Mending Fences

Slipping in behind the wheel, she turned the key but nothing happened. The car turned over but wouldn’t start.

“Sounds like you’re out of gas.” He leaned close and smelled like sunshine and spice. His nearness gave her goose bumps.

“I guess I pushed it too far.” She’d been back and forth to the hospital several times the last couple days. On her way home last night, the gas station in the four-corner town her mother lived near was closed.

“You can ride with me.”

Laura looked up into those kind blue eyes of his, but she wasn’t buying. “What did you say your last name was?”

He smiled, displaying perfectly even, white teeth—no doubt the handiwork of a good orthodontist. “Jack Stahl.”

“Thanks, Dr. Stahl, but there’s a gas can in the barn. I’ll be just fine.”

He backed away as she got out. “It’s just Jack. I’ll get the can if you show me where.”

She hesitated only a moment before leading the way. She matched his long strides across the lawn and opened the barn door. “Where are you from?”

“East Lansing. What about you? You don’t strike me as the U.P. type.”

“What gives you that idea?”

He gestured toward her waist. “The latest in cell phones.”

“What, no one in the U.P. has a cell phone?” She didn’t want to admit that her mother lived alone, not yet.

“Yours is pretty high-tech. Are you a professor?”

She laughed. “No.”

“Landscaper then, you mow a mean lawn.” He actually winked before he picked up a five-gallon gas can as if it weighed nothing.

“Thanks.” She focused on anything but him. Something about him made her feel off-kilter.

“Nice tractor.” He pointed toward the old John Deere. “Antique?”

“It belonged to my father.”

“Does it work?”

“I don’t know.” She followed him out.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he reached in and popped her gas cover. She watched as he unscrewed the cap. His hands were large and broad with clean fingernails cut short. He wore a modest wedding ring, but he hadn’t mentioned a wife. Was he divorced? It didn’t matter. Like Anthony, he had a daughter.

“How far?”

His question scattered her thoughts. “What?”

“How far to the restaurant?”

“Five or six miles.”

“I’ll follow you, but you may want to stop and fill up just the same.”

“Will do, Jack. I’ll meet you there.”

Jack took a deep breath before opening the door to the pizza parlor. “Italian, huh?”

“You can order pasta, pizza, even meatball subs.” She gave him a quirky grin.

“I’ll remember that.” He held the door for her. When she passed by him, he inhaled her perfume. It was soft and incredibly pleasing. He hoped she didn’t live next door. He was noticing things he’d be better off ignoring.

He spotted a middle-aged woman with a file laid open on the table. After the introductions had been made, Maddie Smith, the Realtor, smiled. “I hope you don’t mind a booth,” she whispered. “More private.”

“Fine with me.” Laura scooted in next to Maddie.

Jack sat across from them. Laura looked ready to get down to business. Surely that meant she was eager to part with the barn instead of negotiating. He didn’t want to waste time haggling.

“What do you like on your pizza?” Maddie asked.

“Everything or nothing. I like it all. Whatever you choose is fine.” Jack didn’t care what they ate or drank. He wanted to put his offer on the table.

The waitress quickly took their order and left. Soon the restaurant started to fill up with customers.

Jack took a sip of his soft drink. “I need a place right away but I know the mortgage process doesn’t work that fast.”

He looked at Laura. Her brow furrowed slightly, so he touched her arm with reassurance. The softness of her skin registered, which reminded him to move his hand away. “Hear me out. I’m interested in making an offer.”

She leaned back against the red vinyl of the booth.

He wasn’t sure if he’d offended her with his touch or his honesty. Either way, he wasn’t about to be discouraged. “I’d like to rent with the option to buy within a year at your listing price.”

Laura sat forward. “You don’t even know my listing price. How do you know you can afford it?”

“I can afford it.”

Her eyes widened. “What if you decide after a month that there’s too much work needed?”

“I can’t see that happening, but if I pull out, I’ll give you six more months rent so you can relist.”

She shook her head. “I have to sell. Can you tell me what’s stopping you from buying?”

Jack also leaned forward. “I have a daughter to consider. I think this place might be good for us. But if I’m wrong, I need the ability to change gears.”

“I see.”

