Facing Tessa's Past by Mildred Colvin

Author:Mildred Colvin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2013-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Nine

Tessa left the box on the porch while she went in search of the boys. She followed their voices back to the kitchen. Rob pulled a casserole from the oven and set it on top of the stove. Seth filled water glasses while Derek set the table.

She shook her head. This was Blake’s doing just as much as the ball mitts on the porch. She looked at her tidy kitchen and knew she could never complain about his influence on her boys. Not as long as he kept the influence positive. She still had reservations about the bar in his restaurant.

“Mom, you’re home.” Rob noticed her first. “Dinner is almost ready. Why don’t you sit down and relax?”

She laughed as she obeyed. “I’m going to miss this when school starts, you know.”

“No, you won’t,” Seth said. “We can get dinner ready before you get home and still have time for homework after we eat.”

“I don’t know what I ever did to deserve such a great trio of boys.” Tessa felt tears well up in her eyes and ducked her head to hide them.

“Aw, Mom.” Derek slipped an arm around her shoulders. “We aren’t always good, but cooking’s fun. Me and Seth want to work in Blake’s restaurant, so we’re practicing. Rob’s gonna get a job cooking, too.”

“I don’t know.” Tessa looked at her older son. A lot of kids started getting jobs at sixteen. Maybe by then a decent job would open up for Rob. “Do you think you’d like to work in a kitchen?”

He shrugged. “Maybe. Blake’s already taught me a lot. He came over this afternoon and showed me how to make this casserole. He said you should like it because it has two of your favorite foods in it. Chicken and broccoli.”

“How’d he know that, Mom? He said he knew you a long time ago. Is that true?” Derek asked, but three pairs of eyes waited for her answer.

Would they all have everything figured out before she got the nerve to tell her secret?

She nodded. “Yeah, it’s true. But I don’t think we’re good enough friends for him to buy you baseball mitts.”

“He bought us ball mitts?” Derek’s eyes widened.

Tessa held up her hand. “I didn’t say you could keep them. He left a box on the front porch, obviously so I’d find them first. We’ll take them back to him after we eat.”

The boys joined Tessa at the table and bowed their heads while she prayed. At her amen, the grumbling started.

“Returning a gift is rude, Mom,” Rob said.

Seth nodded, looking serious behind his glasses. “Yeah, he wants us to win our games.”

“We should go tell him thank you.” Derek took a bite of casserole.

Tessa swallowed the cheesy broccoli in her mouth. “Sorry, guys, they’re going back. I’ll buy what you need.” She lifted her refilled fork. “Rob, this is great.”

He grinned at her praise. “You should tell Blake. It’s his recipe. I always figured cooking and cleaning were for sissies, but Blake is a real man and he makes a living at it.

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