“I love this!” Tyler bragged as he raced up the hill, his longer legs making light work of the snow.
Haley’s phone buzzed. She glanced at the readout, ignored Brett’s frown and answered. “LuAnn, how’s everything going?”
Brett couldn’t hear LuAnn’s end of the conversation, but Haley’s part told him that Fiona would be going home with Charlie and LuAnn, at least long enough to examine her options.
“Tell them we’ll stop by later so Fiona and Reilly can meet the boys.”
Haley repeated his words, said goodbye, then frowned. “Should we be there, helping them?”
“Helping them what?”
“Get Fiona settled.”
Brett angled a look to the two whooping, shrieking boys. “A lot of help we’d be.”
“I guess,” she answered, chagrined. “It feels like I’m passing the buck, having others take over.”
“You think too much.” Brett hauled out the sleds. “Charlie and LuAnn will love doing this, and if Fiona stays, Reilly and Shelby might grow up to be best friends forever because Jess is only a few blocks away. Stop trying to control the world.”
“I will,” she promised. She grabbed a sled and followed the boys uphill. “And listen, old-timer, if you need help getting up here—” she shot him an over-the-shoulder grin “—I can slow my steps a little.”
“You’ll regret those words soon enough, Haley.”
“You think?”
A saucy laugh drifted down to him, but Brett hadn’t spent the last twenty years at a desk. He cruised by her with the sled held over his head and shouted back, “Not think. Know.” He got to the crest of the hill, snugged the two boys onto the sled between his knees, and sailed downward before she’d made it up the first time. The boys’ screams of delight mingled with her bemused smile to make this a day to remember.
Charlie referred to times like this as “make a memory” days, those times when he and LuAnn would gather the newest generation around them and do simple things. Right now Brett could envision a lifetime of make-a-memory days, right here on the south slope of Bald Mountain.
* * *
Haley couldn’t remember a better day. Brett had brought along a man-sized thermos filled with hot chocolate and marshmallows, and when the boys tasted the creamy, melted mix an hour later, their eyes grew wide. “Oh, this is so good, Bwett.”
“Br-r-r-ett,” Haley reminded Todd.
“Brrrrrett!” Todd tried again and half growled the r.
Brett grinned and shoulder-nudged the little guy. “That was perfect. You sounded like a pirate.”
Todd beamed. Even Tyler smiled at his success, and the boys looked adorable, perched on the hood of Brett’s SUV.
“So, boys.” Haley decided a direct approach was best. “We’re going to meet your Aunt Fiona later today and your new baby cousin, Reilly.”
“Huh?”
“We have a cousin?”
“You do,” she continued. “She’s a tiny baby—”
“Like Jesus!” Tyler shouted, delighted.
“Yes. And we can’t touch her yet because she’s so little, but I want you to meet your aunt Fiona. Your dad, Fiona and I were brother and sisters.”
“Where did you live?” Tyler wondered.
“All over,” Haley told him. Simple, she decided, was better. “But Fiona is here now and she wants to meet you guys.”
Todd’s eyes went round. He exchanged a look with Tyler and both boys looked suddenly concerned. Glum, in fact.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Brett put an arm around Tyler and bent low. “What’s up, my man?”
“She might take us away.”
Todd wiggled closer to Haley’s side. “To somepwace else and we don’t want to go somepwace else. We want to stay wiff you guys, forever.”
“Oh, honey.” Haley wrapped Todd into a hug. “No one’s taking you away. Remember what that nice judge said this morning?”
“Have a good day?”
“Before that,” Haley reminded them. “He said that I could take care of you until you grow up.”
“As big as Brett?”
“Yes,” she promised.
“And I’ll be here,” Brett pledged. “And Charlie and LuAnn and the guys at the store and the friends you’ll make at school.”
“So we really get to stay.” Tyler’s steadfast gaze said he wanted no games. “And be kinda like your little boys?”
“Yes.” Haley hugged them both, careful not to spill their drinks. “We’re a family now.”
