Vivian (16 page)

“
I have a feeling I would have liked her very much.”

Dorothy smiled. “I think you would have too. You remind me of her quite a bit.”

That took her by surprise. She was sure she didn’t hide it well when Dorothy chuckled.

“
Your daycare center, for example. Even when Linda was a little girl she wanted to run a daycare. She babysat everyone’s stuffed animals and when she was older she pet sat.”

Vivian laughed now. “I did that.”

“
You’re good with the girls. And they love you—all of them.”

“
I love all of them too.”

“
I think you and Clayton will be very happy together. I can’t be sad over that.”

Vivian reached out and placed her hand over Dorothy’s. “You have no idea how much that means to me.”

Dorothy patted her hand. “I’d love to be a part of it all. Linda was my only daughter. I could do with having another.”

This time it wasn’t just about smiles and a touch. Vivian stood and moved to Dorothy. She bent to hug the woman. Which angel was it that was watching over her, she wondered.

When the girls saw her hugging Grandma Dorothy they all ran over and joined in.

Vivian’s heart, despite the sadness that still squeezed at it, was full of joy.

Vivian laughed at the girls singing
Silly Songs with Larry
, in the toddler room at the old house. Who thought an animated cucumber could ever be so funny, but the girls were enthralled.

Clayton had taken Dorothy back to the kitchen to meet everyone else.

Vivian walked slowly toward the back of the house where everyone gathered. There seemed to be a peace within the house now that she knew Stella was gone.

Her heart was still heavy and today, of all days, she actually missed Adam. She didn’t care for Clayton any less, but she missed what she’d once had with Adam—when they had anything.

Penelope was seated in a chair with her hands on both sides of her stomach. “I swear I don’t think I can get any larger.”

Amelia laughed. “You’re still four weeks away.”

“
Don’t curse me,” Penelope bit out. “I’m keeping my legs tightly closed for the next week. After that, I’m game to get this kid out of me.”

Brock moved in behind her and rubbed her shoulders. “Just take it easy. We’re all here to wait on you hand and foot. Don’t move a muscle.”

“
I can’t move a muscle.”

Vivian let out a little laugh and looked toward Amelia who was watching Penelope. She could see her soaking in the moment. After all, in less than a year Amelia would look just as uncomfortable.

Vivian wondered when they’d announce the baby. But she was sure they’d wait until Penelope had given birth, if not after the wedding as they’d planned.

Brock looked up at Vivian. “Sam told us about Stella. I don’t know what to say.”

Vivian nodded. “It’s been a bit surreal. But I feel peace here tonight. Do you feel it?”

Amelia raised her eyebrow. “Are you kidding?”

“
Seriously. It just feels like we can go on again. We can finish the attic and the bedroom and get our business back. I loved being with those kids. I don’t want to lose that.”

Clayton smiled. “We’ll get to work on it this weekend. But let’s get the kids set up to eat. I’m starving and then we can plan Thanksgiving.”

By the end of the night, they had decided on what everyone would bring to dinner. It was decided to have the meal in the house since the rooms could have tables set up in them. Brock’s family would be heading out for the day and Amelia’s father also had said he’d be making the trip.

Dorothy had promised to make the pumpkin pies and Clayton vouched for them as, “You’ll never have a better pie. I swear.”

That alone had clinched the deal.

The girls were easy to put to bed after playing all night long. Vivian shook her head as Clayton pulled the door on the bedroom. “They are going to need a better schedule.”

“
My girls are loving this,” Clayton said. “I think I might have been too scheduled for too long.”

Vivian chuckled. “One of the things I have learned from Amelia and Penelope is to enjoy the unexpected once in awhile.”

“
Finding your wild side are you?”

She laughed and he loved it when she did. It brought a whole new side to her.

“
I don’t have a wild side. I have a perfectly planned side. A practical side.”

“
Me too.” He walked toward the couch and pulled her down on his lap.

The sound of water from the shower could still be heard. He figured they had a few minutes before they needed to be appropriate around Dorothy.

He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips, which she warmly accepted. “I was thinking that our perfect plan might be to fix up the old house and all of us move in there. There is more room upstairs in that house than there is here.”

She snuggled her head into the crook of his neck. “We’d have to remodel the kitchen.”

“
Most certainly,” he said on a laugh.

Vivian sat up and looked at him. “What about this house?”

“
I think Dorothy would like to stay for a while. I’m thinking of letting her stay here.”

She lowered her head again. “I love her. You’re a very lucky man.”

Didn’t he know it?

“
I was also thinking, I have next week off of school for Thanksgiving. What do you say we make our evening out a couple full days?”

“
I think I’d really like that if Amelia is up for it.”

“
Let’s spend all of Tuesday together and most of Wednesday. Then the rest of the weekend can be for family.”

