Groaning, Jessica crossed her arms and shook her head. “I don’t know if I like that look on your face.”
Margaret turned wide, innocent eyes in her friend’s direction. “What look?”
“You know what look I’m talking about. It was the same look you had when you were ready to get even with Phillip McPherson in grade school.”
“I got even with him because he put that rat in your desk.”
“Yes. And that’s how we became such good friends.”
Margaret smiled, her mood improving. “Well, someone had to put him in his place. He didn’t mess with you after that.”
She sighed. “I suppose I owe you one. You got rid of my bully. It’s only fair I help you get rid of yours.”
Her eyes lit up. “Really?”
“A woman trying to break up my friend’s marriage has it coming. But I do feel a tad bit bad for Connie. Sure, the woman is unbearable, but at least she doesn’t go barging into people’s weddings and trying to convince the bride to get out of her way.”
“Oh, Connie will be fine.” Margaret glanced at Doug and Bob as they kicked the ball back and forth. She knew they’d love nothing more than to be assured that Miss Potter wouldn’t be a problem anymore. “I wonder...”
“What?” Jessica sat up straight and leaned forward. “What do you wonder?”
She turned her attention back to her friend. “You know, I will say one thing about children. They can be a big help when they don’t want something, and the last thing they want is Debra around. I bet they wouldn’t mind helping me get her out of their lives for good.”
“Must you involve the children?”
A grin spread across Margaret’s face. “Oh, you bet. She wants to be a mother so badly. I wonder what she’d do if she got the chance. How well would she really handle it?”
Looking uncertain, Jessica said, “What are you thinking?”
Excited, Margaret began to tell her friend her plan.
Chapter Twelve
Two weeks later, Margaret glanced at the four boys as she put on her hat. “Now, you’re sure you know what to do.”
Bob finished putting on his shoes and stood up in the parlor. “Sure, Ma. We can be obnoxious. It’s easy.”
Doug crossed his arms, looking skeptical. “Miss Potter wants Pa. I don’t know if this will work.”
Margaret picked up Ben before he could go running off into the kitchen. “Has she ever taken care of you boys before?”
“No,” Bob said. “Pa wouldn’t let her.”
Perfect. Margaret had gathered as much, but it was nice to get that clarified. She grinned. She couldn’t wait to see how well Debra handled four small rambunctious boys. “You promise not to be on your best behavior like you did with me when I first became your ma?”
“We’re still being good, aren’t we?” Bob asked.
“Not as good as you were that first week but yes. You’re all good boys. Your pa and your first ma did a good job.”
And really, she had no reason to complain. It was still a lot of work—at times overwhelming—but she managed through it. Ben wrapped his arms around her neck and kissed her cheek. She grinned and hugged him back. And this was what made it worthwhile.
Doug grimaced. “I hate being around Miss Potter. Are you sure this will work?”
“Just how bad can you be?” Margaret asked.
“We can be very bad if it means getting her to leave you and Pa alone,” Bob quickly assured her. “When Charles and Ben get into things, we’ll find other things to do.”
“Yeah. We’re not helping her like we did with you,” Doug added.
She raised an eyebrow. “You only help half the time.”
“See? We’ve practiced!” Bob smiled as if that had, indeed, been the plan all along.
“If you say so...” She patted Charles on the arm. When he turned from staring out the front window, she motioned for him to go to the door. “Alright. This is it. The more annoying you can be, the sooner she’ll send for me.”
“That can’t come soon enough,” Doug muttered.
“Why, Doug, that is very kind of you to say.” She opened the screen door and let them step onto the porch before she shut the door behind her. “You know,” she continued, looking at the pessimistic seven year old, “I’m a lot like you. I have a hard time thinking things will work out until they do. That’s why I wasn’t sure about marrying your pa.”
“You weren’t sure about him?” Doug wondered.
“Well, I wasn’t sure if I could handle taking care of all of you. But it’s worked out, hasn’t it?”