by Arianna Hart
“Thank you, Captain Obvious.”
“Sorry. I just know from experience when you try to fit yourself somewhere you don’t belong, you can survive, but you can’t thrive. I imagine it’s the same way with most things.”
“It’s not that simple.” He downed the rest of his coffee and stood. “Thanks for the meal and the coffee.”
“All part of the package. Piper is leaving soon. She won’t bother you again,” she reiterated.
“Appreciate it.”
She didn’t bother walking him out as he seemed to want to get away from her as quickly as possible. But she did follow him to the porch and watch him until he disappeared into the woods.
“I didn’t mean to scare him, Momma. The music was just so pretty, and I wanted to hear more. Then he stopped to write and got mad. Why would he stop doing something so pretty to do something that got him so angry?”
“Sometimes, when you’re a grown up, you have to do things you don’t want to do even if they don’t make you happy.”
“Like chores?”
“Yup, just like that.” Faith leaned down and kissed her daughter on the head. God, how she’d miss this little ball of energy. “Are you all set for Grandma and Grandpap? You’ve got everything?”
“Yes, for the millionth time. We checked everything last night. When are they gonna get here?”
“Any minute. Now don’t go asking for a bunch of stuff when Grandma takes you out. I just bought you all new school clothes and shoes, so you don’t need much else.”
“Just a lunch box and a backpack. Grandma said we’d get those together, you promised.”
“That’s fine. Just don’t go nuts, okay?”
“I won’t. Grandpap said I could ride on the tractor with him, and I’m going to help feed the chickens and collect the eggs.”
“That was my job when I lived on the farm.” Faith smiled. She didn’t miss the constant work of farming, but for a little girl, there wasn’t much better than a bunch of animals and acres of space to run around.
“We’re gonna eat watermelon and have a seed-spitting contest, too, and make ice cream again, homemade.”
“Sounds like you’re going to be so busy you won’t have time to miss me.”
“I’ll miss you a little.”
“That’s okay, baby. I want you to have fun. I’ll call you every night, and you can tell me what you did.”
“I will.”
Sadie let out her warning bark, and seconds later, they heard the crunch of tires on the gravel drive. “They’re here!” Piper leaped off the steps and bounced impatiently.
“Don’t jump on them. Give them a chance to stop the car.” Faith went down the porch steps and bounced a little, too. She hadn’t seen her folks since Piper’s birthday two months ago, and she missed them. Talking on the phone just wasn’t the same as feeling her mom’s warm hugs and seeing her dad’s sweet smiles.
The battered Buick station wagon she remembered from her childhood rocked to a stop, and her tall, lanky father climbed out of the driver’s seat. He looked the same as always, tall, skinny, with a scant crop of wheat-colored hair carefully combed back to hide the thinning on the crown.
Her mom had on one of her going-to-town outfits of white pants and a pink floral top. Her blond hair had long since gone white, and she wore it in a soft bob that complimented the same blue eyes Faith saw in the mirror every morning. Her mom and dad were an unlikely pair. He was close to six feet tall, and she barely made it to five feet, but they’d been together for forty years and still acted like newlyweds. They’d never had much money, but they always had an abundance of love.
When Matthew died, they were there to help pick up the pieces of her life. Her father worked like a fiend to get the house ready, and her mom had been in the delivery room when she’d had Piper. They were her rocks, the foundation of all she was.
“I thought you said we were taking Piper with us? Who’s that gangly girl next to you?” Her father asked as he leaned down to hug her.
“Grandpap! It’s me, Piper.” She laughed as she ran to them for a hug.
“Piper? No, it can’t be. The last time I saw you, you were about this high,” he said, holding his hand a foot off the ground. He scooped her up and lifted her high in the air. “If you keep growing, I won’t be able to carry you around like this.” He threw her over his broad shoulder and spun around.
“Joseph Adams, you put that girl down right this instant before you drop her on her head.”
“Calm down, Twyla. I won’t let her go. Whoops!” He pretended to let her slip as he set her on her feet.
