“No. You take Josie on home in case Lisa comes in early.”
“It won’t take long if you let us pitch in,” Josie said.
“Naw. You two go on.”
After they left the diner, Josie accepted Mike’s offer to follow her home. He walked her to the porch, then loosely took hold of her hands. He looked like a puppy dog waiting expectantly for a treat. Anyone who thought of her as a treat…Well, she had to like him. How could she not? He was so earnest, so dedicated to Lisa. And there he stood, looking as if he wanted to kiss her.
There was no way around the fact that she was starting to care for the guy. She had been since…Most likely since he’d tried to bear hug his niece that day while playing mini-golf.
Definitely since he’d talked to the woman at the boutique about buying her jewelry.
This guy could do serious damage to my heart. Especially since he and Lisa would leave soon. Their hug said they were ready to make their own way.
Do I want this badly enough, need this badly enough to risk it? Maybe Lisa’s plan wasn’t so crazy after all. At least temporarily.
“I had a really good time tonight,” he said. “Thanks for showing me the town. And for the burger.”
“I had fun, too. So I guess you aced Lesson Number Three.” There was that look again. Was he going to kiss her? Did she even want him to? She wasn’t certain she was ready.
“Lisa would be proud of me.”
“Yeah. Who would have imagined it? Michael Throckmorton, Fun Guy.”
He gave her hands a squeeze, then whispered, “It’s Mike. I can be Mike when I’m with you.”
Chapter Eleven
That night, Michael lay in bed with his arm thrown across his eyes, trying his best to get some rest. But he couldn’t relax enough to go to sleep. He and Josie had shared a wonderful evening, and all was finally well with Lisa.
But he felt unsettled. Unsettled enough that he hadn’t kissed Josie as he’d been tempted to do, as she’d looked as if she’d wanted. Unless maybe he’d imagined that part.
The trouble was, what now? Soon, he and Lisa would go back to Charleston. Soon, Josie would buy the diner, her life going on as planned.
But what was there for him in Charleston besides work? And for Lisa?
If, hypothetically, his parents didn’t expect him to come back and take his place in the family business, would he choose to stay? As Josie had said, maybe it was time for him to consider God’s plan.
Heavenly God, thank You for giving me this time to find Lisa. Thank You that she met Josie and that she’s been safe. But now, Lord, I feel lost. I don’t know where I belong. I’m torn between family responsibility and…and my calling? Or are they one and the same? Give me a calling, Lord. Please. And since I’m so new at this, I ask that You make it clear to me.
He pulled the blanket up and rolled over. Extremely clear.
His muscles relaxed and he began to drift, weightless, into darkness.
The ring of the phone jolted him straight up and sent his pulse pounding all over his body.
“Hello?”
“Don’t panic,” Josie said. “But Lisa’s not back yet. I’m getting worried.”
He ran his hand through his hair, trying to shake the fog out of his brain. The clock said midnight. “Okay. Let’s see. How about I come over? We’ll take it from there.”
“Thank you,” she said in a rush of breath. “See you in a minute.”
He dressed and sped to Josie’s house, every cell in his body now on full alert. What if she had run again? But surely not. She’d been cooperating so well the last day or so. So if she wasn’t running, could they have had car trouble? What if Brian was up to no good?
Or an accident.
He tried not to panic. He couldn’t believe he’d been dumb enough to let her go out with a boy he didn’t know. He didn’t even know Brian’s family.
When he arrived at Josie’s, every light was on, inside and out. She met him on the porch with her arms out. He held her to him for a minute, then they went inside.
“Have you called Brian’s house?” he asked.
“Yes. He’s not there. But his curfew isn’t until 1:00 a.m. They said they’d call if they heard from him.”
Michael led Josie to the couch. He held her hand as they watched the clock tick off the minutes. Twelve forty-five rolled around, and he was physically sick to his stomach with worry.
He had to start thinking about the unthinkable. She could have been in an accident.
