“Well, it will only be for four weeks, sweetheart. Then I’ll have to go back to work.”
“Where do you work?”
“Downtown. Maybe I can take you down there one day, and we could have lunch.”
“Will Daddy go with us?”
“No. He’ll be working here. But we’d be back before he finished work. We’ll talk to him about it.”
That was one conversation she dreaded.
THE WEEK PROGRESSED quietly. Lauren did her grocery shopping and made her trip to the art supply store at night, not testing Jack’s patience about taking Ally out in the car.
On Friday, her day was spent in the kitchen, with Ally beside her, supposedly helping, getting ready for dinner that night.
“Who is coming?” Ally asked again.
“My baby brother, the one who used to use the desk.”
“Is he my age?”
“No, he’s almost twenty-two.”
Ally’s eyes got large. “That’s lots older, isn’t it?”
“Yes. He lives in his own apartment, and he’s bringing a friend who lives there, too.”
“Aren’t you making a lot of food?”
“Yes, I decided I’d freeze some for later.”
Ally gave her a confused look.
“You know, like ice cream. It stays good until you thaw it out.”
“Oh.”
It was just before noon when Lauren finally slid two large casserole dishes into the oven. “Now we need to fix lunch. Your daddy will be hungry.”
“Me, too.”
Lauren made roast beef sandwiches and sent Ally to call her father. The child came running back down the hall.
“Daddy said in a little while.”
Lauren took Ally’s hand and went back down the hall. As she suspected, Jack was working away, with no knowledge that he’d said no to lunch.
“Jack?”
“Uh-huh?”
“I want you to come to lunch. It’s all ready.”
“Just a minute,” he muttered.
“Do you need some help?”
“Yeah, can you come hold this in place while I nail it?” he asked, still focused on his work.
Lauren did as he asked. She didn’t realize quite how close she would have to get to him. But as she held the wood, his arms went completely around her to nail it in place. His rock-hard chest pressed against her, leaving her no avenue of escape.
She couldn’t help wonder what it would be like to have his arms around her for real, pulling her into a kiss.
“Okay, now we can go.”
His words cut into her heated reverie. “Go where?”
“To lunch. You said it’s ready now.”
“Right.” That was why she’d come into the office in the first place. Somehow she’d gotten sidetracked.
Ally took his hand. “I’ll show you, Daddy. Lolly’s been cooking all morning.”
He looked at Lauren. “We don’t need anything complicated for lunch.”
“No, I’ve been cooking for this evening. My brother and his friend are coming over for dinner.”
He stared at her. “You can cook?”
“Of course I can. My mother taught me a lot of recipes before she died, and I’ve learned others. Did you think I ate out every evening?”
“I know professional women who do that.”
They had reached the kitchen and the aroma of roast beef lingered in the air. He noticed it at once, his gaze going to the plate on the table. “We’re having roast beef?”
“Yes, is that a problem?”
“Not at all. I love roast beef.”
“Good. Ally thought you did.”
She finished pouring glasses of iced tea for the two adults and milk for Ally. “Okay, Ally, you can say the prayer for us.”
The child did so and then beamed at her father. “It’s a good lunch, isn’t it, Daddy?”
“You bet, honey,” he agreed after taking his first bite. “It’s wonderful. I think I may owe more than five dollars for this one.”
“It’ll average out. Besides, I froze a lot of it.”
“Like ice cream, Daddy.”
“Yeah, I do that, too. Some days, I don’t feel like cooking, but Ally needs a good meal.”
“Yes, she does.”
“Lolly made something else with chicken in it,” Ally said, frowning as she tried to remember what it was.
“Chicken spaghetti, sweetie.” She looked at Jack. “It’s my brother’s favorite.”
“I’ve never heard of that.”
“It’s a casserole that my mother made. All the kids love it.”
“Ah. Down home food.”
“Yes. When one of them asks for that, I know something’s up.”
“So what’s up tonight?”
“The friend is female. He says she doesn’t eat enough and he wants me to feed her. I think he wants me to meet her, but he doesn’t want to say it’s something important.”
“How old is he?”
“Almost twenty-two. He’s the baby.”
“Have any of your other brothers and sisters married?”
“No, none of them.”
“You know, at twenty-two I fell in and out of love every other month. I wouldn’t attach too much to this visit.”
“Maybe. But James makes good decisions.”
“Are any of your other siblings coming this evening?”
“No, just James. One brother, Steve, is in the army and doing his training. The two oldest, Bill and Barry, don’t expect me to cook for them anymore. My sisters are twins, twenty-five. Regina works for a dress designer. We call her Reggie. And her twin Virginia, who we call Ginny, is working on her master’s in history, hoping to go on for her doctorate.”
“If she can afford that, she’s doing well.”
“She works as a waitress to supplement her share of the insurance money.”
Jack just shrugged his shoulders. “That’s not easy. I know what it’s like to have two jobs.” He nodded at Ally. “Speaking of which, I’d better get back to the paying one.” Thanking her for lunch, he went back down the hall to work.
After Lauren put Ally down for her nap, she set the table for dinner for three, wanting everything perfect. She’d even bought fresh flowers the night before for a centerpiece. Now she did the arrangement and put it in the middle of the table.
She chose some soft music on the stereo to play during dinner. Just as she was moving away, they broke into the music for a weather alert. Bad weather was moving into the metro area that evening. Possible thunderstorms, even the threat