That had been Lacey’s old life, and she missed it in ways that were hard to explain. Maybe because that life had been carefree with very little responsibility. Now responsibility weighed on her like an anvil around her neck. Some days it was hard to stand upright for the weight. She didn’t regret her decision to raise Emma. She just regretted she wasn’t more experienced at being responsible.
Her parents had divorced after nineteen years of marriage, and Lacey’s young life had been thrown into turmoil. Her college dream had been forgotten because there was no money to send her, so she worked at Macy’s in the makeup department. Her mother worked there, too. It hadn’t been ideal, but it had been a job.
A short three months later, her mother had remarried and Lacey had moved out of the house and been on her own. She’d gotten a job with a party-planning company. She’d loved it, and she’d been away from the influence of her mother and her mother’s new husband.
Her dad had moved back to Horseshoe, where he had grown up. A year later he’d married Mona and they’d had Emma. Her father had been happier than Lacey had ever seen him. She’d continued to visit, much to her mother’s displeasure, and had enjoyed spending time with them. Never in a million years had she imagined her dad’s and Mona’s lives would be cut so short.
She tucked the memories away and hurried to help her sister. Bathed and in her jammies, Emma carried her soft blanket, her Pooh bear and a pillow to watch TV.
“I’ll see if I can find a Christmas show.” Lacey flipped through the channels.
“I don’t want to watch a Christmas show. There is no Christmas.”
Lacey let that pass, hoping Emma’s attitude would change. At six, it changed often. Sometimes faster than Lacey could keep up. “Shrek the Halls is on. You like Shrek.”
Emma curled up with the blanket on the sofa and watched without complaining. Score one for Lacey. “I have to get clothes out of the dryer, but I’ll be right back to watch it with you.”
“’Kay.”
Lacey folded the laundry and put it away. She thought of taking a shower, but decided to wait until Emma had gone to bed. Her sister needed all of Lacey’s attention. She stopped short in the living room doorway. The blanket, Pooh Bear and pillow were on the sofa, but Emma was not.
“No! No! No!” Lacey ran for the back door. The only place Emma would go was to see Pepper, and Lacey did not want another confrontation with Gabe the Grouch.
Her father had installed a privacy fence around their backyard. A gate opened into Gabe’s yard. Lacey rushed through it and stopped suddenly. Gabe stood there with a scowl as big as Texas on his face.
The man was tall, six foot or more. He wore jeans and a dark flannel shirt. He looked foreboding. A chill slid through her that had nothing to do with the temperature. His hair was long and his face unshaven, as if he didn’t care, which Lacey knew he didn’t. His jeans and shirt seemed to hang on his thin body. He probably ate very little, but he still was a very handsome man in roguish sort of way.
“Would you please keep your sister out of my yard?” The words were cold and sharp, just as he’d intended, she was sure.
She stepped around his dark presence and went to Emma, who was kneeling by Pepper. The black lab was lying in a dog bed and Emma was stroking her.
She reached for Emma’s arm. “Let’s go. You’re not supposed to be here.”
Emma looked at her with beseeching eyes. “But Pepper wants me here.”
The dog whimpered as if it were in pain. Was the dog sick? It was none of her business, she had to remind herself. She tugged on Emma’s arm and half dragged her back toward the gate.
It was a chilly winter night and Emma just had on her PJs. “Run to the house. I’ll be right there.”
Emma glanced at Gabe and then raced for the back door.
Lacey faced the dark knight, not sure what to say, but she knew she had to say something.
Gabe didn’t give her time to voice her feelings. “If she comes into my yard one more time, I’m nailing the gate shut.”
Lacey looked into his eyes. If she had never known or felt pain, she would know what it was by that one glance. The crevices around his eyes were permanently etched in place as if forged by fire. His eyes were hollow, dark pits, and the only emotion he showed was the anger that flared from their depths. Normally, when she saw all the angst on his face, her retorts died on her lips. The man had been hurt enough. But today she didn’t back down.
“That gate is half mine, and if you nail it shut, I will un-nail it.” She was ready for battle, but then he did his usual thing. He turned and walked away.
Gabe tuned out the woman. He had no desire to talk to her or anyone. He didn’t understand why she couldn’t respect his privacy. When Jack was alive, Gabe had had no problems. Now the kid was out of control and the woman had no idea how to handle her. Both of them had tried his patience for the last time. He would nail the gate shut without a second thought.
He opened the back door and then picked up Pepper, bed and all, and carried her inside. She was getting too weak to walk. As he placed her by the sofa he noticed she was trembling in pain. Gritting his teeth, he knew he had to give her another shot. He went into the kitchen and got the medication the vet had given him. After giving her an injection, he stroked her until she drifted into sleep.
Sinking back onto the sofa, he drew a long breath. The vet had said it was time to put Pepper down. She was in too much pain from cancer, but she had been Zack’s dog and he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He looked at all the pictures of Zack he had hung on the walls. His son was in this room. He was everywhere. And Gabe had to take care of the dog his son had loved.
He rested his head on the back of the sofa and closed his eyes. The moment he did he saw his laughing, happy son and pain pierced his heart. Pain was all he felt these days. Life meant nothing to him. He couldn’t understand how fate could be so cruel as to take a child from his parents. Gabe didn’t know right from wrong anymore, and it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he remembered his son every moment of every day.
That was the only thing that kept him going.
* * *
THE NEXT MORNING Lacey let Emma sleep in. Last night, they hadn’t talked because Lacey was too upset. She had scolded Emma and put her to bed early.
Lacey was making breakfast when Emma trudged in and climbed onto the bar stool. Smoke spiraled from the toaster and the alarm went off, shrilling loud enough to wake the neighborhood.
“Not again.” Emma buried her face in her hands.
Lacey pulled off her sneaker and threw it at the smoke alarm. The device flew off and landed in the kitchen sink, causing the deafening sound to stop. The blackened toast popped up at the same time.
Emma looked through her fingers. “You’re gonna kill us, Lacey.”
She opened the window to let the smoke out. “I have everything under control,” she said, hoping she sounded convincing. Inside,
