“You’ve been busy in the buggy shop, Jonah.”
“That’s true, but it’s no excuse. When I’m done working for the day, I’ll try to spend more time with him.”
Sara smiled. “I know Mark would like that. He thinks the world of you.”
“Maybe I’ll close the shop early one day this week, and the three of us can go on a picnic,” Jonah said.
“That’d be nice.” Sara reached around and massaged her back. “I think I’ll go out to the phone shack and call Leah. Hopefully she can see me sometime today.”
“What about Mark? Will you need me to come up to the house and watch him while you’re gone?”
She shook her head. “I can take him with me. Leah’s mamm will probably be there, and I’m sure she’d be glad to keep Mark occupied while I’m getting my feet massaged.”
Jonah kissed her cheek. “Okay, but if you need me for anything, just let me know.”
“I will.” Sara was grateful to be married to such a thoughtful man. Her first husband, Harley, had been that way, too, and she felt doubly blessed to have found such a caring man the second time around. After Harley’s death, Sara had struggled trying to raise Mark on her own. Then when she’d been diagnosed with MS, everything had become a challenge. How grateful she was for Jonah’s friendship during that time and even more so once they had fallen in love.
Turning from the refrigerator, Leah was holding a chocolate-chip cheeseball when Amy entered the kitchen, rubbing her forehead, followed by the other two girls.
“What’s wrong, Amy?” Leah asked, feeling concern.
Amy frowned. “When my sisters and I were playing tag, Carrie kept yelling real loud, and now I have a koppweh.”
“Carrie didn’t give you a headache on purpose,” Linda said in her younger sister’s defense. “She always hollers when we play that game.”
Leah figured it did the children good to run and play. Even Carrie’s shouting wasn’t a bad thing. It meant they were beginning to relax and have a little fun, despite missing their parents. “The chocolate-chip cheeseball I made this morning is ready to eat,” she said, placing it on the table. “Why don’t you three go wash up while I get out some graham crackers and milk to go with our snack?” Leah gave Amy’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Maybe after you’ve had something to eat you’ll feel better.”
“Okay.” Amy followed her sisters down the hall. When they returned to the kitchen, Leah had everything set on the table.
“Is gut,” Carrie announced, after she’d eaten a graham cracker Leah had spread with some of the cheeseball.
Leah smiled. “I’m glad you like it. I’ve made lots of different cheeseballs, but chocolate-chip’s my favorite.”
“Bet Uncle Adam would like it,” Linda said. “We should save him some.”
“Jah, we’ll do that.” Leah looked over at Amy. The child sat with her head down, rubbing her temples. “Aren’t you going to try some, Amy?”
Amy moaned. “My head hurts too bad to eat anything, and I feel sick to my stomach. Sure hope I don’t throw up.”
Remembering how she’d helped several people with sick headaches, Leah touched Amy’s arm gently and said, “Would you like me to rub your feet?”
“My head hurts, not my feet.”
“I’ve helped many people get rid of their headaches by rubbing certain spots on their feet,” Leah explained. “What I do is called ‘reflexology,’ and it can be quite effective. Would you like me to try it on you?”
Linda came alongside her sister. “I think you oughtta let her do it, Amy. I wanna see Leah work on your feet.”
“Me, too!” Carrie shouted, then she quickly covered her mouth. “Sorry for yelling in the house.”
Amy looked up at Leah and shrugged her slim shoulders. “I… I guess so. Suppose it can’t hurt to let you rub my feet.”
“I wanna watch.” Linda bounced on her toes.
“Since it’s such a nice day, let’s all go outside and sit in the yard,” Leah suggested. “The fresh air might help Amy’s headache, too. I’ll take an old quilt out that we can sit on while I work on her feet.”
Leah grabbed the quilt from the back of the couch, and the girls followed her outside. After Leah spread the quilt on the grass, they all plopped down on it. Even Coal ambled over and lay down between Amy and Linda. Then Amy took off her shoes, leaned back on her elbows, and closed her eyes.
“Who taught you how to do that?” Linda asked as Leah began to pressure-point Amy’s feet.
“My grandma taught me,” Leah replied. “I’ve been doing it since I was a teenager.”