Maddie, who quietly watched their exchange, cleared her throat. “We can look at a land contract. It’s a little more than just renting yet not quite buying it outright.” They both glanced her way as she explained the specifics.

Maddie wanted him to have it. Of course she did, she was the Realtor, but Jack couldn’t help but feel like Maddie was in his corner. She’d just offered a plan that fell somewhere in the middle of what they both wanted.

Laura looked skeptical but in control. “What if he defaults?”

“Pardon me for sounding arrogant, but money’s not an issue. In fact, if you decide to sell the house, I’d be interested in that, too, but I won’t be taken for a sap.”

“You’d have the deed, dear.” Maddie turned to Laura as if he’d never spoken. “You’d simply be back where you are now, looking for a new buyer, only you’d keep the agreed down payment for your trouble.”

Laura looked him straight in the eye, judging him, weighing his words. “You said you could buy the house, too? Pardon me for being nosy, but I didn’t think vets made that much.”

She’d just put him in his place. Whatever she did for a living, the sleek image of a shark came to mind. He shifted under her direct gaze. “I sold off my part of a limited partnership for a generous sum. I have other investments as well. The point is that my daughter needs new surroundings and so do I. I could retire, but being a vet is no less a calling than any other type of doctor. I’m buying out a nearby practice so the guy can retire. This area is perfect for many reasons. Check my credit, my bank accounts, whatever it takes to prove my credibility.”

That earned him a look of surprise from Laura. He’d managed to impress her and for some odd reason, that pleased him.

After a brief silence, she smiled deliberately. “Forgive me, Dr. Stahl, but I tend to look for all the pitfalls. This is my mother’s house and barn. I’m acting in her best interest, but I think we can move forward.”

“Of course we can,” Maddie said with a wave of her hand as if it all were nothing. “I’ll have the papers drawn up in the morning, then meet with you both again, say tomorrow at noon at the house? Dr. Stahl, I need you to sign a credit release.” Maddie searched her file, until she produced the document and laid it upon the table.

He had nothing to hide. He took the offered pen, signed his name and dated it. “And, please, it’s just Jack.”

They discussed the details, and even after acting like he could buy the world, Laura didn’t attempt to pinch him for more. The down payment was modest.

“So that’s it.” Laura set down the pen.

“I’m buying your barn and twenty.” A slow grin spread across his face and then he remembered. “I have movers scheduled for this weekend.”

Laura bit her bottom lip. “I have to clear out the barn, but that shouldn’t be a problem.”

“If you’d like, I can buy what’s in there for another two thousand.” He wanted that tractor.

Laura shook her head. “I need to sort through things first. There might not be anything of worth.”

Again, she didn’t take advantage of the situation. She might be deadly direct in negotiations, but she had integrity. “Do you mind if I swing by early tomorrow and start cleaning?”

“Does that work for you, Laura?” Maddie asked.

“It does.”

Jack looked at the last name on the listing agreement. “So tell me, what nationality is Tee-ovo?”

Laura tipped her head and laughed softly. Her pretty eyes slanted even more. “You’re saying it wrong. It’s pronounced Toy-vo. It was my great-grandfather’s first name but it got turned around during immigration. I’m Finnish on both sides.”

“Pretty name.” For a pretty woman. He shouldn’t like the color that stole over her cheeks, knowing he’d put it there with such a simple compliment, but he did.

He watched Laura’s attention waver by the arrival of the pizza. She reached for a piece.

“Does anyone mind if I say grace?” He might as well let her know he was a man of faith right up front.

Laura’s eyes narrowed as if judging him, questioning his sincerity. She shrugged her shoulders. “Go ahead.”

“Wonderful.” Maddie laid a slice on her plate.

Jack offered up his simple thanks and asked a special blessing upon both Maddie and Laura. Then a cell phone rang.

“I’m sorry.” Laura got up from the table and headed outside.

“She’s in sales,” Maddie said with an indulgent smile.

Jack nodded, thinking that made perfect sense.

Laura closed her phone. Mr. Albertson wanted to wait for her return before signing. Her sales manager, Jeff, offered to step in and close the deal, but Mr. Albertson wouldn’t hear of it. He didn’t trust Albertson Manufacturing’s I.T. support to anyone but Laura.

