Kitabı oku: «Twin Wishes», sayfa 3

When time for supper came around, the Wrens, the O’Haras and Miss Quinn returned to Frank and Maggie’s house where leftovers from the picnic became a light supper. The kids’ excitement over the impending fireworks display scheduled to take place over Baylor Lake at night was wearing on Luke’s patience. He soon suggested they head over to the lake where the kids could run and play for a while until the fireworks started.

“Good idea,” Maggie agreed as she patted her plump tummy. “But this kid already has me worn out,” she said in gentle reference to the child within. “I think I’ll pass on the fireworks display this year. But you and Julianne go ahead. The twins need to get out for a while, and the lake would be a good place to take them. Perhaps there will be other children there for them to play with.” Frank went to Maggie’s side, slipping a hand around his wife’s waist.

“I’ll stay here with Maggie,” Frank said. “You okay, honey?”

Maggie nodded and smiled. “I think so. I’m just tired from today’s activities. That’s all.”

Luke looked toward Julianne, who was playing cars on the floor with Todd and Nora. “Will you come with us?” he asked as he watched her race a small metal car up Nora’s arm prompting a round of giggles from the child. Then Julianne looked up.

“Yes, Luke. I’d like that,” she answered. Then she saw what she thought could be the hint of a smile at the corners of his mouth. After enjoying this day with him and his kids, getting him to smile was becoming almost a personal challenge.

They all thanked Maggie for her good food and hospitality that holiday. Then the four of them headed toward the truck. The kids climbed into their usual seats in the extended cab and then Julianne slid into the passenger seat. She knew she probably should feel nervous about going off like this for the first time with Luke; but with two rambunctious children in the back seat, she gave little thought to the matter.

The ride to Baylor Lake took only minutes since it was a short three miles from the center of Fairweather. The kids had barely finished singing some silly song when Luke pulled into a parking spot at the far end of the lake.

“Can we sit in the back of the truck while we watch the fireworks?” Todd asked.

Nora reached underneath the seat to pull out a blanket. “No, Todd, because Aunt Maggie sent this blanket for us to sit on. Remember, Daddy?”

“No, I don’t remember that, Nora, but it doesn’t surprise me. Maggie seems to think of everything.” Luke walked around the truck to open the door for Julianne.

“Aunt Maggie thinks of everything, and God takes care of everything,” Todd said from his seat in the back of the vehicle. “Doesn’t He, Daddy,” Todd added matter-of-factly.

Julianne’s eyes widened in surprise. Wasn’t this the forbidden topic Maggie had warned her about? She looked from Todd straight into Luke’s frowning face as he gripped her arm firmly enough to help her from the truck without responding to his son’s statement.

“He didn’t hear that from me, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Luke remarked quietly and moved his hand away from Julianne’s arm once she had her feet firmly on the ground.

Then Todd continued, “He takes care of me, He takes care of Dad and Nora and Julianne and the flowers and the lightning bugs—”

“Lightning bugs!” Nora interrupted when she jumped out of the truck. “Let’s catch some!”

“Both of you stay where you can see me,” Luke instructed his children. They ran through the grass in their shorts and bare feet with the carefree laughter it sometimes seemed to Luke only kids could have.

“Stay where they can see you instead of where you can see them. That’s a good idea,” Julianne commented. She watched Luke spread out the blanket Maggie had sent with them, and they sat down together. “It gives them clear boundaries.”

“All they have to do is look for me. That keeps it simple,” Luke said. “Julianne…I’m sorry if I was sharp with you a moment ago when Todd was talking about God. I didn’t mean to be rude.”

“You weren’t,” she replied. “Maggie mentioned to me that Christianity was a subject better left alone. For now, at least.”

“For always would suit me just fine,” Luke added, and glanced at the woman seated next to him on the ground. He hadn’t been this alone with a woman since Kimberly. And he didn’t feel too comfortable with the idea of being here, like this, with Julianne Quinn even now. No matter how great she was with his children or how pretty she was. Whew. Now, there was a thought he hadn’t had before about Miss Quinn. Had he?

“Don’t worry,” Julianne assured him with gentle words. “I didn’t come along to preach to you. I just came to see the fireworks.”

Luke nodded. That’s the only reason he was here, too. Wasn’t it? “So…” he began with some awkwardness “were you here in Fairweather for last year’s Fourth of July celebration?”

