husband?”
“There’s macho and then there’s moronic, hon.”
“So, you’d rather have some dope with a feminine side?” Jamie asked. His fingertips tickled the skin of Charleigh’s arms. She shivered in reaction.
“I don’t want a guy who knows the name of my fingernail polish just by looking at it, no.” She brought her lips to Jamie’s for a soft peck. “No matter if you’re sick or hurt, scared or sad, or as mad, I want you to tell me. I’ll understand. You just have to be truthful with me— that’s all I ask.”
Scooting from Jamie’s lap, Charleigh stood up. She ruffled her hair before going over to retrieve her robe that was draped on the back of a chair. With her hands on her hips, she turned back to Jamie and smiled. The twinkle that had been in her eyes earlier was still present.
“The food’s going to get cold,” she said, reaching for the lid of one of the silver serving dishes. “I hope you’re hungry.”
Jamie came over to stand beside her. Charleigh was dishing some of the stir-fry onto a plate. “I’m sorry,” Jamie whispered, putting a hand on her shoulder.
“Hey,” she said. “Unh-uh. One night without you making love to me is not the end of my world. We have a lifetime together, and as long as you’re there lying in bed beside me, I’ll be fine.”
This woman , he thought taking the plate from her, is my answer from heaven . It was the only explanation Jamie could think of. Why else would Gavin act so foolishly and let someone like Charleigh get away? If it wasn’t for a little help from somewhere up above, he would’ve been completely lost. And maybe even a little in love with his cousin’s wife, had things not turned out the way they had.
But he was the lucky one in love with Charleigh. He was going to spend the rest of his life with Charleigh. The relationship Jamie shared with her was solid, without a doubt. For Jamie, finding Charleigh was like coming home. It was like finding solid ground.
Chapter Ten
The first day of school had always been the toughest for Charleigh. She could remember the sweaty palms. The queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach when she walked into the gymnasium every year for the assembly. The hope of getting the teacher she wanted, without the bullies being in the same class as her.
It never ended up that way. Charleigh always wound up with the more dreadful teacher of the two for the grade she was entering right along with the biggest toads in the puddle to torment her for yet another year. There was never any kind of reprieve.
Now, as she sat close by watching as Chris goofed around with Trevor Parker, his best friend, in a crowd of fellow Second Graders, Charleigh couldn’t help feeling envious.
Caroline had called late the night before to ask a favor for Charleigh to take her youngest cousin to school on his first day. As owner and editor-in-chief of Magnolia’s local newspaper, she had an early morning assignment meeting that prevented her from doing it herself. Charleigh didn’t mind at all. It might even be fun , she had thought.
She was wrong. It brought back the memories of being smashed among the multitude of students, yet feeling completely alone. Of wanting to be anywhere but there. Andrea had been there, and Gavin too, but they ignored her as they always had when they were around their other friends. Their cool friends.
Why it hurt so much— why that old, familiar pang in her gut was present— Charleigh had no idea. It wasn’t like it made much difference now. Luckily, it had been more than fifteen years since she sat, nervously waiting to find out if Missus Kramer or the dreaded Miss Richardson was going to be her second grade teacher.
One was now retired, after twenty-seven years of teaching. The other awful teacher was long gone to make some other poor child’s life as much a living hell as she’d done to Charleigh’s for
“There’s macho and then there’s moronic, hon.”
“So, you’d rather have some dope with a feminine side?” Jamie asked. His fingertips tickled the skin of Charleigh’s arms. She shivered in reaction.
“I don’t want a guy who knows the name of my fingernail polish just by looking at it, no.” She brought her lips to Jamie’s for a soft peck. “No matter if you’re sick or hurt, scared or sad, or as mad, I want you to tell me. I’ll understand. You just have to be truthful with me— that’s all I ask.”
Scooting from Jamie’s lap, Charleigh stood up. She ruffled her hair before going over to retrieve her robe that was draped on the back of a chair. With her hands on her hips, she turned back to Jamie and smiled. The twinkle that had been in her eyes earlier was still present.
“The food’s going to get cold,” she said, reaching for the lid of one of the silver serving dishes. “I hope you’re hungry.”
Jamie came over to stand beside her. Charleigh was dishing some of the stir-fry onto a plate. “I’m sorry,” Jamie whispered, putting a hand on her shoulder.
“Hey,” she said. “Unh-uh. One night without you making love to me is not the end of my world. We have a lifetime together, and as long as you’re there lying in bed beside me, I’ll be fine.”
This woman , he thought taking the plate from her, is my answer from heaven . It was the only explanation Jamie could think of. Why else would Gavin act so foolishly and let someone like Charleigh get away? If it wasn’t for a little help from somewhere up above, he would’ve been completely lost. And maybe even a little in love with his cousin’s wife, had things not turned out the way they had.
But he was the lucky one in love with Charleigh. He was going to spend the rest of his life with Charleigh. The relationship Jamie shared with her was solid, without a doubt. For Jamie, finding Charleigh was like coming home. It was like finding solid ground.
Chapter Ten
The first day of school had always been the toughest for Charleigh. She could remember the sweaty palms. The queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach when she walked into the gymnasium every year for the assembly. The hope of getting the teacher she wanted, without the bullies being in the same class as her.
It never ended up that way. Charleigh always wound up with the more dreadful teacher of the two for the grade she was entering right along with the biggest toads in the puddle to torment her for yet another year. There was never any kind of reprieve.
Now, as she sat close by watching as Chris goofed around with Trevor Parker, his best friend, in a crowd of fellow Second Graders, Charleigh couldn’t help feeling envious.
Caroline had called late the night before to ask a favor for Charleigh to take her youngest cousin to school on his first day. As owner and editor-in-chief of Magnolia’s local newspaper, she had an early morning assignment meeting that prevented her from doing it herself. Charleigh didn’t mind at all. It might even be fun , she had thought.
She was wrong. It brought back the memories of being smashed among the multitude of students, yet feeling completely alone. Of wanting to be anywhere but there. Andrea had been there, and Gavin too, but they ignored her as they always had when they were around their other friends. Their cool friends.
Why it hurt so much— why that old, familiar pang in her gut was present— Charleigh had no idea. It wasn’t like it made much difference now. Luckily, it had been more than fifteen years since she sat, nervously waiting to find out if Missus Kramer or the dreaded Miss Richardson was going to be her second grade teacher.
One was now retired, after twenty-seven years of teaching. The other awful teacher was long gone to make some other poor child’s life as much a living hell as she’d done to Charleigh’s for
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