Baby's Breath (Garden of Love 2)

by Melanie Wilber

  “I’m fine,” she replied. “But thanks for asking.”

  She told Gina good-bye and hurried for the stairs. Once outside she breathed in the refreshing morning air and circled her shoulders, releasing the tension of the long night. The clear blue sky formed a beautiful canopy above the city, and birds chirped in the trees lining the sidewalk, invigorating her tired senses.

  Seeing the bus coming up the street as she reached the corner, she jogged through the crosswalk to be at the stop when it arrived. The bus took her to the transit mall in the middle of downtown Portland, and she caught another one that took her within a few blocks of her apartment building located along the waterfront. Stepping onto the curb along Front Avenue, she walked away from the smell of exhaust fumes and the sound of morning traffic, entering the quiet and serene RiverPlace neighborhood she called home.

  RiverPlace was a charming setting nestled between the downtown skyscrapers and the Willamette River. Upscale hotels and restaurants, apartments and town homes, and small shops that attracted locals and tourists alike made this section of Portland one of the most appealing around. She loved living here. The serene atmosphere felt miles away from the busyness of the large city.

  Stepping into the lobby of her building, she went to the elevator and stepped inside, pushing the button for the fourth floor. She wanted to stop by her apartment to take a quick shower and change her clothes before picking up Tommy from Mrs. Ramsey’s. Tommy’s sitter lived on the second floor in the same building and had cared for her son for the past three years.

  When she reached the top and the elevator doors opened, she stepped into the hallway a bit too quickly. Looking up just in time, she managed to avoid barreling into the tall frame suddenly before her. Barely. She felt a hand touch her elbow, and she lifted her eyes to see her neighbor was the one she had almost collided with.

  He had dark hair and stood about a foot taller than herself. He had moved into the vacated apartment next to hers over the weekend, but she had not officially met him.

  “Sorry,” she said, veering to the side and stepping out of his reach. “My fault.”

  “No problem,” he said, smoothing his dark tie against his white shirt. “Looks like you’re in a hurry.”

  Standing close enough to smell his sweet cologne, she felt flustered at his sudden presence and stepped back further, turning away without reply.

  “If you’re trying to catch your husband, he left about five minutes ago,” he called after her.

  She stopped and turned back, tucking a wayward strand of dark hair behind her ear once again. The haircut she had gotten a few days ago had kept her hair from staying up and out of the way as well as usual.

  Meeting her neighbor’s warm brown eyes once again, she thought he was certainly an improvement over the middle-aged Mr. Jones who had been her neighbor for as long as she had been living at RiverPlace Commons. She would not miss his grumpy moods and critical tongue.

  “What did you say?” she asked.

  “I met him on my way out,” he replied, holding the elevator door open with one hand. “I had to go back for my phone, but your husband went on ahead.”

  She felt confused and tried to reply. “I don’t--I’m not--”

  “You’re not Rick’s wife?”

  She understood his confusion and smiled. “No.”

  “Rick asked me if I’d met his wife and son. He said she had dark hair,” he explained, giving her a sheepish grin. “Sorry, I assumed that was you.”

  “That’s Angela,” she replied, forcing herself to give more than a one-word answer. “They have a new baby and live in 411. I’m not married. I’m Josie, in 412.”

  “Oh, okay, I guess I haven’t met Angela.” He laughed, flashing an incredible smile. “You have a little boy though, don’t you?”

  “Yes,” she said. “Speaking of which, I need to go so I can get him to school on time.”

  “Sorry about the mix-up,” he said. “Nice to meet you, Josie.”

  She watched him disappear into the elevator and stepped away in a daze. Of all the ways she had imagined introducing herself to her handsome new neighbor, that had not come close to any of them.

  CHAPTER TWO

  “Why did I say that?” Josie muttered, stepping inside her empty apartment. “I’m not married,” she mocked herself. “I’m Josie.” Good grief.

