"It will come," Polly said. "It will come. I promise. And maybe you will develop your own sense of style along the way. Who knows, maybe you'll become a fashion designer when you get older."
Gina rolled her eyes. "I'd rather be a cowboy. I want to learn how to rope cows and ride horses."
"Rope cows? Whatever gave you that idea?"
"That's what my daddy does," Gina said. "He lives out in Wyoming. He doesn't live with us anymore." She slumped. "I heard him tell Mom that he loved us kids, but he couldn't live with us anymore. Mom's sad because of that."
"I'm sorry," Polly said.
"We never see him. Sometimes he'll send a letter or call us, but he doesn't remember birthdays or Christmas. Mom says that's okay. She loves us enough for a hundred daddies."
"I'll bet that's right," Polly said. Her heart broke for this little family. No wonder Bean was all over the place. He was just trying to grab as much attention as he could and had no good way to focus his energy.
Gina plopped herself down in front of the closet and was pulling things out.
"What are you looking for?" Polly asked.
"There should be a pair of cowboy boots in here. Daddy bought them for me a long time ago. Do you think they'll still fit?"
"I doubt it," Polly said with a chuckle. "You've probably grown since then. Does your mom know you want to ride horses?"
"She says they're too expensive right now, but when I get older and get a job, I can save money for a horse. I read stories about them and I have pictures." She dropped her head and said shyly, "We drove by your house and took pictures of your horses. They're big."
"Do you know what they're called?"
"Everybody knows that," Gina said. "They're Percherons. The whole town knows about your horses. It's cool when you take them out for Halloween. They're spooky all dressed up. We always go to the parades when you ride them. And I saw you last winter with the sleigh one time."
"Maybe when you get up tomorrow morning, Kayla and Rebecca will take you down to the barn to meet them. Would you like that?"
Gina sat back and stared at Polly with her mouth open. Finally she spoke. "Do you mean it?"
"Of course," Polly replied. "They love visitors. Do you know which one you like the best?"
The little girl nodded. "I like the one that you always ride. His name is Demi? Is that right?"
"That's absolutely right. You do know a lot about my horses. Demi is pretty laid back. He lets the barn cats sleep on him at night and the donkeys try to get into his stall all the time."
"That's funny," Gina said. She leaned against the closet door frame. "I can't believe I get to see them face to face."
"How about I talk to Eliseo. He's in charge down there and maybe he'll let you sit on Demi's back. What do you think about that?"
Polly thought the child would swoon. Having these horses was better than the Beatles coming to town for a child this age. She had to figure a way for the horses to spend more time with kids.
"Polly?" Barb Evering was standing in the bedroom door.
"Are you finished?"
Barb nodded. "It wasn't as bad as you thought. We just needed to scrub a few things clean and it's back to normal."
"You can't believe how a little blood could be very bad for me," Polly said, laughing. She stood up and walked over to the door. "Thank you so much for doing this. Mrs. Landers doesn't need to bring her son home and then have to clean up a mess like that."
"We're glad to help."
"How are things at the Inn with Grey?" Polly asked. She heard a slight chuckle from the bathroom as Cindy was packing up the supplies.
"He's different," Barb said. "But he's a very nice man. He's always asking us if we'd like him to help, but we've got a schedule. If something breaks or needs fixing, though, he's right on it and he's got a new plan for keeping inventory of supplies." She dropped her voice to speak in a whisper. "He said he wants to get us one of those electronic tablet things so we can do inventory on that and order supplies faster. And so we can keep in touch with him during the day. But he's right down the way. It's only a few steps more to go and talk to him. I don't understand why filling out the sheet is any different than clicking a box on some electronic gizmo."
Polly nodded. "Do the guests like him?"
"I guess," Barb said with a shrug. "I don't see them very much. They're always out of the rooms by the time we get started. He likes chatting it up with them when they come and go. If he isn't talking to them in the lobby, he's outside working and talking to them. He's awfully busy. And he talks funny. You know, like in olden times. All proper and polite."
"He is polite," Polly said. "I like that about him."
