Читать книгу Hawk's Way: Rebels: The Temporary Groom - Joan Johnston - Страница 11

BREAKFAST WAS A HUGE success. Cherry sat at the kitchen table giving herself a pat on the back for having pleased both girls so well. Two plates had been licked clean. Annie must have eaten almost as many additional marshmallows as the two of them had cut up together for her hot chocolate. Raejean had devoured the entire batch of whipped cream. The kitchen was a mess, but Cherry would have time to clean it once the twins were at school.

“Uh-oh,” Annie said.

“Daddy’s going to be really mad,” Raejean said.

Cherry followed the direction of the girls’ gazes out the kitchen window and saw the school bus at the end of the lane. It paused momentarily, honked, and when no one appeared, continued on its way.

“Oh, no!” Cherry raced to the back door, yanked it open and shouted to the bus driver. “Wait!”

He didn’t hear her, which was just as well, because when she turned back to the kitchen she realized the girls weren’t dressed and their hair wasn’t combed.

Billy hadn’t asked much of her—only that she feed his children breakfast and get them to school and be there when they got home in the afternoon. She couldn’t even manage that.

She looked at the clock. Seven-thirty in the morning and she was already a failure as a stepmother. Before despair could take hold, it dawned on her that elementary school surely couldn’t start this early. Maybe she could still get the girls there on time.

“When do classes start?” she asked Raejean.

“Eight o’clock sharp,” Raejean answered. “Mrs. Winslow gets really mad if we’re late.”

“You still have time to get there if we move like lightning,” Cherry said.

She hurried the girls upstairs, but the more urgency she felt, the slower they both seemed to move. She ended up accidentally yanking Annie’s hair as she shoved the hairbrush through a knot.

“Ouch!” Annie cried. “That hurt.”

Cherry was instantly contrite. She had too much experience of her own with substitute parents who were in too much of a hurry to be gentle with her. She went down on one knee in the bathroom beside Annie and said, “I’m sorry, Annie. I should have been more careful. I guess I’m worried that I won’t get you to school on time.”

“Yeah. And Daddy will be really mad,” Raejean reminded her through a mouthful of toothpaste.

“Spit and rinse,” Cherry ordered Raejean as she finished putting Annie’s hair into pigtails. “I’ll get to you next.”

For a moment Raejean seemed to consider putting up a fight, but she stood still while Cherry pulled the brush through her tangled hair.

“My mom always put ribbons in our hair,” Raejean said.

Cherry heard the wistful longing in the complaint, but there wasn’t time to fulfill any wishes this morning. “Tonight we’ll see what we can find and have them ready for tomorrow morning,” she promised.

It wasn’t until she had dressed herself and was ushering the girls out the back door that she realized she had no idea what they were going to use for transportation. There had to be some vehicle available, because Billy had suggested she go shopping during the day. But the only thing on four wheels she saw was a rusted-out pickup near the barn.

A set of hooks inside the back door held a key attached to a rabbit’s foot. She grabbed the key, shoved the girls out the door, and prayed the truck had an automatic transmission.

It didn’t.

“Don’t you know how to drive?” Annie asked, concern etched in her young brow.

“I can drive. I have the license to prove it.”

“Then why aren’t we moving?” Annie asked.

Cherry stared helplessly at the stick shift on the floor of the pickup. “I’m not sure how to get this thing into gear.” She tried moving the stick, and it made an ominous grinding sound.

“If you break Daddy’s truck, he’s going to be really mad,” Raejean said.

Cherry was getting the picture. If she didn’t figure out something soon, she was going to be dealing with a seriously annoyed teacher when she got the girls to school and a fierce, wild-eyed beast of a man when Billy got home.

She crossed her arms on the steering wheel and leaned her head down to think. She could call her sister Jewel to come rescue her, but that was so mortifying a prospect she immediately rejected it. She felt a small hand tapping her shoulder.

“I can show you how to do it,” Annie volunteered.

Cherry lifted her head and stared suspiciously at the six-year-old. “You know how to drive a stick shift?”

“Sure,” Annie said. “Daddy lets us do it all the time.”

Since there wasn’t anyone else to show her how, Cherry said, “All right. Go ahead and show me what to do.”

“Put your foot on that pedal down there first,” Annie said. “Turn the key, and then move this thing here.”

Cherry pushed down the clutch, turned on the ignition, and reached for the black gearshift knob. To her amazement the gearshift moved easily without making a sound. However, she ended up in third gear, didn’t give the truck enough gas, and let the clutch go too fast. The pickup stalled.

“You have to follow the numbers,” Raejean chided, pointing to the black gearshift knob. “See? One, two, three, four, and R.”

“R isn’t a number,” Cherry pointed out.

“R is for Reverse,” Annie piped up.

Maybe Billy did let them drive, Cherry thought. At least they knew more about a stick shift than she did. “All right. Here goes.”

