Choices of the Heart (24 page)

Chloe took her packages from Linnea. “Even better.” She smiled.

“You’re
so
lucky.” Linnea stuck out her tongue. “Great husband, a bunch of children, a new job. You’ve got it all.”

“Oh Linnea, you will too someday.”

“Well, I found the right man. I just need to convince him of it.” She winked. “I’ll put this on your account, if you’d like?”

“There’s one more thing I would like to order,” Chloe told her.

Linnea handed her a catalog and went off to help another customer. Chloe wrote out the order and told Linnea she’d left it on top of the book.

She stashed the packages in the car and then headed to the clinic. Bobby chattered on as they walked, while Charlie just sucked on his fist. Dottie thought the boy was teething and Chloe didn’t doubt it. Charlie already had two small teeth and it looked like two more were poking their way through.

She walked into the clinic, surprised to see Dr. Babcock with his feet up on the front desk, reading a magazine.

“Chloe! Hello.” He stood up and handed her a paper that he retrieved from the top drawer of the desk. “Your paycheck, Nurse Lloyd.”

“Thank you.”

“I hope you’re enjoying it here. I know it’s quiet now, but I’m hoping it will pick up with time. You’re doing a fine job, Chloe. Thank you for agreeing to work with me. It’s really nice to have company.”

She realized then that she was doing him a favor by working there. If she was bored the few hours she was there, surely his days were incredibly long.

“Maybe we could have an open house or a welcome party. That way, you could introduce yourself to the community, and they could look at the terrific setup you have here.”

“That’s a great idea.” He sat on the edge of his desk. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.” She nodded.

“Since you grew up here, I figured you would know Ivy Beattie. Do you?”

“Ivy?” She nodded again. “I do, why?”

“A friend of mine has a romantic interest in her.” Dr. Babcock smiled.

“Really? Well…” Chloe paused. “She’s brilliant. All the Beattie girls are.”

“How many of them are there?”

“Three,” Chloe said. “And their mother.”

He lowered his voice, “Are they as batty as people claim?”

“Not at all. They’re on the eccentric side, true, but they’re very good people.” She studied him, wondering how much she should ask. “So, is Moorely Manor really haunted, then? I’d heard Mitch bought it. I imagine he’s asked Ivy or the other girls for help?”

“You’re too smart, Chloe. Either that, or I am just transparent.” He laughed. “Keep it between us, though, would you? Mitch believes his house is haunted, and he hired or asked Ivy to help him get rid of the spirits.”

“She does have that ability, or so they say she does. But otherwise, she’s about as normal as I am.”

“Good to know.” He nodded. “I’ll pass on the word.”

“Do that. I’ll see you on Tuesday. Have a nice weekend.” She waved and took Bobby’s hand as they went out the door and onto the street.

“We’re going to go meet your grandma, Bobby. There will be some nice boys for you to play with.”

She hoped there would be some nice women for her to play with, too. She hoped she’d be accepted and welcomed. She needed to become part of the community. She’d joined the Christian Mother’s group at church, too, and had offered to help at the school, if needed. Surely if Reese saw her involved in town, he’d begin to relax.

Chapter Twenty-Two

I love you.

Reese felt like an idiot, practicing how was he going to tell Chloe what he felt for her. He’d said it probably a thousand times in his mind since they were kids but not since she’d come back into his life, even though he’d known the whole time she’d been back that his heart still belonged to her.

A lot had changed in the years she’d been away. But her beauty, her spunk, her humor and intelligence had all remained the same, if not improved, over time. If anything, he was coming to love her more.

Chloe, I’m sorry I’ve been so difficult. I’ve been…
He slapped his thigh. “Damn, that sounds so pathetic.”

The cows weren’t paying him any attention. He’d let Rosie and the boys sleep in this morning. It was Saturday, after all. All of them had had a few stressful weeks, with harvest now in full swing, school starting, Chloe beginning her job, the visit from her old beau and the call from the Chicago father. Everyone in the Lloyd family was having troubles adjusting to the changes.

As head of the household, it was Reese’s job to smooth everything out and bring peace to their home. At least he thought it was his job. He’d do his best and the first step he’d take would be to apologize to his wife. Apparently, if Chloe wasn’t happy, no one was happy. The house would be so much more content if she was satisfied with him.

“Good morning, Pa!” Rosie skipped into the barn and gave him a big hug around his legs. “Ma said to tell ya she’s got breakfast on the table.”

“Thank you for telling me.” He tugged her pigtail. “You look happy today.”

“No school! I get to stay home and be with all of you all day long!”

“Ah, right.” He laughed. “It’s Saturday!”

“Two whole days without school.”

“So, does that mean you’ll help your ma with the laundry and cleaning today?”

“Aww, can’t I come and pick corn with you?”

