Coming Home: (Contemporary Christian Romance Boxed Set): Three Stories of Love, Faith, Struggle & Hope

by Debra Ullrick

  He snorted. “If you drive me home, how are you going to get home?”

  There was money in her purse now. Sure there were other things she could get, but none were more important than this. “I’ll take a cab. It’s no big deal.”

  Greg looked at his watch. “But it’s after 10. You won’t get back here until like midnight.”

  “Yeah, thus, we’d better get going.” She walked around the car to him. “Keys.”

  He was obviously not ready for this confrontation, and he hesitated. However, Maggie wasn’t taking no for an answer. Finally he relinquished the keys. As he walked to the other side, she laughed. “But don’t go to sleep on me. I’m going to need some directions.”

  “That was great,” Dallas said as they picked up the debris from the party.

  “Yeah, except Tracy’s stupid comment to Maggie.”

  Dallas waved that off. “Oh, you know how Tracy is. She talks before she thinks.”

  Something inside of Keith lodged at the comment. He wanted to say more, but what more was there to say? I think your friends are inconsiderate snobs? That was honest, but not very prudent.

  “Oh, but didn’t Greg and Maggie make the cutest couple?” Dallas cooed. “I told you. He’s got a thing for her. I could tell by how he looked at her. You mark my words. Those two are going to get together.”

  Worse words had never been spoken. At the front window, Keith pulled the curtain back and peered out into the darkness. They were gone. Presumably to the mansion, or would Greg take her back to his place first? That was not an encouraging thought. Keith shook his head. Surely not. That was all the way back into Houston. The timing alone precluded that. Still, he couldn’t help but think even if they didn’t tonight, if Greg pursued this, it wouldn’t be long. That’s just the way things worked in their crowd.

  “So, Mr. Ayer,” Dallas said, wrapping her arms around him from behind before he knew she was there. “What do you say I give you a little preview of June third?” She sidled her way around him and leaned on the windowsill. Softly she reached up and kissed him. There was no doubt she was beautiful. There was no doubt any other man alive would have wanted her. But the sad fact was there was also no doubt that the one woman he really wanted had just left with his best friend. That was the way things were, and although it might kill him, it was time he accepted it.

  “Here?” Maggie asked, turning cautiously into the driveway.

  “Yeah. Apartment 215 at the end there.”

  She nodded.

  “Just park under the awning.”

  Again she nodded, guiding the little sports car into a space and with a sigh of relief turning it off. The light from the headlights slashed through the night and died. They were left under the amber nightlight above.

  “Thanks for bringing me home,” Greg said, putting his gaze the floorboard. “You really didn’t have to do that.”

  “Yeah, well. I’d rather know you’re home safe and sound than to worry about if you’d become highway pizza on the way home.” She fought to make her voice light and cheerful. The night had been nice. Greg was a nice date, and overall, she knew it was a night she would remember.

  “You can come up,” he said, glancing past her to the apartments beyond.

  She glanced the direction he’d indicated. “Oh, no. I’d better get home.”

  “Well, you can at least come up and call the cab.”

  That hurdle hadn’t crossed her mind, but he had a point. “Okay.” Nerves like she’d never had before snaked through her as they got out of the car. He started up the stairs first, and she followed.

  At the top he opened the door and flipped on the light. She followed him in, her gaze taking in every detail of the room. Clean and neat. Just like him. At the kitchen counter, he grabbed a phonebook and paged through it.

  “You got any one you like in particular?”

  She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter.”

  After a minute more of searching, Greg reached for the phone, dialed the number, and placed the call. When the cab was on its way, he turned to her. “Would you like something to drink? I don’t have much. Water. Milk. Beer.”

  She scrunched her nose and shook her head. “No thanks.”

  Greg nodded, and Maggie was pretty sure he already knew what her answer would be when he asked. He walked over to where she was standing, looking like each step might be his last.

  “I had fun tonight just so you know.”

  Her smile was genuine. “So did I.”

  His gaze dropped between them. “Really? I mean I really felt bad about Tracy and her being so rude to you.”

