Always You (Oak Woods Book 1)

21

Annaleigh groaned, standing up, she finished painting Rebecca's room several hours after everyone else had gone home. Hearing a car pull up in the driveway, she smiled. It would be Rebecca coming home after a long day with Clint and Nora.

"Mama!" Rebecca yelled, slamming the front door open.

"In your room, Poppet!" she called back. Connor had left two hours ago to answer a call from the station about an urgent matter. She still hadn't asked him to take her and Rebecca to the fair next weekend. She would text him once Rebecca was settled.

"Mama Mimi bought me new clothes for school tomorrow!" Rebecca announced, bouncing into her room and stopping short at the sight.

"Mama! Did you paint this?" Rebecca walked around in awe and screamed with glee when she saw the book nook Annaleigh had just finished.

"Annaleigh. we..." Nora stopped short, giving a soft gasp when she saw the room.

"Yes, Rebecca, I painted this, do you like it?" Annaleigh asked, pulling her daughter in for a hug. She had missed having her with her today.

"I love it! I will be even smarter with this room." Rebecca bounced over to her book nook and took out one of her favorite books, settled in a beanbag chair and began to read, ignoring the adults in the room. Annaleigh smiled and motioned for Nora to follow her back down to the kitchen.

"You did a wonderful job on her room. Did you paint it freehand?" Nora asked settling at the new kitchen table. It was whitewashed with a distressed look and had four chairs to make breakfast a cozy affair.

"Yes. Most of it is freehand, how was being out with Rebecca?"

"She sure knows how to shop," Clint remarked, carrying in over a dozen shopping bags from all the high-end stores in the big city an hour from their small town.

"You didn't have to buy her anything," Annaleigh protested when she saw the amount of clothing in each bag.

"Nonsense, of course, we had too. She is our first grandbaby and deserves everything. We also bought you some new clothes too. I called Madison, and she snuck into your closet to get your sizes. If you don't like anything I have left the receipts and I am sure Connor would take you in on his next day off." Nora pulled two bags over to Annaleigh and pulled out blouses, sweaters, a-line skirts and business casual dresses. It was a brand new work wardrobe. She hadn't bought herself any new clothes since Rebecca was born. She'd spent all of her money on Rebecca's daycare and clothing.

"I can't thank you enough, you and your family have done so much for Rebecca and me in the past forty-eight hours." Annaleigh wiped away a stray tear. She felt so overwhelmed by the amount of love shown to her and Rebecca.

"Oh sweetheart, it is we who can't thank you. You came back home and have made Connor complete. I haven't seen him this happy in fifteen years, you leaving tore him apart." Nora wrapped her strong arms around Annaleigh, holding her close against her chest.

"I am so sorry about leaving. I had no idea what my parents were doing when I wasn't allowed back to see Grandma Betty. I cried every night that year about losing Connor. I've been so lost and now I feel like I've finally found a place to call home. Connor and I have reconnected, and he has asked me to be his mate," Annaleigh admitted, a shy smile on her face when Nora smiled big.

"And what did you say?" Clint asked, from his place against the kitchen counter.

"I told him I needed more time with him and Rebecca before I could agree. It isn't just me, it is Rebecca in all of this, too

"Smart," Clint agreed, he walked over and kissed the top of her head.

"I think it is good to make him work for it, we'll see you at the barbeque Nikki and Kyle are hosting." Nora gave her one last hug, and she and Clint left. Annaleigh sat at the kitchen table and fingered the new clothing, she really wished Connor were there so she could get his opinion on her new wardrobe.

"Mama!" Rebecca called. Annaleigh sighed and stood to go answer her daughter. She locked the front and back doors smiling at the new locks Mike and Ian had put in for her. When she looked out the front window, she saw a beat-up white truck drive down the road. She shivered at the memory. Wesley had a beat-up white truck he took better care of than he ever had his family.

"Mama!" Rebecca called again.

"Coming Poppet!" she replied and hurried up the stairs pushing away memories of Wesley.

A/N: Please let me know how you like the story, any suggestions or feedback would be much appreciated. Don't forget to vote!