Her Second-Chance Family - Holly Jacobs

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than seeing clearly,” he said, patting his slightly paunchy stomach, “is there anything that woman can’t do?”

      “Nothing I know of,” Audrey assured him.

      He took a bite and groaned. “Wow.”

      “You called me back because you wanted something?” she prompted.

      Mr. Lebowitz was lost in a cinnamon brain fog. Audrey watched as he tried to clear his head enough to remember why he’d summoned her.

      “Oh, yes.” He dug through a precarious-looking pile of papers and pulled out a neon orange Post-it. Audrey did the ordering for the firm, and chose the brightest sticker notes she could find so they would stand out amid the clutter.

      “Marcia James, the mayor’s assistant, and Ms. Wilkins, the educational enrichment coordinator for the school district, set up a tentative meeting for Friday. Marcia asked that you confirm.”

      She took the Post-it. “Sure. I can make that work.”

      “Great. Now, go get ready for the Castellinis. I’m going to sit back and savor my cinnamon roll. And when you have a minute, could you give me Maggie’s phone number so I can thank her properly?”

      Audrey tried to keep the speculation out of her voice as she said, “She’s at my house with the kids today, so you can reach her there.”

      “Great. I will.”

      And because the matchmaking bug had hit, she added, “You know, you should probably think of a way to reciprocate. Maybe ask her out to dinner some night?”

      She left before he could respond.

      What was with her? She had romance on her mind, and that wasn’t like her at all. Between the kids, work and now the Greenhouse, her life was full. She didn’t have time to date, which was good because her last attempt had been a disaster.

      She’d been held up at a meeting that ran late, and got home just in time for Maggie May to apologize profusely and say she had some stomach bug and couldn’t babysit. It was too late when... What was the guy’s name? Paul. That was it.

      He was a nice zoologist. It was too late to call and cancel. She opened the front door just as Bea told her she was feeling sick. He stepped inside and... Bea barfed on his shoes.

      She would have thought a guy who dealt with zoo animals on a daily basis could handle a little vomit.

      He couldn’t.

      That had been right before Willow came to stay with them.

      Audrey still got asked out on occasion, but she’d said no the past few months. She was trying to build a connection with Willow and didn’t want to divide her attention.

      So why, all of a sudden, was she trying to fix up Mr. Lebowitz and Maggie May?

      And why, when she thought about them dating, did she think about dating, as well?

      And the biggest question of all... Why was it Sawyer Williams she imagined sitting across a restaurant table from her?

      Clutching her orange Post-it note, she hurried into her office.

      She had a lot of work to do. Notes to pull together for her clients Marcia and Ms. Wilkins. The Castellini meeting.

      She was not going to think about fixing up Mr. Lebowitz and Maggie May.

      And more than that, she was not going to think about dating anyone herself.

      Especially not Sawyer Williams.

       CHAPTER FIVE

      AUDREY’S FIRST THOUGHT on Saturday was, Today we go to Sawyer’s.

      She felt...excited. She tamped down the feeling and reminded herself that this wasn’t a date. Sawyer was a nice man who, despite himself, was taking an interest in Willow.

      That was a good thing.

      She knew from personal experience that having people care about you made a difference in how you saw yourself. She got out of bed and meandered downstairs.

      Weekdays were frenetic, which was why she savored moving at a snail’s pace on the weekends.

      She smelled coffee before she got all the way down the stairs. Willow had beat her to the kitchen.

      Most nights Willow went up to her room around nine. But she rarely came downstairs early. She definitely had that teenage ability to sleep late down to a science.

      “I started your coffee,” she said. “I was just going to come wake you up. You said we could go to the DMV when I was ready. Well, I’m ready.”

      This was the first time Audrey had seen Willow so excited. She hadn’t wanted to offer to let Willow learn to drive. She knew that any number of things could happen. For years she’d avoided learning to drive herself.

      But it was her job to prepare Willow for adulthood. And if Audrey taught her, she could make sure Willow drove as safely and responsibly as possible.

      Still, things could happen. Things you couldn’t control.

      She pushed the thought away and concentrated on her smiling charge.

      “Willow, I know you’re excited, but it’s a holiday. The DMV is closed.”

      “Oh. I checked that it had Saturday hours, but I forgot it was a holiday.”

      Her disappointment was palpable.

      “Tell you what, I’ll try to get out of work early on Monday and take you up before you go to Sawyer’s.”

      “Really?”

      “Really. I’ll text Mr. Lebowitz today, but I’m sure he won’t mind.” He genuinely liked her kids and allowed her to juggle her schedule to make things work for them. She always made up the time later.

      “You don’t have to go to any trouble for me,” Willow said.

      “I know I don’t have to,” Audrey assured her. “But I want to. You’re worth a bit of trouble now and again.”

      Willow looked as if she wanted to say something, but she sat mutely.

      Audrey didn’t push. She poured herself a cup of coffee and took the stool next to Willow’s. “You are worth it, you know.”

      “Worth what?” Willow scoffed, but Audrey knew the question was genuine. “Me juggling my schedule. You’re worth that and a lot more. I can’t say I will always be able to accommodate you, but I can say that if it’s important to you, it’s important to me and I’ll try.” She took a sip of coffee. “Do you need me to quiz you for the test?”

      “No. I’ve got it.” With this, at least, Willow sounded confident.

      “What’s the name of the rule that you use to maintain a safe distance from the car in front of you?”

      Willow rolled her eyes. “The four-second rule.”

      “You’ve read the book.” Audrey had never seen Willow pick up so much as a textbook and yet she had good grades.

      Willow seemed to be thinking hard for a minute. Finally, she made her decision. “Hang on. I’ve got something to show you.”

      Audrey sat drinking her coffee as Willow disappeared up the stairs. Moments later, she returned and set an e-reader on the counter. “I don’t normally read in public,” she said, as if this was a huge deal. “I got used to hiding out when I read.”

      Audrey couldn’t imagine why Willow would feel that was necessary. “Why hide?”

      “People stole my books at one house,” she said simply.

      It was as if a lightbulb clicked on. Audrey

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