Noble Pursuits by Chautona Havig Page A

figure out what could be made with the scanty contents. There was leftover chicken soup, and sandwich fixings, but not enough to take to the hospital. The freezer showed more promise, but it was nearly empty as well, and there was no time for defrosting.
    “Looks like we’ll have to be creative, Amber. You see if you can find a clean box and a towel to put hot food into, and I’ll go see what I have at home to contribute to dinner.”
    ~*~*~*~
    Grace heard ringing and wondered sleepily what it was. She struggled to wake up and climb out of her chair. Nolan brought her the phone before she could become fully coherent. “H’llo?”
    Grace listened for a moment and looked around the room with fuzzy eyes. “Amber? Your mom’s on the phone. Do you want to talk to her?”
    As Amber prattled on about her soccer game, the mouse, and their current preparations for dinner for Craig and Melanie and the upcoming birth, Grace rubbed the sleep from her eyes and stretched. Dinner smelled wonderful and caused a rumble in her stomach. “Hungry, Grace?”
    Grace smiled at him. “What are you cooking… that smells great !”
    “Lemon Pepper chicken. Just chicken, rice, snow peas and a brothy sauce over it. Have a seat; it’s almost done. We were thinking about taking some to the hospital for Craig.”
    Grace sat at her table and enjoyed the aroma of the plate of food that Nolan placed before her. Nolan glanced at Amber, who was cheerfully chatting at her mother and suggested they pray without her. “She’s busy with her mom. We’ll pray for her.”
    As they raised their heads to begin eating, Amber bounced over to Grace. “Mommy wants to know if you need anything from Chicago.”
    Grace started to shake her head but remembered Cade’s accident and took the phone. “Marci… do you know if there is some kind of discount sports store there where you could find an affordable Cub’s jacket?”
    For the next few minutes, the two women bantered back and forth on the exact description of the jacket, and if Marci would let Grace repay her for the jacket. Visibly exasperated, Marci eventually shook her head and crossed her arms. “Grace. What I’ll have to pay for this is half what it would cost me to have left Amber with a sitter, and she’s having a blast. You’re still giving me a gift by taking care of my daughter; let me pay for the jacket. You’ve more than earned it already. I’ll pick up Amber tomorrow night sometime after seven.”
    Before Grace could argue, Marci hung up. Her face was masked with frustration. “I’ll figure this out. She won’t get away with it that easily.”
    “Trouble in paradise?”
    “She doesn’t want to let me pay for Cade’s new jacket. How can I give someone a gift that someone else paid for?”
    Thinking for a moment, her new neighbor shook his head. “I’d say that you would be paying for it. I don’t know much about childcare expenses, but I can imagine that overnight care and taking a child to and from school would be expensive. Much more expensive than a jacket.”
    “Jackets like that are almost a hundred dollars. I can’t really afford it, but his is ruined, and I don’t want him to feel like he is ‘in trouble’ with me. I thought it might be nice.”
    Amber piped up, her voice thick with disgust. “He deserved to lose his jacket. He was foolish.”
    “Amber!” Grace was at a loss. The two children that she loved most had an extreme disdain for each other.
    “Well, he did. It’s stupid to walk between cars like that. I know that and I am almost a whole year younger than he is.” Amber crossed her arms defiantly across her chest.
    “Amber. I think you should go hang up your school clothes and cool off. You’re out of line.” Grace was calm and matter of fact. Many children would have taken her lack of visible anger as an indicator that they didn’t need to obey, but Amber was well aware that Grace was not pleased.
    “Yes, Miss Grace. I’m sorry.” Amber left