“Yes,” Julianne answered. She’d been with Craig Johnson then, but there was no reason to point that out. Luke would probably start pondering what was wrong with her if he knew she’d been jilted by someone. Unless… She wasn’t really sure what Maggie may have told Luke about her. Not that it really mattered. “I’ve been living in Fairweather and teaching at the center since I graduated from college three years ago. So, I’ve seen these local fireworks before. I guess I should warn you. They’re not anything to get excited about.”

Luke motioned toward the children. “As long as they enjoy the show, that’s good enough for me.”

Julianne nodded in agreement and gave a soft laugh that Luke enjoyed hearing. He looked her way again and studied her profile as she watched the kids chasing bugs. Her features were beautiful. Not just pretty, but actually beautiful and with very little makeup as far as he could tell. She was what Maggie called a real heartland, natural-looking type. And Maggie had been accurate, although it had taken Luke until this moment to fully realize that fact. Tall, blond and brown-eyed, Julianne was nothing like his late wife, and yet she was every bit as lovely—all in her own way.

Julianne’s eyes remained on the children while Luke’s gaze lingered on her. She knew he was looking at her, really looking at her—maybe for the first time—and she wasn’t ready to look back. Dusk was settling in, and the children were heading back toward their father and teacher. The twins ran up and plopped down on the blanket between them. “Is it time yet?” Nora asked.

“It won’t be long,” Julianne answered. Feeling the weight of Luke’s gaze shift from her to his children, she relaxed considerably. She glanced over at him while Todd climbed into his father’s lap. Luke’s eyes were the same shade of blue as his shirt, and blue was Julianne’s favorite color. In shirts and eyes.

The sun set quickly and soon the sky was filled with brilliantly colored displays of light. Streaks of gold impressed the children most, if their “oohs” and “aahs” were any indication. Red, white, blue, green and gold lit the sky over Baylor Lake as dozens of bystanders enjoyed the show. Some children nearby had sparklers with which they ran in circles, leaving a trail of smoke behind them. Nora and Todd wanted some sparklers of their own, but Luke refused. That would be a privilege they could have when they were older, but not now at age four. Amazingly, they accepted his words and settled back into watching fireworks exploding in the evening sky amid booms and crackling noises. Even Luke smiled that night, much to Julianne’s amazement. The children’s antics during the show brought laughter and smiles from both adults. Julianne was almost as sorry to see the holiday come to an end as the twins were, although she definitely wasn’t reduced to tears by it as both of the kids were. She carried Nora and Luke picked up Todd, so they could get them back in the truck for the trip home. Julianne shook out the blanket they’d been sitting on and tossed it over the children once they were buckled into the back seat of the vehicle. Luke opened the door and helped Julianne into the truck. By the time they were out of the parking area, Nora and Todd were both sound asleep.

“They’re exhausted,” Julianne remarked.

Luke agreed. “They’ve had a very fun day. Mostly thanks to you.”

“I enjoyed the day, too, Luke. Very much,” Julianne admitted. “Mostly thanks to them.” And their father may have had something to do with it, too, she thought, but did not say.

The ride to her apartment was short and quiet. Julianne directed Luke to the postmaster’s large old house and pointed out her upstairs apartment.

“Thanks for the ride home,” she offered and reached for the door handle to let herself out of the truck.

“I’ll walk up there with you,” Luke said. “That’s a long, dark stairway to be climbing by yourself this late at night.”

“No, don’t.” She reached across the seat and touched his arm, wanting to emphasize that she didn’t need his assistance; but once she’d placed her hand against his warm arm, she regretted the action. It had been too personal, almost inappropriate, and she wasn’t sure how to undo what she’d done except by pulling her hand away. Quickly. “I’m sorry, Luke, I just meant that I can go upstairs by myself. I’ve done that hundreds of times—alone. I’m not afraid. And, anyway,” she added, nodding toward the sleeping twins in the back seat, “I wouldn’t want you to leave them alone in this dark truck even for a few moments. If they woke up, they’d be frightened.”

Luke agreed, although somewhat reluctantly. He thought the children would be fine sleeping right where he could see them from her stairway, and he certainly wasn’t used to dropping a woman at the curb and letting her fend for herself to get inside her front door. This hadn’t exactly been a date, he realized. He hadn’t been on a “date” in over ten years, but he did feel responsible for seeing her home safely. Then he had an idea.

