Читать книгу Single with Kids - Lynnette Kent - Страница 10

VALERIE LOOKED BEYOND him as he stepped onto her porch. “Where’s Ginny?”

Before he could answer, though, she gasped. “What a gorgeous car! Is it yours?” Leaving the front door wide open, she rushed out to the driveway. “A ’55 Thunderbird, right? I love the turquoise and white. Oh, and it’s a manual transmission. How cool is that? Aren’t those whitewalls just to die for?”

“Uh…yes.” Rob grinned and leaned a shoulder against the porch post while she circled around his car, making little noises of pleasure. He’d hadn’t seen a woman as cute as Valerie Manion in a long, long time. “Glad you like her.”

She glanced up from her intense study of the taillights. “I know, I’m crazy. My granddad had one of these, and my dad dated my mom with that car. By the time I could drive, though, they’d retired the Thunderbird to a place of honor in the garage. Never took it out, just kept it polished for nostalgia’s sake.” Shaking her head, she backed away. “I used to sit behind the wheel and pretend to drive. But I never got the chance.”

A pretty woman in a sexy sundress, driving his precious ’Bird on a sunny summer day…not an offer a guy could be expected to pass up. He pulled the keys out of his pocket and twirled them around his finger. “Well, then, let’s go. It’s a nice afternoon.”

For a second, her face brightened. “Could we?”

Then a kid’s voice called out something from the backyard, and Valerie shook her head. “No, with only two seats there’s not enough room for Grace and Connor, and I can’t leave them home by themselves. Another time, maybe?” Her hopeful expression convinced him she really meant it.

“Sure. We can park your kids with Ginny at my parents’ house, and take off for a couple of hours. Just say the word.”

She came back to the porch and opened the door again. “I’ll do that. Meanwhile, come in.”

The moving boxes stacked in the living room yesterday had disappeared overnight. Books and pottery and candles filled the shelves on either side of the fireplace, a nice rug covered the floor, and the blank walls displayed photographs of Connor and Grace, along with a couple of signed and numbered prints.

“This looks great,” Rob commented, studying the framed landscape hanging above the couch, as an alternative to staring at Valerie. “Is this one by Stephen Lyman? That’s Half Dome mountain in Yosemite Park, right?”

She came to stand beside him, which defeated the whole exercise. “You know his work?”

How long had it been since he noticed a woman’s scent? Valerie, he’d just discovered, smelled like fresh summer grass. He shifted his weight to put more distance between them. “I was really into the outdoor life when I was in high school. A friend and I had this goal to head out to California on motorcycles and spend a summer camping. I guess I came across one of Lyman’s pictures somewhere and incorporated him into the plan. Those images of firelight in the dark wilderness always appealed to me.”

“And did you get to California?”

“Nope. The friend took off before graduation, I got married and settled down. Have you been out there?”

“We spent our honeymoon in San Francisco.” To his relief, she went to sit in the armchair beside the couch. “My ex-husband wasn’t a camper, but he did agree to spend a couple of days in Yosemite on a driving tour. So I’ve seen it, at least.”

Rob dropped onto the end of the couch nearest her chair—too close for comfort, but he didn’t want to be rude. “Maybe we’ll have to get this troop experienced enough so that we can all go out to Yosemite together.”

“Definitely. Older GO! girls are encouraged to set their sights on a big project like that, develop a plan for earning the money and then follow through on the arrangements. It’s a great learning tool.”

Her smile brought the dimple into play. “In the third grade, though, we’re not quite so ambitious. Have you had a chance to look at the books I gave you? There’s some information about the general organization of a meeting.” She pulled out a clipboard and balanced it on her knee…after crossing her legs with a smooth motion that raised his blood pressure ten points.

“I…uh…paged through last night. Sad to say, I fell asleep over the chapter on Safety At The Meeting Place.”

To his relief, she laughed. “I’m not surprised. It’s all pretty basic, commonsense stuff. Let me tell you about some of the ideas I’ve been working on for this first meeting.”

