by Debby Mayne
Jill sat and studied him for a moment before he reached out and touched her cheek. “I’ll call you, okay?”
She nodded before she let herself out and headed up the sidewalk to her house. She’d had fun until the temper tantrum, but even that didn’t take away from the pleasure of being with Ed and the girls.
Saturday was busy at the shop, which kept her from thinking about Ed too much. But Sunday was different. Each time she was near Ed, she felt flustered and giddy, which made her uncomfortable around their friends.
Jennifer stopped by the shop the next morning. “Okay, girl, what’s going on between you and Ed?”
Jill hadn’t come out and said anything about her feelings to anyone, and she preferred not to now. But she didn’t want to brush Jennifer off.
“I understand what you all are trying to do,” she said, “but there are some things Ed and I need to work out.”
“Like what?”
“Well, for one, we’re really different.”
“So?” Jennifer said. “Brian and I are different, but that’s what makes our relationship so interesting.”
“Yeah, but he didn’t have kids when you met him.”
Jennifer frowned. “But I thought you loved Ed’s girls.”
“I do, but. . .” Jill tried to find the right words, but finally lifted her hands in surrender. “Oh, never mind. It’s useless to try to explain.”
Jennifer gazed at her a moment then nodded. “I think I have a pretty good idea of what’s going on. It’s obvious to the rest of us that you and Ed are crazy about each other, and it seems like a no-brainer to us. But you both have conflicting issues.”
“Yeah,” Jill said with a snicker. “That’s an understatement.”
“What neither of you seems to realize is that you don’t have to agree on everything. If people only got together with other people who agreed with them, no one would ever get married.”
“Some of our differences are pretty major,” Jill replied.
Jennifer sighed then glanced at her watch. “I have to run now. I’m sorry.” She smiled. “Just think about what I said, okay?”
“Sure. But don’t get your hopes up.”
For the rest of the day Jill thought about Jennifer’s comments. They weighed so heavily on her that she couldn’t focus on business. Her distraction must have shown because one of her regular customers, Mrs. Brighton, asked her if she was having “man problems,” as she put it.
“I was always out of sorts when Henry and I had an argument,” she said. Then she offered a sly grin and wiggled her eyebrows. “But things always got better, and we more than made up for whatever we were arguing about. That man was the best kisser in the whole world.”
Jill smiled at the older woman. “That’s sweet.”
Mrs. Brighton blushed. “Don’t let petty differences ruin your day. Life’s too short for that. Might as well start kissing and making up right away, sweetie. That’s the whole point of the argument, anyway.”
Everyone seemed concerned about her. Even Matt stopped by to ask if she was okay.
“I’m fine, but I’d be better if you’d let me finish cooking all those meals to pay you back.”
“It’s better to spread it out,” he said, chuckling. “Unless you want to get it over with.”
“No, that’s okay. We can do it over time. I just don’t want you to think I’ve forgotten about it.”
The next morning when she arrived at the shop, Ed was sitting on the front porch waiting for her, holding a paper bag. “I brought bagels,” he said. “Raisin bagels with extra cream cheese, the way you like them.”
“Thanks,” Jill said as she unlocked the door to the shop. “Come on in.”
He followed her inside and helped her turn on the lights. Finally, once everything was ready for opening, Ed walked up to Jill and took her hand. “I’ve been wondering if maybe we could start over.”
“Start over?”
He nodded. “Yeah, like maybe go out on a date and get to know each other all over again.”
“Has everyone been talking to you, too?”
Ed tilted his head back and laughed. “Of course they have. And I’m okay with that. How about you?”
She shrugged. “People have said stuff.” She turned and headed toward the counter where Ed had left the bagels.
“Well? How do you feel about it?” he asked.
“About what?”
“Maybe we could get together and see how things go.” He glanced down then looked up at her, waiting for her answer.
Her heart thudded. “That would be nice.”
“Let’s go somewhere Saturday evening. I promised the girls I’d take them out for tacos on Friday, but I’m free Saturday.”
“Saturday’s fine,” Jill replied.
“Okay, I’ll pick you up at seven. Gotta run. I have a ton of work to do on the new development tomorrow.”
“How’s the project coming?”
He shrugged. “I’ve had more glitches than I’m used to, but I think we’re on track now.”
After he left, Jill thought about her date with Ed. It was weird how he’d just stopped by like that. She had no delusions that anything would be different, but she couldn’t flat out turn him down when he’d met her with her favorite bagels—with extra cream cheese, at that.
She had a banner sales week, so by the time Saturday night arrived she was exhausted but in a wonderful mood. Ed commented on her good mood when he picked her up.
“Want to go to a movie?” he asked.
“That’s fine. Is there something you’d like to see?”
He shook his head. “No, I can’t think of anything. I don’t even know why I suggested it. It’s hard to talk in a movie. We should probably do something different.”
“How about bowling?”
Ed chuckled. “Do you like to bowl?”
She smiled back at him. “I don’t know. I’ve never done it, but I’m willing to give it a try. I guess it’s about time I tried something new.” This was a major turning point for her, and she wanted him to know it, too.
