Carter shook hands with his attorney as they exchanged a few words, then he turned to Lynn and the boys.
"We won," he said simply, stunned. Lynn could do nothing but reach over the short barrier between the gallery and the counsel's table, and hug him. As they pulled apart, Carter's head snapped up. Lynn turned to see Hillary stalking down the aisle and out the door, never looking over where they stood. Her lawyer, now looking harried and put through the wringer, followed her.
"Listen, I have to go now and take care of the boys' stuff. And the boys will want to say goodbye to Hillary."
"I know." Lynn rested a hand on his shoulder. "How about this? I will meet you all back at your house, and we'll have lunch together. Then I can help you get the guys settled."
"You don't have to do that..."
"I know. But I have the whole day. And I want to." She pleaded with him, her eyes on his.
"Okay." He nodded. "That would be great. Let me give you the key, and you can just let yourself in, since I don't know how long this will take." Carter fished his keys out of his pocket, worked the one he needed off the ring, and handed it her.
"Do me a favor?" He asked.
"Sure."
"Make yourself a copy of that?" He smiled at the look of surprise on her face.
"Are you sure?"
"Positive."
She swallowed to rid herself of the sudden lump in her throat, she nodded. Turning towards the boys, she grinned at them.
"So, what would you guys like for lunch? I can pick something up, or I can make some grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup."
"Grilled cheese!" They chorused.
"Oh, good, I'm glad. I really wanted a grilled cheese." Still smiling, she turned back to Carter. "Just text me when you're on your way so I can have it going when you get there?"
"Sounds good."
"Great. I'll see you then." She leaned in to give him another hug, and to whisper in his ear. "I know there will be a deputy there with you, but please be careful at Hillary's. All of you." She felt him nod in agreement, so she leaned back, kissed his cheek.
They walked out of the court room together and met up with the deputy who would be with them while they retrieved the kids' belongings. Lynn watched as Carter took a hand of each of the boys, leading them out of the building. Her heart, already full, stumbled as she fell more in love with them at the sight of him with his children. She sighed with contentment and made her own way out of the building and to her car. She had things to get ready for her guys.
* * *
After what had been a busy morning, Lynn used her brand new key to let herself into Carter's house. It was a little weird coming in that way, with the house so empty and quiet. The silence wouldn't last for long, and the emptiness would fade as soon as the boys set foot in the door.
Lynn closed the door behind her, veering to the right towards the kitchen. As she set her bags on the table, she took stock of what needed to be done. She'd gone home to change her clothes from a suit to jeans, sneakers and a favorite sweatshirt. From there, she'd headed to Wal-Mart, as it had seemed smarter to limit her trips and get everything she could in one place. She'd picked up the makings for soup and sandwiches, and some peel and bake cookies for the boys to 'help' her make afterwards. And, she'd had keys made. Not just a copy of Carter's key, but she'd also had a copy of the key to her house made for him. The fact that they were at the point in their relationship where they were comfortable giving access to personal space made Lynn tingle a little in anticipation of things to come.
After setting Carter's original house key on the counter, and the shiny new copy of hers next to it, Lynn emptied shopping bags and set items where she needed them. She found a pan and heated the soup. Next came the skillet for the sandwiches, the bread and butter. She wouldn't make them yet, but she could have everything ready for when the text came they were on their way.
Deciding that the house was too quiet, she switched on radio, found a station playing the Christmas carols she liked. At loose ends until the guys got home, she wandered into the living room and took in all the decorations placed around the room. Green and red paper chains glued together and numbered, so that each night one of the boys could rip a link off and know how many days there were until Christmas. On top of the entertainment center, out of reach of little hands, was a Christmas village worthy of a Rockwell painting. Lynn stepped closer to study it, and saw that there was a post office, a general store, a church, several houses. And in the center of it all was a pond, lined with benches and trees, and filled with skaters. She wanted to see it in action, so she turned it on and spent a few minutes watching the skaters twirl. When they got back to the beginning of their routine, Lynn turned to study the tree in the corner.