In the next hour, they created a detailed meeting agenda and a rough outline of the first three months’ activities. As they talked, Valerie realized that Rob consistently understated his talents and his preparation for the role he’d assumed as assistant leader. She didn’t have to explain why she made certain choices of activities—he understood what she wanted to do, and his suggestions improved her plans.

“This looks great,” she said, surveying her notes. “A couple of hikes, two cookouts and then the overnight camp before the weather gets too chilly. When the weather changes, we can switch to more indoor activities.”

A glance at the empty coffee table in front of them reminded her that she hadn’t even offered him a cup of coffee. “You must think I’ve got the manners of a carpetbagger. I didn’t ask you if you were thirsty or hungry. I’ve still got some cookies…”

Rob shook his head as he stretched to his feet. “No problem. My mom makes a big Sunday lunch, so I’ve had plenty to eat and drink.”

“I’m well aware of the Southern tradition of hospitality, not to mention great food. I hope it’s contagious.”

Rob chuckled. “I think we figure if somebody’s stuffing their face, they can’t be disputing what we’re trying to say.” He accentuated the drawl, and then gave her a wink. “Pretty wily, us Southerners.”

“Outrageous might be a better word.” She followed him onto the porch. Her new neighborhood wasn’t quite the peaceful setting she’d hoped for—there seemed to be a lot of engine noise in the air, and more traffic than she liked in front of her house. “I guess it’s a good thing the backyard is fenced,” she said, as a car drove by at a speed considerably over the limit. “Connor would be out in the street with his ball before I could sneeze.”

“Yeah, this isn’t the neighborhood I would’ve steered a single mother and her kids to, if they had other options.” He winced as a pair of Harleys roared past. “Or maybe I’m just used to my part of town, where it’s quiet and a lot less hectic. My sister, Jenny, and I bought a big lot that stretches from one street to the next, and put a house for me and Ginny on one end and a house for Jen on the other, with a nice stand of trees between the backyards. Works really well.”

“Your wife didn’t live there with you?” The question was out before she realized what she’d said. “I’m sorry, Rob. It’s none of my business.”

He held up a hand. “It’s okay. I don’t mind telling you. Leah and I had an apartment across town. I didn’t want to live there after…” He swallowed hard. “Her labor didn’t go well, and Ginny had the cord wrapped around her neck. Just real bad luck altogether.”

She put a hand on his wrist. “You must have been devastated.”

“I didn’t get to think about that aspect of things too much. Babies take a lot of time and attention. I was pretty busy.”

“My husband left on a business trip two weeks after Connor was born. I know exactly what you mean.”

“We’re a pair then, aren’t we?” His gaze held hers, and his arm turned under her fingers until their hands closed upon each other, palm to palm. Not a simple handshake, but a deeper, warmer connection. She felt the texture of his skin, felt the strong dome of muscle at the base of his thumb, the deep valley over his life line. They held each other so tightly, a single pulse beat through both of them…or so it seemed.

In another instant, though, he had released her and dropped off the porch steps into the grass. “If you think of anything else you need before Wednesday, just call me,” he instructed, walking backward toward the driveway. “And be sure you use those new locks.”

“I will. Thanks for everything.” She waved to him as he pulled out of the drive, and should have gone inside at that point. Instead, she stayed on the porch, watching the Thunderbird drive down the street until it was lost from sight.

A very nice guy, she thought. A good friend, a great father.

And the sexiest man she’d met in…well, ever. She’d thought she preferred dark, compact professional men, until Rob. Now, tall and blond and lean was her idea of perfect. Forget the business suits and ties—give her a guy in a baseball cap, a black T-shirt and jeans faded to nearly white, with a rip across the knee and frayed hems. Let him drive a 1955 Thunderbird, turquoise and white. Her heart pounded just remembering how great he looked in that car.

Grace joined her on the porch. “Mr. Warren’s nice, isn’t he?”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“You could go on a date with him. Ginny said her mom died a long time ago.”

