Austin hated that Savannah was so aware of their financial situation. But she’d been the one to help him figure out how to pay the bills online, and because Austin was a slow learner—except when it came to hands-on stuff—she’d had to help him for several months. She knew there was very little money left over after the bills were taken care of.
He retrieved the paper from the garbage can and sucked in a sharp breath. Without even reading the whole spiel concerning the camp, the amount of the tuition near the bottom leaped out at him. He resisted the urge to whistle.
Six hundred fifty dollars for an art camp!
His gaze roamed over the page. The tuition covered room and board for two weeks plus advanced art classes in several different areas. All in all, he supposed it was a good deal, but it was still a lot of money.
Savvy was right, they couldn’t afford it. Especially, since he’d scraped the money together last month for the boys to play soccer this spring. But she was such a gifted artist he wanted to give her every opportunity to develop her talents.
His dinner set in his stomach like a lead weight. He hated wanting to give his children something, but being unable to afford it. Christmas the last few years had been the worst. He looked up to find Savannah watching him.
His throat grew tight. “It looks like a great opportunity.”
A spark of hope lit her eyes as she turned away from the sink. “Ms. Jessie said that kids who participate in this program often end up getting a scholarship at WSU.”
Scholarship? Savvy was only a junior; why was she thinking about scholarships already?
Because she’s smart and she’s a planner.
And college was only a little over a year away. His chest tightened at the thought. He wasn’t ready for his little girl to grow up and leave home. Who would watch the boys when Savvy went away to school?
That sounded selfish, but he worried about it nonetheless.
And how on earth would he pay for college? If he was lucky, he’d get Cheyenne’s debts paid off this year, but that wouldn’t give him much time to save for college.
Fearing he was giving Savvy false hope, he put the paper up on the refrigerator with a magnet. “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll see what I can do.” He took note of the deadline date.
How on earth will I come up with an extra six hundred fifty dollars in three weeks?
He already worked overtime as frequently as he could, hence the reason Savvy had to take care of the boys so often.
It had been years since he’d donated plasma, but maybe it was something he needed to consider again. It wouldn’t give him six hundred dollars in three weeks though.
CHAPTER4
“Do you want to come to church with us this Sunday, Debbie?” Joy’s out-of-the-blue question echoed through Debbie’s head again.
Her sister had sprung the question on her while she’d made freezer meals with her mom and sisters yesterday, and something had tightened in Debbie’s chest. She’d felt the lack of church worship and fellowship in her life for some time now. Being angry at God for so many years hadn’t done her any good. It had only made her more bitter.
Letting go of the resentment she’d harbored for so long wasn’t easy though. And Debbie had said and done some things that had hurt others. Things she needed to make right before she could get right with God again.
She looked at the to-go containers on the seat beside her. Apologizing to Amy for the hurtful things she’d said to her years ago hadn’t been easy, and Debbie had ended up ordering two pieces of chocolate cake before she’d found the courage to say what needed to be said.
Of course, Amy had graciously forgiven her. Hopefully, Jessie Winters would be equally understanding.
Debbie got out of her new Escalade and entered the high school amid the rush of teenagers pouring out. She probably should have waited, but she didn’t want to miss Jessie. The art teacher had just returned to teaching this week after six weeks of maternity leave. If Debbie missed her here, she would have to go to Robert and Jessie’s home to make her apology, and she didn’t think she could handle that.
Not because she was jealous of Jessie winning Robert’s heart in a matter of months when Debbie had tried for years. Okay, so maybe she was a little jealous. But it was because Jessie had a baby, and Robert had easily accepted the role of father, even though the child wasn’t his.
That’s what Debbie had hoped for all along; to marry a good man who wouldn’t mind adopting a bunch of children. She figured that was the only way she’d ever get a family of her own.
Until her sisters planted the idea of becoming a foster mom in her mind. Being a single parent was not Debbie’s dream, but if she wanted a family at this stage of her life, she couldn’t sit around and wait for a man to show up.
Debbie made her way through the crowded halls to the art room. She stepped inside to find Jessie standing beside a pretty girl with strawberry blond hair, studying a canvas on an easel.
“I think you nailed it, Savannah. You could probably add a little more texture to the foam created by the waves here along the shoreline.” Jessie pointed toward the bottom of the painting. “But it looks amazing.”
Savannah tilted her head as she stared at the painting. “I thought I might have overdone it, but looking at the picture as a whole, I think you’re right.” The girl picked up her backpack and headed toward the door. “See you tomorrow, Ms. Jessie.”
