Page 65 of Holiday Hire

She glances at me. "You liked it?"

I nod. "I did. It was really creative. We should make it an annual event."

She smiles, but then it falls. "Maybe you can invite me every year."

The thought of Phoebe not being on the ranch shouldn't feel odd, but it does. My chest tightens. All I can say is, "Sure."

She beams again. "Okay, then I'll pencil it into my busy calendar."

I chuckle.

She adds, "Actually, I haven't done this in a long time. That last time my family went camping, I was only ten." She stops, as if remembering something, and her expression turns a little sad.

"Is everything okay?"

She forces a smile and picks up a can opener. She presses it against the lid of cherry pie filling and turns it. "Yeah, everything's fine."

"Was it a memory or something?"

She hesitates. "Why'd you ask that?"

"You looked sad for a moment. Was it about your father?"

As much as I know it's not right to pry into her life, I want to know what Lance meant about her father not being around.

Why isn't he?

She's a good person. Why wouldn't he want to be part of her life?

Did something horrible happen to him?

She doesn't answer at first, concentrating on opening the can.

I add, "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. I'm just curious about your family."

"You are?"

I shrug. "Sure. You know about mine. It seems like I should know about yours."

She sets the open can down, releasing an anxious breath. Then she says, "My family situation is a little complicated."

"Oh?" I say, hoping she'll tell me more. I don't know why, but all of a sudden I want to know everything about her. I tell myself it's because she's watching my kids and is an interesting person. She's so different from us or anyone I've encountered, and I find it refreshing.

Her voice is sad when she reveals, "My mom and sister were in a car accident."

Goose bumps break out on my skin. "I'm sorry to hear that. Are they okay now?"

She shakes her head. "No, my sister's in a home because she can't care for herself. She doesn't know who I am. And my mom… Well..." She looks away.

I put my hand on her arm. "I'm sorry."

She takes a deep breath and looks back at me. "It's okay. It's been a while. It took a long time for me to process things and get used to it."

"I'm sure it's hard for you."

She nods, continuing, "My mom lives in a mental institution. After the accident, she couldn't handle the guilt. She was driving the car. Within a year of my sister not recovering, my mom had such severe depression, I couldn't take care of her anymore. The last time she..." Phoebe glances down and blinks quickly.

I step even closer, lowering my voice. "I'm sorry."

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