Page 18 of Scorched

“Did he know our father?” Brandon asked. “Was he his friend?”

Elise’s hand shook and she set the pan back on the stove before she dropped it. “No, Brandon. He didn’t know your father and he wasn’t his friend.”

Brandon sat staring at his food for a long moment. “I don’t like him.”

“He only wants to make sure we’re okay and take care of us.”

Her son straightened in his chair. “I’m the man of the house. I’ll take care of us. I promised, remember?”

Elise dropped to a crouch next to his chair and pulled him into her arms. “Yes, sweetheart. You are the man of the house. It’s just that sometimes we need a little more help around here.”

“No, we don’t.” Brandon pushed her away, his lips set in a stubborn line.

As much as she wanted to agree with Brandon, the more Elise thought about it, the more she felt she needed Paul around. If Stan really was alive, he’d becoming after her and the boys any minute. She might as well prepare the boys for Paul’s “visit” before he showed up with his suitcase. “Brandon, you’re the man of the house; however, Mr. Fletcher offered to stay with us for a few days. I hope you’ll be nice to him and treat him as a guest.”

“We don’t need him around here.” Brandon pushed his chair away from the table. “We don’t need anyone. I’ll take care of you.” He stood straight, his fists clenched beside him.

Tears threatened to well in Elise’s eyes, but she refused to let Brandon see them and willed them away, though her eyes burned with the effort. “I know you will, honey. But Paul-Mr. Fletcher...” What? What could she say to convince Brandon that it was all right for Paul to stay several nights at their house? Then, a thought surfaced. “He’s going to help us build a fence in the backyard.”

“We already have a fence,” Brandon argued.

“A different fence, one that doesn’t have big gaps in it.”

“So, we can get a dog?” Luke jumped out of his chair and ran around the kitchen table, whooping. “We’re going to get a dog!”

Brandon glared at his brother. “A dog?” His glare transferred to his mother. “They make a mess.”

God, that was his father talking. Stan hadn’t let the boys have a dog, claiming they were filthy. He had to have everything in perfect order.

Elise let a smile spill across her face. A little bit of revenge filling her veins. She didn’t know why she hadn’t thought about it until now. Maybe she’d taken a little too long to loosen up after being released from Stan’s controlling ways. “Yes, Brandon. But not a dog. A puppy.”

“A puppy!” Luke ran to his mother and threw his arms around her neck. “I’m gonna tell George. We’re getting a puppy.” He raced for the back door. Before Elise could stop him, he was outside, the screen slamming back in place.

“Luke!” His words sank in, and she turned to Brandon. “Who’s George?”

Brandon shrugged. “I don’t know.”

Elise hurried to the back door and watched as Luke ran to the back corner of the yard, where the picket fence was overgrown with bushes and bramble.

The little guy yelled, “George! Guess what?”

Who was George? Elise strained to see through the overgrown hedges to the house on the other side but could only make out the roofline. For that matter, she didn’t know any of her neighbors. She’d been so busy moving in, getting the boys settled in school, and setting up her own classroom that she hadn’t taken the time to stroll down the block. Elise made a mental note to get to know her neighbors. For all she knew, Stan could be one of them. Another chill shook her from head to toe.

Luke yelled again and again. When no one seemed torespond, he ran back to the house. “Can I tell Kenny? Can I, Mom?”

A stab of fear lanced through her. Kendall lived a block away over the top of a slight rise in Highland Street, just enough of a rise you couldn’t see her house from theirs. Luke and Brandon had been there once when Kendall had taken them there to see her Sheltie. They knew where it was. Would they try to go there on their own? Elise squatted next to her youngest son. “You’re not to go to her house without me. Do you understand?”

Luke’s eyes widened, his gaze going from his mother to where her hands pinched his arms. “I promise.”

Elise’s gaze followed his to where her hands clenched around his thin upper arms. She immediately let go, her fingers burning. Memories of Stan manhandling her ripping through her memories. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you or Brandon leaving the house without me.”

“Even to play in the yard?” Brandon asked, stepping up beside his brother.

“Yes.” She couldn’t look into her oldest son’s eyes. She didn’t want him to see the fear in hers. “Just for a few days, anyway.”

“Is it because of him?” Brandon persisted. “The man from North Dakota?”

Elise’s heart skipped several beats before she realized Brandon was talking about Paul, not his father. “No. Not at all. Agent Fletcher is just coming to help build thefence in the backyard.” Speaking of which, she’d have to come up with funds to buy the materials. Maybe she could open an account with the local hardware store until she could afford to pay it off. “Right now, why don’t we go out in the backyard and see what needs to be cleaned up to get started.”

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