Mollified, Tyler pointed east. “Can we go see that barn? It’s really cool.”
“Sure.” Brett stowed the empty cups into the back of the car and hoisted Todd onto his shoulders. “I love classic barns.”
Haley smiled up at him. “I do, too. I have a collection of barn calendars from a vendor in Lewisburg. I kept them just for the pictures. Barns are so—” she shrugged “—country. Rustic. And big.” She laughed as they drew closer.
The classic horse barn appeared to have rooms upstairs. Twin windows faced the wide, curving drive leading up to the barn. The high-pitched roof with two small dormers facing south gave the upstairs a homey feel, while the first level was clearly a stable.
“Did Jesus get born in a barn like this?” Tyler asked.
Brett shook his head. “No. They didn’t have a lot of wood in Bethlehem. Not too many trees. Their stables were mostly in nice, warm caves.”
“I fink I like this better,” Todd declared. “It’s huge.”
“Oh, it is.” Haley laughed and plowed through the snow to peer into the windows. “Post and beam construction. And in such fine shape.”
“A good roof,” Brett told her. He pointed up. “Weather won’t hurt a barn as long as it’s got a good roof, and this classic metal roof will last for decades.”
“It’s beautiful, right?” Haley turned and smiled at him. “Don’t tell me I’m crazy for thinking so because I can just see this sweet old barn turned into a house. Shutters on those windows.” She pointed to her right. “And on the front. The crossbuck doors are just the perfect country touch. And so much room.”
* * *
Brett had no trouble seeing her vision. Imagining the gracious old barn turned into a solid, stable family home. A place where kids and dogs could run free and explore. Trees, animals and a pond on the other side, closer to the road, with a state forest preserve just above them. Safety and solitude, all in one.
“Where’s the house?” Todd asked.
Brett pointed north. “The original house is up there. The family went broke when industry moved out of this area, and they lost the place. It’s been for sale for years.”
“How sad.” Haley pressed her lips into a thin line. “I hate to think of places sitting empty. Lonely.”
Tyler made a face. “Houses don’t get lonely, Aunt Haley. They’re not people.”
“That’s right,” Brett told him, but he wondered at the same time. An empty house did seem sad, but a broad-based barn, restructured to fit the needs of a growing family...
“Hey, guys.” Haley interrupted his thoughts with a wave of her cell phone. “LuAnn just texted me that they’re home and all is well. Why don’t we go home, get cleaned up, have a quick rest and go see that new aunt and baby cousin?”
“Okay!”
“I’ll race you, Todd!”
Brett knew an unfair advantage when he saw one, so he re-planted Todd onto his shoulders and raced Tyler to the car. When he won, Tyler scowled. “I don’t think that’s fair.”
“Neither is taking off with a head start on a little brother,” Brett replied. “Hop in, Ty. Let’s head home.”
The older boy didn’t frown at the word home like he had those first days, and Brett saw that as a good
sign. Slowly but surely the boys were planting roots in Allegany County.
* * *
“She’s so tiny.” Tyler’s eyes went wide as he gazed at little Reilly Jennings a few hours later. “Can she break?”
Fiona sent him a sweet smile of commiseration. “I think so. That’s why I’m being extra careful.”
Tyler angled her a “better you than me” look. “Can I play with her when she gets bigger?”
Haley watched Fiona struggle with that question. In the end, she shrugged. “I don’t know. We’ll have to wait and see, okay?”
“Sure.” Tyler agreed with all the innocence of youth.
Brett strode in with Todd after a quick bathroom run. “Just look, okay, buddy? Don’t touch her. She’s too tiny.”
LuAnn led Todd closer. “This is your aunt Fiona and your cousin Reilly.”
Todd’s mouth went round. He leaned up to Fiona and gave her a sweet, little-guy kiss on the cheek. “I am so glad to know you and your baby! I always wanted a baby around.”
“Oh, you darling.” Fiona’s eyes went moist. She swiped a hand against them as the baby started to fuss in her arms.