It was touch and go at first, but she managed to get the truck into second gear, and they chugged down the lane headed for the highway. She stalled a couple of times and ground the gears more than once before she got the hang of it. But she felt proud of herself when she finally pulled into the school parking lot and killed the engine.

“We made it,” she said, glancing at her wristwatch. “With five minutes to spare.”

“You forgot our lunches,” Raejean said.

“What lunches?”

“Mrs. Motherwell always made us a sack lunch. We’re going to starve,” Annie said.

“Daddy’s going to be really mad,” Raejean said.

“Maybe you could buy your lunches today,” Cherry suggested.

“I guess we could,” Raejean conceded.

Annie and Raejean held out their hands for money.

Cherry realized she hadn’t brought her purse with her. She checked both her jeans pockets and came up empty. “Look, I’ll go home and make lunches for you and bring them back to school. How would that be?”

“Okay, I guess,” Raejean said.

“I don’t feel so good,” Annie said, her hand on her stomach.

“Probably all the excitement this morning,” Cherry said sympathetically. “You’ll feel better once you’re settled in class. Have a nice day, Raejean. Enjoy yourself, Annie.”

She watched the two girls make their way inside, Raejean skipping and Annie holding on to her stomach.

To be honest, her own stomach was churning. It had been a hectic morning. And it wasn’t over yet. She had to get home, make lunches and get back, then get the kitchen and the house cleaned up before the girls got home in the afternoon.

It was a lot of responsibility for someone whose biggest problem before today was whether she could figure out her calculus homework or get the formulas right in chemistry class. The entire responsibility for the house and two lively children now rested on her shoulders. It was an awesome burden.

She should have thought of that sooner. Now that she had made the commitment, she was determined to see it through. There were bound to be a few glitches at first. The important thing was to keep on trying until she succeeded.

Of course, she wasn’t going anywhere until she figured out how to get the pickup into Reverse. No matter how many times she put the gearshift where she thought R ought to be, she couldn’t get the truck to back up. When the final tardy bell rang, she was still sitting there.

She was going to have to call Jewel after all.

“Hey, Cherry, what’s the matter?”

Cherry looked up into the sapphire blue eyes of her eleven-year-old brother, Colt. A black curl had slipped from his ponytail and curled around his ear. He was wearing tight jeans instead of the frumpy ones currently in style, and a white T-shirt and cowboy boots reminiscent of James Dean. Colt truly was the rebel in the family. But he somehow convinced everybody that doing things his way was their idea.

Cherry glanced at the empty schoolyard and said, “You’re late, Colt.”

He grinned. “Yeah. Looks that way.”

“You don’t seem too concerned about it. Zach will be—” Cherry stopped herself when she realized she was about to echo Raejean and say “really mad.”

“Dad knows I’m late,” Colt said. “Things were a little crazy this morning because of you disappearing and all. You really did it this time, Cherry. Mom went ballistic when she heard what you did, and Dad hasn’t come down off the ceiling since he got back from the Stonecreek Ranch. Are you really married to Billy Stonecreek?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Neat. He really knows how to use his fists to defend himself.” Colt shrugged his book bag off and did some shadow boxing. He was tall for his age, his body lean, his movements graceful. “Billy’s been in three fights this year,” he said. “Do you think he’d show me a few punches?”

“Absolutely not! And where did you find out all this information about Billy?” Cherry asked.

“I heard Mom and Dad talking. They’re worried that Billy’s a bad influence on you. They said he’s gonna undo all the hard work they’ve done, and you’re gonna end up back in trouble again.”

Cherry felt her face heating. Not that she didn’t appreciate what Zach and Rebecca had done for her. But she had come a long way since the days when she had habitually cut school and been ready to fight the world.

“You’d better get inside,” she told Colt.

“It’s all right. Mom called and told them I’d be late,” Colt replied. “What are you doing here?”

“I drove Raejean and Annie Stonecreek to school.”

“Why didn’t they take the bus?”

“They missed the bus.”

Colt grinned. “Overslept, huh? You never were very good at getting up in the morning.”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I didn’t over-sleep. I merely lost track of the time.”

“Same difference,” Colt said. “So why aren’t you headed back home?”

“I can’t figure out how to get this damn truck into Reverse.”

Colt laughed. “It’s easy. Press the stick down and over.”

“Press down? You have to press down on the stick before you move it?”

“Sure.”

Cherry tried it, gave the truck a little gas, and felt it move backward. “Good grief,” she muttered. “Thanks, Colt. I owe you one.”

“Will you ask Billy if he’ll show me a few punches?”

“I’ll think about it,” she replied as she backed out of the parking lot. “Tell Rebecca I’ll come see her tonight,” she called out the window as she drove away.