With a smile he took her by the hand and led her to his truck. “After you catch on to the technique, I have a feeling you’ll be an excellent bowler.”
At first Jill rolled a few gutter balls at the bowling alley, but she couldn’t remember ever having so much fun. She felt giddy and lighthearted for the first time since she was a little girl.
“See?” he said as they pulled out of the parking lot. “You caught on fast.”
“That’s because you’re a good teacher.”
“So are you,” he said softly.
Her eyes widened. “Huh? I’ve never taught you anything,” she said, then added, “Have I?”
He pulled into the parking lot of a convenience store, then turned to her. “Since I’ve known you, you’ve taught me to lighten up. You’ve shown me how to be spontaneous. You’ve brought beauty and joy into my life, Jill.”
Tears stung the backs of Jill’s eyes as she took in everything he was saying. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“No.” He leaned over and dropped a soft kiss on her lips. “Thank you.”
Without another word he pulled out of the parking lot and drove her home. He walked her to her door and then stood and gazed at her. Jill reached up and touched her palm to his cheek. “Good night, Ed,” she said softly.
Then he did the unexpected. He took her hand in his and drew her to him. Next thing she knew, his lips were gently on hers. She felt as if her heart were turning somersaults as he kissed her good night.
He released her and quickly stepped away. “Good night, Jill,” he said.
Her lips still tingled from his kiss as she got ready for bed. The next morning she almost decided not to go to church. How could she face Ed after last night? That kiss meant much more to her than it could possibly have meant to him.
Then she came to her senses. She needed to go to church. That was what kept her grounded all week. So she reined
in her feelings and went, but she stayed in the back and avoided contact with any of her friends. When church was over, she pretended not to see Jennifer waving to her. Instead she darted out the side door and hurried to her car before anyone could say something.
Monday morning was slower than usual. When she heard the bell on the door jingle right before noon, she looked up, expecting a customer. It was Ed and the twins. Tracy and Stacy ran to her and flung their little arms around her. She hugged them before looking up at Ed.
“They wanted to see you,” he said as he strode toward her like a soldier on a mission.
Something in the way Ed was looking at her made her feel woozy inside. She couldn’t pull her gaze away from his.
“Girls,” he said firmly, “take your puzzles and go play in the back room while I talk to Jill for a minute.”
The girls exchanged a glance then did as they were told. Once he and Jill were alone, Ed studied her for several seconds before he finally spoke. “We need to talk about this before it gets any worse.”
“Talk about what?”
“You know,” he replied. “Our feelings.”
Jill’s heart pounded. “What about our feelings?”
“I love you, and I think you love me.”
Suddenly Ed’s cell phone rang. “Excuse me a second, okay?”
Ed took the call while Jill went to the back room and asked the girls how they were doing. With excitement they talked over each other, telling her about everything in their lives—from their new toys to Mrs. Cooper’s new grandbaby.
When Ed got off the phone, he was grimacing. “Sandra Chimensky’s little girl locked herself in the bathroom, and they can’t get the door open. Sandra called a locksmith, but she can’t afford the fee. She knows I have the tools to take the door off the hinge. Would you mind watching the girls while I run over there and let her out?”
“Go ahead,” Jill said. “We’ll be fine.”
Ed was gone only a few minutes when the shop became crowded. Jill took the girls back to the table and pulled out some things for them to play with. “I’ll be right out there if you need me,” she said.
She waited on a couple of customers before she realized how quiet it was in the back of the shop. An uneasy feeling crept over Jill as she headed back to find out what they were doing. The instant she rounded the corner, a strong sulfur smell overwhelmed her. She paused. To her surprise both girls were striking matches against a matchbox.
“No!” she hollered, running to them. “Stop! Now!”
At once Stacy looked up, her eyes wide open. When she saw Jill, her chin began to quiver. Tracy took a step back in fear.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Jill cried. She’d never yelled at anyone, but these were extreme circumstances. By the time she yanked the matches from their hands and grabbed both of the girls’ arms, Tracy was crying and calling for her daddy. Stacy was pouting, but she didn’t cry.
“Sit down, both of you,” Jill demanded, pointing her finger toward the chairs. An unfamiliar fear washed over her as she imagined the result if she hadn’t caught them before it was too late. The building was old and had a wood frame. It would have gone up in flames so fast she didn’t want to think what might have happened to the girls.
“Do you know how dangerous it is to play with matches?” she said firmly.
“We weren’t playing with matches,” Stacy said.
“Don’t lie, Stacy,” Jill said. “I saw you.”
“She’s not lying. We were trying to light these candles we found. You were busy. We didn’t want to bother you,” Tracy said.
“Those are for adults, not children.” Jill shook her finger at both girls. “You are not allowed to touch a match again until you’re grown. Do you understand?”
They both nodded.
“I know your daddy well enough to know he’d never allow you to light matches.”
Stacy suddenly leaned forward and looked past her. “Daddy, Jill’s yelling at us!”
Jill whirled around and saw Ed standing in the doorway, taking it all in. “How long have you been standing there?” she asked.
“Long enough to know what’s going on. I got the Chimensky door open quickly and came right back.” He walked over and bent over toward the girls. “Were you listening to Jill just now?”
