by Jane Josephs
“Oh, Ali, I know she hurt you by divorcing your dad. I’m so sorry. I don’t begin to understand her reasons. Or how she can say that’s what God wanted her to do.”
“Yeah. But thanks for the sympathy. I’ve tried to let it go, to see the positive side of it.” Alison snorted. “You won’t believe it, but the last time Dad and I were together he told me he’s still in love with Mom. Is that crazy, or what?”
Lisa shook her head and smiled. “Whoa! That’s amazing. Is she still going to that mega-church?”
“I guess so. I haven’t asked. Until I met Nick, I didn’t want to think about what insane thinking caused Mom to divorce Dad. Now, I can’t stop wondering about it.” She turned in to the driveway at the Marriott and stopped near the door. “Nick’s asked me to go to church again tomorrow. Good Friday. Do you think I should go?”
“Yes, Ali, you should go. It’s the day Jesus was crucified.”
Alison grimaced. “And why should that ever be called ‘good’?”
“Because Jesus’ death made a way for us . . . to be . . . good enough.”
Alison reached for Lisa and hugged her. “I love you, Lisa, so much. You’re the best friend ever. Please, please move here, okay?”
“You know I want to. Eventually. I’ll pray about it. Right after I pray for you. Keep me posted, okay? I hope everything works out for you and Nick. I really, really want you to be happy.”
“I want that for you, too. Bye.” With a final wave at Lisa, Alison merged onto North Harbor Drive. Emma would be waiting in front of Alison’s building, she had said.
What trouble had the girl gotten herself into now? And more to the point, what would Alison have to do about it?
~ ~ ~
Seated on a barstool at the island in Alison’s kitchen, Emma finished her milk and set the glass down. “I know you’re mad at me. I’m mad at myself. But you’ve got to understand. I thought he wanted to marry me. We’ve been talking about it for months.” Tears filled Emma’s eyes and she hung her head.
Leaning against the sink, Alison sighed and stroked Rufus’ soft fur. “So, you gave him access to your checking account? Brilliant, Emma.”
“I just thought he wanted the money for a deposit on an apartment. That’s what he said.”
“And you believed him?” Making an effort to keep calm, Alison said, “Okay, I get it. He’s a first-class liar, but a very persuasive one. Here’s what we’re going to do: first thing tomorrow we’re closing that account. Got it? Travis is gone, and he’s taken all your money this time. He used you, Emma, and you let him. Haven’t we talked about this?”
“But he loves me, I know he does. He’ll be back. You’ll see. It’s only been four days.”
“Love doesn’t do the kinds of things Travis is doing. Love is more than just a feeling. It’s a commitment to put the good of the other person first.” Alison put Rufus down and followed him with her eyes a moment before turning back to Emma. “Listen to me. If he comes back, and that’s a big if, you cannot have anything more to do with him. Got it?”
In response, Emma sniffed and wiped her nose with the back of her hand.
“Now, it’s getting late and I still have to walk Rufus. You can stay here with me tonight in the guest room. Tomorrow we’ll go to the bank.” She looked Emma up and down. Why hadn’t she noticed the state of her appearance before? “Why are you wearing those clothes? They’re filthy.” She cocked her head. “And I’m sorry, honey, but you don’t smell so good either. I have some new soap in the guest bathroom you can use.” Trying not to breath too deeply, she put her arm around Emma and steered her through the living room. “And there’s plenty of shampoo and conditioner in the closet in the bathroom along with a hair dryer. Don’t go to bed with your hair wet, please.”
Emma hung back at the entrance to the bathroom. “Can I borrow a tee shirt to sleep in? And maybe use your washer and dryer? I don’t have any other clothes.”
“Sure, I’ll get you a tee shirt for tonight, and we can swing by your apartment on the way to the bank tomorrow, so you can change into something nicer.” She turned away.
Emma reached out and snagged her arm. “That’s just it.” She bit her lip. “I don’t have any other clothes.”
“What do you mean? I’ve bought you plenty of new stuff. Good clothes and shoes. And what about those new boots?”
