Chapter 5

Josie frowned. She didn't like the idea of Wesley following them to her apartment. He was going to come home with them to judge how well she'd prepared for her sister? She was perfectly capable of taking care of Paige. She was more than capable. Everything Paige could need was set up at her apartment already.

"Okay," Josie said, knowing she sounded a little prickly. She couldn't argue with this man; he was just following protocol. She shouldn't be taking her frustration out on him.

"Paige, why don't you drive with your sister this time?" Wesley suggested as they started toward the door of Tidal Wave Coffee. "I'll follow you both in my car."

Josie glanced at him, grateful for the suggestion. Paige, however, still had a blank expression on her face. She didn't look at Josie. She looked like the poster child for a sulking teenager, but Josie knew that sulking wasn't really sulking when a kid felt completely overwhelmed. Paige was just trying to look strong the best way she knew how.

They walked out to their cars. Josie noticed Wesley's Jeep, admiring how clean and well-kept it was.

"Here she is," Josie said to Paige, patting the side of her car. "Your door's unlocked."

"What about my suitcase?" Paige asked, glancing wistfully at Wesley's car as if she'd rather be riding with him.

"He'll bring it, don't worry," Josie assured her. "We'll bring it upstairs as soon as we get there."

Paige didn't respond. She got into the car and Josie followed suit. Once they were inside the small vehicle, the feeling of awkwardness seemed to intensify. Here they were, elbow to elbow, feeling worse than strangers when they should be feeling like family.

This is awful, Josie thought, glancing at her sister. She seems like she really doesn't like me. She felt another rush of guilt.

"I got you a job," Josie said, smiling hopefully as she turned the car around. "At the coffee shop we were just at."

"I know," Paige said. Her voice was quiet. "Michael told me. Thanks."

Josie nodded. Her sister sounded sad. Josie glanced at her again, wishing she could make it all better.

As they drove up to Josie's apartment building, Josie noticed Paige looking up at the cozy red brick building with interest.

"You have your own room." Josie smiled at her sister. "I hope you like it."

Paige shrugged and didn't say anything.

Wesley met them at the front door to the building, bringing Paige's suitcase with him. It was dark green and fraying at the edges. Josie thought she remembered it being her mother's old suitcase, and wondered if Paige didn't have a suitcase of her own. She made a mental note to buy her one—and anything else she needed.

Josie led them upstairs to her apartment, feeling self-conscious even though it was spotlessly clean and well-decorated. She watched both of their reactions carefully. Paige looked around with interest, and Wesley smiled, pleased.

"You have a very comfortable home here, Ms. Garner. Paige is lucky."

Josie felt soothed by his words, but then Wesley walked around the house, inspecting everything with a clipboard in his hands. It made Josie feel as if she had been accused of something.

"Everything is safe, and well-set up for a kid," he said, coming back into the kitchen and smiling at her. "It all looks great. Josie is lucky to have you as her guardian."

Josie nodded. She felt her heart pang. She wished she had done more for her sister sooner.

"You're doing a good thing." Wesley's voice was soft. Josie glanced up at him, looking into his kind brown eyes behind his glasses. She hadn't taken a good look at him before, but she noticed now how well-kept his jet-black hair was. He was tall—almost a full head taller than she was—and it almost made him seem intimidating. It was hard to feel intimidated by someone with such a kind expression, however.

She inhaled. She found it hard to believe his words, even though she knew that they were true. She felt as if she was doing too little too late. She wished she had started caring for Paige years ago.

Wesley shifted his weight for a moment and then reached into his pocket for his wallet. He took out a card and handed it to her.

"Here's my card. You can call me anytime."

"Thanks." Josie slipped it into the pocket of her jacket. "Will you be stopping by again?"

"I won't need to follow up with you unless any issues arise," he told her.

"There won't be," Josie said firmly.

Wesley nodded, although she could see concern in his eyes. "I'm sure there won't be. Nice to meet you, Ms. Garner."

"Nice to meet you," she said, holding her hand out. She wanted to make up for her curtness.