“Don’t you mind touching strangers’ feet all the time?”
“No, it doesn’t bother me at all.” Leah smiled. “In fact, it makes me feel good to use the gift God gave me to help others.”
Carrie wrinkled her nose. “Eww… Schtinkich fiess.”
Leah bit back a chuckle. “Not everyone’s feet smell stinky, Carrie.”
“But some people’s do,” Linda put in. “And you must like touching their feet to do them.”
Leah nodded, and as Amy’s younger sisters looked on, she continued to massage Amy’s feet. Several more minutes passed, then Amy opened her eyes. “My head quit hurting,” she announced.
Leah smiled. “I’m so glad.”
“Will you do my feet next?” Linda took off her shoes and stuck her feet out toward Leah.
“Sure, I’d be happy to.” Leah massaged Linda’s feet, and when she was done, Carrie scooted in front of her. “Me, too, Leah.”
“Okay, little one.” Leah began to rub the little girl’s feet, while the other girls, and even the dog, moved aside.
Carrie giggled, looking up at Leah with such a sweet expression. “Ich bin ewe kitzlich.”
Leah smiled. “So you’re ticklish, huh?” It gave her such pleasure to see the child laugh.
“What’s going on here, Leah? What do you think you’re doing?”
Startled, Leah looked up. Adam stood a few feet away, looking down at her with a scowl. She’d been so engrossed in what she was doing that she hadn’t heard Adam’s rig pull in. Even Coal hadn’t budged from the edge of the quilt.
“Amy had a koppweh, and Leah made it better,” Linda spoke up. “Then she worked on my feet. After that, Carrie wanted hers done, too.”
Adam’s eyebrows drew together as he continued to stare at Leah. “So you were poking around on the girls’ feet?”
Linda shook her head. “Leah weren’t poking. She was doing ‘flexology.”
“Is that so?” Adam’s eyes narrowed, looking sternly at Leah. “You can do whatever you want with the people who come to you for foot treatments, but I’ll have none of that hocus-pocus here at my place. Is that clear?”
Carrie started to cry, and Leah’s head snapped back, feeling as though she’d been slapped. Didn’t Adam care that she’d been able to relieve Amy’s headache? Wasn’t he willing to at least give reflexology a chance?
“It’s okay,” Amy said, as though she understood Leah’s embarrassment. “My koppweh’s gone now, so Leah did a good thing.” Before Adam could say anything more, the child jumped up and raced into the house. Carrie and Linda followed, both sniffling as they went. Didn’t Adam realize how sensitive these girls were? Hadn’t he even heard what Amy said?
Leah scrambled to her feet. “You know something, Adam?” she said through clenched teeth.
He tipped his head. “What’s that?”
“You have a lot to learn about children, and unless you’ve had a reflexology treatment yourself, then you shouldn’t be so narrow minded.”
“I am not narrow minded. Since this is my house, and these girls are my nieces, I have every right to say what I will and won’t tolerate concerning their welfare.”
Leah could see by the determined set of Adam’s jaw that he wasn’t going to back down. “Since you’re here now, I’m sure you can manage things on your own for the rest of the evening, so I’ll be on my way home. I have som
e hummingbird feeders that need to be cleaned, and I need to start supper for my daed.” She went into the house and grabbed her purse. When she stepped back outside, she met Adam on the porch. “Please tell the girls I said good-bye and that I’ll see them in the morning.”
As Leah walked away, she heard Adam mumble something but couldn’t make out what he’d said. She wasn’t about to go back and find out!
With arms folded and lips pressed tightly together, Adam watched out the kitchen window as Leah hopped on her bicycle and rode off.
Dropping into a seat at the table, he groaned. He hated the fact that he was physically attracted to Leah, yet at the same time, she got under his skin. “I probably should have called her back and apologized,” Adam muttered. “But then, why should I? Leah shouldn’t be introducing my nieces to reflexology.” He tapped his foot in agitation. Maybe I should look for someone else to watch the girls. Someone less appealing and easier to communicate with. But the girls seem to like her, and I need to focus on their needs and making their transition as smooth as possible. Too many changes will only make it more difficult for my nieces right now.
