TAXI DELIVERY

by Brooke Williams

  Jed was quick about leaving his own apartment to get Sadie. He had a night class later that evening, but until then, he was free. There was always studying, but he could catch up on the train ride to school. He didn’t have a cab that afternoon, but he could quickly reach Sadie by train and then ferry her to his cousin’s house by bus. She lived just outside the city in a nice little suburb.

  During the train ride to the store in which Sadie waited for him, Jed began to think about what he was feeling for the new mother. He wasn’t sure why she had such a draw on him but he was certain that there had been no sound he wanted to hear more than her voice on the other end of the line. The fact that she had called him gave him endless joy until he learned that she was in dire need of help. Then his joy turned to grave concern. She was young, a new mom, and obviously out of her league.

  His heart went out to her and he felt like he needed to do everything he could to help her. Jed likely would have felt that way for just about anyone in her situation. But for some reason, he also felt like there was more to it. Something about the way she looked at him and the way his heart lurched in his chest when he held Ellison told him that this time, he wasn’t going to let her walk out of his life so easily. She had called him for help and he was going to give it to her. But he wanted more. He wanted to play some kind of role in their lives. He just wasn’t sure what it was yet.

  When Jed arrived at the little corner store, he could tell he had gotten there none too soon. Ellison was crying and Sadie was trying to comfort her while pushing the stroller out of the way in one of the narrow aisles. The sales clerk looked annoyed and a few of the shoppers were even giving her looks.

  “Thank goodness,” she said, looking totally overwhelmed by the entire day. She pushed Ellison into his arms and got control of the stroller. One of the wheels was stuck under a shelf and she just wasn’t able to free it with a screaming newborn in her arms.

  As Sadie wrenched the stroller free and pushed it outside, Jed realized that the store had suddenly become much less noisy. Ellison was silent in his arms and her big blue eyes gazed up at him with wonder. He could have stood in the middle of the small store all day looking at her, but instead, he followed Sadie outside.

  “Okay,” she said in a no nonsense voice, “how did you do that?”

  “Do what?” Jed asked, unable to remove his eyes from Ellison’s little face.

  “That!” Sadie replied, pointing to her child. “She hasn’t been that quiet since before she was born. Other than when she’s asleep, that is.”

  Jed smiled at her as her eyes gained another level of expression. She was studying him, that was for sure. Her balled up fist swung around in front of her, but her eyes said it all.

  “Just lucky, I guess,” Jed said as they started to walk to the bus stop down the street.

  “No,” Sadie said quietly, “I’m the lucky one.” She placed a hand through the crook of his elbow as she steered the stroller with the other hand. Jed tore his gaze from Ellison and looked down at her hand. He felt the heat of her palm burning his arm and it was the best feeling in the world. Other than the feel of the tiny baby in his grasp.

  “I can’t thank you enough,” Sadie said, watching where she was going as she kept the large stroller on the right path. “This is above and beyond the call of any cab driver’s duty.”

  Jed laughed. “I think we’ve moved beyond cab driver-passenger by now, haven’t we?”

  Sadie smiled, a look of relief on her face due to the light hearted conversation in the midst of her serious situation. “Yes, indeed we have.”

  The walk to the bus station was short and Jed was glad that he had made the trip to pick her up and take her to his cousin’s house directly. He could have simply given her directions on the phone, but he wouldn’t have gotten this time with her, and with Ellison. Since the baby seemed to enjoy him, Sadie didn’t ask to have her back the entire ride out to Brenda’s house. Ellison watched Jed and then eventually fell asleep. Once she was really settled in, Jed and Sadie finally got a chance to talk.

  They didn’t get into the deep issues. Jed could tell that Sadie needed a break from the reality of her life. She just needed to chat and get to know him a little bit. Jed told her about his family, his schooling, his goals, and his job as a cab driver. He filled her in on the class he would be attending later that evening and even told her about his high school nickname. By the time the bus pulled up to Brenda’s suburb, Jed felt like Sadie knew more about him than most. And yet he still knew very little about her.

  Since he didn’t know what subjects might be touchy, he decided to keep talking about himself. If she had wanted to dive into the details of her life, she could have interrupted at any time. Instead, she listened, asked questions, and relaxed. Jed also told her all about Brenda and her family so that Sadie would be prepared for the noise she was about to encounter and live with for the immediate future.

  Brenda opened her door to the three of them with open arms. “Welcome to casa de loco,” she said, greeting Sadie with a smile and a hug. “Trust me, no one will hear that little baby over any of this.” One of Brenda’s four kids ran past screaming while the other three chased behind shortly after. “Now, show me that beautiful bundle.”

  Jed leaned over so Brenda could get a good look at little Ellison. “Yep, she’s beautiful,” Brenda affirmed. “Ellison what?” she asked.

  “Leida,” Sadie filled in without thinking. “Ellison Leida Walker.”

