Valerie hadn’t laughed so much in years. Not only did Wade have a great sense of humor, but he was also a wonderful storyteller. She could sit and listen to him for hours.
“Tell the one about the mice, Daddy!” Issy said as her brown eyes lit up.
Wade laughed. “Why do you like that one so much?”
“Because it’s funny!” Her laughter filled Valerie’s dining room as Brayden started to giggle. Soon, Hailey and Valerie were laughing, too, though they hadn’t even heard the story.
When their laughter had subsided, Wade told the story. “I was doing a remodeling job for an older couple, and they told me they had an antique light fixture in their back shed they wanted me to install.”
“But when he opened the shed door, hundreds of mice ran out,” Issy said, laughing so hard she almost fell off her seat, which made all of them laugh harder.
“There were several nests in the shed,” Wade clarified, “and it wasn’t hundreds—but definitely dozens of mice. The older couple was standing there, and they both grabbed shovels and tried to whack the mice as they ran in all directions. They didn’t get a single one, but they sure looked funny trying.”
“Daddy, show them how they looked,” Issy said.
“No.” He shook his head. “Not today.”
“But that’s the funniest part!” she said.
“Maybe another time.”
“I’ll show them!” Issy jumped off her chair and began to dance around the dining room, causing more laughter.
Wade’s smile was warm as he put his hand out to stop her and direct her back to her seat. He was so handsome, but what appealed to Valerie more was that he was both masculine and gentle. He treated his children with tenderness, though he was also disciplined and firm. Valerie could look at him all day—but she realized she was staring and turned her attention to the kids around the table. Their laughter was the thing missing from her home all these years and she hated to see the evening come to an end.
“Okay, kiddos,” Wade said, “time to clear the table and fill the dishwasher. Miss Wilmington made supper. She shouldn’t need to clean it up, too.”
All three kids got up from the table and immediately began to clear the dishes—even taking Valerie’s.
“Wow,” Valerie said, “I could use your special touch in the school.”
He shrugged, and then said, “It was a great meal. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” She wasn’t quite ready to say goodbye, so she said, “I have a question. It’s about a project I’ve been thinking about.”
“Oh?” He leaned forward, resting his arms on the tabletop. “What kind of project?”
“It’s outside. I’m not sure there will be enough time left this season to work on it, but I’d like your opinion.”
“I can take a look at it now.”
“Okay.”
They went into the living room to grab their coats from the hooks by the front door. After they were ready, she led him back into the dining room where Brayden was taking the cups off the table and then they went into the kitchen where the girls were filling the dishwasher.
“Wow,” she said to them. “You guys look like you know what you’re doing.”
“We do,” Issy said as she grinned.
“We’re going to step outside for a minute,” Valerie told them. “Leave the big dishes for me to hand-wash, okay?”
“You got it,” Hailey said.
Valerie flipped on the backyard lights and then opened the door. Wade followed her outside.
The air was cold, and the snow was gathering on the ground, falling lazily from the sky. It was silent as it came to rest on the grass and the branches of the bare trees.
“I hadn’t really thought about fixing it up before Hailey moved in,” Valerie said as she walked across the yard and pointed at a large maple tree in the back corner. “But I’d love to know if it’s possible.”
A tree house sat in the branches and looked like it hadn’t been used in over a decade.
“That’s an impressive tree house,” Wade said as he walked under the tree and looked up toward the structure. He was wearing a stocking cap and had his hands in his pockets for warmth. A cloud escaped his lips as he breathed the cold air.
Valerie had the opportunity to admire him as he gazed at the tree house.
It surprised her that he had a degree in music composition. She’d assumed that he had gone to school for carpentry work—or perhaps hadn’t gone to college at all. Why hadn’t he pursued a job in his degree? Was it because of his kids? There was so much about Wade Griffin that made Valerie curious, and the more time she spent with him, the more he surprised her.
“What are you thinking?” he asked as he turned his gaze back to her.
Her lips parted and heat warmed her cheeks—did he want to know what she was thinking about him? She could never tell him.
“What would you like to do with the tree house?” he clarified.
She let out a relieved breath and chuckled to herself. “First, I’d like to know if it’s safe and stable enough for Hailey to use and, if it is, I’d like to fix it up. Maybe put on a new roof and repair any rotten boards. Things like that. How long do you think it would take?”
“A good couple of days,” he said as he joined her again. “I could get it done in a weekend.”
“Really?”
He shrugged. “Sure.”
“Is it too late in the season to work on it?”
Wade shook his head. “No. It might be a little cold, but I work outside most of the year, so I’m used to it.”
