Chapter 3
Chapter Three
“Ihave an appointment tomorrow to go look at a farm. It’s near here, and it just might be the one.
The house is gorgeous, the grounds are perfect.
There aren’t too many acres, but we don’t need a whole pile of ground, just enough to keep a couple of horses for the kids to ride.
I’m not looking to grow crops or anything.
” Gilbert ran a hand through his hair, then put an elbow on the counter in front of him.
He sat in his mother’s kitchen, talking to her while she stood on the other side, baking a batch of cookies for the kids to eat when they got home from school that day.
“All right. But tomorrow is the festival. I know the kids would really like to go see the parade.”
“I think we’ll make it in time. The festival starts at eleven, and the parade is at one, right?”
“I think so. What time is your appointment to see the property?”
“It’s nine. I don’t think it’ll take more than an hour, and honestly I’m going to get it, unless there’s something majorly wrong with it. It’s exactly what I want, and it’s less than fifteen minutes from here.”
“Wonder which property it is?” his mother mused.
“My agent said it just came on the market. In fact, it wasn’t even listed as of yesterday, so you might not have heard about it.”
“I can only think of a couple that could potentially be what you’re talking about, although none of them have a really big house. How many bedrooms did you say?”
“I think there’s six. Three with master bedrooms.”
“Wow. And you said they’re all in good shape?”
“Yeah. Apparently the woman who owned it, which is the mother of the current owner, from what I understand from my realtor, got the farm into debt redoing the house. She did a great job on the house, but the girl just can’t keep up with the payments.
That’s the extra info that my realtor texted me last night.
I’m not sure if that’s general info that everyone knows. ”
“Goodness,” his mom said, coming over to the counter and putting her hand on it. She didn’t look happy, which Gilbert didn’t really understand. He was coming home. He would get to spend time with his children. And he found the perfect property. Why could she be upset about that?
“That sounds like Summer Labach’s place.”
“Summer? Do I know her?”
“I think she was a good bit younger than you in school. It’s the Labach farm. Where your kids go for horse therapy.”
“Oh.” Gilbert sat back, his feet hooked on the bottom rungs, his mind whirling.
There was no doubt in his mind that the horseback riding therapy had been beneficial for all three of his children.
They all loved it and loved their instructor, although he wasn’t sure if it was Summer or not.
He never took them. Someone from his family always dropped them off and picked them up.
He had been busy working in Harrisonburg.
“In fact, if I’m thinking about this right, I don’t think she’s charged us for the last year of therapy.
Starting from before Desire passed, she had told me it was on the house.
She and Larissa seemed to develop a bond, and she’s been out there an awful lot.
In fact, I think Larissa is riding in the parade tomorrow. ”
“Are you serious?” Now he felt bad. The woman had to sell her property because she couldn’t afford to pay for it, and she hadn’t even been charging him for the horseback riding therapy his kids had been taking.
The thought that he hadn’t been paying for it never even crossed his mind.
He…just assumed everything was being taken care of, that it was automatically deducted from his checking account.
He sighed. “I guess that is sad.”
“Yeah. It’s been in her family for generations.
I don’t even know how long. But I know Summer is excellent with the children and very good at what she does.
She’s busy all summer long, and she’s even run some camps.
But from what I understand, she had a sick horse or something, and it put her back further than what she could catch up. ”
“Animals are expensive.” He had wanted to get a dog for his kids.
It wasn’t the expense that kept him back, it was the fact that he hadn’t had time.
But when they moved out to the farm, that was something that he had wanted to get.
He really wasn’t into horses. Never had been, but he understood that some people were, and he also saw with his own eyes how much being around the horses had helped his children. He wasn’t going to try to deny that.
The timer on the oven went off, and his mother went over, put an oven mitt on, and opened the door.
The kitchen soon smelled absolutely delicious, and Gilbert’s mouth started to water.
He needed to get in better shape though, because while he put all of his effort into building his business, he neglected his health.
And he’d definitely gained some weight. Of course, he figured moving to the farm would help with that as well.
“I think my kids are going to be spoiled. They’re going to expect to walk into a kitchen that smells like baking cookies and have a warm tray of the same sitting on the counter waiting for them. They’re going to be disappointed when we move out and that doesn’t happen anymore.”
“Larissa is an excellent little baker. I think she might be excited to get her own kitchen. And I remember Mrs. Labach threw some wonderful parties. I was in the kitchen a couple of times, and it’s gorgeous. Larissa will not be disappointed.”
“Well, I can’t thank you enough, because I know she didn’t learn to bake from Desire.”
He clamped his mouth closed over anything more.
He always tried to say only the very best things about Desire.
He didn’t want to dishonor her memory in any way.
He wanted his children’s memories of her to be happy.
After all, she was their mother, and they didn’t need to know that she was a cheater.
He had gotten over it himself. If she hadn’t been diagnosed with cancer, it’s possible that they would have gotten divorced, but in his eyes, God had saved his children from that, and now it was up to Gilbert to keep the secret.
“It’s been a joy and a pleasure to have the children.
Honestly, I’m a bit sad that you’re going to take them.
I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that you’re going to be home so much more and the children are going to see you.
They need that so much. But… The house is going to seem so empty without them. ”
“You have Isadora.”
“True.”
Isadora and her three children were napping currently. Isadora had had her baby in March, and it had been a healthy baby girl. She had gotten her divorce finalized in June. Those had been hard months for her, and she still struggled now, in October.
“She’s not doing so great,” Gilbert said.
“People said the same thing about you last year this time. And pretty much all year. Not everyone understood why you had to spend so much time away from your children, and they talked.”
“I figured they would. But I had to be able to support my family. It’s my job to provide.”
“I know, son.” His mother put up her hand.
“You don’t need to talk to me about it. I supported you all the way.
I did feel bad for your children, but you were in an impossible situation.
With the embezzlement that had gone on, plus the neglect from you taking such great care of your wife…
Something had to give. And I think you made the right choice, keeping the kids in the school system here and leaving them with me.
I am not perfect, but I did the best I could, and I don’t think anyone ever loves like a grandmother does. ”
“You could be right about that. Although, I love those kids pretty fiercely myself.”
“I know you do. And now, it’s your time. So, I’ll be a little bit sad, but I know I’ll see you guys again and plenty. And you know you’re welcome here anytime.”
“We’ll have to establish a regular game night or something. That way, you can look forward to it, but it won’t overwhelm you. You do deserve to have a little bit of a rest.”
“If God wants me to rest, He can take me to heaven, and I’ll rest there. But as long as I’m here on earth, God has work for me to do, and I’m going to do it with everything I have.”
His mother put a cookie on a plate and set it in front of him without asking if he wanted one.
He couldn’t resist a warm chocolate chip cookie, so he picked it up and started eating. But he was going to get back in shape, lose some weight, spend more time with his children, and…do all the things that he knew he should do but hadn’t had time for the last year.
He did admire his mom. She lived what she believed better than anyone he knew. He hoped when his children got older, they could see the same thing about him.