Just a Kiss: The Bradfords, Book 5 (34 page)

Lacey laughed. “He’s a perfectionist. Best cleaning partner I’ve ever had. He doesn’t half-ass anything.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Eve said, looking at Drew. “I haven’t seen evidence of this particular talent.”

“Will you hide money?” Drew asked, pulling burgers and fries from the bag eagerly. At least his appetite had improved over the past few days.

“Hide money?” She looked at Lacey.

“We started it awhile ago. He was sloppy with dusting the bookshelves and stuff, so Libby told him she was going to hide quarters all over the house. If he found them, he could keep them. He became much more careful about getting all the nooks and crannies clean.”

Eve was impressed. “I could probably find some places to put some quarters.”

Drew rolled his eyes and bit into a fry.

They chatted and laughed as they ate, then Eve decided it was time to coax him home. But it didn’t take coaxing. Drew hugged Libby and Lacey and then grabbed his bag and was by the door within minutes.

Eve couldn’t deny that made her feel good.

“So, it’s Saturday night. Seven o’clock. What do you want to do?” she asked as they pulled into the driveway.

“We should finish the Nebraska-Missouri game, shouldn’t we?” he asked.

They’d only watched the first quarter of that game from Kevin’s senior season. “You bet. Put your stuff away and come on down.”

Drew thundered up the stairs and Eve got the TV and DVD player turned on. She wondered when, or if, Drew would ask about Kevin. He should be here. He wasn’t supposed to work and Drew knew Kevin was expecting them to all go to church in the morning together.

But Drew didn’t ask about his brother when he came back down.

They watched the game for almost an hour and Drew still didn’t ask about Kevin.

In fact, he asked a total of seven questions. All were about the game and all showed he was learning the ins and outs of football. But none were about Kevin.

“Kevin will be back tonight,” she finally said as she paused the game and rose to get some drinks. “He had to run back to Omaha. It might be late though.”

“Okay.” Drew shrugged.

Okay. She really wanted Drew to like Kevin, to give him a chance. But in some ways, she supposed this was better than dealing with tears or something because Kevin wasn’t here as expected.

As she was returning with two glasses of apple juice, the doorbell rang.

Eve handed the glasses to Drew and headed for the door.

She pulled it open to reveal a woman dressed in a pantsuit and carrying a briefcase.

“Hello,” she said with a small smile. “I’m looking for Kevin Campbell.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, he’s not here.” Eve glanced at the clock. It was eight-thirty so Kevin had probably just gotten to Ryan. “It could be a few more hours.”

The woman frowned. “I was under the impression he wasn’t working tonight.”

“No, he’s not. A friend needed some help.”

The woman extended her hand. “I’m Linda Rosner. I’m Drew’s caseworker.”

“Oh!” Eve shook her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“Maybe I can get some information for the home assessment anyway,” Mrs. Rosner said.

“Of course.” Eve stepped back to let the woman in. “How can I help?”

The woman noticed Drew. “Hello, Drew.”

“Hi.”

He looked concerned. Which was odd.

Eve gave him a smile. “You know Mrs. Rosner?”

“Yeah. From the hospital that night.”

That night. The night he came to live with Kevin. The night his mother stabbed his father with a fork. The night Heather went into treatment. “Ah,” Eve said.

“How are you?” Mrs. Rosner asked him.

“Okay. Good,” he said quickly. “It’s like home.”

“Is it?” Mrs. Rosner asked.

“Without the vodka, of course,” he said. “We have home cooked meals, and she helps with homework and I’m learning about football and I’m going to church.”

Mrs. Rosner’s eyebrows rose and Eve gave Drew a little frown. Why was he selling this so hard?

“Glad to hear all of that,” Mrs. Rosner said. “Especially the vodka part.”

Drew got up on his knees on the cushion to look over the back of the couch. “I’m very well-adjusted.”