"I guess. Well, we'll be out of your hair. Thanks for the extra work. Any time you need us, we're available."
"Thank you, Barb. I appreciate your help." Polly walked them to the front door and then called out, "Do you have everything you need, Gina?"
Gina came into the living room with a backpack stuffed to the brim. "I think so," she said breathlessly. "I don't want to forget anything. How long am I staying at your house?"
"Hopefully your brother will come home tomorrow." Polly flipped the living room light off and took the key that Gina handed to her. "You want me to lock the door?"
"Bean always does because I get scared that I'll forget."
"Okay. I can do that." Polly pulled the door shut and locked the deadbolt, then tugged on the door. "Here, you tug on it, too. That way both of us will be sure that it's locked."
When they were finished, Gina ran for the truck and stopped beside the passenger door. "Do you have a husband?"
"Yes I do," Polly said. "His name is Henry." She opened the door and waited for Gina to climb in. "Why do you ask?"
"Will he be mad that you invited me over?"
"Nope. Not at all. He's a pretty good guy."
Gina let out a sigh of relief. "My daddy didn't like guests. He was always tired when he came home and said that his house was his castle and nobody was going to bother him. We had to be quiet when he was sleeping and he always took a nap right after he walked in the door. Usually in front of the TV so we had to play quietly in Bean's room."
"You'll soon find out that nobody is very quiet at my house," Polly said. "If Henry needs privacy, he just goes into the bedroom and shuts the door."
As they drove up to Sycamore House, Gina caught a glimpse of the horses and sighed a huge sigh. "I can't wait to see them in the morning. They're so pretty."
"Do you want to drive down and meet them right now?"
Polly watched Gina's face in the rear view mirror. The girl lit up, then grew serious and said, "No, I can wait. You'd better take me back to the house."
"Why do you say that?" Polly asked.
"Mom says that I expect too much and she's always talking about how people are just nice because they have to, not because they want to. Tomorrow is okay."
"Honey," Polly said. "I offered to take you to the barn because I enjoy seeing my horses, too. I'll be busy in the morning and I'd like to introduce you to Eliseo and Jason. Jason is Andrew's older brother."
"Are you sure it's not too much trouble?"
Polly turned the corner and drove into the parking lot so they could walk to the barn. "It's no trouble at all. Come on. You can play with the other kids later." She opened the back door and waited while Gina unbuckled her belt and hopped down to the ground. "Come on. It will be fine."
She opened the gates for Gina and then walked into the barn. "Anyone here?" she called out. When there was no answer from humans or equines, she said, "Well, everybody must be outside. How many horses did you see out there?"
"Two," Gina said quietly.
"And donkeys?"
The girl nodded and Polly took her through Demi's stall to the pasture. He was standing at the back fence with Daisy and she called his name. "Demi!"
The horse looked up at her voice, threw his head in the air and nickered, then trotted across to see her.
Daisy looked up to see what the commotion was and raced to catch up to him.
"Demi and Daisy, this is Gina," Polly said. "She wants to be a cowgirl someday. What do you think?"
Gina backed up at the approach of the immense horses. Polly turned and put her hand out. "It's okay. They are big, but Demi is as friendly as they come. Remember, I told you that he lets the cats sleep on him at night."
"He's bigger than I thought," Gina said, looking up at the horses with immense eyes.
Polly put her hand on Demi and he dipped his head closer to Gina. "Go ahead and rub there just above his nose. He loves that and it is very soft." There was no other spot on the horse that Gina could reach from the ground unless it were his legs or his belly.
Demi pushed at Polly's hand with his head. "I don't have anything for you, ya beggar," she said.
Not to be outdone, Daisy crowded in, looking for attention. Polly pushed her back. "You're going to scare the girl. Be polite."
Before she knew it, Tom and Huck were on the other side of Gina, pushing at her hand. The girl giggled. "What do they want?"
"They probably think you have treats. That's how we usually introduce strangers to them."
"They're not as big," Gina said.
