Katie Sara didn’t sleep well. Every night sound, every shifting of the house brought her to full wakefulness. By the time the sun’s golden crown peeked over the horizon, she stood in her kitchen, first cup of coffee already in hand, debating what to have for breakfast. Nothing appealed to her.
“Why don’t we sit on the porch swing for a bit, Chia? Maybe catch a catnap.” She glanced at the wall clock. Three hours before school started. “Criminy! There’s certainly plenty of time.”
Across the street, Philomena waved Marge to the window. “She’s certainly up with the roosters this mornin’, isn’t she? Looks tired, too. Had a tough week, that one.”
“Sure has. Ralph’s daughter turned out real good, didn’t she?”
“Yes, she did.” Without another word, she held out her cup. Marge topped it off, and the two took up their stations.
“Think he’ll come this mornin’?”
“Bet you a box of Poligrip he will. This’ll be his last drive down our street, though, by golly. There might not be anything legal we can do, but we’ll sure as heck let that no-good Mornin’ Malefactor know we’re fed up with him and his racket!”
Philomena stared out at their handiwork. “Stringin’ those cowbells across the street like that’ll send the darned fool a clear enough message. Them bells’ll ring loud as the ones in London the day our sweet Prince Harry got married.”
“And I, for one, can’t wait.” Marge rubbed her hands together like a little kid on Christmas morning.
Reiner zipped his jeans, pulled a ratty, old T-shirt over his head, and padded barefoot across to Felicity’s room. She slept like the dead.
That whole deal with those boys and Katie Sara didn’t sit well with him. He’d been uneasy all night. He should have gone to their houses and knocked their heads together or at least have followed her home and scoped out the house for her.
He snorted. Yeah! As if she’d have allowed that! When snow fell in Miami, maybe. Still, he, for one, would have slept a heck of a lot better.
Well, nothing to stop him now. He’d hop on his bike and take a quick ride past her place just to make sure everything was okay. She’d never know, and he’d be back in plenty of time to wake Felicity and get her off to school.
Carefully locking up behind himself, he headed to the garage, backed his bike out, and wheeled it to the street before firing the ignition.
The relatively cool morning air felt good. He’d forgotten how much he enjoyed this time of day. Maybe he’d do this more often. He laughed. Yeah, like that would happen. Tomorrow, he’d be right back under those covers when the sun came up—and loving every minute of it. He’d been born for the night. Morning didn’t cut it. Not on a regular basis.
He idled past sleeping houses, aware babies slept, maybe along with tired mamas who’d been up with them all night. Until a couple of days ago, he might not have given that a thought, but now he found his mind veering onto strange paths.
His life wasn’t anywhere close to what he’d thought it would be. A year ago, he’d been at the top of his game. The difference between who he was then and who he was now? There were no words. He’d been bitter when the injury had taken him down and out, but he’d come through it.
Now, here he was. Jock turned Mr. Mom.
The most amazing thing about it, though, was that it wasn’t all that bad. And that scared the heck out of him. Maybe Auntie Bel would babysit tonight and he could go grab a few beers, play some pool...
Turning onto Wedgewood, he focused on Ace’s house. Was somebody on the porch?
An explosion of loud metallic clanging, and his bike skidded out from under him. What the hell? Stunned, he found himself sprawled on the pavement, one leg pinned beneath his Harley.
A second of shocked silence was followed by absolute pandemonium. A shrill scream to rival any steam whistle erupted from the house across from Katie Sara’s. The ensuing hullabaloo was like something out of an old Laurel and Hardy movie...and he, unfortunately, seemed to have been cast in the starring role.
Two women dressed in brightly flowered housecoats flew toward him like whirling dervishes. He tugged at his leg, praying he could free himself before they reached him, unsure what they might have planned.
Katie Sara jerked upright at the noise, dumping both Chia and the coffee. “Oh, jeez.” She held her damp robe away from herself, then looked toward the street. “Oh, no! Reiner!”
She tore down the steps.
“What have you done?” Katie Sara stared at her neighbors.
By now, Philomena and Marge, both out of breath, stood beside Reiner and his bike, panting and wringing their hands. Marge started to cry.
“Why are you cryin’? I’m the one bleedin’.” Reiner rested his head on the handlebars of his bike. “What in the hell is goin’ on?”
