Page 7 of Love’s Harvest (Lilace Lake #3)

That night, Sarah sat and watched the girls play in the bathtub. They were best buddies and had developed rules between them as to who would be in charge from time to time, sharing that privilege.

While growing up, she’d longed for a sibling.

That’s why her friends in town were so important to her.

It was unique for so many of the summer crowd to return to town and resume their old friendships.

A lot of that had to do with Genie Wittner, the grandmother of the Gilford girls and the former owner of the Lilac Lake Inn, which had been in her family for generations.

Even now, she was considered a matriarch by many of the townspeople.

What would have happened if, after college, she and Jesse had returned to Lilac Lake instead of going to South Carolina? Would the town have been able to support Jesse through his depression? Sarah had wanted more time away. But maybe that was another mistake of hers.

The girl’s playing turned into squabbles.

“Okay, time to get out and into our PJs,” said Sarah, holding onto one of the girls and then the other as they climbed out of the tub.

As she wiped each face dry, she kissed it. She’d always wanted to be a mother. And though having two at once had its challenges, Sarah would be open to more children if the right person came along.

Her thoughts immediately swerved to Aaron. He was such a kind man. The best she’d ever known. Which is why they’d remained special friends.

###

The next morning, after dropping the girls off at preschool, Sarah thought about the three weeks ahead before Halloween. By then, she hoped April would be comfortable enough to wear a costume and help with the event at the store.

As she walked along the sidewalk, she admired the leaves changing colors on the trees.

Lilac Lake enjoyed a busy “leaf-peeper” season, with people coming from all over to view the stunning colors of autumn leaves in New England.

Afterward, the town swung into Christmas festivals before welcoming the skiers, who came to ski on nearby mountains.

It was this continuity that had helped her family grow the hardware store into a major retail business in the area.

In town, she observed Poppy Browning watering the potted, colorful fall flowers in front of her store, the Wild Flower Boutique. “Good morning!” she called to her.

“Hi, Sarah. I was going to call you today to tell you that the sweater you ordered just came in. You’re going to love it.”

“Thanks. I’ll stop by later. I’m off to the café and then to work,” said Sarah continuing on her way. It was this feeling of belonging that kept her going when she was having a difficult day.

At the café Crystal had run for years, she greeted the new owner, Nettie Mancini, and stood in line to order her usual coffee. Whitney appeared with her son in a stroller.

“Guess everyone needs a morning break,” she said pleasantly. “I hope you’ll be at Jake’s on Thursday. We’re surprising Poppy for her birthday.”

“Oh, yes. I’ll be there. That’s usually my weeknight out,” Sarah said. “Can I bring anything?”

“No,” Whitney said. “Crystal is baking a cake. That’s it.”

After getting her coffee, Sarah hurried across the street to open the store.

It was her day to do so. She unlocked the main door and stepped inside.

The store had a distinctive smell, not an unpleasant one, but one that indicated it was filled with all kinds of items from paint to cleaning supplies, to sweet gifts.

After snapping on the lights and switching the ”Open” sign around, she climbed the stairs to her office. A print-out of yesterday’s sales was waiting on the printer. She’d use that to help determine what needed to be ordered.

Downstairs, she heard the jingle of the door and looked down through her glass window to see Aaron standing there.

Sarah automatically swiped a hand through her hair and headed down the stairs.

“Hello,” she said cheerfully.

“Hey, there. I need to pick up a few things and charge it to our account.” Aaron gave her the shy smile that always tugged at her heartstrings.

“No problem. Pick out what you need, and I’ll be glad to ring it up to your account. Need my help?”

“Did you get in a new supply of drywall nails? You were running low last time I was here.”

“They came in yesterday,” said Sarah, leading him to the aisle where they were sold. She reached up and withdrew a box of them from the shelf. Just as she turned to face him, she bumped into him reaching for a different box.

They stood a moment gazing at one another.

Sarah resisted the internal pull she felt to lean into him, and jumped back awkwardly, tripping on her own feet.

“I’ve got you,” said Aaron, placing his strong fingers around her arm and pulling her toward him.

Feeling her cheeks heat, she lifted her gaze to meet his. It felt just like a kiss.

“Aw, I can’t help it,” said Aaron, wrapping his arms around her. “You’re beautiful.”

This time, Sarah nestled against him, hearing the racing of his heart. After a delicious moment of connection, she forced herself to pull away from him, overwhelmed by a memory of how she’d failed her husband.

“I know you’ve had some horrible things happen to you, but you can’t allow them to ruin your life going forward. I can’t believe the man you loved enough to marry would want you to do that. True?” Aaron’s gaze bore into her, waiting for her answer.

Conflicted, Sarah frowned. “I’m not sure. Things got very bad toward the end. I thought I was helping …”

“Yoohoo! I’m here!” came a cry.

At the sound of her mother’s voice, Sarah stood straight, brushed off her shirt and answered. “I’m with a customer.”

Aaron studied Sarah for a moment, then took the box from her and walked off with it and the box he’d taken from the shelf.

She heard her mother greet him and slipped up the back stairs to the second floor so she wouldn’t have to speak to either one of them.

At her desk, she took a long sip of coffee and let out a sigh. She and Jesse had been in love when they married. Of course, they had. They were thought of as the perfect couple, so it seemed natural to marry even before Sarah had finished her degree.

Sarah realized it was important to remember how much they’d loved one another in the beginning. She’d never understood what had brought on his horrific periods of depression. It was almost as if his busy college life had hidden them.

