Finding Home (21 page)

Or she could follow the example of Elijah and Emma and embrace the possibility of love—despite the risk.

The steeple of the chapel soared toward the sky ahead of them, and she lifted her gaze to the heavens, asking for guidance.

No message appeared in the clouds. No voice whispered in her ear. But as she followed the course of a gull drifting on the air currents, held aloft by an unseen but powerful force, she decided to follow her heart and place her trust in another powerful, unseen force.

With a gentle squeeze of her fingers, she signaled her acceptance of his touch.

And when she looked over at Scott, the warmth in his eyes seeped into the deepest corners of her soul, chasing the numbing chill away.

He didn’t release her hand until they reached the chapel. And ten minutes later, when he delivered her and Jarrod back to the gallery, he took it again as he walked them back to their car.

“So who’s going to watch Toby while you’re in San Francisco this week?”

Once again, Jarrod’s question interrupted them...but this time Scott didn’t release her fingers.

“I’ll ask my neighbor.”

“We could watch him. Couldn’t we, Mom?” Jarrod tossed the question over the hood as he circled around toward the passenger-side door. “I’m off school Friday, and I could play with him all day. We could keep each other company while you’re at work.”

Scott glanced at her. “I don’t want to put you out.”

“You know, it might work out fine. Having Toby around would keep Jarrod occupied—and hopefully out of trouble. When are you leaving?”

“Early Friday. I could drop him off on my way to work Thursday morning before Jarrod leaves for school. He’d be okay in the basement for the day.”

“Let’s plan on it then.”

“Great. I get back around noon on Saturday. What time’s the wedding?”

“Eleven. There’s a luncheon afterward. We should be home by three.”

“I’ll drive up later in the afternoon to pick Toby up. Why don’t I treat you to dinner, too?”

He was asking her out on a date. A
real
date.

Was she ready for that?

When she hesitated, he spoke again. “Jarrod’s included, of course.”

Better. Having her son along would allow her to dip her toe into this dating thing—and let her back out more easily if she got cold feet.

“Okay.”

“I’ll call you this week.”

He waited while she climbed into the car, then closed the door behind her. Once she was settled, he leaned down to speak across her to Jarrod.

“See you later in the week, buddy.”

“Thanks again for letting me climb on that stuff today.”

“No problem.” He transferred his attention to her, his eyes mere inches away, his breath warm on her cheek. “I’ll look forward to Saturday.”

He stood before she could answer, but as she watched him walk away, her response echoed silently in her heart.

Me, too.

* * *

“I think Mr. Walsh likes you.”

Cindy choked on the bite of turkey sandwich she’d just swallowed. Groping for her glass of water, she took a long swallow.

“It’s okay with me if you guys get married.”

The water went down the wrong way and she began coughing.

“Mom? Are you okay?” Jarrod half rose, his face registering alarm.

She waved him back into his seat and grabbed her napkin as she continued to cough.

He sank back, watching her worriedly until she stopped hacking.

Once she could breathe again, she took a tentative sip of water. One crisis averted.

Now on to the next one.

Resting her elbows on the arms of her chair, she clasped her hands at her waist and tried for a calm, conversational tone. “Where did that come from?”

He shrugged. “I saw him holding your hand this afternoon.” He lifted the top piece of bread on the second half of his sandwich and lathered on more mustard. “Nate held Lindsey’s hand in the redwoods the day they took me hiking, and they’re getting married.”

“Honey, just because people hold hands doesn’t mean there’s going to be a wedding. Mr. Walsh and I only met a month ago. We didn’t even like each other very much at the beginning. You didn’t like him either.”

“Yeah, but we were wrong. He’s nice. And if he was around all the time, we wouldn’t be so lonesome.” He took a big bite of his sandwich.

She wished it was as simple as that. How could she explain things to him without stirring up his grief all over again? She chewed on her lower lip for a moment, then gentled her voice. “Your dad hasn’t been gone all that long, Jarrod.”

He frowned and stopped chewing. “I know. And I miss him everyday. I’ll always miss him. But he’s never coming back. I don’t think he’d want us to be lonely, do you?”

No, she didn’t. Steve had never been selfish. He’d have wanted them both to be happy.

Her son, it appeared, had figured that out a lot faster than she had.

“You’re right, honey. Dad wouldn’t want us to be lonely. But it takes a long time to get to know someone well enough to marry them.”

“How long?”

Not long at all if you were Elijah and Emma. After reading the journals and letters, she’d delved into their backgrounds. They’d married two months after being introduced and gone on to raise three children during their long and happy marriage.

But that kind of rash behavior could also lead to heartache.

“I’m not sure, honey. People just know when the time is right.”

“Yeah?” He picked off a piece of crust and popped it in his mouth. “So when do you think you might know?”

Cindy pushed her half-eaten sandwich aside and stood. “I have no idea. Besides, Scott has a say in this, too. He might never like me enough to get married.”

“I think he already does.”

Her pulse hiccupped. “Why do you think that?”

Wrinkling his nose, Jarrod took another bite. “He looks at you funny. Kind of mushy. Like the people in movies do during the romantic parts, before they kiss each other. Has he ever kissed you?”

Oh, brother.

Cindy grabbed her plate and walked away from the table. “We’re just getting to be friends. It’s too soon for kissing.”

He inspected her plate as she deposited it on the counter. “Aren’t you going to finish your dinner?”

“I’m still full from that pot roast.”

The room grew silent. If she was lucky, he’d abandon the topic.

But no. Her son had more to say.

“You know, it’s kind of scary to like somebody too much.” His voice was quiet. Thoughtful. “’Cause if they go away, it’s really hard. But I think it would be worse if you never knew them at all.”