“We...” Marge hiccupped. “We...were tryin’...to catch the Mornin’ Malefactor.”
Philomena put her arm around the much shorter, much rounder Marge. “He’s got to be stopped, and we didn’t know what else to do.” She waved a hand at the snarl on the street. “It’s only some string and cowbells tied to a couple wooden stakes.”
Her shoulders slumped. “We figured it’d catch on the car bumper and drag along behind him. Just so he’d know we’d had enough.”
Marge’s lip trembled. “We never meant to hurt anybody.”
“Katie Sara, if you’d help me up.” Reiner grunted, pushing at his bike. “I can’t get any leverage here.”
She helped him free his leg, relieved when he stood. Nothing seemed broken. Together they righted his bike. As he looked it over, she was truly afraid he might break down and cry.
Cursing, he wheeled it into her drive. “Can I use your phone? Mine’s gonna have to be replaced. I had it in my pocket when I went flying.”
He looked back at his Harley. “Barnie’ll need to take this to his garage on the flatbed. Maybe you could drop me at my place, so I can get Felicity up for school.” A muscle worked in his jaw as he struggled with his temper.
“We’ll pay, Mr. Broderick.” Philomena trailed behind them.
“Yes.” Marge tagged along. “Whatever it costs to repair your, ah, motorcycle.”
“That’s all right. My insurance will cover it. But take my advice and don’t pull this little stunt again. Somebody could get hurt.” He flicked a loose flap of denim on his torn jeans. “Seriously hurt.”
“Speaking of,” Katie Sara said. “You’re bleeding. Why don’t you come inside and let me clean you up?”
Marge sniffled again.
About to say something, Reiner stopped as Eye of the Tiger rumbled down the street at window-rattling volume. Hands on his hips, he watched a car nose into view.
“Ladies, if you’ll allow me, I’d like to take care of this.” He limped into the street.
A shocked Judge William Cavanaugh III jammed on his brakes. “What in blue blazes do you think you’re doing, Broderick? You’ll get yourself run over standing in the middle of the road like that.”
Reiner hobbled to the car to lean in the driver’s window. Without ceremony, he reached across the judge and hit the stereo’s off button. “You’re disturbin’ the peace.”
Flustered, Cavanaugh said, “I most certainly am not.”
“The ladies all say differently.” He waved his hand to take in Philomena, Marge, and Katie Sara.
When the judge saw Katie Sara, he blanched.
“Seems I wandered into a trap these two,” Reiner nodded toward Philomena and Marge, “set to catch the culprit. Now I’ve got a banged-up Harley, along with some cuts and bruises. My pride took a pretty big hit, too, while I was skiddin’ across the pavement. Hell of a way to start the day. All because you decided to break the law.”
“I understand.” The judge’s mouth set in a tight line. “I’ll pay for whatever damages you’ve incurred.”
Reiner turned to them. “Damn right he will, won’t he?”
They nodded, eyes wide in mute, relieved assent.
“Guess even the best of us have lapses when it comes to sagacity and good sense, don’t we, Judge?” Katie Sara wrapped her robe tightly around herself. “Some of us are fortunate and find more forgiveness than others.”
Pain crossed her face. She glanced at Reiner and the sorrow deepened before she looked away.
Not for the first time, he worried. Something was very wrong, but darned if he had a clue. Women sure were complicated.
“You’re right, Katie Sara.” Reiner backed up as Judge Cavanaugh opened the door and got out of his car to face the three women. “I apologize to all of you. I’ve sat the bench a lot of years. Probably too many. Some days I find it difficult to face the courtroom with its weighty procedures and responsibilities. I’m afraid those are the mornings you’ve heard my, uh, war song, as it were. My way of pumping myself up, convincing myself I can still do the job.”
He picked up one of the cowbells and rattled it. “Maybe I can’t. Maybe it’s past time I retire.” He handed Philomena her now-dented bell, then slowly folded himself back behind the wheel.
“Send me the bill, Reiner, and believe me, I am sorry.” He met Katie Sara’s eyes. “For everything.”
With that he drove away, leaving the four standing in the middle of the street.
Reiner threw his arm around Katie Sara. “Let’s go inside. I’ll let you play nurse.”
Word of the talent show traveled like a rock star on a road trip. Within two days they had more acts than they could use.
“Don’t worry, Felicity. Sign them up,” Katie Sara said. “Believe me, some of the acts won’t get it together, and it’ll end up perfect. Otherwise, you’re liable to fall short.”