It was the coward’s way out to have Colt relay her message. She should have called Rebecca and told her she was coming. But she didn’t want to be forced into explaining things to her mother over the phone, and she knew Rebecca must be anxious for some sort of explanation for what she had done. The truth was, she needed the rest of the day to think of one.

By the time she made it back to the ranch she was a pro at shifting gears. She parked the truck behind the house, stepped inside the kitchen, and realized it looked like a tornado had been through. What if Billy came back home for some reason and saw it looking like this?

But she didn’t want to stop and clean it right now and take a chance on being late with the girls’ lunches. The mess was even worse by the time she finished making sandwiches. She vowed to clean up the kitchen as soon as she returned. She was out the door half an hour later, sack lunches in hand.

When she arrived at the principal’s office, Cherry was surprised to be told that Annie still wasn’t feeling well. Her teacher had asked the office to call the house and have someone come and pick her up.

“I was concerned when I couldn’t reach anyone at the ranch,” the principal said, “so I called Mrs. Trask.”

“Oh, no,” Cherry groaned. “Call her back, please, and tell her it isn’t necessary to come. I’ll take Annie home.”

“I’ll try,” the principal said. “But she’s probably already on her way.”

Cherry’s only thought was to get Annie and leave as quickly as possible.

“I’m Cherry Whitelaw, Mrs. Winslow,” she said when she arrived at Annie’s classroom. Cherry flushed. “Except it’s Stonecreek now. My name, I mean. I’m here for Annie.”

“She’s lying on a cot at the back of the room, Mrs. Stonecreek. Raejean insisted on sitting with her.”

It felt strange to be called by her married name. Only she really was Mrs. Stonecreek, and responsible for the twins’ welfare. She sat on a chair beside the cot and brushed the bangs away from Annie’s forehead. “How are you, sweetheart?”

Annie moaned. “My stomach hurts.”

“She ate too many marshmallows,” Raejean said from her perch beside her sister.

“Marshmallows?” Mrs. Winslow asked.

“Annie had a few marshmallows with her hot chocolate this morning,” Cherry said.

“How many is a few?” Mrs. Winslow asked.

Cherry hadn’t counted. “Too many, I guess. Can you walk, Annie? Or do I need to carry you?”

Annie sat up, holding her stomach. “I don’t feel so good.”

Cherry picked her up in her arms.

“Where are you taking her?” Raejean demanded.

“Home,” Cherry said.

“I’m going, too,” Raejean said.

“There’s no reason for you to miss a day of school,” Cherry said reasonably. “I’ll take good care of Annie.”

“How do I know that?” Raejean demanded. “You’re practically a stranger!”

“Raejean,” Mrs. Winslow said. “Mrs. Stonecreek is right. There’s no reason for you to leave.”

“I’m going with Annie,” Raejean said to Mrs. Winslow, her face flushed. “I’m not staying here alone.”

“You won’t be alone,” Mrs. Winslow soothed. “You’ll—”

“I’m going with Annie!” Raejean cried.

“Raejean—” Cherry began.

“I’m going with Annie!” she screeched hysterically.

Cherry knew the dangers of giving in to a tantrum. But in her mind’s eye she saw Mrs. Trask arriving to find a scene like this and knew she was over a barrel. “All right, Raejean, you can come. I’m sorry for the trouble, Mrs. Winslow.”

She turned and headed for the door with Annie in her arms and Raejean a half step behind her. She was almost out the door when Mrs. Trask showed up.

“What’s the matter with my granddaughter? What have you done to her?” she demanded.

“Annie is fine, Mrs. Trask.” Cherry kept moving down the hall toward the front door of the school, still hoping to escape without a major confrontation.

“Annie’s sick because she ate too many marshmallows,” Raejean volunteered.

“Marshmallows?” Mrs. Trask said as though what she was really saying was “Poison?”

“Annie will be fine, Mrs. Trask.”

“I was afraid of something like this. You’re not responsible enough to be left in charge of two little girls.”

Cherry didn’t want to admit Mrs. Trask might be right. She had misjudged the situation this morning, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t do better. She would learn. After all, nobody had practice being a parent before they actually became one.

“Thank you for coming, Mrs. Trask, but as you can see, I have the situation well in hand.”

“I’m coming home with you,” Mrs. Trask said.

“I don’t believe that’s necessary,” Cherry countered.

“I—”

“What’s going on here?”

Cherry stopped in her tracks.

It was Billy. He didn’t look really mad, as Raejean had promised. He looked frantic, his brow furrowed, his sweat-stained work shirt pulled out of his jeans and hanging open, revealing a hairy chest covered with a damp sheen of sweat. He was still wearing his buckskin work gloves, but he was missing his hat. He had obviously shoved an agitated hand through his dark hair more than once, leaving it awry. He looked virile and strong…and very worried.

“I stopped by the house for some tools and found you gone and a message on the answering machine that Annie wasn’t feeling well. Is she all right?”

“I’m sick, Daddy,” Annie cried.