“
I really like how you think in that perfectly planned out mind of yours.”

He pulled her closer to him. “Maybe we can find something to do that is unexpected and unplanned.”

“
I can’t wait.”

~*~

Once they’d had the conversation about how routine they both were, Clayton realized that was exactly who he and Vivian were. And that probably had a lot to do with the girls.

Kids needed routine and structure. There was a wake time, eat time, bed time. And as parents, they fell into that routine just as easily.

Their new routine, this week, had included working at the old house after work. He, Brock, and Sam had managed to get the closet wall torn out. The payoff was great. The house itself had netted over ten thousand dollars, which had been tucked in the walls. He wondered in time what else they would find.

They had collectively decided that they would wait until after the beginning of the year to reopen. That would give them time to finish the house—including the kitchen—and the upstairs. It would also ensure Penelope had her baby and give Amelia and Sam time for their wedding.

Clayton gave the house a little more thought. Perhaps he’d bring Vivian back there on their night together. He didn’t want it to seem planned, but a few plans wouldn’t hurt anything.

He could fill the finished room with flowers. Maybe he’d have champagne chilling in a bucket.

After all, even though they’d been sleeping in each other’s arms each night, they still hadn’t had much intimacy. It was hard to justify making love to a woman when your kids, her kids, and your mother-in-law were all in the other room.

The thought made him chuckle and Sam turned toward him.

“
Lost in your own thoughts?”

Clayton nodded. “I suppose I am.”

Sam looked around the room. “I’ll bet you guys could move back in here in another month. Maybe we can get it done in time for Santa to visit here.”

Just the thought of it made Clayton light with excitement. Oh, he loved when Santa would visit him as a child. How glorious would it be for him to visit the girls—together.

“
I’d love for that to happen.”

“
Then stop daydreaming and let’s get busy.”

Clayton laughed. Yes, he surely did believe in fate. Not only had moving to Parson’s Gulch, Oklahoma given him a fresh start, it gave him much more. He had a woman he loved and two little girls that seemed to round out his little family just perfectly. Amelia and Penelope were more like sisters to him, and he’d even say that he’d become close enough to Brock and Sam he’d call them brothers. Who’d have thought he’d actually have found happiness when he moved to the small town?

He hadn’t come for this bliss he’d found. He just wanted to be numb for a while and forget. But he wasn’t numb—not at all.

Dorothy was in overdrive, Vivian thought. By Tuesday, she had baked four pies and was preparing for something else. The kitchen was abuzz when the doorbell rang and Vivian checked on the girls before answering it.

Sam stood on the doorstep with his sunglasses on and his hands clasped in front of him.

“
Hey, what are you doing here?” Vivian asked. “Come in.”

He didn’t step in. “I need to talk to you—alone.”

Vivian looked behind her and saw Dorothy peeking out from the kitchen and the girls on the floor coloring right behind her. She gave him a nod and stepped out onto the porch.

“
Is Amelia okay?” She reached out and touched his arm. “Is the baby…”

He shook his head. “Everyone is fine. Where is Clayton?”

“
Dorothy needed a few more items for dinner for the girls and for Thanksgiving. He’s at the store.”

He let out a breath and took off his sunglasses. His eyes were dark and his body looked heavy with dread. “I got notice today that Frank Monroe was found dead in his home.”

Vivian sucked in a breath that stuck in her lungs. Tears filled her eyes instantly. “No. Why? What happened?”

He took both of her arms and held her. It was then she realized she was shaking. “Darby said it was an apparent suicide. I followed up with the local police department and they said that is the current ruling, but they are investigating it, especially after Stella’s death.”

Vivian lifted her eyes to meet his. “Someone killed her didn’t they?”

He nodded. “They think so.”

She felt her knees go week and she decided to sit down on the front step. Sam joined her.

“
I don’t want you alone.”

She let out a grunt. “I’m never alone. I never was alone. Even when Stella and Frank were here I was never alone.”

Sam ran his hand over his face. “I wonder if that too was by design.”

She turned to look at him. “Are you kidding?”

Sam clasped his hands together and rested them on his knees. “The list of antidepressants and medications that Stella was on is extensive. Add alcohol and it’s a sure sign she was running from something. I just can’t help but wonder if they kept her medicated all these years for some reason.”

How was it that suddenly Vivian was beginning to feel sorry for her? “Do you think someone was after her?”

He shrugged. “She did have a lot of issues with a lot of people in this town. Even Darby said he’d had a run in or two with her.”

“
Yes, but she was just a bitch. I don’t think she was someone who could physically harm someone.”

“
Maybe she got involved in something. I mean, the woman had an affair and a baby from that affair while she was married. She seems to be good at being at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Vivian could hardly wrap her head around it all. “I can’t believe they’re both gone.”