The Hearts We Mend (9 page)

“I'll try and get ahold of Trav.”

“Don't bother—he isn't answering his phone either.” Nicki's fingers plucked at the ragged end of her ponytail. “I've been begging Sue for more hours. She's going to fire me if I leave her shorthanded tonight.”

Jack glanced at the clock on the wall. “I can leave a few minutes early and watch the kids, but it's going to have to be at my apartment.”

“That's okay—”

“And you're going to have to drop them off. I don't have enough seat belts in my pickup for the whole crew.”

“But I'm already late!” Nicki's wail was only a few decibels softer than her daughter's had been in the foyer.

Evie took a step forward. “I was about to leave for the day too. I can drive.”

Jack wasn't sure who was more surprised by the offer. He or Evie.

Before the polite refusal forming in his head had a chance to become actual words, Nicki jumped at the opportunity.

“Really? That would be great! Thanks, Evie!”

Jack scrubbed a hand across his jaw in order to stifle a groan. “Pull around to the back of the church, and I'll transfer the car seats. Tell Lily we'll be out in a few minutes.”

“Okay.” Nicki shot out the door.

Leaving Jack, once again, to deal with the fallout from someone else's choices.

And Evie.

He could only imagine the thoughts running through her mind when Luke and Ava attached themselves to his legs like barnacles. Grace played shy, tucking her face into Jack's shoulder.

“I didn't realize you and Nicki knew each other.” Jack shifted Grace to his other hip.

“Ginevieve introduced me to Nicki at the diner a few weeks ago, but I didn't get to meet the rest of the family.” Evie smiled at Luke and Ava. The same smile that had surfaced when he'd asked her about the bunting.

The one he hadn't been able to stop thinking about.

“Luke, Ava, and this little peanut”—Jack removed the toddler's finger from his ear—“is Grace.”

Evie bent down until she was eye to eye with Ava. “And how old are you?”

Ava carefully pressed her thumb into her palm and wiggled the remaining fingers.

“Four.” Evie looked impressed before she turned to Luke. “And what about you?”

“I'm almost six. Lily can stay in the car by herself 'cause she's ten.”

Luke sounded a little envious, but Jack's lips tightened.

A few nights ago he'd stopped over and found Lily making a grilled cheese sandwich for supper. She'd told Jack that her mom had had to work a double, so Jack had stuck around until Travis finally came home.

“Something came up. It was only for a couple of hours.” His brother had brushed off Jack's concern about leaving his niece alone in the house. “Lily's a responsible kid.”

Who needs a responsible adult at home
, Jack had wanted to say.

Instead, he'd told Trav that Lily could hang out with him on the nights when “something came up.”

But why had Cheryl bailed on Nicki if she'd promised to babysit? Jack deliberately shut down the possible scenarios before they could take root in his mind.

“Can we have spaghetti again?” Luke tugged on Jack's pant leg. “I like it the best.”

Jack knelt down, careful not to dislodge Grace as he wrapped his arm around the boy's shoulders. “Well, you're in luck,” he said in a low voice. “Because it happens to be the only thing I know how to make.”

He was rewarded with a giggle.

“I can sprinkle the cheese on it,” Ava offered. “I know how.”

“That's great because I can always use an experienced cheese sprinkler.” Jack gave Ava's wings a gentle tug.

Nicki returned and slung a diaper bag roughly the size and shape of a VW Beetle at his feet. “I'll see you at nine. Thanks, Evie.” She blew kisses at Grace as she jogged backward out the door. “Be good for Jack, you guys.”

The door snapped shut and Ava pressed against Jack's side.

“Mommy was crying.”

“She cries a lot.” Luke was a just-the-facts kind of guy.

“Mommies cry when something hurts, just like you do.” Jack angled his head away from Grace, who was trying to poke her finger in his other ear. “Tears wash away all the bad stuff inside, and then you feel better.”

“Ice cream makes me feel better,” Luke said.

“I think we can rustle up some of that.” Jack pulled the ring of
keys from his pocket and jingled them in front of Grace's nose. “But first I have to put some things away and lock up my office.”

“I can do it!” Luke's and Ava's voices and hands collided as they reached for the key ring.

“Whoever picks the right key gets to pick the flavor of ice cream too.” Jack herded them toward the door. “How does that sound?”

“Tee!” Grace shrieked.

Jack winced and glanced over his shoulder at Evie.

Last chance to change your mind . . .

She'd already picked up the diaper bag. “I'll meet you in the parking lot.”

C
HAPTER
13

E
vie walked toward Jack's dusty black pickup, the only vehicle with three car seats lined up on the hood.

A little girl with a shoulder-length tangle of strawberry-blonde curls sat in the front seat, her attention focused on something in her lap.

“Lily?”

A pair of wide silver-gray eyes met hers, and Evie's heart rose and fell with a little thump, like she'd just hit one of the speed bumps in the parking lot.

Jack's eyes.

He didn't wear a wedding ring, hadn't mentioned a family, but it was another reminder of how little Evie knew about the new custodian.

“I'm Evie. I thought I'd keep you company for a few minutes until your . . . until Jack gets here. If that's all right with you.”

“Okay.” The girl flashed an engaging smile. “I like your necklace. Did you make it?”

“No. It was a gift.” Evie traced the thin gold chain to a single pearl resting in the hollow of her throat. Max had given her the necklace after Cody was born—and promised he would add another pearl to the strand every time they added to their family.

“You should have picked out a longer chain then,” Evie had teased. An only child, she'd always dreamed of having a large family like Dan's, but Max had put all the money into the house on Rosewood Court, and he'd asked her to wait until he got a promotion before they provided Cody with a baby brother or sister. Evie hadn't realized it would take more than a few years, but she'd tried to be patient. Whenever she brought it up, Max would say the same thing.
We're young. We have plenty of time . . .

