Southern Sympathies by Andrea Boeshaar

Author:Andrea Boeshaar
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2013-08-16T00:00:00+00:00

Twelve

As Lydia fed her children a snack the following evening, she threw a glance next door. She hadn’t seen Alec all day, even though she’d hoped to run into him after church that morning and invite him over for lunch—since it was Valentine’s Day. But then as now, his house looked dark and deserted.

“Mama?” Tyler’s voice penetrated her thoughts and Lydia gave him her full attention. “Matt’s E-mail address doesn’t work.”

“Yes, I figured.”

“Could I call him? I won’t talk long.”

“I don’t know. . . .”

“I got his phone number from his aunt Rita. I saw her at church tonight.”

Lydia hesitated, but only because she wasn’t sure how welcomed Ty’s call would be. Then again, he and Matt had stayed true-blue companions even though she and Sherry’s friendship had come to an abrupt halt. “All right,” she acquiesced. “I suppose you can phone Matt.”

His mouth full of cheese and crackers, Tyler jumped off his chair and ran for the phone hanging on the wall on the other side of the kitchen.

“Chew your food before placing the call.”

The boy swallowed. “Okay.” He pulled a slip of paper from his pants pocket, picked up the receiver, and dialed the number. After a few moments, he smiled. “Hello, this is Tyler. Can Matt talk?”

Lydia listened quietly as she straightened up the kitchen.

“Mama?” Brooke asked, still sitting at the table. “Could I have a friend from school come over and play?”

“I think so,” Lydia replied, sensing that her daughter missed the Smiths’ little girl, Pamela, even though she was a year older than Brooke. “Maybe next weekend.”

“Goodie!” Brooke exclaimed before nibbling on another cracker.

“Yeah, and a man moved next door named Mr. Alec,” Tyler was saying. “He’s really big, and he doesn’t even care if me ’n’ Brooke stand on the fence. And guess what else? He and my mom went on a date last night!”

“Oh, Ty, I don’t think Matt cares about that,” Lydia remarked softly, feeling oddly embarrassed.

“I think they’re gonna get married.”

“Tyler!” This time Lydia’s voice carried throughout the entire room.

“It’s true, Mama,” the boy replied with the receiver under his chin and an earnest expression on his face. “I knew it from the first day I saw Mr. Alec moving in. Isn’t that right, Brooke?”

She nodded. “We thought you’d like him, Mama.”

Lydia sighed. “My two children, Woodruff’s own matchmakers!” After rolling her eyes, she tapered her gaze at Tyler. “Hurry up and finish your call, now. Long distance is expensive.”

“Yes, ma’am. What did you say, Matt? Oh, yeah.”

Tyler began disclosing various events at school while Lydia instructed Brooke to go upstairs and change into her nightie.

“Mama? Mrs. Smith wants to talk to you now,” Tyler announced, following several minutes of idle chitchat with Matt.

Lydia was taken aback. Sherry? Wanted to talk to her? Slowly, she stepped to the phone and took the proffered receiver.

“Hello?” she said cautiously.

“Lydia? I know you probably loathe and despise me, but—”

“What are you talking about?”

A pause.

“I’m talking about Jordan and me and our public statement about Gerald.

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