Saving The Single Dad

Sharon leaned against the counter. “Pretty girl like you, you could do better than either that place or this one. Find you a nice, decent man, settle down.”

“I’ve seen how far that gets a pretty girl, Sharon. I’ll keep working, thanks.” Christina shoveled french fries in her mouth and tried not to think of her mother or Leanne, or even the dumb things she’d done to try to make some man love her enough.

Looks might catch a guy’s interest, but she’d never succeeded in hooking the right kind of man.

“Beau was no loss, honey. You should have seen the fight he started in this place. Ugly temper.” Sharon shook her head. “Older guy. One with some miles on him, but an appreciation for a pretty smile and some brains. That’s what you need.”

Beau had never been about forever. He’d been about distraction and wanting to pretend someone cared about what happened to her. He’d fixed that about three minutes after Leanne had shown up and told him she was ready to take him up on his offer.

If that was what happened. The timing could have been pure coincidence.

She needed to stop listening for the bits of gossip she picked up during the morning rush.

More than that, once she got her car keys back, she needed to lock up the cabin and hit the road. There was nothing left for her here anymore. Leanne didn’t care enough about her, either.

Parker’s sweet face flashed through her mind. Whatever Leanne had screwed up in her life, her son was so kind and genuine that he was impossible not to love more than life itself. Saying goodbye to Sweetwater and the gossip and Leanne’s mistakes would mean missing out on Parker’s future.

But if Brett had his way, she’d miss most of it anyway. There had to be a path to pull the family back together. Maybe Brett was better off without Leanne. There was no maybe to it, especially if Leanne had slipped into her old ways.

Could Leanne ever be healthier or happier without Brett? Was running away her attempt at finding out?

But her kids... Didn’t they need to know her?

Christina had spent most of her life with no father, but losing her mother... She gulped and tried not to choke on the last bite of hamburger. Grief still blindsided her sometimes. Both Riley and Parker needed a mother in their lives.

But what if she only brought them drama and disappointment? What then? Were Parker and Riley better off learning to live without Leanne?

Sharon snatched the burger basket off the bar and slid a root beer toward her. “Can’t tell what you’re thinking, but you’re burning brain cells. Take a few hours away from the worry.”

Sharon was right. Nothing she plotted could change Tuesday night at the Branch.

Part of the answer was easy enough. Brett was the key to everything. If she wanted to see Riley and Parker, or get Leanne some contact with her kids, which might help stabilize her, she had to work on Brett.

Apparently, he was traveling. That might give her some time for inspiration.

When the first group of tourists chattered over the threshold, fishermen fresh off a day on one of the local rivers or lakes by the looks of them, Christina tied a knot in her T-shirt to make sure her curves were easy to see, picked up her tray and put some swing in her step.

The rest of the night was a blur, and she was grateful Sharon kept her word about the ride home when Sharon’s truck stopped in front of her cabin with a loud groan. “Twenty minutes out of my way,” Sharon grumbled as Christina slowly got out of the truck.

“For nearly eight hours of free labor,” Christina said as she stretched her legs and felt the solid weight of the cash in her pocket. “Can I do it again Friday?”

Sharon snorted. “Yeah. Still think you ought to find yourself a honey, get married and set up house somewhere.”

Christina waved and unlocked the cabin door. One solid slam of her shoulder against the wood opened it with a loud squeak.

If she stayed in Sweetwater, she should think about fixing up the place.

With all her spare money lying around, taking up space, that is.

Once inside, Christina dropped down on the couch, toed off her shoes and draped one arm over her face. Getting to the campground on time would mean an early morning, but the extra cash she’d earned tonight was a nice start on the new car fund.

Before she could make herself brush her teeth or wash her face or peel off the gross clothes she’d been wearing through bacon grease and spilled beer, Christina was asleep. Only the alarm on her phone saved her from missing her shift at the restaurant completely. Running late, she hustled up the mountain.

When Woody rolled to a stop next to her, she nearly cried with relief. Every conversation starter Woody launched, Christina shot down, until she finally said, “Need my caffeine, Woody. I’ll talk to you after the first cup.”