It felt good to be that respected by a client. Laura hadn’t impressed anyone in her family with her climb up the corporate ladder from computer programming geek to one of their top salespeople.

She’d managed to impress Jack Stahl, though. He’d given her a look of admiration over the negotiation table. Jack seemed like the kind of man who was used to getting his own way, but she hadn’t let that sway her. Hearing him pray had been surprising. When he asked a special blessing over her and Maddie, softness had crept into her heart.

Laura had stopped looking to God for help when she was a kid, but she wouldn’t mind a little divine assistance now. With her manager pressing for a return date she couldn’t give, and her mother’s blood pressure still unstable, Laura hoped things got back to normal fast. Until then, she’d work as much as she could from here. She had her laptop, but the sooner she got back to work, the better.

Chapter Three

The next morning Jack called his sister from his motel room to let her know that he’d be home later than planned. He asked if she’d keep Angie one more night. His daughter was still asleep, so there wasn’t a chance to talk to her. He’d soften the blow of their new home in person.

After a quick breakfast at a local diner, Jack stopped at the school office to confirm Angie’s enrollment, then he turned down the road toward Laura’s. After pulling in the drive and shutting off the motor, he checked his watch. Eight-thirty. The Realtor wasn’t coming until noon so he had plenty of time. He stared at his barn, soon to be home, and his hands itched to grab his tools and start renovating. But cleaning was the first priority.

He glanced at the house. Was Laura an early riser? His wife used to sleep in on Saturdays. Jack had never succeeded in getting Joanne up early in the morning to kayak with him on the river near their town house. No matter how hard he pushed or pleaded, she hated mornings and the water. If only Jack had paid more attention to her fears.

He got out of his truck, shifting a box of cleaning supplies on his hip. Taking care not to dump the contents that rattled and clanged, he walked to the side door of the barn and turned the knob. Locked. Laura had the key.

He headed toward the porch and rapped on the kitchen door. Laura’s sleek blue convertible sat in the driveway. That car didn’t belong in this part of the U.P. where the winters were long and harsh. He knocked again.

The curtains parted abruptly and Laura peeked through, her cell phone against her ear. She gestured for him to hold on. He waited only a few moments until she opened the door. “You’re here early.”

He took in the picture she presented, starting at her bare feet with toenails painted bright purple. She wore khaki shorts and a matching T-shirt.

He cleared his throat. “I’m sorry. The door to the barn is locked. Can I have the key?”

She scanned his box of cleaning supplies. “Wouldn’t it be easier to hire someone?”

“Maybe, but I need to get to know my place hands-on,” he said.

“Give me a minute and I’ll join you. I need to go through my dad’s stuff anyway.”

Jack shifted his box. He didn’t want her invading his space, distracting him. “It’s dirty out there. I can handle it.”

“What, I can’t get dirty?” She reached for a key tied to a faded blue ribbon and handed it to him. “Besides, I can show you some of my dad’s tools in case you want to buy them. I’ll meet you there in a few minutes.”

Jack stood staring at the doorknob, key in hand. It’d been a long time since he’d noticed another woman with interest. And it was impossible not to notice Laura Toivo. Losing Joanne had left a gaping hole in his world, but he was finally putting his life back together. And that meant focusing on his kids. Building a secure environment for Angie. He didn’t have the time or energy to date.

He refused to find a high-strung saleswoman like Laura desirable. She had career first family second written all over her. Definitely not what he wanted. If only he didn’t find tall, blue-eyed blondes attractive.

Laura pulled on her sneakers from under the kitchen table, where she’d kicked them off last night. Just that small movement caused sweat to bead along her brow. Morning and already it was a scorcher. Unusual for late August in the U.P.

She opened her mother’s cupboard and grabbed an old-fashioned pitcher. She smiled when she thought of the look Jack had given her on the porch. She should be used to it by now—the eager eyes most men wore when they noticed her. But Jack’s expression had been softer, sweeter somehow. He had turned beet red. He was too cute. Something she certainly had no business noticing.

She quickly made lemonade, grabbed a couple of ice-filled glasses, and headed out the door. It was as good a time as any to go through her dad’s things. And she might as well get to know Jack, now that he was going to be living across the driveway from her mother.

