Jane's Gift Read Online Free Page B

grabbed the stroller from the front porch and stuffed Sophia into the seat.
    “Are you okay?” Lexi asked as she followed down the front walk.
    “I just needed fresh air.” Jane breathed deeply, the cool clean mountain air filling her lungs, clearing her head. She smiled down at Lexi. “I feel much better already.”
    Lexi’s dark brows crinkled. “What happened? Did Grandma make you mad?”
    Jane realized her daughter was far too perceptive for her age. Most likely because of all she’d had to deal with in her short life. And Jane hated that. She wanted to give Lexi back her innocence, keep her safe and protected from all the horror in life.
    She had a feeling it was too late.
    “Nothing happened and Grandma is fine. Don’t worry about it,” Jane answered, keeping her tone light as she started to push the stroller down the sidewalk. “Want to go to the store?”
    All three of them got excited, talking animatedly about what they were going to buy once they got there, and Jane half listened to their chatter, enjoying the sound of their high-pitched voices. How happy they were with the simple pleasure of going shopping, with the possibility of getting candy or a pack of gum.
    Life was okay, Jane realized as they walked along the old, cracked sidewalk. She stepped over a bump, wanted to laugh a little at the rattling she gave Sophia, but her daughter didn’t seem to mind. Little giggles came from the front of the stroller.
    Jane slowed her pace, took in her surroundings. She needed to live in the here and now, not delve into the past or worry about the future. Stephen had taken care of his family with a considerable insurance policy, but the majority of that had already been spent on her medical care. Insurance hadn’t covered everything, unfortunately.
    But she didn’t need a lot of money to live, not right now. And she had her family. Even though her mother drove her crazy, she meant well. The holidays were coming up, Jane’s favorite time of year, and though last year’s Christmas season had been a quiet, somber time, especially because she’d still been physically recovering as well as an emotional wreck, she vowed not to have that happen again this year.
    They needed to make new memories, she and the children. Start fun traditions and celebrate the beauty of the season. She hadn’t ever been one to decorate for Thanksgiving but she promised herself she would this year. Making homemade turkeys out of little handprints and filling vases with twigs and leaves would be a start.
    Yes, she was going to make things magical this year. Her children deserved it.
    Her left knee ached, but she ignored it. Her physical therapist had told her that exercise would do her good, and she was following his instructions.
    The local grocery store sat just ahead, part of a short strip mall that housed the bakery, a small ice-cream store, and a tiny, cluttered gift shop just for tourists.
    “What’s going on over there?” Logan asked, pointing his chubby fingers at the wide parking lot that sat in front of the strip of stores.
    Jane noticed white tents and strings of colorful balloons streaming above them. Small clusters of people walked about the two rows of tents, and she swore she heard the faint sounds of a band playing in the distance.
    “I smell popcorn,” Lexi said and Sophia clapped her hands, repeating the word.
    “It must be a little fair or something,” Jane said as they approached the parking lot.
    She hadn’t noticed them setting it up earlier when she’d gone to her parents’ place, but Mac had picked up her and the children, buckling the two oldest in the backseat while Jane clutched Sophia in her lap for the short mile drive. They’d been too busy chatting for her to pay attention.
    “Can we walk through it, Mama?” Lexi asked, tugging on Jane’s sleeve.
    “Can we get popcorn?” Logan shouted, running off ahead of them.
    “Logan!” Jane picked up the pace, trying to keep up with her son, but he