Linda stomped into the kitchen, her cheeks still damp with tears. “You know what, Uncle Adam?”
“Say what you have to say,” he said, trying to hide his irritation.
“You’re mean!” With that, Linda plodded out of the room and tramped noisily up the stairs.
Spotting the cheeseball and graham crackers sitting out, Adam helped himself to some. Maybe it would make him feel better if he ate something. Linda’s right, he decided. I was rather harsh. Guess I owe everyone an apology.
After spreading some of the cheeseball on a cracker, Adam ate it and smacked his lips. This isn’t bad. In fact, it’s real tasty. I bet Leah made it. He fixed another one. If she promises not to practice her hocus-pocus on Carrie, Linda, or Amy, guess I’ll let her keep watching the girls. I hate to admit it, but they seem to like her better than they do me.
CHAPTER 18
Chicago
Cora sat in the living room, holding her laptop on her knees. For the last hour she’d been looking once again for nursing positions in various areas across Illinois. The few openings she found didn’t pay well enough. In addition to her wages, the child support Evan paid for Jared would help with expenses, but it didn’t come close to what he used to contribute when they were married. Cora had to hold out for a better-paying job, or she and Jared would be getting by on a lot less than they were used to.
On the plus side, she had met with her Realtor a few days ago, and he’d scheduled an open house, hoping to generate some interest in her home. Cora knew it might take awhile, and once it was sold, she’d have plenty of money, but she wanted to move as soon as possible. In addition to her struggles with Jared, seeing Evan whenever he came to check on patients at the hospital, not to mention bumping into his new bride, was taking a toll. If she only had the support of family right now to help her through this difficult time in her life. But Cora’s parents were dead, and she’d lost touch with her four brothers years ago—not that they would have offered much support. They’d never been close to Cora. Of course, that was probably her fault, since they had differing opinions on certain things. Cora had several friends in Chicago, including Ellie and Shannon, both nurses. But they were both too busy for her these days. Perhaps once she and Jared relocated, they’d find a new set of friends.
Cora glanced at her watch. It was almost five. Jared should have been home an hour ago. When she’d arrived home from work this afternoon, she’d found a scribbled note from him on the table, saying he’d gone to a friend’s house and would be home by four o’clock. Something, or someone, must have detained him.
Rubbing her eyes, Cora set her laptop aside and began to pace. Last week, Jared had gotten into a fight when some kid made a wisecrack about Jared’s father cheating on his mother. While Cora appreciated Jared’s anger over what Evan had done, she didn’t condone fighting and knew nothing good could come from her son beating someone up. Maybe Jared had run into that same boy today and been involved in another skirmish. But if that were the case, why hadn’t Jared come home right away, like he had the last time, when he’d been left with a split lip and bloody nose?
She glanced out the front window. No sign of Jared coming up the walk. Should she start calling some of his friends?
Reaching for the phone, Cora was about to make the first call, when the front door flew open and Jared stepped in.
“Where have you been?” Cora moved quickly toward him, relieved that he showed no signs of having been beaten up. “I’ve been worried about you.”
He sauntered across the room, dropped his backpack on the floor, and flopped onto the couch. “Chill out, Mom. I hung out with my friend Chad all day, like I said in my note.”
Jared plunked his feet on the coffee table and clasped his hands behind his head. “What are we having for supper? I only had a candy bar for lunch, so I’m starving!”
“I have a meat loaf in the oven,” she replied. “And please take your feet off the table.”
He dropped his feet to the floor and wrinkled his nose. “I hate meat loaf.”
“If you’re hungry, you’ll eat it.”
“Guess I shoulda stayed over at Chad’s. His mom works nights, so Chad’s on his own all evening. I coulda ate whatever I wanted to over there.”
Cora frowned. “Chad being on his own is exactly why he gets into so much trouble.” She took a seat on the end of the couch beside Jared and grasped the throw pillow, hugging it to her chest. “I don’t like you hanging around him so much. He’s a bad influence.”
Jared jumped up. “Since you’re gonna give me a lecture now, I’m going to my room.” He raced up the stairs before Cora could say another word.