“I don’t think Mr. Warren and I will be dating, Gracie.”

“Why not?”

“Because—” She gave in to a moment of temptation and imagined Rob with her on a date. Specifically, the end of the date, where he would reach across that white leather seat, take her in his arms and lift her chin up, then press his mouth to hers…

“We work together, and that’s all. For the troop. There can’t be any other complications.” She shooed Grace into the house and followed close behind, hoping she could heed her own sensible advice.

Otherwise, she had absolutely no doubt that indulging her attraction to Rob Warren would qualify as the most colossal complication of them all.

AS SOON AS HE opened the shop door on Monday morning, Rob heard his dad’s voice rumbling in a constant stream of complaints. When he looked in the doorway of the office, he found Mike Warren standing in front of the file cabinets with half the drawers already open. A pile of folders and a messy stack of loose papers on top of the desk reversed all the progress Jen had made during the weekend.

“What’s going on, Dad?” Rob stepped into the small room and noticed—again—the dusty window and blinds, the worn paint on the walls, the outdated calendar. The place needed a serious face-lift. If only he had the time…

“I was lookin’ for the invoice from that latest order we placed for lock sets. I know I laid it on the desk here last week, but I’m damned if the whole place wasn’t straightened up, so this morning I can’t find a damn pencil, let alone the papers I need.” Mike paged through one folder, pushed it aside and started on another as the papers in the first folder slid toward the edge of the desk and then the floor.

“Jen came in to do some organizing.” Rob caught the papers just before they fell, stacked them together and put them back into the folder. “Maybe what you’re looking for is in a file.”

“Yeah, well, why do you think I’ve got this stuff out on the desk?” His dad made a helpless gesture with his hands. “But the only folder I can find with the company name on it is catalogs. I don’t need the catalog, I need the damn invoice.”

Rob went to the far right file cabinet and pulled out the top drawer. “As I recall, she files the year’s invoices by month received, and month paid. We got that shipment…what? Two months ago?” He checked the June folder, then July. “Here it is. Those locks came in at the beginning of July.”

“Well, thank God you had some idea of where to look. This whole system is just a mess.” His dad tugged the paper of out Rob’s hands. “How’m I supposed to remember what month the damn locks came in?”

“There’s a logbook, Dad.” Rob took the journal from the left drawer of the desk. “We record the deliveries.” He didn’t mention that his sister simply did what their dad had told her to with regard to the paperwork. Mike wouldn’t want to hear that the system he despised this morning was his own invention. “So what’s the problem with the invoice, anyway?”

“I keep taking down locks that don’t work right.” His dad left the office and went into the workshop. On his bench was a stack of six boxes containing brand-new locks. “Gotta send ’em back.”

“That’s a good company. It’s hard to believe they’d distribute defective merchandise. Have you tested every lock in the shipment?”

“That’s your job today.” Without so much as a glance in Rob’s direction, his dad started checking over his toolbox, getting ready for the day’s work.

Rob stood still for a minute, unwilling even to breathe for fear his temper would get the best of him. “My job?” he said, finally. “You want me to test five hundred locks?”

Mike nodded. “That’s right.”

“And I get this job because…?”

“Who else? Trent’s on call today. Smith is working on that office building project, which leaves you.”

“I’ll take call again. Let Trent test the locks.” He sounded like a whiny teenager. But he wasn’t an errand boy or an apprentice. “Or let Smith stay here and work with the locks. I should be doing the office project, anyway.”

“You weren’t able to stay until six in the afternoons, like they needed. So Smith took the job. And you test the locks.”

“Why don’t you test the locks?” Absolutely the worst thing he could’ve said.

Mike looked at him, then—Rob felt like he was staring at his older self in a mirror—and straightened up to his full height. “I run this business. I make the decisions and I assign the jobs. Nobody argues. That’s the way it is.”