She wrapped her arms around herself for heat and asked, “Would you have time to get it done soon?”
He took a second to think and then nodded. “I could probably work on it this weekend.”
“That soon?”
“If you’d like.”
“I’d love that.”
“Great.” He smiled. “I can be here on Saturday morning.”
“Wonderful.” She motioned toward the house. “Let’s get back inside and into the warmth.”
They returned to the kitchen and found the kids still hard at work cleaning up supper.
“What were you doing out there?” Hailey asked them.
“Mr. Griffin is going to come over this weekend and work on the tree house for us,” Valerie said.
Hailey’s eyes opened wide. “Can Issy have a sleepover this weekend?”
Wade and Valerie looked at each other and Valerie started to shake her head. “I’m not sure about sleepovers, yet.”
“Please,” Hailey begged. “Mom let me have sleepovers all the time before I came here.”
“We can talk about it later,” Valerie told her.
“But I want her to sleep over.”
“Hailey.” Valerie wasn’t used to children talking back to her or disobeying her orders. As a principal, children generally respected her wishes and rarely pushed back. Hailey seemed to push back almost every decision Valerie made.
Wade offered Valerie an understanding smile and said, “I’ll plan to be here on Saturday morning around eight.”
“Can Issy at least come over when her dad comes?” Hailey asked, dejected—and yet hopeful.
“Of course. Both Issy and Brayden are welcome to come over while their dad is here.”
The girls cheered and Brayden got down on the floor with Annabelle and said, “Did you hear that, girl? I’m coming back to play with you on Saturday.”
Wade took off his coat and put it on the kitchen stool and began to roll up his sleeves. “I’ll help with those dishes before we head home.”
“It’s not necessary,” Valerie protested.
“I insist.” He went to the sink and began to fill it with warm, soapy water. “You made supper. The least I can do is clean the dishes.”
She smiled. “As long as you let me help.”
“I’d love your help.” He returned her smile.
The kids ran off to keep playing while Valerie stepped up to the sink next to Wade and began to rinse and dry the dishes he washed.
They worked in companionable silence for a couple minutes, catching each other’s gaze from time to time and smiling.
“Do the kids get to see their mom very often?” she asked.
He was quiet for a moment, and she regretted that she’d asked him a personal question. She hadn’t been forthcoming when he asked her about Hailey—what made her think he’d want to talk about his ex-wife?
“They haven’t seen her since she left. I send her pictures, and she sends gifts for their birthdays and Christmas, but she’s not part of our lives.”
She heard the disappointment and pain in his voice, so she said, “I’m sorry.”
He let out a breath. “I’m sorry, too, but I think it might be best this way. Amber didn’t want to be a mom. We found out she was pregnant during our senior year of college. Both of us were able to graduate, but we had to work hard to make ends meet. Amber was a theater major, and she wanted to pursue a career on stage or film. We found ourselves barely hanging on when Issy was born. Then, Brayden came along, and it was too much for her. She went to California to try to break into the movies and I came back to Timber Falls to raise our children.”
His story was similar to hers, in that they both had to deal with unexpected pregnancies. She wanted to share her experience, to let him know she understood—but she didn’t want to betray Hailey’s trust. Especially this early into their relationship.
“The children miss her,” Wade continued, “but I’ve tried to explain it as best as I can. I don’t hide anything from them. When they have tough questions, I don’t shy away from the difficult answers. I believe the truth is always the best approach—no matter what the situation. It might be hard and painful, but keeping things hidden never works. Amber hid things from me all the time and it destroyed me.”
His words hit her right in the gut, and she held her breath. She opened her mouth to tell Wade the truth about Hailey—but the words caught in her throat. She didn’t owe Wade an explanation about her daughter or her situation. It was between her and Hailey. As soon as Hailey was ready to tell the truth, she would tell the world that she was her daughter.
Until then, she’d hold the truth close. It wasn’t the same as lying—was it?
Wade was still smiling an hour after he left Valerie’s house as he helped Issy and Brayden get ready for bed. The evening spent with the Wilmingtons had been good for all three of them. Wade hadn’t smiled so much in so long, his cheeks hurt. Issy hadn’t stopped talking about Hailey or the bracelets they’d made. And Brayden told Wade about all the tricks Annabelle could do. The little boy had wanted a dog for so long, the time spent with the small poodle had filled the empty place inside him. At least for a short while. No doubt he’d be bugging Wade for a dog again soon.
“Daddy,” Issy said as he walked into her room at bedtime, “can we pray for Hailey and Miss Wilmington tonight?”