“I think we should call the police,” he said. “And check with the hospitals.”
“I agree.”
As he was heading toward the phone, the sound of a car approaching drifted through the front windows. By the time they reached the door and slung it open, the car—which was actually a truck—sped away, leaving Lisa standing on the front sidewalk.
“Where have you been?” Michael barked.
Lisa stomped up the front walk. “Nowhere fun.”
“Weren’t you supposed to be at a movie?”
“We were. But it was terrible, so we left.”
“Then where did you go?”
“A party at his friend’s house.”
Michael ground his teeth rather than spout off the smart remark that was on the tip of his tongue. “Get in the house right now.”
“I’m not that late.”
“You’re over an hour late. We were about to call the hospitals.” He took her by the arm. “I can’t believe you didn’t take five seconds to pick up a phone.”
“Look, I’m sorry, okay? It’s not the end of the world.”
“You’re grounded,” he said much more calmly than he felt.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No. I’ve probably been too easy on you, not wanting to push you after your mother died. But it’s time you acted more responsibly.”
Considering he had just grounded her and she was in major trouble, she didn’t look too upset. Maybe she’d needed him to get firm with her sooner.
Josie stepped closer to them. “I guess you should head to bed, Lisa. You have to work early tomorrow.”
“One question first,” Michael said. “Why didn’t Brian have the guts to walk you to the door to apologize?”
She stared at her feet. “Because he had been drinking.”
Michael’s heart nearly stopped. “Don’t ever ride with someone who’s had even a sip of alcohol. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Josie was thrilled with the way Mike was handling the situation. He’d really stepped up to fill the role Lisa needed him to fill.
“Just to remind you,” he added, “you’re not to go anywhere unless it’s to work or somewhere with Josie or me for a week.”
“Not even the craft center?”
“No, and I’ll give you two choices. You either abide by my rules for being grounded. Or you go back to Charleston with me tonight—to your school and their rules.”
The second option sent a wave of ice along Josie’s spine. Please, Lord, no.
Lisa looked frightened. “I’m not going anywhere tonight.”
“Then you’re grounded. I won’t bend on this, Lisa.”
“Okay,” she said on a sigh. “Good night.”
Mike looked shaken. His helpless expression drew Josie across the space between them.
He wrapped his arms tightly around her. “If she ever does something so stupid again, I don’t know what I’ll do.”
“You’ll deal with whatever you have to. You did great tonight.”
“I may just lock her up until she’s thirty.”
Josie rubbed his back. “I’m proud of you for standing firm tonight. You may survive the teen years after all.”
“I’ll hold you to that.” He backed away from her. “I should go. Tomorrow, provided everything checks out at the bank, I’m going to look into leasing one of the houses I’ve seen for rent nearby. I could use a kitchen and place to wash clothes.”
> Josie’s stomach did a little leap at the thought. He was talking about a longer commitment to work with Lisa. “I think that’s a great idea, Mike. Here, let me give you a spare key so you can check on her anytime you want.” She dug in her junk drawer and fished the key chain out.
“I was thinking while we waited tonight. I may have her move in with me at the rental, but I need to consider that some more. Right now, it’s good for her to have a female presence. Your presence.”
Josie swallowed hard. “I’m glad I can be here for her.”
“Promise you’ll tell me if you get sick of dealing with us?”
She definitely didn’t foresee that happening. “I promise. I’ll give you a swift kick down the highway when I get tired of you.”
He caressed her face with his big, strong hands, thumbs brushing over her cheeks as he stared at her mouth. But instead of kissing her, he pulled her to him, not so much a hug of desperation as before, but a tender, gentle embrace. Then he tightened his hold as if he sensed she was about to fall.
When he finally released her, he said, “Thank you for taking care of my family.” Then he kissed her forehead and left.
Shaken more by the night’s events than she cared to admit, Josie tiptoed to peek in Lisa’s room. Lisa and Brian could have had a wreck. And what if he had tried to take advantage of her?