Flinching as her son slammed his bedroom door, Cora’s jaw clenched. She felt her relationship with Jared slipping further every day. Things weren’t like this when she and Evan were married. Jared had been easier to deal with then.
Maybe I should consider one of those jobs I was looking at earlier, even though they don’t pay as much as I make now. I really need to get Jared out of here before school starts.
Arthur
“I’m glad you were able to see me this evening,” Sara said as Leah worked on her feet. “I’ve been having trouble with my back again.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to see you yesterday,” Leah apologized. “I was watching Adam’s nieces all day and didn’t check phone messages till this morning. Otherwise, I could have seen you last evening.”
Sara winced when Leah pressed on a particular spot that Leah knew must be tender.
“It’s all right. Jonah worked late in his shop last night, but tonight he’s home with Mark, so everything worked out.” Sara leaned her head against the back of the recliner and drew in a deep breath, which let Leah know she was beginning to relax.
“I haven’t had the chance to get to know Adam’s nieces,” Sara said. “Losing both of their parents has to be difficult for them.”
Leah slowly nodded.
“How are they adjusting?”
“Each of them seems to be dealing with it in her own way, but they all have insecurities and behavioral issues.”
“Such as?”
“Carrie, the youngest, clings to me most of the day. When Mom was watching them, she said Carrie did that with her, as well.”
“It’s understandable. Carrie’s still very young and misses her mamm.”
Leah probed another spot on Sara’s foot. “Linda’s the middle child, and she’s full of nervous energy. She also has a bit of a temper.”
Sara’s forehead creased. “That can be difficult to deal with. I get stressed out whenever Mark throws a temper tantrum.”
“Then there’s the oldest, Amy. She tries to act grown up and tends to boss her sisters around, but she’s still a little girl and needs to be loved and nurtured as much as the other two. I know she’s still hurting, but she holds it in
. I figure she uses her bossiness to cover up her pain. Even though Amy trusted me enough to use reflexology to get rid of her headache, she keeps her distance.” Leah saw no point in mentioning Adam’s reaction to her working on the girls’ feet.
“Maybe Amy just needs a little more attention. Jonah and I have recently come to realize that we need to spend more time with Mark. Once the boppli comes, he will require it even more, so he doesn’t feel left out.”
“I agree. In fact, I think all three of Adam’s nieces need more love and attention. I’ve actually been thinking of a fun thing I might do that could help them focus on something other than their grief,” Leah said.
“What’s that?” Sara murmured, now appearing to be even more relaxed.
“As you know, we have a lot of hummingbirds in our yard. Watching them around the feeders each day has made me think that the girls might enjoy having a feeder in Adam’s backyard.”
“That’s a good idea.” Sara yawned. “It would certainly give them something to look forward to.”
“That’s what I was thinking. You’d be surprised to see what a little chipmunk has done to give Linda and Carrie some enjoyment. Adam told me that he heard them talking about it the other day.” Leah smiled. “Think I’ll take one of my unused feeders over there, and if he has no objections, I’ll find a place to hang it where the girls can easily watch the hummers feed.”
“Next time I come here I’ll be anxious to hear how it worked out.”
Leah’s excitement mounted. “When my neighbor comes over to band the hummingbirds in my yard, I might see if Adam’s okay with me bringing the girls over so they get to see how the procedure is done. It might be one more thing to bring a little joy into their lives.”
“That sounds interesting,” Sara said. “I’ll bet Mark would enjoy watching that, too.”
“Feel free to bring him. The girls would probably have fun getting acquainted with your cute little guy.”
Sara smiled. “You know, I think we will come over that day. Just let me know when.”
“Jah, I will.” Leah looked forward to seeing the girls tomorrow and hopefully setting up the feeder. She had so much love to give Adam’s nieces and wanted to share the enjoyment she got out of something as simple as watching the tiny birds that had brought her so much pleasure over the years. If she ever had any children of her own, she would try to instill in them a love for all things found in nature. But until that time came, if it did, she would enjoy spending time with Adam’s nieces, for they clearly needed her love and attention. She just wished Adam wasn’t so against her practicing reflexology on the girls. He ought to at least give her the chance to prove that it wasn’t hocus-pocus.
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