“I know how to make my own necklaces and bracelets and stuff. I made a collar for Bitsy too . . . Do you want to see it?” Lily held up a bright-eyed guinea pig with a patchwork coat.

Evie moved closer to admire the animal's braided collar. “Very pretty. I love that shade of pink.”

“Me too! Ms. Hadley, my science teacher, asked me to take care of Bitsy until school starts.” Lily rubbed her cheek against the top of the guinea pig's head. “Otherwise she'd get lonely.”

“I'm sure she would. My son volunteered to take care of the class pet one summer, but it was a lizard.” Evie wrinkled her nose. “Not nearly as sweet and cuddly as Bitsy.”

Lily's giggle was lost in the stampede as Ava and Luke charged up to the truck.

“Sorry. That took longer than I expected.” Jack lagged a few steps behind them, holding Grace's hand as she tried to keep up with her siblings.

“That's all right. Lily and Bitsy and I were getting acquainted.”

“Hey, Peanut.” Jack reached through the open window and tweaked Lily's nose. The afternoon sun cut through an opening in the clouds and ignited gold threads in their hair, drawing Evie's attention to another similarity. “How are you and Bitsy doing today?”

“Hungry,” Lily said promptly.

“Let's see what we can do about that.” Jack grabbed Grace's car seat and opened up the backseat. In less than sixty seconds he
snugged it into place with the seat belt, buckled the toddler in, and stowed the diaper bag on the floor behind the seat.

“Ava and Luke, you two can ride with Evie, okay?” Jack flicked a glance in her direction. “If you're still good with this. No appointments or meetings on your list?”

“No.” Was it her imagination, or was there a glint of amusement in Jack's eyes when he mentioned her list?

The watercolor class was scheduled to start that night, but Evie hadn't filled out the registration form yet. She hadn't given Melanie a definite yes yet either, but if she decided to go, there would be plenty of time to change her clothes and drive to the technical college.

“My address is 620 Fairview.” Jack picked up the other two booster seats and tossed them into the back of Evie's Jeep. “Do you know where that is?”

Evie nodded, even though she hadn't ventured into that part of town for years. When she was growing up, Fairview had been considered part of Main Street. But the value of homes had plummeted when the neighborhood was rezoned so the Leiderman factory could build an addition and expand its parking lot. The handful of small, family-owned businesses had eventually closed their doors when the city council focused their attention on revitalizing the downtown area.

“Okay, you two.” Jack threaded the seat belts through the booster seats and snapped them into place with the practiced ease of someone who'd done it a thousand times. “In you go.”

Evie went around to the other side to make sure Ava's wings didn't get tangled in the seat belt. Which brought her face-to-face with Jack again, who was in the process of buckling Luke in.

As he reached across the booster seat, the sleeve of his T-shirt rode up, offering Evie a fleeting glimpse of an intricate tattoo on his upper arm.

She fumbled with the buckle.

What are you doing, Evie?

A split second before Jack closed the door, she saw the same question reflected in his eyes.

Evie slid into the driver's seat. Her hand trembled as she slid the key into the ignition. She glanced in the rearview mirror. “Ready?”

Two small heads bobbed in unison.

“Okay.” Evie summoned a bright smile, trying to match their confidence.

She followed Jack's truck as he cut through the heart of the town, zigzagging through a maze of stop signs that seemed to mark the division of neighborhoods as well as the intersections.

He turned onto Fairview and pulled up in front of a run-down three-story building a few blocks from the house on Brewster Street where she and Gin had dropped the groceries off for Nicki.

Evie was tempted to keep driving. She couldn't believe how much the neighborhood had deteriorated over the years.

Country music seeped underneath the door of a bar that had replaced the dry cleaners on the corner.

Thomsen's Bakery, a favorite Saturday morning destination for her and Max and Dan during their summer vacations, was abandoned. One of the windows was cracked, the other two were hollow eyes fixed on the vacant lot across the street. Evie couldn't remember when the bakery had gone out of business. She'd stopped going there when Marie had opened the bistro.

The houses that lined the other side of the block weren't in better shape. Faded siding, blistered paint, and spaced so close together it looked like a strong gust of wind would send the whole row toppling like dominoes.

Evie slid out of the car, and something crunched under her foot. The jagged remnants of a beer bottle, scattered like confetti along the curb.

“Be careful.” She lifted Ava out of the booster and didn't set her down until they were safely on the sidewalk.

Jack was already there, Grace's diaper bag slung over one broad shoulder. “Grace conked out on me two stop signs ago. I'm going to try and get her inside without waking her up. Can you open the door?”

“Of course . . . which one is it?”

“That one.” Jack tipped his head at the building behind them. “First door on the left at the top of the stairs.”

“I thought . . .” Evie glanced at the row of houses again.

Compared to the run-down three-story building, they suddenly appeared downright charming. “I-I'll need the key.”

“It's not locked.”

Why?
was the first word that sprang into Evie's mind.

Lily was cradling Bitsy's cage in her arms, but Evie took the two younger children's hands, forming a chain as they climbed the covered staircase to the platform on the second floor. The doorknob wobbled, and Evie half expected it to fall off in her hand.

“It's this one!” Lily ran over to one of the doors that lined the carpeted hallway.

It was unlocked too.

Ava and Luke wiggled free, and Evie followed them inside.

It was like stepping into the mouth of a cave. The shades on the windows facing the street were pulled down, shrouding the room in darkness. Evie ran one hand along the wall in search of the light switch.