Last Chance Texas, page 18
As much as she wanted to let all of this go, to focus on having her own family, it occurred to her that would be easier said than done.
~ ~ ~
Sarah Wainwright slowed the car when she got to Nathan’s driveway. The drive from Midland had been a long one, but little Will had been an absolute angel during the entire trip. She glanced back at him as he lay sleeping peacefully in his car seat, his tiny thumb jammed into a corner of his mouth. It’d kept slipping out as he nodded off.
When the car finally came to a stop, his blue eyes popped open, as though he was wondering why the motion had ceased.
Although she’d waited until mid-afternoon to leave home, the plan being to arrive at Nathan’s place after he got home from work, his truck wasn’t there. Instead, a sedan was parked near the clinic, which thoroughly confused her. Surely Nathan hadn’t invested in another vehicle. He could ill afford it.
She parked the car, climbed out, and went around to the other side to retrieve Will from his car seat. “There’s my little man. You were such a good boy. Yes, you were.” Will cooed at the comment and began kicking his chubby legs at a feverish pitch, grinning and drooling.
“Wanna see Uncle Nathan’s horses, big guy?” Sarah unbuckled her son and carried him over to see the horses. One of the horses whinnied, sending Will into a tirade. His lower lip quivered and without warning, he let out a loud wail.
A petite woman with auburn colored hair shot out of the clinic like a cannon. She began making her way over to where Sarah stood, a gentle breeze blowing her hair about. Sarah didn’t recognize her and suspected she wasn’t really much of a country girl since she wore khaki colored capris and sandals.
“Hi there. Looks like you’ve got your hands full.” The woman was, of course, referring to the fact that Will was screaming at the top of his lungs and about to fall out of Sarah’s arms. To her credit, the full-blown tantrum Will was throwing didn’t appear to faze her. “Say there, mister. What’s the problem?”
Will pumped out a couple more wails and suddenly stopped.
The woman laughed aloud and began tickling Will’s tiny legs. When his arms thrashed about and he smiled so hard he drooled, Sarah laughed, as well.
“Looks like you’ve got the magic touch.” After she said it, the woman laughed again.
Was this the lady Nathan had mentioned to her when he came to Midland? The one things hadn’t worked out with?
“I’m Kelsey Malone. I’m staying at Mimi’s old place for a while.”
When Sarah shifted the baby’s weight, trying to extend a hand, Kelsey smiled. She decided she liked this Kelsey person. Anyone this friendly couldn’t be all bad.
“I’m Sarah Wainwright, Nathan’s sister. And this is my son, Will, Nathan’s nephew.”
When Kelsey leaned down, reaching for Will’s hand, both women laughed. But Kelsey didn’t let it keep her from making proper introductions. “Mr. Will, I’m so very pleased to have made your acquaintance.” She shook the baby’s hand as he stared up at her, a look of bewilderment on his face.
“He usually fusses when someone he doesn’t know approaches him. This is totally out of character for him.”
“Oh, no. I don’t believe it. A baby this cute fussing? That just couldn’t be true. Could it, Will? Your mama must be making this up.” Kelsey scrunched up her face as she continued speaking to Will in a high-pitched tone.
Sarah glanced down at her watch. “Oh, gosh. It’s time for Will’s feeding. I need to get him into the house. It’s a little dusty out here.”
“Let me help you, Sarah. You have your hands full. I’ll help carry your stuff inside. We don’t want the little guy starving to death now, do we?” Kelsey gazed adoringly at Will as she spoke, her tone one of sheer tenderness.
Even with both women hauling the baby paraphernalia, it took two trips to get everything into the house. When Sarah noticed Kelsey staring dumfounded at the sea of baby paraphernalia, she laughed aloud. “Kids these days have a lot of stuff.”
Kelsey nodded approvingly. “That’s for sure. Our ancestors probably rolled over in their graves when they found out about heated baby wipes.”
As Sarah plopped down on a chair and began nursing the baby, Kelsey walked over to the sink and began washing dishes.
“My brother’s not much of a housekeeper, I’m afraid. You don’t have to do that, Kelsey. Seriously.”
“It’s okay. I don’t mind. Nathan has his hands full. Besides, I don’t have much to do. Sitting out in Mimi’s trailer is getting pretty boring.”
Sarah knew full well Nathan would strangle her for prying into his personal business. Problem was she didn’t really care. So, she decided to do a little research to see if this was the woman Nathan had mentioned to their mother. How many Kelseys could there be?
Holding little Will over her shoulder to burp him, Sarah looked over and Kelsey and just came out with it. “So Kelsey. What brings you to Alpine?”
~ ~ ~
The instant Kelsey learned that Sarah was a Wainwright, she made the decision to guard her comments. While she detested the fact Nathan was trying to take her land, she realized that in Sarah’s eyes, he was probably a saint. And for all she knew, Sarah was probably just as morally upstanding as Nathan.
But as the two women talked over several cups of tea with little Will sleeping in his portable crib, Kelsey found it very easy talking to this woman she barely knew. Before she realized it, Sarah had made several cracks about her big brother, sharing with Kelsey his compulsion to be overprotective and opinionated. She decided that in spite of the fact the Wainwright family had their share of problems, they’d have walked through fire for one another.