Piper laughed hysterically when both women jumped forward as if to save her. “Let’s get my stuff.” She grabbed her grandfather’s hand and dragged him into the house.
“Mercy, but I hate it when he does that. One of these days, he really is going to drop her.” Twyla pulled Faith in for a hug. “How’s my baby girl? You look tired.”
“You always say that.”
“’Cause you always look tired.” She pulled Faith off to the side. “Did you get the results of the test back?” she asked.
“Not yet. I think it takes more than a couple of days, and they’ll probably go to the Prentices first since they were the ones who ordered them.” Faith had taken Piper to the lab in Canton, and the two of them had their mouths swabbed. Overall, it was somewhat anticlimactic.
“I still can’t believe the nerve of that woman. Every time I think of it, I just want to call her up and give her a piece of my mind.”
“Mom, please,” Faith stopped her. “I don’t want Piper to hear.”
“I won’t say a word—in front of Piper at least—but I still think it’s ridiculous. If she bothered to take a look at Piper, she’d see Matthew’s eyes staring right out at her.”
“Shh, she’s coming.” Faith pasted on a smile and went back to the porch steps as Piper burst through the door carrying her teddy bear. Her grandfather followed with the duffle bag and a pillow.
“C’mon, Twyla, we need to get this show on the road if we’re going to make it to our surprise on time.”
“Already? You just got here,” Faith said. “You haven’t even had a cup of coffee, and I made the breakfast bars you like.”
“It’s two hours to Atlanta and our reservations are for one o’clock. We don’t want to run into traffic and miss our lunch,” her father answered.
“What lunch? Why are we going to Atlanta?” Piper asked.
“Didn’t your momma tell you?” Twyla asked innocently, her blue eyes glinting with mischief.
“She said you had a surprise for me.”
“Well then, maybe we’ll just wait and keep it a surprise.”
“Grandma,” Piper wailed.
“Oh, I guess I can tell you, just so you won’t bother me all the way to Atlanta. Grandpap and I got reservations at the American Doll Place. We’re going to have lunch there. It’s all fancy, and they even have chairs so your doll can sit next to you.”
“But I don’t have an American Girl doll.” Piper’s face fell “Emily has one. I might be able to borrow hers.”
“I was thinking we’d get you one of your own. I have a catalogue in the car so you can see which one you’d like.”
“Oh, Grandma! That’s the best surprise ever.” Piper bolted for the station wagon.
“I still think she’s too young for such an expensive doll. Those things cost the earth,” Faith said, feeling a little envious she wouldn’t be there to see her daughter’s face when she got the doll.
“She’s my only grandchild. It’s my God given right to spoil her. You wouldn’t let me do it for Christmas, so I’m doing it now.”
“Just don’t get sucked into buying a bunch of stuff to go along with it. I don’t even have clothes that expensive.”
“Faith Colleen Adams, don’t you tell me how to spend my money. I’m the one who taught you how to budget, missy.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Faith said with mock contri
tion. “Hey, don’t I even get a hug good-bye?” she shouted to Piper who was poring over the glossy catalogue.
Piper dashed over to her, still clutching the catalogue, and wrapped her little arms around Faith’s waist. “I’m gonna have a doll like Emily. We’ll be able to have tea parties. Can we have one in the play house when I get back?”
“We’ll see. Remember your manners and make sure you help Grandma out.”
“I will. I love you.”
“I love you more.”
“I love you the most.” Piper gave one last squeeze as Faith kissed her good-bye.
“Call me when you get home,” Faith said to her father.
“We will. Enjoy your two weeks off. I’ll check out the cottage when we bring Pip back. We’ll have more time then and I can give it a good look-see.”
“Thanks, Dad. Drive safely.”
“Always do.” He hugged her and got into the driver’s seat.
“Call me if you hear anything about you-know-what,” her mother said, hugging her tightly.
“I will. Have fun, but please, don’t go crazy.”
