Forever After (32 page)

“Poor baby.”

“Besides, they want you to come as much as I do.”

“Yeah, right.”

“No, I’m serious. Ma said so herself just this morning.” He didn’t tell her he suspected his mother was doing a little matchmaking.

More silence on Jenna’s end.

“I’ll take you out to dinner after the wedding.”

“Deal,” she said quickly.

That made him laugh. “If you’re serious, I’ll call you later this week and we’ll figure out where to meet.”

“I’m serious. Now you’d better go before your phone dies.” She cleared her throat. “Hey …”

“Yeah?”

“You’ll do great tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Jen.”

Great. Just great. The woman waited till he was headed out of state to make up to him?

Still, his heart hadn’t felt this light in a very long time. And he would see Jenna next weekend.

It could just be a coincidence. She didn’t want to jump to conclusions.

36

Monday, February 9

T
hanks for shopping Hanson’s. Did you find everything you need?”

Jenna looked up from her spiel to see Emily Vermontez smiling at her. “Hi, Jenna. How’s it going?”

“Emily! Hi there. Are you ready for the wedding?”

“We’re ready.” Emily placed a carton of yogurt and some bananas on the conveyor. “Lucas tells me you’re coming after all. Geoff and I were so happy to hear that.”

“I’m looking forward to it.” She didn’t mention that it was more Luc than the wedding itself that she was looking forward to. “I’m glad he remembered to tell you. I hope it was okay to send my RSVP through him.”

“Absolutely. It’s just a small ceremony. Nothing fancy. But we’ll love having you there.” Emily handed her a five-dollar bill and waited for her change. “Hey, have you found an apartment yet? Luc said you were still looking.”

Jenna wondered if Lucas had told his mother about her meltdown at that stupid trailer. She hoped not, but she was discovering that he and his mom were pretty tight. “I’m still looking.”

“You’re still staying with Bryn—is that right?”

She nodded and put Emily’s groceries in a bag. “Yes, but I have to be out by the end of the month.” She was starting to feel a little panicky at the thought.

“That’s what Luc said. Well, I just want you to know that you’d be more than welcome to stay at our place for a few weeks. Geoff’s been helping me move my things to his house this week, and with Luc in Tulsa until spring, the place will just be sitting empty. I can’t offer you anything long-term, but I’d be glad to have you stay there while you’re looking.”

“Thank you.” Jenna was stunned at the offer … at the timing of it. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind. I mean—I’ll let you know right away so you can find someone else if I decide—”

“Oh, no.” Emily waved her off, then winked. “This is an exclusive offer for you only. I’m sure you’d rather not move twice if you can help it, but it just struck me as an idea if you need a place temporarily.”

“How much would the rent be?”

“Oh, goodness, no. I wouldn’t dream of charging you. You’d be doing me a favor. I would be relieved to not have the house sitting empty for so long. I guess you could pay the utility bills for the weeks you’re there. And I may leave some plants there that I’d want you to water. You just let me know.”

“Wow … thank you again. I’ll let you know as soon as I can.”

She watched Emily leave the store, grateful she didn’t have another customer in line.

She grabbed a spray bottle and started wiping down her conveyor. It could just be a coincidence. She didn’t want to jump to conclusions. But it seemed awfully strange that less than two hours after praying the second genuine prayer of her adult life, she had an answer to that prayer.

Out of the blue.

If this was God—and she had to believe it was—she hoped He’d answered her first prayer, too—that Lucas was getting along well with the training, and that he was happy in Tulsa.

Just not
too
happy, God.

Thursday, February 12

I
think you’ll be very comfortable here.” Emily switched on the light to reveal a large cozy room with sloped ceilings, white wainscoting on three walls, and cushy carpeting underfoot. “There’s a three-quarter bath in here, but you’ll have to go down the hall if you want to soak in a tub.”

Jenna couldn’t curb the smile that came. “It’s beautiful. Just perfect.”

It really was. A far cry from the master bedroom in the Brookside house with its Jacuzzi tub and twin walk-in closets. And not even on the map compared to Bill and Clarissa’s master suite. But it was a lovely room, and it suited her somehow.

“Well,” Emily said, “since all my kids still have stuff in their rooms, I thought you may as well use the master bedroom. And I got most of my things moved over to Geoff’s earlier this week.” She thought a trace of sadness flashed across Emily’s countenance.

As happy as she seemed with Geoff, it had to be bittersweet moving from this home where she’d raised her children—and this room she’d shared with Lucas’s father.

“I can’t thank you enough, Emily. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. Are you sure I can’t pay you at least a little something for rent?”

“Honey, if you just pay the utilities for the few weeks you’re here, I am money ahead. Believe me, you’re helping me as much as I’m helping you.”

Jenna doubted that, but she loved Emily for saying so. “Well, thank you again. I’m saving as much as I can toward an apartment, but I have … quite a few bills to pay off, too. That’s made it tough to put anything aside.” Again, she wondered what Lucas had told his mother about her situation. Somehow, though, with Emily it didn’t matter. She didn’t feel judged by this woman—only embraced and accepted.

“I’m happy it worked out this way.” Emily went to smooth the quilt on the queen bed. “You’re actually an answer to my prayers.”

There it was again. Answered prayers.