“They’re gone along with four pairs of jeans you bought me that I had in my room. I guess Travis took everything.”
Alison’s stomach churned. “Of course he did. Designer jeans are worth quite a bit. The re-sale shops love them. Maybe his other girlfriends will, too.”
“He doesn’t have other girlfriends!” Emma cried. “He doesn’t!”
Alison took ahold of Emma’s arms, her heart aching at the sight of the girl’s tear-streaked face. “I hope you’re right. I really do. But one way or the other, I don’t think you’re getting your boots and clothes back, do you?”
Totally dejected, Emma whispered, “I don’t know.”
Suppressing her frustration, Alison turned Emma toward the shower. “Put your clothes out in the hallway and I’ll throw them in the washer after you shower. Take your time, okay? I’ll get a tee shirt for you.”
Alison crossed to her bedroom and found one of her tee shirts for Emma. Her anger at Travis simmered. Should she go to the police? More to the point, how could she convince Emma that she needed to grow up and stop hanging around with the kids on the street? Would spending a few nights with Alison help? Or would she just be opening a bigger can or worms?
The bathroom door was open when she came back into the hallway. “Here you go.” She walked into the bathroom with the tee shirt. Emma had stripped down to her underwear, her tattooed body causing Alison to wonder where she’d found the money for all the work she’d had done. “I turned the covers down on your bed for you.” She gathered up Emma’s dirty clothes. “I’m going to walk Rufus, and then I’ll be up for a little while longer if you need me.”
Emma flung her arms around Alison’s waist, her slim, nearly naked body pressed tightly against Alison’s. “Thank you, Alison. I’m so, so sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused.”
Alison sighed, her heart melting. “It’s okay. We’ll figure it out. Just get your shower and get to bed, okay? Things will look better in the morning.”
~ ~ ~
The sanctuary lights dimmed. Alison tensed. The Good Friday church service had been somber. Moving. All too real the way the pastor had spoken about Jesus’ death on the cross and the last words he had spoken as he hung there. Father, forgive them . . . It is finished. Suddenly, the air reverberated with the sound of nails being pounded into wood. Goosebumps sprang up on the back of her neck and arms. Alison covered her mouth with her hand to stifle a cry. On the raised front platform, the pastor and two other men were hammering nails into a large cross. Then the men picked up the cross and carried it down the center aisle and out of the church.
“Are you okay?” Nick whispered in her ear a short time after the cross had passed them. His hand found hers, warm, rough and comforting. Around them people were getting up and moving to leave the church. The lighting had dimmed again, so much so, that a few flashlights had been turned on to help people exit the building. No one spoke. Alison nodded and let Nick lead her out of the church to the parking lot.
“That service was awesome,” Richie said, seated in the back seat of Nick’s truck on the way home. “What did you think, Alison?”
Startled to hear a natural sounding voice after so much silence, Alison took in a deep breath. She wanted time to process, to try to understand why Jesus, if he was God as he said he was, would allow himself to be killed like that. But instead, she said, “It was a very moving experience. Truthfully, I’m appalled by that kind of brutality. What a horrible way for anyone to die.” Sh
e shivered and glanced at Nick.
“One of the most brutal forms of punishment, for sure. But the effect of hearing those nails being driven into the wood at the end of the service was sobering. I agree with you on that, Richie.”
In the back seat next to Richie, Ginny patted Alison’s shoulder as Nick parked the truck. “It’s a lot to take in, I know, honey, so if you want, we can talk about it tomorrow after your riding lesson.”
Alison nodded. “Thanks, that would be perfect.” She put her hand in Nick’s and slid out of the truck. “I think I should get going, okay?”
“Okay. I’m sorry. I should have thought to ask you to stay overnight with us,” Nick said as he walked her to her car. “I don’t like you driving on our winding roads so late at night.”
The garage door closed. Nick let go of her hand and gathered her close. “Did I tell you how beautiful you look tonight? Moonlight agrees with you.” He smiled and lowered his lips to hers.
Alison threaded her hands into his hair and kissed him back, enjoying the feel of him pressed against her. When the kiss ended, she sighed and smiled. “I can’t get enough of you, you know that? So, you name the day. I would love to stay over sometime.”
