Hearts Under Construction

by Hunt, Diann

  Jax looked at him a moment.

  “What?”

  “Oh, just thinking about how you’ve had to deal with change over your life. Your mom and dad’s divorce. Your dad’s death. I know it hasn’t been easy.”

  Cole shrugged. “You, too. I mean, with your parents’ accident and all.”

  Jax merely nodded.

  Cole thought it best to change the subject. “Hey, did I tell you I rode a dirt bike this past weekend? Now that’s a lot of fun. You need to go with me sometime.”

  Jax shook his head. “You’re more adventurous than I am. Parasailing one weekend, dirt-biking, what’s next?”

  Cole laughed. “I’ll think of something.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

  Just then Alex knocked at the door and poked her head through. “Ellie’s on the phone and wants to know if someone could drop off the new system tutorial this evening?”

  “Sure, I’ll do it,” Cole said, without skipping a beat.

  Jax looked at him in surprise. “You don’t mind?”

  “Not at all. I’ll enjoy watching her squirm when I hand her the information.”

  “You’re sad, you know that?”

  “Aren’t I, though?” He wiggled his eyebrows.

  “You want me to tell her you’ll stop by after work then, Cole?” Alex asked.

  “Yeah, tell her I’ll be there.” Truth be told, he looked forward to seeing her. The office wasn’t the same without her….

  Cole pulled in to Ellie’s driveway. Cutting the engine, he glanced around the neighborhood. The subdivision was nice and spacious. He hated it when houses stumbled on top of one another. Each lot here had plenty of stretching space. Lots of trees. That was something else he liked. He’d always wanted to live in a house like that, but with his dad’s drinking habit and sales jobs, it had seemed they never had enough money. They went from one apartment to the next.

  A garage door opened two houses away from Ellie’s. A couple of kids stepped through the front door as the father backed the family van out of the garage. An energetic boy bounced a basketball on the driveway, making his way to the car. A little girl with blond, springy pigtails followed, holding on to a pair of skates. The mother appeared with a picnic basket in hand. She yanked the front door of the house to a close, turned to the waiting family, and smiled.

  Cole sat transfixed. He wondered if those kids had any idea how lucky they were. What he wouldn’t have given for a real family.

  How could a mother leave her children, anyway? His eyes glazed over as the image of that long-ago night plagued him once again.

  He and his twin brother were doing homework at the kitchen table. Scraps of bologna sandwiches were shoved on the counter with dirty dishes. Cold chicken noodle soup still lined the bowls. His mom stepped into the kitchen with a suitcase in one hand, her face hard as stone. His dad rounded the corner after her, his eyes red and swollen. They were shouting at one another. She stopped when she saw Cole and Caed. His brother had tears streaming down his face, but said nothing. Funny how the images were still so fresh in Cole’s memory.

  “Where you going?” Cole asked.

  “Caed, I can’t talk about it now.”

  “I’m Cole,” he corrected her, frustrated that she couldn’t get it right. People often confused them since they were identical twins, but he thought their own mother should know better.

  Cole jumped from the table and ran to her. He threw his arms around her waist and begged her not to go. She looked at him with a flicker of indecision. He thought he just might change her mind. She scrunched down in front of him and whispered, “Coleman, you take good care of Daddy and your brother, you hear me? You’re the strong one.” She smoothed his hair from his forehead. “I’ll be back and get you one of these days.” She kissed his cheek.

  He felt as if he’d been punched, the pain spreading all the way through him to his fingertips. He screamed at her, “Mom, don’t go!” Ignoring him, she turned and walked out the door to some man who sat waiting in a truck. Cole pushed through the door and ran after her. “Mom! Please, don’t leave us! Don’t leave us, Mom! I’ll be good. I promise I’ll be good.” He wiped his face with his arm. “Mom! Don’t go!” Why wouldn’t she look at him? She got in the truck. The man stared at Cole without expression, pulled the truck into gear, and backed away. Cole’s mother never looked up once.