  She headed for the bathroom and showered quickly, not having time to dwell on her unexpected morning encounter. After drying off and getting dressed, she decided to let her hair down. She usually wore it up at work, but after getting it cut, the sides hadn’t stayed in too well and had been bugging her since two a.m. Wiping steam from the mirror, she combed through the dark brown strands and left them loose for now.

  All the while she could not get her neighbor out of her thoughts. She tried to determine his age. Her twenty-ninth birthday was three weeks away, and she supposed he couldn’t be much older or younger than herself. Why should I care how old he is? So he’s attractive. Big deal. I don’t need an Adonis in my life. I’m looking for someone who is stable and caring. Period. And I certainly don’t need to get involved with my next-door neighbor.

  Jogging downstairs to the second floor, she felt determined to put him out of her mind for the remainder of the morning. She realized he hadn’t told her his name. Next time she would ask.

  Reaching Mrs. Ramsey’s apartment, she knocked three light taps on the door and heard the patter of running feet and the click of the lock being released before the door swung open. Tommy was dressed in his new jeans and red shirt.

  “Hi, baby,” she said, feeling him wrap his arms around her waist and hugging him tight in return.

  “Hi, Mommy.”

  She stroked his light brown hair and kissed the top of his head. “Are you ready for school?”

  “Yes!”

  She laughed at his enthusiasm and closed the door behind her, taking in the smells of bacon, eggs, and pancakes coming from the kitchen. Vivian Ramsey peered around the corner wearing a pink robe covered with a lavender apron.

  “He finished his breakfast already and only needs to go brush his teeth,” she said. “Then he’ll be ready.”

  Tommy dashed out of the room and disappeared down the hall.

  “I hope he wasn’t too much trouble to get out of bed,” Josie said, accepting a hug from the older woman.

  “I let him lie in there for a few extra minutes and then called him to breakfast.” Vivian pulled a plate from the cupboard and began loading it with mouth-watering food. “He must have been hungry because he came running like a jackrabbit as soon as he got himself dressed.”

  Knowing they had a few minutes to spare, Josie received the heaping plate from Vivian and bit off a crisp morsel of bacon. “You’re a life saver,” she said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  As a single parent Josie felt fortunate not having to worry about whether or not Tommy was receiving quality care on the nights she worked at the hospital. Mrs. Ramsey showered him with love like a grandmother. Tommy adored her.

  Josie sat down at the table and savored the delicious food. After a long and busy night she felt ravenous and didn’t care one bit about the amount of fat and calories she consumed in the hearty meal. Mrs. Ramsey reminded Josie of her own grandmother and had made her feel at ease the first time they had met through a mutual friend. Vivian had been the first and only person Josie had considered for the part-time nanny position after moving downtown three years ago.

  Vivian poured herself another cup of coffee and came to join her at the table. Josie noticed her struggle to sit down in the chair.

  “How’s your back feeling, Vivian?”

  The older woman managed a weak smile. “I have an appointment with the doctor tomorra.”

  “I can take Tommy to my brother’s tonight if you’re not feeling--”

  “I’ll be fine, dear. Tommy’s not any trouble--in fact he helps me with all sorts of things so I don’t have to get up and d
own so much. I’ll be fine,” she repeated.

  Josie knew better than to argue, but she couldn’t help but wonder how long Vivian could continue living here alone and caring for herself--not to mention Tommy. Vivian’s son had tried to convince her to move in with him many times in the last few months, Vivian had told her. But he lived in Washington, and Vivian said her life was here in Portland. Josie wondered if her reluctance to leave hinged on the fact that this is where she had last lived with her husband of forty years. They had moved here several years back when he had needed cancer treatment at the veteran’s hospital. He had passed away five years ago, and Josie knew Vivian missed him.

  Vivian claimed that having Tommy with her two or three evenings each week helped chase away some of the loneliness. Josie hated the thought of Vivian possibly moving sometime in the near future, but she cared for the dear woman immensely and hoped she wouldn't overdo things and endure unnecessary pain for her and Tommy’s sake.

  Putting the last bite of eggs into her mouth, Josie rose from the chair and took her plate to the sink.