“Nope.” He squeezed her shoulder. “You and Bobby and Lucas can stay with Ma. The older boys can come and help me and Grandpa out.”

“Allllll right…” She skipped back out of the barn.

Reese grabbed two pails of milk and set them at the door. When would he have a chance to tell Chloe what he was feeling? He closed the door behind him and carried the pails up to the house. Since he decided today was the day, he figured he just as well get it out as soon as possible.

He rubbed sweaty palms against his dusty jeans as he entered the back door. No reason to be nervous, he reminded himself. This was Chloe, not some strange woman he’d just met. She loved him. And she’d never laugh at him for confessing his feelings. Hell, if he had it right in his head, his confession would make her ecstatic.

Everyone was eating breakfast when he walked in the door. Chloe gave him a big smile and took one of the milk pails from him. She emptied the bucket into a large pitcher and immediately started filling the children’s glasses.

She handed him a plate filled with food and kissed him on the cheek before adding eggs and pancakes to the boys’ plates. They were growing, gaining weight, even getting taller since moving here. They loved Chloe. You could see it in the way they wanted her attention, gave her hugs and kisses. They liked him, too, but just didn’t display affection toward him as much. Except Rosie. She was a Papa’s girl.

“Today,” he started, after swallowing a sip of warm milk, “Michael and Mark, we’ll go to Pa’s place and get his corn done. There isn’t much left to do, so we should be done by lunch.”

“What about Lucas, Pa?” Michael asked between bites of food.

“He can stay and help your ma with Charlie and Bobby.”

“Rosie can do that,” Mark argued.

“Listen to your father, boys. What he says, goes.” She gave him a wink and poured the rest of the milk into the pitcher and set it in the icebox for lunch.

It took some willpower for him to not stand up and grab her for a long, lingering kiss. Only the thought of the children’s curious stares kept him in his seat. He watched her clean up the dishes as the boys finished their meals. Rosie kept playing with her food, daydreaming her way through the meal. Lucas, silent as always, kept to himself but occasionally smiled when one of his brothers said something funny.

Bobby kept standing up and sitting down, like a bouncing ball. Charlie sat peacefully in the highchair Reese had used when he was a baby. He was starting to eat solid foods, loved the scrambled eggs he was playing with on the plate.

Mark just blended in. He reminded Reese of himself as a young boy. Quiet, reserved, he followed his older brother around, tried to keep up with Michael, occasionally competed with him to get try to get ahead. He and Ronnie were just the same, way back when.

“Ready, men?”

Mark and Michael exchanged glances. Reese hadn’t taken them out in the field at all yet. He’d wanted a whole day to be able to teach them how to behave around machinery. Farm accidents took a lot of lives every year, and he didn’t want his boys to be casualties.

“Wear your boots,” he told them. “And you’ll be needin’ hats, too. I reckon some of my old ones are at Pa’s house.”

Reese stood up and stretched, arms extended toward the ceiling. To his surprise, all of the boys, even Bobby, stood up, mimicking his actions, stretching their backs, even though they were too young to have any idea what a kink might feel like. Reese choked back his laughter, not wanting to offend these children who so obviously wanted to be like him.

Their actions also served as a good reminder they were always watching what he did. He’d have to take extra care with how he behaved, how he spoke, when they were near. Maybe he should quit smoking now, too. He’d picked up the nasty habit when Chloe left. It’d helped ease his nerves. But Chloe was back now, and after tonight, he expected there’d be peace between them once again.

“Let’s get a move on.” He kissed Chloe and his face grew warm when the children chuckled at them.

He didn’t care though, not really. His folks had shown affection, and Ronnie and he had simply gotten used to it. Parents who loved each other set a good example for their children.

He walked out the back door, glancing behind to make sure the boys were following him. They were good children. The teacher had already told Chloe that they were ahead of the others in their mathematics. Even Lucas, who didn’t speak yet, was doing fine with everything. He might not be reading out loud, but he understood what he read, was able to answer questions in writing.

He and Chloe had the power to change their lives, help them become the best they could be. That was an enormous task but one they would succeed at, come hell or high water. First, though, he and Chloe needed to reach peace in their marriage, and Ma had come up with a wonderful way to achieve that this evening.

Ma and Pa were coming over to watch the children, letting Reese and Chloe use their house for the long confession Reese had planned. Ma agreed to make a special dinner, with all the fixings, so he and his new bride could have an evening just to themselves.

“Let’s take the wagon, boys. Grandpa will need the extra space.”

He showed each of them how to hook up the harness and reins. They were fast learners and soon the three of them were on their way.

He and Chloe didn’t get much time together. In fact, he realized they’d only had three nights alone as a married couple. Two of which were on the train, traveling to Chicago. Ma’s offer couldn’t have come at a better time, either. Tonight, Reese would truly set aside all the pain he went through when Chloe left and focus on their future.

