After the barn incident, Hailey and Jack worked at keeping their time together strictly business.
It wasn’t easy for Jack, since her presence was proving more and more to be a challenge to his heart. He knew he was getting a little too close. In his eyes, she didn’t have a clue how interested he actually was. And he had to admit, her resolve was impressive. Frustrating, but impressive.
Rinnie Holman was still civil. Mostly. And he woke up surprised every day that he was still here working with Hailey after four weeks. He had to start making calls to find another job. Soon.
One good thing was the Watson boys’ outbursts were loud but so far harmless, just like Hailey promised. And the work was more than rewarding.
Then Hailey approached him one morning with a request that tested the boundaries of his benevolence.
“You want me to do what?”
“Babysit. Just watch little Dee for me.”
“You want me to babysit?”
She eyed him as if her request was perfectly natural. “Yes, Jack. Just for a few minutes. Dee’s a great kid.”
“She’s a great kid, yes. But I can’t be responsible for a small child.” Jack knew his protests fell on deaf ears. He’d be stuck babysitting this little girl no matter how hard he fought it.
“I’m sorta in a bind, Jack.”
“Nothing personal against Dee, she spends a lot of time around here, and she’s definitely about as well-behaved as a little kid can be,” he added. “Not that it’s rocket science to keep an eye on a six-year-old, but it’s not in my job description, so no. No!”
“Oh, Jack, stop being dramatic. An hour, tops.”
“No. I’m a mechanic, remember? Not a babysitter. This isn’t a place for children to play. It’s dangerous around the hangar. All the tools she could get into … ”
“What do you suggest, then? That I send her back to her house? Carleen’s working the morning shift at the diner, and I sure don’t want Neal and Paul pretending to watch her.”
“Then take her with you.” His voice was somber. The last thing he wanted was for Dee to go back to her own house to be with those drunkards. But the next to last place he wanted her was stuck there with him.
Hailey persisted. “I would, and I usually do, except this morning I have an appointment for a check-up and my mom’s already gone into town for a meeting. Ms. Carleen didn’t plan on working this morning. One of the other waitresses called in sick. And besides, Dee wants to stay here with you. She likes you.”
He held his hands up in a hopeless gesture.
Hailey tossed him an understanding look. “Listen, Felicia only has one final to take this morning, so she’ll be home soon, and Mom shouldn’t be too long with her Friends of the Library meeting. Just hang in there for an hour.” She patted his shoulder before turning to leave. “You’ll be just fine.”
“And you wonder why I’m still gonna start looking for another job,” he called after her. At some point. Soon.
She waved at him and continued around to the garage. “You’re a big help, Jack. Now get back to work.” Her playful tone drifted back at him.
Jack watched as Hailey pulled her truck around and down the gravel drive, making a right turn and heading in the direction of town. Then he turned his attention across the yard to the little girl who’d been left in his charge.
Dee jumped from step to step across the back porch, brownish curls bobbing around her head.
What was he supposed to do with her? He’d never been around kids much. What if she had to go potty and asked for his help? At six? No, probably not. He supposed he could pour apple juice and fix a bowl of Cheerios if she got hungry.
He allowed a confident smile to ease across his face. Kids were kind of like miniature people, he reasoned. And Dee really was a likeable little kid. Spunky. Probably something like Hailey must have been when she was younger. If he stayed around much longer, it would be okay to spend some more time getting to know the little kid. He wanted kids someday. Maybe four. Hailey would be a great mom. He shook the thought off with a vengeance.
Stop thinking like that. He watched Dee chase a butterfly and he let out a deep sigh. Okay, this is the hand he was dealt and it would be fine. He just wished he knew more about what watching a child on his own entailed. Some warning would have been good. Not being thrown into the full care and responsibility of a little human being at a second’s notice.
Jack watched her hop to the bottom step and gather up some crawly creature from the ground. What would it be like to have a child of his own? He quickly chastised himself. Hailey wouldn’t even kiss him, so how did he suppose she’d consent to marry him and have babies?
The thought brought a crimson scowl to his face and he turned on his heel to march back into the hangar. The heat must be getting to him, he decided, fiercely resenting the way his own brain put thoughts in his head that were never going to happen. She’s told me enough times.
Jack threw himself back into his work, anxious to escape the uninvited thoughts rolling around in his mind. It was clear Hailey viewed him as nothing more than an employee. How many times did she have to remind him? A temporary employee, he should toss back at her. A mere distraction. That’s what she called me. A distraction. Man, if that doesn’t beat a guy’s ego, nothing will.
