Home for Her Family (9781460341186)

by Carmichael, Virginia

  Their gazes locked and he felt the weight of the moment press in on him. He had seen that look too many times. Gavin’s sister had become a good friend of his, but Allison had a checkered past. She’d run away from home, made terrible choices, but then turned her life around. She’d also lived in fear of being exposed until a few years ago. Sabrina’s expression was as familiar to him as the back of his hand. This was a woman who had a secret, and it wasn’t anything small.

  Gavin appeared, not seeming to notice the tenseness of the moment. “We’re all set in here. We can meet Lana in the lobby to get those forms, if you want.”

  Her gaze flitted to the girls, and she nodded. Jack followed her glance and felt his stomach drop. Was the secret about the girls? Had the mother actually left them, or had Sabrina taken them without permission? The idea shook him to the core and he turned, striding toward the cafeteria door. Suspicion rose up in him faster than he could contain it. Perhaps Sabrina wasn’t everything she pretended to be. Perhaps there was a darker reason for her to keep her distance.

  He didn’t know the answer, but he sure was going to do his very best to find out.

  * * *

  “Just sign here, and here,” Lana said.

  “Thanks,” she mumbled. Snagging a pen from a stack on the desk, she bent over the first sheet. Quickly scratching out her signature, she handed the first one back to Lana. She caught Jack watching her intently, and her face went hot.

  She’d never been good at keeping secrets. When she was little, her sister refused to share her secrets because Sabrina would blurt them out at the slightest provocation. And now all it took was the suggestion of illegal activity and last night’s nightmare came back in full color. She hadn’t asked to be there, had never wanted to become part of the dark underworld of slave labor, but Sabrina couldn’t deny that she was linked to it now. She couldn’t risk her nieces’ lives by going to the police since the bosses knew where she lived. Pancho had made it clear that the leaders were ruthless. Gabby and Kassey were everything to her, and she wouldn’t put them in danger. Even though she was desperate, she didn’t want the money, not from a job like that. There was nothing she could do, except pray the bosses didn’t come calling for her again.

  She met Jack’s gaze and saw his eyes narrow. He couldn’t suspect that she would be involved in anything illegal; that wasn’t the type of girl she was. But the harder she tried to put it all out of her mind, the more ashamed she felt, until she dropped her gaze to the papers.

  Gabby was busy chattering to Gavin about how many goals she could score in her first game. Sabrina had to smile, just a little. That girl had a lot of confidence, and for that she was thankful. But the rest of the evening had her reconsidering.

  Maybe volunteering as a coach wasn’t such a good idea after all. She didn’t have any kind of future with someone like Jack, and she couldn’t seem to stay away. Really, she couldn’t see her future involving any men at all. At least for a while. She needed to figure out a better place to live, get custody of the girls, and then maybe she could think about her love life someday. Until then, she needed to keep the flirting in check.

  * * *

  Sabrina let the heavy door fall closed behind her as she stepped onto the busy sidewalk. She took a moment to inhale deeply, purposefully filling her lungs with fresh air. Her hands clenched the newspaper listing of apartments available, and she flexed her fingers, blowing out a sigh. She’d spent all day searching for a place for them, and there was nothing.

  This had been the last apartment on the list that was within walking distance of the bus stop and close enough to the girls’ school. The manager, an older woman with wiry gray hair and a ready smile, seemed kind. But the apartments they listed wouldn’t be available for several weeks.

  Sabrina had hated trying to explain why she needed one within the next few days. The eviction notice colored everything she said before and after. No manager wanted to rent to a family who was being evicted.

  Sabrina felt hot tears fill her eyes and she angrily brushed them away with one hand. She had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but it seemed as if moving to the Mission was the only option left for her and the girls. She was a proud and private person, and the thought of everyone knowing how poor she had become was like swallowing something bitter. But knowing she had failed the girls was like a knife to her heart.

  She started toward the bus stop, feeling sick with her decision. Tonight was soccer practice, and she would have to talk to Grant or Lana about moving in. Sabrina knew they would do everything they could to help, but she swallowed back a sob. This wasn’t the way she’d ever thought her life would go.

  Deep down, there was another reason this move caused her so much pain. Before today, a relationship with Jack was almost impossible. They were from two totally different worlds. But now, with the realization that she would be homeless, she knew any chance she’d had with him was truly gone. He would only see her as a charity case, someone who needed help or money, never as a woman who was fiercely independent. And that hurt more than anything else.

  Chapter Seven

  Jack strode down the sidewalk to the mission and inhaled the fresh air coming off the mountain. He loved spring. He loved the longer hours and the budding trees and the sight of green grass popping through the muddy soil. Add in some time with a beautiful girl and he was all set. If only that girl wasn’t so wary of him.

  He dodged a group of laughing teens. It had been two weeks since they invited Sabrina to coach the kids and she’d been wonderful. She was kind, enthusiastic and fair. The kids flocked to her even more than they did to Gavin. But when he talked to her, he still saw caution in her eyes. She had accepted his apology but seemed to avoid him. No more chatting about secret hobbies. No more blushing. No more flirting. He couldn’t blame her. They both had too much going on in their lives for a serious relationship, but somehow he couldn’t help wishing it was different.

