Chapter 5
The noise level was out of control. It seemed that at any one time there were four people talking at once.
The kitchen heated, so Joci opened the kitchen window above the sink to cool the room down.
The gray cat was sitting on the post it had sat on yesterday, staring in at her.
She cocked her head to the side and stared at the pretty cat.
Jeremiah's mom, Emily, came to stand next to her. "That's a pretty cat."
Joci smiled. "I was just thinking the same thing."
"Whose is it?"
Joci shrugged. "I'm not sure. I only noticed it yesterday for the first time. I think a neighbor must have gotten a new pet. It looks clean and healthy, so I doubt it's a stray."
Emily nodded. "I think you're right about that."
They stood together quietly for a moment. Emily softly said, "If you're tired, you can go sit down for a bit. We'll take up baking your cookies. Many hands make light work, and you shouldn't overdo it. You're still healing and you're growing my grandbaby, so you need to take care."
She turned to her mother-in-law and smiled. "Thank you, Emily. If I need the rest, I'll go sit in the living room. Jeremiah has been keeping a fire in the fireplace, which not only warms the house but usually puts me to sleep in minutes."
Emily laughed. "There's nothing like a warm fire in a home. Take advantage of it if you need to."
"Thank you."
Emily squeezed her shoulders and moved toward the table and counter where the others were baking and chatting away.
Joci peered out the door to the garage, which was left open.
The men sat out there laughing, talking, and occasionally, the roar from a bad play on the game filtered into the kitchen.
All the sounds and feelings of a happy home.
Her eyes watered slightly. Blinking furiously, she sniffed lightly and chided herself for being so emotional.
She turned to see the ultrasound photo on the refrigerator, and her hand rested on her belly, which was beginning to round.
She was four months pregnant now and in her forties.
Never would she have guessed that at this stage in her life she’d have another child.
Life was weird. And unexpected. And beautiful.
She heard the garage door open and close, and the voices of her boys greeting their uncles filtered in.
Her lips turned up into a smile. The doorbell rang, and she moved through the kitchen, skirting totes and carrying cases on the floor, which had carried an enormous amount of items into her kitchen.
She pulled the door open to see her friend, Molly Bates, the photographer from their wedding, and lately, Ryder's girlfriend? Maybe date, she wasn't sure of the status of their relationship, but she enjoyed watching them interact with each other.
"Hi, Molly. Come on in."
Molly's smile was beautiful. Her dark hair flowed around her shoulders. Her crisp blue eyes sparkled.
"Thank you. It looks like you have company, so I won't take up much of your time. I wanted to bring you these."
Molly handed Joci two pie boxes. "I baked yesterday, and I thought with you being pregnant, maybe I could lessen the holiday burden a bit. Ryder said you've been baking up a storm."
Joci took the boxes from her friend and stepped back to allow her in.
"Thank you so much. You're very thoughtful. I hope Ryder told you, you're invited to Thanksgiving dinner. Unless you have other plans."
"I don't have other plans, and he did invite me. Thank you so much for the invitation."
Joci smiled. "Good. Please come in and see everyone. I'm sure you remember them from the wedding. Emily, my mother-in-law, and my sisters-in-law, Staci, Erin, and Angie, are all here. It's cookie-baking day."
"Oh, sure." Molly followed her through the living room to the kitchen. "Hi." She said brightly.
As expected, the Sheppard women eagerly welcomed her into the fold. Angie asked, "Would you like to stay and help? Another pair of hands is welcome." Angie winked at Joci, and the understanding was clear. They were finding another way to bring Molly and Ryder together.
Joci stepped to the garage door and caught Ryder's attention. He stood from his chair and strode toward her. "Sorry we didn't come in and say hi, but we could hear the cackling in there and chose to stay where we belonged out here."
Joci laughed. "I won't tell your grandma or your aunts you just referred to us as chickens."
His cheeks turned a slight shade of pink, and he nodded.
"Molly's here. I thought you may want to come in and say hi."
Now his face turned bright red, but he stepped into the kitchen, and the instant their eyes connected, it was electric. Joci smiled and caught Emily's gaze. The older woman grinned and nodded. No words were needed. These two didn't have a chance with the Sheppard women’s matchmaking.
Joci slid a baking sheet of cookies into the oven.
She stood and stretched her back as she set the timer, then limped to the counter to set the potholders close.
She limped to the refrigerator to bring out more dough, but Emily shooed her away.