Lisa stirred, so Josie sat beside her on the bed. When she did, Josie heard purring, and found a warm, furry body snuggled up to Lisa’s chest. Josie sighed but didn’t mention the broken rule. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Just hoping I didn’t blow it with Uncle Michael.”
“Oh, I don’t think so. He loves you no matter what.” She smoothed Lisa’s hair from her forehead. “Did Brian behave tonight?”
Lisa snorted a groggy laugh. “Even under the influence, Brian turned out to be a regular Michael Throckmorton. B-O-R-I-N-G.” She rolled away from Josie and snuggled into her pillow.
Josie was surprised at how the urge to protect Mike nearly overwhelmed her. “Well, learn this lesson right now, Lisa—Michael Throckmorton is a good man, and any woman would be lucky to have him.”
“And he’d be lucky to have you,” she murmured as she appeared to drift off to sleep.
Deep breathing became light snores.
Josie battled tears all the way to the back door where she set the cat outside. Once she took an allergy pill, locked up and turned off the lights, she threw herself on her bed. Sobs ripped from her—the sobs she’d stored up from all those Hallmark commercials over the last twenty-nine years. But she couldn’t hold them in any longer. Sure, any woman would be lucky to have Mike, but Josie would never be the lucky woman. Because if she entered his life—which was a joke; imagine her on his arm at a chamber of commerce meeting—she would drown.
Living in his rich, high-society world would crush her spirit, just like living with a domineering tyrant had crushed Josie’s mom’s spirit.
Michael used the key and let himself into Josie’s house at seven the next morning. Josie had left for work at six. As he’d expected, she’d let Lisa sleep in.
Well, he wouldn’t allow it. Let her pay for her antics.
He banged on the bedroom door. “Lisa, get up.”
After a pitiful whine, she said, “No way.”
“No choice. Get up now, or I’ll come drag you out.”
“Pleeeease, let me sleep.”
“By three. One…”
No sound.
“Two…”
This time he heard a couple of groans.
“Are you up?”
The door opened and a disheveled Lisa squinted out at him.
“Go take a shower. You’re going to work today.”
“But Uncle Michael…”
“You’ve got ten minutes.”
“Fifteen.”
“Ten.”
She grumbled as she moved slowly toward the bathroom. Michael set his alarm on his watch for ten minutes and went to sit on the deck. He admired the wooded backyard and the crisp, clean air. He tried humming a few bars of Josie’s praise song from the day before.
Was that only yesterday?
Today would be just as busy. He had to take Lisa to work, then he could look into renting a house. The one diagonally across the street would be perfect. And it still had a For Rent sign outside. Which reminded him he needed to call Gary.
He dialed Gary on his cell phone.
“Are you on your way home?” Gary asked in greeting.
“No. In fact, it’s the opposite, I’m afraid. Lisa needs more time. And I’m thinking I’ll stay longer, maybe rent a small place short-term.”
“You’re kidding, of course.”
“No, Gar, I’m not.”
Silence on the other end.
“Is something wrong with the Mason account?”
“No, it’s fine. But Dad’s not. He wants you back here ASAP, and I’m tired of hearing about it.”
“I told him I have confidence in you.”
“Well, he doesn’t. I’m ready for you to get back here to keep him off my back.”
“You know Lisa has to be my priority right now.”
He sighed. “I know that. But it doesn’t make life any easier for me and the other employees. You’ve given her time. Can’t you make her come home now?”
“We had an incident last night. She drove with a kid who’d been drinking. I’ve grounded her.”
“Then get her away from that kid. Carry out the punishment here at home.”
“It’s more complicated than that.”
“You’re going to have to be the grown-up here, Michael.”
“Don’t you see that’s what I’m trying to do?” He realized he was yelling, so lowered his voice. “I’m staying until you hear otherwise. Let me know if you have any problems.”
