Chapter Eighteen
Almost a week had gone by since Paxton and Sandra had met with his cousins Grace and Declan after she’d received her ex’s text. The thing that Paxton couldn’t figure out was why—despite Sandra having responded that she’d make arrangements for a visitation—David’s father had yet to respond.
All Paxton could figure was that the man was a bigger jerk than what even Sandra had described. Having spent every night after finishing up at the job site working with David on his baseball, then joining the family for dinner, and finally tucking David in and reading to him, all Paxton knew is that Ed had been given the gift of a wonderful family and the guy had foolishly discarded it as easily as yesterday’s trash.
“How deep you planning on digging that hole?” Glaring at the hole in the corner by the front porch, Quinn sighed.
Pulling his mind back from his thoughts of David and Sandra and her jerk of an ex, Paxton glanced down at the hole he’d been digging for the Chinese Fringe flower shrub. So distracted by his thoughts, he’d dug a hole big enough to transplant a small tree. “Thinking about putting a Japanese Maple here instead.”
Quinn lifted one eyebrow at his brother. “Right.” His brother shook his head. “Planning on selling beachfront real estate in Vegas too?”
Busted. Why did he bother trying to hide things from his siblings? They all knew each other too well. Even though the special connection that everyone had noted was heightened between him and his twin Owen, they could all read each other like a proverbial book. “Digging helps clear the mind.”
“You keep up this kind of digging and you won’t have a mind left to clear.”
“Ha, ha.” He flashed a forced smile.
“Seriously, dude. You’re not going to be able to fix anything by messing up your lady’s landscape.”
“She’s not my lady.” Not that he wouldn’t love that, but his gut had told him that Sandra needed him to take things slow. Even though some days it killed him, slow and steady was his plan.
“Right.”
“She’s not.”
“Fine. She’s not. But that doesn’t change things. Stop overthinking and over digging.” Quinn stepped in closer. “Listen, it’s going to be okay. Declan and Grace are on top of all this. If the lady matters to you, then she matters to the whole family. We all have both your backs.”
“I know.” Resting his hands on the top of the shovel handle, Paxton nodded. “I appreciate it.”
Quinn pulled the shovel out from under him. “You go get the plants out of the truck. I’d better do the digging.”
A smile tugged at his cheeks. Of all his siblings, Quinn was the Sour Patch Kid. At first sour on the outside then sweet and chewy on the inside. No matter his expression, or gruffness, the whole family knew that Quinn had a heart of gold and would be the first one at their side in a moment of need.
With his brother’s help, Paxton had the two Fringe flowers anchoring the edges of the front porch planted, and now he was ready for the Dwarf Nandinas to line the front.
“Well, isn’t this a sight to see.” Ryan stood in the front walkway with his hands on his hips, his gaze darting from the newly planted shrub to Quinn. “How much did Pax have to pay you to pick up the shovel?”
Not easily goaded, Quinn merely rolled his eyes at their brother. “Quit yakking and grab the wheel barrow. There’s more to plant here and I bet Sandra would be really happy to see the front of her house done when she pops by later today.”
“Oh.” All teasing expressions washed away, and without another question, Ryan turned on his heel and searched for the wheel barrow. “Give me two minutes to let the guys inside know I’m shifting gears. Be right back.”
And just like that, Ryan was now doing exactly as Quinn had said. Because Sandra mattered to him, she mattered to them. No questions asked, if this was for Sandra, to make her happy, then his carpenter brother would roll up his sleeves and play with the dirt.
By the end of the morning, they had all the shrubs planted and Paxton was pouring mulch when he heard a small gasp. Straightening to his full height, he turned to see Sandra standing on the sidewalk, her eyes circled round and her hand on her mouth.
“It’s beautiful,” she muttered through spread fingers still covering her mouth. “I knew we were getting close, but didn’t realize it was this close.”
Shrugging one shoulder, he took a step closer to her. “I would still be digging holes if my brothers had not pitched in to help.”
“Doesn’t matter who did it. It all looks so lovely.” She swallowed hard. “And homey. Reminds me of the house I grew up in.”
He hadn’t given it any thought, but she was right. The traditional craftsman-like front of the small house was indeed very similar to the larger home she’d grown up in. Though he didn’t really remember the landscaping much.
Slowly moving forward, she looked at the angle and spacing of the Nandinas. More depth closer to the walkway and narrowing to a single shrub in the far corner before what would someday be a lovely burst of color from the full-grown Fringe flowers. “I can’t find the words.”
“No words needed. Your face says it all.”
She whipped around to face him and threw her arms around him for too-brief a moment before stepping away. “This is so much more than I ever imagined.”
“Glad you like it.”
“I love it.” She slapped her hands together excitedly. “Wait till David sees this.”
Not wanting to burst the joy of the moment, Paxton debated if he should ask if she’d heard from Ed. Looking at how her eyes sparkled and lips tipped up in a sweet smile, he opted to let it slide. If the jerk ever reached out to her again, she’d tell Paxton. At least he sure hoped so.
