Joy stepped away from the window. “You must be Savannah. Debbie told me how amazing your painting is turning out. I’m sorry if we embarrassed you just now. Of course, you realize your dad is a handsome man.”
Savannah’s head jerked back; her brow furrowed, nose scrunched. She gave a disbelieving shake of her head.
“Ewww, Mom, stop.” Aubrey pulled Savannah back into the dining room.
Joy and Sheila grimaced at each other. Then Sheila headed down the hall, mumbling something about Lizzy and hormones.
Debbie bit back a smile—glad she’d curbed her impulsiveness this time.
She went to the fridge and started pulling out lunch meat and cheese.
I hope I have enough bread to feed this crowd.
Joy walked out the front door and returned a few minutes later with several bags of groceries. She’d not only brought the makings for a salad for the barbecue, she’d brought a vegetable tray, chips, and sodas for lunch.
Sheila joined them a short time later with more sandwich makings and stuff for a fruit tray.
As they laid out lunch, Joy turned to Debbie. “I’m so sorry about Noah.”
Debbie dropped the apple she’d been cutting and tapped her nails against the counter.
Don’t cry! Don’t cry!
Sheila stopped cutting the pineapple. “I’m sorry too, Deb. I guess it’s best you lose him now rather than later, after you’ve had more of a chance to bond with him.”
Debbie’s mouth dropped open. How could Sheila say that? Debbie had never expected to get to keep Noah, but shehadbonded with him the moment he fell asleep in her arms that first day. And she missed him like crazy!
Debbie turned and looked out the window, searching for a distraction. She needed fresh air or she’d end up saying something she’d regret. Spotting Cody sitting on the back patio with his elbows on his knees and head on his arms, she bolted for the door.
“I need to check on Cody.”
She closed the door behind her on Joy’s exclamation. “Sheila, how could you say that?”
Debbie sucked in a deep breath and dropped down on the step beside Cody. “What’s the matter, buddy?”
“Nothin’.”
Debbie stroked his back. “Come on, you can tell me.”
Cody finally lifted his head. “They won’t let me have a turn driving the remote-control cars.”
His wet cheeks pulled at Debbie’s heart, and a little burst of mama-bear anger shot through her. “They didn’t share at all?”
“The big kid gave me a turn, but when I crashed it into the tire of my dad’s truck, he took it away, and now, nobody will give me ‘nother turn.”
Debbie hugged Cody to her side. “I’m sorry, buddy. The boys are pretty possessive of their cars.”
This was the kind of parenting Debbie had little experience with. It felt wrong to force the boys to share their cars. If Joy and Sheila were out here, they would insist the kids take turns, but as an aunt, Debbie wasn’t sure it was her place. But she also didn’t know what to say to a child who felt excluded.
Cody’s posture remained slumped. “It’s not fair. Dallas and I asked Santa for remote-control cars for Christmas, and we were real good too, but we didn’t get them.”
Debbie’s heart split wide open as fresh tears filled Cody’s hazel eyes. Why didn’t Austin give his kids what they asked for? Did he consider gifts like remote-control cars frivolous? Some families were that way. Or could he simply not afford to buy his sons even the cheap cars?
With a father who worked as a handy man and a mother who worked in the school cafeteria, money had always been tight in Debbie’s family, but her parents always found a way to provide them with a nice Christmas. Granted much of it was homemade.
She gave Cody a squeeze. “It’s lunch time. How about we eat, and then we can swim in the pool.” Debbie usually visited with her sisters instead of swimming with the kids, but today, she’d had her fill of adults.
Cody burst to his feet. “Yay! And this time we don’t have to worry about keeping an eye on Noah.”