  “Leave those dishes on the counter, dear. I’ll be getting to those as soon as you and Tommy are on your way.”

  Josie and Tommy left a few minutes later, taking a city bus that stopped on the corner uptown and then walked the remaining distance to Tommy’s school, but they arrived in plenty of time. Entering through the front doors, they walked side-by-side toward his assigned classroom. The smell of fresh floor wax made Josie notice the shiny tile beneath her feet, bringing back memories of her own childhood days. Life had been so simple then.

  Sometimes she wished she could step back in time--back to the good times she remembered before her parents’ divorce. She had grown up as the middle of three children. Her older brother, Patrick, had always been there to protect her on the school bus, and she had her little sister, Natalie, to look after. The three of them had been close despite their occasional squabbles.

  Now they were all grown up. Patrick married and the father of two girls; Natalie pursuing a dream of being a world-traveling freelance photographer; And herself, a single mother balancing time with her son and a job that she enjoyed. She had much to be grateful for, and she wouldn’t change things even if she could. But often she did long for the innocence of childhood.

  A woman with graying-brown hair and a sincere smile stood inside the door of Room 3. She wore a delicately flowered skirt and a white blouse. Josie thought she looked like her own first grade teacher.

  “Good morning. I’m Mrs. Foster.”

  “Josie Matthews.” She grasped the outstretched hand. “And this is Tommy.”

  “Welcome, Tommy. Let me show you where you can put your backpack and then we will find your desk, all right?”

  Josie followed Mrs. Foster into the large classroom. Everything looked orderly and bright. The colors of autumn were hung from the ceiling, scattered across bulletin boards, and at their feet. A path of laminated orange, yellow, and red paper leaves led them from the door to the small desks arranged around the classroom.

  Mrs. Foster showed Tommy his assigned seat. An alphabet chart had been taped to the upper left corner of his desk, along with a yellow paper leaf matching those hanging from the ceiling. It had his name, “Thomas M,” written in large black letters.

  “Here is a name tag for you,” Mrs. Foster said, pressing the white strip to his red shirt. Josie noticed she had simply written “Tommy” on it.

  With Tommy being one of the first to arrive, Mrs. Foster had time to point out the bookshelf, loaded with colorful picture books, and the classroom guinea pig before stepping away to greet another arriving student. The top of the guinea pig’s cage was open, and both Tommy and Josie reached in to stroke its soft, brown fur.

  Tommy spotted an aquarium on the other end of the counter and pulled her along to take a look. Josie knelt down, watching and listening to the pump shooting tiny bubbles into the water. She found the graceful movements of the goldfish peaceful, and her first-day jitters began to subside.

  Tommy had enjoyed kindergarten last year and had done well. She knew he would like his new teacher and classroom also but felt good about coming with him for the first day. Tommy met several of his new classmates and smiled when one of his friends from his kindergarten class entered the room.

  “Hi, Mrs. Matthews,” Nick said with a dimpled smile. His bright white teeth contrasted with his rich brown skin. He had come home from school with Tommy a few times last year as well as being at Tommy’s birthday party in February.

  “Hello, Nick,” she said. “Tommy hoped you would be in his class.”

  Nick’s mom flashed a smile matching her son’s. “Maybe we should warn Mrs. Foster about their tendency to rewrite computer programs.”

  Josie laughed, recalling the time their boys had been kept after school last year after messing up some files on the computer. Their teacher couldn’t figure out how they had managed to get past the security program, and they didn’t seem to know either.

  Josie had brought her small camera and took a picture of Tommy and Nick together, then stayed for a few more minutes before succumbing to the inevitable.

  “I’m going now, honey,” she said, seeing Mrs. Foster getting ready to begin class. Giving Tommy a kiss on the cheek, she rose from her knees. “You have fun, okay?”

  “I will, Mommy.” He wrapped his arms around her neck, and held her tight. Tears came to her eyes. Releasing him once again, she said good-bye, strolled to the door, and blew him a kiss before turning from the classroom.

  She let the tears fall as she walked alone to the nearest exit.

