Trudie reached out her hands, and Mark bundled Heath into them. He showed Trudie how to bring Heath up to her face so that he could use his hands to get to know the curves of her nose and her lips while she spoke to him.
Trudie chuckled as tears sparkled in her eyes. “He’s inquisitive, huh?”
Mark smiled slightly. “Yes, he wants to know everything about the world.”
“That’s a good thing, right?” Trudie laughed nervously as Heath grabbed at a hunk of her brown hair.
“It’s a very good thing.”
As his ex-wife played with Heath for the remainder of the afternoon, Mark pondered what it meant to be inquisitive. While they could gather information and make choices based on what they thought were logical reasons, they would never be able to control the shape of the world. That was God’s job. Mark realized that God worked in mysterious ways and that perhaps this situation was the plan He had in mind for Mark and Heath all along.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“You know, I’m rather looking forward to heading into the store,” Emmett said as he kicked a small rock. “You must be excited, too. You’re certainly setting a brisk pace.”
Layla slowed down a little. “Sorry,” she said sheepishly. She wasn’t paying attention to what she was doing; so many things raced through her mind at once. The moment they’d set out away from the house, her thoughts mingled together, and as she tried to work out her true feelings, she walked faster than intended.
“Eager to get away from the house or wanting to see the store?” Emmett asked with a tilt of his head, trying to gauge her reaction.
Layla shook her head, thinking through her response before answering. “Neither really. I’m just nervous.”
Emmett grunted, and his bushy gray eyebrows scrunched. “Why are you nervous?”
“I feel sorry for Trudie, so I asked Mark to take the time to speak with her. When she showed up this morning, I knew she was taking a chance by coming again so soon, and I prayed that Mark would be willing to listen to whatever it is she decides to say. Now, I just feel nervous because I don’t know what’s happening between them.” Layla sighed.
“That’s a whole lot of feelings,” Emmett said. “You seemed so calm when we were still at the house. From my point of view, I was rather worried about Mark. The man looked downright terrified of his ex-wife, but what do I know? Not sure how I’d react if I had to go through what Mark’s been through. But he’s tough, that one. I’m sure he’ll be able to handle it.”
“You think?” Layla asked, looking at her father squarely.
“Of course,” Emmett responded simply. “I may not know Mark Flint very well, but I do know one thing to be true about him: the man can handle just about anything.”
Layla smiled. “I agree. I’ll do my best to stop worrying. Let’s just try to have a pleasant day.”
“That sounds nice to me,” Emmett said and patted Layla lightly on the shoulder.
They made it to the store, and as they were about to enter, the red front door swung open. Layla grabbed her father’s arm to yank him out of the way before either of them would get hit by the door.
“Good morning,” Emmett said to the person leaving his store.
Collecting herself, Layla was about to greet the customer as well when she saw the ripe plum color of the dress, and she knew it was Eliza. “Eliza, hello!” Layla said brightly but faltered. As soon as Eliza stepped out the front door, she attempted to jam the key into the lock. “Why are you locking up so early?” Eliza’s hands were shaking, so Layla stepped forward and said slowly, “Eliza.”
The key almost dropped from Eliza’s hands as she whirled to see Layla and Emmett. “Layla! I’m so glad you’re here.”
Emmett cleared his throat, a startled expression on his face. It was not like Eliza to just look right over someone.
“Yes. Sorry, Mr. Fitzpatrick,” Eliza said, looking at Emmett but not seeming to see him.
“Eliza, what’s wrong?” Layla asked. It wasn’t that Eliza was leaving the store during the morning hours, but the look on her face that alarmed Layla. Usually, Eliza was so bubbly and cheerful, but her expression was drawn, and her face was pale.
Eliza fumbled with the key, so Layla gently took it from her. After locking the store, Layla handed the key back to Eliza, who trembled again.
“Eliza, please tell me what’s wrong,” Layla encouraged gently. “I’ve never seen you this upset, and you’re scaring me.”
Eliza took a deep breath. “It’s Jack.” Layla’s hand flew to her mouth. Mark hadn’t mentioned anything happening with Jack. She was sure her husband would have said something if Jack had been hurt on the job. Eliza quickly added, “He’s fine. He’s safe. But he’s done something … something just awful. I’m so ashamed.” She dropped her head into her hands, but she wasn’t crying.
“Eliza,” Layla said in a slow and soft voice. “What did Jack do? You can tell my father and me. We care about you, and we want to help you in any way possible.”
With a deep breath, she lifted her head and squared her shoulders. “Last night, Jack confessed that for the past few months, he has secretly been working with George Winn.”
