her husband had left? If so, how could he turn his back on one of God’s creations? He would have given anything to be able to hold his own son, to cradle him to his chest. That wasn’t possible, never would be.
“I hope you’re planning a big party. Birthdays are important to children,” Gabriel said, as though he was an expert on children when he had never really experienced the joys of fatherhood. His son had only lived a few hours. A tightness gripped his throat.
Rebecca went to the cabinet to get bowls. “I haven’t thought that far ahead. I’ve been a little preoccupied lately with the move and all.” She heard the defensive tone in her voice and winced as she withdrew the bowls and closed the cabinet door.
“If you need any help—”
“No, I’m fine.” She cut in, not wanting to hear his offer of assistance when she had never been able to get Craig even to change Josh’s diaper. Again she experienced the stifling need to be alone to deal with the emotions threatening to overpower her. If it had been possible, she would have been better off staying in Dallas where she could get lost in a crowd.
“Rebecca!” Granny turned from the stove with the wooden spoon in her hand and a frown of disapproval on her face.
Rebecca immediately regretted her cool interruption. She attempted a smile that she knew didn’t reach her eyes and said, “I’m sorry. It’s been a long day.”
“Go get Peter. Gabriel will set the table for us,” her grandmother interjected.
Thankful to escape the kindness she glimpsed in Gabriel’s dark eyes, she rushed from the kitchen and didn’t slow her step until she was upstairs and outside Peter’s bedroom. Pausing, she inhaled a steadying breath, then knocked on his door.
All she heard coming from the room was the blare of music. She knocked again, louder.
The door swung open, and Peter scowled at her. “I’m not hungry.”
“Then you don’t have to eat. But you do have to come down to dinner and sit while we eat. We have a guest tonight.”
“Who?”
“Chief Stone.”
Her son set his mouth in a firm line. She didn’t know if she had the strength to fight him if he refused to come downstairs. She did need help, but she was alone in this world except for her grandmother whom she didn’t want to burden with her problems. Granny wasn’t in the best of health, having suffered a mild stroke several years before.
Peter pushed past her and stomped down the stairs. Rebecca released her pent-up breath, then took a deep breath and blew it out through pursed lips. She needed to believe everything would work out, but each day she felt the weight on her shoulders growing.
Tears sprang into her eyes. She swiped at one that rolled down her cheek. She didn’t have time to feel sorry for herself. Both Josh and Peter depended on her. Somehow she would hold this family together.
When she entered the kitchen and saw Gabriel sitting at the head of the kitchen table, she came to a halt inside the doorway. He looked at home, holding Josh, supporting his small body in the curve of his arm. Her heart slowed, then began to race at the sight of him smiling at her son. Josh smiled at Gabriel. The large, muscular man dwarfed her son, but the picture of the two of them seemed so right that Rebecca blinked as if she had been caught daydreaming the impossible.
For a few seconds Rebecca allowed herself to wonder how it would feel to have a man like Gabriel Stone supporting her emotionally, loving her children. She shook the thought from her mind. She could only depend on herself to keep this family together.
Chapter Two
“He wanted out of the swing when it stopped,” Gabriel said, looking at her.
“Thank you for taking care of him,” she murmured, retrieving her son from Gabriel and putting Josh into his high chair, again propping him with pillows so he could sit up. He was starting to support his weight, but he was still having trouble maintaining his balance for any length of time.
“There’s a child in the church choir with Down’s syndrome. He loves music.”
“Josh does, too.” Rebecca snapped on his bib.
Rose sat at the other end of the table, forcing Rebecca to take the chair next to Gabriel. “Let’s join hands. Gabriel, will you give the blessing?”
Rebecca took Josh’s tiny hand and Gabriel’s larger one. The touch of Gabriel’s fingers about hers sent warmth up her arm. The link felt natural and right. That surprised her.
“Heavenly Father, we come to this table to offer our thanks for this wonderful food. Please watch over us and give us the strength to deal with our problems.”
The devotion in his voice gave Rebecca a sense of peace for the first time that day. She relished the blessing and wished she could feel that kind of love and faith again.
While Rose spooned chili into a bowl, then passed it to Peter, Rebecca fed Josh his baby food, mashed bananas and roast beef, two of his favorites. She introduced another food, strained carrots. He made a face and spit the carrots out. She dabbed at the orange that ran down his chin.
“Way to go, Josh. I hate carrots, too,” Peter said, the first enthusiasm he had shown all day.
“So far, I haven’t been able to find too many vegetables he likes.” Rebecca tried another spoonful of carrots, which Josh immediately rejected.
“Have you tried mixing the bananas with the carrots and seeing if he’ll eat that?” Gabriel set a chili bowl in front of Rebecca.
“Well, no. I suppose it wouldn’t hurt.” Rebecca dipped her spoon into the bananas and scooped some into the carrots. She wrinkled her nose at the mixture of light yellow and orange swirls.
When she fed Josh some of the new mixture, he kept most of it in his mouth. She gave him another spoonful, and he ate that, too.
“This might work with other vegetables, too. Thank you for the suggestion.” Rebecca looked toward Gabriel.
His dark gaze caught hers and held it. “Anytime.”
“Do you have any children?” she asked, realizing she knew nothing about this man and in many ways wished she did.
“No. Judy and I always wanted a whole house full.” Pain flitted across his features for a few seconds before he managed to conceal his emotions.
“Judy is your wife?” Rebecca glimpsed a wedding ring on his left hand.
“She died three years ago.” He touched his wedding ring, twisting it on his finger. “We had hoped to start a family when we moved here. It never happened.”
“But he’s determined to make up for that. He takes every child he can under his wing.” Rose sipped water, her eyes twinkling.
Here was a man who had wanted children but didn’t have any while her husband hadn’t wanted to care for his two sons. Life wasn’t fair, Rebecca thought, a constriction in her throat making it impossible to say another word. She dropped her gaze and continued to feed Josh.