He saluted with a happy grin and immediately began whistling a tune that was off-key enough that she couldn’t figure out what it might be. If she’d had more energy, she would explain to him how early-morning whistling should be punishable by jail time, but because of him, she wasn’t too late. Her admirer from Monday hadn’t shown up and the view of the lake with the mountains behind, that drew all their visitors, was as beautiful as ever.

She refilled Woody’s cup promptly and checked the time. They’d made it almost through her shift. It was clear he was hanging around with the hopes of being her chauffeur again. “Woody, you know I appreciated the ride you gave me yesterday. But I can’t take advantage of you any longer.” You generous old coot. “You saved me this morning. I can find my own way home. Walk will do me good.” She stretched and realized she was telling the truth.

He studied her face for a minute before he slapped both hands on the spotless counter and said, “Guess I’ll see if I can’t get out on that lake and rustle the wife up some dinner, then.”

Christina nodded. “That’s the perfect thing. Every woman loves a man who provides.” His shoulders straightened and he tugged his hat down, a man determined to prove his worth.

“You need a ride, you call me, Chrissy.” He waited for her nod and she wondered how she’d gotten lucky enough to find her own knight in camo ball cap. Since he was the only man who’d offered her a hand without a long list of demands in return, Woody was quickly edging out the slim competition for the top spot on her list of favorite people. It would be easy to take advantage of his kindness, but she’d learned the hard way not to depend on others when she could take care of herself.

As soon as she’d rung Woody up and cleared the last of her tables, she stuck her head in the manager’s office. “I’m out, Luisa, unless you need anything else.”

“Nope, get going. Can’t remember the last time you had three days off in a row,” Luisa said as she brushed her dark braid back over her shoulder. “That’s practically a vacation. Got any plans?”

“Not really.” Christina wasn’t sure she was all that happy about the time off, since money had become necessary as air, but given how she felt right now, she could sleep for days. “If something comes up, call me. I’ll still pick up any shifts I can.”

Otherwise, hitchhiking into town to beg for more work from Sharon would be her only option.

The thought of it made her tired.

By the time she walked back down to her cabin, those days off might be completely necessary. Her blisters had blisters. She’d made a nice wad of cash, but the hustle was a killer. “See you, girl.” Luisa handed her a check, and then turned to answer the ringing phone.

At some point, Christina need to fire up her laptop, do some hunting for a cheap car, but that would mean taking the long walk back up to the restaurant to use the Wi-Fi and she didn’t want to contemplate that.

Walking down the two-lane road, she realized what a beautiful day it was. Large, old growth trees meant the road was shady, and there was little traffic. She was in no hurry. And she did some of her best thinking along this stretch. This was something she’d learned: walking soothed her. This area was perfectly calm. As she listened to the birds chirping, the anxiety quieted. She had cash in her pocket, a place to live and a solid job. Things had been worse.

Leanne needed her help, and Christina couldn’t turn her back on those kids. With her free time, the solution of what to do about angry, self-righteous Brett Hendrix would appear. She hoped.

CHAPTER FOUR (#u353e52af-a712-5854-abe6-e3630d7c72ef)

THE FIRST PHONE CALL Wednesday morning was a surprise, but Brett had turned the ringer on his phone off while he listened to a lecture on the importance of diversity in hiring, so he didn’t have a chance to answer it. There was no voice mail. He decided it wasn’t an emergency and didn’t duck out of the lecture.

The thing about both of the sessions he’d already sat through was that he understood the reasoning behind diversity and drug task force de-escalation training, but they were already pursuing both at the reserve. He was living it day to day. Were there any helpful hints or tried-and-true tactics proven to improve either? Not really.

He stifled a sigh as he studied the course outline for the next day of training.

The second time his phone vibrated with an incoming call, he turned it over to see the Sweetwater school district’s number. He closed his eyes for a long moment. Parker’s cough had turned into something more. Of course it had.

And the school was calling him instead of his mother. That was the course he and the principal had agreed on the last time this happened, but it was going to mean an inconvenient string of phone calls. He’d taken an inconspicuous spot in the back row out of fear that this might happen, so he quietly stepped outside.

He hit Redial and paced back and forth in front of the line of tiny windows looking out over the packed parking lot. Praying that his mother would be able to handle whatever the emergency was didn’t help much, but it was all he had.

“Sweetwater Schools,” Janet Abernathy chirped in her perky phone voice. “How may I direct your call?”