True Blue K-9 Unit Christmas. Laura Scott

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       FOUR

      Pete woke up the following morning filled with an odd sense of anticipation. It had been a long time since he’d looked forward to a new day. Malina’s passing, preceded by several tense weeks of marital discord, had weighed him down. He’d moved forward for Mikey’s sake, and had even gone through counseling sessions with his son but hadn’t experienced the simple joy of being with someone in what seemed like forever.

      Excited voices coming from the first floor had him hurrying through his morning routine. When he came downstairs, the scents of coffee and maple syrup made his stomach rumble with appreciation.

      “You didn’t have to start breakfast,” he protested as he entered the kitchen. Ricci didn’t move from his seemingly new favorite spot, sitting between the two kids. He was too well trained to beg, but Pete knew he was smart enough to wait patiently for a morsel of food.

      “Actually I did.” Faith gave him a harried look. She’d borrowed his sweats to sleep in last night and hadn’t changed back into her uniform yet. She looked adorable wearing his oversize things. “The kids were up early and complaining of being hungry so it was either listen to them whine or cook. I decided to make myself at home in your kitchen.”

      “Sorry about that.” Pete realized he’d slept much better than his houseguest. “I can take it from here.”

      She waved the spatula at him dismissively. “Don’t be silly. I’m already on the second batch of pancakes. Sit down. These will be ready shortly.”

      After filling a mug with coffee, he did as she suggested. Mikey and Jane were seated on their pillows and had sticky smears of syrup on their faces. Mikey was blond, like Malina had been, and Jane was dark, like her mother, but at the moment they were acting like siblings. One minute they were arguing, the next they were grinning at each other.

      “Daddy, can we build a snowman after breakfast?” Mikey asked.

      “Yeah, can we?” Jane echoed.

      Since Faith had pretty much promised they could, he exchanged a glance with her before granting permission. “Sure.”

      “You’ll have to wait until we eat, too,” Faith cautioned. “You can use that time to clean up the mess from your fort.”

      “I don’t wanna clean,” Mikey protested.

      “Me, either,” Jane chimed in.

      “Then I guess you don’t want to go outside to build a snowman.” Faith flipped the pancakes on the griddle.

      Pete hid a smile as the two kids looked at each other, then back at their mostly empty plates.

      “Okay,” Jane said. “We’ll clean up our fort.”

      “Yeah,” Mikey agreed.

      “Glad to hear it.” Faith took a damp washcloth to both kids’ hands and faces, before lifting them off their seats and onto the floor. Ricci gamely followed them into the playroom.

      “That was slick.” Pete stood and brought the empty serving plate to the counter so she could fill it with fresh pancakes. “I should take lessons from you.”

      “Trust me, it’s trial and error every day,” she said in a wry tone. She added pancakes and joined him at the table. “It’s not easy being a single parent, is it?”

      “Not one bit.” He forked two pancakes onto his plate then looked at her expectantly. “I, uh, suppose you’d like to pray?”

      Faith nodded and bowed her head. “Dear Lord, we thank You for this food we are about to eat. We also ask for Your strength and guidance as we seek Your chosen path. Amen.”

      “Amen.” Pete looked at her curiously. “You really believe God has a chosen path for us?”

      “Absolutely.” Faith didn’t hesitate. “It helps me get through each day knowing God is watching over me and Jane.”

      Pete frowned for a moment, staring blindly down at his food. “It’s hard for me to believe that God wanted Mikey to lose his mother and for Jane to lose her father. It doesn’t seem right that he would put young, innocent children through СКАЧАТЬ