“Do me a favor, Julianne. Once you get inside and lock the door behind you, wave to me from that front window.” Luke pointed up to where she’d left a light burning in the kitchen window. “That way I’ll know you got in all right.”

“Okay,” she agreed, then opened her door and slipped easily out of the cab before he had the chance to help her. “Thanks for everything, Luke. I had a really good time today,” she said with a heartfelt smile—the same warm smile Luke had seen from her during the fireworks display. It was one he liked seeing again.

“I enjoyed the day, too,” he began, then paused. “Julianne, you’re great with my kids.”

“Thank you, but if I am, it’s only because I’m a teacher.”

But Luke disagreed. “No, it’s something more than that,” he stated. “They really had fun today. I think this is the best holiday they’ve had since…for the last year or so. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” she answered, her smile fading. She should close the door to the truck and head up that stairway, she knew. There really was nothing left to talk about at this point. Except… “Maggie looked very tired when we left. Do you think she’s okay?”

“I hope so. Frank mentioned to me the other day that he’s worried about her getting too tired during her pregnancy. He thinks she’s working too hard at the center.”

Julianne agreed. “She probably is. You know how Maggie is—she gives too much of herself to everything she does.”

“I know. She even wants to watch the kids for me tomorrow so I can go to Minneapolis and get caught up on my work. Being rained out again on Thursday put me behind schedule.”

Julianne’s own giving-too-much-of-herself-to-everything trait kicked into gear. “I could watch them for you. That would allow Maggie to rest, and you could still get your work done,” Julianne suggested. “I hadn’t planned to do anything special tomorrow.” The only activities she’d be giving up were cleaning the apartment and grocery shopping.

“But you work with my kids five days a week, Julianne. I can’t ask you to keep them on your day off.”

Julianne looked toward the two children sleeping safely in the back of the truck. “You’re not asking…I’m offering,” she replied, then returned her gaze to Luke’s uncertain expression.

Luke hesitated. He needed to work tomorrow to stay on schedule. And the kids did seem to be crazy about Julianne. “Are you sure it wouldn’t be an imposition? I mean, you’ve just spent this entire holiday with them.”

“I really like Nora and Todd. I’d enjoy having them for another day. That is, if it would be okay with you.” She tucked wispy blond hair behind an ear. Working at the center was one thing, but maybe Luke O’Hara wouldn’t trust her enough to leave his children with her alone, here at this tiny apartment with an ominous stairway for them to climb up…or to fall down. “I could take them over to the center, if you’d rather not leave them here—”

“No, here would be fine,” Luke said. “But you’d need to be careful of the stairs. They’d both want to run up and down them.” He glanced toward the black steps and railing.

Julianne smiled. She’d guessed his exact concern. “I will be. You don’t have to worry.”

“Better yet, why don’t you watch them at my house? That way, they have their own toys and tapes, things to entertain them. And there’s a fair-size yard out back for them to play in.”

“That might be better. What time would you need me there?”

“Would seven o’clock be too early?”

“No, that would be fine. I’ll see you then,” Julianne answered.

Luke felt suddenly relieved. Maggie could rest, and the twins would still have someone they liked watching them. “Do you know where I live?”

“You bought the Taylor house on Spring Street, didn’t you? Maggie mentioned it to me.”

“Yes, that’s the one. We’ll see you at seven?”

“See you then. Good night.” Julianne pushed the door shut and started for the stairway. She was up the steps and inside her apartment in a minute or less. Walking to the window that faced the street, she looked down to where Luke’s dark blue truck was parked as he waited for her signal. She waved. She’d made it inside safely…that was, everything except her heart. Foolishly, she’d allowed it to become endangered in an attraction to this man whose own heart was broken, and Julianne knew no special cure for his kind of pain.

She watched Luke drive away and thought of Craig Johnson. Losing him had taken her a long time to get over, and that would be nothing compared to what Luke had lost. The woman he’d loved and chosen to spend his life with had been taken from him. He would need to heal slowly, from the inside out. It wasn’t something anyone else could help him with. Only God could be his refuge now. If Luke wouldn’t accept that, then the battle was his alone.

“But I can help him with his kids,” Julianne said softly to herself. But, if she did, would she be setting herself up for more heartache? She groaned at the thought. Suddenly, that banana cream pie she’d saved for herself was starting to sound very good. Maybe she could drown her uncertainty in a slice. Or two.

