Chance Of A Lifetime Read Online Free PDF Page B

sounded special.
    “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Bryce promised, swiping one last bite of coffee cake before standing up.
I plan on sticking around for a while yet
.

    Out in the garden, Daisy plucked weeds as she sorted her thoughts.
    “He’s only going to be gone for two days—less, even,” Daisy muttered to herself. “What am I doin’ gettin’ all het up about it? It’s not like I have to be afeared of livin’ without a man—it’s all I’ve done for the past four and a half years. Me an’ Jamie’ll be jist fine, and I still have Miz Willow’s company.”
    Daisy reached for a scraggly weed and plucked one of Miz Willow’s yarbs out clear to the roots. She hastily replanted it and continued her musings.
    What do I care iff ‘n Bryce Chance didn’t want to tell me what he was goin’ to fetch? It ain’t like he’s trying to be mysterious. He’s just naturally tight-lipped. He’s so quiet; I reckon I’ll hardly even notice he’s not around
.
    Daisy’s thoughts ground to a halt as she acknowledged the falsehood of that last one. She sat back on her heels and rubbed the nape of her neck.
    True, Bryce was quiet, but it was hard not to notice him. The man had a presence that seemed to command her respect. He didn’t need words to make his opinion known—the way he stood or even shrugged spoke volumes.
    Jamie’ll miss him. Jamie always notices even when people simply aren’t feeling their best. Bryce didn’t wake him to let him know he won’t be around for a couple days
.
    Jamie’d looked around for Bryce at breakfast and asked her, “When go holp Byce wit eggs?”
    “Not for a coupla days, Jamie.” Daisy couldn’t read the look in her son’s eyes. “Bryce has to be gone for a while, but he’ll come back soon. He has to fetch something for Hattie and Logan.”
    After the initial surprise, Jamie had thought for a moment.
    His “Oh,” came out so serious it near broke my heart. But what do I expect? Bryce doesn’t owe me and Jamie anything. Shore, he’s spending time with us now, but we all know it won’t last. As soon as I’ve made enough lace, I can get us back to our land and rebuild a roof o’er our heads. It won’t be as nice as the one before, but it’ll do, and we won’t be beholden to Hattie and Miz Willow no more
.
    It would take a long time—probably all through the winter months—to make enough lace. Logan would stay in the holler with his new bride, but Bryce hadn’t made his plans to go back to California any kind of secret.
    Yes, the more I think of it, the better this is. It’ll get Jamie used to the idea of his friend leavin’ for good. It’s nice to have Bryce
around, but we can’t rely on him forever
. She tugged hard on one particularly stubborn weed.
We don’t need to. I can take care of us myself
.
    The weed snapped from its roots, the sudden lack of resistance toppling Daisy backward. She scrambled up and stared at the scraggly mess of leaves.
    “Stubborn thing,” she muttered, shaking her head. “Don’t you know when to let go, and when to hold on?”

    “Hold it steady, right there,” Daisy directed.
    “Got ‘t!” Jamie’s brow furrowed as he held the dustpan steady.
    Daisy moved the pile of dirt from the wooden floor to the dustpan with one swift, short stroke. This was the only house she’d ever been in with real floorboards. She could sweep these, scrub them, keep them nice and clean for Jamie. That way, Jamie wouldn’t get so dirty when he scooched around the house. It also gave him a steady surface to stack his blocks in complicated piles.
    “Perfect!” Daisy lifted the dustpan victoriously, and Jamie clapped as she went outside to empty it. Popping back a moment later, she tickled his tummy. “Yore such a good helper, Jamie. Thankee.”
    “We good teeaa …” Jamie took a breath and tried the difficult word again. “Teeaamm.”
    I wonder where he heard that?
Daisy passed her hands through his soft blond hair. “We do make