By some standards, the Mathis family tree was not what one would call magnificent. The tree itself was artificial, there were gaps between some of the branches, and the garland looked like it a drunk monkey had hung them. But the ornaments hanging from green spikes more than made up for the tree's shortcomings. Decorations announcing baby's first Christmas hung beside popsicle stick reindeer heads, while heirloom ornaments shared space with construction paper wreaths. Lynn flipped the switch for the lights, and the multicolor lights that brought the tree to life twinkled. At the sight at the top of the tree, she gave a little laugh. Leave it to a house full of guys to find a superhero tree topper.
She shook her head a little at the sight and reached into her pocket when the sound of the incoming text beeped. The message from Carter said they would be home in about ten minutes, so she texted him back to tell him to be safe, and that she'd see them soon. With that, she went back into the kitchen to get started on lunch for the guys.
Fifteen minutes later, she was flipping grilled cheese sandwiches and singing along with Burle Ives, when the boys came bursting through the front door.
"You're here!" Logan ran into the kitchen to throw his arms around her.
"Well, of course I am, silly. I told you I would be." She crouched for a better hug, and looked up as Nathan came into the kitchen, followed by Carter.
"Everything go okay?" she asked.
"Went fine." Not really, he mouthed. Nodding, she looked down at Nathan.
"Are you hungry, Nate?"
"Uh-huh."
"Good, because I have a lot of grilled cheese here. Why don’t you guys go put your coats and shoes away, and wash up for lunch, okay?" The boys took off down the hall and Lynn took advantage of Logan being out of the way to slide the plate of sandwiches out from under the oven warmer. As she flipped the last one out of the pan onto the plate, she glanced over at Carter.
"Tell me what happened, in a nutshell, before the boys get back." Lynn reached up and turned the heat off under the skillet. She leaned a hip on the counter, faced him, crossed her arms. He mirrored her pose, took a breath.
"Well, long story short, she seemed to think that everything should stay there for 'when the boys came back home', and almost threw a fit about it."
"Almost?"
"Yeah. The sight of a six foot five, two hundred and eighty five pound deputy who told her he would arrest her for defying the judge's orders put the kibosh on that pretty quick."
"I'll bet."
"Anyway, I left the furniture, because I don't need it, but we're talking about clothes and toys. I brought in a few bags, but the truck's loaded down with the rest."
"Anything that can't wait until after we eat?"
"No, it's all pretty well covered."
"Okay. So we'll eat lunch, then we'll all haul their stuff to their room. And then, to reward them for being so good today, the boys and I can bake the cookies that are in the fridge, while you do anything that needs to be done in their room."
"No baking cookies for me?" He attempted to look disappointed.
"No way." She shook her head, then she smiled and winked at him. "I've seen the mess you make when you're dealing with cookies."
"A guy gets icing in a girl's hair one
time, and she rubs it in every chance she gets."
Lynn laughed, wrapping her arms around his waist and laying her head on his chest. His arms come around her, his chin on the top of her head.
"I know you don’t think I need to say it, but thank you for coming today. You don't know how much it meant you were there."
"I'm glad I could be." She paused, tilted her head. She looked up at Carter. "Shouldn't the boys be done by now?"
"That can mean one of two things. They either fell asleep from overexcitement, or they're playing in the sink." He reached over to turn down the music down so he could listen for the boys better, Carter closed his eyes and gave a slight groan. Lynn could hear the sounds of giggles and splashes coming from the bathroom.
"Sounds like I have to go dig up towels and go rescue my bathroom. If I'm not back in ten minutes, send for help." Carter made his way down the hallway, calling for the boys. At the sound of their father’s voice, the giggles stopped, and the water abruptly quit running. Lynn laughed to herself as she poured bowls of hot soup and put sandwiches cut into triangles onto small plates. She was setting the boys' meals on the table when the thundering sounds of little feet came pounding down the hallway. They burst into the kitchen, shirt fronts wet, stocking feet and big grins. Carter followed behind, his arms full of wet towels.