"No they're not. And they're fun. When you come down tomorrow, maybe Eliseo or Jason will put a saddle on one and you can ride. If you fall off one of them, it isn't as far to the ground."
Daisy snorted and turned to run for the far side of the pasture. She got halfway there, stopped and turned as if to ask Demi why he wasn't following her.
"Go on," Polly said. "Keep her company. We'll be back tomorrow." She patted his shoulder and ran her hand down it, caressing him. She still couldn't get over the fact that these beautiful horses lived with her. He took off and soon the donkeys followed.
"I didn't upset them, did I?" Gina asked.
"Oh no," Polly said. "I suspect the other two are working in the pasture on the other side of the creek and these guys are wondering why they're stuck in the same old place."
They walked back to the truck and Polly drove to the garage. She took Gina's backpack and carried it upstairs. "Anybody here?" she called out. The two dogs came crashing into Henry's office to greet them and Polly stopped and knelt down to accept their affection so they didn't barrel Gina over onto the floor.
Andrew strode into the office and said, "I'm bored. They're being girls again."
"But they are girls," Gina said, knitting her brows in confusion.
He nodded toward the other room. "They're in Rebecca's room and talking about clothes for school. It's all stupid."
Polly handed Gina her backpack and said, "Go ahead. You'll have fun."
"Why did you have to bring another girl into the house," Andrew asked with a whine. "It's not fair."
Polly grinned at him. "How long have they been in Rebecca's room?"
"They just went in there."
"And what were you doing before that?"
"I beat them in a game."
"A racing game?"
"Yep."
She laughed. "You're so put upon. How about we give them a few minutes to do their thing. After that we'll walk to the coffee shop and to the General Store for ice cream."
"You like ice cream," he teased her.
"Yes I do," she said. "Got a problem with that?"
He threw his arms up in defense. "No problem at all."
"That's good, because I wouldn't want to tell your mother that you were a brat."
Andrew hung his head in shame. "She already knows I am."
"Oh Andrew," Polly said. "I was just kidding."
"Didn't she tell you how bad I was?"
That caught Polly off guard, because of course Sylvie had told her. She didn't want to lie to him, but she also didn't want him to worry that he couldn't mess up in the safety of his own home. There were some things that needed to be protected.
"She said you were having a rough time, but I thought you and I talked about stuff on Saturday. Did you do something else?"
"No," he said, shaking his head. "But that was bad enough." He looked up at Polly, worry on his face. "Am I always going to be stupid because of girls?"
She laughed out loud and pulled him into a hug "I love you so much."
He struggled and pulled away, a wan grin on his lips. "You hug me too much."
"I don't hug you enough and yes, you are probably always going to be stupid because of girls. You should ask Henry if he still gets stupid because of me. We can't help it when our hearts and our heads get confused because of love."
"It's not love," he said. "Mom called it puppy love. That sounds dumb."
"No matter what you call it, love messes with your heart and your head and sometimes your stomach. I promise that you will live through it as long as you don't piss your Mom off so much that she wants to kill you."
He glanced up at her and grinned.
"What?" she asked.
"You said 'pissed.'"
"I guess I did," she responded. "Are you telling on me?"
Rebecca came into the media room, dressed in a long denim skirt and bright, flowery blouse. "Can I wear this the first day of school?" Her hair had been pulled back into a pony tail, with casual, loose tendrils brushing her cheeks. She looked older than her twelve years.
"Sure," Polly said, shaken that the girl was growing up in front of her eyes. "You look fabulous." She looked over at Andrew who was staring with his mouth open. "We're thinking about walking up town for ice cream. Do you want to put your shorts back on so you're comfortable in the heat?"
Rebecca turned and ran out of the room.
Polly reached over and with her index finger, pushed up on Andrew's lower jaw. "Shut your mouth," she said. "You could catch flies with that trap."
"She's so..." He pursed his lips and scowled at Polly. "Whatever."
"She's so grownup? So pretty?"
"Whatever."
The three girls came running back into the media room, Rebecca and Kayla pulling Gina with them.