  “No, hey. Don’t worry about it. I lived. It’s okay.”

  When he looked at her, Maggie’s gaze was swept up in his. Between them his fingers brushed hers, and before she knew it, he leaned toward her. It wasn’t what she’d expected. Why she didn’t know, but somehow him being a nice guy who would call a cab with no pressure and then kiss her before she left wasn’t where she thought this night would go. His lips brushed hers but only that. It was nicer than she thought it would be.

  Her eyes came open, and she looked up to find him gazing right through her.

  “Can I call you sometime?”

  Her heart had no other answer. “I’d like that.”

  The cab ride back was eternal, and Maggie had to fight not to fall asleep the whole way. Once at the estate she paid the driver more than she had thought it would be and then slipped from the cab and around to the back. Quietly she let herself in the kitchen door. Inez had carefully gotten her the message that she would leave it open.

  Up the stairs and to her bedroom door she went, but when she was there, she couldn’t just go in without checking. Softly she slipped to Izzy’s door and opened it. The child in the baby bed was barely visible, yet she looked older than Maggie remembered. “Good night, little one.”

  Then across the hall to Peter’s room. He was curled in a ball, his thumb in his mouth. A question went through Maggie’s mind at his posture, but then she thought rationally, she’d never actually seen him in the middle of the night before. Softly she kissed her fingers. “Good night, sweet prince. I love you.”

  And she tiptoed out.

  Five and a half hours later, Maggie was up again. Over and over she stifled the yawns, but she was determined not to let her one day off hurt her job performance. It was back to lessons and lunches, and although the night before had been a nice distraction, this was life.

  The day slipped by almost without notice. She was so in-tune with the schedule, it was like it had never been a problem. Even Patty Ann almost smiled when they were down at the dining room door at 5:45, cleaned, pressed, and ready. Dinner went well although Mr. Ayer was not present. Maggie considered asking about that, but she didn’t have the courage.

  Mrs. Ayer mostly ate in silence, and although Maggie wanted to say something to her, she couldn’t think what that something should be. When dinner was finished, Maggie had Peter kiss his mother, and they went upstairs to take baths.

  Isabella went through first, and her new favorite word seemed to be “Gie. Gie.” It was cute to hear her say it over and over, but Maggie was afraid the others would throw a fit if they heard. So in her best interest, she knelt by the tub, washing off the slick little body. “Say, ‘Mommy.’ Yeah. ‘Mommy.’” She held her lips just right on the Mmm part of Mommy to demonstrate the letter. “Mommy.”

  “Gie. Gie!” Isabella squealed excitedly.

  “No.” Maggie laughed. “Mommy. Mmmommmy.”

  “Gie. Gie!”

  “Well, I guess Mommy is going to have to wait ‘til tomorrow.” She grabbed a towel and dried the first little one off. “Okay, Mister. Mister. Your turn.”

  Like the trooper he was, Peter stepped forward. Maggie took hold of his shirt and pulled it up. His pants were halfway down when she noticed the dark brown circles on the back of his arm. “Peter, what happened?” Concern drained through her as she gazed at him. “Did you fall?”


  Slowly side-to-side his head moved, but his gaze was on the tile.

  “What…?” Maggie turned him to the other side, and there were identical marks on his other arm. Gently she turned him to face her. “Peter, who did this to you?”

  He wouldn’t look at her.

  “You can tell me. I won’t be mad.” Maggie’s mind was flying through every bit of training she’d ever had on how to get a child to tell you something they didn’t want to tell you.

  “Izzy cried,” Peter said softly. “I tried to tell her to stop.”

  “Izzy?” Maggie’s gaze went to the baby playing with the towel on the floor. She surveyed the child in one glance. “Was she hurt?”

  “No. She got in trouble. I tried to tell her to stop.”

  “What did she get into trouble for?” Every point in Maggie’s body was in full defense and concern mode.

  Peter didn’t say anything, and Maggie realized the intensity of her voice was scaring him. She forced herself to calm down and breathe.

