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Alex looked at Katie, knowing she’d overheard Kristen. “Would
you like a ride home?”
Katie shook her head. “No, that’s okay.”
“But what about the picture?” Kristen said. “It might get wet.”
When Katie didn’t answer immediately, Alex came out from
behind the register. “Come on.” He motioned with his head.
“There’s no reason to get soaked. My car’s right out back.”
“I don’t want to impose…”
“You’re not imposing.” He patted his pocket and pulled out his
car keys before reaching for the bags. “Let me get those for you,”
he said, taking them. “Kristen, sweetie? Will you run upstairs and
tell Josh I’ll be back in ten minutes?”
“Sure, Daddy,” she said.
“Roger?” he called out. “Watch the store and the kids for a bit,
would you?”
“No problem.” Roger waved.
Alex nodded toward the rear of the store. “You ready?” he asked.
They made a frantic dash for the jeep, wielding bent umbrellas
against the gale-force winds and blankets of rain. Lightning
continued to flash, making the clouds blink. Once they had settled
into their seats, Katie used her hand to wipe the condensation
from the window.
“I didn’t think it would be like this when I left the house.”
“No one ever does, until the storm hits, anyway. We get a lot of
the sky is falling on the weather reports, so when something big
does hit, people never expect it. If it’s not as bad as the reports
predicted, we complain. If it’s worse than expected, we complain.
If it’s just as bad as predicted, we complain about that, too,