Page 18

CHAPTER 18

Rhea was starting to feel like the song ' Somebody's Watching Me ' was part of her life's soundtrack.

She had no proof of it and really, she knew she had to be a little paranoid, but the delays in Richmond were weighing on her.

Keely had called the other day for another update.

The attorney for the Russell family was trying to bury the court in legal filings.

Keely said that most of them were ridiculous, but there was enough law in them to warrant hearings.

And she was happy to pay Keely to fight them.

Happy, but quickly becoming poorer in the bargain.

She'd pay whatever she had to to keep Chip with her.

Money didn't matter if she lost her son.

Shaking her head at her own thoughts, she made her way up to the front steps of Howard and Louise's house, a couple of pies in a carrier. She'd made them with Chip's help and was pretty excited to share with the family.

Brody had to run an errand and was going to pick up Bea and Chip on the way and she had planned to help out in the kitchen with whatever she could.

Of all of the people in the Armstrong family, she'd spent the least amount of time with Brody's mom and she knew that if something was going to happen of a permanent nature between her and Brody, she'd have to get along with Brody's mother. And she was planning to start today before they told the family anything.

She knocked on the door and Howard answered, smiling at her. "Rhea! Come inside. Come inside."

She stepped inside and lifted the carrier that was hanging from her fingers. "I brought some pies for dinner."

Howard started to reach for it. "I'll take those."

She gave him a curious look and laughed.

"Yeah," he sighed, "better not. They'd never last for dessert." He gestured to the kitchen. "Come in. Helene's running a little late and Rachel and Kay just ran over to Kay's house to bring some dishes they prepared last night. Come on in with Louise. She'll be happy for the help."

"Thank you."

They stopped just outside of the tiled floor.

"Louise? I have a kitchen helper for you!"

Brody's mom chuckled softly. "Who would need to knock- Oh! Rhea! It's you."

Howard was already making his way out of the room or she might have begged to go along with him.

The way that Brody's mom had talked? She wasn't sure. But she was more than a little worried if there was something that was wrong.

"I brought some pies." She took a few steps closer and stopped when Louise looked at the dessert carrier with a strange twist to her mouth.

"Well, we have plenty of dessert for today, but more is always welcome."

"I know I probably should have asked, but Brody liked the pie the other night when I brought some to the firehouse. He said I should bring some here for the family."

"Well, that was sweet of him to say that."

Louise looked at the kitchen before she indicated a spot of the counter against the wall. "You can go ahead and put them there. We'll try to remember to take them out when everyone else is here."

"Okay." Rhea moved across the kitchen and set the carrier down. "I'm happy to help with whatever you need doing here in the kitchen. I might not be a doctor, but my knife skills are pretty good."

"I've got everything going, Rhea. You can go outside and relax. I've got it all under control."

Then Louise turned to the stove and walked over to it, lifting the top of the pots one at a time and looking in.

Rhea had two choices before her. Heading outside to the porch or sticking around.

The smarter decision would be the first one, but she was feeling off balance and out of sorts.

And that's why she chose to stay.

"Missus Armstrong?"

Louise's shoulders tensed, but she didn't turn around. "Yes?"

Rhea stepped closer and smiled, trying to lift her spirits and the tone of her voice. "Is there something wrong? I mean, if I've said or done anything, I'd love to have the chance to apologize. And to know what it was so I don't do it again."

She took another couple of steps closer and wasn't prepared for Louise to turn around and look at her.

Really look at her as if she was trying to decide what to do.

"You've been a married woman. And you have a child."

Rhea nodded slowly wondering where this was going.

"There are a lot of wonderful men here in Fallport. Some single father's, too."

Oh.

"I know that Brody thinks he's falling for you-"

Rhea felt her stomach turn inside of her belly.

"But do you think it's wise?"

"Wise?" Rhea felt a little like a parrot, but really, she was confused.

"Yes. You're close. Anyone can tell that and see that. Brody's a good man. He's going to be a great father."

"Of course." Rhea couldn't argue with that. "Brody's wonderful."

"And he'd be wonderful with... anyone."

The room around them went silent.

Or maybe it was the way the blood seemed to drain out of her head and all the way down to weigh down her feet. Anchoring her to the ground.

"Missus Armstrong, I'm not sure what you're saying-"

"I'm saying that my son has seen his cousins fall for their wives in quick succession. It seems like this time last year all three of them were single and suddenly my nephews are happy and settled and I think," she nodded her head slowly as she spoke, "that Brody sees you and he thinks that you've fallen right into his lap like some product of fate. Like the you've been put here for him to fall in love with and that could be true."

Could be.

"Yes," Louise smiled at her. "I'm sure what he feels for you is good and it feels like love.

"Feels like love," Rhea repeated, "but you think it's like... some kind of mind trick."

Louise nodded. "That's one way to say it. But I'm not saying that you've contributed to this. You're a beautiful woman. A good mother. And Chip is perfect and adorable."

How could she make compliments sound so... wrong?

"And who knows? When things settle. When you and Chip are settled, things might be... different. They might work with Brody, down the road."

Rhea felt her heart catch in her chest. Like it tripped over a curb and fell forward, breaking off a tooth on the hard ground.

"I've never tried to influence him."

She lifted her chin and looked at Louise, trying hard not to show tears.

"I didn't try to have any sort of feeling for me. I was happy to just be his partner on the rig. To be friends with him."

Louise smiled. "Good. See? That's what I'm talking about. This is all so new, and it seemed to come out of nowhere like a snowball rolling down a hill. Maybe, if you can just give him some time."

Rhea nodded. "Some time to... look around. To see other people." Every word seemed to make Louise happier, but it only felt like a punch to her own gut. "I see."

Louise's smile was broader and she closed much of the distance between them.