  Jack took a deep breath before he pulled open the mission door. The reflection in the glass showed that he was long overdue for a haircut. He tried to smooth his hair down, but the wind made it stand up again.

  Jack crossed the lobby as quickly as he could without all-out running. The day had been taken up with meetings and phone calls. Bob Barrows had finally given him the figures he’d been after, but they made no sense whatsoever. He had been calling all over the city, trying to get it straightened out. The bills from the factories were missing, but the payments for packing the supplements were still going out. It was amazing that Barrows thought any of that information was going to be sufficient. Unless he hadn’t actually believed that Jack was going to review the sheets, which was a real possibility. Jack hadn’t been known for paying attention before.

  “You’re late,” Lana called from behind the desk. She shook a finger at him but she was laughing.

  “Shh, it’s our secret,” he called back. His dress shoes were slipping on the polished lobby floor and he slowed down before pulling the gym door open. The place was already filled with kids. Gavin was at the far end, directing pairs of kids as they kicked a ball to each other. Jack scanned the gym and found Sabrina near the wall, where she was tying a little boy’s sneaker. Her dark hair was pulled back as usual, but she looked wan and tired. He watched her as he walked to the supply closet, feeling a warmth spread in his chest. It felt good just to see her.

  She glanced up, as if she felt the weight of his gaze. He lifted a hand and waved. She stood still, her eyes going wide, then looked back to the little boy, who was talking earnestly to her. Jack tried not to feel disappointed that she didn’t look very happy to see him. He smoothed his tie and hoped he didn’t look like the desk jockey he’d become. It was hard to pull off the appearance of being a fun date in a corporate suit.

  “Hey, you’re so late I thought you’d decided to quit the team.” Gavin walked over and gave him a play
ful punch on the arm.

  “Never. Just got caught up in some office work.”

  “Uh-oh. Now I know the world is truly ending.” He clutched at his chest and staggered.

  Jack snorted. “Very funny.” He pulled open the supply closet door and rooted around. “I left a bag in here...somewhere...oh, here it is.”

  “I hope it has extra clothes, because the suit isn’t exactly standard-issue soccer gear.”

  He retreated from the closet and smoothed down his tie. “I’ll run and change.”

  As he passed back through the cafeteria, Gabby ran up to him. “Coach Jack, where were you?”

  “At work, kiddo.” He squeezed her shoulder. “Be right back. I’ve got to get out of this suit.” Over Gabby’s head, he saw Sabrina watching him. He hoped she didn’t think he was late because he knew she’d be here to pick up the slack. It wasn’t that at all.

  The practice flew by, kids shrieking with laughter and the coaches doing their best to stay out of the way of danger. Jack saw Sabrina speak to the girls, who nodded and ran to help Gavin clean up. Then she left the gym without a backward glance. Jack waited a few minutes, but when she didn’t come back, he caught Gavin’s attention and pointed toward the door.

  “Be right back,” he called.

  “Not a problem,” Gavin said, waving a hand.

  Jack didn’t have to look far. Sabrina stood to one side of the lobby desk, talking to Jose. His face was somber and he was leaning down, speaking softly to her. He had his arm around her shoulders and Sabrina was wiping away tears. Jack felt the blood drain from his face. This woman, who never backed down and never gave up, was weeping in public.

  He changed course and headed straight toward them. She looked up and for a moment, he saw fear flash behind her eyes. Jack’s concern twisted into dread.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  Jose glanced at Lana, then looked to Sabrina for direction. “We’re talking, getting things figured out.”

  Sabrina swallowed hard and looked up to meet his gaze. He had never seen her so weary, so full of despair. “The girls and I are moving in.”

  “Moving in?” Jack struggled to understand what Sabrina was saying. “Where?”

  “Here,” Jose said.

  Jack stepped back in shock. His eyes went wide and it took several seconds to get his brain moving again. “But why?”

  Sabrina shook her head, dark hair slipping loose from her ponytail. She glanced at the suit in his hand and for a moment, it seemed as if she couldn’t find the words. “We just can’t afford the rent and I can’t find another place right away.”

  “Why not?” Jack looked from Jose to Lana. There must be something they could do. “We’ll go out tomorrow and look around. There are tons of apartments open. I’m sure we can find something.”

  She was shaking her head again. “It’s not that easy.” She closed her eyes for a moment and Jack yearned to reach out and fold her in his arms. She was so sad, so weary. “The first and last month’s rent plus deposit is more than I have right now.”

  “I can pay for that, it’s no problem.” He felt a rush of relief. If money was the only issue, then they could be in an apartment tomorrow. He smiled at Lana, certain she would be nodding her head. She looked at him, the expression on her face difficult to define.

  “No, I’ll pay for my own place.” Sabrina’s voice was quiet, but the tone was so final that he felt the weight of her decision like a door slamming shut.

  He ran a hand through his hair and tried to think. “You can’t get an extension on the rent?”

  Something in her expression tore at his heart. It was shame and anger. “No, it’s not possible. I’ve done everything I can. I spent the whole day tracking down apartments, and everything that’s open immediately is too far from the bus line. The girls would never get to school on time.”