  Cole remembered stumbling in the grass and falling to his knees. With the fight nearly gone from him, he had cried out one last time, “Please, Mom, don’t go.” Tears had blurred his vision as he watched the black truck roll down the street away from him. His body had gone numb. His legs refused to move. How long he had sat there, he didn’t know. Finally, he had wiped his face once more on his arm and sucked back further tears, telling himself she’d be back. After all, she had promised.

  But Cole never saw her again.

  It was after that time that his father started drinking and their lives changed for the worse once again.

  Cole’s glazed eyes refocused. He wiped the perspiration from his forehead. Taking a deep breath, he picked up the tutorial from his car seat, and headed for Ellie’s house.

  A plump lady of about fifty opened Ellie’s door. “Cole Preston?” she asked, a pleasant smile on her face.

  “Yes.”

  “I’m Debbie Williams, Ellie’s mother.” She wiped her hands on her apron and extended her hand. He shook it. “Please, come in,” she said, stepping aside. “Ellie will be right in. Make yourself comfortable.” She pointed to the tan sofa perched in the living room. “Can I get you something to drink: tea, coffee, pop?”

  “I’ll take some iced tea if you have it.”

  “Good. Iced tea coming up.”

  He imagined she was the kind of woman who felt happiest working in the kitchen. She disappeared into another room while he waited for Ellie. The smell of cooking chicken scented the living room. He looked around. The home had a certain coziness about it. Plump pillows lined the sofa. Pots stuffed with flowers stood near the patio doors. Sensible furnishings adorned the room. Some things looked a little worn. He imagined she struggled to part with anything. Probably had a favorite blanket as a baby. No doubt she still had it tucked away somewhere. He smirked. He hadn’t a clue where any of his baby things were, if they still existed.

  “Thanks for coming over, Cole.”

  He turned to see Ellie standing before him in a pair of jeans, a college sweatshirt and socks. She looked as though she had lost a few pounds. Her chin-length blond hair was parted in the middle, framing her angular face. Her green eyes sparkled, but with a little less luster. She looked cute and perky, like a college student.

  “You’re welcome. How’re you feeling?”

  “Much better,” she said, sliding into the oversize chair across from him. “I haven’t had flu like that since I was a kid.”

  “Here we go,” Mrs. Williams said as she placed the iced tea on the coaster on the coffee table in front of him.

  “Thanks.”

  “You want anything to drink, Ellie?” her mom asked.

  “No, thanks.”

  “Would you care to stay for dinner, Mr. Preston? We’re having chicken and noodles, peas, applesauce, pumpkin pie. Nothing fancy, but I’m trying to add a few pounds to Ellie’s bones.”

  He looked at Ellie who blushed at her mother’s remarks. “Sure, why not?”

  Ellie looked at him with a start.

  “Do you mind?” He looked at Ellie then glanced at Mrs. Williams who threw her daughter a you’d-better-be-polite look. He turned back to Ellie who appeared flustered.

  “Why, no, we’d love to have you,” she all but choked out.

  Mrs. Williams snapped her head with approval. “Wonderful, I’ll throw in a few more noodles,” she said, before disappearing once again into the kitchen. Instantly, he decided he liked Ellie’s mother.

  He turned back to Ellie. Her weight loss and pink cheeks gave her a sort of vulnerable appeal. He almo
st wanted to reach over and scoop her into his arms. Almost. Until he followed her gaze to the tutorial. Then another look entirely shadowed her face….

  Great. The tutorial looked huge. Just what she wanted, to spend the entire weekend poring over a dull computer book. She felt the urge to run to her bedroom, jump in the bed, and pull the covers over her. Better still, why not grab the chocolate bar in her nightstand and then pull the covers over her?

  “Ellie?”

  “Oh, sorry.”

  “I know it looks, well, a little overwhelming—”

  She threw him a whatever-are-you-talking-about look.

  He pointed. “The tutorial and all.”

  “Ah.”

  “It’s not so bad. You can call me if you have any questions. I could even come over.”

  She lifted her chin. “I don’t think that’s necessary. I’m sure I can handle it.”

  “I’m sure you can handle a good many things,” he said, his eyes glinting with humor.

