Holly Jacobs - Her Second-Chance Family

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 remembered what it was like to know that privacy wasn’t an option.

Willow continued. “And I tried going to the library, but a lot of the places I’ve stayed weren’t close to a branch. And I couldn’t count on rides to return the books I borrowed, so I saved my money for a year and bought this. And I worked for the money,” she said hastily, as if she didn’t want Audrey to think she made stealing a habit.

“I was staying with a family and they paid all the kids allowances. We had a chore list, so I did the other kids’ chores for a stake in their allowance. It still took me a long time to save.”

Audrey cocked her head, silently asking for permission to pick it up. Willow nodded. The small device weighed less than Audrey imagined. “I’ve never had an e-reader.”

“They’re amazing. You can borrow ebooks from the library. It’s not quite the same as a real book, but...” She shrugged.

Audrey picked up the reader. “Why hide it from us?”

“Because people take your stuff at most places. I just sort of expect it. But it didn’t happen here. For the first month I put tape on my door, just so I’d know when you all broke in,” Willow admitted. “But the only time you ever came in here was to take clothes or change the sheets. And when Bea snoops, but she doesn’t usually take anything.”

“I would never invade your privacy.” Audrey hesitated. “Well, under normal circumstances, I would never invade your privacy. If I thought you were doing something dangerous, I might.”

Willow nodded. “I know that now.”

Audrey set the e-reader back on the counter. “What do you like to read?”

“Everything. Anything. The library has limited supplies of ebooks, but a lot of the public domain classics are available for free online.”

“Can I see your list?”

Willow nodded.

Audrey turned on the machine and homed in on the bookshelf page. “Wow.”

From Pride and Prejudice to Tarzan to Sherlock Holmes , page after page of classics.

“I watch for older books that are free,” Willow said, “and I borrow newer releases from the library.”

Audrey handed the reader back to her. “I hope you feel comfortable reading in front of us this summer. That’s why I never saw you with the permit booklet?”

Willow nodded. “I knew that no one would steal that, but I just read it instead of my books at night.”

That explained how Willow could go up to bed at nine and still manage to sleep away her weekends. It also explained why sometimes Audrey saw the light on in the girl’s room when she went to bed.

She realized that even though she sometimes doubted it, she was making inroads with Willow. The girl trusted her, at least a little.

“Thank you for sharing with me,” Audrey told her.

Willow nodded. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, I still think you all are nuts, but this has been the best placement I’ve ever had. When I realized that you guys weren’t going to rip off my stuff, I felt...relieved. You don’t know what it’s like having only a few things that matter to you and having to guard them all the time.”

“You’re wrong, I do understand that feeling.”

“And I just realized that when I ripped off Sawyer, I was doing the same kind of thing to him. They said...” She fell silent.