And I quit, Rob said, but only in his mind. He’d had the thought a thousand times in the last fourteen years, and never acted on the impulse. Quitting his job would cause havoc in the family. More importantly, the insurance he carried through the business handled Ginny’s medical bills. He couldn’t afford to give up the insurance unless he had a better policy to replace it with. And these days, getting new insurance for a child with a preexisting condition was about as easy as changing his dad’s mind.

So he swallowed the words, along with a few choice phrases he would like to have used. “Yes, sir.” He headed toward the storeroom and the boxes of locks. “Whatever you say.”

WHEN HER OFFICE INTERCOM buzzed during her Monday morning staff meeting, Valerie could have sworn in frustration. “Excuse me, gentlemen.”

The other department heads relaxed in their chairs as she crossed the room to pick up the phone on her desk. She turned her back to the conference table before she spoke. “Terri, I asked you not to disturb me during the meeting.”

“I know, Ms. Manion. But it’s your children’s school calling. I thought you’d want to know if someone was sick or hurt.” Her secretary had three children of her own, their pictures proudly displayed on her desk.

“Yes, of course.” Valerie sighed, sweeping her fingertips across her own bare work surface. “Put me through.”

After a click, a man’s voice said, “Hello?”

“This is Valerie Manion.”

“Ah, Mrs. Manion. This is Charles Randleman, the principal at Crawford Elementary School. I need to speak with you about your son, Connor.”

“Is he hurt? Sick?”

“Uh, no. Connor is fine. But he’s been causing us a great deal of trouble, and I think it’s time I involve you in the situation.”

Oh, Connor. Not again. “Has he hurt somebody?”

“No, no, not really. But—”

“Is the school building still standing?”

“Yes, of course. But, Mrs. Manion—”

His use of “Mrs.” set her teeth on edge. “Then I’ll have to call you back, Mr. Randleman. I’m in a meeting and I really can’t talk right now.”

“But this is your son, Mrs. Manion. Surely, he’s your first priority.”

“Yes, and if I don’t work, he doesn’t eat, which is a priority for both of us. So I’ll call you when I’m free and we’ll set up a time to talk. Thanks for letting me know there’s a problem.” She hung up on the principal’s bluster, took two seconds to master her worry and then turned to smile at the four men waiting for her. “Now, we were reviewing those production figures for the last quarter, weren’t we? Do we have a good reason for the six-percent drop?”

An hour later, she finally had her office to herself. As she put together the reports she’d received, Terri knocked on the door. “Here’s your lunch, Ms. Manion.” She set a tray on the conference table. “Is there anything else?”

Valerie didn’t glance at the food. “Terri, we need to get something settled. I’m going to notify the school that you are authorized to receive any emergency information about Grace and Connor that needs to be delivered. I don’t want to be interrupted in a meeting unless there’s a really good reason. This morning’s chat with the principal was not a good reason.”

Terri’s pale blue eyes went round with shock. “You want me to…to…to brush off a principal?”

Valerie grinned. “Haven’t you always wanted to?”

But Terri didn’t smile back. “N-No. I haven’t.”

“Oh. Well, yes, I want you to tell the principal that if no one’s life or health is at stake, I will call him when I have a chance.”

“But you’re their mother. You have to care about what’s wrong.”

“I do care. But I care about my work, as well. Do the other vice presidents take personal calls from the school during meetings?”

“I—I don’t know…”

“I’ve been working in management for ten years now, and I’ve never seen it happen.”

Terri couldn’t seem to grasp the concept. She wrung her hands. “Their f-father isn’t—”

“No, he isn’t. And he didn’t take calls when he was. I’m not saying I want to ignore a serious problem, Terri. If Connor’s sick, I want them to tell you and I’ll leave as soon as possible to take him home. I just need to be able to prioritize. That means only bona fide emergencies during the workday. Okay?”

“O-Okay.”

Still looking confused, the secretary went back to her desk. Valerie sat down in front of her salad and crackers, with the production reports in front of her. Work time was for working, or else she’d never get everything done.

The intercom buzzed again before she’d had time for more than a forkful of lettuce. “Yes?”

