check Grandpa's blood pressure before he ate. Kyle would be monitoring it throughout the next twenty-four hours, something the doctor had recommended after Clara had called in the stats on Monday.
Kyle knew his grandfather's time was coming, and he liked to hang close.
Now that Chandler had a department store, where you could buy plumbing PVC, jeans, work boots and food all under one roof--and do banking, too--he could be a lot more efficient. Especially since the place was open twenty-four hours. Lucky for him, most Chandlerites weren't in a shopping mood at seven in the morning.
"Yo, Kyle, what's up?"
Just as he'd been enjoying having the place to himself... Kyle turned and felt a twinge of remorse as he recognized the owner of the voice.
"David. How are you, man?" The clean-cut, model-handsome man was already in the suit and tie that had been his trademark ever since he'd returned to Chandler with a brand-new law degree and bar certification ten years before.
He held up a bag of disposable diapers. "Rough night," he said with a half grimace. "Devon's been going at it from both ends for more than twenty-four hours now. I had to take the day off yesterday to help with him."
What did it say about Kyle that the attorney's plight made him envious? Not that he wanted any kid to be sick, but to be a father...
"And we just found out on Monday that Susan's pregnant again," David added, twisting an invisible knife. "Number five. I gotta tell you, man, it's mornings like these that show me what a smart guy you are. I gotta be in court at eight, and after missing yesterday, I still have briefs to review."
"Sounds like you need some beer and a good game of barn darts," Kyle offered.
"Now that's just what the doctor ordered." David grinned. "How about Friday night? Susan has the church ladies coming over for crafting."
Sam worked the late shift on Fridays. Not that it mattered. It wasn't like Kyle kept nights free for her.
"You got it," he told the man who'd helped him through his god-awful divorce. David had saved half the farm for him. If Kyle had confided in him about his first mistake, the one before his marriage, the lawyer would have told him he was a fool to fork out money to a woman without a conscience.
"What's this loser got?" Pierce Jones, Sam's older brother, elbowed David from behind.
"A drunken game of darts," Kyle told the man he'd once thought would be his brother-in-law. "You want to help me beat the crap out of him again?"
"Always. When?"
"Friday night."
The jeans and tightly fitting black T-shirt Pierce wore emphasized muscles that were mostly, in Kyle's opinion, wasted in that fancy kitchen of his. He looked more like a cop than chef. Maybe if Sam's older brother had followed in their father's and Pappy's footsteps, Sam wouldn't have felt compelled to do it herself. "I'll bring eats," Pierce added.
There were upsides to most things. If you looked hard enough.
"Why don't you bring that sister of yours?" David headed around Kyle's loaded basket toward the self-checkout stand that had just opened. "She distracts Kyle enough to give us half a chance."
"Right," Pierce said, his expression sobering. "More like she'd beat us all." He looked at Kyle. "Why the hell that woman can't see what's right in front of her..." Shaking his head, Pierce walked off toward the fresh vegetables--obviously buying ingredients for the day's fare, whatever that might be.
Kyle directed his buggy toward the bin of five-dollar movies to see if there was anything really old that might spark Grandpa's interest. Was it just a guy's lot in life, he wondered, to want what he didn't have?
6
H e drove by her place. Just to make certain she was okay. Then drove by again, alternately wanting a glimpse of her and hoping to hell she stayed locked inside.
If nothing else, he had to get her out of that hellhole. She deserved far better than the trash-ridden rusted heap of garbage her mother called home.
School was going to be starting
Kyle knew his grandfather's time was coming, and he liked to hang close.
Now that Chandler had a department store, where you could buy plumbing PVC, jeans, work boots and food all under one roof--and do banking, too--he could be a lot more efficient. Especially since the place was open twenty-four hours. Lucky for him, most Chandlerites weren't in a shopping mood at seven in the morning.
"Yo, Kyle, what's up?"
Just as he'd been enjoying having the place to himself... Kyle turned and felt a twinge of remorse as he recognized the owner of the voice.
"David. How are you, man?" The clean-cut, model-handsome man was already in the suit and tie that had been his trademark ever since he'd returned to Chandler with a brand-new law degree and bar certification ten years before.
He held up a bag of disposable diapers. "Rough night," he said with a half grimace. "Devon's been going at it from both ends for more than twenty-four hours now. I had to take the day off yesterday to help with him."
What did it say about Kyle that the attorney's plight made him envious? Not that he wanted any kid to be sick, but to be a father...
"And we just found out on Monday that Susan's pregnant again," David added, twisting an invisible knife. "Number five. I gotta tell you, man, it's mornings like these that show me what a smart guy you are. I gotta be in court at eight, and after missing yesterday, I still have briefs to review."
"Sounds like you need some beer and a good game of barn darts," Kyle offered.
"Now that's just what the doctor ordered." David grinned. "How about Friday night? Susan has the church ladies coming over for crafting."
Sam worked the late shift on Fridays. Not that it mattered. It wasn't like Kyle kept nights free for her.
"You got it," he told the man who'd helped him through his god-awful divorce. David had saved half the farm for him. If Kyle had confided in him about his first mistake, the one before his marriage, the lawyer would have told him he was a fool to fork out money to a woman without a conscience.
"What's this loser got?" Pierce Jones, Sam's older brother, elbowed David from behind.
"A drunken game of darts," Kyle told the man he'd once thought would be his brother-in-law. "You want to help me beat the crap out of him again?"
"Always. When?"
"Friday night."
The jeans and tightly fitting black T-shirt Pierce wore emphasized muscles that were mostly, in Kyle's opinion, wasted in that fancy kitchen of his. He looked more like a cop than chef. Maybe if Sam's older brother had followed in their father's and Pappy's footsteps, Sam wouldn't have felt compelled to do it herself. "I'll bring eats," Pierce added.
There were upsides to most things. If you looked hard enough.
"Why don't you bring that sister of yours?" David headed around Kyle's loaded basket toward the self-checkout stand that had just opened. "She distracts Kyle enough to give us half a chance."
"Right," Pierce said, his expression sobering. "More like she'd beat us all." He looked at Kyle. "Why the hell that woman can't see what's right in front of her..." Shaking his head, Pierce walked off toward the fresh vegetables--obviously buying ingredients for the day's fare, whatever that might be.
Kyle directed his buggy toward the bin of five-dollar movies to see if there was anything really old that might spark Grandpa's interest. Was it just a guy's lot in life, he wondered, to want what he didn't have?
6
H e drove by her place. Just to make certain she was okay. Then drove by again, alternately wanting a glimpse of her and hoping to hell she stayed locked inside.
If nothing else, he had to get her out of that hellhole. She deserved far better than the trash-ridden rusted heap of garbage her mother called home.
School was going to be starting
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