  “It’s okay, Peter. Really. You can tell me.”

  “She was trying to climb the ladder on the playhouse.” The words came slow and deliberately. “Ms. Haga got mad.”

  It was all she could do to keep her emotions from reaching the surface. “Did she hit Izzy?”

  Peter’s head moved back and forth.

  “Did she hit you?”

  Again his head moved back and forth.

  “Peter, this is important. Did Ms. Haga hurt you?”

  His head stopped, and he stood there, staring at the tiles.

  Maggie’s heart had ceased beating. “It’s okay, Peter. I won’t get mad. I promise.”

  “She wanted me to be quiet because I was telling Izzy to stop crying.”

  Maggie’s intensity felt like it might overwhelm her. Still she forced herself to calm down so she could put her hand gently on his back without scaring him. “Peter, did she hurt you?”

  When he looked at her, there were tears welling in his brown eyes. “She shook me real hard. I told her I was sorry, but she was really mad. I tried to tell her…”

  “Oh, baby boy.” And Maggie pulled him into her arms, wishing she had never heard of such a thing as a day off.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Keith had tried every excuse he could think of to get out of going to the Woodlands, but neither Dallas nor Ike would hear any of it. His future was calling, and there didn’t seem like much he could do to get out of it.

  “This house is so perfect,” Dallas cooed from her side of the pickup. She looked so strange sitting there, so out-of-place.

  Keith tried not to think about who looked better sitting there. It wasn’t easy.

  “Do you think we should just put an offer in now, or should we try to haggle with them?” Dallas asked.

  “Why don’t we just see the house first, and then we’ll decide.” Put it off. That was his motto. Put it off until the very last possible moment. It was the best he could think to do.

  “We’re going to go over to the stables,” Maggie said to Inez Wednesday afternoon. “I talked to Jeffrey. He said he would come get us and take us over there.”

  “You’re going riding?” Inez asked with concern.

  “Ho’sies!” Isabella said.

  “I don’t know. We’ll see. The kids need some fresh air.”

  “There’s fresh air in the backyard.”

  “Yeah, but there’s not ho’sies!” Maggie shot the maid a grin.

  “Ho’sies!”

  With Peter’s hand in hers and Isabella planted on her hip, Maggie stepped from the gardener’s truck, scanning the area for the Dodge.

  “You want me to wait for you?” Jeffrey asked.

  “No. That’s okay. If they’re not here, we’ll wait.”

  He didn’t look particularly pleased about that, but he nodded and drove off. In the dust cloud that followed, Maggie stepped, hoping this was the right thing to do. Maybe together they could figure out what to do about Ms. Haga and the little marks. Holding onto both children, she walked into the breezeway of the stables where she listened with every step for voices but heard nothing. At the door to the office, she knocked. A minute she waited. Then she knocked again. “Hello. Anyone here?”

  She ducked into the office, which felt good compared with the stifling humidity of outside. “Hello. Keith? Ike?” Still nothing. She glanced back through the breezeway outside. No movement anywhere. Finally she made the decision. “Come on. Looks like we’re going to have to wait.”

  An hour slid by as Maggie held Isabella who played for a little while then fell asleep. There didn’t seem to be a good place to lay her down, so Maggie willed her arm not to drop off as she held the sleeping child who got heavier by the minute.

  “When is Keith going to get here?” Peter asked clearly losing his patience as well.

  “Soon I hope.” At that moment her ears picked up the voices in the breezeway, and she froze. Too late to make a new decision, she sat unmoving as the two figures walked into the office.

  Ike was all the way in the room before he realized she was there and stopped. His smile at her wasn’t altogether happy. “Ms. Montgomery. This is a surprise.”

  She stood, praying she could get all the way up without falling. “I’m sorry. We were waiting for Keith.”

  Puzzlement ripped through Ike’s gaze. “Keith? Keith went to the Woodlands with Dallas.” Ike walked through the office to his desk as a young man, several years younger than Maggie followed him in. At the desk the two talked in quiet tones as Ike handed out the rest of the day’s work schedule.

