“You’re a light eater most of the time. But when in Rome...”
“Don’t make assumptions. I might surprise you.”
“Oh, really?” He held her gaze for a second too long.
The man was way too good at flirting. He was even tutoring her, a remedial student, in the art.
A chubby, twentysomething waiter appeared, pencil and pad in hand. “And what can I offer you fine people today?”
“I’ll have a burger and fries, please,” she said, earning a nod of approval from Jason.
“Same for me,” he said, and gave her a gentle fist bump. “Only trick is, Erica, you have to save room for pie.”
“You absolutely do, because it’s coconut cream today,” the waiter said as he took their menus. “It’s to die for. I had two pieces for breakfast, which was a mistake, but one for dessert will make you the happiest you’ve been in weeks.”
Hmm, she wanted Jason to be happy when she floated her idea. Should she wait until after dessert to suggest it? No, better do it now while he was smiling at her.
“I have a proposal for you.” She leaned forward.
He smiled and lifted an eyebrow. “I’m flattered, but we barely know each other.”
Her face heated. “Stop it! I’m serious.” And then she plowed into an explanation of her idea.
His face grew more disbelieving as she spoke. Not a good sign. “So you want to sell me your half of the farm, but let you live on it?”
“In exchange for my fixing up the cabin, yes. If you need me to pay a small amount of rent, I could do that.”
“But why would you do that, when you already own the place?”
She blew out a breath. This was the tricky part. “I need cash.” Which was true. “It’s been an expensive time, moving the boys across the country.”
“And losing your job,” he said, frowning. “But the farm will bring you a steady income. Surely that’ll be a plus for you as the boys grow up.”
She nodded and swallowed. “It would be. But I need the cash now.”
“Why?”
The waiter appeared with their drinks. “Don’t argue, be happy,” he said. “Hey, Jason, did you hear about what’s happening with Chuck and Jeannine Henderson?” And he launched into a dramatic breakup story that Jason appeared to want to avoid, but couldn’t cut off.
Their conversation gave Erica a minute to think. She’d anticipated that Jason wouldn’t warm to the idea immediately, so she couldn’t let that discourage her. She’d been pondering and praying all night, and this was the solution she’d come up with—especially now that she’d gotten a job.
Staying in the area would be good for the twins. Staying near their relatives.
But she had to get them early intervention. And she couldn’t get public assistance without a lot of paperwork, including birth certificates, which she didn’t have.
She knew that someday she’d have to go through the appropriate channels to get the twins their birth certificates and other paperwork. Probably, she’d need to hire a lawyer, maybe that one who’d been a friend of Kimmie’s.
But for the time being, lawyers’ fees were out of reach.
And the boys needed early intervention, now, and on an ongoing basis. A onetime trip to some clinic wasn’t going to be enough.
So she had to get private help, which would be no questions asked. The fact that it cost money was okay—as long as Jason would buy her half of the farm.
A busboy brought out plates, and their waiter waved a hand. “Thanks, Ger. Sorry I got to talking.” He put steaming plates down in front of them, and the aroma of burgers and fries wafted up.
“Here you go, Jason and...what did you say your name is?”
“I’m Erica.” She held out her hand.
“Pleased to meet you. I’m Henry, but you can call me Hank. And I need to get it in gear.” He turned and headed off.
The burger was enormous, so Erica sawed it in half with her butter knife.
Jason picked up his whole burger. “There are two kinds of people in the world,” he said, grinning. “The ones who are dainty with a hamburger and the ones like me.” He took a big bite.
Good. Let him eat up and get into a good mood. In fact, this burger could put her in a good mood, too; it was delicious.
Hank returned to their table, coffeepot in hand. “How is everything? More coffee, Erica?”
She swallowed and held out her cup. “Yes, please.”
She kept quiet during the rest of their lunch, letting Jason eat and thinking about what she needed to say or do to convince him. Be strong, girl. It’s for the twins.
Jason finished his meal and Erica ate half of hers and asked Hank to wrap up the rest. After he brought Jason a piece of pie, she launched into her proposal again. “Will you at least think about making a deal with the farm? You wouldn’t have to buy it all right away. We can do payments. Figure something out.”
He held up a big bite of pie. “Sure you don’t want to try it?”
“No, thanks. It’s just that,” she pushed on, “I need some of the money pretty soon, here.”
He put down his fork. “For the twins?”
She bit her lip. The fewer details he knew, the better.
“Is the reason you’re wanting to sell property so that you can pay for therapists and specialists?”
She looked away, trying to figure out how much to tell him.
“Look,” he said, pushing the rest of his pie away, “I’d hate to see you sell. It’s going to appreciate in value. You’re thinking short-term.”
“But they need help now,” she protested, shredding a napkin with nervous fingers.
He put a hand over hers, stilling them. “There’s a children’s health insurance program for low income people. They should have good services. Pennsylvania usually does.”
She pulled her hands away. “I don’t want to get public insurance.”
