The Sweetheart Bargain (A Sweetheart Sisters Novel) (24 page)

Diana bit her lip. She wanted to tell her son that that was the reality of shelters, that sometimes they had to do the very thing they didn’t want to do—put an animal to sleep—to be able to handle the continual influx of unwanted pets. That her mother had held a strict no-kill policy until the shelter got too overwhelming physically and financially and she’d had to shut her doors. That sometimes this was how life worked, and it sucked, and if she could change the world, she would.

But she didn’t say one word of that because right now her son was looking at her with that same look he’d given her when he was seven and had come home crying from school because some fifth-grader told him Santa wasn’t real. She couldn’t dash his dreams then, or now.

“Well, they’re going to need some shots,” she said. “And Mom needs to be checked out. Why don’t I come back later today with some supplies, and we can make sure these guys get the best start possible?”

Jackson’s eyes filled with hope, and for a few seconds he was her little boy again, the one with tearstained cheeks and a trembling bottom lip, a little boy who desperately needed to believe in Santa and miracles. The angry, distant teenager had been left outside the kennel gate. “Really, Mom?”

“Yeah, if it’s okay with Olivia.” She glanced at her sister.

“Fine with me.” Olivia gave Jackson a kind smile. “Plus I think I know the puppies’ dad.”

“The golden you brought in the other day?” Diana nodded. It all made sense.

“I found him out here, right in front of the shelter, in fact. I bet he was guarding his family-to-be.”

Diana got to her feet and glanced at her son. One of the puppies had latched onto Jackson’s jeans with his teeth and was pulling at the hard denim, while another puppy tried to snag his brother’s tail. “They are cute.”

“Can I keep them?” Jackson asked.

No
was her immediate answer, but she bit her tongue again, unwilling to spoil the moment. “Let’s get them through their first few weeks, and then we’ll talk about it. Okay?”

He nodded, then buried his face in the third puppy’s fur. “Okay.” He nodded again. “Okay, Mom.”

Her heart swelled, and she had to root her feet to the floor so she wouldn’t rush in there and topple Jackson with a hug. Instead she stood to the side, and through the glimmer of unshed tears, Diana watched a puppy steal her troubled son’s heart and fill him with joy for the first time in forever.

After a while, Olivia and Diana headed out of the shelter. They hit the bright sunshine and paused in the yard. “He can come by anytime he wants to feed them or play with them. If you tell me what to do, I’ll make sure they have whatever food and things they need.”

Diana sighed and glanced back at the ramshackle building. “It’s not really safe for them in there. But I know Mom won’t be happy to be moved right away. If you can take care of them for a couple days, then we’ll see about bringing them in to the office.”

“Whatever it takes is fine. It’s been kinda lonely around here, so the puppies might be good company.”

Diana toed at the ground. “I’ll be back, as long as that’s all right with you.”

In the distance, a car horn beeped and a bird called out. A light breeze danced in the air, rustling the sturdy green leaves of an orange tree.

“I’d like that,” Olivia said.

Diana glanced again at the shelter. Her son was skipping school, and there would be hell to pay for that down the road, but right now, she wanted to hold on to this moment, to that smile on his face. “Thanks.”

“Anytime.”

Diana exhaled and waited until a passing car turned off the street and they were left with silence again. “I’m sorry for being so . . . angry earlier. This whole thing is hard for me.” Still was, and Diana had no idea when it would get easier. “I didn’t expect . . . well, I didn’t expect you.”

“I didn’t expect you either.” Olivia gave her a smile that was half sympathy, half hope. “We’ll just play it by ear. Okay?”

“Yeah.” Diana had the strangest urge to hug Olivia. But instead, she gave her a little wave and headed to her car.

Sixteen

Olivia checked on the puppies once more, bringing Jackson a couple of grilled cheese sandwiches before she ran over to Golden Years for her afternoon appointments. She welcomed the break, to give her a moment where she wasn’t wondering where she stood. With Luke. With Diana.

Her relationship with Diana, if one could even call it that, was still new and tenuous. Still, a part of Olivia reveled in the words
my sister
, words she’d never spoken or thought in her life until now. She wasn’t quite sure how, or whether, they would get any further than cordial acquaintances. And whether she wanted that. After all, she’d gone all this time without a sister. Who said she needed one now? Especially one who didn’t seem to need her?

Deep down inside, though, Olivia craved that connection. It was as if Diana held the other keys to Olivia, to figuring out why she was here in Florida, looking for a mother who hadn’t ever looked for her.

Then there was Luke and the barbecue at his house tonight that she’d agreed to go to. That was a whole other kind of complicated relationship. She’d intended just to have a one-night stand with him, one hot, unforgettable night. Yeah, that plan had gone well. What kind of woman planned a one-night stand with the neighbor but didn’t plan ahead for protection?

A clear sign that she was more of a multi-night kind of girl. And look how well
that
decision had turned out. She’d screwed up a marriage, she’d screwed up a fling. Maybe she should just enter a convent and give up on men altogether.

Inside the morning room, Greta, Pauline, and Esther were gathered around a stack of papers. As soon as Olivia approached, Pauline let out a squeal, gathered all the papers into one pile, then dropped her purse on top. Olivia grinned. “You ladies look suspicious today.”

“Who? Us?” Greta gave Olivia a blank look. “We’re just talking about the Sweetheart Dance next month. Pauline thought it might be a good idea to do a little mixer, you know, to get some of the singles to pair up.”