As Jack scrubbed the toilet, he heard Laura’s approach with a clinking of glass. He looked up.

“Want some lemonade?” She stood in the doorway brandishing a metal tray topped with refreshments like some sort of shield.

“Sure.”

“Ugh, that’s just gross.” She placed an icy glass on the edge of the sink. “I’m sorry this place is in such sad shape. It’s too much for my mother to keep up, so we decided to sell it.”

“It’s not so bad.” Jack took a long drink. It made sense, the neglected property, the outdated wiring. He’d bet Laura didn’t live anywhere near here. Good thing, too. Out of sight, out of mind. He went back to the toilet with a vengeance. “Is it just you and your mom?”

“Just the two of us.”

“No brothers or sisters in the area?”

“Nope.” After setting down her tray, she moved toward a dusty radio perched on an even dustier shelf. “Do you mind?”

“Go ahead.”

She turned the knob with sounds of static blips until she settled on a station. “Do you like jazz?”

“Not really. But it’s coming in clearly.” Jack stood and stretched his back. He fumbled through his box for a can of foaming bathroom cleaner. He sprayed the sink and the tiled walls.

“Let me guess, you like country.” She’d parked herself on a nearby stool, sweating glass of lemonade in hand.

“What’s wrong with country?” He’d grown to love country music since it was often played in the horse barns where he’d made house calls.

Her expression clearly showed that he’d dropped a tick or two on her impressed scale. “Nothing. It’s just so typical up here.”

Why’d he care what she thought? “My parents used to summer near here when I was a kid.”

“Is that what made you choose this area?”

“That and the chance to buy out Dr. Walter’s practice.” He emptied his glass with a rattle of ice. “My daughter and I need a change in scenery and my son’s college is nearby. The location seemed perfect.”

“You know, you’re sticking her in the middle of nowhere. Thirteen’s a tough age.”

What could she possibly know about it? “Do you have kids?”

Her expression took on a strained, almost haunted look. “No. I’ve never been married, but I got close once.”

“What happened?” He shouldn’t have asked, but the words slipped out. He could have kicked himself for caring about the answer. He didn’t want to care about what Laura might have been through. He didn’t want to care. Period.

She shrugged. “He had a young daughter who didn’t want me for a stepmother.”

Jack could tell the admission hurt. He wondered why she hadn’t gotten along with this guy’s kid. Probably too busy with her job. Kids knew that stuff. They picked up on priorities.

“What about you?”

Jack hesitated. “Widowed.”

Her expression changed to pity. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

He let out a sigh. “It’s been two years this past June.”

She sipped her lemonade, looking more composed. “That must be hard on your kids.”

You have no idea.

He wiped down the wall with a rag, keeping busy, but he suddenly found himself wanting to unload, and Laura was surprisingly easy to talk to. It wasn’t as if she’d stick around, so what harm was it to confess a few insecurities? “Sometimes, I feel like a blind man searching for a book in the braille section of a library. Only, I don’t know the title.”

“I’m sure you’ll find it, just like you found this property when you needed it most.”

She couldn’t possibly know how God had answered his prayer. He needed to trust God to lead him to the book—to lead him through this. Good things took time and commitment. He had plenty of both to make this place a real home. A place where Angie could grow out of her grief. A place where he could release his regrets. “Thanks.”

“I hope this property proves to be a blessing for you and your daughter, like it was for my dad. I think he’d approve of your plans if he were here.”

Jack stopped cleaning and turned to look at her. She didn’t strike him as having a rock-solid faith, but then he didn’t know what was in Laura’s heart when it came to God. “I take it your father’s dead.”

“When I was your daughter’s age my dad died at work from a chemical leak.” Her voice lowered.

“I’m sorry.”

She shrugged. “The worst part was never saying goodbye, you know?”

Jack looked away. “Yeah, I know.”

After a few moments of silence, she popped off the stool and changed the subject. “Want more to drink?”

“No, but thank you.”

“Before I sort through the stuff in the barn, was there anything that caught your eye?”

What a loaded question. He followed her, though, noticing her height. He was pushing six-four and the top of her head would graze his nose if they stood close. But he didn’t want to consider standing close to Laura.

“I’d love to buy that old tractor and the lawn mower. How much do you want for them?”

