bit her lower lip. “I didn’t mean I want people to ignore us,” she clarified. “I just meant I don’t want people to try to help us. Not when I can take care of both of us.”
Walker was silent. He didn’t think now was the time to mention that she’d taken care of herself so well today that her canoe was sitting on the bottom of the lake.
“Thanks for the ride,” she said, favoring him with one of her rare smiles. And then she gathered her gear together and slid out of the truck, slamming the door behind her. He didn’t wait for her to walk all the way up to her cabin. When she was a safe distance away, he gunned the engine, turned the truck around, and sped, too fast, up her driveway.
You’ve met your match, Walker, he thought, turning onto the road and making a conscious effort to slow down. You’ve finally found someone who’s even more obsessed with her independence, and her privacy, than you are. You two should be perfect neighbors . But if that were the case, he wondered, why was he suddenly in such a lousy mood?
CHAPTER 11
J ade, please hold still,” Jax said, with uncharacteristic impatience.
“I’m sorry, Mommy, but you’re pulling too tight,” Jade said. “I don’t see why you have to braid my hair, anyway,” she added, in an injured tone.
“Sweetie, you know the rule,” Jax said, trying, but failing, to hide her exasperation. “If you want to grow your hair long, you have to wear it braided. Not all the time. But most of the time. And definitely at day camp, all right? Otherwise, it gets all tangled. And Mommy doesn’t have the energy right now to get the tangles out every night before bedtime. So try to hold still and I’ll get it over with as quickly as possible. I promise.”
But a moment later, Jade objected again. “ Ouch! Mommy, that hurts.” She squirmed on the high stool she was sitting on, her back to Jax. They were on the screened-in porch off the back of their house, where Jax’s daughters liked to sleep on warm summer nights.
“I’m sorry, baby,” Jax said, letting go of one of Jade’s braids. She knew she’d pulled too hard. Under ordinary circumstances, she was an excellent braider. But this morning, she was having difficulty making her hands do what she wanted them to do. It was nerves, plain and simple. Her hands had been shaking, for instance, when she’d ironed Jeremy’s shirt that morning. And her stomach had churned uneasily when she’d swallowed her prenatal vitamin.
“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Jade asked, swiveling around on her stool.
“Nothing’s wrong, honey. I’m just pregnant. And tired. And hot, ” she said, reaching over to turn up a nearby fan that felt as if it was barely stirring the already humid morning air.
“But, Mommy,” Jade reminded her, “you said you like being pregnant. You said it’s easy for you, ’cause you don’t feel sick or throw up or anything.”
“I did say that, didn’t I?” Jax smiled at Jade’s upturned face, all wide blue eyes and riotous freckles. “Thank you for reminding me about that, Jade. And do you know what I’ve decided about today?”
“What?”
“I’ve decided that today should be a ponytail day for you. What do you say to that idea, sweet pea?”
Jade nodded, relieved.
So Jax started over, brushing out Jade’s hair, being careful not to pull too hard on it, and being careful, too, not to complain when Jade started squirming again. It wasn’t Jade’s fault, after all, that she had trouble sitting still. She was six years old. And for her, today was an ordinary day, like any other day, except better, of course, because it was a summer day. But for Jax, today was a day she’d been dreading for weeks. It wasn’t marked on the family calendar that hung in the kitchen. But if it had been, it would have been marked with a big, black X. It was the day Bobby said he’d be calling her from prison.
The doorbell rang then, interrupting her thoughts.
“That’s Allie and
Walker was silent. He didn’t think now was the time to mention that she’d taken care of herself so well today that her canoe was sitting on the bottom of the lake.
“Thanks for the ride,” she said, favoring him with one of her rare smiles. And then she gathered her gear together and slid out of the truck, slamming the door behind her. He didn’t wait for her to walk all the way up to her cabin. When she was a safe distance away, he gunned the engine, turned the truck around, and sped, too fast, up her driveway.
You’ve met your match, Walker, he thought, turning onto the road and making a conscious effort to slow down. You’ve finally found someone who’s even more obsessed with her independence, and her privacy, than you are. You two should be perfect neighbors . But if that were the case, he wondered, why was he suddenly in such a lousy mood?
CHAPTER 11
J ade, please hold still,” Jax said, with uncharacteristic impatience.
“I’m sorry, Mommy, but you’re pulling too tight,” Jade said. “I don’t see why you have to braid my hair, anyway,” she added, in an injured tone.
“Sweetie, you know the rule,” Jax said, trying, but failing, to hide her exasperation. “If you want to grow your hair long, you have to wear it braided. Not all the time. But most of the time. And definitely at day camp, all right? Otherwise, it gets all tangled. And Mommy doesn’t have the energy right now to get the tangles out every night before bedtime. So try to hold still and I’ll get it over with as quickly as possible. I promise.”
But a moment later, Jade objected again. “ Ouch! Mommy, that hurts.” She squirmed on the high stool she was sitting on, her back to Jax. They were on the screened-in porch off the back of their house, where Jax’s daughters liked to sleep on warm summer nights.
“I’m sorry, baby,” Jax said, letting go of one of Jade’s braids. She knew she’d pulled too hard. Under ordinary circumstances, she was an excellent braider. But this morning, she was having difficulty making her hands do what she wanted them to do. It was nerves, plain and simple. Her hands had been shaking, for instance, when she’d ironed Jeremy’s shirt that morning. And her stomach had churned uneasily when she’d swallowed her prenatal vitamin.
“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Jade asked, swiveling around on her stool.
“Nothing’s wrong, honey. I’m just pregnant. And tired. And hot, ” she said, reaching over to turn up a nearby fan that felt as if it was barely stirring the already humid morning air.
“But, Mommy,” Jade reminded her, “you said you like being pregnant. You said it’s easy for you, ’cause you don’t feel sick or throw up or anything.”
“I did say that, didn’t I?” Jax smiled at Jade’s upturned face, all wide blue eyes and riotous freckles. “Thank you for reminding me about that, Jade. And do you know what I’ve decided about today?”
“What?”
“I’ve decided that today should be a ponytail day for you. What do you say to that idea, sweet pea?”
Jade nodded, relieved.
So Jax started over, brushing out Jade’s hair, being careful not to pull too hard on it, and being careful, too, not to complain when Jade started squirming again. It wasn’t Jade’s fault, after all, that she had trouble sitting still. She was six years old. And for her, today was an ordinary day, like any other day, except better, of course, because it was a summer day. But for Jax, today was a day she’d been dreading for weeks. It wasn’t marked on the family calendar that hung in the kitchen. But if it had been, it would have been marked with a big, black X. It was the day Bobby said he’d be calling her from prison.
The doorbell rang then, interrupting her thoughts.
“That’s Allie and
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