Rekindled Romance

“In Savannah, Georgia. Remember, we went to the beach there right before she got sick?”

“I remember.” Cassidy’s happy mood had vanished.

Time to get his kids back into their own safe space. “Come on, kids. We’d better go home. You have homework, and we need to start supper.”

“We did our homework first thing.” Cassidy pushed back from the table.

“Dad, can we look at pictures of Mom after supper?”

“Sure, son.” He turned toward the door, aware of Shelby following behind him and also aware that he had to thank her. The kids gathered up their backpacks, then clustered near him at the front door.

“Matt.” He wasn’t in the mood to talk to her, but he couldn’t be rude. She had kept his children safe and entertained. He pulled open the door and gestured his kids to leave. “Y’all go on over to the house. I’ll be along in a minute.” He turned to face Shelby.

“I hope I didn’t cause any trouble with the yearbooks. It never occurred to me that they’d expect to see pictures of their mother.”

“Not your fault. I never know when the questions will come. They catch me off guard all the time.”

“I can’t image how difficult this is for you and the children. She was obviously a wonderful mother.”

“She was.” Sweet recollections drifted through his mind, but this time without the biting sting. “She was funny, always thinking of new ways to entertain them. She knew exactly what to say and do for any situation. Losing her traumatized the kids. Especially Cassidy. I put her in counseling for a while. She was like a lost puppy.”

“Is that why you moved back home, to be around your family?”

Her question made him realize that he’d been spilling his guts to Shelby. Absolutely not what he’d intended. But then, she’d always been easy to talk to. She knew things about him no one else did. But she didn’t need to know about his pain and loss. Not that she’d care. She was only passing through.

He had to remember his primary goal here. Keep his kids from any more heartbreak. “Yes. I felt they needed some stability. Some security. Atlanta was too full of memories. I sold my business and everything else and came home.” He held her gaze, willing her to understand what he was about to say. “My kids have suffered deeply in losing their mother. I want them to be surrounded by people who love them as much as I do. I want them to have people in their lives they can depend on, who won’t walk out when they need them most.” He stopped, realizing he wasn’t talking about his family anymore. He saw Shelby’s brown eyes darken.

“People like me, Matt?”

He set his jaw. “I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to.”

Matt turned to leave. “Tell Ellen thanks. I’m still looking for other babysitting options. I know she misses her volunteer work, and I don’t like imposing on you.”

Shelby crossed her arms over her chest. “Because I’m not dependable?”

No sense playing games. “No. You’re not.”

* * ** * *

The afternoon light streamed through the windowed walls of the sunroom on the back of Gramma’s house, casting a warm glow on the cozy space. Curled up in the old chaise, a magazine in her lap, she reveled in the familiar sense of peace. She glanced around the room at the stacks of magazines and smiled. She’d fallen in love with magazines because of her gramma. She’d hurry over here after school and lose herself in the glossy pages of beautiful rooms, filled with beautiful people doing beautiful things. Life within the pages was always perfect and happy. Magazines allowed her to escape her mother’s bitterness and forget for a while that she didn’t fit in at school.

She could almost relax completely, if it weren’t for Cassidy and Kenny coming over shortly. After a quick hello yesterday, she’d escaped to her room, explaining she had work to do and leaving Gramma to watch over the kids. She’d missed being with them but it allowed her to avoid Matt. She hadn’t come out of her room until she’d seen the three Durrants walking across the drive to their house.

Gramma’s advice had hovered in the back of her mind. It was time to settle the past. All this huffing and puffing was silly. But how did they do that when it was clear that Matt would never forgive her for walking out?

Today, however, she couldn’t use work as an excuse to avoid babysitting. Gramma had called to say she’d been invited to dinner and a movie with friends. She wanted to know if Shelby was okay with keeping the kids. Shelby couldn’t refuse. Her grandmother deserved a night out, but that left her to deal with Matt’s disapproval.

She set her jaw. She was not going to worry herself into knots over this. Matt needed someone responsible to keep the kids; she was his only option. All she could do was be as conscientious as possible, and hopefully in time he’d come to trust her.

Squealing air brakes sounded outside, and she found herself smiling, even as a trickle of nervousness formed. What did she know about taking care of children? She’d certainly never learned anything from her mother. She’d always made motherhood seem like a burden, the worse choice a woman could make. But Matt’s adorable kids were making her take a new look at some of her assumptions.

Shelby met the children halfway down the drive. “Hello there.” Seeing their sweet, happy faces warmed her heart in a way she’d never experienced before. Cassidy fell into step with her as they made their way back toward Gramma’s house. Kenny raced ahead.

“I’m glad it’s Friday. No school for two whole days.”

“Don’t you like school?”

Cassidy nodded. “But I don’t like homework.”

“Join the club. No one does.” Shelby glanced up at Kenny, who stood on his porch, backpack at his feet. “Kenny, come on. Gramma left some brownies today.”

“Can’t we stay at our house today? Please? I want to play with Chester. I don’t want to wait until Dad gets home.”

Cassidy nodded. “Could we? I like being at your house, but I’d really like to go home.”

Shelby couldn’t think of any reason not to, other than she would feel uncomfortable in Matt’s home. But her primary concern was the children. “I suppose. Let me go get the key and a few of my things.”

Standing in Matt’s house a few minutes later, she couldn’t resist the temptation to look around. Unlike her grandmother’s house, which retained all its original details, Matt’s home had been completely remodeled. Walls had been removed, rooms opened up and windows replaced, giving the home an open, spacious feel. Despite the clean lines and modern style, the furniture was practical and functional. Evidence of the children lay scattered around the room—toys on the floor, a stuffed animal on the ottoman. Matt’s work boots stood beside the leather recliner.

She forced herself to ignore her surroundings. Quickly she moved to the kitchen and set her laptop on the table. Cassidy, never far from her side, took the brownies and set them on the island. “Any homework?”

“A little. But I can do it Sunday night.”

Shelby laid an arm across the girl’s shoulders. “Would you like some advice, woman to woman?” Cassidy nodded, a huge smile on her face. “Do you know what the word procrastinate means?”

Cassidy groaned softly. “To put stuff off.”

“Yep. I learned after much painful struggle that the best way to enjoy your time off is by getting the unpleasant things out of the way first. It’s freeing. I think you should try it.”

Cassidy pointed to the treats on the counter.

Shelby shook her head. “Before we have brownies.”

With the young girl up in her room and Kenny safely in the backyard with Chester, Shelby took a moment to check emails on her smart phone. There was no more news about the future of the company. Not surprising. Everything was on hold until the upcoming meeting. It was the not knowing that kept her on edge. The cold hard truth was the chances of her being out of work soon were very good. And she couldn’t get back to New York to look for another job until she had her health back on track.

“I used to live in Atlanta when I was little,” Cassidy stated as they munched on homemade brownies a short while later. Kenny had scooped his up and returned to the yard, mumbling something about finding a lizard on the fence.

Shelby was still picking at her piece, knowing she shouldn’t be eating the chocolate treat but unable to completely resist. “So I heard. Atlanta is a very big city.”

“There’s a lot to do there. Not like here.”

Shelby stifled a grin at the girls assumed air of sophistication. “Don’t you like Dover?”

“It’s okay. I didn’t like it much when I first got here. Boring.” She rolled her eyes. “But I have friends now so it’s not so bad.” Cassidy took another bite of brownie. “What do you do in New York?”

“I edit a magazine. You may know it. Tween Scene.”