Chapter Three

When the alarm sounded the next morning, Luke reached to shut it off quickly. Maybe the kids hadn’t heard it ring. If they’d sleep in this morning, they’d be in a better mood for Julianne that day, and if he could make her day better in some way, he wanted to do it. Having Julianne in the children’s lives was something for which Luke was beginning to feel very grateful. Even after only a few days, Nora and Todd seemed to have bonded with her in some very real, unexplainable way. But Luke wasn’t looking for any explanations. He was just glad about this bit of good luck his family had happened upon and, although the old habit of thanking God had briefly crossed his mind, he chose not to. It seemed pointless to thank someone that, at times, you weren’t even sure existed.

The holiday yesterday had actually been a pleasant one, much to Luke’s surprise; the kids had been happy, content…not squabbling and wrangling with each other. Was it all because of Julianne Quinn? he wondered. It certainly seemed that way. He couldn’t think of any other logical explanation.

Luke climbed out of bed and began to get ready for his day when it occurred to him that he hadn’t dreamed of Kimberly last night. Not as far as he could recall. That had been the first time in over a year. Placing his razor on the edge of the bathroom sink, he stared into the mirror. Was that change because of Julianne, too? Luke couldn’t answer that question, and he didn’t know how to feel. Grateful or guilty? He’d loved his wife for such a long time. He loved her still. It was too soon, far too soon, the way he saw it, to notice another woman—no matter how easy she was to talk to or how good she was with the children. It just didn’t feel right, and Luke was having trouble believing that it ever would.

The front porch light was on when Julianne pulled her small green car into a parking spot in front of the O’Hara home. The house was an attractive two-story home, an older style with white railing all around the front porch and a wide wooden swing for lazy summer evenings. The siding was yellow, quite cheery looking in the daylight; but this morning it was bathed in only streetlights and the front porch lamp. Julianne approached the wide front steps and hurried up them. She rapped lightly on the door, not wanting to wake the children if they were still sleeping. Almost immediately, Luke pushed the screen door open. He’d been watching for her. She stepped inside where the smell of coffee enveloped her.

“Hi,” she said rather meekly. It seemed so strange, all of a sudden, being here in the early morning hours like this. She felt barely awake yet.

“Good morning. Want some coffee?” Luke asked.

Julianne smiled and placed her small canvas handbag on a nearby end table. “Yes, thank you. It smells good.”

Luke directed her toward the kitchen and reached for a second clean cup from inside the dishwasher. “I don’t like to empty this thing until I have to,” he admitted. He closed the door on the appliance. “I never thought I’d be someone who’d even know how to operate a dishwasher, let alone the idea of loading and unloading one on a regular basis.” He poured the coffee and handed it to the young woman who stood in his kitchen, a young woman about whom he really knew very little. So…why did he trust her as much as he did? “Cream or sugar?” he asked.

“Both,” Julianne answered. “Drinking it black hasn’t grown on me yet. I tried all through college to get used to it that way, but I never did.”

Luke nodded toward the sugar bowl on the table. “And here’s a spoon and saucer,” he added as he pulled these items, too, from the dishwasher. Then he took a quart of milk from the refrigerator and placed it on the table. “Help yourself. I’m going to check on the twins. They were sleeping soundly when I came down here.”

Julianne set to work on making her coffee palatable. She would have much preferred a cup of tea but wouldn’t have dreamed of asking for it. Luke probably wouldn’t have any tea bags in the house, anyway. He didn’t look like the tea-drinking type.

She glanced around the kitchen. It seemed bare, so white and sterile looking. The lack of a woman’s touch was quite evident everywhere. Empty counters, canisters that didn’t match, the simple white blinds at the windows instead of curtains and the lack of pictures or drawings displayed on the refrigerator door—not even a magnet present with which a snapshot could be held. How odd, she thought. She was a single woman, without children, living alone yet she had more items stuck on the door of her refrigerator than this father of two kids had.

“They’re still asleep.” Luke’s voice came unexpectedly from behind her. She nearly spilled her coffee.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you,” he apologized.

“You didn’t. I mean, it’s okay. Really.” Julianne laughed lightly. “I guess I didn’t hear you come back into the kitchen.” She took a sip of her coffee. “So, do you want me to let them sleep until they wake up on their own? Or would you prefer I get them up at a specific time?”