~*~

“Well, young ones,” Chloe said to Lucas and Rosie in the late afternoon. “It seems your Pa was wrong about getting done with Grandpa’s crop early today. Must have had more corn than he thought.”

Bobby and Charlie were both napping, a blessing because it allowed Chloe time to get the house cleaned and dusted. Rosie and Lucas helped, surprising Chloe with what good little workers they were.

“How about we make some cookies?” Chloe asked.

“Can we just take a break from chores, Ma?” Rosie plopped herself on the couch in the parlor. “Maybe just play a card game?”

“I suppose.” Chloe laughed. Who ever thought baking cookies was a chore? “But we’ll have to have the cookies ready for dinner, so we’ve got something sweet to eat after the chicken.”

Chloe scrounged around the kitchen, digging through cluttered drawers until she found a deck of playing cards. Next project would be to organize everything. As a bachelor, only Reese needed to know where things were. Now she needed to know, too.

They played two hands of gin, and Lucas, the happy little card shark, won them both. She liked to watch him when the older boys were away. He was a different child when they weren’t around. Chloe thought his behavior today was probably his true personality, a smiling, sometimes-silly little boy, full of life and energy, even if he never spoke a word. Around his brothers, he must feel as if he had to be more mature.

“Cookie time,” she said, collecting all the cards from the floor where they’d sat cross-legged.

“How ’bout snickerdoodles?”

“I was thinking just sugar cookies. I’ll make some yummy icing for you two and Bobby to decorate them after they cool.”

“I hear a wagon.” Rosie stood up and ran into the kitchen where the window was low enough for her to see through.

“Is it the boys?” Chloe called.

“No, Mama. It’s that mean old man from town. The one who pulled on your arm hard.”

Chloe’s heart plummeted to her stomach. She dropped the cards and rushed to the kitchen door to turn the key in the lock, in hopes of shutting out her pa. She had no idea if the lock even worked. They never bothered with it, never even worried that someone with evil intent would try to harm them. Their mistake.

Could they simply hide? She grabbed Rosie and put her behind her back and moved away from the window. She swallowed hard, her mind racing. Where could they go? Outside, her father reached the door. She saw his shadow behind the lace curtains she’d hung just weeks ago, to shield her eyes from the sun while she cooked.

She stood frozen, struggling to keep her true emotions at bay so as not to scare Rosie any more than the poor child probably already was.

“What ya gonna do?” Rosie whispered.

Then the banging started, followed by the doorknob rattling and the screaming.

“Pa’s come a’ calling, girl. You best open this door or I’ll break it down.”

A heavy boot kicked the door, but the old thing still stood locked against him.

For the moment.

Chloe took a deep breath. What to do? She took a few steps back, moving Rosie along with her. Just then, Lucas entered the kitchen.

“My Pa is here,” she whispered. “We don’t want to let him in.”

Lucas nodded, a solemn look on his face. Chloe took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, imagining he probably had lived through a similar scene a time or two.

“Lucas, I need you to do something very important.” She bent low and looked straight into the young boy’s eyes. “If he gets in here, you need to run to—”

The door flew open.

“Knew you were in here, girl.” He laughed with the ugliest sneer she’d ever seen distorting his repulsive face even more.

As soon as he moved farther into the kitchen, Chloe shoved the children behind her and then guided them to the door and pushed them through.

“Lucas, Rosie, run to Grandma’s and tell Pa he needs to come home. Now!” She never took her eyes off her father, didn’t know if Lucas and Rosie were gone or not, but she hoped they listened to her order. It was Chloe’s only hope. Pa was here to settle the score, and he wouldn’t leave without blood being shed.

“Pa!” Her father chortled, making wet tobacco leak from the corner of his mouth. “Ain’t that rich. You and Reese really done some damn stupid things in your time. But six children. You got no idea what you’re doing.”

“Why are you here?” she whispered.

Her heart was pounding so hard she thought it would pop out of her throat. Telling herself to stay calm and focused, she took a few steps back, careful to keep the table between them, using it as a shield of sorts. She looked around the kitchen for a weapon, anything heavy she could use against him should it become necessary, but as soon as her attention was shifted the bastard pounced.

He grabbed her arm and pulled her against him. She turned her head away, disgusted by his stench and grime. When she opened her eyes, she saw Bobby in the doorway, just waking up from his nap.

“They’re like roaches. They keep crawling out of the woodwork.” He twisted her arm until she turned and looked at him. “How many more you got hidden away?”

“Bobby,” she called out, holding back the fear from her voice. “Run over to Grandma’s, would you?” She bit back the tears brought on by the pain on her arm.

Bobby darted through the back door like his bottom was on fire.

“You think you’re too good for your Pa now, don’t you?” His speech was slurred from all the stinky moonshine he’d ingested. He pulled her up against him. Gagging, she pulled back.

He pushed her backward, and she landed against the icebox.