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Hannah wanted to tell her closest and dearest friend to just stop, because the truth made her heart ache.
“Why are you so bossy?”
Olivia shrugged. “I just can’t watch you being down on yourself any longer. It’s time to make a change.”
“It’s not just Troy, it’s everything.” The floodgates opened. “I thought having cancer would change my dad, make him see that I’ve done OK for myself, but he couldn’t wait to see the back of me.” She brushed away a tear, laughing at how pathetic she must look. “And then there are the bills, and Emma’s growing up, and everything she needs gets more expensive every year, and my car needs repairs, and… and…”
“Then move to the farm!” Olivia took her arms, steadying her. “How many more signs do you need, to show you that you belong here?”
* * *
Jake had breakfast at the diner with his brother and sister. They sat outside on the patio, overlooking the park and river. Even on a Sunday morning, Prairie Valley was filled with tourists and boaters. A red trolley bus on wheels, not rails, shuttled gray-haired sightseers around.
Today was Baby Mae’s christening, and as much as he dreaded seeing Hannah, he longed for it, too.
“Are you serious right now?” Julia looked like he had punched her in the gut. “You want me to help you find a gift for the kid of the guy who dumped me?”
“Sorry, I didn’t really think about it like that.”
“Hannah’s a fool not to jump at the chance of dating a guy like you.” Julia meant well, but he knew she didn’t see the same Hannah that he did.
“You’re my sister. You’re supposed to say that.”
“You’re a catch! Don’t waste your time on someone who doesn’t see it.”
“She’s different.” Not only that,hefelt different. Something had shifted in the way he thought about life now, as if there was something to look forward to, something to work toward, something hewanted. Julia didn’t know what it was like to have trust issues. Her needs had always been met. Jake’s father had taught him one thing, and that was to never fully trust anyone. He knew that with someone like Hannah, he’d need to prove himself.
“Speaking of Hannah, guess who was looking for a job the other day?” Josh asked, then took a bite of bacon.
“Who?” Jake took the last sip of his coffee.
“Troy Higgins.”
He almost spit out his drink. “Troy?”
Josh nodded. “And he said he had a run-in with you.”
Jake couldn’t believe he’d bring that story up at an interview. “He talked about me?”
“Says he’s been clean and sober since.”
This was news to him. “What?”
“Says he started a twelve-step program and found God.” Josh shook his head. “I’ve never had an experience like that before in my life. He comes to the job site downtown at the condos, and just lays everything out, right there. How he has a family, how he lost his job, and was in this really bad spot. And how my brother fought him in aisle twelve.”
Jake mulled this information over in his head.
“Seems like he’s really trying to get his family back together.”
He wondered if Hannah knew anything about this.
“Are you going to hire him?” He thought about the Gunderson barn. Would Troy work for Josh downtown, or would they dump him at Jake’s jobsite?
Josh shrugged. “I’m always looking for someone to do cleanup work.”
Site cleanup was the bottom of the barrel at a construction site. Jake knew that well – he’d done plenty of it, ever since he was a teenager. Pieces of drywall, insulation, sharp wires, all had to be piled into dumpsters for removal. And stickers. There were always lots and lots of stickers to remove, on windows, appliances, tubs, you name it. Jake had cleaned and scraped till his hands were raw.
“Have you ever done that job?” Jake asked his brother.
