“Rachel…?”
There was a poignancy in his tone that would have made her stop even if she hadn’t been aware that she’d just jogged a tender spot in his memory. “Yes?”
“I’m sorry I came on so strong just now.”
She smiled agreeably. “No problem. I have broad shoulders.”
Sean returned her smile. “You’re so tiny you barely have any shoulders at all. Maybe that’s why I was so surprised when you told me you owned power tools. Is the offer still good? Can I come get a window or two and maybe borrow a drill once I decide what I need?”
“Of course. Just give me a call ahead of time to make sure I’m home. You know where I live. The number’s in the book.”
“I think I’ll call Slocum’s Garage and send my buddy Craig on a wild-goose chase, first,” Sean joked. “He’s not a real rational guy when he’s around you.”
“He never was. That’s one of the reasons I decided not to marry him—no matter what.”
“Whoa. I thought you said you weren’t over him.”
“It’s a long story,” Rachel said. “Actually, Craig did me a favor by breaking our engagement.”
“How’s that?”
“He helped me admit that I didn’t need marriage to make me a complete person.”
Given Rachel’s undeniably maternal nature, Sean was taken aback. “You really don’t want a family? Kids of your own, I mean.”
Waiting for an answer, he sensed her withdrawal. It didn’t take a degree in psychology to see that she was shutting him out. Rachel Woodward might put on a good act most of the time, but there was definitely some unspoken outrage hidden beneath the persona she presented to the world. Whatever it was, it was bad enough to negate her normal good cheer. Of that, he was positive. He’d just watched it happen.
“You’re starting to sound like my mother again,” she said.
Sean carefully schooled his features, presenting a tranquil, amiable facade. “Tell you what. If you’ll promise to stop mentioning my family, I’ll try to avoid saying anything that reminds you of Martha. Okay?”
“Okay. Deal.”
Rachel knew it was well past time to beat a hasty retreat. Whirling, she headed straight for the haven of her classroom. Sean had misunderstood her when he’d assumed she meant that he, personally, had reminded her of her mother. On the contrary. Being around him brought far different thoughts—thoughts that related directly to Martha’s wish that her daughter would someday fall in love and marry.
That was one of the reasons why Rachel’s conscience had twisted so uncomfortably when Sean mentioned having children. It was evident that having a family was high on his list of priorities, the same as it was on Craig’s, which was a typical male trait. Women took on the care and nurturing of their children while men strutted around and bragged about what extraordinary kids they had produced.
“I’m happy single,” she muttered to herself. “I like my life. I love my life. And I don’t intend to complicate it by falling in love with anybody.”
In her heart, she heard one word echo silently. Liar.
With so many students to look after and teach, Rachel wasn’t surprised that the rest of the day seemed to pass quickly. When the dismissal bell rang, however, she realized how exhausted she was. It was definitely quitting time.
Samantha lagged back, remaining with her teacher instead of boarding the bus immediately. She gave Rachel’s skirt a quick tug to gain her attention. “Can I come play with Schatzy today?”
“Today? I don’t know. It’s awfully hot again.”
“I don’t care. I don’t have to take that old bus. I could go home with you.”
Rachel already knew she’d made a grave mistake by inviting the little girl to visit in the first place. Yet when Samantha raised those big blue eyes and gave her such a needy look, she couldn’t bear to refuse without offering a possible alternative.
“I can’t take you home with me, Samantha. It’s against the school rules. You have to ride the bus. I suppose it would be all right if Mrs. Brody wants to bring you over later, after I get home, though.”
The little girl was bouncing up and down like a doll suspended from rubber bands. “Yeah!”
“But…if she decides she’s too busy tonight, I don’t want you to make a fuss. Understand?”
“You tell her. She’ll do it if you tell her to.”
“We ask when we want someone to do us a favor,” Rachel instructed gently. “We don’t tell them what to do. That isn’t polite.”
