“Her cats never go out.”
“I see.”
Jesse doubted it. She really needed to try one more time. “Felicia’s very nice and good with animals…well, cats at least.”
“I’m sure she is.”
“She’s the town librarian. Every Saturday she has a story hour for the children. She’s quite good at reading to them. Nate loves to go. Maybe Cindy could go with him next Saturday.”
“I’ll see,” he said as though he wasn’t certain he wanted his daughter within a hundred yards of the neat freak whose house they were standing in front of, not a blade of grass out of place.
Nick finished his last leg lift and pushed to his feet. Sweat drenched him. Taking a towel and wiping his face and neck, he stared out the picture window that faced Jesse’s house. He saw her climb the steps to the deck and enter her kitchen, her movement a graceful extension of her lithe body. With her brown hair cut short and feathered about her face, her large green eyes and ready smile emphasized her pixie look.
He remembered the time he’d seen Jesse right after he’d finished his physical therapy exercises. He couldn’t believe it had only been five days ago. She was all Cindy talked about—besides her kitten and her new friend, Nate. Suddenly he seemed surrounded by Jesse and her family. And the last thing he needed or wanted was another woman in his life. He was still piecing his life back together after his accident and his unhappy marriage to Brenda.
He turned away from the picture window and limped toward the door, determined to accomplish two things this summer: get to know his daughter better and get back to being one hundred percent after the last operation on his leg. For two months he’d promised to devote himself to those two tasks. He could run Blackburn Industries from here for that short amount of time. He would have to leave the everyday affairs of his company to his capable staff, but he already had been doing that since the accident. Cindy needed this. He needed this.
“Daddy! Daddy!” Cindy slid to a halt, tears streaming down her face.
He knelt in front of her, the action intensifying the pain in his leg. He ignored it and clasped his daughter’s arms. “What’s wrong, princess?”
“Oreo’s gone!”
Jesse kneaded the dough, flipped it over and started all over again, shoving her palms into it. She pounded her frustration out on the soon-to-be loaf of bread. Still no one came to mind as a possible candidate for Nick and time was running out. He would only be here seven more weeks. Courting a potential wife didn’t happen overnight. Of course, it would help if he left his house more often. Then she might have a better chance of fixing him up with someone.
Who? That was the problem. She had been so wrong about Tara and Felicia. The third one was the charm. But who?
She placed the dough in a blue ceramic mixing bowl and covered it with a damp cloth. The doorbell chimed. She quickly washed her hands, then hurried to answer it.
The worry on Nick’s face prompted her to ask, “Is something wrong with Cindy?”
“Yes—I mean, no, not her exactly. Oreo. He’s gone. We can’t find him and she’s beside herself. You haven’t seen him, have you?”
“No.” She stepped out onto the porch and automatically scanned the area as though that would produce the errant kitten.
“I thought so, but I had to ask. I’m desperate. I promised Cindy I wouldn’t come home until I found Oreo. I’ve been up and down the street, along the lakeshore. Nothing.”
“What happened?”
“Oreo darted out the front door when Cindy came back from playing with Nate this morning.”
“I’ll get Gramps and Nate. We’ll come over and make some posters to put up around town. Cindy can help with them. It’ll make her feel better if she’s doing something.”
“When I left, she was in her room crying. She didn’t want to talk or do anything.”
“I’ll get the supplies we need and be right over.”
“What should I do in the meantime?”
“Hold Cindy.”
“I tried. She cried even louder.”
“That’s okay. Hold her anyway.” Jesse rushed back into her house to gather some poster board, markers and her family.
When they arrived at Nick’s house, Boswell immediately opened the door before Jesse had a chance to ring the bell. Silence greeted her as she entered. She hoped that meant that Cindy had calmed down.
As Boswell closed the door, the little girl, with Nick following, rushed into the foyer, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “You think we’ll be able to find Oreo? Daddy said you’re gonna help.”
The eager hopefulness in the child’s voice touched Jesse. She hated making promises she couldn’t keep, but it was hard not to say what Cindy wanted to hear. “If Oreo is in Sweetwater, we’ll find him.”
Heavenly Father, please help me find Oreo. Cindy has already lost a lot in her short life. I know I just made a promise I might not be able to keep. Please help me to keep this one promise.
“What if—”
Jesse laid her hand on the child’s shoulder. “No what-ifs. That’s wasted energy. We need to make some posters to put up around town and then form search teams to scour the area.”
“Then let’s get going.” Cindy took Jesse’s hand and dragged her toward the kitchen.
Jesse threw a glance over her shoulder at the rest of the group who remained standing in the foyer. “You heard her. Hop to it.”
The children sat on the floor in the kitchen and made posters while the adults used the counter and table. Cindy copied off Nate and drew a kitten that looked more like a dog.
Nick leaned close to Jesse and whispered, “Do you think this will help?”
Jesse got a whiff of his clean, fresh scent with that hint of lime. Her pulse rate kicked up a notch. This was a rescue mission, nothing more, she reminded herself and said, “I wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t. The people in this town are wonderful. When they hear that Oreo is missing, they’ll help look, too. This is the best way to get the news out. That and talk to whomever we see while we’re putting the posters up.”
Doubt reflected in his gaze, Nick went back to work, absently massaging his thigh.
“Is your leg bothering you?”
“Nothing I can’t handle.”
Jesse wondered about that as she studied the tired lines on his face and the pinched look he wore. He’d already been out looking for the kitten.
“I think it might rain later. I have more trouble when the weather is about to change.”
“Then we’d better hurry and get these posters up. We can probably put them in some storefront windows so if it rains it won’t matter.”
When the group was finished, Cindy wanted to go with Nate and Gramps while Boswell was going to check out the lake area again. Jesse and Nick decided to go in the opposite direction from the children and Gramps. They were all to meet at Harry’s Café on Main Street when they were through.
As they started to go their different ways, Cindy said, “Boswell, please don’t go near Fred and Ethel.”
The older man smiled. “I wouldn’t think of it, Miss Cindy.”
“Oh.” The little girl brought her hand up to cover her mouth, her eyes growing round. “What if Oreo went close to Fred