She remembered how Jesse had hated his job after the excitement of getting it was gone. They’d talked about it and had even agreed that he needed to increase the dosage of his anti-anxiety medication.

After the excitement of the birth of the twins had worn off, Jesse began to obsess about her need to take care of them.

And when Jesse and she were exhausted caring for the girls twenty four/seven, they began to attack one another.

Jesse could be vicious about needing time alone, away from the family, and her. She’d cried foul and worse.

At the time, Sarah was unaware that her husband was trying other pills.

Pills that undermined his strength by giving him the idea of committing suicide.

By the time, he could no longer stand his mental anguish and decided to end it all, she’d discovered he’d been living a secret life of taking a mixture of drugs.

She’d been furious with him before guilt took over, convincing her that, had he lived with a different woman, he might not have taken his life to escape the one he had with her.

Counseling had helped, but nothing would take away the pain, the sorrow, the blame from her. She tried her best to keep that hidden inside.

Now, the sound of her mother walking into the upstairs space jarred Sarah from her morbid thoughts. By the time her mother came into her office, Sarah had pulled herself together.

“It looks like another busy day,” said Sarah’s mother. “How did the new intern, April Loomis, work out yesterday? Do you need our other high school worker to help her?”

“April did just fine. I don’t think it’s a wise idea for Wyatt Wilson to be in on our sessions. Not yet. April is shy and vulnerable. Besides, we hired him to unload trucks and do some heavy work around the place. She’ll be working for me.”

“Okay. April is in your hands,” said Sarah’s mother. “I’m just thankful we can be of some benefit to both of them.”

After her mother left her office, Sarah got to work, making a list of things to go over with April. She was excited to see how April looked when she arrived. She hoped wearing the shirt with the store logo on it would give her a feeling of belonging.

###

That afternoon, Sarah looked up from her desk to see April walking toward her wearing a skirt and a blouse. Surprised, she waited for April to speak.

“Hi,” said April. “I need just a few minutes to change. My grandmother was upset that I was wearing jeans, so I told her I’d change.

But I brought the jeans and the shirt with me, so I’d be in uniform.

” Her lips curved, sending a light to her beautiful green eyes.

“She’ll get used to the idea, but I’ll go slowly. ”

After April left her, Sarah seethed inside at the notion that a high school girl wasn’t allowed to wear jeans to school like the other kids in town, making her seem apart.

When April returned, she looked attractive in the “uniform”, or maybe it was the joyful look on her face that caught Sarah’s attention.

“Okay, ready to work?” Sarah said, deciding not to get in the middle of a family squabble.

“Yes, I’m really excited about doing this,” said April, taking a seat in the chair Sarah had pulled up to her desk.

“Yesterday, we put labels on items to sell and entered them into the computer program. Now, let’s check to see if any sales were made with them,” said Sarah.

“You’ll be doing the labeling, but I want you to see the results.

Most times, it takes days for a sale to ring up on a new item.

But because those were seasonal, we might have sold one or more overnight. Let’s check.”

Sarah showed April how to get into the program and go to the items they’d entered. Two of the items had sold – a mouse and a witch.

April’s eyes widened at the sight of them. “That’s really cool. Can we put in more inventory today?”

“Yes. I’ve saved a box for you to do. I’ll sit with you, but I won’t say a word unless you’re about to make a wrong move. I’ve printed out the steps for you to follow. Let’s go over them.”

They moved to the receivables area where a box was waiting to be opened. After going through the routine on paper, Sarah had April begin.

Once April got past the first item, she was quick and accurate.

“You’re doing a great job,” said Sarah. “I’m leaving work early today. I’m going to get some highlights put into my hair. I need a haircut too.”

April studied her. “I’d like to get my hair done like yours. I’ll save up for it.”

Sarah didn’t encourage or discourage her. She’d heard how Misty got in trouble at school for trying to help a student. And she didn’t want this situation to go bad.

###

Later, sitting in Styles , the hair salon owned by Gracie Milner, a pleasant woman in her fifties, Sarah felt herself relax. She didn’t often fuss over herself, but a new hairdo and streaks of blond through her brown hair were exciting. She’d been feeling frumpy.

Having an appointment at Styles meant catching up on the news in town. But Gracie never allowed herself or her staff to talk mean about anyone. Her business was too important to her.

While she was waiting for her color to come up, Sarah sat to one side while Gracie trimmed the bangs of a little girl, Cecily, who went to preschool with Mia and Emily.

It was an unexpected opportunity to chat with the little girl’s mother, a nice woman who was busy with a houseful of older boys.

“I just love being here. She’s such a pleasure after my boys,” gushed Cecily’s mother. “Your girls are so adorable. We should try to get them together to play some weekend.”

“Yes, that would be nice. Weekends are busy at the store, but maybe we can work something out,” said Sarah. “I know how important it is for them to have friends.”

When it was time for Sarah to get back into Gracie’s chair, she sat and looked at herself in the mirror, grinning at the number of foils in her hair. It was time to add some fun to her looks.

Later, Sarah hugged Gracie. “Thanks so much. I love it.” Her brown hair streaked with blond met her shoulders in an easy bob. It was long enough to pull back if she needed to but hung nicely when she wanted to keep it flowing.

When she picked up the girls at preschool and heard them cry, “Pretty, Mommy!” she knew the effort had been worth it. More than that, through her visit to the salon, the girls had an opportunity to make a new friend.