He took her hand and shook it firmly, smiling his warm smile. Josie didn't know what to say. She didn't want to say, "I'll see you around," because she was determined that he would never need to become involved in Paige's case again. Everything was going to run smoothly.

"Have a good night," she said as he stepped through the doorway. He nodded at her and lifted a hand of farewell to Paige. "Best of luck. I'm only a phone call away."

Paige nodded and Josie felt herself bristling again a little at his words. As if Paige would need rescuing from Josie or something like that!

"Good night," she said, a little tersely, and shut the door after him. For a moment she listened to his footsteps die away in the hallway, and then she turned to her sister.

"So." Josie tried to smile brightly, but she felt anxious. "Can I show you around?"

Paige shrugged. "Sure."

"Well. This is the kitchen." Josie laughed as she gestured to the white cupboards and the red brick wall. "Here's where all the food is. There are snacks in that cupboard and in the refrigerator, of course. I have a lot of tea, if you like tea."

Paige raised her eyebrows skeptically, and Josie made a mental note to convert Paige to an appreciation of the wonders of tea as soon as possible. She took her sister on a tour of the rest of the apartment. Paige looked at a couple of the photographs that were hanging on the walls with admiration, but she generally seemed disinterested.

"And this is your room!" Josie said, saving what she hoped was the best for last. She gestured proudly to the small room, which was spotlessly clean, and looked cozy. Josie had done her best to make the room look inviting by putting the pink blanket on the bed, pink and yellow pillows on an armchair, and a couple of scented candles on the dresser.

Paige looked around with an expression that was less than enthusiastic. Josie's heart sank.

"Do you like it?" she asked.

"Yeah," Paige said. "It's okay. Thanks, Josie."

"What would make it better?" Josie asked. "I know pink was your favorite color a long time ago, and I guess I should have tried to ask—"

Paige shook her head. "No, it's fine. Although yeah, I don't like pink." She inhaled. "I miss my old room. I miss the house."

"What do you miss about it?" Josie asked, ready to run out and buy Paige cozy slippers or a record player or a mirror—whatever her sister mentioned she felt was missing.

Paige shook her head. "It's not… it's not something you can buy. It was my home. I was comfortable there. That's not something you can give me."

Josie swallowed. I want you to be comfortable here too, she thought.

"I know this is hard," she said, deciding to just come right out and say it. "I know you don't want to leave behind the life that you had in Portland. But…" She hesitated before saying her next words. "I hope you understand why it was necessary."

Paige's shoulders tightened. "Mom was doing fine," she said, her tone clipped. "There was no reason for her to get sent away like that. This whole thing is—"

"Paige," Josie said gently, seeing that her sister was starting to become emotional.

Paige shook her head. "You don't understand. You left. Stop pretending you know what it was like."

Josie felt a little as though she'd been punched in the stomach. She did understand. She knew what it was like. It was easy to make excuses for someone you loved when excuses really shouldn't be made. She didn't know how to explain all that to Josie, but she wished she could.

She decided to change the subject—at least for now. "Well, I hope you feel comfortable in Blueberry Bay soon. It's a great town."

"So I've heard," Paige said dryly.

Josie smiled at her, determined to stay positive. "There's a lot to do here. Lots of great food. There are a lot of kids your age here. And there's another foster kid here too," she added, remembering suddenly what she'd heard about Sandy and Daniel Ryan taking in another foster child.

Paige's eyebrows lifted, and she seemed interested in the news. "Really?"

"Yeah." Josie grinned, pleased that something seemed to have finally caught her sister's interest. "My friends Daniel and Sandy are fostering a teenage boy. So you won't be the only teenager who's new in town."

Paige nodded. There seemed to be a spark of interest in her eyes that hadn't been there a moment ago.

* * *

Daniel Ryan shifted the newspaper in his hands. He must have read the same sentence three or four times now. He lifted his eyes from the words and listened for the sounds of Sandy and Tommy's voices.

Their day had been a whirlwind. Tommy had arrived that afternoon, quiet and shy and looking a little overwhelmed. Sandy had immediately taken him under her wing, giving him as many kind words as one stranger could give to another. Daniel smiled. He knew it wouldn't be long at all before Tommy felt like a member of their family. Sandy had a gift for making kids feel at ease.