With a vengeance, he slipped a nut over the end of the bolt beneath the wing. And what do I care, anyway? It’s best for me, it’s best for her. It’s best for everybody. I don’t need feelings like that murking up my life. Like Hailey always says: Bad timing.
“I’ll just keep my distance from her. That’s what I’ll do. And that little bundle of energy bouncing around playing across the yard? I’d better not get too attached to her, either. I’ll definitely keep my distance. Hailey had better be right about her mom and sister returning soon. The sooner the better,” he muttered to the plane.
Jack busied himself with his work and before he knew it, over half an hour had passed. He craned his neck to see through the double doors of the hangar. No Dee in sight. Good. Felicia or Mrs. Holman must have returned and taken the little girl inside. They should have told him they were back, though.
He returned his attention briefly to his work. But a nagging concern for the little girl made him decide to check, just to make sure.
Hopping down from the wing, Jack plucked a towel from the workbench, wiping his hands as he stepped into the open doorway and scanned the backyard. Tucking the towel into his back pocket, he walked around to the front of the house.
He glanced in the garage. No cars. Maybe she was around the side playing with Kisses. A hurried look told him she wasn’t there, either.
There was no one around except the scattering of livestock gathering on the other side of the fence.
He cupped his hands around his mouth. “Dee? Dee! It’s Jack. Where are you?”
With no response, a ripple of panic started in his stomach. He wanted to kick himself for letting the child out of his sight. He knew kids needed to be watched. She was more important than whatever work he’d accomplished on the plane.
He strode hurriedly around to the front of the house. Maybe she had gone into the house for a drink. Maybe he’d find her sitting in front of the TV watching a square yellow sponge cartoon or those talking vegetables she liked to watch.
He stepped onto the porch and Kisses, who had been dozing in front of the door, rose to greet him. The dog’s thick tail beat against the side of the storm door.
“Hello there, Kisses.” He patted the dog’s head. “Seen Dee lately, fella?” He pulled on the door handle and stepped inside. His eyes adjusted from the bright sunlight to the dim quiet living room. “Dee?” he shouted into the house. “Dee!”
No answer met him, just the whirl of the air conditioning unit kicking on.
He stepped out and closed the door behind him, calling her name as he made his way across the porch and back down the steps. Kisses followed at his heels. “Where could she be, boy?”
Jack’s eyes searched the fields beyond the front gate. “Dee! Answer me!”
The same dead air met him. He patted Kisses on the back. “Stay here, boy. I’ll find her.”
He made his way through the gate and headed back toward the rear of the house. Where in the world could she be? Surely her dad couldn’t have driven up without him noticing and taken the little girl. No, he’d have heard that rattly old pickup. And Kisses certainly would have alerted the entire county of the unwelcome presence.
Maybe … his mind raced and a glimmer of hope filled him. Just maybe she’d gone out to that old flatbed trailer to play. That’s where she has to be. I’ll probably find her sitting on the rope swing, laughing and bouncing those little curls of hers.
Now a surge of hope pushed him forward and he found himself racing to the shady spot in the pasture where Hailey and Dee had taken him. The secret hiding place. He was sure glad she hadn’t kept it a secret from him.
Reaching the flatbed, his heart sank. No sign of her. He turned a complete circle and scanned the grassy pasture. Okay, God, this is what You do, right? You help lost people? He cupped his mouth again and shouted into the air.
He was about to turn to leave when a tiny voice called out.
“Help. Jack?”
The muffled plea came from beneath the trailer. He fell to his knees and peered into the low, darkened space. A tightness gripped his chest. “Dee!”
“Jack.” She sniffed loud. “I thought I had to be under here forever. My hair got stuck. It’s so hot under here! Jack, help. Pleeeease.”
He breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank God … thank goodness you’re okay.” His eyes focused on the little girl. Sure enough, from what he could make out, her hair was somehow wrapped around something beneath the trailer. The tightness in his chest intensified. “Can you reach up and unwind your hair, Dee?”
She burst into tears.
“Okay, okay, maybe not.” He surveyed the situation further. “You just hang on, Miss Dee, I’m going to take care of everything.” He stood and grabbed onto the side of the trailer. “Dee, I’m going to lift the side up a bit and you tell me if you can undo your hair, okay?” This had to work.
A shaky “okay,” drifted at him from beneath the flatbed. He positioned both hands on the trailer, but knew instantly that he’d never be able to lift even an inch of what had been welded by time and the elements into the rock hard ground. He dreaded telling her. “We’re going to try something else, Dee. I’ll have you out of there soon.”
