I'm a Good Person (Book 4)

Chapter 9

Spring seemed to fly by following Robert and Laura's run in with Ed Hagar. The pair avoided town as much as they possibly could as they had planned, but found it no sacrifice as they had discovered several beautiful spots in the woods surrounding Old Bridge and spent their time happy in one another's company.

Robert's school work continued and he saw marked progress, having fought through a fair bit of his once overwhelming backlog. He and Rebecca had reached a good working relationship, which had helped the process go smoothly. She seemed to grasp very early on how to handle him best and Robert appreciated her laid back approach and balanced schedule.

Laura had taken Grayson's assurances on the permanence of her place in the house to heart and finally began to settle in. This included decorating her room with complete autonomy for the first time, which had been an overwhelming and fun experience for her and now that it was done she often found herself marveling at how it had come together.

A double bed, with yellow canopy and blue toile quilt, sat against the wall immediately to the right of the door, flanked by two end tables. Then the room really opened up. On the far end sat a large bookshelf Laura had filled the first shelf of, leaving the other five empty for future use. Immediately to the left of this bookcase was a big window with a window seat. The matching toile curtains were drawn back and yellow cushions placed there for a reading nook. The walls were painted a blue gray to match. She still hadn't settled on art yet, but overall she loved the way it had turned out and was looking forward to putting on the finishing touches when they returned in the fall.

In addition to all of the bedroom improvements, a bicycle had been ordered and Laura had also begun to do some light school work. Much like Robert, she found the work had become a nice distraction which had contributed to spring's swift passing.

Before they knew it, the big trip to Wyoming was only a little over a week away and Agnes' bags were gathered in the foyer for her annual summer visit to her sister. Agnes' exit always signified a sort of lawless week in the house where nothing felt quite normal. The meals were usually eating in town or attempting to stomach Grayson's cooking, schedules seemed non-existent and time always felt as if it were at a crawl.

Laura came down the stairs, saw Agnes with her bags waiting for Grayson to return with the car and drive her to the station, and asked, "so, you do this every year?"

"Nearly. I've gone along to Wyoming a few times as well, but more often than not my sister and I enjoy having some time together."

"So, you don't have any time off outside of going to see your sister?"

"It's no different than a teacher's schedule," Agnes explained, "but honestly, being here hasn't really felt like a job in quite some time. It's nothing hundreds of thousands of mothers don't do every single day."

"But we're not even your family... technically. You never want a break?"

"I never said that," Agnes laughed, "there have been days over the years where I've questioned my profession. And I do look forward to these few months every year. But I've been here going on fourteen years now. The Nashs feel as much like family as my sister or any family of my own ever could."

"Didn't you ever want a family of your own," Laura asked, then suddenly seemed to realize how inappropriate that question could be and apologized, "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to ask that."

"That's alright, Laura. I did want those things at one time. Who doesn't? But I never seemed to find the right man. There were one or two where I thought maybe... but they didn't work out. After a while, I just stopped looking and the opportunity to look after other people's children came up and I decided to take it. I've found it to be a uniquely rewarding experience. I must confess, I have a special place in my heart for Mr. Nash, Rob and Adam."