“Okay.” Felicity sounded far from convinced but followed her advice.
Since they only had a week from start to finish, they wasted no time. Rehearsals went on in the auditorium while others designed and constructed sets in the cafeteria. Felicity was bound and determined to make this a class act.
Katie Sara wiped sweat from her brow. The corner where she worked had grown hotter as the afternoon went on. Painting six-foot-high plywood daisies turned out to be a heck of a lot harder than she’d imagined. When Dru came up to her, she instinctively tensed, her gaze darting across the room to where Tim and Reiner sawed and hammered away on some sort of miniature house.
“Haven’t seen much of you lately,” he said.
“I’ve been swamped.”
He shook his head. “That’s not it. I wish it was, but you and I both know better, don’t we?”
Sadly, she nodded.
When he took her hand, she pulled it away quickly. “Dru, the kids—”
“Yeah, you’re right. Sorry.” He sighed, picked up a paintbrush, and took a couple swipes across a daisy’s leaf. “Katie Sara, I need to say this, to get it off my chest.”
Hands still, he kept his voice low, his eyes on her. “You’re like my every wish-upon-a-star come true. No matter how badly I want it, though, we’re not going to work, are we?”
She followed his gaze across the room. Reiner, in the far corner of the gym, his pro-football shoulders bulging, pounded nails with a vengeance.
“They say you never forget your first love. In this case, Katie Sara, I have to believe your first love is your only love.”
“Dru-”
“No.” He drew back and rubbed a spot over his heart. “I’ll survive.” A brave smile tugged at his lips. “Who knows? In a thousand years or so, I might even begin to get over you.”
“I’m so sorry. I never, ever meant to hurt you.”
“I know. We only had that one date, and you did nothing to encourage me.” He sent her a self-deprecating smile. “I let my own imagination do that. But you listen, and you listen good. If you ever need anything, I’m here for you.”
“Thank you, Dru. Right now, what I need is a friend.”
“I can be that.” He squeezed her hand.
Across the room, the hammering stopped. She caught Reiner’s glare and knew he’d like nothing better than to rip Dru apart, limb from limb.
Dru whistled under his breath. “Don’t go easy on him.”
“I don’t intend to, but to be perfectly honest, I’m not at all sure he and I have a future. We have a lot of problems to work out.”
“I’ll be here if he can’t come up with the winning answers.”
“Thank you.” With that, she headed toward unfriendly territory.
Reaching out to steady one of the boards Reiner was cutting, she said, “Let me help you with that.”
“Why?”
“Why?” She stepped back, stared at him, then spun on her heel. He caught her arm before she’d taken two steps.
“Let go,” she warned.
“Thought you were goin’ to help.”
“You obviously don’t want my help.”
“What’s up with you, Ace? What’s goin’ on between you and what’s-his-name? Call me old-fashioned, but I kind of thought the other night changed things between us. I know we didn’t talk about it, but when I’m sleep—”
“His name is Dru, and nothing is going on.” Her head turned one way, then the other, taking in those around them. “This isn’t the place for the rest of the discussion,” she hissed.
“Okay, I’ll give you that one. Let’s go back to the first part. It didn’t look like nothin’ to me over there with good old Dru. You two looked pretty chummy.”
“Oh, for—”
She’d forgotten how fast he moved. She’d barely taken a step when he caught her arm again. “Stay and help. Hold that end.”
He whacked a nail in place, then another. “What was so wrong with me in high school?”
“Excuse me?”
He leaned closer. “Read my lips, sugar.” He spoke clearly and slowly. “What was wrong with me in high school? Why’d I get such a bad rap? Take your mother. Why’d she think I’d be such a crummy influence on her sweet little girl?”
Her brows shot into her hairline. “Oh, come on. You intentionally went out of your way to earn that bad boy rep. You smoked, you drank—”
“Never during football season!”
“Oh, for crying out loud!”
“No! I’m serious. That shows discipline. I gave it all up during season.”
“Girls?”
His brows rose this time. Then he grinned. “You know first-hand better than that.”
She couldn’t control the heat that raced over her chest and face.
“Anyway, girls weren’t off-limits. The way I figure it, they’re part of physical training. Stamina.”
“Oh, please.”
“What?”
“Go away.”
“No.”