“Ms. Manion, I’m sorry. But it’s the school again.”

“I—” No, she wouldn’t complain. Her authorization wasn’t in place yet. “Let me speak to them.”

Another click on the line. “Mrs. Manion, this is Principal Randleman. I’m afraid we do have a serious problem this time.”

Valerie waited, expecting to hear about some wrestling match in the library.

“Connor punched his fist through a window,” Randleman said. “We had him taken to the hospital in an ambulance.”

ROB ARRIVED AT the elementary school thirty minutes before the end of class on Wednesday. As early as he was, though, he found Valerie there ahead of him, with her boxes of papers, books and supplies already unloaded and sitting on a cafeteria table.

“You are one organized lady,” he told her, noticing the precut craft supplies, the cookies and juice for snacks already prepared. “I’d have to be a real early bird to get the worm before you do.”

She smiled, but he thought her eyes looked strained. “I like knowing everything is ready ahead of time. Surprises make me nervous.”

“I understand.” He held out the bag he carried. “Twenty-five compasses, donated by Moore’s Outdoor Store.”

“Donated? Really?” She gazed into the bag, then looked up in amazement. “How did you get them to do that?”

“Hank Moore’s a friend of mine from high school. I asked and he said he’d be glad to contribute.”

“That’s terrific. We can do the orienteering activity we talked about.” Valerie set the bag beside her other materials. “I came up with another game to have in its place, but I’d much rather work with the compasses.”

Irritation flickered inside him. “I told you I’d get them. You didn’t need to waste time worrying about another activity.”

She turned away. “Well, yes, but sometimes people don’t get around to doing what they say they will, so it’s best to be prepared.”

He caught her wrist between his fingers and tugged her back around. “Listen, Valerie. When I say I’ll do something, you can count on it getting done. No excuses, no second thoughts.” She still hadn’t looked at him, so he lifted her chin with his other hand. “Got that?”

“Got it,” she said, breathlessly, her brown eyes wide. Rob realized suddenly how close he’d brought her—close enough for a kiss, if he bent his head. Just a touch of his mouth to hers…

The loud jangle of a nearby bell announced the end of school. Before the vibrations had died away, he and Valerie stood a table’s length apart. In the next moment, little girls started pouring into the room, which effectively doused any adult inclinations he might entertain.

In time, Rob supposed, he would learn all their names, but to begin with there seemed to be a hundred of them, all about the same size and shape, all dressed in khaki shorts and vests and dark blue shirts, all running and chattering and in general creating chaos. Talk about safety in the meeting place! Ginny came in last of all, wearing the same outfit but easily distinguished by her crutches.

He met her in the center of the cafeteria. “Hey, sweetheart. How was your day?”

“Okay.” She looked tired, as she always did after school. “This is really crazy.” As she spoke, a redhead with pigtails flashed by Rob, headed at top speed across the room. Next thing he knew, Ginny cried out and both girls went down in a jumble of legs, arms, and stainless steel.

“Oh, man.” He knelt by his daughter, who was thrashing around. “Settle down, Ginny.” He put his hand on her shoulder. “You’re okay.”

“I am not. She hurt me!”

The redhead was crying, too. “Oww. My arm hurts.”

Valerie knelt on the other side. “Sit up, sweetie. There you go. Let me see your arm.” Rob helped Ginny sit up, and they got the two bodies separated. The four of them were now the center of a circle formed by wide-eyed little girls.

“That was a stupid thing to do.” Ginny had shifted into a high-gear tantrum. “You don’t run around people with crutches—you might hurt them. Can’t you see where you’re going?”

“Hush,” Rob told her. “It was an accident.”

“I think you’re okay,” Valerie told the other girl. “You just fell hard on your hand.” She looked around the circle. “Why don’t we start the meeting? Girls, get your books from your backpacks and sit down here. Grace, would you bring my books over? And where’s Connor?”

“He went outside to the playground,” Grace said as she handed her mother the materials.

“He can’t play outside with his hand in a bandage. Go get him, please, and tell him to come inside.”