While Kelsey shared the fact that she’d come to claim her land, she made no mention that Nathan was trying to take it from her. She’d hoped Sarah might divulge how Nathan intended to carry out his plans, but that didn’t happen.
Kelsey glanced across the table at Sarah and decided the woman definitely resembled her older brother. She was tall and slender, with dark brown hair and the same shade of gray eyes that Nathan had. And like her brother, whenever she was embarrassed about something, her eyes narrowed and one brow lifted slightly. Amazing. The power of genetics.
They talked for nearly half an hour when Kelsey decided she’d overstayed her welcome. She and Nathan hadn’t spoken since the falling out they’d had, and he’d no doubt be annoyed to find her sitting at his kitchen table when he came home from work.
But when she rose to leave, Sarah reached out to stop her. “My brother mentioned that he was involved with someone and things didn’t work out. I’m guessing it was you.”
Kelsey exhaled sharply as Sarah asked the question. She considered denying it but quickly realized there was no point in lying.
She’d take the high road; just as she always did. Looking Sarah squarely in the eyes, Kelsey considered giving her a laundry list of all the reasons things couldn’t work about between her and Nathan. But she settled on the obvious. “Nathan and I are far too different to have a future. I’m a city gal. He’s a country boy. I love crowds and a fast-paced environment. His idea of a good time is to sit out on the porch and stare at the stars. You get the picture.”
“Sometimes people that are opposites complement one another, Kelsey.”
“Your brother is a great guy. We just aren’t compatible. It’s as simple as that.”
“That’s kind of what I thought. Nathan pretty much said the same thing. You’re Mimi’s niece then. The one who wants the land.”
Shocked that Nathan had told his sister this much about her, Kelsey decided to make a quick exit before she said something she’d regret. “Thanks for the tea, Sarah. And for the good company. Nathan should be home soon. I’d appreciate if you wouldn’t tell him I stopped by.” After Kelsey said it, she walked over to the door and let herself out.
Chapter 14
The following week Nathan sat in the cab of his pickup truck, waiting for the kids to get out of school. The dismissal bell would ring in five minutes, and he hoped Tommy wouldn’t dawdle.
He’d cut his hours so drastically during the past week that he wondered if some of his clients would find another vet. It couldn’t be helped though, now that Kelsey had severed all ties with Tommy and Jessica. Although he hadn’t realized it earlier, he’d grown to depend on her. She had a knack with the kids - knowing just what to say if something upset them; knowing when they needed their own space, or didn’t want to talk about something. He let out a deep sigh-wondering if he really was in over his head.
Leaning back in the seat, he gripped the steering wheel tightly, thinking about the mounting sea of laundry back at the house and if it would wash itself. As he dipped his head, his eyes traveled down to the red and beige flannel shirt he was wearing. When he noticed the brown coffee stain from yesterday, he realized he was close to hitting rock bottom. There would be dinner to make, homework to help the kids with, bills to pay, and then he could tackle the laundry.
How do people do this?
When his cell phone went off, he picked up the call.
“Nathan?”
“Yeah.”
“Bob Braddock, here.”
Immediately Nathan felt his mood lighten. Bob had put considerable time talking to the powers that be in the township, trying to figure out a way for Nathan to keep the land. Although Nathan hadn’t asked him to go to bat for him over the O’Leary property, Bob had taken it upon himself to help Nathan out. Of course, the two went way back. That accounted for something.
“Hey, Bob.” When there was a long pause on the other end of the line, Nathan suspected the news about Mimi’s property wouldn’t be good. As upbeat a guy as Bob was, if this was good news, he’d have spilled it by now.
Bob cleared his throat several times and got right to the point. “You don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting that land.”
“You sure?”
“Dead sure, and I hate to be the one to tell you this, Nathan.”
“Go ahead. Make my day.” Nathan felt his frustration mounting, trying to fathom what could be worse than having Kelsey take the land right out from under him.
“Kelsey’s already talked to a couple of real estate people about selling the land. And rumor is she’s already begun negotiations with that trucking outfit.”
“You sure?”
So it’d come down to this. Nathan exhaled, realizing it was over. Of all the potential buyers Kelsey could have chosen, this was the worst case scenario.
She’d done this to get back at him.
Any previous thoughts about the kindness she’d shown the children disappeared. Nathan gripped the steering wheel so tightly it left an imprint on his hands.
“Nathan, I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault.”
“No, I know it’s not my fault. Still-I feel terrible about this. Maybe you should go ahead and sell off your property too, Nathan. Once that trucking firm takes over the place it’ll be unfit to live there.”
“I’m going to fight her on this, Bob.”
“Nathan, I really don’t think—”
“I’ll hire a lawyer. That’s what I’ll do. Kelsey hasn’t repaid me the five years’ worth of taxes on the property. At least I can catch her on a technicality.” As he continued talking, Nathan could hear his voice growing louder.
“I’ll let you go, Nathan. We’ll talk later.” Bob hung up the phone before Nathan could say what he really wanted to say.
