to the back of his SUV, he pressed the remote button on his keychain. The trunk eased open and he reached inside to retrieve his luggage. Gripping the handles of his leather suitcases with both hands, he gave a yank and hoisted them out.
“Charger,” he called over to the lazy dog. The pup’s head shot up and he spotted Ally and Susanna climbing the steps of the house. He rose on all fours, gave himself a shake and then trotted toward Susanna’s house. “No,” Casey commanded.
The pup stopped in his tracks and hung his head. “You can’t go over there.”
We’re not welcome.
Yet.
* * *
When the alarm clock went off the next morning, Susanna opened her eyes and glanced at the time. 4:00 a.m. She groaned softly and slid her arm out from under her pillow to hush the grating sound before it woke Ally in her bedroom two doors down. She stretched her arms over her head and yawned. Waking up at this ungodly hour had now become her routine. Rising in the dark was necessary. She had a full morning of baking ahead of her and had to get up an hour earlier than usual to make up for time spent with Ally in the mornings.
She hinged her body up and focused her eyes, going over the to-do list in her head. Aside from the regular orders from local merchants she would hand deliver, she also had to package muffins to send to a few clients in the surrounding counties.
Tossing her sheet off, she bounded quietly from bed and tiptoed out of the room and into the hallway. Wooden floorboards squeaked under her slight weight and she cringed. When Ally had first got here, there’d been too many nights when she woke from bad dreams. Susanna sent up a silent prayer that she’d sleep soundly for a few more hours. She popped her head inside the bedroom and smiled, sighing quietly. Blond curls framed Ally’s face as she slept on the twin bed that had once been Susanna’s. She never got over the love she felt for the little girl, or how the sight of her peaceful and happy made jelly of her heart.
“Promise me, you’ll take her and raise her right,” Susanna’s drug-addicted cousin would say, “if anything happens to me. The kid deserves a better life.”
Susanna had promised and Rhonda Lee had tried to kick her cocaine habit. She’d been to rehab twice, but there was a high failure rate with addicts trying to come clean and Rhonda Lee hadn’t made it to her twenty-ninth birthday. With no father in the picture, and all the other relatives too old to take on a young child, Susanna was Ally’s only hope and her cousin had known it.
There had never been a question that someone else would take Ally in; Susanna’s love for little Ally and Rhonda Lee had her immediately accepting the responsibility of raising the child. The sweet little girl needed someone who would give her unconditional but structured love. Rhonda Lee’s losing battle with her personal demons had all been terribly hard on the child and Ally deserved better.
Susanna planned to give Ally a good life.
She left the room and walked into the kitchen. She filled the coffeepot and the smell of the rich grounds got her juices flowing. Then she turned the oven on to preheat. “Don’t fail me,” she muttered to the late-seventies olive green appliance.
She got out all the bowls, muffin tins, utensils and ingredients she needed and began to bake. She had it timed perfectly—after mixing up and setting two dozen rocky road chocolate muffins in the oven she took twenty minutes to shower, throw on her clothes and dry her hair.
When she got back to the kitchen, she put her Sweet Susie’s apron on over her head and tied it behind her back. She was right on schedule and after the timer pinged, she donned oven mitts and pulled out the first two dozen muffins, setting the pans to cool on racks. Her next creation was made with cranberries and cheese. The coffeecake-like muffin wasn’t too sweet and a favorite at three local coffeehouses where she made deliveries. Once she set them to bake, she dipped her finger into the mixing bowl for a taste test. “Yum.”
By the time six-thirty rolled around, she’d baked twelve dozen pastries. Cupcakes and muffins cooled on the counters and tabletops all over the house. Bowls and utensils filled the sink and dots of batter littered the linoleum floor. She stepped carefully. Cleanup didn’t come until after she made her deliveries. She sipped from her coffee mug and began placing the pastries inside a Sweet Susie’s cake box.
Barking sounds rang out on the quiet street. She knew that bark. Susie moved to the kitchen bay window and gazed out. Charger and his owner jogged by. On short stubbly legs, the puppy was trying his darnedest to keep up with Casey’s long purposeful strides. It was no match. The pup’s five-foot leash was stretched to its limit. Casey finally slowed to a walk, allowing the puppy time to catch his breath.
Susanna caught her own breath. Casey was dressed in a sleeveless tank top and jogging pants. Golden brown and muscled like a pro athlete, he wasn’t hard on the eyes. Her friend Mindy would call him eye candy. With dark blond locks tied back and his skin moist and glistening, he strode confidently along the sidewalk as he cooled down.
She stood immobilized, fascinated by Casey Thomas. What else was new?
When he reached the front of his house, Susie was ready to turn back to her work. But he stopped and angled his head toward her kitchen window. Deep baby blues zeroed in on her, meeting her unflinching stare. Geesh! She didn’t have the nerve or good sense to turn away. He grinned and waved, mouthing “Good morning.” His smile did ridiculous things to her. A knot formed in her throat and she swallowed past it to wiggle her fingers his way.
She stepped away from the window, reminding herself she had a business to run. She couldn’t go around lusting after Casey, of all men. Or losing sleep over him.
After putting the finishing touches on her pastries, she entered Ally’s bedroom. She was just waking and Susie whispered, “Good morning, Muffin. Time to get up. We have deliveries to make.” Susanna bent to kiss her forehead and ruffle her curls.
Ally darted her gaze around the room and in those first few seconds, curious fear entered her eyes, before she realized where she was. One day she’d wake up and not have to remind herself that her mother was gone, and that her life would never be the same. Susanna prayed that day would come soon. Ally was young enough to acclimate to new surroundings. Susanna had met with a psychologist before taking Ally in and learned that a regular routine and stability were the keys in her acceptance of the situation. She needed no more surprises or traumatic experiences in her young life. She had to feel secure.
“Ready to get dressed? I saved two vanilla cupcakes for you. I have lots and lots of frosting leftover too. Would you like to frost them?”
Ally’s eyes widened and she smiled, pushing her covers off and hopefully the sad memories, too. “What flavors?”
“You have a choice of cherry chip or chocolate marshmallow.”
“Chocolate marshmallow!”
“Okay, then. Chocolate marshmallow it is.”
Susanna hoisted Ally off the bed and set her down. The little girl wiggled herself out of her nightdress and Susanna helped her get her arms through the sleeves of a purple and white Sweet Susie’s logo T-shirt. Jeans came on next and then socks. Ally slipped her feet into well-worn hot pink Velcro tennis shoes all by herself. “Good girl. We’re almost all set. Let’s go wash your face and hands and comb your hair. Then we’ll have breakfast and do some frosting.” Ally raced to the bathroom and after she was cleaned up, they went to the kitchen.
Shortly
