Chapter Nineteen – Sian

Sian lay in bed unable to sleep. She missed Matthew, it was as if a part of her were missing. Yet she wasn’t ready for him to move in with her and the girls. Not yet. Before that happened, she needed to resolve the issues with her marriage. Matthew might seem to be an ordinary man, but he wasn’t, he was well-known in the business community and she didn’t want his name mired down in a scandal.

Punching her pillow, she tried to get comfortable, before huffing loudly and turning onto her back. She stared at the ceiling. She stared at the window. Her mind filled with endless lists of what she needed to do to get the grooming parlor fully ready for business. Which inevitably sent her mind spiraling down into anger, which was solidly directed at Peter.

Which inevitably switched to worrying about how her broken marriage would harm Matthew’s reputation.

By the time she finally fell into an exhausted sleep, it was past one o’clock and it seemed no sooner had she slipped into sleep than the demanding sound of her alarm clock was jerking her awake.

She dragged a hand through her hair and swung her legs out of bed. Staggering across the room, she headed for the shower, hoping it would wake her up enough to function for the day.

“You look terrible,” Rachel commented bluntly as she entered the kitchen, where Sian was making toast.

“Thanks.” Sian smiled brightly. “Just what I needed to hear.”

“I say it with love,” Rachel told her mom. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes. I just couldn’t sleep thinking of everything I need to do to get the grooming parlor ready. I wanted to do a grand opening before Christmas, but I don’t think it will happen.” She sighed and poured a second cup of coffee.

“It might,” Rachel said. “You know there’s such a thing as a Christmas miracle.”

“Christmas miracles always seem to happen to someone else.” Sian hated sounding so negative. “But I can hope.”

Rachel’s phone beeped, and she pulled it out of her pocket and looked down at the text she’d received. While she was answering it, Sian wandered over to the window and looked up at the mountains. She couldn’t imagine a better view. Sipping her coffee, she imagined how the landscape would change as the seasons turned.

Promising herself she would look at the view from the window every day of her life here and give thanks for all the good things in her life, she turned around and switched back into mom mode. “Are you ready for school?” she called up to Ella who had come down early for breakfast and was now fixing her hair and applying light makeup.

“Five minutes,” Ella called back down in reply.

“I just have to brush my teeth and I’ll be ready,” Rachel said, leaving the table and running upstairs.

Sian finished her coffee and rinsed the dishes before grabbing her purse and heading for the door. The car would need deicing before they left. But as she opened the front door, the sound of a truck engine reached her. A small smile crossed her lips. Matthew.

“Hi there.” She grabbed her coat and went out to meet him.

“Hi.” He got out of the truck and came to her, scooping her up in his arms and holding her close. The warmth of his body was welcome against the chilly morning air.

He kissed her, robbing her of her breath and of her senses. Sian kissed him back, her body pressed against his as her hands curled around his neck. “Well, that’s woken me up,” she announced when he finally let her go.

“Didn’t you sleep well?” Matthew asked.

Sian put her hands to her cheeks. “Is it that obvious?”

He cupped her chin in his hand and lifted it so their eyes met. “You always look beautiful to me.” He kissed her lips and heat flooded her face.

“I have to get the children to school.” She took a reluctant step back. “And my car is iced up.”

“Why don’t I take them?” Matthew asked. “The truck has great traction and it’s already defrosted.”

A frown creased her brow. “I don’t know...”

“We could ask them,” he suggested. “I won’t be offended either way.”

“Okay.” That sounded reasonable to Sian. She didn’t want to stop Matthew and the girls from bonding, but she also didn’t want them to feel pressured into spending time with him.

But when they went inside, the girls seemed more than happy to accept a ride from Matthew.

“Matthew offered to take you to school...” Before Sian had finished speaking Ella nodded.

“Sure. Gives you a chance to finish arranging the house.” Ella kissed her mom on the cheek and bounced toward the door, her school backpack slung over her shoulder.

“What’s happening?” Rachel asked as she reached the bottom of the stairs. She looked up at Matthew and then turned her attention to Sian.

“Matthew offered to take you to school.” If Sian didn’t know better, she would guess there was something happening that she wasn’t aware of. But they hardly knew each other. Concern nagged at her mind. But the girls were sensible, and she trusted Matthew.

“Okay, let’s go, I don’t want to be late.” Rachel and Ella exchanged glances that she couldn’t fathom, and they left the house, talking quietly to each other.

“I’ll see you later today.” Matthew kissed her cheek and then headed for the door.

“You aren’t coming straight back?” Sian asked. She would like to share a cup of coffee with him before she was due over at the shelter for her morning shift.

“I have a few errands to run.” He walked backward, drinking in the sight of her before he turned and walked out of the door, leaving her a little puzzled.

She was definitely reading too much into the situation, perhaps because she had become mistrustful since Peter had his affair. That had hurt her badly. She’d put up with his behavior because she believed families belonged together. She also naively hoped Peter would wake up one morning and realize just how much he was missing out on.

