Summer's Belle

by Paige Winship Dooly

  “Young lady, are you calling me old again? You think I’m old enough to retire?”

  “No, that’s not what I meant. . . .”

  “You implied that I’m old enough to retire.”

  Britney crossed her arms. “Lots of people retire young.”

  “Well, you saved yourself with that one.” He looked down at the file that lay open before him and grew thoughtful. “Why are you here?”

  “Matt thought I was driving recklessly.”

  “You don’t agree?”

  “No. And yes. I mean, it did appear that way, but only because I saw the opening into the gas station last-minute, and when I swung in, I hit gravel, and it appeared that I careened into the lot.”

  Matt interjected. “You most certainly did careen.”

  The judge ignored him. “I see here you had several younger siblings in the vehicle with you.”

  “Yes, sir. They’re sitting with my grandmother right behind me.” Britney pointed at them, stating the obvious. No one else was in the courtroom, the judge apparently knew her grandmother well, and three of the children in question were making loud animal noises that couldn’t be ignored. Skye was upside down with his feet over the back of the bench and his head hanging down toward the floor. It was kind of hard to miss them.

  “Where’s your mother?”

  “We don’t know.”

  “How’d you come to be in possession of your siblings?”

  “I came home after graduating from college to find that my mother had abandoned them.”

  “Did you call the authorities?”

  “No, though my mom’s interfering neighbor probably took that responsibility upon herself.” Brit closed her eyes, hating that she had to go through the entire story again. She’d already explained the whole thing to her grandmother. “My mother has left the children before. They were split up and placed in foster care. I have a guardianship paper I made my mother sign the last time it happened so I could take custody if she ever left them again.”

  “Is the document certified by the court? Was it witnessed? Notarized?”

  “No, sir.” Brit’s voice dropped. “I figured if my mother signed the paper, we wouldn’t need anything more.”

  The judge appraised her with his glare. “How am I to know you didn’t just kidnap them and run off? You could have forged her signature.”

  Skye picked that moment to fall off the bench. Allie picked him up and plunked him back onto his seat. His indignant howl made the judge cringe, and a twitch started above his left eye. Britney raised an eyebrow. No one would willingly kidnap these children. And even if they did, they’d quickly turn around and return them to their home.

  The judge looked pained and quickly swept the stack of papers into his folder. “Matt, did you run Britney’s name through the system?”

  “Yes, sir, I did. I found a few old traffic tickets that were resolved in a timely manner. Nothing more.”

  “Did you find any mention of her siblings being kidnapped?”

  “No, sir. I did not.”

  The judge sighed. “Well, young lady. I think I’ll let you off easy. As long as your grandmother is in agreement, I’m remanding custody of the children to the two of you.” He looked over at Gram. She nodded her agreement, not bothering to hide her smile this time.

  “I do want to dig a little deeper into your family situation in the meantime.”

  “I understand.” Brit knew he had an obligation to his job to do so.

  “Other than that, let’s see. I want you to serve forty hours of community service during the next month for—how was it written up?” He tilted his head and peered through his glasses at Matt’s traffic citation. “Son, haven’t I talked to you about your handwriting and the need to be fastidious when writing up your paperwork?”

  Matt shrugged. “I thought I was being fastidious when I filled out the forms. Which part are you having trouble with?”

  His father ignored him again. “Here we go—‘haphazardly speeding into my town.’ Thirty days probation ought to be enough restitution. Unless you have something else to say, I guess we’re finished here.”

  “Thirty days?” Britney’s head whipped up, and she stared at the man. He couldn’t be serious. A month? It just didn’t seem fair the judge could decide her fate and interfere with her summer for such a small infraction. What if Ryan called and wanted to patch things up? What if she couldn’t find a job and needed to move on? Not that she wanted to leave, but still. It was the principle of the fact. “Can’t I just pay a fine or something like I did for the traffic tickets back in Georgia?”