Stacy sniffled and nodded. “She’s being mean to us.”
Ed rolled his eyes. “You know better than that. I’ve told you girls never to play with matches. Jill cares about you, and she’s letting you know.”
“B–but she yelled.”
“I know.” Ed turned to Jill and gave her the thumbs-up sign. “And I would have yelled, too, if I’d caught you lighting matches.”
Tracy had stopped crying, but Stacy was sobbing now. Jill watched as Ed squatted between them with his arms around their shoulders.
“You realize this means you can’t go to that movie party on Friday night, don’t you?”
“But, Daddy,” Stacy whimpered, “that’s not fair.”
Ed glanced up at Jill. When she nodded and turned to Stacy, he said, “You owe Jill an apology for misbehaving in her shop.”
In the past Jill would have told him that wasn’t necessary, but things were different now. She understood his need to discipline his daughters, and she knew humility was part of the training.
“Girls, I want you to know the only reason I yelled at you was because I love you,” Jill said. “If anything ever happened to either of you. . .” She shuddered. “I don’t even want to think about that.”
Tracy stood up and came over to her. “We love you, too.”
To Jill’s surprise Stacy came too, and the three hugged each other. Stacy sniffled as she mumbled, “We’re sorry we were bad. We won’t ever do that again.”
❧
Ed’s heart melted as he watched this tender moment between Jill and his daughters. He could see her as part of his family. She’d appreciated his parenting methods, and he understood her softness with the girls. Not only was he deeply in love with her, but he knew she’d be a positive influence on the girls. He needed to take the girls home now, though.
“C’mon, girls. Let’s give Jill a break so she can work.” He looked at Jill. “I’ll talk to you later, okay?” Jill nodded. He took them out to the truck and put them in their car seats.
“Daddy,” Stacy said once they were on their way home, “I don’t want Jill to be mad at us.”
“She was upset because you were doing something really bad, something that could have hurt you,” Ed said. “Jill loves you.”
“Are you sure she loves us?” Tracy asked.
“I don’t think she’d say anything she doesn’t mean.”
He looked at the girls in his rearview mirror in time to catch them exchanging a glance.
“Daddy, do you love Jill?”
“Why are you asking?”
“Since we love Jill, and she loves us back, we were thinking—.” He saw Tracy hold her fingers up to her lips. Stacy stopped midsentence.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
The girls giggled. “Can Jill be our mommy?”
Ed chuckled. Just what he’d thought. “Why don’t we let her recover from the match incident first; then we can talk about that.”
Fifteen minutes later they approached him again. “Do you think she’s recovered yet?”
“Maybe.”
“Can she marry us?”
Ed sighed. He couldn’t keep his feelings to himself any longer. He’d already decided he wanted to marry her, but he also wanted to have a romantic proposal—alone with Jill. He didn’t want to deny his daughters the pleasure they’d obviously get from his decision, though.
He looked into each expectant face and smiled. “I plan to ask her very soon.”
Both girls turned to each other and squealed with delight. The girls were remarkably well behaved for the rest of the day. That night, they even got ready for bed and turned in early.
The next
morning Ed was awakened by two little girls jumping on his bed. He rolled over and squinted.
“Get up, Daddy.”
“What time is it?”
Stacy held out her hands and shrugged. “The big hand is on the twelve, and the little hand is on the seven.”
“Let me sleep a few more minutes.”
“But we have to go to work.”
“Huh?”
“We want to go to work with you at Jill’s shop.”
“I’ve finished my work at Jill’s shop.”
“Daddy,” Stacy said firmly, “we want to see Jill. So get up and let’s go.”
He wasn’t in the mood to argue, so he swung his legs over the side of the bed. Besides, the thought of seeing Jill sounded pretty good. “Okay, but I have to shower and get dressed first.”
By the time he was dressed, both girls had their clothes on and were at the kitchen table eating cereal. Mrs. Cooper had put plastic bowls within their reach and small, pint-sized cartons of milk on the lower refrigerator shelf so they could be more self-sufficient. “We fixed you some, so sit down and eat,” Stacy said, pointing to a bowl with soggy corn flakes floating around.
Fifteen minutes later they were on their way to the shop. “She might not be in yet,” Ed said. “It’s still early.”
“She’ll be there,” Stacy said, pointing her finger. “See? There’s her car. We called her and said it was a ’mergency.”
“You what?” He’d just pulled up in front of the shop and stopped the truck. Before either girl answered they were out of their car seats and trying to get out of the door. He laughed at how they’d teamed up and unbuckled each other’s seat belts. He started to hold back and not let the girls out, but at this point he knew it was useless. The second he opened the door, they were out of the truck and halfway up the sidewalk.
Jill opened the front door of the shop, and the girls ran right up to her. Ed was on their heels.
“Jill,” Stacy said, “we wanna ask you something real important.” She turned to Ed. “Daddy, c’mere.”
Ed did as he was told. “Now what?”
“Will you be our mommy?” Tracy blurted.
“Huh?” Jill said.
Tracy rolled her eyes. “That’s not how you do it, Stacy.” She turned to Jill. “Will you marry our daddy?”