Olivia considered that. “I think anything that gets people here to be more social is a good idea.”

Greta fingered the sheets. “And maybe we could get some of our younger staff to participate. You know, lead the way for the rest of us.”

Olivia could read the attempt at matchmaking from ten miles away. No way was she falling for that again. “Or maybe you and Harold Twohig could have a couple’s peace treaty.”

Greta scowled. “I would rather cover my face in fire ants.”

“Oh, goodness, no, Greta.” Esther blanched. “When they bite you, they sting. You’d get all swollen up and—”

“It’s a figure of speech, Esther. I wouldn’t really do that. Any more than I’d go out with Harold Twohig.”

“I don’t know,” Olivia said with a smile. “Seems to me the lady doth protest too much. I think you secretly like Harold. He’s not a bad-looking guy, you know.”

“If you like men who resemble earwigs.” Greta shuddered. “No, thank you.”

Olivia laughed, then gave Miss Sadie’s leash a gentle tug. “You ladies have a nice day. I’m off to my appointments.”

The chair screeched as Greta got to her feet and started walking with Olivia, telling Pauline and Esther she’d be right back. “So, have you seen my grandson lately?”

Olivia’s cheeks heated, but she cleared her throat and willed the blush away. She’d seen Luke all right—
all
of Luke—just before he ran out of her house. But that wasn’t the kind of thing she’d mention to the man’s grandmother. Or anyone else, for that matter. “Every once in a while,” she said instead.

“I called him this morning. And he called me meddlesome.
Me.
Meddlesome.” Greta shook her head. “I think he’s just being grumpy.”

“Well, Luke does have grumpy down to an art.”

“It’s because of all he’s been through,” Greta said quietly, her voice serious now. “He doesn’t like to talk about it or let people know what he is going through. He suffers in silence, I suppose you could say.”

“I can understand that.” Hadn’t she done the same after her divorce? She’d retreated to her house and stayed there for days, as if solitude would make it better. It hadn’t. “But his friend is there now, and they invited me to a barbecue tonight.”

“Oh really? He didn’t mention a friend at the house. Or a barbecue. With you.” A smile spread across Greta’s face, a smile that said she had a preacher and a church on speed dial. “That’s
wonderful
.”

“It’s just chicken on the grill,” Olivia said, “nothing more. So don’t be getting any ideas, Mrs. Winslow.”

“Who, me?”

Olivia chuckled. “Yes, you. Don’t you remember talking me into walking you over to Luke’s, then running out the door to leave us alone?”

Greta glanced at the ceiling. “Maybe. I’m not saying anything that might incriminate me.”

“Listen, I appreciate the fact that you and the other ladies care about my happiness. It’s nice. It’s like having another family here, and that’s made this whole move easier.”

Greta took Olivia’s hand in her own warm, soft one. “Sweetie, you
are
part of the family. I consider you the granddaughter I never had.”

Emotion burned Olivia’s eyes. She hadn’t realized how much she missed having family around her until now. With Anna and Dan more than a thousand miles away, having Greta and the other ladies serve as her surrogate family washed Olivia with warmth. She gave Greta’s hand a squeeze. “Thank you. It’s been hard for me, not knowing”—she drew in a breath, then decided if she kept running from the questions, she’d never have the answers—“why my mother left me her house but never had anything to do with me.”

Confusion filled Greta’s light blue eyes, then sharpened as she put the pieces together. “That house on Gull Lane? The one that . . . Oh my. You’re Bridget Tuttle’s daughter? But I thought . . .”

“Diana is my sister.”

“Oh.” Greta’s lips pursed. “Oh . . . my. Well, I thought I knew about everything in this town. But I didn’t know this.”

“No one did, as far as I can tell.” Olivia glanced at her watch and shifted her bag of therapy supplies on her shoulder. She could spare one more minute. And maybe, finally, if she started talking about what Bridget had done, she’d gain some closure, and some answers. “That’s what confuses me. Why would she leave me the house but not so much as a letter or a note? Why go all my life without contacting me? Why . . .” Olivia sucked in a breath, the last question lodged like a gumball in her throat.

“Why would she give you up and not want you?” Greta reached up and cupped Olivia’s face, and in that simple touch, one that conveyed sympathy, understanding, and love with her soft, wrinkled palms, Olivia could have been Greta’s granddaughter. “People do stupid things all the time, honey. Things they regret. And sometimes the way they try to make up for the mistakes they make is just as bumbled, because they don’t know what else to do. Whatever your mother did or didn’t do, I’m sure she did it with love.”

Olivia turned away. “She never even knew me.”

Greta gently brought her attention back. “Maybe she knew you better than you think. I didn’t know Bridget well. I don’t think most folks did. She kind of stuck to herself and poured everything she had into that shelter. Sometimes people do things like that to make up for pain that lies deep, deep inside.” Greta’s wrinkled, velvety palm served as a balm against Olivia’s cheek. “And if you ask me, there’s no deeper pain than losing your child. Whether it was your choice or not.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. Just find your peace with all this. You may never have the answers. But if you keep letting the emotions of the past rule your present, you’ll never find your future, dear.” She straightened and gave Olivia’s arm a pat. “Now, you better get to your appointment. I know Millie needs you and Miss Sadie.”

Millie. The one patient Olivia had yet to connect with. She dreaded the appointment.