LITMIR.BIZ

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It’s appalling.”

      Turning away, Tina busied herself smoothing a fresh plastic cloth over the picnic table. Appalling was only the beginning. Given her experience with her younger brother, Craig, she could have added unbelievable, and terrifying, and life-shattering. Especially life-shattering.

      The only good thing to come out of the situation with Craig was his eventual rehabilitation. Seeing him settled down with a wife, son and new baby almost made it all worthwhile. Almost.

      If she had it to do over again, however, Tina knew she’d find some other way to help him. And she’d never tell a lie. Not one. Not even if her honesty meant her unmanageable sibling might have to suffer.

      Justin ran out of steam right after they ate. Five minutes of whining were followed by blissful silence, when he curled up in the big wicker chair and dozed off.

      “I’ve always preferred dogs, myself,” Zac said, “but I think I may need to borrow your crazy cat from time to time. My son hasn’t gone to sleep that easily for longer than I can remember.”

      “You could always get him a puppy, you know. Your new yard is already fenced to keep it home.” Tina scanned the yard and porch. “Poor Zorro. I’ll bet he’s crawled off for a catnap. Chances are, he’s exhausted, too.”

      “It wore me out just watching them play.”

      “I know what you mean. Me, too.” She stood and began to gather up the dishes, surprised when Zac picked up his plate and rose to help her. She waved him off. “I can do this. Sit down. You’re my guest.”

      “I’d rather help.”

      He sounded so sincere, she gave in. “Okay. Make a stack on the end of the kitchen counter, just inside the door. That way you’ll be in sight if Justin stirs.”

      Complying, Zac watched her carry the uneaten food past him and put it in the refrigerator. He sighed and spoke softly. “I’m at my wits’ end with that kid. I’d hoped that a change of scenery would stop his panic attacks.”

      “Instead of a dog, maybe he needs more family in his life so he doesn’t concentrate solely on you. Aren’t there any female relatives you could ask for help?”

      “Oh, sure,” he said cynically. “Kim—my wife—came from a big family. All three of her sisters dote on Justin.”

      “Well, then…?”

      “No way.” Zac was shaking his head. “They hate me. If I give them the chance to fill Justin’s head with their unfair opinions, he might wind up hating me, too. At the very least, he’d be more confused than he already is.”

      Tina couldn’t imagine anyone disliking a man like Zac. Even though he was clumsy at expressing affection, he clearly loved his son. Pensive, she led the way back outside and started to fold up the plastic tablecloth. “You really believe they’d do that?”

      “In a heartbeat.” His voice deepened. “They blame me for Kim’s death.”

      Hoping he’d explain further, Tina hugged the folded cloth to her chest and waited quietly. She knew better than to question him on such a touchy subject, even though her curiosity was aroused. Once they officially became neighbors, perhaps he’d volunteer more information. If not, she’d just have to respect his privacy.

      Finally, she broke down and asked, “What about your side of the family? Brothers? Sisters?”

      Zac snorted with derision. “I was an only child. My parents live in a retirement community down in Florida. Justin and I detoured to visit them on our way here. Talk about a disaster. All my mother did when he got upset was wring her hands and cry right along with him.” A wry smile lifted one corner of Zac’s mouth. “It was quite a chorus. You should have seen the look on my dad’s face.”

      “I’ll bet.”

      Stuffing his hands into his pockets he began, “I’ve been thinking. Maybe…”

      Tina intuitively finished his sentence. “You thought maybe I’d volunteer?”

      “I suppose that’s too much to ask.”

      “No. Not at all.”

      Tina had to struggle to keep from laughing at the smooth way the Lord had handled a potentially awkward situation. While she’d been needlessly fretting about how she was going to worm her way into the little boy’s life without having her innocent motives misunderstood, God was setting the whole thing up. What a kick. Everything was turning out exactly as she’d planned, yet Zac Frazier thought the whole idea was his!

      Chapter Four

      Zac had offered to paint the interior of the house as soon as it was vacant because he wanted to expedite his tenancy. However, he’d had no idea how hard the job would be, especially with Justin underfoot every second.

      By the time he’d finished putting one coat of paint on the master bedroom, there were already tiny sneaker prints of the same pale beige color up and down the hall.

      Tina found the little boy sitting on the steps of his new front porch, barefoot. She joined him. “Hi, honey.”

      Justin cast her a forlorn look.

      “Uh-oh,” she said, smiling tenderly. “What’s wrong?”

      “Daddy’s mad at me.”

      Tina drew up her knees and hugged them. “Are you sure?”

      “Uh-huh. He hollered at me.”

      “My, that sounds serious. Why do you suppose he got so upset?”

      “’Cause of that dumb old paint.”

      “What did the paint do?”

      “It stuck to my shoes and got itself all over the rug.”

      “That was bad,” she said, working hard to sound serious when what she wanted to do was laugh out loud at his childish logic. “Is that why you’re sitting on the porch?”

      The boy nodded. “Daddy took my shoes off and told me to stay right here.” His voice quieted. “Dumb old paint.”

      “I’m pretty good with a brush. Do you suppose your daddy would like me to help him?” she asked, getting to her feet and smoothing her shorts as she spoke. “Maybe I should go see.”

      “Okay,” Justin said with a sage expression, “’cept he might yell at you, too.”

      Tina slipped off her sandals by the front door. “I hope not, but just in case, I’ll leave my shoes out here. That way I’ll feel it if I accidentally step in any spilled paint, and I won’t track it all over the place.”

      Leaving the unhappy child to mull over her common sense approach, she let herself in and called, “Yoo-hoo. Anybody home?”

      “In here. Down the hall,” he answered gruffly. “Watch your step. The carpet’s wet.”

      She edged past the obviously damp portions and paused at the bedroom door. Zac had carefully covered the carpeting in that room with plastic sheeting, taped down at the edges. It was easy to see that Justin had tracked through every drop of paint he could find on the plastic, then headed for the hallway. His footprints stopped where the wet carpeting began.

      Tina giggled. “I see your son was helping you paint this morning.”

      “Helping me lose my mind, you mean.” He made a sour face. “It’s not funny.”

      “Oh, I don’t know. It proves what I’ve always heard. You catch insanity from your children.” Taking in the room and its occupant, she shook her head and grinned. Zac had paint smeared on his shorts and tank top, plus splatters on nearly every inch of exposed skin. “Are you trying to paint the walls or decorate yourself?”

      He was obviously in no mood for her sarcasm. One eyebrow arched as he

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