Читать книгу Samantha's Gift - Valerie Hansen - Страница 11

By the time Max had dropped off his last regular passengers and returned to Serenity Elementary, it was nearly five p.m. There were only two cars in the parking lot—Sean’s black sedan and a silver-colored, dusty van.

Rachel led Samantha up the front walk toward the school office as she spoke over her shoulder to Sean. “Before we go, I need to phone Mrs. Brody so she knows everything is all right.”

“I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” he said, gesturing. “We’ve never met, but I’d say she’s just found us.”

Oh dear. He was right. She was about to face another irate grown-up. Hannah Brody had thrown open the door of the van and was shuffling rapidly across the parking lot, shirttail flapping, bangs glued to her forehead with perspiration. Rachel had never seen the poor woman look more frazzled.

“Hannah! I’m sorry if we worried you,” Rachel shouted before she reached them. “Samantha accidentally got on the wrong bus. I was just bringing her back.”

“You couldn’t call me? Let me know?” The older, slightly portly woman wheezed to a stop as she confronted Rachel. “Do you know how hot it got in that there van? I coulda croaked, waitin’ on y’all.”

“I’m really sorry,” Rachel said. “I was worried, too. Guess I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

Hannah leaned down to focus on the child. “And you. How old are you?”

“F-five.”

“So, how did we say you could remember the number of your bus?”

The child stared at the toes of her worn sneakers. “Five. Same as me.”

“That’s right.”

“What a good idea,” Rachel interjected, trying to sound upbeat.

Hannah straightened and glared at her, hands fisted on ample hips. “Now you, missy. What do you have to say for yourself?”

“Excuse me?”

“There is no excuse for what you did.”

Sean stepped up beside Rachel, clearly taking sides. “Most teachers would probably have left the child’s welfare in the hands of the bus driver. Ms. Woodward, however, took it upon herself to try to put things right. That speaks very well for her, don’t you agree?”

For the first time, Hannah took notice of Sean. She gave him a critical once-over. “And who might you be?”

He introduced himself and extended a hand of friendship. The annoyed woman begrudgingly accepted it. Then, instead of stuffing his hands into his pockets the way he initially had when he’d run into the pretty teacher in the hallway, he took half a step closer to Rachel and nonchalantly looped one arm around her shoulders. The gesture was casual yet obviously protective.

Mrs. Brody noticed immediately. Her eyebrows arched. “Oh, I see. You two were too busy playing patty-cake to pay attention to anything else.” She grabbed the child’s hand and started away. “Well, what’s done is done. Come on, Samantha. It’s too late to take you shopping for new clothes today like I’d promised. I got to go start supper.”

The little girl glanced back over her shoulder, silently pleading with her teacher and Sean to rescue her as Hannah Brody led her away. That soulful look was enough to put Rachel’s heart in a twist and leave a lump in her throat.

For an instant she wanted to weep. Instead, she waved, smiled and called, “Bye-bye. See you tomorrow, Samantha.”

“Will she be okay with that old grump?” Sean asked softly.

“Hannah?” Rachel glanced up at him while deliberately removing his hand from her shoulder. “Hannah’s not a bad person. She gets a little irritable sometimes but she’s basically good-hearted. She’s been taking in the kids nobody else wanted to bother with for years.”

“Samantha’s one of those?”

“Apparently. Her social worker did say she was having trouble adjusting. That’s probably why they gave her to Hannah.”

“I see. What else can you tell me about the Brody woman?”

“Well…” Rachel’s smile stayed. “She baby-sat for lots of folks here in Serenity who’re all grown up, now. Me included.”

“You’re kidding! No wonder you let her talk to you like that.”

“Hannah means well. And she was right. I should have called her so she wouldn’t worry. I was so worried about finding Samantha, I guess it just slipped my mind.”

“That’s understandable. Don’t beat yourself up about it.”

“I won’t. The only thing that bothers me is the way the small-town rumor mill is going to have fun with us.”

“Us?” Sean’s expression showed bewilderment. “What us?”

With a wry chuckle, Rachel shook her head. “You do have a lot to learn about living in a place like this, don’t you. There doesn’t even have to be an us for people to talk. By tomorrow morning, half the folks in town will be saying you and I are practically engaged. And the other half will be trying to decide if you’re good enough for me.”

She’d expected Sean to enjoy the lighthearted banter. Instead, he seemed upset. She pressed on. “Hey, don’t look so glum. I didn’t say it was my idea. It’s just how it is in a place where everybody knows everybody else, and half of them are related, besides.” That statement brought a further conclusion. “Oh-oh.”

“What’s wrong now?”

“I just had a horrible thought. Hannah’s my mother’s second cousin by marriage.”

“So?”

“So, I’ll bet Mom is the first one she calls.”

Sean huffed. “Don’t tell me you’re still worried about pleasing your mother at your age?”

“Hey. I’m not that old.”

He deliberately took his time looking her up and down and fully appreciating what he saw. Chances were good that he was at least seven or eight years older than she was, maybe more, yet they had to be contemporaries in spite of her youthful appearance. For starters, he knew this wasn’t Rachel’s first year of teaching. A person didn’t usually finish college and earn a degree until they were in their twenties at least, so she had to be halfway to thirty by now.

“You don’t look a day over sixteen,” he finally told her.

“Actually, I’ll be eighty-four my next birthday,” she said. Struggling to repress a giggle, she twirled in a circle to put herself on display. “Pretty good for an octogenarian, huh?”

