by T. L. Haddix
Owen didn’t move for a minute, and he was very, very pale. After a couple of shuddering breaths, he hunkered down in front of Noah and tugged him close. “Tell me what Moira looks like.”
Noah scrunched his nose and looked at his grandfather. “She’s a little bigger than me. And she’s got kinda-red hair, but not really. She likes to chase butterflies and dragonflies.”
“When did you meet her?”
“Easter. She likes the bunnies, too.”
Owen swallowed convulsively. They’d all gone to Jack and Gilly’s house at Easter, where Sarah, Kathy, and Jack had grown up.
“After that, she found me here. She said you all can’t see her, but she can see you.”
It was too much for Owen. He bowed his head and rubbed his eyes, and John felt his own eyes sting.
“Come here, big guy. Let’s take a walk.” John picked up Noah and walked out the door and around the side of the barn. He stopped in the shade of the overhang, grateful for the cool breeze that washed over them.
“Am I in trouble, Daddy?”
“No. You’re not in trouble.” Feeling torn apart, John kissed his forehead. “A long, long time ago, Grandma’s sister had a little girl named Moira.”
“That’s my cousin.”
“Yes.”
“And her daddy was very bad, and he hurt Moira, and she went to live with her brother in the sunny place, but he’s just a baby, so he’s not much fun. She told me.” Noah laid his head against John’s shoulder with so much trust that it devastated John. “Is that why Grandpa’s sad? Because she had to go away? And they can’t see her anymore?”
“Oh, Noah. That’s exactly why Grandpa’s sad.”
“So he’s not mad at me?”
“No. Not at all.”
“Okay.” Noah sighed, and John felt him relax. Since he wasn’t protesting being held, John stood there with him for a few minutes. The older he got, the less opportunities John would have for quiet times like this, and he meant to take full advantage of them while he could. His mind was racing, though, with the implications of what Noah’s playing with Moira could mean.
“You can put me down now, Daddy.” Noah lifted his head, but didn’t move his arms from around John’s neck.
“I don’t want to put you down. I like holding you.”
“Okay.” Noah grinned at him. “Can we stop and get ice cream on the way home?”
“We’ll see. Let’s go check on Grandpa.”
Noah insisted on getting down before they went into the barn, but he still clasped John’s hand tightly when they went inside.
“There you are.” Owen was sitting on the crate, and a fresh bandage from the first-aid kit adorned his forehead. Ben was packing up the kit, and he shot an assessing look in their direction, but didn’t say anything. “Come here, Noah.”
Noah went quietly to stand at Owen’s knee, and let him rub a hand over his hair.
“I’m not angry, and you’re not in trouble. When you mentioned Moira, it startled me.”
“I know. I ’splained it to Daddy.”
Owen looked at John, who nodded. “He understands who Moira is, and that she isn’t here anymore. Not where everyone can see her.”
“Good. Then if I ask you to promise me something, can you do it?” Owen asked Noah. “It’s very important.”
“I promise.”
Owen smiled. “It’s fine that you’re playing with Moira. I’m glad you found each other. But please do not mention her to your grandma. It would upset her. Okay?”
Noah cocked his head to the side as though listening to something, or someone, they couldn’t see or hear. John rubbed his arms, chasing away the gooseflesh, and he saw Ben doing the same.
After a few seconds, Noah smiled. “Okay, Grandpa.” He hugged Owen, then dashed into the stall where Eli was playing.
The men just looked at each other, identical stunned expressions on their faces.
“What just happened?” Ben’s voice was low, as though he were afraid of being overheard.
John felt every hair on his body stand straight up. “I don’t know. Dad? You’re the paranormal expert here. What does this mean? Is he safe?”
Owen was about as disturbed as John had ever seen him. The look on his face reminded him of how Owen had reacted the first time Rachel had changed into her deer form.
“I’ve heard of people who can communicate with…the other side, for lack of a better word. It tends to run in families. But I’ve not come across any of my family or Sarah’s who could do it. Maybe from Zanny’s? I know a lot of the popular theory is that children are more open than adults. But I don’t know what it means, John. What it will mean for him, if he doesn’t grow out of it. You can be sure I’ll dig in and see what I can find out, though.”
“I’ll talk to Zanny, see if she knows anything. I don’t think she does. She’s never mentioned it, and I’d think she would have. I mean, she’s familiar with our idiosyncrasies.” The conversation had shaken all of them, John knew. “I’ll also talk to Noah again, make sure he does understand why it would upset Mom. Moira told him that her daddy was a bad man. He’s very sensitive, perhaps in a different way than we’d realized. I think he’ll grasp the importance of keeping quiet.”
Owen came over to him. “John, he’s four. No matter how sensitive or smart he is, he’s still a little boy. The concept of secrecy isn’t something little ones usually get. I’ll talk to Sarah. I just don’t want it to be sprung on her.”
They finished up the oil changes, and the subject moved on to other things, including John’s new job.
“How are you liking it so far?” Ben asked as they headed slowly back to the house, the boys running ahead of them.
“I really like it. The work is different, more of a challenge, but in a different way. Speaking of work, though, I met someone Friday who knows you from way back when. Ainsley Brewer. Well, Ainsley Scott now.”