"C'mon, you two." She invited the boys to the table, tongue firmly in cheek at the look of exasperation on the Carter's face. "Let’s get you going on lunch while Dad starts a quick load of laundry." Lynn heard him walk to the laundry room and start the washing machine as she helped the boys get settled into their chairs. She knew he was a little overwhelmed with the outcome of the day, so she also ladled up a bowl for him, slid a grilled cheese onto a plate next to it. She was sliding into her chair next to Logan when Carter came back into the room and took his seat.
"Thanks for fixing us lunch." Carter smiled at her around a bite of his sandwich. "I appreciate it. I know these two knuckleheads and I were getting hungry on the way home." He reached over and ruffled Nathan's hair. Nathan ducked and smiled at his father around a mouthful of toasted bread and cheese.
"It was my pleasure," she replied, and turned to watch Logan slurp up a noodle from his soup. They traded grins, then went back to the business of eating.
Once the last spoonful of soup had been sipped and the plates were empty, they loaded the dishwasher, put on shoes and coats. Though it took several trips, they unloaded all the belongings brought over from Hillary's house quickly. Hauled it all back to the boys' rooms. Carter and Lynn surveyed the mountains of toys and stacks of bags holding clothes and shoes. They exchanged looks, and both knew they were going into Plan B. It was cookie baking time.
"Who here likes chocolate chips cookies?" Both boys raised their hands, bounced up and down, and cheered.
"They're my favorite!" Logan beamed up at her.
"Mine too." Lynn agreed, beaming back at him. "You guys want to help me bake some?"
"Really?" At her nod, Logan whooped and ran for the kitchen, followed by Nathan.
"Have I told you today how much I love you?" He asked as he slung his arm over her shoulder.
"Nope. But now that you have, I have to ditch you for two cute guys who want to bake cookies." She laughed, stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "By the way, I love you too."
When she strolled back into the kitchen, Lynn was greeted by two exuberant little boys. She could almost see the excitement coming off of them in waves.
"Okay, let's get started! Logan, I need you to go into the refrigerator and get the cookie dough, please. It's on the second shelf in the blue package. Nathan, because you're older, I'm going to let you work the oven. You'll need to read the package to see what the temperature should be."
Lynn watched and waited while the boys hurried to complete the asks. She listened while Nathan read the directions aloud, helping him sound out words when he needed a little help. Once the oven was preheating, she split the package of cookie dough squares in half, set each child up with a section of dough, a butter knife and a cookie sheet. Under her supervision, they each cut their cookies and placed their squares on their pans. They were finishing up just as the oven buzzed, letting them know that it had come up totemperature. Lynn opened the door to slide the pans into the oven, turned on the light and set the timer. Together, the three of them cleaned up the mess while the cookies baked.
"Ms. Lynn?" Nathan looked at her as he threw the wrapper from the cookie dough in the trash.
"Yes?"
"Did you have to talk to the judge guy like we did today?"
"Not today, no. I was just there so I could be with you and Logan and your daddy."
"Oh. Okay."
"Why, buddy? What happened?"
"Nothing." Nathan sighed.
"He's sad 'cause he thinks we got Mommy into trouble with the judge guy," Logan declared.
"What?" Lynn questioned as Nathan hissed at his little brother for telling on him. "That's not true. Your mom is a grown up, and she's supposed to make good choices for herself and for you guys. But she made bad choices, and that's why the judge was upset with her today."
"Are you sure?" Nathan asked hesitantly. "I don't want Mom to be mad at us."
"Honey." Lynn spoke as she came down to his eye level. "As long as you told the judge the truth when he talked with you, then there is no reason for anyone to be mad. You did the right thing. Now, maybe she can get the help she needs to be a better mom." The boy continued to stare at the floor between his feet, doubtful that the words Lynn was saying to him were true.
