Home to You Read Free

past.
    The oak hearth was beautifully crafted, the intricate designs made by loving hands. A mirror stretched above the length of the hearth, reflecting Chase’s own short, dark brown hair and deep brown eyes. He looked a bit haggard—he needed to step a bit closer to the razor that morning.
    He turned his gaze from the mirror, glancing around the room. The floors and ceiling beams were also made of wood and shone as if freshly oiled. The walls were white and the windows were tall and narrow, covered by curtains left by the last owners, who’d said they fit these windows and wouldn’t go with their new house.
    He appreciated their generous gift.
    Still, at moments like this, Chase wondered why he’d bothered with such an elaborate house. There was no one here to care for it, no wife to see that those curtains found matches in furniture or knickknacks.

    16
    Home to You
    But he knew.
    It was because of Sarah that he’d bought the house.
    She needed a home in a good neighborhood with good schools.
    The people who had lived here before him had built a fort out back and had a permanent swing set made of wood cemented into the ground. There was a great climbing tree with a picnic table under it. All were constructed with good craftsmanship. He should know—
    in his spare time he used to build things. He’d gotten some experience here in Shenandoah, working for a carpenter. He loved building and thought Sarah would love the sturdy, beautifully crafted equipment out back, as well as the large spacious room and the quiet small-town feel of Shenandoah.
    It would be a place for Sarah.
    Staring at the beautiful, though painful, reminder of his beloved wife, Sarah’s mother, he decided he’d done enough unpacking for the day. He was going into town for lunch.
    He and Sarah could unpack together later. Maybe they’d order a pizza tonight and pop in a movie.
    But being in this house, alone, with all of the memories—
    Turning away, he headed to the door, scooping up his keys on the way, and leaving the pain for later.
    Carolyne Ryder sat in the old-fashioned, padded rocking chair, holding her four-month-old grandson, Joshua. He’d been fussy and unable to go to sleep, while his twin sister, Julie, was resting like a little angel in the crib across the room.

    Cheryl Wolverton
    17
    Joshua was asleep now, but Carolyne continued to rock back and forth, back and forth, patting the child’s back.
    Her daughter, Susan, didn’t really need her here.
    She’d come to that conclusion about three weeks ago.
    She had a live-in housekeeper who doubled as a nanny and who was there to take care of the kids. Cokie did a great job.
    Still, Susan and her husband, Johnny, had insisted that Carolyne stay as long as she wanted. These were her first grandchildren, Susan had only returned to work six weeks ago, and the kids needed a grandmother there for a while longer…
    So Carolyne had stayed.
    But she was restless. Montana was getting cold, a cold Carolyne wasn’t used to, and this just wasn’t her home.
    Looking around the peach-and-green pastel-shaded room, she smiled at how it had been decorated. Two beautifully multicolored mobiles, one hanging over each crib, danced quietly to their own simple tune, courtesy of the air vent above them that blew out a warm breeze. The cribs had pink-and-blue sheets and baby-bumper pads that were decorated with flounces and tiny teddy bears. A changing table complete with diapers sat between the two cribs.
    Carolyne and her husband hadn’t had enough money to have anything this fancy when they had been young and Susan had come along. Even when Dakota arrived, they’d been happy just to make ends meet.
    Oh, how holding this child brought back such memories of when her own two children were small—and she was needed.

    18
    Home to You
    She stared down at the chubby-cheeked, dark-haired baby in her arms.
    Now her children were grown. Susan lived half a continent away from Shenandoah and Carolyne’s life