Eve rolled her eyes. A little much, there. But she had to smile. He was well-adjusted. And to hear him trying to convince the caseworker that Eve and Kevin were good for him did make her happy.

“Wonderful,” Mrs. Rosner said to Drew. “I don’t suppose you have some school papers or tests or anything you could show me so I can see that school’s going well?”

“Sure.” He bounced off the couch and started for the steps.

“I’m sorry,” Mrs. Rosner said, turning to Eve. “Who are you?”

“Oh, I’m Eve.”

When the woman frowned, Eve felt her stomach flip. Suddenly she was nervous. But there was nothing to be nervous about, was there? This woman was here to make sure that Drew was doing well and was being cared for and…he was. There was no reason to feel like she was being scrutinized. Except that she really felt like she was being scrutinized.

“Eve?” Mrs. Rosner repeated.

“Yes.” Eve smiled. “Eve Donnelly. Or Campbell. I guess.”

This was complicated, but probably something the caseworker would need explained.

“I’m kind of…Kevin’s wife.”

It was hard to get that word out without emotions tumbling through her and threatening her breath.

Mrs. Rosner’s eyebrows creased into a deeper frown. “His wife.”

“Yes.” Eve gave a nervous laugh, not sure why exactly she was nervous. “It’s a long story.”

“You’ve been estranged for fourteen years.”

Okay, maybe the story wasn’t that long after all.

Eve blinked at her. “Um, yes. That’s true. You knew that?”

“Yes.” The other woman didn’t look pleased. “Is there somewhere we can sit and talk?”

That didn’t sound good. “Of course. We can go in the kitchen. Coffee?”

“I’ll take tea if you have it.” Mrs. Rosner followed right behind her.

“Of course.” Eve started the kettle heating on the stove, then turned and took a deep breath. “I get the impression there’s a problem?”

“Not exactly. At least, not for certain.” Mrs. Rosner withdrew two folders from her briefcase and then took a seat at the island. “You are, obviously, here caring for Drew tonight while Mr. Campbell is away.”

“Yes.” Eve slipped her hands into her back pockets and stayed by the stove.

Mrs. Rosner withdrew some paperwork, scanned it and then made a note. “Was this an emergency situation?”

“Kevin’s trip to Omaha?” Eve asked. “Yes. It was unexpected.” Maybe Mrs. Rosner didn’t like the idea of Kevin taking off on Drew and calling someone in at the last minute. “But I was already here. And Drew’s used to me. I’m here a lot.”

Mrs. Rosner made another note. “I see.”

Okay, she wasn’t family. Heather hadn’t specifically picked Eve to take care of Drew, but Kevin trusted her. They had a relationship so that should count, shouldn’t it? “Heather and I were—are—friends. In fact, Heather works for me. So, I’ve known Drew. And when Kevin said he wasn’t sure what he was going to do with work and everything, I offered to help out.”

Mrs. Rosner looked up. “When did you make this arrangement?”

Eve wanted to be sure that Mrs. Rosner knew that Drew being well-adjusted had come partly from her. “From the beginning. Right away. I’ve been here all along.”

Mrs. Rosner’s lips thinned and she again bent her head to write.

The teakettle whistled, making Eve jump and she whirled to take care of it, grateful to have something to do. This was crazy. It was clear that Drew was doing well here and Kevin was obviously the right choice for who should care for him. She was sure the interview and home assessment was a formality.

So why did she feel so
nervous
?

Maybe it was Mrs. Rosner’s sunny disposition.

Eve set a cup of hot water with a tea bag in front of the other woman and took a seat across the table from her.

“Mrs. Campbell…” Mrs. Rosner started.

Drew came in just then with a stack of school papers. “I’ve been keeping up with all of my work and I have straight As,” he announced, handing the pile of papers to the caseworker.

Mrs. Rosner took the papers and flipped through them. “Impressive,” she said. “I’m happy to hear that you’re keeping your priorities straight.” She looked Drew in the eye. “I’ll be sure to tell your mother that you’re doing well.”