  ***

  Josie resisted the urge to hit the snooze button when music blared from the clock radio that afternoon. She opened her eyes and allowed herself to wake up a bit before forcing herself into a sitting position. Her bedroom felt stuffy. Ninety degree weather had baked the city for the last few days, unusually warm for September in Oregon. She hoped today would be a bit cooler.

  Stepping to the bathroom, she ran a brush through her hair and pulled it into a ponytail. She washed her face with a cool washcloth and brushed her teeth. The minty bubbles tingling in her mouth helped to chase away some of the grogginess she felt, but she wanted to crawl back into bed and pull the covers over her head.

  Dressing in a cool top and khaki shorts, she went to meet Tommy at the bus stop. The sun was shining from the clear blue sky, but the temperature felt milder than yesterday.

  The yellow school bus arrived on schedule. Josie spotted Tommy among the stream of bodies piling off and stepped forward to meet him. He ran toward her, waving a piece of paper in his hand.

  She gave him a sideways hug. His hair felt damp, and he smelled sweaty. “Is this for me?” she asked, looking at the drawing he held up to her.

  “Yes. That’s me and that’s you,” he said pointing to the disproportional bodies standing beneath a tree next to a tall building. “And that’s our apartment.”

  “Who’s this waving from the window?”

  “Mrs. Ramsey,” he said. “I drew a picture for her too. It’s in my backpack. I’ll give it to her tonight.”

  Josie remembered her offer to have her brother and his wife watch Tommy tonight instead of burdening Vivian, but she also remembered Vivian’s adamant response and decided to trust her claim that she felt fine until she had sufficient reason to believe otherwise.

  For now Josie wanted to enjoy the afternoon with her son before having to leave for the hospital. If she worked days, she would leave before he woke up and not get home until his bedtime. Nightshift allowed her to spend at least a few hours with him every day, reason enough for her to put up with the tough schedule.

  After preparing him a snack of cheese sticks, apple slices, and two cookies, Josie spread some cream cheese on a bagel for herself, grabbed a cup of blueberry yogurt from the refrigerator, and joined him at the table. Tommy told her all about his new teacher, classroom, and classmates. He talked about the guinea pig and r
ecess time, and also mentioned a girl named Haley who sat beside him.

  “She is good at two-square. She beat all the other girls and some of the boys too.”

  “Did she beat you?”

  “No, not me,” he said, shaking his head. “Nobody never beats me.”

  “Nobody ever,” she corrected.

  “Then we played tag, and every time she was “it” she would come chase me. She’s fast too.”

  Josie held in a giggle. She had the feeling many girls would be chasing Tommy at recess in the months and years to come. His dimpled cheeks, big blue eyes, and sweet personality would be hard to resist. Tommy never acted mean or selfish, and Josie couldn’t be more grateful for his gentle spirit.

  They spent the afternoon at the park. Tommy kicked his soccer ball on the wide grassy lawn, and they went for a walk along the river, stopping at the large fountain to run through the shooting streams of cool water.

  Dinnertime came too quickly. Josie heated some chicken nuggets and French fries for Tommy and a microwave meal for herself, then made a turkey sandwich to have later.

  They left the apartment and waited for the elevator. Josie remembered her morning run-in with her new neighbor once again. He had entered her thoughts several times throughout the afternoon, and she found herself wondering how often she might see him. Some of her neighbors she saw almost daily, others very little.

  She imagined him being on the elevator when the doors opened and them meeting again. Her heart beating faster at the thought surprised her. Her disappointment when the doors opened and he wasn’t there annoyed her. Infatuation. That’s all it was. Something about him would surely turn her off soon and return her to reality.

  Taking Tommy to Mrs. Ramsey’s apartment, Josie thought Vivian appeared to be moving better than earlier, but she still felt concerned. Riding the bus back across town, she thought about the possibility of needing to look for a new sitter more seriously. What would I ever do without Vivian? The thought of having to search for someone new made her feel anxious and sick inside. Nothing was more important to her than Tommy’s well-being. What if she couldn’t find anyone as dependable and trustworthy?