Ben stopped walking as though he’d run into a brick wall. “She’s in town?” He stared at John.
“She is. Came to settle her mother’s estate.” John saw that their father was watching Ben’s reaction with as much curiosity as he was. “She had a similar reaction when I told her you were my brother.”
“Yeah, well, I’m surprised she remembers my name. How long is she in town?”
“Probably a couple of months. You should go by and see her. She’s staying at her mother’s house.”
“Shit. I’ve been doing the landscaping up there since the old woman died. I didn’t think she’d come back. I never would have taken the job if I thought I’d have to see her.” He rubbed his mouth, clearly agitated. “Is her husband with her? Kids?”
John grimaced. “Ben, her husband died about a year ago. She’s a widow. They didn’t have any kids.” When Ben cursed again and walked away, John turned to Owen, who shrugged.
“Beats me. Actually, maybe it doesn’t.” As he watched Ben stalk back toward the barn Owen moved closer and lowered his voice so the boys couldn’t hear. “There was something in his face that morning at his apartment when you were hungover. Made me kind of wonder.”
“Hershel said she got married four or five years ago. Remember how he got late that summer? The first year Zanny and I were married?”
“Yeah. I remember. We couldn’t get him to talk about whatever was bothering him.”
That was the last summer Ben had spent in Hazard. He’d only flown in for short visits at Christmas and Easter after that. John had been surprised when his brother had moved back, given his reluctance to come home before.
“How much do you want to bet me they were involved? She recognized me as soon as Hershel said my name, asked me if he was my brother. You should have seen her face when I told her he was in town. It wasn’t the reaction we got j
ust now, but it was a definite reaction.”
“What’s she like?”
“Cool as a cucumber. Very reserved.”
“She’s been through a lot, losing her mother and her husband like that.”
John agreed. “But I think it goes deeper. Hershel seems to respect her quite a bit, even like her. He’s not easy to impress.”
Owen blew out a long breath. “Well, whatever it is, they’ll have to figure it out. He’ll come in when he’s ready. Come on. Let’s get these rug rats out of the sun. Sarah and Zanny will have our hides if they get burned.”
“That they will.”
John couldn’t help but worry about Ben as they went inside, but his father was right. When his brother was upset, leaving him alone was the best thing to do until he’d processed whatever he was dealing with. Ben would come to them when he was ready. Since Ben had been there so much for John in recent months, John only hoped he could return the favor.
Chapter Fourty-Eight
Zanny and Emma got back in town Sunday around one, and after dropping Emma off, Zanny took care of the grocery shopping for the week. By the time she got back to the house, it was nearly three, and she was worn out. She brought everything in from the car and put away the perishables, then sprawled out on the bed with a groan. The humidity was ramping up, and going in and out of the different stores in the heat had sapped her strength.
“I’d give just about anything to be able to go to the pool at the farm right now,” she told the ceiling. When she and John bought the house, they’d discussed putting in an above-ground pool in the backyard. Zanny wondered if she could pull it off this summer. Ever practical, she knew she couldn’t do it on her wages.
“Maybe I can get a bigger kiddie pool.” She snickered at the thought herself, bikini-clad, sunglasses on, with only the middle of her body submerged in the boys’ small pool. Her legs and arms would hang over the sides—way over. She rolled over onto her stomach. “Maybe next year.”
She was stretched out at an angle, so her head was on John’s pillow. A faint whiff of his cologne clung to the pillowcase, and she buried her nose in the fabric, inhaling deeply. A glance at the bed and the way it was made, told her that he’d probably slept in it while she was away. That notion caused warmth to curl through her midsection.
When she’d picked up Emma the previous morning, she’d gone in to kiss the boys goodbye. John was there, still in his T-shirt and pajama bottoms, and he looked so rumpled and rough with his hair tousled and face unshaven, she had to clench her hands into fists to keep from touching him.
She tried to be casual as she made the offer for him to bring the boys home and spend the night on Saturday, but she knew she hadn’t pulled it off. However, her fumbling delivery hadn’t seemed to matter to John, whose soft smile lit up his face.
Lying on the bed, smelling his pillow, she felt her mouth widen into a silly grin. She’d been toying with the idea of dressing up a little for him, just in case he decided to stay for dinner, but she’d been so tired when she came in that she’d abandoned the plan. Thinking about the other night, her fatigue fled, leaving anticipation behind. She knew just what to wear.
Giving herself a few more minutes to rest, she laughed, thinking about her bold plan. John’s aggression and pure hunger for her had given her courage. She’d educated herself with her new books and with a couple of videos she’d picked up. All she had left to do was try, and as long as nothing out of the ordinary happened, she would try. If she didn’t chicken out and if John cooperated, supper wasn’t the only thing they would be sharing later that night.
John was chomping at the bit to get the boys home to Zanny. As the afternoon wore on, he kept checking his watch. Ben, who was watching the boys play with Owen on the floor, noticed John’s nervous fidgeting.
“Hot date?”
John grinned. “Maybe.”
“Do tell.”