“Then you can be the one to tell Dad.” Gary hung up without a goodbye.
Great, just what Michael needed. A headache first thing in the morning. He rubbed his temples.
How was he supposed to succeed if he didn’t have the support of at least Gary?
Well, the call to his dad could wait.
He checked his watch. Lisa had another minute. Time for more prayer. He’d done nothing but pray since he’d left here last night. Nothing had ever terrified him as much as realizing Lisa could have been killed with Brian driving drunk.
Of course, it didn’t matter now. Lisa wouldn’t be allowed to see Brian again. She would be lucky to have another date during the next century.
Noises carried through the back door.
Dear God, be with me today as I have to carry out Lisa’s grounding. And God, please keep her safe. Make her smart. Use this time to convince her to stay away from alcohol and from kids who drink it.
She opened the back door. “I’m ready.”
His watch alarm sounded. “Wow, you’re good.”
“I need to feed the cat, then we can go.”
“Josie mentioned a stray.”
“Yeah, she showed up about the time I did. A scruffy, scrawny thing.”
The cat must have heard Lisa pop the can open. It came running up the stairs onto the deck and rubbed against Lisa all the way to its dish. “Looks healthy now.”
Lisa plopped the can of food into the bowl, then rubbed the cat. “She’s beautiful after lots of TLC. I want to keep her, but Josie’s allergic. So she’s letting me feed her outside.”
“Have you named her?”
“Not yet. I wasn’t sure she’d stick around.”
It hurt to hear the insecurity in her voice. “What about when you leave here?”
She shrugged, scratched behind the cat’s ears. “Don’t know.”
One more issue to deal with when he and Lisa left Gatlinburg. “Let’s get going.”
Once she finished, they locked up and got in his car. She wouldn’t look at him. He didn’t force conversation at this point. He would save that for later, after she’d had time to think about her poor dec
ision last night.
When they arrived at the diner, she tried to slink into the kitchen.
“Oh, no you don’t. You’re going to eat a good breakfast before you start your shift—which you will complete, by the way, even if you have to make up your missed breakfast hours another day.”
She sighed.
“Here.” He pointed at the table. “Josie, could you bring Lisa some breakfast, please?”
“Coming right up.” She smiled, but it wasn’t the warm greeting he’d expected. Well, he had Lisa to worry about right now.
Lisa slouched in the booth. “All I really need is coffee to help me wake up.”
“You’ll perk up with some food,” he said.
Josie carried over a glass of orange juice and a glass of milk. Then she hurried over to the grill, where she scooped scrambled eggs onto a plate of fruit. She placed it in front of his niece. “Here you go, Lisa, honey. Did you get enough sleep?”
Lisa tried not to look at Michael accusingly, but he could see the frustration. “Yes, but I could use some caffeine. I’m sorry I’m late to work.”
“It’s okay. I let Bud know what happened.” She patted Lisa on the shoulder. “Eat up.” Then she hurried away to take another order.
Josie checked on Lisa occasionally, but she spent time between customers chatting with the construction guys. She didn’t seem to want to talk this morning and seemed to be avoiding him. Surely she didn’t think their embrace was a mistake. All he wanted was more of the same.
Maybe long-term.
What was he thinking? Because surely he was crazy if he thought he and Josie could have some sort of relationship other than the time they had together right now.
Why not? Why can’t we?
Because one of them would have to give up so much. She, her dream of owning the diner, and Bud. He, the bank and his family. Because his hypothetical situation—where his family didn’t need him—would never happen.
“Uncle Michael, I’m sorry about last night. Really sorry.”
He put his hand over Lisa’s. “I forgive you. But do you understand how serious I am about not drinking and driving? We lost your mother that way. I don’t want to lose you.”
Tears welled up in her eyes. Her lip trembled. “You’re right. I promise I’ll be more careful. And responsible.”
Her Unlikely Family Page 13
