The sign for Mrs. Adams’s street appeared. She turned, nerves suddenly appearing. Lord, I pray Mrs. Adams has the good sense to not mention John Davenport denied Chlo. She didn’t know if her friend could handle the truth, but time would tell.
GUY PARKED THE CRUISER and hopped out. He had a few minutes before he had to pick up the girls. Enough time to run into the market and buy some dinner. He had no desire to cook or figure out what to make.
He turned down the frozen aisle searching for a family meal pack the girls would find appealing. Hopefully, one that could be cooked from frozen and not take all night. He paused slightly as he saw Darryl in the aisle in front of the pizzas.
Pizza would be great.
“Hey, D, going to stand there all night?”
Darryl turned and let out a full-fledge grin. “What up, G?”
They clapped hands then slapped each other on the back.
“You getting dinner for you and the girls?”
“Yeah, man. You’ve inspired me to get pizza. Quick and painless.”
Darryl snorted. “It is that, but it’s also fattening. I splurge once a month on junk but try to eat cleanly the rest of the time.”
Guy nodded, but he had no idea what Darryl was getting at. Food was food.
“How’s the job going?”
“It’s not bad.” Guy rubbed his face. “It’s more sedate than Virginia, but that’s a good thing. It’s nice coming home at normal hours and being with the girls. What about you? Have you decided on which doctor to hire?”
“Nah, so far the candidates haven’t been very good.” Darryl looked at him out of the corner of his eye. “I actually said a prayer the other day, figuring I tried everything else, why not that.”
Guy stared at him in surprise. Darryl had never been religious. Huh.
“When are you going to come for another Bible study?”
“I’m not sure, man.” Guy’s words were punctuated by a shrug. He had meant to go to another one, but life had shoved it from his mind. More like you locked the thought away.
“Why don’t you come this Friday. Jo’s going to be leading it. She’s a little nervous, but excited about it at the same time.”
“I’ll have to find a babysitter. I’m not sure Nana Baker wants to devote all her Friday evenings to watching my kids, considering she watches them all week long.”
“What about that one girl, Holly isn’t it?”
How did he know about Holly? He stared at Darryl. “What do you know about her?”
“Her little girl is one of my patients and Holly mentioned she worked at the sheriff’s department. I thought I heard through the rumor mill that she or her mother often babysit. It might be worth finding out.”
If he did, wouldn’t that be crossing the threshold from strictly business to mixing personal into it. Isn’t that what you did when you agreed to a playdate? Then again it sounded like they offered the service to everyone.
He sighed. “Yeah, I’ll talk to her about it.”
“Cool. See you Friday, then.”
Darryl clapped him on the back and left the aisle. Guy stood there, staring blankly at the pizza options. How had he allowed himself to be roped into another Bible study?
MICHELLE RANG THE DOORBELL to Evan’s house. It was the first time Bible study was at his place. She prayed that tonight’s study would help her with life’s issues. The thing with Chloe. Although the meeting with Holly’s mom and gone well, Michelle had no idea how Chloe truly felt. The girl was strangely closemouthed about the whole ordeal.
And the situation with Tanya. Michelle shook her head. She didn’t even know how to act around Tanya. Even though she agreed to represent her, she still had misgivings. And lately, she’d been haunted with nightmares of the abortion. In it, the baby always turned out to be one of Guy’s twins.
The irony was not lost on her.
Michelle swallowed and rang the doorbell one more time.
Evan leaned against the door, holding it open. “Hey, sorry, you know it takes me awhile to get to the door.”
She stared at his crutches. “Sorry, Evan. I was deep in thought and didn’t even consider it.”
“No problem. Jo and Chloe are in the kitchen preparing some snacks for us.”
With a nod, she headed for his kitchen. She took in the open floor plan, marveling at the fact that Jo had been the one to do the renovations. Michelle didn’t have one ounce of creativity to even fit into her pinky, let alone enough to redo an entire house. She always knew Jo had talent, but seeing Evan’s home really cemented the thought.
“Hey, Chelle,” Jo said. She stood there chopping fruit, the blade slicing rhythmically.
“Hey, JoJo, Chlo.” She hugged Chloe since her hands were free and patted Jo’s back. “How can I help?”
“Can you get the drinks and set ‘em on the counter?” Jo paused mid cut and gestured toward the fridge with a tilt of her head.
“Sure.”
Silence descended, but it was nice. The sounds of chopping mixed with the low brassy tones of a trumpet streaming through the house. “You’re always playing jazz,” she commented.
“Ain’t it grand? I love that Evan loves jazz as much as I do.” Jo’s smile was full of sap.
Love looked good on her. The stress lines on her face had faded. Michelle felt like she had picked them up instead. Her brow always seemed to be furrowed these days. Whether it was because Guy had moved back, Chloe’s search for her father, or dealing with Tanya’s case. She could really use a dose of peace and serenity.
The sound of footsteps brought her head up.
Darryl walked into the kitchen. “Ladies.” Though he greeted them all, his eyes were fixed upon Chloe’s face.
“Hey, Darryl,” they chorused back.
Michelle glanced at Chloe to watch her reaction. It was all she could do to contain a smirk in amusement as a blush bloomed on Chloe’s cheeks. What would it take for these two to stop toe-stepping and admit