“Okay,” And then he heard her begin to sob again.
“Dee, why are you crying, honey? I’m here to help you. I promise I’ll get you out!”
“But you’re mad at me. I cry when people get mad.”
“But I’m not mad. You didn’t get stuck under there on purpose, did you?”
The tiny voice issued a weak “No.”
“Well, see then. No one will be mad at you. We’ll all be so happy to get you out of there. So, see. You don’t have to worry about anything.”
“Jesus wouldn’t be mad.” Her voice was no longer shaky. She sounded adamant. “He wouldn’t be mad for me gettin’ stuck under the trailer. He’d just come and find me and take me back to the house and let me play with Rena Wayne.”
“Who’s Rena Wayne, honey?”
“My baby doll that Santa brought me when I was little. Jesus would let me play with her when I get back to the house.”
Jack’s heart heaved. She made it sound so simple. Like it was a fact and nothing could change it. He didn’t know how to respond to such innocent assurance. “I suppose you’re right, Dee.”
“It sure is hot here, Jack. I feel kind of sick. And I can’t hardly breathe, neither.”
Jack didn’t hesitate further; he plopped down flat on his belly and shimmied himself across the hard dirt under the trailer. Reaching her, he squeezed her sweaty little hand. “You’re right. It’s too hot to play under here today, Dee. Let’s go back to the house.”
She tried to nod her head. “Ouch. That hurt.” But the sound of her voice was suddenly stronger, and that was music to his ears. He let go of her hand and went to work.
He unwound her hair from a piece of the metal frame beneath the trailer and slipped his hand back around hers. The two wiggled from beneath the trailer. Reaching the end, a reviving breath of air hit their faces. Jack sat on the ground and propped his arms across his knees.
Dee threw her arms around Jack’s neck and plopped into his lap. “Thank you for saving me, Jack. You got me unstuck!”
For a moment, he was taken back by the demonstration of gratitude, but then a slow smile eased across his face and he hugged her in return. “I’m glad I was here.”
Jack held her at arms’ length. “You’re sure you’re okay?” He looked at the curls that were now drenched ringlets around her head and the red, swollen and dirt-streaked face.
She nodded. “I’m real good. And it’s a good thing me an’ Hailey showed you our secret hiding place, huh, Jack?” Her red-rimmed eyes were now shining.
He returned her nod slowly. “A really good thing, Dee.”
He gave her back a pat and lifted her to stand on her feet, then he pushed himself up to stand beside her. “We’d better get back to the house. Mrs. Holman or Felicia might be back by now. And they’ll be wondering where you are.”
She grabbed for his hand and began swinging their linked hands back and forth happily.
“Okay, Jack. Let’s go!”
He scooped her up instead and cradled her in his arms. “How about I carry you to the house. That way you’ll feel better. We can get you a nice cool drink.”
Dee smiled her agreement and nestled her head against his chest. “Apple juice.”
“Apple juice.” He assured her. “Coming right up.”
His feet began moving in the direction of the hangar, but a startling thought drew his mind back to the shady spot beneath the big oak tree. He turned his head to look over his shoulder.
Climbing under that trailer had been tough for him. Tougher than it should have been. His heart was still racing. What was that? Fear?
Fear? Of what?
The realization washed over him like a tidal wave. Tight places.
Smothering.
He’d never wanted to feel the suffocating tightness that had plagued him for the past several years. The four walls of his office had closed in on him until nothing was left except the boxed in feeling of panic. He hadn’t wanted to feel trapped that way, ever again.
That’s outrageous, he told himself with a long shake of his head. Downright ridiculous. Those words again.
The thought jolted him. Downright ridiculous.
He looked down at the curly headed little angel snuggling in his arms. She’d helped a fear surface he didn’t even realize he had. And helped him conquer it, all at the same time.
She smiled up at him and he returned her smile, tightening his grip around her. “You’re safe, Dee,” he assured her.
Right now he felt freer than he had in years. He’d call his mom after work this evening to thank her for her prayers. Something like peace was beginning to settle over him. He wanted to share that with her. She’ll be so happy for me. Maybe she’ll see that I really am okay, and will stop worrying about me.
His eyes scanned the cloudless sky. He suddenly felt the need to know how his father was doing. And how Eric was getting along. It was time to face and conquer many of the issues he’d shoved aside.
What was it that Dee said? Jesus would find her and save her and take her home. He squeezed her tightly again. “Come on, Miss Dee. Let’s go home.”