He prayed that they’d hear from the station in the next few hours with some good news after the evidence was processed.
Chapter Twenty-Four
For the fifth time in an hour, Jordan flopped into Bailey’s lap, where she was sitting on the floor, and leaned his head back against her chest. The poor kid was bored, and she couldn’t blame him. At the same time, she needed to get as much done as possible before lunch.
She wrapped her arms around him and gave him a cuddle. “Why don’t you go choose a toy or puzzle out of the toy bin? Since we don’t have any customers today, you can even drive your Hot Wheels cars around the front of the store.” She pointed to the plastic bin on the floor near the little table.
Jordan had brought a book and an action figure with him today, but he’d gotten bored with them quickly. He shook his head and didn’t move from her lap. She looked at the stack of greeting cards and envelopes beside her.
The guy who’d broken into the place had knocked the entire display over. Thankfully, with the exception of a few dirty envelopes, most of them could be saved. Now, she had to separate them by style and get them back on the display.
“You’ve been working hard for hours anyway,” Rachel said from her spot on the other side of the room. She’d been sweeping up broken glass from several shattered mugs. “It’d do you good to take a break.”
Jordan leaned his head back and looked at her as if to say, “Yeah, Mom.”
“Maybe when Nate gets back, we can go out somewhere for lunch. Just to do something different.”
Her suggestion was met with cheers from both boys.
“Can we get cheeseburgers?” The question came from Seth.
“We’ll see.”
With that news, Jordan scrambled from Bailey’s lap and went to see what his brother was doing.
“You’re welcome to join us, Rachel, if you’d like.”
“I appreciate the invitation, but I’ll probably go home for lunch. I’m happy to come back afterward if you need me.” Rachel glanced around the store. “There’s still a lot to do.”
“Yeah, there is. But I’ve come to the realization that we’re not going to be ready to open by Friday. In which case, there’s no hurry. So feel free to call it done when you’re ready to leave for lunch.”
“All right, but only if you’re sure.” The older woman shook her head. “I’ll never understand why someone would go to all this effort. I mean, seriously. Didn’t they have anything better to do?”
“Apparently not.” Bailey grimaced. “I guess it gives me an excuse to look for some new inventory, though. I’ll have to get to that once I’ve found someone to level that old barn.”
Rachel looked up in surprise. “You’re finallygoing to demolish it?”
“I figured it was about time. It would be the perfect spot for a huge pumpkin patch next fall. Don’t you think?”
“I think it’d be great. People love that kind of thing in the fall.” Rachel ran a hand through her short, gray hair. “You might be able to find someone willing to keep materials and knock it down at a cheaper rate. Surely, there’s something in there worth salvaging. It’d be worth asking about, anyway.”
“I’ll have to do that. Thanks for the suggestion.”
Bailey no sooner heard an engine out front than Seth ran to the door.
“Nate’s back!”
“Nate!” Jordan ran from his spot and practically jumped at Nate the moment the poor guy walked in.
He easily swooped the boy into his arms, chuckling. “Wow, that’s quite a welcome. I didn’t know you guys missed me so much.”
“We’re going to go get cheeseburgers now that you’re back,” Seth declared proudly.
“I see how it is. That’s okay. Cheeseburgers are pretty high on my priority list, too.” He tickled Jordan and set him down before looking at Bailey.
When he smiled at her, Bailey’s stomach did a little flip. She chided herself as she smiled back. “The boys were getting restless. I thought going out for lunch might help.”
“That sounds great. Count me in.” He turned his attention to Seth. “What are you working on, buddy? Need help finishing it before we go eat?” The duo moved away with Jordan trailing them.
