Page 2 of Love in Design

“No. It looks like it’s just the two of us. Do you have muscles?” She sets down her backpack to flex. “Woah! Those muscles are bigger than mine.” I wink at her. “What do you want for supper? I’m hungry.”

“Daddy, it’s breakfast time. Can we go to Pop’s for waffles?”

“I can do that.” After some pumpkin-flavored waffles, I take her to school.

I usually go through Catherine’s stuff while Victoria is at school. She told me she wanted pictures of Mommy and some of her jewelry. I found her wedding dress and packed that away in the hope chest I had made. It has some special memories of Catherine, things from my childhood, and we’ll add to it as she gets older.

I hired movers to load everything up and drive the truck cross-country. I felt terrible about charging Ryan for it since he had me run that shop, but now not so much. Victoria and I talked, and we flew to Boston. I wanted her to experience that area a bit before we drove to Cupid’s Cove.

“Look at all this snow! Daddy, we’re going to have a White Christmas!” Victoria’s smile is all the reassurance I need to let me know I made the right decision.

Why does my stomach flip-flop every time I think about this move?

Chapter Two

LAURA ROBERTS

I’m standing in an empty room, wondering what to do with it. A lone tear falls from the side of my eyes. The local church came to get everything my mom donated before she died. I know it has been six months, but I don’t know how to do this alone.

The cancer diagnosis scared us the first time. The second time, we knew she could beat it again, but the third time wasn’t the charm, as my mom often said as she lay in bed dying.

I moved in with Mom when she got sicker and couldn’t care for herself. I hired a nurse for when I was at work. Speaking of work, I need to go today, but it’s a perfect day to stay home and read by the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate.

Closing the door, I sigh. “I’ll try another day.”

Straightening my shoulders, I head downstairs for my coffee. Thanksgiving Break is coming up, so the kids are excited to be out of school for a few days. Then comes Christmas, where none of the kids can stay focused long enough to learn. Being a the principal of the elementary school, I sat down with the teachers after last year's debacle.

We accomplished nothing but getting frustrated, so we implemented Christmas Learning Movies. In the morning, we do two subjects, then in the afternoon, we watch a Christmas movie. Kindergarten through second grade works first, then the film because we knew once they had the movie, all hope of learning was out the window. While still excited about it, the older kids can focus better than the little ones.

I notice a bright blue truck leaving the parking lot. “Huh . . . I wonder if one of the parents bought a new vehicle.” I get out of my red Jeep and trudge through the snow.

I hope the snowplow comes soon. The only tire marks are from the parents’ lane and the school busses. The parking lot is a mess as well. I make a mental note to call them about coming before school starts.

“Good morning, Miss Laura.” The students greet me as I walk in. I ran late since my Jeep didn’t want to start right away.

“Good morning, guys. Are you ready for turkey on Thanksgiving?”

“My nana is coming over to cook. My mom is bad at it,” one student tells me. I can’t help but chuckle.

“Well, you better get to class. I spy Mister Rodgers with his hands on his hips.” They wave bye, and walk into the office to find a very adorable black hair girl sitting in the chair.

“Hi.” She smiles up at me.

“Hello there. Can I help you with something?” I sit next to her.

“I’m waiting for my daddy to get back. He forgot some of my papers. The nice lady said I could stay here and not go back in the cold. I’m new here.” I don’t remember meeting her. She must have registered when I was on leave after Mom’s passing. I took about a month off before and after she died.

“I’m Miss Laura, the principal. What’s your name?” She shakes my hand.

“I’m Victoria Sullivan. I’m from Los Angeles, California. My daddy is opening the tattoo studio in town. We live on top of it. My funcle is coming up, too.”

“Your what?” Did this little girl just swear?

“She saidfuncle. It’s fun and uncle together. She calls my best friend and co-owner that.” A tall, dark hair tattooed man stands in the office’s doorway. The scruff on his face is the icing on the cake. He is the epitome of my dream man. I swallow hard while squeezing my thighs, hoping he doesn’t take notice. “Sorry about the confusion and leaving Victoria. The secretary said it was okay.” He seems nervous.

“It’s fine. It surprised me to see Victoria by herself. I’m Laura Roberts, the principal. You’re Victoria’s dad, I presume?”

“Yes, I’m Nate Sullivan. I left her birth certificate back at the apartment. We moved here this past weekend, so it’s all a mess.” We shake hands. Miss Lily, who used to be my first-grade teacher, is now the secretary. She didn’t like retirement.

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