Broken Pieces by Carla Cassidy Page B

one guy that was kind of a creep. He told me his dad hated Grandpa.”
    “What’s his name? Maybe I know his dad.”
    “Ryan Kent.”
    Mariah frowned. “I remember a Doug Kent who was two years older than me.” What Mariah remembered about Doug was that he had been mean to her in high school, always glaring at her or bumping into her accidentally on purpose. “I wonder if Ryan is his son.” Kelsey shrugged. “So, what did you say to him?”
    “That I didn’t even know my grandpa, but what I knew of him I didn’t like too much either.” She shrugged. “It wasn’t a big deal.” She raised the soda can to her lips and took a long drink, then scooted back and got up from the table. “I’m gonna take a shower. I’ll be down in a few minutes.”
    “I’ll make us some sandwiches for supper,” Mariah said. “And we have some leftover potato and green bean salads that Finn brought over earlier.”
    “Sounds good,” Kelsey said as she left the kitchen.
    When she was gone, Mariah leaned back in her chair and wondered why she had a feeling that having Jack over to dinner wasn’t a great idea. What point was there in getting close to anyone here?
    Oh, and Mariah, I still want to kiss you
. His words echoed inside her head.
    She jumped up from the table and got to work setting the table for dinner, refusing to spend another minute thinking about kisses and Jack.
    As she and Kelsey ate, Kelsey talked about the kids she’d met and how she and Katie almost seemed like sisters. They liked the same music and television shows; they were both good in science and hated math. Katie even liked to cook, although not on the same scale as Kelsey.
    Kelsey started talking about a couple of the boys she’d met and Mariah saw a spark in her daughter’s eyes as she talked about a particular young man named Justin. Thankfully they had already had their talk about dating and had agreed that when Kelsey was sixteen, she could date. Until that time she could go out in a group, but not with a boy alone.
    After dinner Kelsey went up to her bedroom to listen to music and talk on the phone to Katie, and Mariah cleared off the table.
    She’d just finished in the kitchen when a knock fell on the front door. She peeked out the side window and saw that it was Marianne Francis.
    “Marianne,” she said as she opened the door.
    The pretty woman smiled with a touch of apology.“I’m sorry to drop in without calling, but I was driving home from the store and passing right by and just decided to stop on impulse.”
    “Please, come in.” She opened the door to allow the petite brown-haired woman inside. “Come on into the kitchen. Would you like a glass of iced tea or a soda?”
    “No, no thanks. I’m fine.” She sat at a chair at the table and smiled. “I just wanted to stop in and tell you how much I enjoyed seeing you again last night. It made me remember school lunches with you and Clay and Roger and me.”
    Mariah remembered and returned Marianne’s smile. Clay and Charles and Roger had all been best friends in high school, so it was only natural that when Mariah started seeing Clay, she starting hanging out with Marianne. The two might have become best friends if fate hadn’t intervened.
    “I know Sherri was kind of tough on you last night,” Marianne continued.
    Mariah smiled wryly. “If she thinks I’ve come back here to claim my long-lost high school sweetheart, she’s definitely mistaken.”
    “I know, but Sherri has been feeling bad about herself since her last baby. She gained more weight than usual and hasn’t been able to take it off. She’s prickly as a pear these days and you were just an easy target for her unhappiness.”
    “You and Sherri are friends?”
    Marianne nodded. “Sherri and I have been friends since seventh grade, when my family moved here. Even then she was crazy about Clay. It nearly broke her heart when he got so serious with you. Anyway, that’s not why I’m here. I wanted to tell you