Annie's Answer by Pam Andrews Hanson Page A

much tied up with his regular clients, tax law and stuff
like that.”
    “Pro bono?
Does that mean helping people for free?”
    “Yes.” Why had
he brought up his idea with Annie? He hadn’t even mentioned it to his father
yet, but it was on his mind a lot. Sawyer and Sawyer spent too much time
helping well-to-do people with monetary problems when there was a world of hurt
outside their offices.
    “That sounds
wonderful!” she said.
    He felt a foot
taller under Annie’s approving gaze, not noticing the bulky man in a white
apron who came up to the table.
    “Hi, Mama,”
Annie said in a cheerful voice. “What do you have left tonight? Any macaroni
and cheese?”
    “Sorry, Annie.
I have one serving of shepherd’s pie, or I can make a grilled cheese or a BLT.”
    “Grilled cheese
for me. You haven’t tasted anything as good as Mama’s sandwiches,” she told
Nathan enthusiastically.
    “Make it two,”
Nathan said, then asked her what she’d like to drink.
    “Mama?” he
asked in a soft voice when the large bald-headed man walked through the
swinging doors to the kitchen.
    “His name is
Maeleachlainn Maksimilan Kelly,” as close as I can pronounce it. I guess his
parents went overboard finding ethnic Irish and Greek names, so Mama it is. My
children’s names are going to be easy to spell and pronounce.”
    “Your
children?” he teased with a grin. “You have names picked out already?”
    “Not exactly.”
He loved it when she blushed. “First I have to make a success of my flower
shop.”
    “Do you know
what’s involved in running it?” As soon as he asked, he knew he sounded too
much like an attorney.
    “I took a two
-year business course at the community college, and I’ve been gardening since I
could see over the tops of my mother’s flowers.”
    He’d put her
on the defensive, and it was the last thing he wanted.
    “Sorry, I
didn’t mean to be critical. I have a feeling you can accomplish anything you
set out to do—even getting along with my aunt.” He meant it sincerely.
    “She’s not
that difficult,” Annie said. “Just lonely and worried about getting old. I
can’t imagine losing a home and leaving all my friends. She was so happy when
she got a phone call from someone she knew in high school.”
    “She likes
you,” Nathan said. “But then, who wouldn’t.”
    There was more
he wanted to say, but this wasn’t the time or the place. Would there ever be a
right moment? Did he know what he was doing here? The last thing he wanted was
to hurt Annie in any way, but she was giving him ideas he hadn’t seriously
considered before.
    “So what did
the two of you do all day?” he asked, needing to change the subject.
    He listed with
rapt attention as Annie told him about cleaning drawers and buying contact
paper. She was alternately funny and sympathetic to his aunt, and he wondered
why he’d had reservations about hiring her. She was the perfect companion for
Mattie.
    “Here you are,
folks,” Mama said, putting large platters and oversized glasses of iced tea in
front of them as Nathan realized they were now the only customers in the
restaurant.
    “I wasn’t
expecting a full dinner,” he said appreciatively as he picked up a French fry
from a huge mound beside onion rings and a cup of slaw.
    “It looks
great,” Annie said when Mama asked if everything was okay before walking back
to the kitchen.
    “Why didn’t I know
about this place?” Nathan asked after biting into a cheese sandwich on thick
Italian bread deep fat fried until the sharp cheddar was deliciously melted.
    He knew the
answer. It was a dive in anyone’s book and not on the Sawyer’s list of approved
hangouts. It was past time for him to branch out from under his parents’ large
shadow. In law school he’d fully intended to practice anywhere but in Westover,
but his father had convinced him to join the family firm, using his age and
extensive clientele as reasons.
    They lingered
until Mama locked the front