Nick chuckled. “Tomorrow.”
The look in his eyes sent a shiver of pleasure down her spine. If she took him up on his offer, would he take her to the rock again, and let her be part of their Easter family tradition?
“I’d like that. Very much. But let me tell you tomorrow, okay? Emma’s crashing at my place for a couple of days. Travis trouble. It seems as if her brains turn to mush the minute he gets near her.”
“Sort of like what happens to me when you’re around?” Nick laughed and stepped back from her.
Alison tugged on his arms, pulling him close again. “Mush brains, huh? I’m not buying it.” She teased his lips with hers until he responded and kissed her.
Holding her tight, Nick murmured, “You’re lethal. You know that?” He trailed kisses across her cheek to her ear. “But, about you staying over tomorrow, you can always bring Emma, too. I think Richie’s over the crush he had on her.”
Alison palmed his cheek. “That was cute, wasn’t it? But I knew it wouldn’t last. Richie’s too mature for her.”
Nick nodded. “I agree. Funny though. Never thought I’d say Richie’s too mature to fall for a cute girl. But when I asked him about her just the other day, he told me that riding with her is fun, but she’s not his type. Richie’s a straight-A student, you know.”
“I kind-of figured that. Emma’s not even working on her GED. She’s got a lot of growing up to do.”
A car roared by on the road, startling them. Alison stepped back and walked with him to her car. “I should go. I don’t want to, but I should get back and see how Emma is doing.”
Nick opened her car door, his hand finding her waist. She leaned in and kissed his cheek, then got in the car. “Bye. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Be safe.” Nick stepped back, lifted his hand to wave goodbye, and after a moment of watching her back down the driveway, headed for the barn. “Mush brain,” he murmured under his breath and broke into a jog.
Chapter 20
Alison unsnapped Rufus’ leash and set the dog on the floor. “Breakfast in a minute, little dog,” she said.
A noise startled her, coming from down the hallway. The sound of retching was unmistakable. “Emma, are you sick?” Alison set the pastries she had just bought at the coffee shop on an end table and hurried down the hall. The door to the toilet room, just inside the main bathroom, was open. Emma was on her knees, her head over the toilet, vomiting.
“Oh, Emmie.” Alison went to Emma. She knelt beside her and wrapped her arm around Emma’s back. The girl was sweating through the tee shirt Alison had loaned her to sleep in. “Do you have a fever?” She reached for Emma’s forehead.
“It’s not the flu.” Emma pushed Alison’s hand away and sat back. Pulling toilet paper off the roll, she wiped her mouth. Her eyes filled with tears. “I’ve been puking like this for a couple of weeks. Mornings and evenings, sometimes more, every day.”
“I should get you to Urgent Care. That much vomiting isn’t good. You could get dehydrated.”
“Alison, wake up.” Tears pooled in her eyes, spilled and ran down her cheeks. “I missed my last period.”
“Oh!” Alison’s breath caught, her concern for Emma colliding with anger. “You’re pregnant?”
Emma’s sobs filled the room.
~ ~ ~
In the barn, Nick brushed Mae’s coat while he sang softly to the mare. Alison was due to arrive in a half hour for her riding lesson. Not that there was much more to learn from either he or Richie, Nick thought. But he didn’t plan on telling Alison that. She’d paid for sixteen lessons. And he wanted to make sure she got every one of them. And more.
He sucked in a deep breath, a host of butterflies kicking up in his gut. The emerald horseshoe necklace rested in his front pocket against his leg. “This is the day, Mae,” he said out loud, the words of a psalm set to music floating into his mind. He smoothed his hand down Mae’s neck, the brush idle in his hand. “I’m going to tell her I love her. Why wait any longer?” Tossing the brush aside, he grabbed the comb and went to work getting the tangles out of Mae’s mane. “If she doesn’t love me, it’s better to know now, isn’t it?” He snorted a laugh. “But I know she does, so why worry?”
Richie poked his head over the stall door. “Talking to yourself, bro? Why worry about what?” He mocked Nick. “You get the answers you want?”