  Brenda frowned and raised an eyebrow at Jed, who was certain his face showed a shock so thorough that even the people down the street would have recognized he didn’t know what was going on.

  “I’m sorry,” Sadie said, looking from Jed to Brenda as they exchanged expressions. “I should have told you. I used your last name as her middle name after I saw you on TV. I wanted her to have something of the man who helped her into the world. I know I should have asked your permission first, but I didn’t know if I would ever see you again. And I just couldn’t stand the fact that you weren’t getting any credit for this beautiful little girl when you were the one who first held her.”

  Jed could feel panic rising up in Sadie’s voice. She was explaining herself so fast it was evident that she thought he and his cousin were going to discard her over a simple name.

  “It’s okay,” he interrupted, placing a hand on her shoulder as he shifted the baby over to Brenda so she could take a closer look. “Really, Sadie, I’m flattered.”

  “You…you are?”

  “Of course I am! I have a big family and no one has ever named anyone after me before. Can you believe it? It’s wonderful. I’m so flattered.”

  Sadie smiled and Jed’s heart melted a little more, letting another piece of her into the corner where he knew she was already taking over.

  “We know where she got her middle name,” Brenda chimed in as she moved into the house, “what about her first name? How did you come up with Ellison?”

  “This house is beautiful,” Sadie said, avoiding the question by throwing out a compliment. “I can’t believe you’re letting me live here.”

  “It’s not a problem at all. We won’t even notice a couple extras,” Brenda smiled as she quickly moved up against a wall to allow the screaming pack of children to pass.

  Brenda gave Sadie a quick tour of the house including the guest bedroom in which she and Sadie would reside and the bathroom just down the hall that she could use.

  “When I heard you were coming, I pulled out the bassinet so Ellison can sleep right by your bed,” Brenda said, gazing down at the sleeping baby that she was still holding. “But we have a crib up in the attic we can bring down any time. I’m pretty sure we’re done having kids, but we wanted to have a big sale when we were done with enough stuff.”

  Sadie’s eyes widened. She was going to have plenty of things here to use for Ellison. She wouldn’t need to buy another thing until she moved to her own place, which she hoped would be soon. She would get started on the
job hunt as soon as she could. She didn’t know what she would do with Ellison, but she would figure that out when she found something that interested her. As to what exactly she wanted to do, that was another story.

  “This is wonderful,” Sadie proclaimed, taking it all in and appreciating the kindness of those who were practically strangers. “I don’t know how to thank you enough.”

  “Prayers,” Brenda said with a shrug. “You can thank us with your prayers. Everyone needs prayer, right?”

  Sadie nodded emphatically. “I know all too well,” she said, with a glance at Jed.

  “Well, ladies,” Jed said, breaking in to take his leave. “I think a very important law class is calling.”

  “That’s right how’s school going?” Brenda asked as Ellison started to stir.

  “It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I know it’ll be worth it,” he had explained to Sadie on the ride over that he wanted to practice law in a humble manner. Lawyers often made boat loads of money be specializing in corporate law, tax law, negligence or many other areas. Jed, on the other hand, wanted to go into adoption law. He wanted to help God bring families together and he wanted to see things through on the legal end. He would likely write wills and do a few other things as well, but adoption law was his dream.

  “You’re going to make a great lawyer,” Brenda said as Jed edged his way back down the hall.

  “I’ll see you both soon,” he said, giving Sadie a slight wave and tickling Ellison under the chin.

  Sadie raised her hand in a gentle wave and Jed turned away, unable to tear his eyes from her any other way.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Sadie settled into the house with ease. She didn’t have much to unpack. She parked the large stroller in the garage and looked forward to talking Ellison for walks around the neighborhood. It felt safe and homey and she wished that she could stay forever. Brenda’s family was so welcoming that she felt as if she had known them forever. Brenda and her husband, who Sadie hoped to meet later that day, had four delightful children. And though they were obviously a handful, they were all good kids with bright spirits and warm hearts.

  Sadie enjoyed the variety in their ages and began to dream of what Ellison might be like as she grew and hit all of the different stages. What was even better than the living situation was the fact that Ellison seemed at home among the family as well. Instead of crying at her normal times of the day, she simply sat and watched the children run around, enjoying the noise and antics.

  As Sadie and Brenda sat down to have a cup of tea later in the afternoon, Sadie started to think more seriously about what she was going to do. “Do you have any advice for where to start to look for a job?” she asked. She already had a great respect for the woman and felt as if she might know the answer to just about any question.

  “Well,” Brenda said, biting her lip, “we have a laptop around somewhere. You could start by searching the local job websites and see if anything tickles your fancy. What type of thing are you looking for?”

  Sadie didn’t want to give too much away, but she felt safe with Brenda and she didn’t think revealing the truth would lead to too many questions that would make her uncomfortable. “I haven’t had too many real jobs,” she began, “but I used to be an administrative assistant. And,” she shrugged, “I was an extra in a few movies. That was really fun.”