With every passing week, the house was looking more and more like a home. Inside, the raw cabinets in the kitchen had been installed. The next day the bathroom vanities had gone in. When the cabinets got painted and the countertops installed a few days ago, she couldn’t believe her eyes. But even the tiniest of apartments, when updated to television renovations show standards, was still an apartment. This, the plants and shrubs, the dirt and mulch, all surrounding a front porch, this screamed happy home. “I just can’t believe it.”
“Pretty soon you’ll get a key and it will be all yours.” Paxton stood grinning at her.
“Like I said, it’s almost too good to believe.”
“Then maybe I shouldn’t show you what we did in the back.”
Her jaw dropped and her eyes opened wide and her voice simply wouldn’t come. Instead, she merely nodded.
Paxton extended his hand to her and she happily threaded her fingers in his. Life simply couldn’t get any better than this. Well, she felt her cheeks heat, maybe life could get just a little better.
The screen door to the back porch slammed shut behind them and Paxton waved to the right. Hanging from the rafters, a solid wood swing hung.
“Ryan made it. He said every porch needs a swing.”
“I love it! How perfect. Ryan is a sweetheart.” Still holding onto his hand, she walked over and sat in the swing, tugging him to sit beside her.
With a shove of his foot, Paxton set them to rocking.
“This is amazing. From here I can watch David play on the porch or in the yard.”
“That’s the idea.” Paxton nodded. “We considered hanging it against the wall, but then you’d only see the yard. By putting it here at the end, you have a fuller view.”
“A perfect view.” Heaving out a contented sigh, she pushed to her feet. “I could sit all day, but tonight is Girls’ Night and I’m invited.”
“Oh.” Paxton’s smile slipped. “Where?”
“At Nora and Neil’s. They still live in the apartment over the clinic and Nora’s kicking your brother out for the night.”
Chuckling loudly, Paxton bobbed his head. “That would explain why Aunt Eileen was cooking so early this morning.”
“Yep. She’s expecting a crowd of Farraday men for dinner and time killing.” Wishing she could stay a little longer, she let go of Paxton’s hand and stood. “It’s such a pretty afternoon, I’m going to walk over. See you tomorrow?”
He nodded. “Tomorrow, but I can drive you over.”
“Nah. I’ve been eating too many homemade desserts. The walk will do me good.”
Slowly, she walked through the house, taking her time, looking at the pretty light wood flooring. For so long dark was popular but she really preferred the brightness of the lighter floors.
As she walked, she pondered the rooms, where to put furniture, what kind of pieces she’d need. How she’d decorate David’s room. Maybe find him a race car bed at a garage sale. Would be worth driving to Butler Springs for a good deal. Halfway to Nora’s, a horn tooted. Not till it tooted again did she think to look.
Grace had slowed and was easing up Main Street with the passenger window down. “Heading to Nora’s?”
“Yep.”
“Hop in. I’ll give you a ride.”
The few blocks left were no big deal, but she grinned at her old friend and climbed in. “Thanks.”
“I heard that Toni is bringing her cake balls. That means tomorrow you may want to walk everywhere twice.”
Sandra kicked her head back laughing. “That good?”
“Oh, yeah.”
The fun thing about longtime childhood friends was that no matter how much time passed, once they got together it was as if no time at all had gone by. They were still laughing merrily after Grace parked and they climbed the stairs to the apartment over the veterinary clinic.
“I heard them talking about moving to a real house.” Grace carried a bottle of wine. “I think that’s family code for their thinking of starting a family. Which will set Aunt Mariah off. That woman has a burr in her butt when it comes to Texas.”
Paxton had shared a little of the family rift, though he and his brothers didn’t really understand what it was all about. From inside, she could hear the ladies laughing. “Sounds like they’re having a good time already.”
“Always.” Grace had her hand on the doorknob at the top of the stairs when Sandra’s phone pinged.
Expecting it to be Paxton with some silly last-minute words of advice, her heart sank to her feet when the text from Ed came across her screen.
“What’s wrong?” Grace froze in place. “You’re as white as a sheet.”
Sandra couldn’t bring herself to read the text out loud; instead she handed Grace the phone.
“I see what you mean.” Grace read each word, her mouth twisting tightly as she reached the end. “So he’s coming next weekend.”
“That’s what he says now.”
“What you’re telling me is he could change his mind?”
“Or forget. If he’s drunk now, which would explain the expletives, he might not even remember he told me he’d be here to see David next Saturday.”
“If there’s a God in heaven, he’ll not only forget what he said, he’ll forget all about you two and fade away.”
“Not going to happen any time soon.” Drawing in a deep breath and blowing it out slowly, she slipped the phone into her purse and plastered on her best effort at a smile. “Shall we go inside and forget all about Ed Morton?”
“Sounds good to me. But,” Grace lightly rested her hand on Sandra’s shoulder, “whenever the jackass shows up, we’ll all be ready.”
That much Sandra Lynn understood, and was damn thankful for.