“He won’t come if I say so.”

“Tell him I’d better see him in here in one minute or he’ll be missing TV for the rest of the week.”

Grace heaved a big sigh and went toward the door. Rob could sympathize—he had it on Jen’s authority that it wasn’t fun, keeping track of a little brother all the time when you’d rather be participating in your own activities.

Thanks to the planning session on Sunday, he’d brought along Ginny’s floor chair so she could sit with the other girls. By the time he’d gotten her settled, Grace was back with a disgusted Connor. The boy’s hand was bandaged from fingertips to elbow.

“Did you get in a fight with a bobcat?” Rob winked at him. “They’re mean critters, aren’t they?”

Connor narrowed his eyes. “There are bobcats around here?”

“Not really. What did you do to your hand?”

But Connor wasn’t volunteering an answer. He turned his head away, just as Valerie officially started the meeting.

“I’m glad to see all of you at our first Girls Outdoors! meeting. I’m Ms. Manion, your leader, and this is Mr. Warren. He’ll be my assistant leader.”

“I didn’t know men could be leaders,” said a little blonde across the circle.

A dark-skinned girl spoke at almost the same time. “I didn’t know men could be assistants.”

Valerie grinned. “Well, according to the rules, men can be GO! assistant leaders. Mr. Warren was a Boy Scout and earned his Eagle award, so he knows lots of stuff about the outdoors he can share with us. Now, let’s go around the circle so each one can tell us her name and one interesting outdoors fact about her. Grace, can you start?”

Rob saw Grace flush, and her eyes looked a little bright. But she knew what to do. “My name is Grace Manion and I like bird-watching.”

Around the circle they went, learning names and hearing about girls who liked soccer or swimming or tennis, who camped with their families or sailed or spent a week at the beach. As the girls spoke, Connor started scooting away from the circle, pushing with his feet and sliding on his backside in an attempt to escape. Rob watched with a smile as Valerie grabbed the leg of the boy’s jeans just before he moved out of reach and pulled him back to sit beside her, all without even glancing in her son’s direction.

Just then, Ginny’s turn to talk arrived. “I’m Virginia Warren,” she said. “I like to ride horses.”

One of the girls on the other side of the circle said, “You ride horses? I don’t believe it.”

“I do ride.” Ginny’s face turned red. “I take lessons, too.”

On Rob’s left, Valerie nodded. “There are riding programs for people with all sorts of abilities. And there are GO! badges for horseback riding, among lots of other things. Open your books right now to page one hundred seventy—that’s the HorseCare Badge. To earn that badge, you have to do six of the activities listed on these pages. And when you do them all, then I can give you a little circle which looks just like the picture. You sew your badges on your vest and everyone can see all the interesting things you’ve done when you wear your uniform.”

She took them through the book as she had planned, pointing out the soccer badge, the swimming badge, the shell-collecting and bird-watching awards, plus cooking and camping and a myriad of other activities. “What you’ll need to do is to look through and decide which badges appeal to you the most. Some you can earn on your own, and some we’ll earn as a troop.”

Valerie got to her feet. “As a matter of fact, we have a couple of badge activities to do this afternoon. On page one-thirty-nine is the hiking badge.” She walked over to the table and took one of the compasses out of the bag. “Anybody know what this is?”

A couple of hands went up, including Grace’s. Valerie called on a different girl. “That’s a compass.”

“Right. And what’s it used for?”

Grace and several others raised their hands. “To find directions,” someone said.

“And which of the badge requirements does using a compass satisfy?”

All heads bowed low over the handbooks, each girl trying to read fast and be the first to answer the question. Grace put up her hand a minute before anyone else. Ginny was next.

“Tell us, Ginny,” Valerie said.

“We’re supposed to use the compass to make a path from one place to another place.”

“Right.” Valerie smiled. “So let’s all get up and Mr. Warren will start teaching us how to do just that.”