“But you can make her do it,” Samantha argued. “You can make anybody do anything.”
Rachel laughed. “I think you give me too much credit, honey. I don’t have any special powers of persuasion.”
“Yes, you do. Angels can do lots of things. I saw them.”
Crouching beside her so she could look her straight in the eyes, Rachel asked, “What did you see?”
“Angels. I told you.”
“When?”
Expecting the child to mention the classroom incident involving the weeping boy, Rachel was shocked when Samantha said, “When my mommy and daddy went to heaven.”
Rachel had done her best to control her astonishment at Samantha’s declaration about encountering angels. Nevertheless, she knew she’d reacted too strongly because the child had refused to explain further, even when she’d probed for details.
As soon as bus five pulled out, Rachel went in search of Sean. She found him coming out of his office. “Hi.”
“Hi. What’s up?”
Rachel stepped closer so they could converse privately, even though the hallway was now nearly deserted. “I think I just made a big mistake.”
“You? A mistake? Perish the thought.”
She playfully punched him in the shoulder. “Knock off the jokes, Bates. I’m trying to be serious here.”
“Sorry. What’s the problem?”
“It’s Samantha.”
“Don’t tell me she took the wrong bus again.”
“No. I made sure she got on number five and stayed there. It’s something she said while we were out front waiting. She told me she’d seen angels—when her parents died.”
“Go on.”
“That’s all I could get out of her,” Rachel said with a sigh. “The minute I started asking questions, she clammed up. I thought maybe you could give me some pointers about what to say the next time she brings up the subject.”
Sean pressed his lips together, his brows arching. “That’s a tough one. It’s not the kind of thing you can rehearse ahead of time. You just have to feel your way along. Were you careful to allow her to express herself without condemnation?”
“I hope so. I was trying to act nonchalant. I know I did fine until she mentioned her folks. After that, I’m not so sure. I couldn’t believe how matter-of-fact she sounded.”
“Children are like that,” Sean said. “They accept death a lot easier than adults do. Samantha may have imagined angels were involved to help cushion the loss.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Rachel’s voice was barely a whisper.
Head cocked to one side, Sean leaned closer and strained to hear. “What?”
“Never mind. I was just talking to myself,” Rachel said. She couldn’t help noticing how his nearness was speeding up her heartbeat and taking her breath away. It was bad enough that the afternoon humidity was stifling. Now, her emotions were kicking into high gear, too. The combination made her dizzy.
Sean touched her arm. “You okay?”
“I don’t care for the heat, that’s all.”
“A fine Native American you make,” he teased. “Come on. I’ll walk you back to your classroom.”
“That’s not necessary.”
“I know it isn’t. But how are we going to generate enough gossip to keep everybody occupied if we don’t give them fresh news to pass around from time to time? We wouldn’t want them to get bored.”
She gave a wry chuckle. “Perish the thought.”
>
His grasp on her arm was firm and gentle—more than a caress but less than forceful. There was an unexplainable assuredness to it that gave Rachel moral as well as physical support. Perhaps friendship between them wasn’t out of the question, even though he had overstepped its bounds when he’d caught her by surprise and kissed her.
Remembering that precious moment didn’t help Rachel’s dizziness one bit. Neither did the touch of Sean’s strong hand on her bare arm. Heat or no heat, she wished she’d kept her jacket on instead of leaving the classroom in only her sleeveless cotton dress. The sheath was appropriate for summer wear, it simply didn’t cover her upper arms enough to keep his hand from making direct contact with her skin.
They reached her classroom quickly. Sean ordered her to sit down while he fetched her a cup of water. “Drink.”
“Let me sip it, okay?”
“Okay. I didn’t see you in the staff room at lunchtime, today. Did you eat?”
“I needed to get art supplies ready for the afternoon lesson, so I ate a bite in here, while the kids were gone.”
“A bite? Or a real lunch?”
