Second Chance Match

by Arlene James

  Garrett’s smile softened, his gaze warming, until abruptly he brushed his hands against his thighs. “I’d better get back to work.”

  “Oh. Okay.”

  “You guys enjoy yourselves. You picked a good day for it.”

  “Yes. Thank you.”

  He stood there a moment longer, almost as if he wanted to say something else, then he turned away. She forbade herself to watch him leave, but his every step brought her a keener sense of loss. She thought of Kent wanting to build a swimming pool for Odelia as a wedding gift, and a yearning that she could not deny rose up in her.

  How sweet it would be to trust in love again. But how could she? She was no longer that foolish young girl, but how could she trust her own judgment after Wayne?

  Hunter ran up to her, colliding with her knee. “Ready for another load!” he announced happily before dropping to the ground. “Boy, won’t Mags be glad for us! Miss Magnolia, I mean. That’s what Garrett calls her ’cause he loves her. Mags. But not to her face, for respect.”

  Jessa bit her lip, suddenly near tears. What sort of man told a child that he loved his elderly benefactress and called her by pet names? “Well, you don’t call her Mags to her face, either,” she warned gently.

  “I know,” Hunter replied matter-of-factly. “Garrett says it’s respected to call ’em the misses ’cause that’s how they were raised.”

  “It’s respectful,” Jessa corrected. “And Garrett’s right.”

  “What does that mean?” Hunter asked. “How they were raised?”

  “It means how their parents taught them to behave,” Jessa told him gently.

  “Oh,” Hunter said. “Like you teach me.”

  “Yes.”

  “And Garrett,” he added, busily dumping rose petals into his toy truck. “He teaches me, too. Lots of stuff. Like sashay.”

  And Garrett, she admitted, if only to herself. God in Heaven, help me.

  On the other hand, it was time she helped herself instead of sitting around here waiting for the ax to fall. What was she doing, living on charity when she could be working at a job?

  Buoyed a little by that thought, Jessa let Hunter play awhile longer, then she settled him in the kitchen with a snack and went to the library to use the phone. Abby readily agreed to drive her down to the employment office the next day and note any possible job openings in the morning paper. Now all that remained was to enlist Carol’s help with Hunter. Once she began working, Abby could watch him and help him with his lessons.

  Yes, that sounded fine. Jessa reasoned that she could add to her pitiful savings and still handle the wedding flowers. Then, when the inevitable came, she would at least be better prepared to move on, safe if not heart-whole, after all.

  The arrival of an automobile at Chatam House did not often snag Garrett’s attention, but he happened to be going in for lunch when he first saw the inexpensive little coupe turn off the street. He couldn’t help wondering who had come to call, so he bypassed the kitchen in order to glance down the west hallway into the foyer, only to see Jessa sailing out the door. Wearing her best dress slacks and that adorable little ivory blouse with the short, banded sleeves, her long hair rolled up on the back of her head and secured with a large clip, she looked like a lady with a purpose.

  Extremely curious now, Garrett backtracked to the kitchen, carrying his empty Thermos. Hilda greeted him with a smile and a ham-and-cheese sandwich.

  “Join my other favorite boy at the table,” she directed, taking the Thermos from him. “I’ll take care of this.”

  “Garrett’s not a boy!” piped a familiar voice.

  “He’s a boy to me,” Hilda insisted, nodding at Garrett.

  Grinning, he carried his plate to the table and sat down next to Hunter, foolishly glad to see the kid. Somehow, his days were never quite complete now unless he spent some time with Hunter. He just wished that didn’t make Hunter’s mother uncomfortable.

  “So I’m not a boy, huh?”

  “No! Silly. You’re all growed up.”

  Hilda set a tall tumbler of iced tea in front of him, asking, “You want that Thermos filled with a cold drink?”

  “Yes, please,” Garrett confirmed. “Iced tea, if you have it.” She trundled off, nodding. Garrett chomped into his sandwich.

