Everlasting Love

“I’m not yelling.”

“Well, you sure could have fooled me.”

Inez was entering the room, bearing a platter heaped with crispy fried chicken. Megan let her pass, then grabbed James’s arm and tugged him toward the kitchen. When he resisted, she scowled. “Come with me. I want to settle this in private. It won’t take long.”

He gave in reluctantly and followed her through the door. “It better not.”

Megan whirled, her voice husky, her eyes blazing. “Don’t you dare threaten me.”

“I wasn’t. I didn’t.” James gestured back toward the dining room. “What do you have to say to me that couldn’t be said just as easily in there?”

“Plenty.”

She couldn’t believe he didn’t realize what he’d done, what he was still doing by not lowering his voice and confronting her as quietly as possible, so she set an example by rasping at him in a near whisper, “You told me not to question your authority in front of the kids, yet you just made me look like a fool in front of those boys—and my sister.”

“I did not.”

“You most certainly did,” Megan insisted. “Everybody makes mistakes. Even me. I was joking when I told you I thought I was perfect. From now on, if you have anything derogatory to say to me, I’ll expect you to say it in private.”

One eyebrow arched. He gave a slight shrug and spoke more softly. “All right. I’ll spell it out for you. These kids may look angelic but many of them are seriously disturbed. One at a time they’re usually pretty agreeable. In a group, anything can happen—and often does.”

“You mean I’m supposed to treat them like they’re in jail?”

“Not exactly. When one of them merits trust we give it, up to a point. Next time you’re not sure whether or not to permit something, ask me or Aaron about it first and we’ll avoid problems like this.”

“That sounds reasonable enough.” Megan chanced a slight smile. “I’m sorry I caused you extra worry. I thought my decision to let Zac take them to wash up was perfectly logical.”

“I know. It’s partly my fault, too. I should have warned you these kids would try to bamboozle you big-time. You’ve learned that on your own, I take it.”

“No kidding. Talk about a trial by fire.”

“Everything turned out okay. We’ll forget it ever happened. Now, let’s go eat before the kids get so hungry we have a mutiny on our hands.” He pushed open the swinging door between the kitchen and dining room and held it politely. “After you.”

To Megan, the most amazing thing was his apparently complete change of mood. In the blink of an eye, James Harris had gone from delivering angry retorts to being a gracious host. She frowned at him as she passed, unsure if she was reading him right. While her stomach was still tied in knots and her hands were trembling from their encounter, he seemed calm, totally in control.

Everyone stared at them as they left the kitchen together. James headed for his normal spot at the head of the table, escorting her as he went.

Megan slid into the place where she’d been sitting, directly to James’s right, because it was the only available space. There was no gracious way to move away from him as she had on the porch. Therefore, she figured she’d better follow his example and start acting more normal or the boys might get the idea they could pit them against each other again.

Seated beside Aaron and Roxy at the opposite end of the long table, Inez quietly bowed her head. Megan was expecting someone to say a blessing on their meal but no one spoke. They simply observed a quiet moment while she used the time to pull herself together.

When everyone suddenly looked up and began talking, she felt much better, much more at ease. She decided to break her silence and let James know she’d simmered down by asking him a question. “You don’t say grace?”

“Can’t. Separation of church and state,” he said. “The silent prayer was Inez’s idea. So far, nobody’s questioned us about it. Most folks are pretty tolerant out here in the sticks. It’s when the kids go home that we may hear complaints.”

“I see.” Megan lowered her voice for privacy, though she wasn’t too worried about being overheard above the boisterous conversation going on at the table. “Speaking of home, tell me about Bobby Joe. What’s his situation?”

“He’s temporary, like all the others. I’ll give you access to our files as soon as you set up your computer.”

“What about Zac? Why do you let him pick on Bobby Joe so much?”

James chuckled. “Let him? Not hardly. I do my best to keep them apart. Being brothers, they naturally gravitate to each other.”

“Brothers?” Megan was flabbergasted. “Those two are related? They’re not a bit alike.”

“Lots of siblings aren’t,” he said, offering her the platter of chicken before taking any for himself. “My brothers are far different than I am.”

“Oh? How so?”

Passing the mashed potatoes and picking up the bowl of green beans, he spooned some onto his plate. “They were always perfect saints. Sons to make their parents proud.”

“And you weren’t?”

James chuckled. “According to my folks I was the exact opposite. I got tired of not being able to live up to their ideals, gave up trying and let them think what they wanted.”

“I’ll bet they’d be proud of your work here.”

“I don’t care one way or the other. It’s enough to know I’m doing the right thing. I don’t need validation from them or anyone else.”

Nodding, Megan sighed. At the far end of the table, her sister was carrying on an animated conversation with Aaron Barnes, leaning close and fawning over him. The poor guy was blushing, obviously embarrassed by all the extra attention.

Megan shared the young man’s discomfort. Though she felt sorry for James because of his estrangement from his family, there were times, like now, when she wished she didn’t have to worry about anyone but herself, either. To make matters worse, James was also watching the young people. Judging by the look of consternation on his face, he wasn’t any happier about their interaction than she was.

Softly, Megan said, “I’ll take care of that as soon as Roxy and I are alone. She’ll back off. I promise.”

James, who had been taking a sip of ice water as she spoke, looked incredulous, burst into laughter and promptly choked.

Megan slapped him on the back. “Serves you right. It wasn’t that funny.”

“Yes, it was,” he managed, while coughing into his napkin. “I can just picture that little sisterly talk.”

“I’ll expect you to speak to your helper about it, too,” Megan added. “We can’t put all the burden of good behavior on my sister.”

James coughed again, finally getting his irritated throat under control. When he lowered the napkin he was grinning like he’d just heard the best joke of his life and was still chortling over the punch line.

“Okay,” Megan said, “what’s so amusing?”

“You are. Anybody who thinks she can convince a fifteen-year-old girl to stop making eyes at a good-looking college boy is out of her ever-lovin’ mind.”

Chapter Four

The remainder of the meal passed rapidly for Megan. She took part in the boys’ lively discussions as much as possible, hoping to gain insight into each of their characters, while trying to keep an eye on her sister, as well.

By the end of the evening she had decided that all but the two littlest boys were better actors than most Academy Award winners—and those two were strong runners-up. Listening to them chatter, observing their innocent expressions, she would never have guessed that their short lives had been filled with enough trauma and adversity to overwhelm most adults.