“I respect not wanting a handout, but programs for children’s health are different. You’ve had a hard time here, and you have two little ones. That’s exactly what those programs are for.”
“I don’t want it,” she said. Let him think it was pride.
Around them, the noise of the diner went on: forks clattering, people talking, the bells jingling on the door as it opened and closed.
“Could their father help?” Jason asked.
“No.”
“He should.”
“He’s in prison and he has no claim on them.”
Jason looked startled, and for a moment, she could see him sifting through images in his mind, trying to figure her out. He’d thought she was a drug addict, but he seemed to have ruled that out now. However, having the father of her children imprisoned put her back in that same sketchy camp in his mind, she could tell.
What he didn’t know, of course, was that the twins’ imprisoned father was Kimmie’s partner, not her own.
“I don’t understand why you won’t at least see a doctor and start the paperwork for CHIP. You could make a final decision later.”
He was trying to be so reasonable, and it was killing her, because under normal circumstances he’d be right.
Oh, Kimmie, why’d you put me in this position? Why couldn’t you have been up front with your family?
“Hey, Stephanidis.” A man with a military haircut, about Jason’s age and with similar muscles came over and shook Jason’s hand, an encounter that ended in a slight test of strength. “How’s the hard-line detective? Didn’t expect to see you out of your mean streets. How’s Philly going to stay safe without you?”
Jason introduced her but didn’t try to draw her into the conversation, which was fine.
As the two men talked, Erica bit her lip and pondered. She’d prayed and she knew that
God would be with her no matter what. And yes, Kimmie had been a flawed person, and maybe wrong about Jason, but he would be angry about the deception, right? Angry enough to take the twins.
And once he had them, he’d have no reason to keep her around.
A guy like Jason wouldn’t want to keep someone like her around.
She loved the boys too much to let them go. Her desire to mother them grew every day.
As his friend left, Jason turned back to her, smiling. “Come on now, Erica. Won’t you just try signing up for CHIP?”
“I’m not getting public insurance!”
“Don’t you care about your kids?”
“It’s because I care about them that I won’t—”
“Hey, you two, I said no fighting.” Hank was back with the check. “Look, I brought you kisses to make you feel all better.” He put down the check with two foil-wrapped candies on top of it and spun away.
Erica reached for the check at the same time Jason did. She grabbed it, but his larger hand closed over hers. “Let me get this.”
“I said I was taking you out to lunch.”
“You need the money more than I do.”
“I can afford a lunch!”
“Put the money into your fund to help the twins.” Deftly, he got the check out of her hand, but she closed her hand on his.
His dark skin and large hand contrasted with her own small, pale one. But as far as calluses, she had as many as he did. She’d worked hard in her life, as had he.
“Let me have my dignity,” she said quietly, and immediately he let the check go. Understanding and sympathy shone in his eyes.
“Thank you for lunch. I appreciate it and it was really good.”
She could see that it cost him to let a woman pay, especially when Hank came over and took the money from her and lifted an eyebrow at Jason. But he didn’t protest any more.
“Look,” he said while they waited for change, “we need to talk more about the farm and what should be done with it. That’s not a discussion to finish in an hour, over lunch.”
“What do you say we talk about it while we’re working on the cabin?” she suggested. Because she had to get out of that house.
“Possible,” he said, nodding. “I have tomorrow afternoon free. Would that work for you?”
“As long as I can get Ruth to watch the twins again, yes.”
“It’s a date, then.” His words were light. But she could tell that his suspicions about her had been raised again.
Chapter Six
Jason pulled his truck in front of his friend Chuck’s house, looked over at Erica and hoped this was all going to go okay.
They’d spent the afternoon working on the cabin, and that had been great. She’d opened up a little bit about Kimmie and their friendship, how they’d been in and out of touch, how Kimmie had been like a sister to Erica, albeit a flawed one.
It was what he’d done after working on the cabin that had him sweating a little. He was going to have to tell Erica about it tonight.
Instead, he told her the easier thing. “This could be a little awkward. They’re both still living here.”
As they headed up the sidewalk to Chuck’s house, Erica touched his arm, stopping him. Almost stopping his heart. He was getting way too sensitive to casual contact with her.
“This is a nice house. I’m not going to be able to afford anything they have.” Her voice was husky. Behind her, the sunset made her loose red curls glow like fire.
“I can afford it.” As she started to protest, he lifted a hand. “It’s an investment in the property.”
“Does that mean you’re buying it from me?” She raised her eyebrows.
He rang the doorbell. “I’m considering it.”
Chuck opened the door, looking like he’d aged thirty years since they’d hung out together in high school. “Hey, come on in.”
“This is Erica,” Jason said once they were inside and taking off their coats. “She’s going to move into the cabin on the property and she’s looking for some furniture.”
“Great—we could use the cash.” Chuck ran a hand through his already-sticking-up hair and grabbed a roll of colored stickers. “Here, just put one of these on anything you want. Only not if it already has a sticker. I’m green and Jeannine’s yellow. You can be orange.”