Drew pressed his lips together and nodded.

“Is there anything else you’d like her to know?”

His eyes widened and Eve watched him, her heart aching. He missed his mom. He didn’t let on about it. He’d been happier lately. But, of course, he missed his mom.

She missed hers a little bit in that moment too.

“Yes,” he finally said softly.

“If you want to write her a letter, I can see that she gets it,” Mrs. Rosner said. “I think it would really make her happy.”

“Okay.”

Drew nodded, his eyes a little shiny, and Eve couldn’t help but reach out and squeeze his hand.

He gave her a wobbly smile, then turned and headed back for his room.

Eve drew a deep breath, then focused back on the caseworker. “He really is doing well.”

“I can see that,” she said. She lay her pen down and leaned her elbows on the table. “Mrs. Campbell, I’m confused.”

Eve felt her heart flip at that second
Mrs. Campbell
.

“Confused about what?”

“I’m confused about your involvement here.”

“Oh?” Eve licked her dry lips. Mrs. Rosner seemed more concerned than confused.

“I made it clear to Mr. Campbell that I would need to interview anyone who had a primary caregiving role with Drew.”

“Oh, that’s fine. You can interview me now.”

Mrs. Rosner sighed. “That’s not the problem. The problem is that he lied to me.”

Eve’s eyes went wide. “Kevin lied to you?”

“Yes.”

“About what?”

“You.”

Eve looked at her. Kevin had
lied
about her? Kevin had lied about
her
? Why?

“What do you mean?”

“He told me that you would
not
be caring for Drew. He told me there was no chance at reconciliation between the two of you.”

Eve sat back in her chair, replaying the words in her head. She crossed her arms. Kevin had said there was no chance at reconciliation? He’d lied about her involvement with Drew? Why?

But the next second, she knew exactly why.

“When did he say this?”

“During our initial interview.”

Okay. That wasn’t so bad. That was before they’d seen each other again. Before they decided to give it a try. “We—”

“And then again last night. I specifically asked about it.”

Last night. Eve hugged her arms harder across her stomach.

Last night Kevin had denied that she was involved with Drew and had said there was no chance of reconciliation.

“I see,” she finally said.

“You can see where I’m confused,” Mrs. Rosner said.

Eve nodded. She was a little confused herself.

“Is there any reason that Mr. Campbell would have felt the need to lie about this?”

Eve drew in a long breath. Of course there was. She wasn’t good enough.

“I assume that everyone caring for Drew has to meet some basic standards?” she said.

“Of course. It’s my job to be sure he’s safe and cared for.”

“And I suppose that if Mr. Campbell chose to involve someone who didn’t quite meet your standards, it would be a mark against him as a caregiver as well?” Eve asked smoothly. Calling him Mr. Campbell was easier than using his name. It gave her some distance.

Mrs. Rosner frowned. “Yes. Part of his role for Drew is making decisions for Drew’s well-being.”

Eve nodded. Right. “Then I guess it’s safe to assume that Ke—Mr. Campbell had reason to believe that you would find me lacking if you knew I was involved and it would hurt his chances of being named Drew’s guardian.”

She pressed her arms in tighter. This hurt.

But she couldn’t think about it right now. For one, Drew did need her—worthy or not—at the moment and sliding off her chair into a limp pile of hurt and disappointment wouldn’t do him any good. For another, that would
definitely
get written into Mrs. Rosner’s file.

The caseworker studied her for a moment. “Any idea what he thought was lacking?”

Eve laughed at that. But it hurt her stomach—and her heart—to do it. There was the arrest, of course. Then there were all the things she’d confessed about her drinking, smoking, the guys, the estrangement from her family, her partying—there was a veritable plethora of reasons that Kevin would find her lacking as a positive influence over Drew. And he didn’t even know her feelings about church. Imagine how he’d feel then.