Faith waved until the car was out of sight, then she let the tears burning behind her eyes trickle down her cheeks. It was like this every time they took Piper for their Grandparent bonding time. It was only two weeks, but Faith felt like a chunk of her heart was missing for those fourteen days.
Well, she knew how to make the time go faster. Hard work. She’d take advantage of her child-free time and do some work on the red cottage. Nothing like stripping wallpaper to keep her occupied.
She was heading inside to change into her work clothes when she heard tires on the gravel. Had Piper forgotten something?
Instead of her parents’ station wagon, it was Mary Ellen’s van. Faith wracked her brain, wondering if she’d forgotten something. She didn’t exactly live in an area where folks just dropped by. If someone came to see her, they had to go out of their way.
“Hey, Mary Ellen, what brings you out this way?”
“I was just on my way back from Nadya’s. We’re thinking of doing a girls’ night out, and since I know Piper’s gone for the next two weeks, I wanted to invite you, too.”
“Oh, wow. I haven’t had a girls’ night out in years. What were you thinking of doing?”
“The usual. Drinking, carousing, and picking up men. ’Course you’re the only single one, so we’d all be your wingmen or wingwomen or whatever.”
“Who all is going?”
“Not sure yet, but probably me, you, Nadya, and Ellie Anderson. I thought we’d check out that new karaoke bar in Canton. It should be good for a few laughs, especially if we can get Nadya on stage. She does the best Cher impression of ‘Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves.’”
Usually, Faith would find an excuse to avoid going. She rarely had extra money to throw away on a night out. If she did have some extra cash, she’d rather use it on Piper. But Piper wasn’t here, and hadn’t she just thought she should get out more?
“When are you planning on going?”
“Thursday night. Bill promised to watch the kids, and come hell or high water, I’m getting out of the house.”
“Sounds like fun. I’m in. Now I just need to find something to wear.”
“The sexier the better. You can’t have a proper carouse if you don’t wear something short and tight.”
“I don’t think I have anything like that anymore. I sure as heck don’t fit into anything I wore before I had Piper.”
“You’re a little smaller than me, but I bet I could find something in my closet. I’ll bring some things over later this week for you to try on.”
“Thanks. I appreciate the invite and the wardrobe intervention. I should probably invest in something other than shorts and flip-flops, but it’s not like I have anyone to impress out here.”
“A girl should always be prepared. You never know when you might meet a sexy client. You should have an emergency stash of Victoria’s Secret on hand just in case.”
“In case of what? It’s not like I can jump one of my guests, even if he was sexy as sin. I’ve got Piper to think about.” She absolutely refused to think of Sam or even look in the direction of the blue cottage. The rush of heat that shot through her at the thought of Sam seeing her in sexy underwear was embarrassment, not need.
Right.
“Piper won’t always be here, and a woman has needs.”
“Those needs are going to have to stay on hold until I’m not juggling a growing business and a growing girl. Who has time for sex?”
“Honey, you need to make time. I run a business and have three kids. Bill and I manage to squeeze in a quickie during a half hour episode of Thomas the Train. It’s gotten to the point that when I hear the opening song I get horny.”
Faith couldn’t help but laugh. “Fine, I don’t have the interest in starting a relationship right now.” Wanting to help someone who looked so lost was not starting a relationship, it was being a good person.
“Then just find a hottie to hop in the sack with. Hell, what is wrong with all of my friends? You’d think we lived in Victorian England the way y’all approach sex. It’s the 2000s for heaven’s sake, live a little.”
“I’ll take that under consideration.”
“Which is just a diplomatic way of saying go to hell. All right, I’ll stop—for now. I’ll swing by later this week with some dresses, and I’ll text you the details when we get them hammered out. Take care, now.” Mary Ellen climbed back into her van.
“You, too. Thanks again.” Faith waved good-bye as Mary Ellen drove away and then headed inside.
As she opened a drawer to pull out her paint-spattered denim shorts and an equally spattered T-shirt, she thought about her wardrobe. The majority of her clothes were T-shirts and sweatshirts. She had jean shorts for the summer and jeans for the winter with a few church dresses thrown in. Her mom had given her a couple of hand-knit sweaters she wore to dress up the jeans, but for the most part, she didn’t need anything else.