If it took every single bit of money he had, he’d drag Kelsey through the court system until he got the property back. And while he typically wasn’t one to cause a scene, by the time he finished with Kelsey Malone, she will have wished she never laid eyes on the O’Leary property.
~ ~ ~
Jessica Randall raced outside, ignoring Nathan’s orders to keep an eye on her brother. Staying with Nathan had been fun in the beginning, but he never smiled anymore and always seemed too busy to play with them.
“Jessica, you watch your brother like I told you to, you hear me?” Nathan hurled the screen door open, yelling so loudly Jess plugged her ears.
Tommy raced up the porch steps, nearly tripping as he joined her. “Ha, ha, you have to watch me.” He stood with his hands on his hips, sticking out his lower lip, just as he always did when he got his own way. “Nathan says you have to pway wiv me.”
“He did not say that, stupid.” Jessica barely got the words out before Nathan opened the door again and continued scolding her.
“Don’t speak to your brother that way. It won’t kill you to play with him for a few minutes. I need to cook dinner, now. Do as I say, Jessica.”
Jessica stared up at Nathan, wondering if he knew how upset she was. She’d been going to the school nurse with stomachaches, but no one seemed to care.
The last thing she wanted was to babysit her stupid little brother. What she really wanted to do was to climb up in the hayloft and think—think about how Mommy’s voice sounded when she read to them—think about how Daddy used to tickle her on the bottom of her feet.
Her stomach began churning again, and for the third time that day, she nearly threw up.
“I’m not going back into the house until you promise to take care of Tommy.” Nathan stood with his arms crossed, a big scowl on his face. “And don’t you dare go over to Ms. Kelsey’s.”
He was mean. He didn’t used to be like that.
“Okay.” That was all she said, but when Nathan turned around and stormed back into the house, she realized it was enough. That’s all she was. A babysitter for her little brother.
She looked up into the hillside, wondering if she’d ever get to move back in with her grandparents. Granddad was getting better. That’s what the doctors all said. So why couldn’t she and Tommy move back with them once her granddaddy went home from the hospital? Why didn’t anyone talk about that?
Maybe no one wanted her and Tommy.
The calico kitten bounded around the corners, and Tommy rushed over to pick Carly up.
“Oh, kitty, hi.” Tommy held the kitty against his chest and kissed the top of her head.
“Tommy, you stay here with Carly. I’m going to take a walk. I’ll be right back.”
When he didn’t say anything, Jessica began wandering over to the side of the farmhouse. Shielding her eyes from the sun, she squinted as she gazed at the pasture on the far side of the house.
She thought about a movie she’d watched last summer. It was about a little girl that no one paid much attention to until she ran away. When she went missing, everyone got all excited and went to look for her. Once they found her, they all wished they’d been nicer to her.
Jessica glanced back to the porch. Pretty soon Nathan would call them in for dinner. She’d need to decide now.
Tommy would be okay. Nathan paid more attention to him when they went over his speech lessons every night. Besides, Tommy would never leave the farmhouse. He was too chicken.
She ran only a few paces before stopping. Turning around, she looked for Kelsey. She loved talking to Kelsey, but Nathan didn’t allow her to do that anymore.
There was no one to talk to; no one to share things with.
She’d show them.
Jessica whirled around, took a deep breath, and began running.
~ ~ ~
When Kelsey looked out the window of Mimi’s trailer, she saw Jake’s truck barreling down the driveway of the Wainwright farmhouse. With Nathan’s property butting up to her aunt’s trailer, she could see everything that was going on.
He normally didn’t drive that fast. Was something wrong?
When the sheriff’s car pulled up alongside the truck, her suspicions were confirmed. The two men had their windows rolled down and were talking loudly. She couldn’t be certain, but she thought Jake sounded agitated about something.
Tommy was careening about Nathan’s yard like a stunt diving plane, and she found it curious Jessica wasn’t next to him, like she typically was.
Setting down the glass of iced tea she’d poured herself, Kelsey began racing over to Nathan’s to see what all the commotion was about.
When Jake caught site of her standing there, he sprinted over to meet her. “Kelsey, you haven’t seen Jessica, have you? She’s missing.”
The fact that Jake hadn’t waited for her to answer his initial question about whether or not she’d seen Jessica didn’t go unnoticed. He’d gotten right to the point, leading her to suspect Jess had been off Nathan’s radar screen for some time.
Kelsey’s first inclination was to lambast Nathan for not keeping a closer eye on the children, but when she thought about how overwhelmed he appeared to be, she felt guilty for not stepping in to help him out. Although the children were not her responsibility, she certainly bore some blame for not paying closer attention to them. But she’d gotten side-tracked cleaning and hadn’t looked out the window during the entire afternoon. If only she had . . .
“How long has she been gone? I gather quite a while since the sheriff is here.”
“We think probably an hour or so. Nathan told her to watch Tommy so he could cook dinner. That was around six.”
Glancing about the farm, Kelsey felt her heart sink; sunset would be around seven. There wasn’t much time.
When she saw the worried expression on Jake’s face, she tried to put him at ease. “Just let me know what I can do to help. I can keep an eye on Tommy if you’d like.”