Daniel kept listening, feeling his heart swell with a kind of warmth. He loved his wife. There was nothing that seemed to light up her world like a child. They'd had a wonderful dinner with Tommy that evening, eating the casserole that Caitlin Lewis had sent over. The food had tasted delicious—hearty comfort food with an unexpectedly savory sprinkling of spices—and Tommy had brightened a little under the influence of the food and Sandy's warm kindness.

Tommy now knew where everything in the house was located. Sandy and Daniel had given him a tour of their home, showing him where to find snacks and water, and where the medicine cabinet was if he needed anything of that nature. Sandy had kept up a lively conversation with him the entire time, making jokes and slowly breaking away at his shell.

He seems like a great kid,Daniel thought, staring into space. His newspaper was forgotten for the moment. He's respectful, and he seems smart. I know he's had a rough time, but he's going to have a strong sense of his own worth very soon. Sandy always manages to do that for the kids.

Daniel smiled. There was always a special light in Sandy's eyes when they had a foster child around the house. Nothing else could give her that same kind of glow.

He turned as he heard someone approaching the living room. Sandy appeared in the doorway, holding a mug of tea and beaming from ear to ear.

"Hi, sweetheart," she said, leaning over to kiss his cheek. "Reading the newspaper?"

"Trying to." He laughed.

She sat down next to him on the couch, tucking her legs up. She was wearing the pink and red striped socks he had given her for Valentine's Day last year. He winked at her as she took a sip of her tea.

"Peppermint?" he asked her.

She laughed. "Can you smell it?"

"Not from here, but I know you. You always have peppermint tea the night a new kid arrives."

"Do I?" Sandy stared into space for a moment, looking wistful. "I guess it reminds me of my own childhood. Maybe my subconscious wants me to remember all the ways I felt loved as a kid, so I can pass them on."

Daniel reached out and took his wife's hand in his. "I'm proud of you." For a moment, they exchanged warm smiles, then he asked, "How is Tommy settling in?"

"Fine." Sandy nodded as she tugged on the string of her tea bag, making it bob up and down in the mug. "He seems worn out from the big day he's had."

"Understandable."

"Absolutely. New surroundings are always hard on a kid, especially when they know they don't have a regular home to go back to." Daniel watched as his wife frowned, looking sad. He squeezed her hand. "I hope he has everything he needs."

"I'm sure he does," Daniel reassured her, stroking her hand with his thumb. "You always think of everything."

Sandy nodded, staring down at the rug on the living room floor. Her mind was somewhere far away, Daniel could tell. She looks sad, he thought.

"Penny for your thoughts?" he asked, his deep gruff voice taking on a tender gentleness.

Sandy looked up at him and shook her head, smiling. "Oh, nothing. I'm excited to get to know Tommy better! He seems like a great kid, doesn't he?"

"He does," Daniel agreed. "We'll have to learn what kind of things he likes to do. Maybe we could all go ice skating together once it gets colder."

"That's a great idea," Sandy said, but Daniel noticed she still had a faraway look in her eyes.

For a while, they talked about what things they might be able to do with Tommy. Blueberry Bay had a lot of options for recreational fun, and Daniel also suggested a board game night, since he and Sandy owned a whole cupboard-full of board games that they'd played with foster kids over the years. Throughout the conversation, he noticed his wife acting a little distant.

"You know, I think I'll head to bed," she told him before she'd finished all of her tea. "It's been a big day for all of us!"

She stood up and kissed his cheek.

"I'll come to bed soon myself," he said, smiling at her. "Goodnight."

Sandy smiled back at him, but he noticed her smile fade as she went through the doorway. Her shoulders seemed to be a little drooped.

Something is on her mind, Daniel thought. Definitely. And it isn't nothing, like she told me. He wondered if her thoughts were about fostering. He knew it was hard for her to never have a child there with them who was going to stay. She loved every kid that came under their roof, and then she had to let them all go.

I know she wants a child,Daniel thought. His heart ached. He hated to see her sad. He knew how deep the desire for a child of their own was in her, and he wished there was something he could do about it.