Perhaps it was time to stop believing in that dream once and for all. Peter was no longer an option, she didn’t want him in her life. Certainly not as a husband. Compared to Matthew, he was a pale shadow about to be eclipsed by a brilliant sun.

Grabbing her purse, Sian decided to make an early start down at the shelter since there was so much to do with all the construction guys wandering around. Not just cleaning up but making sure the dogs got exercised and were comfortable with all the commotion. The cats, too, although they did seem far more relaxed about the whole thing.

Taking her car, despite the short journey, since she planned to go into town for groceries after her shift, Sian drove to the animal shelter. Even at this early hour, there were people in hard hats and hi-vis clothing carrying equipment and various building materials from the parking lot to the area sectioned off for the house. Excitement built inside Sian. She couldn’t wait to see the house when it was finished.

“Hi, Will, how’s it going?” she asked as she got out of the car and walked toward the reception office.

“Great.” He looked toward the open office door and then beckoned Sian toward him. “I’ve been thinking it would be great if the interior of the house was finished by Christmas, too. But my guys are good with the building, not so much with interior design, especially since we don’t know Ronni and Lucas’s tastes.”

“Do you want me to help?” Sian offered. “I could talk to their families and see what ideas we can come up with.”

“I was hoping you might say that. I plan to keep the whole house under wraps, so they don’t have a clue what’s going on. I’m hoping it’ll be like one of those big build shows on TV.” He grinned, obviously enjoying himself.

“I like that idea. Maybe get the local paper to run a story on it.”

“I already have them coming over to take photos. We’re trying to generate as much publicity for the project as possible.” He inclined his head toward the office. “Let’s make it a surprise.”

“Sure. It will be the best Christmas gift ever.” She turned around and walked toward the office while Will headed across to the house which was covered in huge tarpaulins that looked like a tent made for a giant. After her shift, she would call Tansy and Nana and ask them to meet her to discuss the project.

“You’re early,” Ronni greeted Sian as she finally made it into the office and headed to the coffee machine.

“Matthew offered to do the school run, so I thought I’d make an early start here.”

“There’s a fresh pot already made.” Ronni got up from her desk and went to fetch two cups of the aromatic coffee while Sian put her purse away and took her coat off.

“Thanks.” Sian accepted her coffee. This was a day of firsts, normally Sian’s first job was getting rid of the old grounds and making a fresh pot of coffee for herself and Ronni.

“No problem.” Ronni sat back down in her chair and turned to face Sian. “I have a small favor to ask.”

“Okay.” Sian sipped her coffee and closed her eyes, taking a moment to appreciate the bitter flavor.

“I need you to go over to Reamington.” Ronni shuffled through her papers and picked up a sheet with an address handwritten at the top. “There’s a dog that needs collecting. The owner is going into the hospital and can’t look after him anymore.”

“Wow, that’s so sad.” Sian looked up as Lucas entered the room with Jessie at his heel. “I hope the dog is as lucky as Jessie and finds a new home.”

“I hope so, too.” Ronni stood up and kissed Lucas on the cheek. “Jessie and I both got lucky.”

“I think you both got lucky,” Sian told them. “And I hope this dog gets lucky, too.” She looked down at the piece of paper in her hand. “Cracker. Is he a live wire, like a firecracker?”

“I think he used to be, but his owner, a lovely elderly lady named Sharon Wallis, says he’s just looking for a nice warm bed in front of a fire with someone who loves him and will give him plenty of fuss.” Sian grabbed her purse and shouldered her coat.

“We’ll do our best to find him the perfect home.” Ronni glanced at Lucas, love in her eyes as she smiled at her man. “Come on, we have work to do.” She got up and reached for Lucas’s hand. “I don’t know what I’m going to do when the activity center reopens for the summer. I’ve gotten used to having you around.”

“I’ve gotten used to being around. But at least when the house is finished, I’ll be here some of the time.” He kissed her. “Right. We need to get going. And so do you, Sian.”

“Yes.” She looked at her watch. “I need to be back for Ella and Rachel to get out of school.” But just as she said those words, her phone beeped. “Oh, they’re both going to a friend’s house for dinner.”

“Oh, maybe you could grab some other stuff from Reamington while you’re there. If you don’t have to be back here until later.” Ronni pulled a list off her desk and handed it to Sian who scanned the items before nodding.

“Sure. Why not?” She hitched her purse higher on her shoulder and took a moment to scrutinize Ronni and Lucas. “Is there something going on that I don’t know about?”

“No.”

“Absolutely not.”

Jessie woofed in agreement and wagged her tail.

Sian sighed. “I will see you all later.”

“Thanks, Sian.” Ronni walked her out to her car. “Drive carefully.”

“I will.” Sian opened her car door but before she climbed in, she took a moment to study Ronni’s expression. She knew her well enough to know she was hiding something. “Have a good day.”

“We will.” Her eyes danced with excitement, and Sian climbed into the car and shut the door. Whatever they had planned, she would no doubt soon find out. And although she was intrigued, she was ready to put her trust in her family and friends.