“What did you barter to get it?”
“Well, it’s a strange kind of circle. A woman down the street needed her fence repaired. She asked me to do it but didn’t have the money to pay for the supplies, or for me to do the work. I needed some clothes for Justin, and she had a son who’d outgrown his things. So in exchange for the fence repair, she gave me the clothes. I knew a guy down at the pier who sold lawn ornaments and garden sculptures at the flea market. He worked as a landscaper during the week and had some extra fencing. He needed a babysitter for his four children for date nights with his wife. I traded him four Friday nights for the wood. I needed a way to get the wood, transport it, and transportation for myself, so I went to the guy who owned the truck. He wanted to impress his in-laws, who were coming into town for five days, so I offered to get the truck off the cinder blocks in his driveway in exchange for four fresh lobsters. I worked the docks for two days straight for them. I got a discount at the garage I worked at for the used tires and rims for the truck. The truck needed some minor engine work to get it running. I did that myself, picked up the wood, and built the fence.”
His father, along with Bud, Dee, and Blake’s mother, all stared at Gillian. No one spoke for several seconds.
“Very resourceful,” his father said.
“In the neighborhoods I lived in, people didn’t have a lot of money to pay for things, but I learned to figure out what they needed, how to get it, so I could get what I wanted or needed. So, my friend got her fence fixed, and Justin got the clothes he needed. It just took some work and ingenuity to get it done.”
Blake admired her even more for her cleverness. His father’s eyes held a light of pride and admiration when he looked at her, then glanced at him. The slight nod told Blake his father approved. He didn’t need to look at his mother to know she liked Gillian for him.
“I’d love a closer look. Mind showing me what you’ve done?” his father asked.
“You can take it for a drive if you’d like,” she offered. “A trip down memory lane, so to speak.”
His dad’s whole face lit up with excitement. “I’d like that. My dad used to take me fishing. We’d cast off from the tailgate and spend the day on the edge of the river, telling tall tales.”
“You took us boys all the time.” Blake remembered the trips fondly. He loved spending time with his brothers and dad. The days when they all got together were few and far between now.
“Come on. I’ll show you the truck.” Gillian grabbed her keys from the table by the front door.
Justin wiggled down from his arms. “I want to go, too.”
“Come on, young man.” Blake’s dad held out his hand. Justin grabbed it and walked out the door with him.
Gillian turned to Blake. “Did you see that?”
He smiled. “He didn’t hesitate to go with him.”
Her whole face beamed with happiness. “I can’t believe it.”
“I can. He doesn’t need to be afraid anymore. He’s got you, sweetheart. You were relaxed with my dad, so Justin was, too. You’ve kept your distance with me, so it took some coaxing to get Justin to hang with me in the beginning.”
“Hang is right. He likes you because you’re a giant jungle gym to him.” Her gaze swept across his chest and landed on his biceps.
He didn’t miss the heat in her gaze. Neither did Dee and his mother, so he didn’t make a suggestive comment about her undressing him with her gorgeous hazel eyes.
“I like to play with him. He’s fun. So serious when you arrived, but now he laughs and plays all the time.”
Justin giggled outside at something Blake’s father said or did. Gillian held up her casted hand and touched her fingertips to her bruised jaw and eye. Her gaze met Blake’s, a silent conversation that Justin might have switched gears living here, but she still had so much of her past dictating her every move, thought, and decisions.
Blake closed the distance between them, but at the last second, Gillian took a step back, then caught herself.
“I’m sorry.”
“You don’t need to apologize for what you need. Whatever that is to make you feel safe and comfortable. So, if it’s space, take it. If it’s time, it’s yours. Justin’s experiences are much more benign than yours, Gillian. You’ve lived a certain way your whole life, your guard up, every instinct on high alert. It will take time for you to change, settle, learn to live another way.”
Her eyes went bright with unshed tears. She blinked them away. “I’m sorry.” The words came out softer than a whisper, barely making it past her lips. She turned and fled through the door.