you need to do is relax. Once Dad is given a clean bill of health the two of you need to go away for an extended vacation.”
“That’s not going to happen until we make repairs to the outside of the house.”
Now Sawyer knew why the exterior was in disrepair. His father didn’t like loans, and he waited until he saved enough money to pay for an earmarked project. Sawyer left the kitchen through a side door. Although Henry had sailed to ports all over the world, his wife had yet to travel out of the country. She occasionally went to see her twin sister in Ohio but that wasn’t what Sawyer deemed a vacation. If Henry had mellowed, as Rachel claimed, then Sawyer would try and convince him to take his wife away for a little R & R for their upcoming thirty-fifth wedding anniversary.
Sawyer removed his bags from the Jeep’s cargo area and returned to the house. Within seconds of walking into the kitchen he inhaled aromas that reminded him of how long it had been since he’d eaten. “Something smells delicious.”
“I just reheated Jessica’s baked chicken in the microwave,” Mara said as she ladled a spoonful of potato salad onto the plate with the chicken and a slice of cornbread. “I don’t know what she uses to season it, but I could eat her chicken every day.”
Sawyer washed his hands in the small bathroom off the kitchen, a ritual he’d followed since childhood. Rachel entered the kitchen as he sat at the table. She’d changed out of her scrubs and into a pair of shorts and baggy T-shirt.
“Do you want me to fix you a plate, too?” Mara asked her daughter.
“No, thanks,” Rachel replied, peering at the labeled containers on the table. “I grabbed a bite at the hospital. I just came down to tell you I’m going to bed and locking my door so the boys don’t barge in.”
“Don’t worry, sis, I’ll make certain they won’t bother you.”
Wrapping her arms around Sawyer’s neck, Rachel dropped a kiss on his hair. “I still can’t believe you’re here.”
He patted her hand. “Believe it.”
Sawyer could not believe it, either. His mind was flooded with wonderful memories of himself and Rachel sitting at the kitchen table enjoying an afternoon snack before doing homework while Mara busied herself making dinner. It was the good memories rather than the disturbing ones that kept him from totally despising his father.
He cut into a piece of chicken and popped it into his mouth. “Oh, my goodness! This chicken is incredible!”
Mara gave him a knowing smile. “Now you know what I’m talking about.”
Hard-pressed not to moan out his pleasure while savoring the most delicious baked chicken he had ever had, Sawyer concentrated on finishing the food on his plate. It appeared Jessica was the total package. She had looks, brains and she could cook! Although he considered himself a modern man with passable culinary skills, he still preferred women with the ability to put together a palatable meal.
There was something about Jessica that intrigued Sawyer, and he didn’t need his sister’s assistance as a go-between to get to know her. The odds were in his favor that their paths would cross again.
* * *
Jessica had been driving for ten minutes when her attention shifted from the road to the navigation screen as Rachel’s number appeared. She tapped the Bluetooth feature on the steering wheel. “Yes!” she answered cheerfully.
“I can’t believe you made so much food.” Rachel’s voice came clearly through the speaker. “When did you find the time to make potato salad and potpies?”
“It’s not that much food. I had leftover chicken, so instead of making a salad I decided to make potpies because they’re Colin and Dylan’s favorites.”
Every day of the school year she devoted to a particular task. Saturdays were set aside for cleaning the house and cooking enough meals for the entire week. Although she lived alone and at thirty-one hadn’t had a serious relationship in years, there was never a time when she experienced bouts of loneliness. And now that she’d rescued a black-and-white bichon frisé–poodle mix from a shelter, the house was filled with barking.
Rachel’s voice broke into her musings when she said, “You spoil my boys so much that one of these days I’m going to drop them on your doorstep with a note that you can keep them for the summer vacation.”
Jessica chuckled softly. “That’ll work. I’ll teach them how to grow their own food. And I’m certain they’ll enjoy playing with Bootsy.”
There was a noticeable pause from Rachel before she said, “I know you get tired of hearing it, and you’ve told me more than once that I’m a busybody, but it’s time you think about getting married so you can have a couple of babies and stop spoiling other folks’ kids.”
“You know that’s not going to happen until I meet a man I can trust enough to fall in love with him. Besides, I have a baby who wakes me up every morning while demanding all my attention the moment I walk through the door.”
“I’m not going to fight with you when I say a dog cannot replace—”
“Then don’t!” Jessica retorted angrily. A swollen silence filled the car. “I’m sorry, Rachel. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. You know why I don’t trust men, so if I really want to become a mother then I’ll adopt.” She drove over a railroad crossing.
“There has to come a time when you have to forgive and forget about the folks who blamed you for testifying against the man who raped your college roommate.”
“You sound like my former therapist.”
Rachel’s laugh came through the speakers. “That’s because we’re each other’s therapist.”
She and Rachel had become each other’s sounding boards and confidantes after Rachel volunteered as a class mother. Once Dylan and Colin were promoted to the third grade, Jessica bonded with their mother. “You’re right, Rachel. But sometimes it’s hard to forget that the man that I loved beyond belief and was engaged to marry blamed me for ruining his best friend and fraternity brother’s life.”
“If he chose his frat brother over you, then you’re better off without him.”
“I know that now.”
“I’ve learned to forgive Mason for not being here for me and our children, because whenever I look at my boys I see him in them. But it wasn’t until after I divorced him that I realized I could make it on my own.”
Signaling, Jessica maneuvered onto the road leading to the interstate. This year, with a dozen teachers retiring, the district had decided to hold the farewell festivities at a hotel a mile off the West Virginia Turnpike. “You have made it, Rachel.”
“Not completely.”
“Why would you say that?”
“I don’t want you to breathe a word of this to anyone, not even my mother, but Sawyer sends me money every month to supplement what Mason sends for child support. I was able to catch up on my bills, pay credit cards and put money into my savings account for the proverbial rainy day. When I tried to talk to him about