“Feeding time,” LuAnn announced. Her cheery voice said it was time for the boys to leave the room as she handed Fiona a nursing cape. “Charlie’s got cookies in the kitchen, boys. And you’ll get to see Reilly again soon.”
They might have been enchanted by the wonder of a baby, but the boys loved the reality of LuAnn’s homemade cookies. They raced to the kitchen at the back of the house.
“Anthony’s boys.” Fiona sighed, rearranged the baby beneath the cape and met Haley’s gaze. “I’m so happy to have met them, Haley. They’re beautiful. And it’s amazing that you’ve taken them on like you have.”
“Oh, I have help.” Haley aimed a smile of gratitude toward LuAnn. “Between Brett and Charlie and LuAnn and other folks in town, people step up to the plate all the time. And if you decide to stay, Fiona?” Haley shifted her attention back to the young nursing mother. “I’ll do everything I can to help you, because that’s what families should do.”
Fiona’s gaze tightened. “That’s not a familiar scenario, Haley.”
“Not to me, either,” Haley answered. “But do you remember the prayer that says, ‘let peace begin with me, let this be the moment now...’”
“I’ve heard that.”
“That’s how I see our family,” Haley told her. “That if we—” she waved a hand between herself and Fiona “—change the way we look at family and commitments and faith, we add a little more goodness to the world.”
“And that’s why you took the boys.”
Haley shrugged. “Kids don’t ask to be born, but each one is a sweet miracle.” She smiled at her younger sister. “Until they start sassing, of course.”
LuAnn laughed.
Fiona smiled. “I’m so glad I came here.”
Haley’s moment of truth had arrived. She moved forward and knelt down alongside her sister’s chair. “And I’m sorry it came to that. I should have gone looking for you. Found you. I’m the older sister and it was up to me to come to you and I didn’t do it, even though I felt like God was nudging me along. Prodding me. Can you forgive me, Fee? Please?”
Fiona’s eyes filled with tears. She reached out her free arm and draped it around Haley. “We’ve got each other now. And that’s what matters, right?”
“Yes.” Haley sat back, mopped her eyes and sighed. “And now that we’ve started a cry fest, I need to get those boys home, cleaned up and into bed.”
“Good night, Haley. And Brett, it was nice to meet you,” she called softly.
“Glad to have you here, Fiona.” Brett’s voice came back from across the small living room.
She sent Haley and LuAnn a smile that seemed a little more relaxed. “It’s good to be here.”
The thought of the young, single mother sent Brett backward in time.
He’d gone off to the service, leaving Deb alone and pregnant. He’d rationalized it as a young man, that the service would provide enough money to help raise a child, but what he saw tonight...
The wanting look in a young woman’s eyes...
Said he’d done an awful job of taking care of things. He called Deb, and asked if he could swing by her place once Haley and the boys were home.
“Now?”
He imagined her looking at the hour, knowing he wouldn’t arrive until after nine o’clock that night. “Yes, if that’s okay.”
She didn’t quibble or hesitate. Instead she said, “I’ll put the coffee on. Head on down.”
When he got there, a man was waiting with her. “Brett, this is my fiancé, Peter.”
Peter stretched out a hand, but his gaze said Brett’s impromptu visit made him curious. And maybe a little protective.
“Have a seat.” Deb waved a hand toward the table, grabbed the pot and filled a mug. “Still black?”
“Yes.”
“There you go.” She sat alongside Peter and faced Brett. “What’s going on?”
Direct as always. Brett paused, then dived in. “I came to apologize.”
“For?” Deb’s expression questioned his intent.
“Leaving you to raise Josiah alone.”
She sat back, surprised. “Explain.”
Wasn’t admitting it enough? Obviously not. He hunched forward, his hands wrapped around the warm mug. “I did the unthinkable. I created a child with you and then joined the service and left you all alone.”
Deb tapped one finger onto the table. “Is this because you think I did a bad job raising Joe?”