  The boy bit off a large chunk of his own sandwich and began to chew industriously. Amused because he knew that he was being copied, Garrett patiently waited for the child to wash down his food with a drink of milk. He lifted his paper napkin and wiped his mouth so Hunter would do the same before asking nonchalantly, “So where’s your mom?”

  “She went with Abby.”

  “Ah. They doing anything in particular?”

  Hunter shrugged. “The ’ploymint office. It’s not fun,” he added, “so I should stay here. Mommy said.”

  She’d decided to find a job, had she? Did that mean she’d given up on opening her shop or was this just another way to avoid him? Despite a sour feeling in his belly, Garrett smiled at Hunter and asked, “So what are you doing today?”

  Again, Hunter shrugged. “I dunno. What are you doing?”

  “I’m mowing,” Garrett answered, watching the boy’s eyes light up. Like all boys, he was fascinated by vehicles of any sort. “Want to ride along?”

  The kid practically came up out of his seat with excitement. “Sure!”

  “You have to wear a helmet and protective clothing,” Garrett warned, “and before you ask, no, you cannot drive.” The tractor had a wide seat and a mowing deck, and it was nearly impossible to turn over, but knowing how protective Jessa could be, Garrett wasn’t taking any chances. She wouldn’t be pleased as it was, but what could it hurt, really, for the kid to spend a little time with him? Let her grouse. At least she’d be talking to him.

  “You can oversee this,” Hilda said to Hunter, placing the refilled Thermos on the table.

  “Cool!” Hunter decreed.

  “I’ll let Carol know he’ll be spending the afternoon with you,” Hilda volunteered, glancing at Garrett.

  Nodding his thanks, Garrett finished his lunch, then took Hunter out to the garage and dressed him in an old bicycle helmet and T-shirt. He stepped into a pair of lightweight coveralls to protect his own clothing. They spent the next four hours cutting the grass on the estate, and despite the protective clothing, they were both covered head to toe with dust and grass clippings when they were done, which meant that the kid was going to need a bath before he could put in an appearance at the dinner table. Garrett supposed he was up to overseeing one small boy’s bath. After considering all options, Garrett decided to take Hunter up to the suite that he shared with his mother. His clean clothes were there, after all.

  As they climbed the stairs, Garrett thoughtlessly patted the curving mahogany banister and admitted, “I always wonder what it would be like to slide down this thing. Don’t you?” Hunter gaped at him. “Guess not,” Garrett muttered to himself.

  He was careful to avoid Jessa’s bedroom once they reached the suite, though he stood for several seconds in the sitting room just looking around at her things before following Hunter into his room.

  The boy pulled clean clothes from the dresser and turned to face Garrett. “I use the tub in Mommy’s room.”

  Garrett shook his head. He would not trespass on Jessa’s personal space. “Not today.”

  Hunter shrugged and bounced into the bathroom. Garrett followed to set the stopper and start the water in the tub, a deep, old-fashioned claw-foot type, one of the few left in the house. Hunter proclaimed himself able to bathe alone, so Garrett stood outside the bathroom door, listening for sounds of dangerous activity. Finally, he insisted that Hunter get out. Garrett mopped up after him while the boy dressed. Afterward, he looked like a frazzled porcupine.
/>   “Where’s your comb?” Garrett asked with a chuckle.

  “In Mommy’s room.”

  “Okay. You run and get it.”

  He followed the boy into the sitting room, but before Hunter returned with the comb, Jessa came in. Sighing, she slung her handbag onto the desk and only then realized that Garrett was present.

  “Sorry,” he said automatically. “Hunter needed a bath, and since his clothes were in his room, I figured it was best done here.”

  “Oh, you didn’t let him bathe in his bathroom, did you?”

  “I cleaned up after. It’s perfect, I promise.”

  Hunter returned then. “Mommy!” He ran to Jessa and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Garrett let me mow with him. I got to ride on the tractor and pour the tea from the fermus, and I had to wear a helmet and a big T-shirt and everything.”

  Jessa gave him a tired smile, took the comb and began smoothing his hair. “And then you had a bath, I see.”