“Well…”
“That’s what I thought. No wonder you’re woozy. Probably have low blood sugar. You didn’t take nearly enough at Linden’s the other day to get your money’s worth, either.”
“I happen to love salads.”
“You still didn’t eat enough to keep a rabbit alive.”
“I’m not a rabbit.”
One eyebrow arched and he grinned. “No kidding. If I’d had teachers who looked like you when I was a kid, I might have done better in school.”
That confession surprised her. After taking a few sips of water she asked, “You weren’t a good student?”
“Not at first. It took me till I was out of high school to figure out that the only way I was ever going to make it on my own was to improve my education. Even then, I didn’t go about it right.”
Rachel finished the cup of water and held it out to him with a smile and a “Please?” While he was refilling it at the classroom sink, she questioned him further. “What did you do wrong?”
“I didn’t follow my heart. My brothers had majored in business so I did the same. That was my first mistake. The second was trying to work with them. We fought all the time about how the store should be run. It wasn’t until I was totally fed up that I realized I was a big part of the problem.”
“Because you weren’t doing what you really wanted to do?”
“Exactly.” Smiling, Sean handed her the refilled cup. “How did you get so smart? I thought I was the psychologist around here.”
“Horse sense.” When he looked puzzled she amended her comment. “You know, plain old common sense.”
“Right. The moment I met you I sensed you had intuitive capabilities. That’s one reason I doubt you said or did anything to make Samantha wary of confiding in you. I suspect she’ll come around and tell you the whole story when she’s ready. In the meantime, she’s been assigned as one of my first cases.”
“That’s wonderful. I’m so glad you’re working here. I don’t know how many times I’ve wished for a professional opinion about a student and had to muddle through myself, instead. I’ll feel much better knowing I’m not struggling with Samantha’s problems alone.”
“Good. Happy to help.” Sean took a backward step toward the door. “Well, I’d better be getting back to my office. Our esteemed boss was supposed to drop in after four and look over what I’ve done with the place. Not that that overgrown closet gives me much opportunity to be creative. I do still want to make one of those fake windows, though. Okay if I stop by your place on my way home today and pick one up?”
“No problem. I’m always home by five. If you get there ahead of me, just help yourself.”
“And be shot as a trespasser by one of your guntoting neighbors? No, thanks. If I don’t see your car, I’ll just park out front and wait for you.”
So much for avoiding him by dragging my feet, she thought ruefully. It figured. The way the past few weeks had been going, she was liable to wind up with a house full of guests this evening when all she really wanted to do was kick off her shoes, grab a tall glass of iced tea, plop down in front of the air conditioner and veg out till bedtime.
Rachel sighed. “Okay. You can come tonight as long as you don’t make it too late. Once the sun sets I’m usually ready for bed.”
“I’ll get there early. Wouldn’t want to accidentally catch you in your jammies,” he teased. “I’ll bet they’re cute. Do they have bunny feet? No, I don’t suppose they would in the summertime.”
Rachel’s eyes widened, her cheeks suddenly aflame. This wasn’t the first time her creative imagination had run amok and toyed with notions of intimacy where Sean Bates was concerned. Yes, she knew it was wrong. As a Christian she wasn’t supposed to let her innermost thoughts amble in that direction. However, she was also human. Those two elements of her being weren’t mutually exclusive, but they did sometimes clash. Like now.
Wresting control from her daydream and forcing herself back to reality, Rachel stood, chin up, shoulders square, spine straight. “Don’t worry. You’re perfectly safe. I never get ready for bed until I’m sure I won’t have any more company.”
Laughing, Sean started toward the classroom door. “That’s comforting. Well, see you later.”
He was almost out the door when she called after him, “And I don’t wear pajamas with bunny feet.”