  She wondered what he meant by that. This man could rile her more than anyone she had ever met. Didn’t matter what he said. It was in the way he said it. Oh, she didn’t know. She only knew he constantly challenged her Christian walk. She decided to change the subject. “So, how did it go this week at the office?”

  Cole swallowed some tea, then put it back on the stand. “Pretty good. I mean, there was the usual groaning and grumbling over learning something new—”

  Ouch. He didn’t have to say that. Ellie knew that was directed at her. “Well, new computer programs aren’t all that easy to learn,” she said with a slight snarl to her voice.

  “Hold on. No need to get your nose out of joint. I’m just saying—”

  “My nose is not out of joint, Cole.” Oh, could he ever call out her temper.

  He held up his hand. “Look, Ellie, I don’t want to upset you.” His voice was gentle which calmed her a little. Still, she held up her guard. “I know it’s hard to learn a new program. I don’t especially enjoy it myself, but I know it will be worth it in the end.”

  He was right, of course, but she couldn’t bring herself to say so. She merely nodded. Sometimes, her own stubbornness frustrated her. Why couldn’t she just say he was right? Instead, she fought change with every breath in her.

  She felt his gaze upon her, and she didn’t like it. He probably thought she was an old spinster, set in her ways. Oh, goodness, she hadn’t thought of that before. Was it true?

  Just then her mother stepped into the living room interrupting Ellie’s train of thought. “I forgot to tell you, your dad called while you were asleep. He’ll be here in—” she glanced at her watch “—another fifteen minutes.” Before Ellie could comment, her mother disappeared back into the kitchen.

  “I like your mom. She’s nice.”

  Ellie smiled. “Thanks.” She looked at him a moment. “You know, I don’t know anything about your family. Do your parents live in Chicago?” Uh-oh, something in his expression told her she’d struck a nerve. Maybe he preferred to keep his personal life private.

  “No. My dad is dead and Mom is, well, I don’t know about Mom. I haven’t seen her since I was eight.”

  Shame washed over her. She’d been so caught up in her own stubborn pride at this man getting her job, she had never thought about him carrying his own bag of pain. “Oh, I’m sorry, Cole. I didn’t know.”

  He shrugged. “How would you know? Besides, it happened a long time ago. No big deal.” He took another drink of iced tea.

  “It’s a huge deal. Something no kid should have to endure.”

  “Hey, could I use your telephone? I need to check on something.”

  His abrupt manner caught her off guard. “Oh, sure.” She pointed to the phone on the stand.

  He looked embarrassed for a moment. “Could I take this somewhere more, uh, private?”

  Now she was embarrassed. “Certainly. The family room is around the corner. Mom’s working right next to it in the kitchen, but I can call her out here.”

  “Thank you. I’d appreciate that.”

  “No problem.”

  Cole got up, grabbed the phone, and walked into the next room. Ellie called her mom into the living room. Never had Ellie given thought to the idea that perhaps Cole had a special someone in his life. For some reason, that bothered her a little. Not in a jealous kind of way, of course, but more like a pair of shoes that pinched her toes. It just didn’t feel quite right….

  Cole stepped into the dark night and made his way to the car. He looked back at Ellie’s house and saw her standing in the doorway. She waved. He waved back, climbed into his car, started the engine, and pulled onto the street.

  He couldn’t deny he’d had a good time with Ellie and her parents. At first, he had felt a little uncomfortable, especially when Ellie had started asking him about his family. At least she didn’t have Caller ID, so she wouldn’t find out he had escaped her questions by calling Time and Temperature. He smiled.

  Still, they were a real nice family. Boy, could they sing! After dinner, they had gathered around the piano and sung together. He’d actually found himself joining in a couple of the old choruses his grandmother had taught him.

  Grandma Preston had watched him and Caed when their dad was gone on business trips. He cherished those times with her. Funny, he hadn’t thought about that in a very long time. She was the one person in this world he’d felt had really cared about him and his brother. Then she’d died when they were sixteen, and they were pretty much left to fend for themselves.

