excited Charlie had been about attending this birthday party. Playing with kids his own age had been a big part of his life prior to his parents’ deaths. The boy probably did miss the interaction.
“I could text Lexi and tell her we accept their offer,” Meg said. “Or I suppose I can wait and tell her at church tomorrow.”
“Church?” Cole couldn’t have looked more shocked if she’d said they were going to an orgy. “I didn’t say anything about church.”
“I don’t know about you, but church is a part of my life,” Meg said with a smile. “I know Charlie is looking forward to going to Sunday school tomorrow. I thought we’d go to church, then while he’s at Sunday school have breakfast at The Coffee Pot. According to my brother, the café is still ‘the’ place to go on Sunday mornings.”
Meg hadn’t been surprised to hear that the small café had retained its well-deserved reputation as having the best breakfast menu in Jackson.
“I guess it’s better than sitting at home staring at four walls.” Cole maneuvered the cart down the canned vegetable aisle with surprising agility. “That’s when I start thinking about Ty and Janae and the unfairness of it all.”
A lump formed in Meg’s throat. “Last night I dreamed I saw them in this supermarket. They were laughing and talking with each other when I saw them. I was so happy. But each time I tried to approach them, they kept disappearing down another aisle. For some reason they couldn’t hear me, not even when I called out to them. I woke up crying.”
Tears welled in Meg’s eyes but she brushed them back and threw a couple cans into the cart.
Before she could take off down the aisle, Cole reached over and briefly squeezed her hand. “I’m going to make an executive decision.”
Meg blinked. “I don’t understand.”
He confiscated two cans of spinach from the cart and placed them back on the shelf. “We don’t need these.”
Meg could feel the heat flooding her cheeks. “I can’t believe I did that.”
“Grief makes us do all sorts of crazy things.” Cole shot her an understanding smile.
“I miss her, them, so much,” Meg said with a sigh. “But I’m still thankful.”
Cole maneuvered the cart to the side to let an attractive brunette go past. He didn’t appear to notice the woman’s appraising look and the increased sway of her hips as she sauntered past him. “Thankful for what?”
Her heart cried at the trace of bitterness in his tone.
“Thankful that Janae and Ty were responsible parents who took time to update their will and name us as guardians for their son.” Meg lifted a can of peas from the shelf. When Cole nodded, she dropped the can into the cart. “If they hadn’t, Charlie would have been thrust into the foster care system until the courts had time to decide where he should be placed.”
A shocked look blanketed Cole’s face. “Seriously?”
Meg nodded. “And I’m thankful that Charlie walked away from the crash without a scratch. I saw pictures of the car.” She shuddered. “It’s a miracle anyone made it out of the vehicle alive.”
Cole looked at Meg as if seeing her for the first time.
“Not to mention the improbability of you and I making living together under the same roof work…yet we’re doing it.” She tossed another couple cans into the cart. As far as she was concerned, having them peacefully—at least so far—coexist under the same roof was a miracle.
“You’ve convinced me.” He released his hold on the cart and lifted both hands in a gesture of surrender. “We do have a lot to be thankful for.”
He reached into the cart and pulled out a can. “But seriously, creamed corn?”
Meg confiscated the can from his hand and put it back in the cart. “I happen to love the stuff. If you and Charlie don’t, so sad for you. It’ll just mean more for me.”
Chapter Seven
When Cole’s dad had been alive, they’d attended Sunday services as a family every week. Once he died, everything changed.
If Cole said he missed being at church, he’d be lying. He hadn’t had any use for the place since God had taken the only good thing in his life. His dad had understood Cole’s struggles in school, had supported his pursuit of excellence on the football field. Most of all, his father had loved him unconditionally.
Cole’s mother had seemed more relieved than saddened by her husband’s death from cancer. She’d remarried before the man she’d vowed to love