  “Uh-huh. It’s a cool tub. The water don’t go over the sides.”

  “Is that right?” She seemed crestfallen and subdued rather than angry as Garrett had expected. He wanted to wrap her in his arms, but of course, he didn’t.

  “Everything okay?” he asked.

  “I suppose. Thanks for putting up with this guy today.”

  “No problem. You know I enjoy having him around.”

  She smiled wanly at that. “We’ll let you go now,” she said, her gaze averted. “I’m sure you have other things to do.”

  Nodding, Garrett slowly started for the door. She told Hunter that it was time to start his lessons. “Find your copy book.”

  Hunter ran into his bedroom. She walked around the sofa and plopped down with a sigh. Troubled, Garrett turned back.

  “Something wrong?”

  Jessa leaned forward, braced her elbows atop her knees and dropped her face into her hands. Alarmed now, Garrett skirted the sofa and dropped down next to her.

  “Hey, now. Whatever it is, it’ll work out.”

  “You cannot possibly know that,” she told him impatiently.

  “Why don’t you tell me about it, and we’ll see.”

  Dropping her hands, she sat back. “I went out looking for a job today, if you must know.”

  “Yeah, Hunter said something about that. I take it things didn’t go too well.”

  “I tried everything I could think of,” she reported. “I went to all three florist shops, applied for every job listed with the state employment office, answered every ad. I didn’t get a single interview! Do you know that half of the companies have changed their minds? ‘We have decided not to fill the position at this time,’” she mimicked. “I heard it a dozen times!”

  Garrett reached over and briefly squeezed her hand. “It’s not like you really need a job just now,” he pointed out.

  She shot up to her feet and turned on him. “I can’t just sit here day after day, waiting for someone else to decide my future! If I could just earn a little extra cash, I’d feel like I have some control!”

  An idea struck Garrett, but he didn’t dare mention it. Instead, he rose to awkwardly pat her shoulder, and fell back on his previous blandishment. “It’ll work out.”

  Gusting a sigh, she turned and dropped down on the sofa again. “Yeah, yeah, I suppose. I just wish…” She shook her head.

  Hunter returned just then with a dog-eared notebook in hand. Jessa forced a smile for him and reached out with one hand, drawing him to her. Garrett laid a hand on the boy’s damp head, saying, “Thanks for handling the tea out there today.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  He left the boy smiling and the mother slumped in what looked very much like defeat, concern clearly writ on her face. Instead of going to the stairs, however, he walked across the landing and down a short hallway to the set of rooms known as the East Suite. Tapping lightly on the door, he waited until finally Kent opened it.

  “Can I have a word with you?” Garrett asked, slipping through the door and closing it softly behind him. “I need a favor.”

  Chapter Ten

  Garrett walked into the dining room, his black hair glistening from a recent shower. Jessa watched him move around the table and take a seat next to Hunter before she remembered to drop her gaze. Why was it that she couldn’t get out of her head the picture of him standing there in her sitting room, having just overseen her son’s bath? And if that weren’t bad enough, she’d spilled her guts to him. Again. If only he weren’t so easy to talk to. She forced herself to engage with the others at the table, everyone but him.

  Even with Ellie and Asher in attendance tonight, the Chatam sisters seemed deeply pleased. After the blessing, Hunter entertained everyone with the story of his mowing adventure. Even Garrett seemed surprised and interested in his descriptions of dirt clods crushed beneath the tractor’s wheels and random bird feathers being spewed out by the cutter as tiny bits of fluff.

  “And I thought he was just riding along pouring tea,” Garrett quipped when Hunter wound down. Everyone laughed, and Garrett began asking everyone about his or her day. He went through all three Chatam sisters and Kent before he got to Jessa.

  She’d been trying to decide how she would answer, but what difference did it make when she’d already told him all about the day’s failure? She’d whipped up a good bit of resentment by the time he finally looked past Hunter and asked, “How about you, Jessa? How was your day out with your friend Abby?”