“No?”
“No, I was here first. I’m workin’ here.” Reiner looked to Tim for confirmation, but he simply shrugged and kept working.
“Don’t you two gang up on me.”
“Darlin’, no one’s ganging up on you. Tim didn’t say a word, right, Tim?”
Tim nodded and remained mute.
“Go away, Reiner.”
“I repeat, why?”
“Because...because I said so. If I say you go, you go.”
“Because it’s the rule?”
“Yes.”
“Good, because I never play by the rules, Ace. You oughta know that by now.”
She glared at him.
“If I go, who’s gonna finish this house for those two tap dancers? You?”
“Tim can do it.”
“Not by myself,” Tim said. “And don’t involve me in this.” He went back to measuring trim.
“Make yourself useful, Ace, and grab that board. Lay it up here. And quit poutin’.”
Under her breath, she called him every name she could think of, but remembering the senior citizens and the new furniture they’d be able to buy, she sucked it up.
Half an hour into an uneasy truce, Rhonda pulled up a box and sat.
Tim immediately set down his hammer. “Hey, lady. Lookin’ pretty.”
He dropped an easy kiss on her cheek, and Rhonda blushed. Katie Sara had to admit that her friend was looking pretty...and happy. Her cousin Tim! Who’d have guessed?
Rhonda held out a notebook. “I wanted to share with you what we have so far.” She waved for Felicity and Beth to join them.
“Okay. Nile and Homer at the Senior Center are building the smaller sets. Both were carpenters and are delighted to be able to do this. Matilda, Hannah, and Lydia will paint them. Maisie’s working with a group of seniors to make the wildflowers for the Weaver twins’ skit. Honestly, you should see them over at the center. They’re all so excited.”
Katie Sara turned to Felicity and Beth. “I am so proud of you girls. You’ve done an awesome thing here. On top of new furniture, you’ve given some of our elderly a sense of purpose and pride again.”
The girls giggled.
“I agree,” Rhonda said. “I’m proud of you, too.” She turned to a page of figures in her notebook. “I can’t tell you how much that check from your team means, Reiner. I did the math this morning, and everything we bring in will be profit.”
Reiner winced.
Katie Sara stared open-mouthed. “What?”
“He sweet-talked the owner of his football team into a contribution. Turns out it’s enough to cover all our expenses.” Rhonda beamed.
“Way to go, Broderick,” Katie Sara said.
“Don’t I get a kiss?”
She blew him one.
Felicity and Beth cheered her on. “Whoa! Go, Ms. McMichaels!”
“Yahoo, Ms. McMichaels!”
Katie Sara blushed, and Reiner threw back his head and laughed.
Rhonda cleared her throat. “Movin’ right along. The Bank of Paradox donated door prizes, and ladies from two of the churches will provide intermission refreshments.”
Ah, yes. Katie Sara loved it. Small town Americana. Bonding together to back a good cause. A small town big enough to forgive her father’s sin.
But would they forgive hers when they found out? She sincerely doubted it. That was her own demon to wrestle at two in the morning.
A whistle blew, and she nearly shrieked right along with it.
Rhonda grumbled. “Too bad Maisie doesn’t swallow that thing!” Then she stood and announced to the room in general, "Your backbreaking manual labor’s officially done for today.”
Everyone clapped and cheered.
“See y’all here tomorrow at one o’clock sharp,” she continued. “Thanks for your help. We sure do appreciate it. Those of you with an act, go home and practice!”
Corralling her two girls, she hurried back to Tim. Reiner wrapped the cord for his power saw. Wiping sawdust from his pants and shirt, he flagged down Beth and Felicity.
“Katie Sara, a bunch of us are gettin’ together at my place. Why don’t you join us? We’re goin’ to grill a couple steaks, throw together a salad. Keep it simple.”
“I don’t know.”
“Oh, come on,” Rhonda said. “The girls and I are goin’. It’ll be fun.”
Katie Sara looked at her friend, warmth radiating from her, happiness replacing the despair, and couldn’t find it in her heart to turn her down. “Just for a bit.”
“Good,” Reiner said. “Want to ride with us?”
“No, I should run home first, make sure Chia’s all right. After last night...”
His brows drew together.
“Whoa, wait a minute. What happened last night? You didn’t say anything this mornin’.”
She waved and headed toward her car. “I’ll be right behind you.”