great grandchildren in mind when he’d
selected the sturdy redwood boards to build
her childhood sanctuary. Well, his wish had
finally come true. Jeremy was having a blast
filling the place with all his boy stuff. He’d
already announce that no girls were allowed.
Little did he know, not so long ago, a similar
decree had gone out against all the boys in the
land.
Melissa pulled out another nail and pried
the rotted board from the back porch. She had
to make the backyard kid proof. Jeremy was
going to spend countless hours back here and
she didn’t want to worry about his safety. The
front yard and the roof were going to have to
wait. Maybe longer than she originally thought
if the leak she’d discovered this morning was as
bad as she feared. Hiring a plumber to fix the
ancient pipes in this house was going to be
expensive. Probably more than she could
afford at the moment.
Melissa stood and brushed off her jeans. It
was time to head into town. She hated to do it.
Weekends at the lumber yard were always
packed. At least Sunday was better than
Saturday. “Come on Jer.” She called. “We
need to head into town and get some new wood
for the back porch before the store closes. I
have to get this project done today. Tomorrow
is Monday. I start work and you start school.”
Jeremy jumped from the ladder and ran to
the car. “Can we get ice cream?” He asked.
“I’m hungry and dinners not for hours. I don’t
think I can make it.”
Melissa laughed. He was probably right.
The kid had been going a mile a minute since
they’d walked out the door. “Why don’t we
stop at the grocery store and buy some. That
way we can get bananas and caramel and have
banana splits.”
“Can we have whipped cream, too?” He
asked with the hope of a child.
“Absolutely.” Melissa said, backing out of
the driveway. “And a cherry on top. What’s
a
banana split without whip cream and a big
old red cherry?”
“Yay!” Jeremy said, pumping his arms in
the air. “I like it here, mom. I’m glad we
moved.”
For the first time since Melissa had decided
to sell their house in Denver, she felt confident
she’d made the right decision. Things would
be better here, she would make sure of it.
For Jeremy’s sake, they had to be. Now if she
just knew what to do about Shane Chandler.
The closer they got to the lumber store, the
more nervous Melissa became. If she was
lucky she wouldn’t run into anyone she knew.
But what were the chances she’d have the same
luck at the grocery store? About a million to
one, she supposed. “Okay Carpenter Joe.”
Melissa said as they climbed from the car.
“You ready to help me pick out the best lumber
in the joint?”
Jeremy smiled. He liked that his mom let
him help with stuff. It made him feel like the
man of the house. The way his dad had taught
him. He remembered the man to man talk he'd
had with his dad just after he’d turned six.
Mitch told Jeremy that his job was dangerous
and if anything ever happened to him, it was
Jeremy’s job to take care of his mother. And
Jeremy had tried to take care of her. Mom had
been so sad when dad died. Jeremy had spent
almost an hour selecting just the right flowers
to try to cheer her up the way dad had done
when mom seemed sad. But it hadn’t helped,
no matter how many times he tried. Nothing
he did in Denver ever helped. But things were
different now. Hidden Lakes was a new start
for them. And mom already seemed happier.
The house needed work, but Jer could take
care of it. He was the man of the house now,
just like dad said. And he was going to pick out
the best wood in the store.
Melissa tied a small red cloth to the end of
the wood sticking out her back window. She
was going to have to leave Jeremy in the car
with the supplies since they couldn’t lock up.
As they pulled onto the road and headed two
blocks south to the grocery store she glanced at
her son. “We can’t leave the stuff in the car
unattended. Do you think you can stand guard
while I grab the groceries we need at the
store?” She asked.
“Okay.” Jeremy said, playing with the
radio. “Can you leave the keys so I can listen to
music while you’re gone?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” She
said, used to living with the dangers of the big
city. She knew this was a small town, but she’d
been gone too long. Until she was more
comfortable with the people, she wouldn’t