When she reached out and grasped Rhea's arms, Rhea felt a little light-headed.

"I'm so glad you see it, Rhea. I had a feeling that you'd understand."

Rhea nodded, but she couldn't manage another word.

"Now," Louise crossed back to the stove and lifted her wooden spoon from the stand, "do you want to taste this sauce?"

Just the thought of anything on her tongue made Rhea wince.

The last thing she was was hungry.

"You know... I don't feel all that well. I think I should go home. I have to be on for shift tomorrow and it's better if I just isolate for a few hours."

Her gaze turned to the carrier on the counter. "I'll leave the pies. Do whatever you like with them. I can get the carrier back tomorrow on shift."

She backed up toward the door and managed an expression that was as mild as she could manage. "I'll see about having Chip stay home, too."

"Oh, don't worry about Chip, dear. He's welcome to eat with us. Sarah adores him."

Rhea nodded and opened the front door. She put one foot in front of the other as she moved to hear car, cringing when the door closed a little too hard to be polite behind her.

It wasn't nice, but it felt just like she did. Rough and raw.

* * *

Brody spent much of dinner trying to distract Chip.

When he heard that Rhea had gone back home sick, he'd been ready to head over himself, but his mother assured him that they should stay. To give Rhea some time to herself to rest.

He planned on taking Chip and Bea home and then he'd see to her himself.

But he was getting some strange looks from his aunt.

That was what gave him the most concern.

Aunt Helene was as sweet as they came and she'd always been there to help him no matter what.

The looks that she was giving his mom made him wonder if they'd had a fight that he didn't know about.

Near the end of the family dinner, he saw his aunt walk his mother inside earlier than normal.

He was tempted to go in and ask them what was going on, but Chips' energy had sunk early as well and Brody was beginning to worry if Chip and his mother were both coming down with the same cold.

He excused himself and offered to find Bea a ride home with one of the others, but she happily went with him as he bundled a half-asleep Chip in his Tahoe. Giving Bea a boost into the passenger seat as they started home.

"I hope you won't mind if I come in with you when we get to the house."

Bea looked at him with soft smile. "You're always welcome, Brody. Besides," she laughed softly, "I can't carry him myself, young man."

Brody smiled at her. "True." He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. "Did you get the feeling that something was going on tonight?"

Bea gave him a look that said he was sweet and oh so stupid.

"I missed it."

"Yes, dear. You missed it." She gave him a curious look of her own. "Where were you earlier? You said you had some errands to run?"

Brody smiled as they drove along, coming ever closer to Bea's house. "I went in to pick up a package at the post office."

"Oh?" Bea sounded more than a little excited. "Did you get out of there unscathed or did the boys badger you into staying awhile?"

Brody grinned. There were a few people in Fallport who could call Otto, Authur, and Silas 'the boys' and not sound a little funny.

"It was a small package that's why I asked them to hold the package there. I also had to sign for it. The insurance on it is staggering."

"May I see?"

Brody thought about it for a moment and then dug into his shirt pocket and pulled out the box he'd been holding.

He held it out to her. "Please," he begged softly as he looked up in the rear view mirror making sure that Chip was asleep before he handed it over, "that's very, very precious."

Bea held it like it was very precious indeed.

When she opened up the box she gasped. "Oh, Brody, it's beautiful. Magnificent."

He grinned and turned to take a quick look at it. "It's a Brazilian Opal surrounded by diamonds to look like lace. It was the first ring that really caught my eye when I was looking. I remember something that you taught us when we were studying weather in school."

"OH?" She tilted her head and looked over at him. "What was that?"

"We were studying rainbows and it was after a storm. Or at the tail end of the storm and one of the kids complained that she was waiting for the sun to come out so we could see a rainbow. And you told us that the only time you can see a rainbow-"

"Is when you're looking into the storm."

He nodded at her words. "I know she's been through a lot and with this custody case, it must seem like a lot of dark clouds in her sky." Brody put on the turn signal and slowly turned into her driveway. Once he was in park he turned to look at Bea. "I'm hoping that our lives together will be that rainbow for her." He grinned. "Too... sappy?"

Bea closed the ring box and handed it back to him. "Not sappy, Brody. Romantic. Very romantic."

He helped her down out of the Tahoe and reached into the back to get Chip. When they got into the house, Bea offered to check in on Rhea, but he said he'd do it. Mainly because he had to see for himself that she was okay.

Chip was already sleeping, but Brody woke him up enough to use the rest room before helping him change his clothes and tucking him in bed.

Just before he left the room he heard Chip turn over in bed. "Brody?"

"Yeah, Chip?"

"Thanks for bringing me home."

"No problem, buddy. Get some sleep."

As Chip turned back around he had one more thing to say. "Luv you, Brody."

Ah, hell.

"Love you, too."

Then Chip was asleep.

And Brody's heart was about to burst out of his chest.

Brody knocked on Rhea's door and he only heard a muffled response.

Worried that she might be too sick to call out, Brody opened the door and Rhea turned on her side so her back was to the door.

"Rhea, honey?"

"Go away, Brody."

He frowned and took another step forward.

"Please, Brody. I'm... I'm not feeling good."

He believed her. He could hear the pain in her voice.

And he hated it.

But he also knew what it was like to be sick and to have people bother him. Even if they meant well, it was easier to suffer by yourself than deal with others.

"Okay." He spoke softly as he took a step back. "I'm going to go. But anything you need, honey... ANYTHING. Just let me know and I'll be there."

"'kay."

He hated to leave, but he knew he had to.

Just as he was about to shut the door, he had to remind her. "I love you, Rhea."

Once the door was closed and he was headed out through the house, he thought he heard someone crying.

As soon as he heard it, it was gone.

He shook his head and left the house.