He shrugged, but he couldn’t hide his excitement. He didn’t even try. “I have to fix the sink at the house. Zanny asked me to stay for supper.”
Ben’s slow smile was full of delight. “I guess things are improving, then?”
“I’m cautiously optimistic.” It was four o’clock, and John decided he had waited long enough. “Boys, you ready to head home?”
Noah’s head snapped up. “Ice cream?”
They all laughed, and John reached down to tickle his oldest son. “Not on the way home. Mommy will shoot me if I spoil your appetites. But if we don’t have any in the freezer, I’ll bring you back out and get some.”
Noah cheered, causing Eli to giggle. After some wrangling, they were ready to go. John made his goodbyes, trying to not appear overeager, and his anticipation built as they hit the road.
A soft summer rain was falling by the time he reached the house, and he pulled under the carport beside Zanny’s car. She met them at the kitchen door, holding open the screen door so the boys could go inside. When her eyes met John’s, she blushed and smiled.
“Hi.”
“Hello.” He was surprised when she didn’t move back as he came inside, and their bodies brushed against each other, setting off sparks. “How was Lexington?”
“Hot. Busy. All in all, a good trip. Also a good thing we spent the night. Emma was just wilted by the time we finished what we needed to. Poor thing.”
“Yeah, she’s been pretty uncomfortable at home.” John was doing his best to keep his eyes on her face, but he was struggling. She was wearing a corset-style top made of a soft, pastel cotton. The top itself wasn’t provocative or inappropriate, but it was very feminine and very flattering. It had thick, frilly straps instead of sleeves and left a tempting amount of Zanny’s shoulders bare. She was wearing it with an old, worn pair of cutoff jeans that ended mid-thigh, making her legs look a mile long.
The boys didn’t let him focus on her very long, though, as Eli had caught Noah’s ice-cream fever, and they were both dancing in place.
“Daddy?” Noah’s eager little face would have melted the hardest of hearts, and John looked at Zanny with an apologetic shrug.
“Is there any ice cream?”
She caressed John’s arm as she went into the kitchen, going to the freezer to pull out a small box. “There is ice cream, but that’s for later. How about a popsicle for now?”
Noah considered it for about two seconds, then nodded so hard and so fast that John thought his head would fall off his shoulders. Zanny laughed and took a cherry Popsicle out of the package. She split it in half.
“Do you want to sit in here, or go out to the carport and eat them?”
“Out!” Eli said, reaching for his half. Zanny gave it to him and handed Noah his.
“Go on out. I’ll be right behind you.” She took a second Popsicle out of the package. “Feel like sharing?”
John shook his head. “I’m good. Thanks, though.”
She broke it in half and stashed the unwanted half in the wrapper, putting it back inside the box. “I’ll have that later.” When she popped the lime Popsicle in her mouth and hmmm’d, every cell in John’s body went on alert. He thought he probably even whimpered.
Zanny looked at him innocently as she slowly drew the frozen treat out of her mouth. “What?”
“Nothing.” The word came out sounding strangled, so he cleared his throat. “Nothing. I’ll, uh, I’ll see what I need to fix the sink.”
He thought he heard her giggle as he went into the bedroom and the attached bathroom, but he shook his head. “You’re imagining things, old man. Zanny wouldn’t do that on purpose.” Good thing he’d worn denim shorts and his T-shirt untucked, he thought, as he reached down and adjusted his erection. Otherwise, Zanny would have known immediately the effect she was having on him, and he didn’t know how she would react. Even after the other night, which he was still fantasizing abo
ut, he was unsure of himself with her.
“Maybe tonight will be enlightening,” he muttered as he inspected the sink. He thought about the bed and wondered if Zanny would notice that the sheets had been changed. If so, that was an explanation he wasn’t looking forward to making. “Who’re you kidding? This is Zanny we’re talking about. She notices everything.” He sighed. “So be it.” He figured there were worse things than having to tell his wife he’d had a wet dream starring her.
He just hoped she didn’t ask him for details about the dream. He wanted to avoid embarrassing himself to death and making Zanny uncomfortable.
Chapter Fourty-Nine
It was all Zanny could do to hold in her giggles as she supervised the boys. The look on John’s face when she’d sucked on the Popsicle had been priceless. Ten to one, as soon as he’d hit the bedroom, he’d had to rearrange himself.
“You are so mean,” she snickered to herself. “Mean, Zanny.”
“Who’re you talking to, Mommy?” Noah asked.
“Myself. Thinking about tonight. I’m making mac and cheese, green beans, and chicken. How does that sound?”
“Sounds wonderful,” John said from behind her. “If that invitation is still open, I’d like to accept.”
Zanny buffed her nails on the ruffled edge of her top, just above her nipple, and pretended to think about it. “I guess you could stay. I might have picked up some of the coffee-and-caramel ice cream you’re so fond of. Kind of as a thank you for the sink repair.” She winked at him as she headed back inside. “I’ll get supper going.”
John volunteered to fold the laundry that was stacked up downstairs. “I can recruit helpers for that, instead of the sink repair. It might go easier after they’re in bed.” He made the offer tentatively, as though he were unwilling to break the fragile peace that had sprung up between them.