“Excellent.” Sean was shaking his head in disbelief and laughing softly under his breath. “You certainly had me fooled. What’s your secret?”

“Clean living. I never miss a Sunday in church, either.”

“Very commendable.”

“I think so. Hey! Since you’re new in town, how’d you like to come visit my church?”

“Church and I don’t exactly get along.”

“That’s too bad. We won’t eat you, you know. We really do accept everybody, even sinners.” The astonishment in his expression made her chuckle. “That was a joke, Bates.”

“I’ll laugh later, okay?” He reached into his pocket for his car keys and jingled them in one hand. “You ready?”

“As soon as I go grab my purse,” Rachel said. “Wait here. I’ll just be a minute.”

Starting away she heard him mutter, “I don’t believe it.”

She spun around. “You don’t believe what?”

“You. You were driving all over the country without your license?”

“Guess I was. I told you Christians aren’t perfect. You’d better start believing me or I may have to keep trying to prove it to you.”

Rachel’s car was right where she’d left it, without so much as a hubcap missing—much to Sean’s surprise. A prankster had scrawled “Wash me” and drawn a happy face in the fresh layer of dust coating the lid of the trunk, but otherwise the car was untouched.

He parked as far off the roadway as he could without scratching his sedan on the brambles and small trees growing along the right-of-way, and got out. Rachel followed.

A closer look at her car made her sigh audibly. Her shoulders sagged. “Rats. You were right. I do have two flats.”

“Apparently.” Sean circled the car, assessing the damage. “Looks to me as if it’s going to be dangerous to remove the tires, even if we use both our jacks. The ground is too uneven here. The car wouldn’t be stable.”

“What do you suggest, then?”

“Calling a tow truck. If we left your car jacked up and drove into town with two of the wheels, any little thing could knock it over and damage the axles. Then we’d have to call a tow, anyway.”

Rachel was too exhausted to argue. She yawned. “Fine. Whatever. As long as I can get to work in the morning.”

“I don’t suppose you happen to know the number of a local garage that does towing?” he asked, reaching into his car for his cellular phone and pushing the power button.

She snorted cynically. “As a matter of fact, I do.”

Sean waited, growing impatient when she didn’t recite the number. “Well?”

“It wouldn’t be my first choice.”

“This is not a popularity contest. If this place can come get your car and fix the tires, let’s get on with it, okay?”

“Okay, okay.”

Rachel gave him the number, then watched as he made arrangements with the garage. To her surprise, Sean knew approximately where they were and gave credible directions, so she didn’t have to interrupt to correct him.

That was a plus. So was the lengthening day. If Craig Slocum had already gone home for supper, as she hoped, her personal involvement could be kept to a minimum.

And if not? She clenched her jaw, imagining Craig’s superior smirk when he discovered she needed his help. Since their failed engagement, Rachel had managed to avoid him almost completely. If he showed up this evening it would be the first time she’d spoken to him face-to-face since he broke her heart.

Her chin jutted out, her spine stiffened. If she had to face Craig, she would meet the challenge head-on. That man was never going to learn how deeply he had hurt her. Never.

Sean noticed Rachel’s growing uneasiness. When they heard the approach of a truck, her head snapped around and she stared in the direction of the sound as if expecting a stalking tiger instead of deliverance.

“Want to tell me why you’re so jumpy?” he asked.

“I’m not jumpy.”

There was nothing to be gained by arguing with her. “Okay. Sorry.” Sean smiled. “Maybe you’re just hungry. Personally, I’m starved. What do you say we grab a pizza or something while we wait for your car to be fixed?”

Rachel nodded without taking her eyes off the distant roadway as the truck rumbled closer.

Sean decided to test her. “Your treat.”

“Sure. Fine.”

His resultant laugh finally got Rachel’s attention. She frowned. “What’s so funny?”

“You are. I could have asked you anything just now and you’d have agreed without hearing a word I said.”

“Don’t be silly.”

“Okay. We are on for dinner, then?”

“Dinner? Oh, sure. Only around here, dinner is what we eat at lunchtime. The evening meal is called supper.”

“I’ll remember that.” He saw the tow truck slowing. Inside the cab, its driver was grinning from ear to ear. The man’s eyes were shadowed by the brim of his baseball cap, but it was still evident he was concentrating on Rachel.

“You know him?” Sean asked.

“I told you. Everybody knows everybody around here.”

“Let me put it another way,” Sean said quietly. “Do you dislike him as much as I think you do?”

She huffed and managed a momentary smile. “Actually, Craig and I used to be engaged.”

“Engaged? You were going to marry him?”

“Yes.” Her frown returned. “Why is that so surprising?”

“I don’t know. I guess he just doesn’t look like your type.”

“Why not? Because he drives a tow truck?” The Slocums owned several lucrative businesses in Serenity and the surrounding area, and Craig drove the tow rig because he liked to, but Rachel wasn’t about to explain all that to Sean.

“Listen, Mr. Bates,” she said firmly, “if a man does an honest job and is proud of his work, I see no reason to put him down simply because he may not have a college degree like you and I do. If you choose your friends by their level of formal education, you’ll miss out on a whole lot, especially around here. There are plenty of very smart folks who haven’t had the opportunities you and I have had.”

Sean was grinning at her. “You through?”

“I just don’t like stuck-up people, that’s all.”

“Neither do I.” He chuckled softly, shook his head. “I was talking about the smug, know-it-all look on the guy’s face. I didn’t think you’d put up with that kind of attitude for a second. Since you two broke up, apparently I was right.”