  Leaving her fork and knife on her plate, she wiped her hands on the linen napkin and managed an amused tone in her voice. “Well, I think I set a new record for the number of times I’ve been told no in a single afternoon.”

  “Oh, my dear!” exclaimed Odelia. “Whoever could refuse you?”

  “I suppose it depends on the request,” Magnolia reasoned.

  “Can we do anything?” Hypatia asked.

  Jessa shook her head, blinking against a sudden welling of tears. She didn’t know why she felt so keenly disappointed. Perhaps because she’d thought that she and God had made a deal of sorts. A job was to be her consolation prize for ultimately losing the Monroe place.

  Garrett cleared his throat and gently said, “Jessa went out looking for a job this afternoon.”

  To the chorus of protests around the table, she said, “It’s still weeks yet before I begin work on the flowers for Ellie’s wedding. I can’t just sit here day after day doing nothing. I thought a job would fill the gap, and help me save some money for the future. Even a part-time job would’ve helped, but absolutely no one is hiring.”

  “Well, if it’s a part-time job that you want,” Kent said off-handedly, “we have an opening at the pharmacy.”

  Jessa’s mouth dropped open. “What?”

  “It’s nothing special, of course, and the pay reflects that, I’m afraid.” He tapped his chin with the tip of one finger. “Morning hours, which means that most of the fountain drinks will be coffee-based. You’ll need to operate a scanner and cash register, but that’s no issue, I’m sure. Dusting, stocking…that’s about it. The evening workers mop the floors.” He looked up, smiling at Jessa. “How does that sound?”

  She fought the urge to jump up and kiss him. “That’s fine! It sounds fine.”

  “Well, then, you can start tomorrow morning at eight. Unless you’d rather not work on a Saturday.”

  Jessa laughed. She couldn’t help it. “No! That is, I don’t mind working on Saturday at all. Thank you.”

  He shrugged and went back to his meal, but Jessa noticed that she wasn’t the only one who looked at him with fond amazement. Odelia’s melting smile showered him with adoration, and Garrett was beaming like a lighthouse beacon.

  “I told you it would work out.”
>
  He had told her, but she chose to ignore that little fact for now. “I-I’ll arrange for Abby to pick us up at seven-thirty in the morning,” she said, planning aloud. “She’ll keep Hunter with her and return for me at the end of my shift.”

  “Oh, there’s no need for that,” Hypatia said. “There are enough adults in this house to look after one well-behaved little boy.”

  “And by working part-time, you’ll still have time to give him his lessons,” Garrett pointed out.

  “No school on Saturday,” Hunter chimed in, lest anyone get confused and make him do lessons the next day.

  Jessa laughed again, her dark mood instantly transformed to delight. “No lessons on Saturday,” she confirmed.

  “And no reason at all to inconvenience Abby,” Magnolia said complacently. “Garrett will see that you get to and from the pharmacy. Won’t you, dear?”

  Garrett dutifully bobbed his head. “Yes, ma’am. Be happy to.”

  Jessa smiled, too joyful to worry about the sudden propitious turn of events. “Thank you. Thank you all.”

  “I feel so happy,” Odelia warbled, gazing at Kent. A look passed between them, so ardent that Jessa had to look away.

  No man had ever looked at her like that. She felt a stab of envy. Odelia had found love late in her life, but at least she had found it. Maybe, when Jessa was Odelia’s age.... Just then, Asher chuckled quietly at something Ellie said, and Jessa’s gaze darted across the table. Ellie had laid her hand over his wrist as she leaned in close to speak into his ear, and the light in his eyes burned brightly enough to ignite the tablecloth where he stared at it. Jessa dropped her gaze to her plate.

  The world had never seemed so unfair as it did in that moment, or she so alone—until she remembered that she had a job! And friends.

  No longer able to deny such an obvious truth, she glanced around the table, taking in every smiling face but one.

  “The truck needs gassing up,” Garrett said, thrusting the helmet at her. It was the exact truth. The truck did need gas. He saw no point in telling her that it had enough fuel to get her to work and then on to the fueling station.