Guy frowned as he turned onto his street. He had a clear shot straight down toward the center of the cul-de-sac where his house sat, and a minivan sat parked in his driveway. Was someone lost? There were no homes for sale on his street so there shouldn’t be any unknown cars.
He slowed down taking in the surrounding areas. Nothing looked out of place. Now that he was closer, he could see a rental sticker on the back of the car. His stomach dropped to his feet. Oh no, please no, Lord. Guy pulled into his driveway and glanced into the minivan.
Why, Lord?
His mother waved to him excitedly.
What was she doing here?
“Grann’s here, Papa!” Rachel exclaimed from the back seat.
“Grann!” Bekah shouted.
He was glad they were happy, but his feelings were the opposite. Why had he bought this big house? He couldn’t use the excuse of a lack of a guest room. The extra room had been made and ready for visitors after a couple of weeks of the big move. He had hoped his mother would change her mind and come help out with the girls, but now that she was here, he wanted to jump out of his skin.
His mother didn’t know the definition of balance. She was either meddling in every aspect of his life or ignoring him completely. There was no in between. He had a sinking feeling her visit would commence with matchmaking. He had asked her repeatedly to stop her schemes, but she couldn’t seem to help herself. She viewed every woman through a potential daughter-in-law lens, and if a woman didn’t make it, she made sure to let them know why. Her derogatory comments lacked no subtlety, allowing the potential women to know they had failed to gain her approval.
What would she think of Michelle? He opened his car door and got out.
“Guy, my son, how are you?”
“Bonjou, Manman.”
She wrapped him in a bear hug, squeezing his organs together. She was short in stature but made up for it in width.
“Can’t breathe,” he gasped.
“Sorry.” She stepped back and beamed. “Where are my girls?”
He pointed to the back seat. She quickly went around him and opened the door. “Rachel! Rebekah! You’ve grown so big!”
He watched as his daughters gave their grandmother hugs and kisses. Yes, they were definitely happy. He watched in dismay as he thought about the change this would bring. If Michelle came over, there would be war until his mother decided if she met all the requirements of a daughter-in-law. Would Michelle pass?
MICHELLE OPENED THE doors to LeeAnn’s Bakery. She was in desperate need of lunch. She had forgotten her snack and knew if she didn’t get something soon she would pass out or throw up from hunger. Hopefully she wouldn’t do either.
She sighed in relief as she saw the line was nonexistent. God must have known how desperate she was.
LeeAnn smiled at her. “Afternoon, Michelle. What will you have?”
“I’ll take the shrimp Caesar salad and a cup of your blonde roast.”
LeeAnn nodded.
She reached for her card, noticing her hands were shaking.
“You have diabetes, honey?”
She met LeeAnn’s concerned gaze. “No, low blood sugar.”
“How about a cookie, free of charge. That way you won’t faint while I make your salad.”
She chuckled. “Thank you so much, LeeAnn.”
The bakery owner winked. “My pleasure, sweetie. You like the oatmeal ones, right?”
Michelle nodded.
LeeAnn handed her a cookie wrapped in white tissue paper.
The first bite of blissful sugar and carbs didn’t do the trick but second one started to work. She rarely let her blood sugar get so low, but Michelle had been pouring over the mountain of information the D.A.’s office had sent her and lost track of time. They were trying to snowball her and prevent her from developing a well-placed argument for Tanya’s case.
The prosecutor’s tactics wouldn’t work with her. She was fairly certain Tanya would be found ‘not guilty,’ but Michelle wanted to ensure she had an iron-clad case. It would be great if she could get the lowest punishment possible for the driving while drunk charges.
She shook her head. It was strange to be on the other side of the court room. Her whole career had been spent ensuring drunk drivers would receive the maximum punishment. What is going on with me?
It was times like these she wished she could call up her mother and ask for advice. How could she safely navigate through life without wise counsel? Or more like trusted counsel. Not that she didn’t trust her girls. She trusted them to give her advice based on their life experiences. Unfortunately, that didn’t always work out well for her.
She needed someone who understood what it was like to have no family ties remaining. She needed someone to empathize first and judge later. Would Guy be someone she could turn to? Did he understand the complexities of her mind? Once upon a time she would have automatically believed in him. But now, not so much. They were no longer connected on every level.
But she wanted to be.
She wanted to be with him.
And the girls?
They had quickly melted her heart and she knew Guy was a package deal. Yet, could a motherless woman fill the mother role? The girls were in a similar predicament as her but at least she had one for eighteen years.
“Here you go, dear.”
She took the bag LeeAnn offered. “Thanks, LeeAnn.”
“No problem, have a great day.”
She waved and headed for the door, but slowed when she saw Guy through the bakery windows headed inside. Her heart picked up speed as she watched him walk down the sidewalk. His stroll spoke of easy confidence. No longer were his shoulders hunch in defeat. He looked much better than when he first moved to town.
So why is he frowning?
She pushed the door open and stood in the street. “Hey, stranger.”
Guy winked at her, his brow smoothing out. “Hey, Chelle Belle. You on lunch break?”
“Yes, I needed something quick.”
He glanced at his watch. “You didn’t have any
