She was putting her key in the lock when she noticed the curtain of her neighbor’s house flutter. Mrs. Rosenheim had been watching. She would no doubt be over the next afternoon to get all the particulars about who Ryan was and how Phoebe knew him.
Ryan was as good as his word. He was there on Saturday just after lunchtime with a tool bag in his hand. Mrs. Rosenheim was sitting at Phoebe’s kitchen table when the knock came at the door.
“I won’t stay but I am going to check this boy out before I go.”
Phoebe would have argued but it wouldn’t have done her any good. Despite the fact that Mrs. Rosenheim was probably older than Phoebe’s grandmother would be, she was a commanding presence and was only concerned for Phoebe’s welfare. They had started taking care of each other two years ago when Phoebe had moved in.
Joshua had only been home once since she’d been living there. He’d not been impressed with Mrs. Rosenheim, calling her the “old busybody bird.” Phoebe had learned to appreciate her concern. If nothing else, she knew someone would miss her if she didn’t come home.
She opened the door for Ryan. “Come in.”
“How’re you doing?”
The question sounded like he was making pleasant conversation, but he was also looking at her with a trained eye. He smelled of sawdust with a hint of citrus. It made her want to step closer. Take a deeper breath.
“I’m feeling fine.” She smiled and he nodded.
“Good. I told Sophia that I would check.”
Mrs. Rosenheim shuffled into the room.
Ryan looked from her to Phoebe. “Ryan, this is my neighbor, Mrs. Rosenheim.”
He sat his tool bag on the floor at his feet and extended a hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“You’re American.”
“Yes, ma’am. Texan.”
Mrs. Rosenheim made a noncommittal sound low in her throat. Ryan gave Phoebe a questioning look. She shrugged her shoulders.
“So you knew Mr. Taylor.”
A guarded look came over Ryan’s face. “Yes, JT and I served in Iraq together.”
“Bad thing, leaving Phoebe here all by herself all the time. A man should want to be at home with his wife. She needs someone to watch over her. Help her.”
Phoebe didn’t miss the color wash out of Ryan’s face.
“It was his job. The army,” Phoebe said quietly.
“I know, sweetie. But a woman not only wants a man to help put a roof over her head but to be around when the times are hard.” She directed the last few words at Ryan.
“Uh, Mrs. Rosenheim, I think we need to let Ryan get started on the bed. I’m sure he has other places he needs to go today.” Phoebe shook her head at him when she started to say something.
“I’m next door if you need me.” Mrs. Rosenheim made her way out with a last glance at Ryan.
“Formidable lady,” Ryan said with a grin.
“Yes. She and Joshua didn’t like each other on sight, but she’s been good to me. She was with the men who came from the military department to tell me about Joshua. I don’t know what I would have done without her shoulder to cry on. She’s also the one who realized I was pregnant when I started being sick.”
Phoebe suddenly needed to focus on something else. She shook away the memories. Ryan was the first male to have come into her home in over a year. He seemed to take up the entire space. “Anyway, let me show you where the bed is.”
Ryan followed Phoebe down a hallway that had four doors leading off of it. She stopped at the next to last one and nudged the door open.
Against one wall was a large brown box that Ryan guessed was the baby bed. That didn’t surprise him. What did were the piles of books stacked around the room and the desk painted in a folk art style with a chair of the same kind sitting in one corner. The walls were painted a dark gray. Two cans of paint sat in another corner. He fully expected to see a room decorated in all the frills and with toys waiting for a baby. He’d listened to enough mothers talk about what they had done in the baby’s room or were going to do to know that Phoebe was far behind in her preparations.
She placed her hand on the box. “This is the bed.”
“Great. I’ll get it put together.”
Walking to the door, she looked back at him. “You didn’t have to agree to this, but I really appreciate you doing it.”
“Not a problem.”
He’d been working for an hour when Phoebe returned to stand in the doorway. His back was to her but he felt her presence.
“I brought you something to drink.” She moved to the desk and placed the drink on it.