"Go and sit down so Jeremiah doesn't come in here and chew us out for making you work so hard.”
Joci protested. "I only have swollen feet at this point."
Erin scoffed. "Joci, if you could please write everyone's names on these tags, I would appreciate it. It's for the table on Thanksgiving." Erin winked at her, and Joci's heart swelled a bit more. At this rate, there'd be no room left inside her for the baby; she'd be all heart.
Joci smiled. "Thank you, Erin. I'd be happy to do that."
Erin gave her a box of tags, a thin black sharpie, and a list of names.
Joci hobbled to the living room and sat in her favorite chair in front of the window.
She lifted her feet onto the footstool and unpacked the goodies Erin gave her.
Since she was somewhat of an artist, she decided to make them pretty, with little details around the edges, tiny hearts here and there, and a scroll pattern on the top and the bottom.
She enjoyed being able to sit for a moment and exercise her creative side.
She yawned and rested her head against the chair for a moment. She smiled as the warmth of the living room embraced her, the joy of her family chatting about kids, the holidays, recipes, and supporting each other in their choices of cookies and frosting. All of it was simply beautiful.
She woke to find Jeremiah stoking the fire. He turned and winked at her. Then moved to her and kissed her forehead. "I'm happy to see that you’re not overdoing it."
"My feet were killing me, and I needed the break. Your mom and sisters are making sure I'm taking care of myself."
"Good. I'd hate to have to kick some ass just before Thanksgiving."
She laughed. "Right. Like you'd kick any one of their asses."
He chuckled. "More like the other way around, I guess."
She nodded and giggled as he left the room. Emily looked in at her from the dining room table and nodded.
Joci finished her list, packed everything together nicely, and stood to see how far along the cookie baking was coming.
Plus, it was time to get the bowls and fixings out so they could eat dinner.
She had a large roaster filled with chili for today.
She busied herself with that so she was out of the way.
Molly had taken over baking Joci's cookies, and they looked wonderful.
She smiled as Molly looked up at her. Her beautiful cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink. "Thank you for helping, Molly."
"Of course."
Joci stepped to the garage door. "Jeremiah, can you help me carry the roaster out here? I'd like it set up on the table at the back. We'll do buffet style."
"Of course." JT, Ryder, and Gunnar all jumped up to help, and she was proud of them. They didn't need to be asked. She and Jeremiah had done a great job of raising these men.
The next morning, Joci woke around four o'clock.
She lay awake for a while, not wanting to get up just yet and wake Jeremiah, but unfortunately, she had to use the bathroom.
As quietly as she could, she slipped from their bed and padded to the bathroom.
Once finished, she crept from the room and closed the door to let Jeremiah sleep.
Her sisters-in-law, as well as, Emily and Molly had stayed later into the evening and cleaned everything up. They swept, wiped counters, and did thousands of dishes, which included baking pans, cookie sheets, and bowls. But before they left, everything was cleaned, dried, and put away.
Joci tapped the button on the coffee maker, grateful again that she always made the coffee before bed. Moving to the back patio doors, she stared outside. First, she looked for the gray cat but didn't see it anywhere. She felt a little sad about that. But it was likely at home, wherever that was.
She stared out at the yard, the dying landscaping, and the browning grass.
The aroma of her coffee brewing was a siren's song.
As she turned to pour her first cup of coffee, she saw them.
Muddy footprints on the back stoop, coming from the side of the house.
They stopped as if someone had been looking inside the house.
A chill ran through her at the thought of someone evil lurking anywhere near her home.
She double-checked the lock on the door and the stopper in the track of the door, satisfied that they were secure.
Then she poured herself a cup of coffee.
Quietly moving into the living room, she checked the lock on the front door, then huddled in the corner of the sofa, pulling her fuzzy blanket over her.
Her stomach twisted slightly, wondering who was outside during the night.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the kitchen and stared out the patio doors once more.
The gray cat stared back at her. This time, it sat near the muddy footprints on the concrete patio.
She cocked her head, and the cat mimicked her movement.
After a few moments of them eyeing each other, the cat turned and strutted to the fence post it seemed to like best. Jumping from the ground to the top of the post, it turned to face the house, then curled its tail around its feet.
Not sure what to make of it, Joci turned and settled herself in the corner of the sofa. Maybe the cat could turn into a human during the night, and that's whose footprints were on the patio. It seemed to be watching over them.
She shook her head, chuckling at her vivid imagination. Sitting quietly on the sofa, she pulled up her blanket and sipped her coffee.