Page 62 of Feeding Hope
When he turned the final corner, he didn’t have to wonder where to find Betty.
There was a Jeep Grand Cherokee what reminded him of one of the wind-up cars he’d had as a toy. It was the same flat color between khaki and cream. The hood was up, but he didn’t see anyone around the car. Frowning, he pulled up to the curb in front of it, facing the wrong direction. Getting out of his truck, he stepped down onto the sidewalk and scanned the area for any dangers. It was later in the afternoon, so there were a number of deep shadows around and between the buildings.
“Hello?”
He listened for an answer, but when one didn’t come, he tried again. “Hello?”
The soft click of a door latch catching turned his head.
“Hey.”
The voice that answered him was deeper than he’d expected.
When he’d heard the name Betty, it felt like a name from any older generation. Like Archie and Betty from the comics. The woman who walked around the back corner of the Jeep definitely wasn’t the sweet older woman he’d pictured in his head.
Betty was... stacked.
Even in the shadows like she was, he could see the curve of her hips and the sway when she walked. It wasn’t put on like an act. No, she was walked toward him unerringly like she was on a mission.
He couldn’t hold back a smile as he waited to get a good look at her face, but as soon as she left the shadows behind her, his jaw dropped enough that he must look like he was a few IQ points short of humankind.
“You’re not... Betty.” His brow furrowed as he tried to remember what George and Maybell had told him. “You’re Aidan’s mom.”
She stopped a few feet shy of where he was and wiped her hands on a cloth. “Actually, I’m both. I’m Aidan’s mom, but I’m also Betty. At least,” she smiled and he felt a little short of breath, “at the firehouse.” When she was done wiping her hands, she tucked the cloth into her back pocket, a movement that pulled her T-shirt across her chest and Wayne felt his face turning red.
He could only hope that the late afternoon shadows might keep him from making a total fool of himself.
Betty... He smiled to himself.
She had Veronica’s coloring but the smile on her face was sweet.
“Fire house.” He nodded. “I didn’t know you were a firefighter.”
She lifted her chin a little and the smile she gave him felt good. Really good.
“It’s actually Avery, not Betty.”
Wayne nodded. “I remember the principal called you Missus Page when I met you in the office.”
She smiled at him. “That’s me. I’m glad you assumed I was a firefighter and not someone working in the office.”
He nodded, understanding her words. “You move well. I can tell you’re fit.”
She tipped her head to the side and smiled at him. “Thanks, I think.” She looked at his truck and smiled. “Did Maybell send you for the delivery?”
Nodding, he shrugged. “That’s the plan.” Then he narrowed his eyes at the engine of her Grand Cherokee. “What’s going on with the engine?”
Chapter Two.
AVERY
She heard his question and barely managed to keep herself from answering him with a slow, drawled, “I wish I knew. I’ve been managing it so far on my own, but this time?”
Avery hated to admit it to anyone, but the man standing in front of her was the head coach of a major sporting team in Center City. His truck shone like a proverbial penny. The man certainly didn’t have the kind of issues she did when it came to her Jeep.
“My baby has been running for a good long time. I feel like I should have retired it about two or three years ago, but...” she let out a slow exhale, “I’m too stubborn for my own good.”
She reached out a hand and laid it on the part of the siding that ended abruptly beside the engine.
