Forbidden Falls (Virgin River #9)(11)

Right away Noah’s thought was, You might’ve sworn off men, but I bet they haven’t sworn off you—not with that face and body. Shew. He was starting to feel a little warm. Let me seek to understand rather than to be understood. Where there is despair, let me offer hope. And dear God, could you please get her to cover up that cle**age for a while?

“Look, Your Reverence, I just need a job like this for ninety days. That’s all. Maybe even less. I just have to convince the judge I’m a good mother, that I have a proper job, and then I’ll get out of your hair.”

“You know the judge shouldn’t have been able to take them from you without a pretty exhaustive investigation, right? You know he overstepped his authority, right? Did the legal-aid people explain all that?” Noah asked her.

“That the judge went his own way on this because he could?” she asked. “Oh, yeah, I know he was just screwing with me. And it was also explained that challenging him right now could drag things out even longer—it would make his decision more of an issue than the custody. And believe me, I don’t cut him any slack here, but he doesn’t realize what he’s doing to the kids by giving Arnie control any more than I did when I married Arnie. I’m sure he didn’t think it would be horrible for them. That’s no excuse for ignoring some real important rules, like giving the kids a lawyer of their own…That isn’t going to happen twice, I promise!”

He thought for a second, studying his pie. He looked up. “Ellie, I’d like to ask you a question and I don’t think there’s a way to do it that won’t be offensive. I apologize for that. Could there be any other possible reason the judge chose your ex-husband as the guardian?”

“Like?” she asked, as if confused.

He shrugged. “Problems with the law? Parenting problems? You know…”

Her eyes narrowed. “I don’t drink or smoke. I don’t do drugs. The only law I ever broke was not getting my license tags renewed on time because I didn’t have the money. I have a potty mouth, but not in front of the kids…I hardly ever slip. I don’t leave my children alone, and I’ve lost jobs when the sitter stood me up. I can’t give my kids everything I want to, but I take care of them the best I can.”

“You understand, I can’t even consider you for the job unless I ask.”

“I can do your stupid job,” she said defiantly. “And you can bet I’ll do a damn good job. No one has ever complained about my work. I work hard. I always do two days’ work in one, just in case one of the kids gets a fever or something and I have to call in sick to stay with them. I swear to God, if there’s one thing I’m not, it’s lazy!”

“You know, Ellie, the pay I’m able to afford is low. Very modest,” he said. “There are some benefits, but they’re not the greatest.”

“I figured,” she said with a shrug. “I don’t care about that.”

“How would you make that work? You obviously need money.”

“I’ll make changes,” she said. “Give up the duplex. Find one room somewhere. I don’t need a house when I can’t have my kids overnight. We’ve lived in one room before and we could do it again.” She shrugged. “Cozy. We just curl up and tickle and laugh and play and—” Again her eyes misted over. “I’ll manage whatever life throws at me. That’s what I’m used to doing.”

“The church job—it’s not a piece of cake,” he said. “I need help with heavy jobs. You saw the place. I have to fix it up before I even get to the preaching part.”

She flashed him a smile. “Sounds like fun. More fun than listening to a lot of bible beating.”

“At least I’m not going to have to work at getting you to come out of your shy little shell,” Noah said, and she laughed. “You’re in a tight spot. You need just under three months to get back to the judge and for me to find someone permanent. We could try it. But it’s not going to be easy.” On either one of us, he thought.

“Do I seem like someone who knows what to do with easy?”

He smiled and shook his head. He knew better; this was a bad idea. But the kid deserved a break, didn’t she? He dared a glance down from her eyes. A tremor ran though him. She sure didn’t look like a church secretary. But then, he didn’t look like a preacher. “You’re out of work right now?” he asked.

“I quit the day the judge gave Arnie the kids. I have to find something right away.”

“Tomorrow’s Thursday. If you want to start then, you can. But like I said, it’s dirty work. Do you have…ah…Jeans? Sweatshirts? Some shoes that aren’t high heels?”

“Sure,” she said, beaming. “Cool. I haven’t been in a church in years!”

“No kidding? I’d never have guessed. Well, people will have certain expectations…”

“Okay, no swearing. I’ll be totally polite. And I’ll leave my pasties and G-string at home.” Noah went completely red and she burst out laughing. “I don’t have pasties and G-strings. That club? It wasn’t that bad.”

“Just out of curiosity, what was your part?” he asked.

“Well,” she said, rolling her eyes upward. “That’s the interesting thing—sometimes a certain costume or look does more for the guys than being totally naked. The two most popular outfits were the cheerleading costume and the candy striper’s costume. The men—they really go for pom-poms.” Ellie looked at Noah. “Hey—are you all right?”