Free Beautiful Ties by Alicia Rae Page B

turned to glance at me, and his eyes glowed with warmth.
    I beamed back at him before turning my attention to Pearl. “So, what time does your bus normally arrive?” I asked gently. Just then, I heard a bus coming around the street corner.
    She rotated her head toward the noise. “Uh, right now!” she exclaimed loudly. She spun to face me. “I gotta go! Thank you, Abbey!”
    She hugged me hard, nearly knocking the wind out of me with her surprising force, and I embraced her back.
    “You’re most welcome,” I responded.
    Pearl took off running toward the bus that was now stopped in front of our condo complex. I lifted my eyes to see Jason staring at me. His eyes were full of many emotions that seemed to be coursing through him.
    “I assume she is your neighbor?” he finally asked softly.
    “Yes.” I lifted my hand to point in the general direction of where she lived. “She lives over there in the second building,” I clarified.
    Pearl was usually roaming all over whenever I saw her. She’d seemed to know her way around the area very well.
    Jason uncrossed his legs and stood to his full height. He pivoted to open my door, and I hopped up into his truck. He came around to enter the driver’s side, and then he turned the key over to start the truck.
    His head tilted over at me. “It seems like she has quite a story behind her sad eyes,” he said, disheartened.
    “That’s what I’m afraid of,” I murmured, trying to keep my emotions in check.
    Jason frowned slightly as he started backing out of the parking space. His expression reflected the way I felt inside.
    “What all do you know about her?” he asked.
    “Not much.” I sighed. “She’s very reserved. My only hope is that she’s okay, but I can’t help this feeling I get every time I see her. It’s like she’s unhappy.”
    He pulled out onto the main road and turned in the direction of the new building. “I could see that just in the few minutes I met her. What’s the story with her parents?”
    “I’m not sure. She only speaks of a woman named Diane, but it’s odd that Pearl calls her by her first name.” I paused, shaking my head. “The two times I met Diane were very brief.”
    “I could be wrong, but it seems as though she’s a foster child,” he said delicately.
    I blinked up at him. “What would make you say that?”
    Jason shrugged. “Well, she doesn’t look like she’s happy in her home life, and if you’ve only ever heard of Diane and no father, then that would be my speculation. Plus, I grew up with many friends from foster families, and she reminds me of them.” He paused. “But that’s just a guess,” he added reassuringly.
    My heart squeezed. It was my fear coming to realization. I only hoped that Pearl was living in a good home and that she was being taken care of. Is that so much to ask for a child?
    I blinked back tears at how much Pearl had come to mean to me in such a short time. She was a beautiful young girl, and she did not deserve to be neglected.
    “I fear you might be right,” I breathed.
    “Well, you’re doing the right thing by being a good friend to her,” he replied with the utmost sincerity.
    “Thank you,” I said while making the effort to smile. “I just wish I could do more.”
    We came to a halt at a red light. Jason rotated his head to look at me for a quick second. His eyes searched mine, but he did not speak. I was not sure what to say. All my thoughts were overflowing with concerns for Pearl and how much I wanted to help her. The only problem was that I was not sure how.

    Once we arrived at the office building, my mood started to lighten. Working side-by-side with Jason made physical labor so much easier to endure. We even had a radio blaring in the background.
    By eleven o’clock, he had taken off his shirt during a break from tearing out the old carpet. My eyes would sneak quick glances at him here and there, wanting to memorize every fine detail of his bare upper physique. With