Rob thought he’d planned out his twenty allotted minutes very carefully, but he hadn’t counted on the silliness of third-grade girls. His time was up long before he’d gotten everyone to understand which way to point the compass, let alone how to change directions.

Valerie grinned at him as she raised her hand for quiet. “Looks like we’re going to need more than one meeting to understand orienteering. For now, all of you can put your compasses back into the bag, and then sit down at the table for snacks.” The girls stampeded toward Rob as he held the bag, then rushed to the table to jostle for their places. Grace and Ginny brought up the end.

“I understand,” Grace said quietly. “My mom and I have worked with compasses before.”

“I could tell,” Rob told her with a smile. “I saw you trying to help the others. I appreciate the effort.”

Her eyes shone at the praise. “You’re welcome.”

“Excuse me.” Ginny’s voice was at its most impatient. “I want some snacks before it’s all gone.” Grace stepped aside and went to sit at the end of the table.

Rob eyed his daughter with disapproval. “That was not polite.”

“Was I supposed to wait forever?”

“You—” He swallowed the reprimand. “Have a seat so everybody can eat.”

After snack came the craft segment, which had to do with making paper chains to represent the food chains in nature. Ginny’s fingers didn’t maneuver scissors well, so Rob spent most of his time cutting out the pictures she wanted from the pages of animals and plants Valerie had provided.

The meeting ended at four-thirty with another circle, standing up this time. “Link hands,” Valerie said. “Like this.” She crossed her arms and reached for the hands of the girls on either side of her. Everyone else followed suit…except Ginny, who couldn’t hold her crutches and cross her arms.

“Just take my hand,” Rob told her. “Don’t worry about it.” But he could tell by the set of her mouth that another storm was brewing.

As they all held hands, Valerie taught them a song about friendship. “This is how we’ll close every meeting,” she told them. “As friends and as a troop. Remember the GO! motto—All for one, and one for all!” At the words, she turned in place, uncrossing her arms as she did so. The girls—except for Ginny, and Rob—followed suit.

Then there were parents arriving to pick up their daughters, book bags to gather and chains to collect, and more excited chatter than Rob had ever imagined.

Finally, the room grew quiet, with only three children left to deal with. Ginny had made her way to a chair and sat there twirling her paper chain around her wrist. As Valerie packed up her supplies, Grace gathered trash from around the room and under the table where girls had let their scraps fall.

Connor had subsided onto the bench of a table and put his head down on his unbandaged arm. “What did happen to his arm?” Rob asked Valerie. “Is he okay?”

She put the last of the construction paper away. “He and another boy got into an argument at school on Monday. When the other boy teased him from behind a window, Connor…” She closed her eyes, then shook her head as if she still couldn’t believe it. “Connor punched his fist through the window.”

“Ouch.” Rob winced. “That had to hurt really bad.”

Valerie nodded. “He’s winding down on the pain medicine now. He didn’t damage anything badly, but he’s got several cuts with stitches and lots of others that just burn.”

“Did the other guy get hurt?”

“No, thank goodness. Then we’d be in an even bigger mess. As it is, they want me to take Connor to the doctor. The psychiatrist, actually.” She pressed her fingertips to her eyes. “They say his behavior is unmanageable. The school nurse suggested medication might help.”

Rob glanced at the little boy. “Do you want to go that route?”

“Of course not. And he’s not unmanageable to me. But I can’t be with him every day, every minute. He’s got to be able to control himself.” Valerie sighed. “He’s so angry.”

“Does he have friends? Play sports?”

“Two weeks in town isn’t long enough for friends.” Her shoulders slumped. “And I haven’t had time to investigate sports programs. I imagine it’s too late to join a team now.”

“I don’t know about that.” Rob picked up the box she’d packed before she could. “What does he like to play?”

“Soccer, of course. Doesn’t everybody?” Valerie reached out to take the box, but stopped when Rob frowned at her. “Fine. I’ll let you carry that one. I’ve got several more.”

“Why don’t you just unlock the car and open the door and let me do the carrying?”