  “You act?” Brenda said, surprise showing on her face.

  Sadie laughed. “A little, I guess. If you can call pretending to drink a cup of coffee in the background while the real stars walk past acting.”

  “But you’ve been in real movies?”

  “Yeah, real movies. Sure.”

  “Then I’d call you an actress. Or actor. Whatever you prefer,” Brenda giggled.

  “I’d call me an extra,” Sadie smiled. “But I did enjoy it.”

  “Does that mean you lived out in California?” Brenda probed.

  Sadie didn’t like the line of questioning, but so far, it was safe to answer without getting too deep. “Yes, I’m a born and raised California girl.”

  “What brought you to New York?”

  Now Sadie was uncomfortable, but she felt confident that she could steer the conversation away from herself, just as she had so many times with Jed. “Oh, you know, just looking for a change of scenery.”

  “There’s nowhere more different from California than New York,” Brenda agreed.

  “Boy that’s the truth,” Sadie said, taking a deep breath. “So what do you recommend for a former extra slash administrative assistant in desperate need of a job?”

  “Hmm,” Brenda stroked her chin with her thumb and forefinger. “Would you have any interest in working as a producer for a talk show? That would have elements of administrative work but some of the lure of show biz.”

  “What do they do?” Sadie asked, intrigued.

  “Well, a lot of things. They arrange guests for the talk show, interview them, get all of the details in order, that sort of thing.”

  “That sounds fascinating. How in the world would I ever get into something like that though? I don’t really have any TV experience.”

  “No, but you’re in the movies,” Brenda reminded her as Sadie laughed again. She hadn’t felt this at ease since her first day on the last movie she did. After that, her life took quite a turn and things hadn’t been the same since. Ellison was a big part of the reason and while she likely wouldn’t have made the same mistakes again if she had to do it all over again, nothing could take away the fact that she had a beautiful daughter who she loved beyond anything she had ever felt before. “And,” Brenda continued with a wink, “I have a friend.

  Sadie felt hope rise in her chest. The best way to get any job was through a recommendation. Someone who knew someone who told that person about you. It was how she had gotten all of her jobs as an extra as well. Maybe the job hunt wouldn’t be so hard after all.

  She yawned as Ellison stirred over the monitor Brenda had provided for her. “She sounds hungry,” Brenda said, holding the monitor closer. “I bet if you run up right now and feed her, she’d go right back to sleep. Then maybe you can get some rest too.”

  Sadie nodded. “That’d be nice.” She took Brenda’s advice and rushed up the stairs to her daughter’s side. She could get used to this indeed. Having a family around to enjoy. Having Brenda by her side to give her mothering advice. Having Jed visit whenever he could to cajole her with his stories. She knew the last thing she should do was get used to it all. It wasn’t her life. It was theirs. But for a while, she would enjoy it and savor it so that she could take it with her wherever she went.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The next few days flew by as Sadie used the family’s computer to put together some semblance of a resume. She didn’t feel like her entries were all that exciting, but she enjoyed playing with the format and making it look as nice as possible. She was going to turn it over to Brenda to pass on to her friend, who was in the midst of choosing people to interview for the position she had open on a new talk show she was casting. It was Sadie’s understanding that it would be like Oprah, but with an even more spiritual twist. The show was based in New York instead of LA because those creating it hoped to get serious guests instead of only celebrities. It sounded like something Sadie would love to watch herself.

  Jed had also come by to visit on a daily basis. Some days, he came in the morning before his classes and other days he stopped by in the cab in the evening after a shift. Sadie wasn’t sure how he balanced it all or how he was able to fit them in to his busy schedule, but she quickly felt as if she was a priority in his life.

  The way that Jed looked at her made her feel important and special. She hoped he wasn’t getting his hopes up where she was concerned, but she reveled in the attention he gave her. She felt like the only woman in the world when they spoke. He was attentive and polite and she was close to telling him everything about her background.

  The last time he had visited, Ellison
had been sleeping in his arms peacefully, yet again. Sadie looked over at the two of them and wished beyond anything else that Jed was Ellison’s father instead. It would have been a picture perfect life had she waited to find someone like Jed. But it wasn’t meant to be. She had made her choices and she had to follow the path that God laid before her because of them.

  When Jed left that day, he handed Ellison back over to Sadie. And when they were close together, exchanging the baby, she felt his breath on her cheek. She turned toward him and nearly jumped up on her toes to kiss him. She held herself back when her daughter squirmed and reminded her of the many things that kept them apart.

  As Sadie put a few finishing touches on her resume, she heard the doorbell ring. The children were away at a weekly play date and Brenda was frantically trying to put away laundry and get other chores done in their absence. Sadie closed the small lap top and quickly ran down the stairs to get the door. It was probably the postal worker with a package or something and she didn’t want Brenda to have to take a break from getting her much needed chores done to answer the door.