“Never wake a sleeping child,” Luke answered. “Never. That’s always been my motto.” He paused, suddenly feeling awkward about the situation. She was giving up an entire day to help him. And, why? “Julianne, are you sure you want to spend your Saturday this way? I can stay home today if you’d rather not—”

“I don’t mind at all. Go,” Julianne insisted with a determined look. “Get caught up on your work and don’t worry about us. I’ll have fun with the kids, Maggie will get to rest and you’ll get some work done. We’ll be fine.”

Luke reached for his keys to the truck. “If you’re sure…” He hesitated. “I can call to check on you around lunchtime. If you need me to come home then, I will.”

“Okay,” Julianne replied. “Would it be all right with you if I take the kids someplace? Maybe to Maggie’s to check on her? Or to Swenson’s for ice cream? Something like that?”

“Yes. I trust your judgment,” he stated. And he did trust her for some undefinable reason. He looked from the ring of keys he held in his hand into Julianne’s face, and he smiled a little. She looked sleepy. And young. Her blond hair was caught back in a ponytail and, at twenty-five, she seemed so fresh and alive. Luke wished he could feel that way again. Twenty-five felt like far more than ten years ago for him.

The silence between them made her uneasy. “Is there a number where I could reach you? Just in case I need to,” Julianne asked before taking another sip of her coffee.

“It’s on the table,” Luke nodded toward a small yellow notepad. “I’ll call around noon to see how it’s going.” He picked up the thermos and lunch he had packed for himself earlier that morning. He was ready to leave. Almost. “Julianne, thank you for doing this. It’s not a small thing to give up your day off to watch Todd and Nora for me.” He paused again. “I’ll be glad to pay you whatever you—”

“You’re very welcome and, no, I don’t want any money,” she stated firmly. “I’m doing this as much to help Maggie as to help you. Now, go. It’s nearly seven-fifteen already. Didn’t you want to be out of here by seven?”

“Okay,” he turned to walk toward the front door. “Lock this door behind me.”

“Yes, Luke,” Julianne remarked. “I’m not exactly a fourteen-year-old baby-sitter, you know. Quit worrying. Just go.”

Luke did exactly that. He quit worrying, got into his truck and headed for the city, leaving his kids in good hands. Julianne Quinn’s hands.

Julianne and the children spent their Saturday doing a variety of things. First, there was the usual schedule of cartoons Nora and Todd watched while they ate their cereal and lay around in their pajamas on big pillows on the living room floor. There was playing ball in the backyard, fun in the wading pool, and then helping Julianne unload the dishwasher and find the right places to put the clean dishes away before reloading it with the dirty ones from the sink. Then they took a walk over to Aunt Maggie’s which included a short visit with Uncle Frank at the Book-Stop, where they enjoyed a morning snack of crackers and juice.

“Thanks for watching the kids today, Julianne,” Frank Wren said while he joined them in drinking a juice. “Maggie needs more rest.”

“How is she feeling?” Julianne asked.

“Okay, I think,” Frank replied. “But she’s not one to complain much, so I’m really not sure. I’ll be glad when she gets back in to see the doctor this week.”

“Me, too,” she agreed. “I promise we won’t stay long, but do you think it’s all right for me to take the kids over there to see her for a few minutes? Maybe five or ten?”

“I think she’d like that,” came his answer. “She slept late this morning, so she’s probably just eating her breakfast about now.”

Frank was accurate, Julianne soon realized. When she and the kids arrived at the Wren home, Maggie was putting a slice of bread into the toaster.

Julianne kept her promise. They stayed less than ten minutes, long enough to satisfy Julianne’s concern that her best friend was feeling better.

“I’m just tired,” Maggie insisted. “The Fourth of July took too much out of me. The baby and I are fine, Julianne. Honestly. Don’t worry so much.”

After borrowing enough ingredients from Aunt Maggie to make snickerdoodles, the trio then walked back to the O’Hara house to bake the cookies, eat sandwiches Julianne had purchased from the deli for lunch and await Dad’s phone call which came close to noon, just as he had said it would.

“Hello, Julianne? Is everything going okay?” Luke’s voice sounded distant, almost as though he were in another state instead of a different city.