  The judge seemed to consider her question. He looked from Matt, to her, to Gram, and on to the children. He pulled his glasses from his face. “No. I really think my decision is for the best.”

  Britney started to argue but figured she’d end up with an even stiffer sentence if she did. Besides, she knew that after Ryan’s comments and attitude back in Atlanta, the fact was he’d lost her. And if she really thought about it, if she wasn’t going to be with him, did she really want to spend her summer watching on the sidelines as he moved on to his next victim? Most importantly, her younger sisters and brothers needed her. She couldn’t turn her back on them like their mother had. But what would she do in this tiny town for a job? How could she make a living?

  “Excuse me, Miss Hart?”

  Britney didn’t miss the judge’s sarcasm. “Yes, sir?”

  “Do you think you can focus long enough on what I’m saying for me to finish my judgment in your case?”

  “Yes, sir. I’m sorry. I thought you were finished. My mind wandered and took me all the way back to Georgia.” Britney felt her face flush. She glanced over at Matt. He stared straight ahead at the wall behind his father. His face was red from the effort not to laugh. “I’m listening now, sir.”

  “Welcome back.” He sighed. “Matthew?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Since you seem to find the young lady so amusing, I’m remanding her to your custody for the duration of her community service and probation. If she finds any more trouble while she’s here, I’ll hold you personally responsible. Do you understand?”

  Matt sputtered. “But—”

  “Do you understand?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “See that she finds her way to the church and that she’s properly introduced to the pastor and staff. I think there’s a meeting coming up soon, and she needs to be a part of it.”

  His words sank in, and Britney raised her hand.

  “Yes, Miss Hart?”

  Brit realized she wasn’t in a classroom and quickly dropped her arm. “The church? I don’t understand. What does that have to do with my community service?”

  The judge peered over the bench like she was simple. “Let me spell it out for you, little missy. You’ll be doing your forty hours of community service at the local church, helping with the completion of the new crisis pregnancy center. This is a small town. For now, that’s the only place that has an opening for someone like you.”

  “But—”

  “Don’t ‘but’ me.”

  Britney continued on. “I don’t have anywhere to live. I won’t have any way to pay my expenses.”

  The judge looked over her shoulder. “Yes, Ethel?”

  Britney turned around to see Ethel waving her arms in the air.

  She lowered them and sent Britney a warm smile. “I just wanted to say that my house is open to you, Britney. You won’t have to worry about a thing. You don’t need to worry about a job either. Take the summer off and relax.”

  Britney figured contrary to her grandmother’s beliefs, she had plenty of things to worry about. The judge was digging into their past, he’d assigned her to community service for a measly traffic ticket, and now he was pretty much sentencing her to this town for a chunk of the summer. Though she knew Ryan and the beach house had lost their appeal, she didn’t like the decisions to be made for her.

  The judge
smiled. “See? Yet another situation resolved. You do want the chance to get to know your grandmother, am I correct?”

  Britney’s strained expression must have given her away.

  “Yes. Of course. I do want a chance to know her.” She looked behind her and sent her grandmother a heartfelt smile. “But I don’t want to be a burden to her.”

  “Well, since she’s in charge of the pregnancy center and heads up the committee, I expect you to be an asset, not a burden. I see here in my file that you have a degree in business with a minor in recreation. You couldn’t be more perfect for the job. You’ll assist with the pregnancy center for the summer. Have I made myself clear?”

  “Yes, sir. You have.”

  Her grandmother was in charge of a crisis pregnancy center? What was with the people in this town? Didn’t anyone ever retire?

  The judge slammed down his gavel. Brit jumped, her nerves shot. She felt the action was unnecessary since they were the only ones in the courtroom. She could have sworn she heard the judge snicker under his breath.

  Matt stayed at the bench to consult with his father while Brit hurried over to her grandmother.

  Gram waited at the back of the room.

  Brit slowed her approach. “I’m so sorry, Gram. We’ve been here a week, and we’ve turned your life completely upside down. That wasn’t my intent.”