She didn’t turn. Nor did she answer. She couldn’t. Her throat was too tight.

Jarrod, with the infinite wisdom of an eleven-year-old, had homed in on the crux of her issues, giving her plenty to think about.

Like misplaced guilt.

Debilitating fear.

The power of love to linger beyond death.

And he’d also reassured her he was ready to move on, risk or not.

The question was, did she have the same courage?

Chapter Twelve

“D
id you drop off Toby this morning?”

“Yes.” Scott strolled into Gram’s room, circled behind her chair by the window and studied the in-progress seascape. “That’s coming along nicely.”

“It better be.” She cocked her head and gave it a critical scrutiny. “Janice called today to say that young couple bought my painting, and she’d like a few more to display.”

Scott grinned and faced her. “Now that’s worth celebrating.”

She waved off his comment, but excitement had daubed bright spots of color onto her cheeks. “You’re in high spirits tonight.” She set her brush down and squinted at him.

Yeah, he was. Seeing Cindy this morning, even for a few hurried minutes while he’d handed off Toby, had brightened his whole day.

Not that he was going to tell that to Gram. She needed no encouragement when it came to jumping to conclusions about his love life.

“Things went well at the site. We finished the structural steel.”

“Hmph. Never saw you that happy about a bunch of steel before. But different strokes...” She shrugged. “So now you’re off to San Francisco.”

“First thing in the morning. I’ll be in meetings all day, and Mattson wants to have dinner tomorrow night.”

“When are you picking up Toby?”

He wandered over to a chair against the wall across from her and sat. “Saturday afternoon.”

“I thought Cindy was going to a wedding.”

“She’ll be home by three.”

“Will I see you Saturday night?”

He rubbed his thumb over a spot of dirt on his jeans and switched to evasive mode. “I’ll stop in on my way home from the airport instead.”

Gram settled back and gave him a smug smile. “You have a date with Cindy, don’t you?”

The CIA ought to sign her up for its interrogation team.

He brushed at another speck of dirt on his jeans—this one imaginary. He wasn’t ready to share the decision he’d made over the past few days. The one to take his relationship with Cindy to the next level. “Picking up a dog isn’t a date.”

“Why do I sense there’s more to it than that?”

“Wishful thinking?”

Chuckling, she picked up her brush again and twirled it in her fingers. “Don’t play coy with me, Scott Walsh. You grew up under my roof. I can read you like a book. But if you don’t want to talk about your date with Cindy, fine. I won’t pry. I’ll just keep praying.”

“You’ve been praying I’d date Cindy?” He frowned at her.

She chuckled again and leaned forward to continue dabbing paint on the canvas. “My prayers are far more ambitious than that. Give me a minute and we can go for a walk. I have a hankering for a few of those Hersey’s Kisses. I heard from Devon today, by the way.”

He tried to keep up as she hopscotched from one topic to another. “What did she say?”

“Not much, but she sounded upbeat. I thought maybe she’d gotten some part she was after, but she said she hadn’t. I couldn’t get much out of her. She did ask me to tell you she’d call you soon, though. Did you send her more money?”

“No.”

“Odd. She didn’t mention needing any this time. When I asked about her finances, she said she had something in the works. I’m not sure what to make of that.”

Neither did he. Was it possible she’d taken his advice and sought a job outside of show business?

“There. Enough for today.” Gram put her brush in a glass of water and tugged her walker into position. Scott rose to help her up, but she waved him back. “Watch this.”

Although it was a struggle, she managed to stand by herself.

Scott gave her a thumbs-up. “I’m impressed.”

“So is Brett. He said I’m an excellent student. And I’ll let you in on a little secret. I’m planning to ditch this place by Fourth of July.”

Scott grinned. “Independence Day. I see Devon isn’t the only one in this family with a flair for dramatics. Good for you.”

“I still have some things to do in this life.” She gripped the handles of the walker and started toward the door. “The good Lord’s going to have to wait a while longer to call me home.”

As Scott fell in behind her, he sent a silent thank-you heavenward. Not only had his prayers to restore Gram’s spirits been answered, but along the way he’d been graced with a second chance at love.

He wasn’t going to push Cindy, though. Their situation called for caution and prudence. But he did plan to move forward—if the lady was willing.

A topic he intended to explore come Saturday night.

* * *

“Hey, Mom! I’m going to take Toby out for a walk.”

As her son’s voice floated up to the second floor, Cindy stepped out of her room and crossed to the railing on the balcony. Jarrod stood in the center of the great room, Toby prancing around at his feet. “Okay, but don’t be long. You have to get ready for the wedding in twenty minutes.”

“I’m just going to the corner. Then I’ll put Toby in the basement.” The white ball of fur tugged him toward the door, tongue hanging out in eagerness, and Jarrod took off at a trot behind him.

Cindy smiled. Agreeing to watch the pup had worked out well all around. He’d kept Jarrod entertained Thursday night and all day yesterday while she’d been at work. And starting her morning on Thursday with a quick visit from the pup’s owner had been an excellent fringe benefit.

Tonight would be the icing on the cake.

And perhaps the beginning of a whole new chapter in her life.

A shiver of excitement rippled through her as she returned to her room. Scott seemed ready to follow the example of Elijah and Emma—and she wasn’t far behind.

She slid the dress she’d selected for the wedding off the hanger. The aqua linen sheath with matching short-sleeved jacket was nice, but she was more focused on her attire for this evening. Scott hadn’t said where he was taking them for dinner, but she had a feeling it would be a bit more upscale than the Orchid. Yet she didn’t want to overdo it...