kept reading the menu. Sara kicked him under the table, then, satisfied with his painful grunt, turned back to the waitress.
“Thatʼs awesome, Charlene! Iʼve got my fingers crossed for you.”
“Thanks, honey. Can I get your orders?”
“About time.” Brent shifted his legs to the side just before Sara aimed another kick at his shin. He gave her a smug grin, then turned to Charlene. “Iʼll have a cheeseburger and a beer.”
She huffed in exasperation. “How can you possibly study the menu for fifteen minutes only to end up ordering your usual?”
“What can I say, hon, Iʼm full of surprises.”
“Youʼre full of something else, too,” the waitress retorted, shaking her head.
Sara bit back a chuckle. “Iʼll have a chicken salad with my beer, thanks.”
Charlene wrote the orders down and was about to leave when Lucy, Hankʼs wife, materialized by their table. “Sara, darling! Iʼve been so worried about you! Are you all right?”
Here we go! Sara rolled her eyes and turned toward the older woman with a resigned smile. “Iʼm fine, Lucy, thank you.”
“You must have been so scared!”
She shook her head. “Just a little.”
Charlene shot them a curious look. “What are you guys talking about?”
“Havenʼt you heard?” a man sitting at a table behind theirs chimed in. “Our little Sara got herself a big adventure last night.”
Brent glared at him. “Eat your meal, Kyle.”
“What happened?”
Sara sighed at Charleneʼs question, knowing there was no stopping the gossip machine once it started. “I saw an awful accident on the way home last night, so I called an ambulance. Thatʼs all.”
“ Thatʼs all , she says,” another man scoffed from a few tables away, and Brent turned around to slant a threatening look in his direction.
“Mind your own business, Bob.”
“Turnerʼs return is my business.”
“Bob is right, Brent,” Lucy intervened, her hands resting on her generous hips. “Itʼs everybodyʼs business.”
He drew a heavy breath, summoning the patience to keep calm. He was about to reply when a muffled thud coming from behind the table stopped him. Everybody turned simultaneously toward Charlene, who seemed to have collapsed on a chair and looked whiter than a ghost.
“T-Turner? You mean…Jack?” she muttered, splaying a shaky hand on her stomach. “Jack is back?”
Sara frowned. What the—?
Before she could say anything, Kyle interjected again. “Sara rescued him on Carriage Road last night. Apparently he had an accident with his motorcycle.”
“I-I was in Dallas for a couple of days for the audition… I didnʼt know,” Charlene babbled, almost in shock.
Lucy wrapped a motherly arm around her shoulders. “Itʼs all right, dear. Heʼs still at the hospital right now, and Doc says itʼll be a couple of days before he can get out. Besides, Brent wonʼt let anything bad happen. Right, Brent?”
He sighed at the hopeful look she gave him. “Nothing bad is going to happen, no. Look, why donʼt yʼall just calm down? The manʼs been gone for ten years, for Godʼs sake.”
“As far as Iʼm concerned, he could disappear for another fifty and weʼd all be happy! Why did he have to come back, anyway?”
Saraʼs bewildered gaze moved to Katie, the woman who had asked the last question. What the heck was going on? The whole situation was simply dumbfounding. She felt as if she were watching the second half of a movie after missing the first part, as if everybody else were part of something she was not. Sheʼd never felt so estranged and out of place before.
Brent shot her a worried look before turning toward the woman. “I donʼt know why he came back,” he said patiently. “Nobody knows yet, and Iʼm afraid weʼll have to wait until Jack can tell us himself. But remember, heʼs a free man—he can come and go wherever he pleases, and thereʼs nothing anybody can do about it.”
“Jack is back,” Charlene muttered, still in disbelief. “I wonder what
“Thatʼs awesome, Charlene! Iʼve got my fingers crossed for you.”
“Thanks, honey. Can I get your orders?”
“About time.” Brent shifted his legs to the side just before Sara aimed another kick at his shin. He gave her a smug grin, then turned to Charlene. “Iʼll have a cheeseburger and a beer.”
She huffed in exasperation. “How can you possibly study the menu for fifteen minutes only to end up ordering your usual?”
“What can I say, hon, Iʼm full of surprises.”
“Youʼre full of something else, too,” the waitress retorted, shaking her head.
Sara bit back a chuckle. “Iʼll have a chicken salad with my beer, thanks.”
Charlene wrote the orders down and was about to leave when Lucy, Hankʼs wife, materialized by their table. “Sara, darling! Iʼve been so worried about you! Are you all right?”
Here we go! Sara rolled her eyes and turned toward the older woman with a resigned smile. “Iʼm fine, Lucy, thank you.”
“You must have been so scared!”
She shook her head. “Just a little.”
Charlene shot them a curious look. “What are you guys talking about?”
“Havenʼt you heard?” a man sitting at a table behind theirs chimed in. “Our little Sara got herself a big adventure last night.”
Brent glared at him. “Eat your meal, Kyle.”
“What happened?”
Sara sighed at Charleneʼs question, knowing there was no stopping the gossip machine once it started. “I saw an awful accident on the way home last night, so I called an ambulance. Thatʼs all.”
“ Thatʼs all , she says,” another man scoffed from a few tables away, and Brent turned around to slant a threatening look in his direction.
“Mind your own business, Bob.”
“Turnerʼs return is my business.”
“Bob is right, Brent,” Lucy intervened, her hands resting on her generous hips. “Itʼs everybodyʼs business.”
He drew a heavy breath, summoning the patience to keep calm. He was about to reply when a muffled thud coming from behind the table stopped him. Everybody turned simultaneously toward Charlene, who seemed to have collapsed on a chair and looked whiter than a ghost.
“T-Turner? You mean…Jack?” she muttered, splaying a shaky hand on her stomach. “Jack is back?”
Sara frowned. What the—?
Before she could say anything, Kyle interjected again. “Sara rescued him on Carriage Road last night. Apparently he had an accident with his motorcycle.”
“I-I was in Dallas for a couple of days for the audition… I didnʼt know,” Charlene babbled, almost in shock.
Lucy wrapped a motherly arm around her shoulders. “Itʼs all right, dear. Heʼs still at the hospital right now, and Doc says itʼll be a couple of days before he can get out. Besides, Brent wonʼt let anything bad happen. Right, Brent?”
He sighed at the hopeful look she gave him. “Nothing bad is going to happen, no. Look, why donʼt yʼall just calm down? The manʼs been gone for ten years, for Godʼs sake.”
“As far as Iʼm concerned, he could disappear for another fifty and weʼd all be happy! Why did he have to come back, anyway?”
Saraʼs bewildered gaze moved to Katie, the woman who had asked the last question. What the heck was going on? The whole situation was simply dumbfounding. She felt as if she were watching the second half of a movie after missing the first part, as if everybody else were part of something she was not. Sheʼd never felt so estranged and out of place before.
Brent shot her a worried look before turning toward the woman. “I donʼt know why he came back,” he said patiently. “Nobody knows yet, and Iʼm afraid weʼll have to wait until Jack can tell us himself. But remember, heʼs a free man—he can come and go wherever he pleases, and thereʼs nothing anybody can do about it.”
“Jack is back,” Charlene muttered, still in disbelief. “I wonder what
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