“No, no, not at all.” Brett sat upright, wondering how she could think that. “He was amazing. Wonderful. I just feel like a first-class jerk for never being around, never giving him a dad to be with.”
“Ah.” Brows drawn, Deb considered his admission. For drawn-out seconds she looked uncomfortable, then made a little face of consternation and admitted, “I was kind of glad you weren’t around, Brett.”
He pulled back, affronted.
“Now, don’t go getting all military on me. Let me explain.” She paused, choosing her words with care. “We weren’t going to get married, right?”
“No.” He’d asked, she’d refused, end of story.
“And all around me there were young mothers with babies who were going through all kinds of drama with their ex-husbands or boyfriends. It seemed epidemic at the time, and all I could think of was how lucky I was that you trusted me to raise Joe to be a fine young man and sent money like clockwork. Brett—” she leaned forward and covered one of his hands with one of hers “—I loved that boy, heart and soul. And I loved that you entrusted him to me. Sure, he missed some things because you were gone, but you know what?”
He shrugged, mystified that she saw this so differently.
“I told him that his father provided for him. That his father was a brave, heroic soldier. He had copies of every one of your advancements and commendations because those are important, Brett. He kept every one of the letters and cards you sent. I wanted him to be a strong, solid citizen like his father. And he was.” She shook her head at him. “Never in my life did I think of you as a deadbeat dad because your job took you away.”
Relief blanketed him, the soothing emollient of forgiveness. Not hers. His. “You didn’t hate me?”
She laughed. “No. How silly of you to think that. I was free to live my life, create a career and raise Joe the way I wanted because you provided for him each and every month. Do you know how rare that is?”
He didn’t, but he was glad she saw the upside of the half-full glass.
She grabbed Peter’s hand. “Peter and I are getting married next month. I’m forty-two years old and I’m planning to start a family.” She smiled at his look
of surprise and went on, “So I suggest that if God has sent you a new opportunity at this point in your life, quit beating yourself up and go for it. Second chances are amazing things.”
They were. He took a long sip of his coffee, and finished what he came for. “I’m sorry I didn’t come to the funeral.”
Her face shadowed. “I was sorry, too. I would have liked for you to be there.”
Brett fought the rise of emotion in his chest, his throat. “I couldn’t forgive myself for his death. If he hadn’t followed me into the service...”
“Brett, there’s one thing you should know.” This time the tap of her finger was stronger. More insistent. “Josiah Stanton followed no one. Ever. He was his own man from the time he was a little boy. He chose the service because it felt right to him. He prayed on it, studied his options and then went for it, full tilt, just like his father. But not because you did it first,” she assured him. “He did it because he was so much like you. And that was never a bad thing, Brett. I considered it a blessing.”
Her heartfelt words made it harder to fight back his emotions. He stood.
So did she and Peter.
Brett reached out and gave her a hug. “Thank you.”
“Back at ya.”
He reached out a hand to Peter. “Congratulations to both of you.”
“Thanks.” Peter shook the offered hand and then put an arm around Deb’s shoulders. “Good to meet you, Colonel.”
No one had used his rank since Joe’s death, but tonight, coming from this man, it sounded all right. Brett nodded. “Good to meet you, too. And good luck with—” he aimed a smile at Deb “—everything.”
She met his smile with one of her own. “You, too. And if there’s a wedding involved, I wouldn’t say no to an invitation.”
A wedding. Hers. His.
The idea of a forever-after with Haley seemed so clear. Sure, they needed to get to know each other better, and the boys needed time to settle in, but in his heart, nothing had ever felt this right before. He gave them a nod and a quick salute. “Will do. Good night.”
“Good night, Brett.”
The snow had stopped falling, but the hush of the night, last week’s slush now blanketed in pale, pristine white, made everything seem washed clean. The Psalms spoke of a clean heart, a faithful spirit. Tonight, Brett felt that sweet Psalm to the core of his being.
His Mistletoe Family Page 17
