Janae had informed her she’d already approached her parents. Apparently they’d stammered and offered a whole litany of excuses—they’d retired to Florida because of Larry’s health, the gated community they’d settled into didn’t allow children, it would be best for Charlie to remain in familiar surroundings....
Margaret’s heart had ached for her friend. All these years Janae had been right. She’d always insisted that her parents really had only one child—her brother—and that she wasn’t that important to them.
Ty’s own family situation wasn’t much better. He’d been estranged from them for years. They’d sent a small plant for the memorial service.
“Charlie, honey, don’t press so hard against the glass,” Lexi called out to the boy but made no move to get up.
With an older child and a busy toddler at home, this was probably the only chance the social worker had to rest. Margaret stifled a smile and rose to her feet. She crossed the room, her heels clicking loudly on the hardwood. Normally she favored more comfortable clothing than the silver-blue suit and certainly more sensible footwear than high heels. But this had seemed an appropriate day to forgo comfort for something more stylish and businesslike.
She crouched down beside the boy, who had his nose pressed against the aquarium glass. “Which one do you like best?”
“The yellow one.” Charlie pointed to a large silver angelfish with a blanket of gold over the head and back.
“It’s very pretty.” Margaret resisted the urge to brush the tousle of chocolate-brown hair back from his face. “Do you remember me, Charlie? I’m Margaret. I was a friend of your mom.”
The boy turned to face her, his eyes a deep, dark blue. “Pastor says my mommy and daddy are with Jesus in heaven.”
Margaret took a deep breath and blinked back tears. The sermon at the funeral had been comforting, but it was still hard to accept that it had been her childhood friend lying in one of the two caskets at the front of the church. Heartbreaking to realize she and Janae would never laugh over the phone or Tweet pithy one-liners to each other.
Still, she believed the pastor when he’d said Janae and Ty were in a better place. Her friend had such a quirky sense of humor that Margaret had no doubt at this very moment she was livening up the heavenly throng with Ty cheering her on.
“Do you think they’re coming back for me?” he asked in a small voice.
“I’m afraid not,” Margaret said softly. She cursed her honesty when his eyes filled with tears and his bottom lip began to tremble. “But I know they’re still watching over you. And that they love you very much.”
“I want my mommy.” The boy’s arms stiffened at his sides and his hands clenched into tiny fists. “Bring her here. Now.”
Her heart rose to her throat. If only I could bring her back. And Ty, too.
Like a whirlwind sweeping across the plains, as quickly as Charlie’s anger flared, it disappeared and he began to cry.
Margaret wrapped her arms around him, murmuring soothing words and holding him tight. After several heartbeats he quit struggling. After several more she felt him relax in her arms.
From her own experience, she knew a little about what he’d be going through in the weeks and months ahead. She vowed to make this transition as easy as possible for him.
With his soft curls still pressed against her cheek, Margaret heard the attorney’s office door open. But she couldn’t move a muscle. The child had his arms around her, holding her as tight as a drowning sailor would grasp a life preserver.
“Margaret.” Ryan moved to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Lexi will take good care of him while we talk.”
“Charlie, I have something really cool to show you.” The social worker peeled the boy from Margaret’s arms. “The office down the hall has several gigantic fish.”
“Bigger than those?” Charlie pointed to the aquarium, his tears like little crystals on his long lashes.
“Oh, my goodness, yes. Way bigger.” Lexi held out her hand. “Come with me and we’ll go see them.”
The little boy hesitated, glancing at Margaret.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Margaret assured him. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
After a long moment, Charlie put his fingers in the social worker’s hand. “I wanna see the fishes.”
Lexi smiled at Margaret and gave the attorney a wink. “We won’t be long.”
Margaret watched them leave. Her heart warmed when Charlie returned her wave.
“I’m glad you could make it.” Ryan gestured toward his office then stepped aside to let her pass. “We’re waiting for one more but there’s some preliminary stuff we can get started on.”
Margaret smiled, finding it strangely refreshing to hear an attorney use the word stuff. She took a seat in front of his desk, wondering who it was Ryan was expecting. It hadn’t crossed her mind that anyone else would show up for the reading. “Did Janae’s parents change their minds and decide to stay in town a little while longer?”
“Nothing like that.” The attorney took a seat in the cowhide-and-leather swivel desk chair and offered her an easy smile.
Despite being thrown to the ground and stomped on by bulls weighing close to two thousand pounds, Ryan looked no worse for wear. His face was unscarred and his hair as dark and thick as it had been in school. He was a cute guy but Ryan had never made her heart skip a beat.
Back then, people who didn’t know him well had always confused him with Cole. Both had dark hair and slender, athletic builds. But Ryan’s eyes were a silvery-gray while Cole’s eyes were as blue as the ocean.
In her young, stupid days, Margaret had been convinced she could drown in Cole’s eyes. She resisted the urge to gag.
Ryan shifted in his seat and glanced at his watch. Tiny lines furrowed his brow.
If Margaret didn’t know better, she’d say he was worried. But that didn’t make sense. What did he have to be concerned about? Unless he thought she was having second thoughts about raising Charlie. Could he be afraid she was going to bail on the boy?
Margaret leaned forward and rested both hands on the edge of the desk. “Janae and I talked last year about her and Ty’s wishes, should anything happen to them. I’m fully aware she wanted me to—”
The outer office door jingled.
Ryan’s head jerked toward the sound.
Margaret paused and sat back.
Before she could say another word, Ryan leaped from his seat and rounded the desk. “I’ll get it.”
But he didn’t have time to reach the door before it swung open. Turning in her seat to gawk at the new arrival seemed a little gauche, so Margaret waited for the visitor to stroll into view.
“It’s good to see you,” Ryan said.
“I hope I didn’t keep you waiting long.”
Margaret froze. The man’s voice sounded all too familiar. She shivered as the sexy voice continued. “DFW got snowed in and all the flights backed up.”
She didn’t need to turn in her chair to know who Ryan had so warmly welcomed. Even after all these years, she recognized his voice. It was the same sexy rumble that had whispered sweet nothings in her ear when she’d been sixteen. The same husky voice that had shook with emotion when he’d pronounced her his sweetheart and given her a silver heart-shaped locket for Valentine’s Day. The same voice that she hadn’t heard again after they’d made love in the backseat of his old Chevy.