“How do you do?” Marcie said, suddenly envious of all the love in the world.
Brie nodded and smiled. “Pleasure,” she said.
“So. How is he? Your guy?” Mike asked.
“He’s good,” she said. “He’s been living out on the top of a mountain for almost four years now. It’s pretty rustic—but I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”
“And he was glad to see you?” Mike asked.
“Oh, yes,” she lied. “Pretty much. As long as we don’t have to talk about his experiences in Iraq, we’re good company for each other.” She shrugged. “He’s letting me stay a little while. Well,” she said, looking down. “I caught a bad…cold. And he was stuck with me. So I’m taking advantage of him.” She looked up and smiled. “He’s being very patient about it. Listen, I need to make a collect call. I promised to check in with my sister every couple of days and Ian doesn’t have a phone.”
“Help yourself,” Preacher said. “Dial direct—we have one of those deals with the phone company—unlimited long distance for a monthly rate.”
“Really?”
“Jack has four sisters and a father. Paige has girlfriends,” he said with a shrug. “We make a lot of calls. Yours is free as long as it’s in the U.S. Just go for it.”
Paige stepped around the worktable. “Marcie, if you could use a little privacy, you’re welcome to call from our apartment.”
“You wouldn’t mind?” Marcie returned.
“Not at all,” she said. “Come with me. I’ll show you where.”
Marcie started to follow Paige, then turned back toward the group. “You’re making Christmas cookies?” she asked.
“Paige and Brie were,” Mike said. “They’re having some kind of women’s thing here today. I’m just doing this so they have someone to make fun of. I’m much better with a taco. And I can make some mean carne asada.”
“Fortunately we have our cookies done,” Brie said with a laugh. “Mike can eat his own mess. He’s pathetic. Who ever heard of a person who can’t even frost a Christmas tree cookie.”
“Rules,” Preacher said. “The men can’t help with this because they all know I’m the best cookie wrangler in the business.”
“Come on, Marcie,” Paige said, pulling on her hand. “The phone’s right in here.”
Marcie let herself be led into a small efficiency apartment—a bedroom and living area right behind the kitchen. Paige pointed to a cordless phone on a side table between a leather sofa and chair. “Help yourself,” she said.
“Thank you. You live here?”
“Uh-huh. This was Jack’s place before he married Mel and moved out to her cabin. Then I married John and…”
“John?” Marcie asked.
“Oh, everyone calls him Preacher, but his name is John. John Middleton. And I’m Paige Middleton,” she said, beaming proudly. “Now make your call, and then we’ll have some coffee and cookies. We’ll send some home with you.”
Then Paige pulled the door closed, leaving Marcie alone.
This was amazing, Marcie thought. She’d never been around people like this before. They were generous and sweet to a fault. Didn’t they worry that she’d rifle through their closets and drawers? They didn’t know her at all, knew virtually nothing about her, and yet they were all about helping her, accommodating her.
She sighed deeply. Ian should be around people like this a little more. He was turning into an old curmudgeon before his time. She lifted the phone and called Erin’s office.
Erin’s secretary answered, but explained that Erin was in court. Marcie actually let out a relieved breath. “That’s okay, Barb. Will you tell her I called, that I’m fine and enjoying my visit very much and will try her again in a couple of days? I’d sure appreciate that.”
“And everything is working out for you?” Barb asked.
“Absolutely. Perfect. But I’m staying with a friend out in the mountains and there’s no phone. I can only call when I come into town. So, it’ll be another couple of days before I can try her again. But tell her it’s just beautiful here and I’m having a good time.”
And then, given the no-charge situation, she called Drew’s cell phone. He picked up on the third ring. “Drew,” she said in a breath. “Drew, I found him!”