When was the last time she bought anything special for herself? Probably not since she had Piper, and nothing she owned from before then fit her. She’d gone from ninety-eight pounds with barely any hips or breasts to one-hundred-twenty-five pounds and a size D bra.
Faith knew she wasn’t technically overweight for her five-foot two-inch frame, but no one from her life with Matthew would recognize her now. When she’d lived in Buckhead, she’d gone to spinning classes, had a personal trainer, and lived on coffee with skim milk and salad like every other woman in her neighborhood.
She’d never fit in there. There was more to life than spending every waking moment on appearances. Faith glanced at her work-worn hands and ragged nails that hadn’t seen a manicure in years. Her toenails sported sparkly nail polish from Piper’s Hello Kitty collection, and her makeup drawer hadn’t been opened since her cousin’s wedding last year. Heck, she hadn’t even had a haircut since moving to Dale.
There had to be a happy medium between obsessing about her looks and ignoring them completely. She’d ask around for some suggestions about where to get a haircut and see if she could get an appointment before Piper came back. Maybe she’d even go crazy and get a manicure while she was at it.
But for right now, her hands were going to be soaking in wallpaper removal solution, not moisturizer.
Chapter Six
“Maybe that’s your problem,” Sam said in a mock falsetto. “Here, let me just whip out a new album in an entirely different genre. That’ll go over big. I’ll go from bad-boy rocker to Yanni. Fuck.”
The pisser was, when he wasn’t trying to write songs in his usual style, the music flowed. He’d written the melody to almost an entire song while taking a break from banging his head against the wall trying to write lyrics that weren’t crap.
That could be the issue. He was trying too hard to force the lyrics. Maybe if he focused on letting the music come, the lyrics would follow. In the past, the lyrics had always come first.
Hell, it couldn’t hurt to switch things up. God knew, he wasn’t getting anywhere trying to bull his way through another song. He took his guitar and sat on the couch in the living room area. Out of habit, he turned on the recorder on his phone. Most of the time, all he recorded was random bits of tunes, but he never knew when inspiration would strike. After tuning his guitar, he let his fingers run through familiar chords, not playing anything, just twiddling.
He’d learned to play piano first, but the guitar had his soul. Something about the way it fit in his hands. The curve of the body and the way it could croon or shriek depending on how he touched it was as hot to him as fucking.
The thought of fucking naturally brought his brain around to Faith. Damn, but she was built. He’d had to sit at the counter so she wouldn’t see the hard-on he was sporting every time she bent over. She was a tiny thing. She couldn’t be much more than five feet tall, but damn, all five feet were packed with curves. Those curves were driving him to distraction. He found himself making excuses to bump into her during the day. Over the last two weeks, he’d figured out her schedule and knew she usually worked in the yard in the morning before it got too hot, then retreated into the house or ran errands until evening when she and Piper would come out and play in the backyard. He’d managed to time his runs to coincide with her working in the yard so he could talk with her for a few minutes each day. Talking to her every day was like a balm on his nerves, although seeing her luscious ass in the air as she bent over to pull weeds was anything but soothing.
What was wrong with the guys in this town that they didn’t see what a fucking jewel they had? Faith was sweet, sexy, and she could cook like a dream. Her French toast was incredible. He’d long since gotten sick of his own cooking, plus, he was running low on supplies. That breakfast was better than anything he’d had in a five-star restaurant, at least that he could remember. Which wasn’t saying much.
As he thought about Faith moving around the kitchen, efficient and graceful, the music changed from random chords to a deeper, grittier thrum. He imagined lifting her up on the counter and hammering into her until she screamed. He stroked the strings like he wanted to stroke her, working from the lower range to the higher. The notes sang as he plucked and strummed, teasing out the music, then demanding more. Finally, he finished with a flourish that was as close to a scream of completion as he could get without coming himself.
