and her oldest daughter, Suzie, had had a fight this morning over the skimpy skirt Suzie insisted on wearing, which made her look closer to twenty than fourteen, and Autumn had thrown up all over her precious bear. The phone call from Todd’s teacher expressing her concern over Todd’s constant reading during lunchtime was another nice touch.
And then, on the way home, her car started making funny noises that weren’t the least bit humorous to her.
As a result, the ache perched behind her eyes all day had spread to her entire head, making it pound and throb.
When she’d turned onto her street, she had been so tempted to keep going past the house and down the road to the highway. Away from responsibilities and the constant demands on a single mother trying to juggle family and work.
But that was her ex-husband’s trick. Not hers. Not responsible Janie Corbett. And as a result, she had been attacked by a crazed dog that was now loose in her house. Her new neighbor was yelling up the stairs, and her mother was staring at her as if this entire chaotic mess was her fault.
Somewhere there had to be a lesson in all of this.
“So how did that dog get in the house?” Tilly continued, pressing Janie for an answer.
“I let the dog in, Grandma,” Todd said quietly. “He was looking at Autumn.”
Tilly pulled back, her hands fluttering over her granddaughter’s face. “Honey, are you okay? Is she okay?”
Though the edge of anxiety in Tilly’s voice echoed her previous fear, Janie resented the way her mother’s tone elevated the concern in her daughter’s face.
“Autumn’s fine, Mom. Please, don’t fuss.”
The look her mother gave her held a volume of unspoken fears and concerns laced with reprimand.
“Don’t fuss? Don’t fuss? This precious child was bitten by Owen’s dog only a few years ago. How could you forget that?”
Janie felt suitably chastened and, at the same time, guilty. It had been Tilly whom Janie called after she took Autumn to the emergency room and Tilly who had shown up to give her the support she should have been getting from her husband, Owen.
Even when Janie brought Autumn home, shivering with fear from being taken to the E.R., Owen was still not answering his phone. Janie had had to call the SPCA herself to come and get the dog.
“Cooper, come here,” she heard from inside the house.
“Janie, shouldn’t you go in and help him?” her mother asked.
“And do what?” Why did her mother think she could do anything with that out-of-control dog?
Tilly ignored Janie’s outburst as she held Autumn close. “And you, baby, how are you? That dog must have scared you half to death.” Tilly shot Janie an annoyed look.
With her headache subsiding, Janie trudged inside to see what she could do.
Luke stood at the foot of the stairs, one foot on the lower steps, his knee showing through a hole in his pants and the sleeves of his faded shirt rolled over his forearms.
His long, brown hair, curling over his collar and his unshaven cheeks would have looked slovenly on some men, but the even planes of his face created an appeal not lost on Janie.
And when he gave her a sidelong glance, she felt the vague beginnings of feelings so long dormant she hadn’t thought they even existed.
“Sorry. Still don’t have the dog,” he said, an apologetic note in his voice.
“What is taking so long?”
“I didn’t think you’d appreciate a complete stranger tromping through your house. Bad enough that my dog is.”
“Well, go get him if you need to,” she snapped, her headache, her recent scare with her daughter and the disturbing way he was looking at her giving her voice a sharp edge. Autumn was fine, but she didn’t want to take any chances. She wanted the dog and this unsettling man out of her house.
She heard a thumping sound from upstairs and then, thankfully, a few seconds later Suzie came down, holding a panting dog by the collar.
And Suzie was doing something she hadn’t done for months.
Her daughter was laughing. And not just a soft chuckle. No, this was a full-bodied laugh that made her eyes sparkle, her face light up and made Janie forget the skimpy skirt and tight T-shirt she was wearing that had caused such a huge battle only a few hours ago.
“Here. I’ll take him.” Luke met Suzie halfway up the stairs and took the squirming dog from her. He looked up at Janie. “And again, I’m so sorry.”
Her kids were okay and, from what she could see, no serious damage had been done to the house. And Luke wasn’t looking at her anymore. She just wanted to be alone.
“Just go. Please.”
“Does he have that ridiculous beast under control?” Tilly called out from outside. “Should I call 911?”
Janie glanced down at the dog, now sitting with his head tipped quizzically to one side, water still dripping from his snout. He seemed harmless. The emphasis on seemed.
“It’s under control, Mom,” Janie called over her shoulder. She arched an eyebrow at Luke, as if making sure.
“I’m leaving now.” Luke had a firm grip on the dog’s collar, and Janie took a quick step back.
“He won’t hurt you.” Luke’s eyes locked on to hers, and he tilted her a quick smile.
As their eyes held that twinge returned, but she ruthlessly quashed it. Single mom. Three kids. As if she had any space for even the faintest hint of flirtation.
“Just make sure you keep that dog away from my kids, okay?” she said, disliking the harsh tone that self-preservation had put into her voice.
Luke held her gaze, as if surprised at her anger. Well, he could stay surprised. She didn’t need to explain anything more to him.
But in spite of herself, she watched as he made his way down the walk, his six-foot-something frame bent over the dog to control him.
“Oh, my. Look at the mess,” Tilly said as they stepped back in the house. “This has got to be cleaned up immediately. And if you want to keep those flowers outside in good shape, they’ll need to be dealt with, as well.”
Janie would have preferred to deal with the flowers and ignore the mess in the house.
But her mother was already picking up the coatrack and clucking about the relatively minor mess.
“Cooper was hilarious.” Todd plopped onto the couch, a grin splitting his face.
“When I came upstairs, he was on my bed.” Suzie was still chuckling as she pushed a tossed pillow aside and sat on the floor.
“Was he jumping?” Autumn asked.
“No.
