Forbidden Falls (Virgin River #9)(90)

Ellie helped Jo with the breakfast, talked with Danielle about another new school and washed up the dishes while Jo helped them dress. All the kids had to wear were the clothes in their backpacks, so Jo decided that she would arrange to go to Arnie’s house with an escort to pack up their belongings.

“Is there anything I can do about that?” Ellie asked.

“Yes, you can give me his work phone number. And then, stay out of it. You really can’t be involved with him at all, not in the least way. I’ll make sure Nick comes home from work early to supervise the kids while I go over there. I’ll take Nick’s SUV.”

“He doesn’t have to come home early,” Ellie said. “I could—”

“Ellie, you can be here with them whenever you want to be, as far as I’m concerned, but you have to let me act as guardian for the moment. I can’t rely on you to parent right now. Let’s do this by the book.”

“Yes. Right,” she relented. “Get a very big escort.”

“I’ve done this before, sweetheart. It’s been a while, but my foster kids tended to come from some very scary places. Usually with only the clothes on their backs.”

That was a thought that stayed with Ellie as she went off to work at the church. She thought about her own kids, sure, but it weighed even more heavily on her mind that too many kids grew up hard. She’d lived from hand to mouth with her grandmother, but they’d always managed. She’d had friends who hadn’t managed as well, some of whom were in the system, but they hadn’t had a Jo or a Nick. The ones she knew were placed in crowded homes where living was tough. It wasn’t unusual for them to be tossed in with a group of kids with an established pecking order and have to defend themselves or suffer abuse from either other foster kids or even the parents. Foster care was a big, scary monster among her crowd while she was growing up.

It was not a pretty, clean house like the Fitches’, with an experienced, kind couple prepared to give their hearts as well as their space.

By the time she got to the church, Noah was waiting in his office and the construction crew was already starting to work. Noah stood and went to her immediately, giving her a brief embrace and kiss on the cheek. “Good, you’re all right. You must not have had any problems last night.”

She laughed at him. “I bet you’re glad you didn’t hire Mrs. Nagel. Wouldn’t she be a sourpuss to kiss? Everything is fine or I would have called you. What’s on your schedule?”

“I have calls to make. You?” he asked.

“You’re the boss. But if it’s no big deal, I’d like to stay in town, in case Jo needs something to do with the kids. I think Vanni’s doing fine with her babies, but I’ll call her, explain what’s going on and be sure she can do without me for a couple of days. I’ll start painting your office if you like.”

“The noise is going to make you crazy.”

“Nah. I’m about as crazy as I’m going to get. Is George gone?”

Noah nodded. “But he’ll be back when the church is open.”

“Go on then. Go do your pastor thing. I’ll paint and answer the phone and be close by in case Jo needs me for the kids. She’s not going to need me, though. She’s got this situation wired—she knows exactly what to do.”

“You okay with that, kiddo?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she said in a breath. “I can’t believe what a break it is—having someone like her fill the bill. I don’t think all the court motions in the world could have worked out better. Sometimes I end up being so goddamn lucky.”

His lips quirked up and he shook his head.

“I guess you wouldn’t have exactly put it like that, huh?” she asked.

He leaned forward and gave her cheek a kiss. “No, I might not have. But I know you didn’t mean any disrespect. Remember, I’m the guy who saw you on your knees.”

“Who’d’a believed it would finally pay off, huh?” She grinned widely.

“I’m going to get out of here before I do something crazy and get caught by a construction worker or something. I’ll call to check in from time to time, make sure you’re doing okay and there aren’t any new developments. Call Brie first thing and ask for a restraining order. Arnie isn’t worth trusting.”

Ellie was back at the Fitch house before Jo had returned from fetching clothes for the kids from Arnie’s. Nick was in charge. The kids were watching a little afternoon TV and he was in the kitchen. “Jo told me to get started on dinner. I’m not trusted with anything more complicated than peeling potatoes and carrots,” he said.

“Would you like me to take over?” she asked.

“I’m almost done here. I expect her any minute. And she said no more than an hour on the TV, so I have my eye on the clock.”

“Nick, this is wonderful of you—watching out for my kids like this. I owe you an apology. That first day I met you, when I wanted to rent that room, I made some assumptions about you that were wrong. You haven’t been anything but respectful to me. I’m sorry I was so rude.”

He stood at the sink, peeling carrots. He glanced over his shoulder. “No apology necessary, Ellie. Your assumption wasn’t far off base. I’ve done some real dumb-ass things in this little town. I should be the one to go around apologizing, not you. But you and your kids are completely safe here. I’d never let anything happen to them. And, my God, it is good to see Jo so happy.”