“We’re fine, and we visited Maggie. She seems to be doing okay, too,” she assured him. “You want to say hi to your kids?”

“Sure. Put them on.”

Nora and Todd both spoke to their father, and stated emphatically they did not want him to come home yet. They wanted to play in the wading pool some more and eat the cookies they’d baked. They weren’t finished with Julianne for the day, they claimed. Then Nora gave the phone back to their new favorite baby-sitter.

“They might not be finished with you, but are you finished with them yet?” Luke asked with a laugh. “I can be home in half an hour, you know.”

“No, I’m fine, Luke. Honestly. Stay as long as you need to. We’ll be here when you get home.”

It had been such a long time since anybody had said that to him. An unexpected stab of loneliness knifed through Luke’s heart that hot summer Saturday in Minneapolis. He wanted a home again. Not just a house for him and the children to walk into at the end of every day, but a real home. One like Maggie and Frank had now; one something like he and Kimberly had known in their apartment in the city. A powerful wave of homesickness for someplace that didn’t exist anymore swept over him, and he had to end the conversation quickly or Julianne would detect in his voice that something was wrong. So he gave a reasonable time that he’d return and said goodbye. Then he stood by the truck for a moment until he could regain his composure. He had a job to do; he had two kids to raise. He certainly didn’t have time to stand around and lament all that he’d lost. Life as he had known it was over. Gone. He thought he’d almost gotten used to that fact. Until Julianne reminded him of things better left forgotten.

It was late afternoon when Luke pulled up in front of the house. Both kids practically leaped off the porch, and they ran to greet their father with hugs and stories of the fun they’d had. Their excited chatter filled the air as Luke tried hard to listen to both of them at the same time.

“I can see you really missed old Dad today, huh?” Luke teased. He looked up from the twins’ faces to see Julianne walking across the grass toward them.

“They did miss you,” she offered. “They asked about you several times today, wondering what kind of trees Dad was planting and when you were coming home.” Julianne crossed her arms in front of her as she spoke. Luke looked weary, she thought, or maybe he just seemed that way because his jeans and shirt were dirty from a hard day’s work. Even with those observations, it struck Julianne how appealing this man could look, even at the end of a long day. His blue eyes were friendly with crinkly laugh lines at the corners which were actually visible today as he laughed with his children.

Julianne had enjoyed herself today. Too much. Why couldn’t Nora and Todd have argued, back-talked, intentionally disobeyed her—anything other than having been the lovable, needy kids they were. A soft sigh escaped her. She’d done what she’d come here to do. It was time to leave.

“I think I’ll go now, unless you’d like for me to stay and watch the kids while you clean up,” she began.

“Go?” Nora exclaimed. “But we’re going out for pizza tonight. Please, stay, Julianne. It won’t be as much fun without you!” The kids’ protests continued until Luke interrupted.

“They’re right, you know,” he agreed with a steady gaze resting on Julianne’s dark, gentle eyes. They were the prettiest brown he’d ever seen. “And after all you’ve done here today, you should at least let us take you out to dinner.”

Julianne shook her head, but smiled. “Thank you, Luke, but you need time with your kids. You don’t need me.”

“Have they worn you out already?” he asked.

“No, it’s not that,” Julianne answered truthfully. Pizza with Luke and the children. Did she really want to move a step closer to them? And would eating a meal with them do that? Yes, she knew in her heart, it would do exactly that. “It’s just that—”

“Come on, Julianne. Pleeease,” the kids begged, cutting off her objections. “Come with us!”

“Maybe she has other plans,” Luke remarked to the twins. She was young and pretty, he realized. She probably had a date with someone already scheduled for Saturday night. As a matter of fact, she could probably get a date with whomever she chose.

“No, I don’t have plans,” Julianne replied. Her stomach felt tied in knots, and it had nothing to do with hunger.

Luke watched her look away from him and guessed her nervousness. If they both were feeling awkward about this moment, maybe they should let it go. They could have pizza together some other day, maybe when they knew each other better. But then he glanced at the twins. “It will disappoint the kids if you don’t join us,” he remarked. “And I really don’t want to spend the rest of the day with two crying children.”

Julianne met his gaze again, this time with an understanding smile. “Looks like I’ll have to go with you then. I don’t want to ruin what’s left of your Saturday.”

“Good,” Luke responded. “Would you mind watching the kids while I shower and change? It won’t take long.”