  The young man turned to go and at the door tipped his hat to her. “Ma’am.”

  Maggie stood there, not sure if she should sit or run. She nodded to the young man who ducked out.

  “Ms. Montgomery, why are you here?” Ike leaned back in his office chair and surveyed her from head to foot.

  She pulled herself up to her full height. “I’m… I need to talk with Keith.”

  “Keith. Hmm… well, let me give you a little piece of advice about Keith Ayer. Mr. Ayer is not available for your entertainment or your amusement, no matter what you may have been led to believe.” His disdain for her dripped from the statement. “Now I don’t know what fancy ideas he might have put in your head about things, but let’s get one thing perfectly straight, shall we? He’s engaged, and chasing after engaged men just doesn’t make it very far on the sniff factor around here. Now, I advise you to go back up to the mansion and stay there. I don’t want to see you hanging around the stables again because you’re just not welcome down here. Got it?”

  How she kept from crying, Maggie would never know. Her pride hurt. Her arm hurt. Her heart hurt. Everything about her hurt including her overwhelming desire to help the children. She wanted to tell him that, to tell him this was only about them. Instead she resettled Isabella on her shoulder and squared her jaw. He was just like all the rest of them—condescending and spiteful. “Yeah, I got it. I’m sorry for taking up your time.” She grabbed Peter’s hand and stumbled from the office, not knowing where she was going or how she was going to get there. Tears blurred her vision so that she wasn’t sure she was even going in the right direction, but stopping wasn’t an option.

  Out into the sun they went, through the dust, and out to the road. Her tears, hot and salty, slid down her cheeks.

  “Ma’am!”

  The word barely slowed her down.

  “Ma’am! If you want a ride, I could take you,” the young man from the office said.

  Maggie yanked the tears back into her eyes and turned to him as he ran up to her. “Oh, okay. Thank you. That would be great.”

  It was Friday before Keith managed to make it to the stables again. There was just something about Dallas that made him feel guilty if he wasn’t entertaining her at every moment. He walked into the office at eight o’clock and grabbed the feed schedule from the wall. No doubt he was going to get ribbed for missing two days in a row.
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  “Well, the dead has arisen,” Ike said as he and Tanner came into the office. “Nice of you to join us again.”

  “Yeah. Yeah. Yeah,” Keith said, shrugging off the teasing. “I’m going to go check the hay out in the stables.”

  “Good plan,” Ike said and waved him out. “It would be good for you to get something accomplished this week.”

  With a push out of the office, Keith strode through the stables, looking in to check each horse individually as he did every morning. He was really going to miss this morning ritual when he was chained to some desk in a few months. “Good morning, Dragnet. You’re up mighty early.” He rubbed a hand over the chestnut’s head.

  The office door banged, and he looked up. “Y’all all ready to head out for tomorrow?” Keith asked the retreating back of the young cowboy who would presumably take his place once he was gone.

  “Oh.” Tanner spun on the heel of his boot. “Mr. Ayer. I didn’t see you there.”

  “Sorry.” Keith came abreast of him, and they started out. “Anything exciting happen while I was gone?”

  Tanner, never one to be quick on the draw with words, hesitated. He glanced back to the office door and then swung his gaze forward again. Even as he walked, it took another long moment for him to say anything. “Well, there was one thing.”

  Nothing in Keith liked the hesitation or the glance. “Why? What happened?”

  “Well…” Tanner glanced back again. “Mr. Jones would kill me if he knew I told you this.”

  “Well, Mr. Jones doesn’t own this place. What do you say, you tell me and let me decide?”

  “Well…” It seemed to take a tug of his courage to get the words out. “The other day, when you were gone, the lady who works at the mansion came by.”

  “The lady?” Keith was having trouble picturing Patty Ann anywhere near the stables.

  “Yeah. The young one with the nice hair. She had the two kids with her.”

  Instantly Keith was worried. “Maggie? Maggie was here?”

  Tanner nodded.