“Get out of here. Make yourself useful and saddle Lucy for Emma.”
“She’s not coming today. She’s sick or something.”
Nick’s cell went off. He pulled it out of his back pocket, his heart in his throat. Was Alison sick, too? He read her text quickly. She’d be late, but she was still planning to come out to the ranch. No word on whether she’d spend the night. Nick put his phone back in his pocket and resumed combing the horse’s mane. He turned his head to look at Richie, still loitering just outside Mae’s stall. “Alison will be late, but she’s coming. Why don’t you make yourself scarce?”
Richie’s eyes shone with mischief. “And miss hearing my big brother make a fool of himself?” In a singsong tone, he teased, “I’m gonna tell her I love her.”
In a lightning-fast move, Nick scooped the brush off the floor of the stall and hurled it at Richie. But he was laughing, and it felt good. What did he care if the whole world knew he loved Alison?
Throwing up his hands, Richie deflected the brush just in time to miss getting hit in the head. But he took off running when Nick reached to open the stall door. “Okay, okay, I’m out of here!”
“And stay away!” Nick shouted. Behind him, Mae nudged him in the shoulder. “Okay, okay,” he said, turning to pet the mare. “That’s the last time I’m telling you anything confidential.” He grabbed the Appaloosa by the halter, snapped on her lead rope, and led her out of the stall toward the paddock. “Don’t go rolling in the dirt, you hear? Alison’s going to be late, but she’ll be here. And I don’t want to have to brush you again.” He unsnapped her lead rope, slapped the mare on the rump and watched her head out into the paddock.
~ ~ ~
“Sounds like you’ve had quite a morning.” Nick drew Alison into his arms as soon as she stepped out of her car. “I’m glad you still came. How’s Emma?”
Alison pressed up against him and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and shoulders. “She’s going to be fine. I don’t want to think about her. I just want to be with you.”
Slightly alarmed by how tightly Alison clung to him, he held her head against his shoulder with one hand and rubbed her back with the other. “She’s young. She’ll be okay.”
Alison leaned back, a self-consciou
s smile lifting the corners of her mouth. “I know. I’m acting like a mother bear trying to protect her cub, aren’t I?” She shook her head and patted his chest. “Enough of that. Help me get Rufus and my bag. I’m taking you up on your offer to stay overnight.”
Nick’s heart shot to his throat. “You are? That’s great! Ma will be real happy about that.”
“What about you?” Alison bumped her shoulder into his and smiled into his eyes. “I love your mom but it’s a sleepover with you that I couldn’t resist.”
Nick shook his head, his heart thundering in his chest. He picked up Rufus’ carrier with one hand and Alison’s small suitcase with the other. “Careful, babe. Don’t let Ma hear that kind of talk or I’ll be locked out of the house and forced to sleep in the barn.”
“Really!?” Alison laughed, imagining Ginny banishing Nick to the barn. “That sounds like a dare to me.” She slung her purse over her shoulder and walked with Nick to the veranda at the back of the house.
Nick set down her suitcase and slid open the back door. “Troublemaker.” His hand brushed her chin before he stepped back so she could enter the house. “Here she is, Ma,” he called.
Ginny turned from the sink and crossed the room to Alison, eyeing the suitcase. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re going to stay over.” She engulfed Alison in a tender hug. She smiled. “I’ve got your room all ready, and Nick even cleaned the bathroom after his shower this morning. Let me show you where the towels are.” She picked up Alison’s suitcase and started down the hall.
“I can get that, Ginny.” Alison reached for her suitcase.
“No, no, it’s not that heavy. I hope you brought something warm for our pre-dawn hike to the rock.”
“Yes, I did. Nick told me about your tradition.” She followed Ginny into the guest room.
Nick stooped and opened the door of Rufus’ carrier. The little dog bolted out into the room and started barking. “Don’t look at me. If you want to play with Kennedy, you’re going to have to find her. Don’t expect me to rat out her hiding place.” He ruffled the dog’s fur and stood. Rufus dashed down the hallway into Ginny’s room at the end.