  There was a pause in the conversation and the only sound was the echo of children cleaning up in the gym. Sabrina took a shaky breath. “I’ve thought it through and there’s no other way to get caught up unless we move in here. Lana says they have a place for us in the family area.”

  Lana cleared her throat. “In the winter, everything would be filled up, but since it’s warmer, we’ve got a place. It’s small, just a single room for the three of you, but the meals are provided.”

  Jack swallowed hard. He shouldn’t be surprised that something like this had happened. The working poor were everywhere, Evie said. They looked as though they were doing all right, but they were one disaster away from homelessness. And now Sabrina, Gabby and Kassey were part of that population.

  “There aren’t any friends you can stay with? Or family? Not a single person you could call?” As soon as he asked the questions, he wanted to take them back. She’d already said she didn’t have many friends. And her parents were dead. The only person left would be her sister, who had run off somewhere. Anger swelled in his chest and he blew out a breath. It wasn’t fair that someone who worked as hard as Sabrina could end up with nothing. Was there something else she was hiding?

  “I wish there was,” she said softly. She examined her hands, her face tight. “But it won’t be so bad here. I know you all and Grant and some of the parents. It will be fine.”

  Jack glanced at Lana and blinked at her expression. She was glaring at him, as if he’d said something wrong. He backtracked over his words and realized how his comment sounded—as if he was blaming her for not having friends or a family to shelter her.

  He reached out, without caring who saw, and gathered her to him. Jack held her tight, feeling the tenseness in her body, the rigidness of her spine. Within moments, she relaxed against him, burying her face in his chest. A soft sound escaped her and he knew she was crying.

  “I didn’t mean it that way,” he whispered into her hair. “I’m sorry. It’s not your fault.” Even though she was taking full responsibility, everything about Sabrina said she was overly cautious and would never take risks. Something completely unexpected had happened.

  She took a shuddering breath and pushed back from him. “I’m okay,” she said, wiping her face with her hands. She didn’t look at all okay, but he dropped his arms to his sides.

  “I wish you would let me—”

  “No, no, we’ll be fine.” She forced a small smile and turned to Lana and Jose. “Anyway, if I could fill out those papers at home and bring them tomorrow, that would be great. I’ll have time to prepare the girls a little bit.”

  “Okay, so when do we start moving?” She wouldn’t accept his money, but she might accept his help in other ways.

  “We really don’t have much. Lana says we can move in on Friday.” Sabrina’s chin was level, but her eyes glittered with unshed tears. He couldn’t imagine how hard this was for her.

  Jack blinked, realizing how stupid he sounded. You didn’t move to a homeless mission with all your furniture. Something else occurred to him, but he was almost afraid to say it. “You said...you mentioned that you had a custody hearing coming up.”

  Her shoulders sagged. “Yes. Soon. We’re waiting for the letter that will give us the exact day.”

  Jose said, “We’ve had residents go through custody hearings before. We can come with you to give character witness, if you’d like.”

  Sabrina nodded. “That would be nice.” Her voice was flat and Jack knew why. It would be much better to show a judge how you lived in the same apartment for years than to bring a staff member from the homeless mission as a character witness.

  The cafeteria door swung open and Gavin peered out. “I’ve lost all my helpers,” he called toward the desk.

  In the next moment, he saw Sabrina’s tear-splotched face and shot a worried glance at Jack, then Lana and Jose. “No hurry,” he said in a quieter tone and disappeared back into the gym.

  “W
e should go in,” she said. “Lana, I’ll pick those up on the way out.”

  “I’ll get everything ready. Jose will deliver the intake papers to Grant as soon as I get them printed up.” The secretary wheeled around the desk and reached for Sabrina’s hand. “It’s going to be okay.”

  “I know,” she said. But Jack saw the despair in her eyes. He knew that with the custody hearing coming up, things might actually turn out far from okay.

  * * *

  Sabrina stared up at her bedroom ceiling, her heart pounding. Something had woken her. The room was pitch-dark, the only light a sliver from the streetlamp outside, coming from the crack of the curtains. She waited, listening hard. Had one of the girls cried out in her sleep? That evening there had been a letter from the courts, giving their date with the judge. In three weeks she would finally know for sure whether she could get permanent custody of the girls. She had fallen asleep praying, as always.

  A pounding at the door made her sit up in shock. She was out of the bed and throwing on her robe before she thought it through. At the door she peered into the peephole. Pancho stood outside, his face noticeably worried.

  Sabrina stepped back. She didn’t want to open the door. She never wanted to speak to Pancho again. He had brought a nightmare into her life and she wished she could pretend it had never happened.

  “Sabrina,” he called softly. “I know you’re there. I heard you.”

  She put a hand to her mouth, unsure of what to do.

  “Please, Sabrina. Please. They know where my mama lives.” Pancho’s voice cracked at the last word.

  She leaned her head against the door. Lord, what do I do? He’s in trouble, but helping him puts me in danger. The girls need me.

  “Please.” It was just one more word, but the despair in his voice was too much. Sabrina threw the bolt and slid off the chain.