Her Second Chance Hometown Groom by Amelia C. Adams

Author:Amelia C. Adams [Adams, Amelia C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: ArchStone Ink
Published: 2019-09-12T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

When they got back to the Mayhews’, Angela excused herself to step into the bathroom, and Austin leaned against the kitchen counter, needing something to hold on to.

“Are you all right?” Melinda asked, looking up from the vegetables she was chopping.

Austin glanced around to make sure they were alone. “Um, no. I’m really not.”

She set down her knife and gave him her full attention. “What’s the matter, son?”

He scratched his jaw, where his beard suddenly felt itchy. “It’s just . . . I started out today thinking it was going to be one thing, and it turned into something else . . . Something I can’t go into because it’s not my story to share, and it’s something I can’t fix . . .”

She placed a hand on his arm. “Deep breath.”

He paused and did as she said, filling up his lungs and expelling the air slowly. She always did have a way of helping him focus. “What do you do when there’s nothing you can do, Mom?”

“There’s always something you can do. Keep looking until you find it.”

Angela came back into the kitchen. Austin could tell that she’d washed her face, and she seemed more settled now. “Thanks for inviting me to come today, Mrs. Mayhew. I love looking for Christmas trees.”

Melinda gave her a look. “How many years have you been coming to my house?”

Angela blinked. “Um . . . I don’t know. A lot?”

“Mmm-hmm. Don’t you think it’s about time you started calling me Melinda?”

Angela’s look of worry turned into a smile. “Yeah, I could probably manage that.”

“Good. Now, hand me that Crock-Pot lid, please. We need to get this started so we can have some roast for dinner. Are you staying this time?”

“Yes, I’m staying.”

“Good,” Melinda said again, giving a nod like all was right with the world. Then she glanced at Austin, and he caught the message. She might not know the story, but she understood the need, and she’d be there to support them both however she could.

Dang, he loved his family.

Once the Crock-Pot was going. Melinda hollered up the stairs that it was time to leave, and footsteps thundered from all over the house as the whole clan showed up in the kitchen. Todd trailed a few steps behind, a grin on his face. “You sound like a herd of elephants crashing through the floor.”

“It’s Christmas, Dad,” Kyle said, thumping Todd on the back. “You can’t put out the spark of our childish enthusiasm for the world’s most beloved holiday.”

Todd gave Melinda a look as if to say, This is your fault. Then he grabbed his keys from the hook by the door. “Did you get the trailer hitched to my truck, Shawn?”

“The better to haul back a tree, Dad.”

“All right. Let’s get out of here.”

They piled out of the house, each choosing a vehicle and climbing in. Austin reached out and caught Angela’s hand so she wouldn’t get lost in the sea of swirling winter coats, and they ended up with both Maggie and Trevor squished in the cab with them.

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