“Oh,” Emily said, “I forgot to say something when we talked before. I hope this isn’t a deal breaker, but Lucas left his cat.” She stuck her head out into the hallway. “Lucky? Here, kitty, kitty … You’re not allergic or anything, are you?”

“I don’t think so. I’ve never had a cat.” She’d never had a
pet,
but she didn’t tell Emily that.

“Well, Lucky’s around here somewhere. He usually hangs out in Lucas’s room. He mostly makes himself invisible, but if he bothers you, you can put him out in the garage. He’s used to being outside when it’s not too cold.”

Closing the bedroom door behind them, Emily clucked her tongue. “I don’t know what we’re going to do with that cat if you find an apartment before Lucas gets back. Geoff’s not crazy about the idea of having a cat, and the girls can’t have pets in the dorms, of course. I guess we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” She sighed, then brightened. “Well, I guess I’ll see you in Springfield in a few days.”

Jenna was glad Emily seemed happy about the fact.

“I’d offer you a ride, but I’m heading down there this evening.”

“Oh, I don’t mind driving. I’m looking forward to it.”

“The wedding? Or seeing a certain tall, dark, and handsome fellow who will be in attendance?”

Jenna felt a flush creep up her neck. “Um … both.”

“Good answer.” Emily’s wink put her at ease again.

They finished the tour of the house, and Emily showed her where everything was, advising her about trash pickup day and where Lucky’s food and litter were stored.

Walking through the tidy house with Luc’s mother, Jenna began to see it in a different way from the first time Lucas had brought her there.

Perhaps it was the fact that Emily had moved some of the furniture and decorative items to Springfield and rearranged the rest in a scaled-back style that was more Jenna’s taste. But for whatever reason, what had first appeared a mite shabby and out-of-date now seemed only warm and inviting.

It probably also had something to do with her memories of spending Christmas here and of the warmth she’d felt from Luc’s family. But it was something more. There was a spirit about this house that was gracious and welcoming and embracing.

Of course that spirit was embodied in the people who lived here, but those qualities lingered in her memories, and even in the fragrance of the house—a heady mixture of cinnamon and coffee and something piney and clean.

She could easily picture herself coming home to this place after a hard day at Hanson’s. She could set up her laptop at the dining room table and work her eBay sales. Or do some baking in the large kitchen—a hobby she’d enjoyed at the Brookside house but had scarcely thought about since she’d had to let it go.

She sighed. She hadn’t even moved in and she was dreading the day she’d have to move out of the Vermontez home.

Slow down, Morgan.
She had to get out of Bryn’s apartment first. Her friend had been so gracious to let her stay all these weeks, but she knew Bryn was getting nervous about “kicking her out.” Lucas had jokingly called her a “sofa surfer.” Ordinarily she liked his teasing—and she knew he hadn’t meant anything by it—but it had hit a little too close to home.

On top of that she was starting to feel a little like a fifth wheel now that Garrett was spending more and more time at the apartment while
he and Bryn worked to get ready for their wedding and plan their honeymoon.

Weddings. It seemed as if everyone she knew was headed for the altar.

“I’ll go ahead and give you the key now,” Emily was saying.

Jenna shook herself from her reverie and took the key Emily held out. It was on a little plastic house-shaped keychain, and Jenna read the fancy script beneath the logo:
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

She shook her head. She was starting to think Someone was trying to tell her something.

Still, a heavy truth weighed him down whenever he stopped long enough to turn it over in his mind. …

37

Friday, February 13

H
ow’s it going, Vermontez?”

Lucas wiped the sweat off his forehead with the sleeve of his T-shirt. His ankle throbbed and his back was in spasms, trying to compensate for the trauma he’d put his leg through, but he and Sparky had performed well and he was feeling elated in spite of his pain. “It’s going good, Wyatt.”

They were on Day Five of the program and already Sparky was alerting on two new substances. He’d had to unlearn a few bad habits that Lucas had unintentionally reinforced working with Sparky at home. But they’d both adjusted quickly to this facility’s training methods.

“You let me know if you need to back off a little,” the director said. “No sense in you getting injured again. It’s not like this is life and death or anything.”

“Not today maybe, but someday it could be.” Who knew that better than him?

“Okay. I’ll trust you to know your own limits, Vermontez.”

He hadn’t worked this hard since he and Zach were going through training as rookies with Station 2. It felt good, even if he was discovering muscles he’d forgotten he had.

He liked Wyatt Barnes, the guy who ran the program. Barnes had a good reputation and good connections to place the dogs he trained. Lucas was finding it fulfilling work, and Sparky was doing him proud. The dog was eager to get out to the field every day and was undistracted by the other animals—at least after that first day, when it had been a zoo.

He leaned down and scrubbed his buddy’s head. “Good job, Spark. Way to show ’em out there today.”

A couple of the other guys in the training program walked by, headed to play their usual round of noon-hour pickup basketball. “You coming, Vermontez? We’re going for pizza after.” Barnes had given them an extra hour for lunch today.

“No, man … thanks anyway. I’m beat. Think I’ll just get a sandwich out of the vending machine.” Oh, for the day when he could have worked this hard all day and still gone to play some ball.

His ankle was holding up pretty well, but he knew his limitations and he was pretty close to the edge of them right now. About all he was up for was a hot shower, a handful of aspirin, and a nap. Maybe he’d call for a pizza later. If he could stay awake long enough to eat it.