised at the tiny hitch of disappointment. She knew this was how it should be. Owen had taught her some hard lessons. She had no right to be harboring any fantasies when it came to men.
She had the responsibility of her children, the emotional detritus of a messy marriage and a divorce. Keeping herself and her family independent of men was the only way to maintain control of her life.
“Mom, I’m sorry I spilled the pop,” Todd said, “but can I have another one?”
Janie glanced at Todd’s stained clothes, then did some quick mental calculations. “Sorry, honey. We have to get back home so you can change, and then I have to take you to Cousin Ethan’s farm right away. Otherwise I’ll be late for Suzie’s dance recital.” If she didn’t get Suzie to her recital, her mother, who had bought front row tickets as soon as they were on sale, would be disappointed. Again.
One step at a time, she reminded herself, doing the deep breathing exercise a friend had taught her the one time she made it to an exercise class. Relax.
Todd acknowledged this with a reluctant nod. “Maybe Cousin Ethan will have some pop for me.”
“Maybe he will.” Janie ruffled his hair, then called out to her sister. “I gotta get going, Dodie. Can you finish cleaning and then lock up?”
The only response she got was a giggle and then a belated, “Sure. I’ll do that.” It seemed Dodie’s full attention was on Luke.
“Bye, Mr. Luke,” Todd called out, tossing Luke a quick wave as Janie ushered them out the door.
“Bye, Todd,” he called out. “See ya, Suzie, Autumn. See you later—”
Janie shut the back door, cutting off the rest of his farewell.
Chapter Three
Luke snapped ope
n his ringing phone and glanced at the number as he spread the blueprint on the hood of his truck one-handed. Unknown name and number. Maybe the supplier he’d been trying to reach for the past few days.
“Hello. Luke here,” he said, glancing at the specs for the electrician.
A pause. A breath, and then, “Hello, Luke. It’s me. Your mom.”
Luke straightened, anchoring the blueprint with one hand as frustration spiraled through him. “Hello, Lillian. Did you get the money?”
“Yes.”
“That’s good.”
“Chuck tells me you’re very busy on the house.”
Uncle Chuck talks too much. “Yeah. I am.”
A family walked past him. Mother holding a little boy’s hand, father pushing the stroller. The perfect family.
Had his mother ever yearned for the same stability he had?
He shoved the thought aside. The only thing his mother had yearned for was another drink, another hit and another guy.
“So, I was thinking I could…maybe…” His mother heaved a sigh. “I wanna see you.”
Luke wondered why she still bothered. The last time she’d asked, like a sucker, he’d agreed. He’d waited an hour, then had gone back to the hotel he’d been staying at. He should have known better. Ever since he’d moved to Al’s, she’d try to visit him at least once a year. And once a year, he’d wait.
“Sorry. I’m busy.”
“Too busy for your mom?”
You don’t know how a mom behaves, Luke thought, glancing at the house beside his. As if his thoughts summoned her, Janie came outside with a watering can, Autumn trailing behind her. Janie pulled a plant from a hook and set it down so her little girl could water it.
That’s what mothers are like, Luke thought, melancholy surging through him.
Janie glanced his way and lifted her hand in a little neighborly wave.
He nodded, still holding on to the blueprint with one hand, his phone with the other. Still holding on to the connection he had with the woman who was his mother, but didn’t know how motherhood worked.
“If you need more money, just say so,” Luke said, wishing he could just hang up.
Silence greeted that remark.
A Family for Luke Page 3