“Of course we can,” he said as he pulled back her princess bedspread and she climbed in. “We can pray for anyone we want, any time we want.”
“Not just for our family?” she asked.
“Prayers aren’t reserved for just family.” He chuckled. “Is that what you thought?”
She nodded as she pulled the covers up to her chin.
He moved her hair—damp from her bath—off her forehead and smiled at her. “God likes to hear about all the people we care about—and sometimes, even the people we don’t care about. All of them are part of His family.”
Her brown eyes were contemplative as she squinted. “Do you love Mommy?”
The question caught him off guard as he sat on the bed next to her, but he recalled the conversation he’d had with Valerie earlier. He didn’t shy away from the tough questions. “What makes you ask that?”
“You always tell me to pray for her, but you don’t have a nice face when you talk about her, so I thought maybe she’s one of the people you don’t like that we pray for.”
Wade took a deep breath and clasped his daughter’s hands in his own. “Yes, I love your mommy. Not in the same way I used to, but she will forever be a part of my life, because she is your mommy. That makes me care about her.”
“What about Miss Wilmington?” Issy asked next, searching his face. “Do you care about her?”
He shook his head at his little matchmaker. “I don’t know Miss Wilmington very well, but I care about her because she’s your principal and that makes her important in your life. Anything that’s important to you is important to me.”
“She’s very pretty.”
“Isabel Marie Griffin,” he said in a teasing voice that also had a hint of warning, “I know where you’re going with this.”
“What?” Issy asked. “Don’t you want another wife?”
“Right now, I’m happy just being a dad.” Even as he said the words, he knew they weren’t completely true. He missed the companionship of a wife. Someone to share both the highs and lows of life. The responsibilities and the privileges. And the intimacy and connection.
“I want a mommy,” she said, playing with the edge of her bedspread, her voice sad.
Wade’s heart broke as he placed one hand on Issy’s cheek. “I’m sorry you don’t have a mommy, Issy. If I could change that for you, I would. But you have Grammy and lots of ladies at school and church who love you.”
“But you can change that for me.” She looked up, excitement in her eyes. “Miss Wilmington doesn’t have a husband. I know. I asked Hailey. And now that Hailey is living with her, I could have a mommy and a sister.”
“It’s not that easy, Bug,” he said with a sigh.
“Can you at least try?” she asked. “For me?”
He shook his head again. “You need to say your prayers and go to sleep.”
“Okay. But I’m going to pray for Miss Wilmington that she can become my mommy.”
He wanted to groan, but he wasn’t about to tell his daughter what she should pray for. He just hoped she wouldn’t tell Valerie what she was doing.
After Issy’s prayers and then Brayden’s in the next room, Wade walked down the hall to the kitchen.
His home was a main level with a walkout basement that faced the Mississippi River. There were three bedrooms on the main floor and two in the basement with a family room. Someday, when the kids were older, he might let them move into the basement, but for now, he liked having them on the main level where he slept.
The house was quiet as he walked to the large picture window looking out at his backyard and the river. Snow was starting to pile up. It clung to the tree branches and covered the deck and grass. He stood for a long time and just looked outside, his thoughts going in several different directions, but always coming back to Valerie Wilmington.
He couldn’t lie to himself and say that he didn’t find her attractive. But he also knew that he couldn’t let himself fall for her. It had taken years for him to heal the broken pieces that Amber had left behind, and he wasn’t sure he could do it again.
On nights like this one, when his spirit was unsettled, he itched to play his guitar and get lost in the melodies. But it had been a while since he’d taken his instrument out of the case.
Maybe it was time.
He went into the basement where he kept his guitar and gingerly removed it from the case. It took a couple of minutes to tune the strings and then he ran his fingers over them, closing his eyes at the sound.
He had written several songs in high school and college and played a few from memory. Then he played some of the more popular songs and a few that they sang in church each Sunday.
As he played, his fingertips began to ache, but his heart felt light for the first time in months.
This is where he belonged. This is what his soul yearned for. He needed to make music, to fill his heart with the melodies of songs that inspired him.
If only he could have found a way to have both his music and an income to provide for his family.
But regret wasn’t healthy and after the last chord was played, he returned the guitar to its case and closed it.
Just like everything else, there was a time and a place for dreams. And his had come and gone.
Maybe someday, when his kids were grown, he’d find a way to make music again. For now, he was thankful for a steady job, healthy kids and new friendships.
As he climbed into bed later, he felt excited to wake up and go to work for the first time in a long time and he knew why.
He’d get to see Valerie at the school again.
He closed his eyes with a smile on his face, as new dreams began to fill his sleep.