  Cole was older than Caed—only by a few minutes—and had always been the responsible one. He had pretty much taken care of his brother in their growing-up years. Sometimes Caed had resented it, especially as a teenager, but eventually they’d worked through it. Cole was always glad they had each other.

  He made a left turn. He didn’t like all the memories that flooded his mind today. Sure, some of them were happy memories, the ones with Grandma, but he wanted to forget his past, though Grandma was unfortunately caught up in the mix.

  He had a future to make. That’s one thing he didn’t like about this town. Too much time on his hands. In Chicago, he didn’t have time to think. He worked, he played, he worked some more.

  This town had a different pace. Too slow for him. He wasn’t at all sure this job would work out. He’d get Jax up and running, maybe groom Ellie to take over his position, so he could get on with his life. A life filled with noise and activity. Big-city life.

  Yes, that was the life for Cole Preston….

  Chapter Six

  Come Monday morning, Ellie felt great. She had planned to start a new diet, some kind of egg diet, but since she’d lost a couple of pounds from the flu, she rewarded herself by packing for lunch a generous helping of lasagna that her mother had brought over.

  The weekend was great, too. Though the tutorial didn’t answer all her questions, Ellie felt she had learned a great deal from her weekend study. Regardless of what Cole Preston thought of her, she was no dunce.

  Reaching for her purse and keys, she went through a mental checklist. Purse, check. Keys, check. Lasagna. Bingo. She reached into the refrigerator and grabbed her pasta container. Stepping through the kitchen door into the garage, she remembered something. Walking back to the refrigerator, she pulled out the bag holding the garlic bread and stuffed the container and bread in a lunch bag. With a kick in her heels and a song in her heart, she happily made her way to the car.

  The sun greeted her as she pulled into the traffic. It promised to be a beautiful summer’s day. She switched on her radio, her fingers tapping lightly against the steering wheel as the music bounced through the car. She normally didn’t feel this happy unless she was winning the fat fight, but she felt so much better after battling the flu. It was all she could do not to step in an elevator, turn to the strangers on board, and announce with a wide-toothed grin, “I’m all better.” Well, why not, that guy on the TV commercial told strangers that his cholesterol w
as lowered, after all.

  By the time she made it to work, her mood had peaked, and she all but skipped her way into the office. She looked around. Too bad they didn’t have elevators.

  “Well, someone is in a good mood,” Cole called behind her.

  He must have caught her swinging her purse. She lifted a smile and plopped her purse on her desk. “I feel great. I’ve got lasagna for lunch—” she patted her lunch bag “—and—” she pulled out her bottom drawer and searched for a moment, then victoriously pulled out a chocolate bar “—this for dessert! What more could a girl want?”

  Amusement touched his eyes. “You got me there.”

  She smiled. Switching on her computer, she stuffed her purse in the bottom left drawer of her desk and looked up to see Cole still standing there.

  “Oh, I, uh, just wanted to say, number one, I had a great time with your family on Friday night, and, uh, number two, it’s good to have you back.”

  Speechless, she stared at him. Had he actually complimented her? Who was this man and what had he done with Cole? She got up in his face, as close as she dared, and said, “Is there an alien life-form in there?” She meant to be funny, but when she felt his breath on her cheek, her legs turned limp.

  “Has anyone seen Cole?” Ellie heard Jax’s voice call from around the corner, bringing them both to their senses. “Oh, there you are,” Jax said, looking from Cole to Ellie, then back to Cole. “Did I interrupt something?”

  “Oh, no, no,” Cole blustered.

  Heat climbed Ellie’s face. Whatever just happened between her and Cole left her feeling rather unsettled. She watched the guys walk away. Suddenly her giddy mood turned a bit more serious, but something about it felt good. She wanted to linger there just a little while.

  By the end of the day, Ellie’s mood had taken a definite nosedive. The computer software was giving her fits. She couldn’t input anything without causing a major problem, and she had to call Cole every few minutes, which didn’t help matters. She hated to admit she wasn’t getting it. At least he didn’t gloat. If he had shown the slightest inkling of—well, unfortunately, she was discovering she had a dark side.