She went to the door of the cafeteria and pointed the remote lock control at the van across the parking lot. After a pointed glance in his direction, she went to pick up a different box of supplies. “You see—I can compromise.”

“Stubborn,” he muttered as he walked past her.

“Independent,” she countered, following him.

The afternoon breeze carried a hint of autumn, and Rob stood still for a second after they’d loaded the van, appreciating the difference. “Every so often we’ll get a day like this, where the humidity is low and the shadows are crisp. Fall comes to this part of North Carolina, but it’s slow.” He looked at Valerie, noticing how the wind brushed her curls back from her pretty face. “I’ll bet you’re used to early autumns and cold winters.”

“Ohio, the last place we lived, had its share of winter weather.” She shook her head. “I won’t miss shoveling snow in the least.”

“We had a big storm here last winter—New Year’s Day, to be exact. We got almost ten inches of the white stuff. But it didn’t stay long.”

“That sounds good to me.” She shut the rear door of the van and turned back toward the school.

But Rob held his ground. He’d got her talking about herself, and he wasn’t about to give up now. “You aren’t from Ohio, right? Your accent says New York.”

“Brooklyn, actually.” She hesitated, as if unwilling to elaborate. “Before Ohio, though, we lived in Maryland for a couple of years.”

He leaned back against her van and crossed his arms over his chest. “Why so many moves? If you don’t mind telling me.”

“Those two moves were both promotions within my company. Great opportunities that I couldn’t turn down.” Valerie looked at him out of the corners of her eyes. “And before you ask, I’ll say that my husband refused to leave New York. Since he’d already moved out, there didn’t seem to be much point in trying anymore, and we filed for a divorce.”

“Ah. How long were you in Ohio?”

“Five years.”

“And now you’re in New Skye. Because…?”

“Because I got a job with a different company.”

“Another offer you couldn’t turn down?”

“Exactly.” Hands propped on her hips, she faced him. “Why is that so hard to understand? If I were a man, nobody would question my desire to succeed, to excel. A man is supposed to take the chances that come along for a better job, more money, more authority. Just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I don’t have the same ambitions.”

Rob held up his hands in surrender. “I didn’t say—”

“My husband, weasel lawyer that he is, managed to construct a settlement that benefited him while shafting me and his kids. I am our sole support. I’m going to be responsible for their college money. I’m responsible for my retirement income. And I have every right to be just as damn successful as I want to be.”

“Valerie.” He put his hands on her shoulders. “Hush.” She opened her mouth to say something else, but he shook her slightly and she backed down. “I’m not attacking anything you’ve done. I admire your gumption and your achievements. So relax.”

“That’s not what it sounded like,” she mumbled, staring down at the ground.

“You didn’t listen—just went off half-cocked.”

“Sorry.” When she looked up at him, her big brown eyes had a suspicious shine to them, as if she’d fought back tears. “It’s been a hard couple of weeks.”

“I’m sure it has.” He still held her shoulders, and he really liked the feeling of having her this close, which was as good a reason as any to let go. After a moment’s struggle, he managed to step back, putting her out of reach. To be safe, he jammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “So I have a suggestion. How about dinner out tonight?”

Her eyes widened. “I…” She swallowed. “I don’t think so, Rob. I mean, I don’t have anything to do with the kids.”

He grinned. “I like the way you think. But I’m suggesting we bring them with us.”

“With us? You mean, to a restaurant?”

“Yeah. I know a place they’ll really like.”

She eyed him suspiciously. “I do not want to eat at some fast-food joint.”

“Nope. Not fast, not a joint. Just the best place in New Skye for a laid-back, delicious dinner.” Ginny had come to stand at the door to the school, no doubt wondering what could be keeping him so long. He called across to her. “What do you think, Ginny? Dinner at the Carolina Diner tonight?”

His daughter pumped her right arm in the air. “All right!”

Rob looked at Valerie. “See? What more testimony do you need?”

She smiled, setting those cute dimples on display. “Lead the way. I’m suddenly very hungry.”