Chapter Ten
Physical exertion had never left Rachel as weary as the mental calisthenics she’d been doing lately. Exhausted, she shed her dress and donned shorts and a tank top as soon as she arrived home, then wandered out onto the shaded front porch with Schatzy. It was always soothing to stroke the little dog and swing slowly back and forth in the old glider. As long as there was a breeze to fan her, Rachel much preferred being outdoors in the evening when the temperature started to drop a bit.
Sighing, she pushed her bare feet against the plank floor of the porch to set the glider in motion. Oh, how she wished it were that easy to smooth out her tumbling thoughts. No matter how often she told herself it was useless to reflect seriously on any man, let alone one she hardly knew, her mind refused to stop dwelling on Sean Bates. She’d relived every moment with him, every word he’d spoken, so many times it was becoming impossible to separate reality from wishful thinking.
Moreover, she continued to worry about Samantha. All children had fantasy lives. That was natural. The problem was deciding where normalcy stopped and obsession began. Once Sean began working with the little girl, she hoped they’d gain a better understanding of the situation.
And if not?
Thoughtful, Rachel petted the contented dog lying beside her on the padded swing seat. There was no easy answer to that question. The simplest fix, from an adult standpoint, would probably be to get Samantha to admit she’d made up the stories about seeing angels.
On the other hand, if they tried to take away that support system, no matter how far-fetched it was, without providing another, Samantha might falter. Except for seeing things that weren’t there, she was doing pretty well. The last thing Rachel wanted to do was knock the emotional props out from under a child who had already been through so much.
Traffic on Old Sturkie Road was rare. Consequently, Rachel noticed Hannah Brody’s van as soon as it turned the corner off Main and started up the street.
Weary, she sighed and scooped up Schatzy so he wouldn’t get excited and dash in front of the approaching vehicle. By the time Hannah pulled into her driveway, the little dog was wiggling all over with joy and Rachel was getting the underside of her chin licked. Smiling, she waved.
“Hi there.”
Hannah rolled down the driver’s window to lean out. “Evenin’. I tried to call and ask if this was all right. You must not o’ heard your phone.”
“I just got home a few minutes ago. I didn’t notice any messages on my answering machine.”<
br />
“Won’t talk to them things,” Hannah said flatly. “Real folks is bad enough. You don’t answer your phone by four rings, I hang up.”
Chuckling, Rachel paused on the lawn to appreciate the cool feel of the grass beneath her feet. “Well, you’re here now so Samantha may as well stay to play a while.”
“What about your supper?” Hannah asked. “You had time to eat a bite?”
“I’m fine. I don’t get very hungry in hot weather, anyway. I’ll grab a snack later.”
“Okay. If you say so. How about I run down to the market and get us some ice cream?”
Rachel heard Samantha’s shrill voice yell “Yeah!” from inside the van. The child’s enthusiasm was contagious.
“That sounds great to me, too,” Rachel said. “Why don’t you leave your co-pilot here? We’ll get some dishes out and set up a picnic on the porch while you’re gone.”
That said, she opened the rear sliding door of the van and helped the little girl climb down.
“Long as you promise not to tell that Heatherington woman,” Hannah cautioned.
“I won’t. I promise.” Rachel took Samantha’s hand, holding tight to both her and Schatzy to keep them safe while Hannah backed out into the street. Just then, a familiar black car turned off Main and headed their way.
Hannah stopped and leaned out of the van to shout at Rachel, “Looks like I’d best make it a double order. What flavors does he like?”
“How should I know?” Rachel retorted. “I barely know the man.”
To her chagrin, Hannah laughed. It was a cackle of disbelief if Rachel had ever heard one.
Sean pulled into Rachel’s driveway, parked and got out. As he came around the rear of the car, Rachel could see that he’d been home to change after work. Clad in faded blue jeans and a plain T-shirt he looked like an altogether different person. He still hadn’t started wearing a baseball-type cap the way most of the local men did, but the rest of him certainly blended in well.
He waved. “Hello.”
“Sean!” Samantha was jumping up and down. “You came, too. I knew you would!”
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