Erica’s eyes widened, and Jason felt his own gut twist a little. He’d never been this close to the sad details of a marital breakup before.
“Go on, walk through. She’s out somewhere and I’m packing up the basement.” Chuck sounded mechanical.
“If you’re sure, man.” Jason clapped his friend on the shoulder.
“She’s sure.” Chuck turned abruptly and strode out of the entryway.
When Jason and Erica walked into the front room, both of them stopped at the same moment.
The mantel was half decorated with evergreen garland and red bows, and a box containing more of the same sat on the hearth. A Scotch pine, unadorned, sent waves of Christmassy scent through the cozy room.
Erica looked over at him. “I don’t feel right about this.”
From the back of the house, a door opened. “Hey, I’m...” called a woman’s voice, trailing off into dejection. Like she’d forgotten for a moment that happy greetings to her husband weren’t part of her life anymore.
There was the sound of a heavy tread climbing the basement stairs. Chuck.
Erica’s brow furrowed. “What should we do? Should we leave?”
“No, he was serious about wanting to sell stuff, and he said they both knew we were coming tonight. Come on. Maybe we should start upstairs.” They headed toward the staircase, and if Jason put his hand on the small of Erica’s back, he was just guiding her. Right?
“Were you ever married?” she asked as they climbed the stairs.
“Nope. Just engaged.”
“What happened?”
He shrugged, nodding toward one of the smaller bedrooms, guiding her toward it with a light touch. “She regained her sanity and dumped me.”
“You don’t sound very upset.”
“I’m not. Saved me from going through this.” He waved an arm to indicate the whole house, the breakup of a marriage.
But Erica pressed a hand to her mouth as she looked around the room. “Oh, wow.”
It was a nursery, perfectly decorated but empty of the clothes and sheets and paraphernalia that indicated a baby. There were no stickers on any of the furniture.
“Do they have a baby? Or...is she pregnant?”
He shook his head, opening the little blue dresser’s drawers to confirm that they were empty. “This might be nice for the twins, huh?”
“Yes, it would, but...” She trailed off. “Are they sure they want to get rid of all this?”
“They did years of infertility treatments.” He explained in the same matter-of-fact way Chuck had explained it to him. “She finally got pregnant, but about six weeks ago, she lost the baby. I guess...that and all the doctor’s bills...” He shrugged.
“That is so awful.” Erica’s eyes got shiny as she ran a finger along the railing of the brand-new crib.
“Should I put a sticker on it?” His hand hovered over the dresser.
“Yeah. I guess. If it’ll help them.”
He really, really wanted to wipe that sadness off her face. He even felt a strange urge to do it by kissing her, but that would be a mistake. “What are you doing tomorrow?” he asked instead, to distract her.
She considered, then shrugged. “I don’t know. The twins are getting bored. I’d like to find somewhere new to take them.”
Footsteps sounded on the stairs. Light. A woman’s.
Jason didn’t know Chuck’s wife very well, but he recognized her when
she looked in the door. “Hey, Jeannine, good to—”
“Just don’t.” Her face crumpled and she spun and hurried away from the room.
“Oh, wow, that’s the woman who looked so upset at the clothing giveaway. I’ve got to see if I can do anything for her.” Erica went after Jeannine.
So obviously, Erica had had a better instinct about this than he did, or than Chuck did, either, for that matter. Christmas, a miscarriage... Duh. Not the time to participate in dismantling a home.
He heard a low murmur of voices from what looked like the master bedroom and headed downstairs to see what he could do for Chuck.
* * *
An hour later, he and Chuck were watching hockey when Jason heard the doorbell ring. It sounded like someone was singing outside. Maybe a lot of people.
Jason looked over at Chuck. The man was still staring at the TV, obviously trying to distance himself from what was happening in his life. “Want me to get that?”
“Sure.” Chuck sat upright, elbows on knees, fists under his chin.
So Jason opened the door to a group of about ten carolers, adults and kids, singing one of his favorite Christmas carols: “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Behind them, in the light from a lamppost, he could see that snow had started to fall.
There was a sound on the stairs behind him, and he turned to see Jeannine descending, Erica right behind her. When she saw what was going on, Jeannine sat abruptly on a step about halfway down the stairs and started to cry. Or maybe she’d been crying all along.
Erica sat beside her and put an arm around her, murmuring quietly.
Chuck had come out to the entryway, too, and he stood listening as the carolers came to the last verse of the song: Oh holy child of Bethlehem...cast out our sin and enter in...abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel.
For sure, this household needed the Christ child to enter in. And Jason did, too. He was saved; he accepted Jesus as his redeemer, but he didn’t always let Christ in. Too busy trying to control things himself, fix the world by himself.
He waved a thank-you to the carolers and closed the door.
Chuck turned and took a couple of steps toward the staircase where the two women still sat. Erica got up and came quietly downstairs.
Secret Christmas Twins Page 8
