“Don't worry. Your brother is here.”
The comment was innocent enough but it still felt like a tiny knife to her heart. Her mom never needed her. As long as she had Sean around, her mom was fine. How different things might have been if her father hadn't walked out on them and forced Sean to become the man of the house. Would this invisible gap exist between them? There was no way to know for certain but Charlie didn't think so. After all it had only developed after her father left and her mom started to depend more and more on Sean.
“Love you, Ma.” The words flew out of her mouth before her brain realized it. She didn't say it often but it was true.
“I know. I love you too Charlie.” Maureen put down the dirty dishes she held and wrapped her arms around her daughter. “I'm glad you’re home.”
***
Jake entered the high school just before one o'clock. The meeting with his engineers had gone well. The river's water level was receding; and the engineers had completed their assessment and were developing a plan for rebuilding the dam. The head of the highway department had also called him to set up a meeting about repairing the parts of the roads that had buckled from the onslaught of water.
Yet his good mood wasn't purely due to the progress that was being made. A big part of it was due to the unusual sense of anticipation that coursed through his body. It'd been with him since his run-in with the good doctor that morning. Most people, especially women, jumped at the chance to be with him in the hopes of gaining some of his fame or fortune. Captain Charlotte O’Brien was not one of these women. She was making him work for her respect. While she'd thawed toward him, she hadn't tried to get to know him. And for reasons that were not entirely clear to him, he wanted to get to know her better. True friends were hard to come by and he got the impression that with some work she could be one.#p#分页标题#e#
Or maybe something more, his body suggested when he walked into the school's auditorium. About ten children of various ages were running around playing an indoor version of tag while another ten or so were listening to a story on the stage. Charlie sat in the middle, dressed in a pair of loose-fitting well-worn jeans and a tank top. Typically he didn't find anything attractive about the tomboy look. He'd always preferred a more sophisticated look on women. Yet on the good doctor it looked natural and he found it to be a real turn-on.
When no one noticed his entrance, Jake leaned against the wall and watched Charlie as she interacted with the children gathered around her. Her voice was strong and confident as she read from the picture book she held. The children around her hung on her every word, captivated as much by the story as by her voice. Jake found himself content to just stand there and listen.
It wasn't until she read the last page and closed the book that she noticed him. A small tentative smile spread across her face as she waved in his direction and immediately Jake felt his body respond.
What the hell? She smiled at you. She didn't get naked. Jake mentally shook his head in amazement. Since when did a simple smile turn him on? Maybe it was true what they said about there being a first time for everything.
“All set to go, Doc?” Jake kept his gaze focused on Charlie, determined to ignore the glances the other two women in the room were throwing his way.
Charlie nodded as she stood. “Just let me tell Lizzie I'm going.”
Jake couldn't tear his eyes away from Charlie's long legs eating up the stage as she crossed it and headed down the stairs. After a few words with a petite woman with jet black hair who he guessed was Lizzie, she joined him.
She leaned close to him and her arm brushed against his. “I owe you one for rescuing me,” she said, her voice a whisper.
Unable to stop himself he laughed at the sincerity in her voice. “Daycare not your thing, Doc?” He pushed open an auditorium door that led into the parking lot.
“Call me Charlie. Everyone does. No it's not my thing. One or two at a time is fine but that was worse than Officer Development School.”
He'd been calling her Doc for the past four days. Not once during that time had she corrected him till today, and damn if he wasn't pleased because of it. After opening the passenger door, he waited for her to climb in. “You looked pretty comfortable up there. The kids couldn't take their eyes off you.” Not that I blame them. He closed the door and walked around to the driver's side of the SUV.
Taking a water bottle out of her backpack, she took a drink before answering. “I read four or five books today. Before that we did arts and crafts. Even when I was a kid, I hated that stuff.”
Jake smiled at the exasperation in her voice. “Guess it's a good thing you didn't go into teaching like my sister Callie. She spends every day surrounded by twenty or so kids. Honestly, I don't know how she does it, but she insists that she loves it.”