Ryan stood from where he’d been tightening a screw on the back of the bed. He picked up the glass, took a long swallow of water and put it back on the desk again.
Phoebe had an odd look on her face that quickly disappeared.
Ryan said, “I guess I’m doing pretty well. I don’t think I’m going to have but two screws and one thingamajig left over.”
She laughed.
Had he ever heard anything more beautiful? It was almost musical. He vowed then to give her a reason to laugh often.
“My father always said that if you didn’t have parts left over then you didn’t put it together correctly.”
“Where did you grow up?”
“In a small town about fifty miles from here.”
“Is that where you met JT?”
“Yeah. We had a military base nearby. I worked at a local restaurant and Joshua and some of his mates came in for dinner one night and sat at my table.”
“And, as they say, the rest was history.”
“Yes, it was. I was wondering if … uh, you might like to stay for dinner? I do most of my cooking on the weekends so that I don’t have to stand up any more than necessary during the week. How do grilled lamb chops with three vegetables sound?”
When had been the last time he’d eaten a home-cooked meal? Ryan couldn’t remember. He grabbed what he did eat from the hospital cafeteria or from a fast-food place. The thought of sitting down to a real meal was more than he could resist. “That sounds great.”
“Good. Then I’ll go finish up.”
She’d already moved to leave when he said, “Phoebe, I couldn’t help but notice that you don’t have this room set up for a baby.”
Making a slow turn, she faced him. “I don’t need you to make me feel ashamed. I bet you think I sank so far into feeling sorry for myself that I didn’t pay attention to getting ready for the baby. I was still in shock over Joshua when I found out I was pregnant. I just couldn’t bring myself to do anything for a while. Anyway, it has been pushed back. Maybe I’ll have time to do something after the baby comes.”
That wasn’t going to happen. Ryan had also heard the new mothers talking about how they never got anything done any more. “I didn’t mean to make you feel ashamed or defensive. I was thinking I could help. I see you have paint. How about letting me do the walls for you? I could also move this desk and chair to where you want it and the books.”
“I hate to have you do all that.”
“I don’t mind. All you’d have to do is tell me where to put everything.”
She rested her hand on her middle. A wistful look came to her eyes. “It would be nice to have the room ready for the baby. I had planned to buy some stuff for the walls.”
“We could do that together.” It was the least he could do for Joshua. This was practical stuff that needed doing. He had a strong back and could take care of them. He couldn’t fix the fact she was having this baby all by herself but he could help with the everyday aspects of adding a new person to her household.
“That sounds like I’m asking too much.”
“You’re not asking. I volunteered. I’d like to do it. If JT were here, he’d be doing it. This will be my way of helping him out, like he did me.”
Her eyes darkened for a second and then she nodded. “Then thanks. I’ll gladly accept your help, but I’m going to warn you that you may wish you hadn’t.
”
“How’s that?”
“I have so many ideas for this room you’ll get tired of me telling you what to do.”
“We’ll see. I’ll be through here in about ten minutes, then I’d like to get started on the painting. Do you have any paint supplies?”
“They’re in the shed in the backyard. When you get done, come to the kitchen and I’ll take you out and show you where they are.”
“Will do.”
He watched her leave. Even with the bulk she carried she had a graceful stride. What had possessed him to get this caught up in doing a baby’s room? He made a practice of not getting involved.
Guilt, pure and simple.
CHAPTER THREE
PHOEBE HAD SPENT so much time without a man or his help it made her nervous to have Ryan in her house. While he’d been putting together the bed, she’d been in the kitchen, cooking. Still, she’d been aware of every clatter or thump that had come from the direction of the bedroom. On occasion she’d heard a swear word. She smiled. More than once her father had bloodied his knuckles, putting a toy together for her or her brother.
It was nice to have someone in the house. She’d considered getting a dog or cat a couple of times just so there would be a living, breathing thing around. She’d decided to wait because she didn’t want the poor animal alone in the house all day.
Ryan came around the corner. “All done. Come see what you think.”