Page 44 of Two Hearts' Christmas Homecoming

She continued, “We’re going to have a baby.”

Dad’s jaw dropped open because she apparently hadn’t told him.

“Why didn’t you let me know?” Dad asked excitedly.

“I’ve been trying to do it all week.”

When they took a few moments to share a heated kiss, everyone grinned.

Pulling away, Dad grimaced. “I’ve got some news for everyone too. I just hope we can handle it since Harry and Zane will both be away. Plus, being stuck inside during the winter can sometimes be tough.”

“What is it?” Mom asked.

“There’s another boy that needs a foster home. His name is Matthew. What worries me is that he’s been kicked out of two different homes already. I’m not sure we can handle him, especially if you’re pregnant, Luce.”

She shrugged. “Let’s ask Lex, since he’s the one who’s more than likely going to get stuck with him a lot, since he’s at home the most, studying online.”

Lex pursed his lips. “How old is he?”

“Probably a couple years older than Caleb,” Dad replied.

Lex nodded firmly. “I think it would be a good challenge for me to see if I can handle him. I’ll do my best. I’m the first to admit, I’ve been through a lot and I’m not angry anymore. In fact, I’m so happy sometimes, it hurts.”

Mom blinked, obviously trying not to cry. “There’s your answer, Gabe.”

“Okay, Lex. I’m willing to give it a shot if you are.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

A few months later, Lex was regretting his decision to try and take Matthew in hand. He was a terror, but after a while Lex began to understand that he was all talk. Deep down, he was scared to death. He was a bit of a bully to Caleb, and that was the first bad behavior that Lex had to stop immediately. Matthew also had a habit of sneaking through the house and stealing items from everyone’s room.

If he hadn’t been such a jerk, Lex probably would have shown him the secret hideaway on the beach, or told him about the passageways, but those were all places Lex could get away from him for a while, and until Matthew’s behavior improved, Lex wouldn’t let down his guard. Since Matthew was so reckless, he was probably too young to explore the passageways anyway.

Everything changed one sunny winter day when Izzy took them all ice skating at the beach. She warned everyone not to go too far out toward the middle of the cove, where the water would have been deeper which meant that proportionately, the ice wouldn’t have been as thick, especially with the sun beating down on it during the day. It was April and they were having a spring thaw, but the ice at the beach and near the neighbor’s dock was still firm and thick since the water was shallow, so there was a huge amount of space where they could safely skate.

Lex had been surprised at how easily he’d taken to skating. In fact, he kind of loved it and was even considering trying to play hockey if he ever made it into high school.

Being the rebel that he was, Matthew tried to entice Caleb farther out on the lake.

And then suddenly, Lex heard a loud crack, and when he glanced at where Matthew was standing, exactly where Izzy had warned them away from, Lex realized that the large sheet of ice beneath Matthew was cracking just as if it was a piece of glass.

“Lex,” Matthew called out.“Heeeeeeeeeeelp.”

Brownie stood on the beach, barking nonstop.

As Matthew’s feet and then his body went under, Lex quickly laid on the ice, crawling to where he could see Matthew’s head, still above the water as he tried to frantically hang onto the edge of the hole that he’d plunged through.

Lex reached him just in time, yanking him up beside him, where luckily, the ice was still fairly thick. But when the ice started cracking slowly beneath them, he shoved Matthew’s body across the ice with all his might toward the shore.

But Lex was kind of in trouble as the ice kept cracking beneath him.

Still in their skates, Izzy and Amy stepped close, each grabbing an ankle, digging the toes of their skates into the ice, and tugging Lex to the frozen edge of the beach beside Matthew.

“Just in time,” Izzy screamed as the ice cracked over the entire center of the inlet. She tugged off her skates, pulling on her boots.

“We need to get Matthew dry,” Lex yelled, starting to remove Matthew’s wet clothing.

“There’s a space heater in the hideaway,” Izzy muttered. “Luckily, he’s not too heavy. Let’s carry him up the path.”

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