"Nathan, would you look at me please?" He raised his head, sad blue eyes meeting hers.
"You know how serious I am about my promises, right?" she asked. Nathan nodded, so she continued. "I promise, you are not in trouble for being honest today. If your mom is mad, it's because of her, not because of you. She has a lot of grown-up things to deal with and once she does, she'll realize that you did a good thing. Okay?"
The little boy, eyes still sad, nodded.
"Come here sweetheart." She folded the child into a hug which he returned by wrapping his small arms around her neck. "It'll all be okay. I promise." He nodded into her shoulder as she looked up and realized that Carter was leaning against the doorway, watching and listening.
"Me too! I wanna hug!" Logan demanded as he threw himself into a hug with Lynn and his brother. Lynn squeezed both boys tight before releasing them and standing up again, running a hand over each boy's head. Carter continued to watch her, the expression in his eyes unreadable. Nervous and a little awkward, she looked back down at the kids.
"Let's check on the cookies, see how they're looking." The boys rushed over to the oven, leaning down to peer inside to see that the cookies had risen and spread out on their pans. The delicious smells of chocolate and sugar wafted through the house.
"They look like they're almost done!"
"Awesome! What do you say to picking out a movie? By the time we get it all set up, the cookies should be done and cooling, so you can eat some while you watch."
The kids let out cheers and raced to the living room to pick out the perfect Christmas movie. She could already hear them debating over which movie to watch as she turned to Carter.
"Is everything okay?".
"Sure." He shrugged. "Why?"
"You seem like something is bothering you is all."
He shrugged again, but said nothing. Lynn stared at him for a long moment, wanting him to talk to her. The oven timer went off before she got the chance to question him. Turning to grab the mitt, she pulled the pans from the oven and was just closing the door as the boys rushed back to the kitchen.
"Are they done? Can we eat them?" Logan bounced on his toes, trying to see over the counter.
"I have to put them on the rack to cool first." She laughed as she took the spatula and transferred the soft brown cookies. "Give them a few minutes and you can have some. Have you picked a movie?"
"Not yet
, but we have it down to two."
"Okay, go make your decision so we can put it in the DVD player. Then we'll have cookies."
Cheers erupted again as the kids ran back to the living room. Lynn stood, without saying a word, moving cookies from pan to rack. When she finished, she went to the sink to wash the cookie sheets, still saying nothing as Carter continued to watch her. Lynn was uncomfortable under the scrutiny as she set the pans on the drain board to dry, but did her best to ignore it as she placed cookies on plates and poured glasses of milk to go with them. She put everything on a tray, and walked past Carter to carry it into the living room where she set the boys up in front of the television. Lynn came back into the kitchen, snagged Carter's sleeve and pulled him towards the laundry room.
"You boys be good! Dad and I have to go check on the towels from your water war." The chorus of okays came over the sounds of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. Lynn went into the laundry room with Carter in tow and closed the door.
"Okay, spill it."
"Spill what?"
"Don't pull that with me." Irritated, she put her hands on her hips. "You've got something going on in that head of yours and it's bugging you, so spill it."
Carter sighed and ran his hands through his hair, agitated. He paced away, then back again, stopping to lean against the dryer and cross his arms.
"All right, yes. Something is bugging me."
"So, tell me. Even if I can't help you with it, I can at least listen."
"It's just… the whole thing this morning. With Hillary. It pisses me off that they had to live with that for one minute, much less for weeks, or even months. How could she put them in the middle of it? What kind of mother does that make her?" Carter's voice had continued to rise as he talked, his anger at the situation growing.
"Keep your voice down, the boys will hear you."
"You're right." He looked down at the floor for a moment before looking at her again. "It's just that I'm so mad about it all." He stopped and took a deep breath before continuing. "If she couldn't handle having them all the time, she should have told me."
Her Last Love (Small Town Hearts Trilogy #1) Page 20