“How much are you willing to pay?” she asked.

He’d already offered her two thousand for the lot, but he’d play her game. It was more fun than cleaning. “What kind of sales do you do?”

“Business solutions.”

“No wonder,” he said with a smile.

“What?”

“Answer a question with a question, is that your motto?”

She gave him a cheeky grin. “The client should always give me the number and I’ll work it from there.”

Jack put his hands in the pockets of his worn jeans. He liked her. She was edgy, maybe even a little cocky, but he liked her. “Well, Ms. Toivo, name your price and I’ll count it as fair.”

“Just Laura. And if you show me what tools are worth keeping, then the tractor is yours for eight hundred. I have to keep the lawnmower until I find a reasonable landscaper.”

“You give me the mower, and I’ll make sure your mother’s lawn is kept neat as a pin.”

She smiled and extended her hand. “You’ve got yourself a deal. And you’re good. You never gave anything away. Shall we shake on it?”

He grasped her hand firmly and then noticed a dusty spider’s web clinging to her head. “Seems you’ve got a cobweb in your hair.”

He felt her hand tremble and her eyes widened in fear. “Get it off, please, get it off.”

Without letting go, he stepped closer. He swiped his fingers through her silky hair, taking the sticky fibers with him. He wiped his hand on the back of his jeans. “It’s gone.”

She pulled back and frantically turned around. “Are there any more? Please don’t tell me if anything is crawling anywhere, just brush it off.”

“Nothing. You’re fine.”

She faced him, her cheeks pink. “Thanks.”

The space between them suddenly shrunk, so Jack backed up.

Laura must have felt it too, because she shifted from one foot to the other looking confused. “So, your movers are coming this weekend?”

Jack cleared his throat. “We should be here by late afternoon or early evening on Saturday. Like I said last night, I want to get my daughter settled before school starts. Are you sure that won’t cause a problem?”

“Not at all.” She threw her arms wide. “I’ll get this stuff out of here as soon as possible and the place is yours.”

“Perfect. Now, how about a look at those tools.”

Jack didn’t need another complication in his life, especially an attractive neighbor. He needed to concentrate on Angie. He wanted to prove that he could be the kind of father his daughter needed. Involved and attentive, not distracted by a beautiful blonde.

Later that day, Laura straightened her shoulders and entered her mother’s hospital room. The nurses had her mom sitting in a chair looking nearly normal except for the droop on the left side of her face. A bouquet of balloons rested in the far corner—no doubt from cousin Nancy and her kids. She noticed a small arrangement perched on the bedside table. “Where’d you get the flowers?”

“Maddie Smith, from the real estate office.”

Laura’s heart sank. She’d struggled with how to break the news to her mother that she’d sold the property. Even though her mom had agreed to list the barn, Laura knew her mother would blame her for having to sell it. Seemed like ever since Laura was a kid, she couldn’t do anything right in her mother’s eyes.

Laura had been a daddy’s girl. She’d felt like her birth had come between her parents. That her mother had resented her for creating some rift between them. She remembered overhearing her mom tell her dad that he was spoiling his daughter rotten.

“Any bites? I guess it’s early yet.” Her mother’s speech had also improved.

“A guy stopped by yesterday.” She just couldn’t fess up to the land contract.

Her mother’s eye closed and then she shrugged her good shoulder. “Well, it’s a nice piece of property, don’t go giving it away.”

“I won’t.” Jack had paid the listing price without flinching. Surely, that would please her mother, but it wouldn’t hurt to give her mom a little more time to get used to the idea of selling.

“Have you seen your cousin Nancy?”

“No.”

“You should see her children. Her youngest is a cute little thing.”

“Uh-huh.” Since when did her mother like kids? Growing up, Laura wasn’t allowed too many friends over because her mother didn’t like the noise or the mess. Her mother didn’t like all that commotion. Laura had spent her share of time at Nancy’s because of that.

A quick knock on the door and Aunt Nelda peeked in. “I hope you’re in the mood for company.”

Her aunt’s three grandchildren scampered across the room. They surrounded Laura’s mom, wide-eyed with wonder, asking questions about her mother’s drooping face all at once, failing to use their inside voices. But her mother clearly enjoyed the attention, and that surprised Laura.