Man With A Mission. Muriel Jensen

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ doesn’t really take much effort. Here, I’ll help you.” She steadied Jackie’s arm as she spoke and encouraged her to lift her foot to the other side of the stool-like chair.

      Jackie would have continued to resist, except that Parker had put her hand to the small of Jackie’s back as she spoke and rubbed her fingertips at the base of her spine where the pressure of five or six pounds of baby and fifteen or so pounds of “support” sat twenty-four hours a day. The relief was instant and melted her protests.

      “We need to loosen up your back muscles,” Parker said. “That’s it. Feel that? Gotta prevent that tension or you’ll be miserable until you deliver. A couple of weeks?”

      “About a month and a half,” Jackie replied, unable to believe she was a pile of jelly in this woman’s hands after two minutes’ acquaintance. She was usually very much aware of her dignity as mayor—not because she was pretentious, but because her council was always looking for something about her to criticize.

      And she had to pretend to the town that though her husband had died in the arms of a cocktail waitress after promising Jackie he was rededicating himself to their marriage and their two children, he hadn’t humiliated her, but embarrassed his own memory. And she liked to think that the pregnancy that had resulted from that promise was a testament to her trust.

      The baby stirred as though also appreciating the massage.

      Parker’s hands went up Jackie’s spine and down again with gentle force.

      “You have to stop,” Jackie said weakly, her voice altered by her cheek squashed against the pillow and the total relaxation of her now considerable body weight. “I have a meeting in fifteen minutes. You’ll have to roll me in on the chair.”

      Parker laughed as her fingertips worked across Jackie’s shoulders. “You’ll have to come and see me when you need a break. I’m good, I’m reasonable and I’ll give special rates to anyone who works in the building. I’ll be here from eight to six.”

      Parker stopped working and helped Jackie to her feet. “Isn’t that better?”

      Jackie did feel as though ten pounds had been removed from her stomach.

      “Watch that posture,” Parker advised. “And drink your milk. You have a husband to give you foot rubs?”

      “I wish,” Jackie replied, then realized that she didn’t really. Foot rubs would be nice, but hardly worth the anguish a husband could inflict otherwise.

      “Me, too. So, you’re having this baby alone?”

      Jackie concluded that Parker had to be new in town. “I was widowed right after I got pregnant. But this is my third, so I kind of know what I’m doing.”

      “That’s nice,” Parker said wistfully. “I know all about pregnancies—what to eat, how to exercise, how to massage to relieve strain and pressure. But I’ve never had the experience. Two husbands but no baby.”

      “I’m sorry.” Men weren’t always worth the time devoted to a marriage, but children were. “I’ll bring mine by to meet you,” Jackie said with a grin. “Then you might think you’ve had a lucky escape.”

      Parker walked her to the door of her office.

      “My purse is in my…” Jackie began, pointing upstairs.

      “That was free of charge,” Parker insisted. “Just tell your friends I’m here. I’m taking out an ad in the Mirror, but it won’t come out until next Thursday.”

      “I will. And good luck. If you have trouble with heat or plumbing or anything, let us know.”

      Parker promised that she would, then waved as she went back to the side door, apparently to retrieve more boxes.

      Jackie rotated her shoulders as she passed the two dark and empty spaces. She’d have to find a way to work a massage into her daily schedule.

      She turned a corner and walked down a small hallway that led to the last office. The hallway was dark, she noted. She would have to see that a light was installed overhead.

      She peered into the only office on this side of the building and was stunned to see a figure she knew well standing in the middle of the room and looking around with satisfaction at what appeared to be a well-organized office.

      “Adeline!” Jackie exclaimed, walking into the office, her arms open. “What are you doing here?” Adeline Whitcomb was her best friend’s mother and the girls’ Sunday School teacher.

      “Jackie!” The gray-haired woman with a short, stylish cut and bright blue eyes went right into Jackie’s arms. “I didn’t have a chance to tell you I was moving into City Hall.”

      Jackie looked around as they drew away from each other. There were file cabinets against the wall, a map of the city tacked up on one side, a large one of the county on the other. A small portable bar sat under the city map, with a coffeepot on it and a box from the bakery. A low table held a cordless phone atop a phone book. A quilt rack took up considerable space in one corner of the room.

      “Are you going into business, Adeline?” Jackie asked, knowing that Addy’s skills as a quilter were legendary. She’d made one for each of Jackie’s girls when they were born. “Have you found a way to make quilting profitable?”

      Adeline looked amused by that suggestion. “As if,” she said, then lowered her eyes and looked away for a moment, as though uncomfortable holding Jackie’s gaze.

      Jackie had a horrible premonition. “This is Hank’s office,” she guessed.

      Adeline smiled and sighed, as though she’d suddenly made up her mind about something. “It is. I’m tidying things up while he moves things in. And the quilt rack is here because I’ll be his office staff and help organize all the men.”

      Jackie’s horror was derailed for a moment. “All the men? Does he have partners?”

      “No. I thought you knew he started Whitcomb’s Wonders.” Adeline went on to explain about the on-call service of tradesmen and craftsmen Hank had started. If anyone had told her, she hadn’t listened. She automatically tuned out when his name was mentioned.

      “You know, he’s been back in Maple Hill for six months, Jackie,” Addy went on. “It’s time you two stopped pretending the other doesn’t exist.”

      Great. The ten pounds Parker’s massage had alleviated were now back with a vengeance and, against all anatomical good sense, sitting right in the middle of her shoulders. She started to back toward the door. She would never deliberately hurt Adeline, but she would avoid crossing paths with Hank at all costs.

      “It’s great that you’ll be here,” she said diplomatically. “Maybe you and I can have coffee or lunch.”

      “It’s childish and nonproductive,” Adeline said, ignoring Jackie’s invitation. Exasperation was visible in her eyes. “You’re going to be in the same building. You have to come to terms with this.”

      “We’ve come to terms with each other, Addy.” Jackie put both hands to her back, the pressure there tightening at the very mention of Hank’s name. “We like pretending СКАЧАТЬ