  Gram pulled her into another one of her all-encompassing hugs. “Oh goodness, dear. Don’t you know by now that your appearance in my life has been nothing but a blessing? I already told you that I’ve prayed for years that I’d someday see my daughter again and if not her, any of her children.”

  “Yes, you did.” Brit smiled. “But did you count on getting us all at once?”

  “I’m thrilled to get you all at once.”

  Britney sure hoped her grandmother continued to feel the Pollyanna happiness. She followed Gram out the double doors of the courtroom and down the hall toward the front of the building. Allie shepherded the younger kids through the doors ahead of them and out into the bright Mondaymorning sunshine.

  She decided to try one more time before they got too far from the courthouse. It wasn’t too late for her grandmother to change her mind. “I know you said you’re happy to have us here, but you’re used to being alone. You’re used to quiet. I’m sure you’ve noticed that we can get a bit—”

  “Overwhelming?” Gram laughed. “I can imagine. But too much quiet is a bad thing. I’m thrilled with the thought of getting to know you all better. I’ve loved the past week. I want to spend time with you. I’d rather have a house full of noisy children any day than to live in solitude. I’ve been alone for far too long.”

  “Okay, but I doubt it was in your plans to take in an adult who arrived in the custody of the sheriff.”

  Gram threw her head back and laughed at that. “You were hardly in the custody of the sheriff. And I know Matt can get a tad overzealous at times. I doubt Jim—Matt’s father—even wrote any of that stuff about you being in Matt’s custody in the court records, though you could do worse than to have a nice young man like Matt hovering around you all summer.” She nudged Brit with her elbow. Her expression matched Allie’s when she’d nudged Brit the week before after a similar comment. “Matt really is a wonderful young man. You might actually like him if you give him half a chance.”

  “Gram!” Brit squeaked. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

  “Why? God does work in mysterious ways, and He might just have a plan that involves you and Matt in this situation. Since Matt is the assistant youth pastor, you’ll be working closely with him during your ‘community service.’ ”

  “He’s assistant youth pastor, too? Does he ever sleep?”

  “Rarely. The boy has more energy than anyone I’ve ever met. You should have seen him in his younger years. That boy ran his parents ragged. Inquisitive, always asking questions about how things work or why people did what they did. He’d have made a fine lawyer like his dad. But also like his dad, he preferred police work to sitting in an office all day.” She quieted for a moment. “It hurt him deeply when his mother ran out on them. His father tried hard to fill the gap, and I stepped in when I could, but nothing replaces an absentee mother, as I’m sure you understand.”

  “What did he do after she left?”

  “At first he withdrew. As he got older, he did what most teens seem to do. He rebelled. He gave Jim a really hard time for a few years, running with the wrong crowd. Jim had already left his law practice and had taken the job as sheriff. But just as suddenly, Matt turned around and decided to follow his father into law and set his sights on becoming sheriff.”

  “I’m glad.” Brit laughed. “I mean, not that he’s in law—because thanks to that little fact, I’m walking out of a courtroom instead of sitting home visiting with you. But I’m glad he came around. It encourages me.”

  “Because of Sam?”

  Gram’s perceptive question surprised Brit.

  “Yes.” She missed her younger brother and wished he’d come along with them. Sam would love Gram, and she’d love him, too. “Sam isn’t a bad person. He’s never been in trouble with the law or anything. But he was so angry after Momma left us last time. He said he wouldn’t go back into foster care. I wish I knew how to get ahold of him so I could tell him about you. I had to leave him behind. I didn’t know how to reach him, and I had to get the other kids out of there. Sam would love it here.”

  “We’ll pray he somehow finds his way to us. I bet we can come up with a plan to find him. And I bet Matt can help, too.”