"Gina says she can't go with us because she doesn't have any money, but I told her it was no big deal," Rebecca said.
"It's no big deal," Polly repeated. "I've got this. I can afford ice cream for one little girl."
"But Mom said..." Gina started to protest.
"It's okay," Rebecca said, kneeling down to get closer to Gina's size. Polly wanted to laugh. It hadn't been that long ago, she'd done the same thing to Rebecca. "Unless you're allergic to ice cream, Polly's got it." She looked up at Polly. "Right?"
"Right," Polly said, nodding. "Now you aren't allergic to ice cream, are you?"
"No!" Gina exclaimed. "It's just that you're doing so much."
Polly sat on the arm of the sofa. "Sometimes the only thing you can do is say thank you. That was one of those things that my mother insisted I learn how to do."
"You didn't know how to say thank you?"
"Not at your age. But I learned," Polly said. "It's right up there with the most important words you'll ever learn how to say."
"What are those?" Gina asked, confused by this point.
Polly held her hand up and with the other, flipped down a finger as she recited the list. "I love you, I'm sorry, please, and thank you. As long as you use those words and phrases, you'll do well. That's what my mother said. When you're with me, unless you think something is going to be bad for you or hurt you, don't worry it being too difficult or expensive. If I offer and you want to do it, just smile and say thank you. Deal?"
Gina looked at each of the other kids in turn. They nodded in agreement.
"That's how Polly rolls," Andrew said.
"Okay." She processed for a moment and then said, "Thank you."
"Let's head out. I want to check on the coffee shop and then we'll get ice cream."
They left by the back door. Polly and Andrew found themselves at the back of the pack as Kayla and Rebecca taught Gina how to skip.
"We've been down this road before
," Andrew said, sarcasm thick in his tone.
"We'll be down it again," Polly replied. "Stop being such a stick in the mud."
They waited to cross the street and as Polly turned the corner on Elm Street, she saw the same pack of boys that had come after her the day she was out with Alistair Greyson. She didn't want to run into trouble today. Not with the kids. The boys were loitering beside a building and weren't yet paying attention to Polly and her pack.
"Girls," she said "Stop and come back here."
"What's up?" Rebecca asked.
"I know them," Andrew whispered.
Polly pushed the girls behind her and turned back around. "We're taking a different route today. Let's walk down the highway and go up Maple Street. It's a couple of extra blocks, but that's okay."
Kayla whispered. "Is it because of those boys? They've been making trouble this summer. The tall one is mean. I heard he wrecked his dad's new truck and his dad wanted to kick him out of the house."
"Let's just go get ice cream," Polly said. "They can do their thing. We'll do ours."
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Rebecca, Kayla, and Gina ran to the coffee shop after eating ice cream. The older girls promised to show Gina all of the books they had for kids. Andrew walked in the front, door, eyed a chair in front of a set of shelves and made a dash for it. He sat down, shut his eyes, reached onto the shelf and took out the first book he touched. He opened his eyes and nodded nonchalantly before turning to the first page. The boy could read anything.
"Hello, Ms. Giller," Helena Black said, coming around a table. "How are you today?"
"I'm fine, thank you," Polly replied. "Is Sylvie in back?"
The woman nodded and walked with Polly down the hallway. "There's a lot of excitement around here, you know."
"There is? What's going on?"
"Well, you know," Helena's voice dropped to a loud whisper. "The murder and everything."
"That was last week. Surely things have settled down."
"Do you ever think they settle down after something like that? But people keep coming in and ordering coffee. Maybe it was a good thing for us."
"I don't believe it was a good thing."
"No, no, no. That isn't what I meant. I just meant that all of the additional attention would bring more business in and that's what you always want as an owner, more business, right? I haven't had a chance to talk to Miss Kahane much about it. She always has her nose in that computer of hers or is too busy to chat. Do you think she'll be a good owner? Your employees talk about how good it is to work for you. But you two were friends before you came back to Iowa, isn't that right? You know her better than anyone."
Look Always Forward (Bellingwood Book 11) Page 20
