“Don’t we all?” Addy picked up a box filled with plates of cookies.
“That kind of commitment takes a lot of work.” Jesse toted two applesauce Bundt cakes into the sale. “If Mama hadn’t made one of these to leave at home, I would buy them both.”
“So you still like anything with cinnamon?” Addy smiled.
“There were times when I was on deployment that I would have given my whole paycheck for just a piece of this cake,” Jesse answered, “and if I’d had a whole cake, I would have sold it off piece by piece and made a fortune.”
“Too bad that I didn’t know that,” Addy teased. “I would have made a dozen cakes and sent them to you, and we could have split the profits.”
Mia held the door open for them. “What’s too bad is that you two lost touch.”
Pearl waved from one end of the tables that had been set up in a U-shape around the floor of the fellowship hall. “Bring the boxes of cookies to this end. Cakes down there, and pies and miscellaneous things in the middle.”
Jesse set his two cakes on the table and headed back out the door to get the rest of the things. Out of the corner of her eye, Addy watched him walk away. With his boots and hat and that bit of a swagger, he was the sexiest man in the whole room—at least in her eyes.
“I’ll be over there at the checkout table taking in money and making change, but you two”—Pearl flicked her wrist to include Mia and Addy—“are going to take care of this end. Keep things pushed forward and looking pretty. Oh, there’s Justine and Betsy. Doesn’t look like they brought the baby. I was hoping to get to hold him.”
“And there’s Lylah,” Addy whispered.
“I’ve got her at the other end with the cakes,” Pearl said out the side of her mouth. “I put her with Vivien. They’re cousins and just alike.”
“Hey, Mia.” Justine smiled. “I guess we’re working together.”
“Looks like it,” Mia said. “I’m sorry about how things have happened. I didn’t know that…”
Justine, a tall blonde with bright blue eyes, laid a hand on Mia’s arm. “It’s not your fault. It’s not mine. We’ll lay the blame where it belongs. We were both conned by the same guy.”
“Thank you,” Mia said, “but I was the other woman.”
“So was I,” Justine said. “When I finally admitted that Ricky was the father of my baby, I found out that he’s got another one over in Bonham who’s about a year older than my Matty. And that girl has a tat on her back, just like I do.”
“Me, too.” Mia blushed.
“Guess he brands all his women.” Justine’s tone was icy cold. “Be glad you didn’t get pregnant like me and Willow. We’ve both got a son to raise now.”
“Tattoos and baby boys,” Mia whispered. “He leaves his mark wherever he goes, doesn’t he?”
Betsy and Pearl set about arranging the cookies on a table.
“The people waiting in the sanctuary will be turned loose pretty soon,” Pearl said. “It’s always a madhouse for the first half hour, and then we’ll get another rush about four o’clock. And, girls, just learn from all this trouble, and move on with your lives.”
“Amen,” Addy agreed. “And Justine, even though Mia’s father was a good guy, we are both lucky women. Just like me, you have a lot of support and love to help you raise your baby as a single mother.”
Mia raised her hand. “If you ever need to do some Ricky bashing, I’m your lady.”
“I’ll take you up on that.” Justine grinned. “How about tonight? Can I call you after supper?”
“Give me your phone, and I’ll put my number in it for you,” Mia said.
Addy heaved a quiet sigh of relief. Mia had made a friend. Now, maybe she wouldn’t be quite so clingy, and together, she and Justine could help each other get past their experiences with Ricky O’Malley.
The citizens of the little town of Honey Grove turned out in masses to support the church’s Strawberry Moon Bake Sale every year. The money raised went to support the Clothes Closet and Kitchen, where folks in need could come for clothing or food. The clothing was secondhand, but several volunteers made sure each piece was washed, ironed, and put onto hangers so that the place looked like a department store and not a rummage sale. The food bank always had canned food, dry beans, and cake mixes on hand, and Pearl tried to be sure eggs and milk were in the refrigerator at all times. When Pearl first organized the bake sale twenty years ago, she wanted to make enough money to buy a washer and dryer for the Closet. This year, her goal was to replace those old machines with new ones and, if there was leftover money, to buy more supplies for the food bank.
Betsy pulled her chair over close to Addy’s and whispered, “I’m so glad Mia and Justine are talking. Justine has drawn away from all her friends, and today is the first time I’ve gotten her to get out in public like this.”
“I know exactly what you mean.” Addy got that antsy feeling that told her Jesse was close by, and then he appeared right behind her. He laid a hand on her shoulder, sending sweet little shivers sliding up her spine, and then leaned down to whisper in her ear.
“Thought I’d come by and tell you that Dad and I are going over to Bonham to look at a bull he’s got his eye on. We’ll be back in time for me to help y’all take care of putting the tables and chairs away.”
The warmth of his breath on her neck added to the sensation. “Sometime around five?”
“I’ll be here,” he said.
“Thanks,” she said.
He straightened up and smiled at Betsy. “Good to see you. Looks like Justine and Mia are having a visit over there.”
“Yes, they are, and we both think it’s great,” Betsy answered. “The other old men in the sanctuary will miss y’all.”
“I thought maybe it was best to get Dad out of there when Patrick O’Malley showed up,” Jesse said in a low voice.
“That’s why Danny opted to stay home with the baby,” Betsy whispered. “Best to avoid trouble when we can.”
“Yep.” Jesse tipped his hat toward them and left by a side door so he didn’t have to walk past the table where Lylah and Vivien were taking care of the cakes.
“I’ve always wondered why the men come to these things anyway,” Addy said.
“Tradition, I guess.” Betsy shrugged. “But they look forward to a couple of hours of talking politics, sports, and believe me, they gossip more than women.”
“Oh, really?” Addy asked.
“I’ll miss that part since Danny stayed home today,” Betsy giggled. “He always brings home all the dirt on everyone. Those men know things that I don’t even hear at the bank.”
“Since Jesse and Sonny are leaving, Pearl and I will have to rely on the old gossip vine right along with you,” Addy laughed with her.
“Honey, we are probably the topic of what’s being said in the other room,” Betsy said. “Our daughters have corrupted Ricky O’Malley, the poor thing.”
Addy laughed even harder and then stopped abruptly when she saw Lylah coming toward them. Her eyes were fixed on Justine and Mia, and her mouth was set in a firm line. Her light brown ponytail swung back and forth like a frayed flag in a hard Texas wind, and her hands were knotted into fists. Addy and Betsy both got to their feet, rounded the end of the tables, and met the woman in the middle of the room.