“So what’s the story on the lady you saw at the wharf tonight?” Gramp tossed the question over his shoulder as he filled a glass with water at the kitchen sink. “I got an earful when I went to kiss Isabel goodnight a few minutes ago.”
Aaron frowned. Took another stab at threading the needle.
Weird how she’d gotten fixated on a woman she’d never met.
“What did she say?”
“That a pretty lady who looked sad was standing all by herself near Charley’s trailer. Isabel seemed worried about her.”
“I got the same impression. She mentioned her half a dozen times over the past couple of hours, before she went to bed. She seems to think the woman may have lost someone she loved too.”
“Don’t discount her instincts. Kids have keen intuitive powers.”
If Gramp was right, Isabel may also have discerned the tension in her parents’ marriage despite their efforts to shield her from it.
He pushed that nagging worry aside for now and squinted at the eye of the needle as he made another attempt to thread it. “I don’t know why she’s obsessing over a stranger.”
“Could be she sensed a kindred spirit.” Gramp took a sip of water and motioned to Isabel’s jacket. “Button come loose?”
“Yeah. And mending isn’t my forte. These fingers are used tohandling logs, not tiny needles.” The thread went through the eye. Finally. “How was your dinner?”
“Very pleasant. We solved all the world’s problems over pizza at Frank’s. Not that any movers or shakers care to hear our opinions.”
Aaron knotted the thread and picked up the jacket from his lap. “I’m not a Washington power broker, but I’ll be happy to listen to your ideas.”
“I appreciate that. But I have more important news to share that hits closer to home. I stopped to get gas on my way back and had a chat across the pumps with Steven Roark. Did you know Helping Hands is planning to do another musical this summer as a fundraiser?Oklahoma, to be specific.”
“No. Who came up with that idea?” Likely not Steven. The ex–Delta Force operator who’d taken the job as the charitable organization’s director a few years back didn’t come across as the musical type.
“Someone on the Helping Hands board. He didn’t name names. I got the feeling he was leery about the whole idea until his wife convinced him it would be a wholesome summer activity a lot of locals could get involved in.” Gramp leaned closer. “Including kids.”
Ah.
“You’re thinking Isabel might be interested in joining the cast.” Aaron looked up, missed the hole in the button, and stifled a rude word as the sharp point of the needle pierced his finger.
“If we encouraged her. I might even sign up myself.”
Aaron sucked off the blood beading on his thumb. “You haven’t been on a stage in years.”
“But I enjoyed it back in the day. And anything Helping Hands does is worth supporting, with all the charity work they take on. Besides, Isabel may be more interested in getting involved if we volunteer too.”
“We?” Paying more attention to his aim this go-round, he poked the needle through the hole in the button.
“You helped out with the last show a few years back.”
“Behind the scenes.”
“You could do that again. Make it a family affair.”
“I’ll have to think about it.” And try to figure out how to squeeze another commitment into his already overloaded schedule. “Who’s in charge of the production?”
“Katherine Parker agreed to direct it.”
“That makes sense.” A former Hollywood actress was the perfect person to take the reins. “But I imagine juggling the logistics of putting on a musical with the demands of her booming chocolate business will be a challenge.”
“She strikes me as an organized woman.”
“Who else has been recruited?”