  Nine

  Early the next morning Britney woke to the mouthwatering scents of hickory-smoked bacon and freshly brewed hazelnut coffee. She stretched and looked around the brightly decorated, blue-and-white wallpapered room and tried to get her bearings. Gram’s house. Her family. She smiled and snuggled deeper into her blankets. The large fluffy bed was the softest she’d ever slept in, and even with Noelle curled tightly against her side, Brit woke up feeling rested.

  She reached over and smoothed Noelle’s wispy blond hair away from her face and leaned in to kiss her sister’s cheek. Brit soaked in the moment. It wasn’t often that all felt well with her world—and even now it wasn’t—but still she savored the moment of having her siblings safe under a secure roof with all their immediate needs provided for.

  Brit eased out of bed without waking Noelle, glad to have her soft little body nearby. For the moment, as she stared down at Noelle’s sleeping form, her face flushed with sleep, Brit felt no regrets at her change of circumstances. This was the nicest place her siblings had ever been. Brit kept her voice to a whisper. “I’ve missed you, sweet thing. I’ll be back soon.”

  Brit hoped she could get a head start on her community service. Even if she was there for a good part of the summer, she could knock out the forty hours as soon as possible and get them over with. Two part-time weeks of work would easily finish them off. She could spend the rest of the time getting to know her grandmother and exploring the small town with her siblings.

  Brit slipped into the adjoining bathroom, quietly closed the door, and jumped into the shower. The hot water felt heavenly in the cool morning air. After drying with a thick, fluffy towel, she moved back into her bedroom to choose an outfit. She wasn’t sure what the day would bring, so she pulled on a white tank top and covered it with a peach peasant blouse. She completed the ensemble with a pair of faded blue jeans. Never one to wear a lot of makeup, it only took her a moment to dab some blush on her cheeks and apply a quick swipe of mascara to her lashes.

  When she felt ready for the day, she followed the mouthwatering aromas that drifted up the stairwell to their place of origination in the kitchen. To her surprise, Matt sat at the table in the eating nook, reading the morning paper as if he belonged there. And for all she knew, he did. Maybe it was his habit to visit with Gram over breakfast on a regular basis, too.

  “Mornin’.” He appraised her with a smile. Just as quickly he
dismissed her and reached for his cup of coffee. He took a sip before returning his eyes to her. “I thought we’d get an early start on our day.”

  “Our day?” Goodness, the man was proprietary and punctual when it came to his responsibilities!

  “Yep, our day. Since I’ve been assigned to watch out for you, I figured I’d pick you up and we’d jump right in with a tour of the church, the town, and the pregnancy center. We don’t want to see you getting into any more trouble just because you have too much spare time on your hands.”

  “Very funny.” Of all the nerve! Spare time. As if Brit ever had much of that. She narrowed her eyes. “It’s not like I’m prone toward trouble. I thought I’d made that clear. My records, which you seem to have researched, should have proved the same.”

  “I know.” He grinned. “But you are prone to getting your back up when you’re irritated, which makes you fun to tease.”

  “That’s enough, Matthew.” Gram walked over from the stove and slapped his knuckles with her spatula. “You’ll behave in my kitchen, and you’ll treat my granddaughter with respect, or you’ll find yourself all alone eating a cold breakfast of cereal out on your bike.” She lowered a plateful of food and placed it in front of him.

  Matt didn’t look the least bit remorseful. He sent Brit a devious smile and dropped his head in silent prayer. He finished quickly and picked up a fork.

  “Your bike?” Brit slipped into a seat and paused over her own forkful of food. She bowed her head and said a quick prayer of thanks. “Your bike, as in your motorcycle?”

  “Yep.” He grinned with pride.

  “In that case, I’ll drive separately and meet you at the church.”

  “No you won’t.” He didn’t even bother to look up from his plate.

  “Yes I will. I’m not riding on that death trap with you.”

  Gram laughed. “That’s exactly what I call it!”

  “I’ve never had a wreck on the thing.”

  “There’s a first time for everything. I prefer to finish out the summer alive.”

  “And I intend for you to do the same.”