The Time in Between

by Kristen Ashley

  “I’m glad the time is right. Daddy should hold hands with somebody. My friend at school, Ilaria, her mommy and daddy aren’t together and her daddy got a new lady, and when he comes to get Ilaria at school he smiles a lot and makes Ilaria giggle. He was like that sometimes before, but he’s like that, like, all the time now. And anyway, Ilaria and her daddy’s lady play dress up and they have girlie movie nights. She says her mommy isn’t very happy about this new lady but her daddy is, so I have it better because my daddy is super happy and my mommy’s happy too because she likes Cady’s butterly pie, and she told me Cady had to be super sweet and want me to like her to make sure Santa brought me presents at her house.”

  Janie tipped her head back and gave me those incredible eyes.

  “Can we play dress up?” she asked.

  Outside of having Coert, I’d never wanted anything more in the world.

  “Yes,” I whispered.

  “Can we have girlie movie nights?” she pushed.

  “Absolutely,” I told her.

  She gave me a beaming smile. “I’m gonna dress up as a mermaid. What are you gonna dress up as?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know. Maybe a fairy godmother?”

  She nodded once. “We have to find you a dress up fairy godmother outfit. Do you think they have those at Nodmans?”

  “Nordstrom, sweetie,” I corrected her gently. “And no. But that just means we’ll have to find somewhere else to get a fairy godmother outfit.”

  “Yay,” she replied, grinning.

  She then went back to scrolling and clicking.

  I stared at her dark head and then I bent in and kissed it.

  I did this in an effort not to burst out crying or, perhaps, get up and dance a jig of joy.

  It was the right choice. Janie tipped that head back and gave me another beaming smile.

  “Do you know how smart you are?” I asked.

  She nodded gravely. “My teacher says I’m sharp as a tack. And Daddy says I’m quick as a whip.”

  “Well, they’re right,” I told her. “But do you know how lovely you are?”

  She looked confused. “Do you mean pretty?”

  “Yes, but in a way where I can see it.” I lifted a hand and touched a finger to her heart. “And I can feel it because you’re pretty inside too.”

  She seemed to marvel at that. “No one ever told me I was pretty inside.”

  “Well, you are and don’t ever stop being that way because it really doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside. It only matters how you are on the inside.”

  Another grave nod that made me need to kiss her again so I did, dropping to give her a touch of my lips on her forehead.

  When I pulled away she looked like she’d come to a conclusion and she didn’t make me wonder at it.

  “Now I think I understand why you’re prettier when you look at Daddy. Because what’s inside is coming out.”

  All right.

  That was it.

  I’d completely fallen in love with Coert’s daughter.

  Not her eyes.

  Not her off-the-scales cute factor.

  Not the fact that Coert helped make her.

  Because she was Janie.

  “Your father is very right, Janie,” I said softly. “You’re quick as a whip.”

  She gave me a big grin.

  Kath cleared her throat and declared, “I think it’s time for pie.”

  I looked to her.

  She shot big eyes at me and then aimed them at the stairs.

  Janie gave my laptop to Melanie and shouted, “I’ll help!”

  “Oh no.” Kath got up from her seat in one of the wicker chairs. “I need you to help me find a dress for dinner. That’s priority one. Cady’ll get some of the boys to help.”

  Janie was okay with that but turned to me. “What kind of pie did you make us this time, Cady?”

  “Pecan,” I told her.

  Another blinding smile. “I love pecan pie!”

  I smiled back. “Do you like it with ice cream or whipped cream?”

  “Both!” she cried.

  Of course.

  I’d think “girl after my own heart” but she’d already accomplished earning that.

  I got orders from the others then got up, avoiding Midnight who was curled at the base of the bench in front of me (or more likely, Janie, and this was proved true when she just lifted her head to give me a look as I got up, but she didn’t otherwise move). Kath took my place with Janie, Melanie and my laptop. And after getting meaningful but happy looks from Pam and Shannon, I headed downstairs.

  The younger boys were all rammed together on my sectional watching some movie on TV and I got their orders for pie with or without whipped cream or ice cream (or both).

  Making it to the bottom, I noted that Elijah was no longer with the older men downstairs. Daly and Pat were on the couch. Mike was in front of the fire lounged on some huge pillows on the floor that I’d bought for that exact purpose prior to their arrival.

  Coert was with the men, sitting in my armchair by the fire, legs stretched out in front of him crossed at the ankles, fingers wrapped around a glass of whiskey, eyes on me before I’d made it to the bottom.

  Seeing him like that in my house, I thought it was really unfortunate we’d have to wait years to move back to the lighthouse.

  But then again, I probably wouldn’t care where he was kicking back, enjoying a whiskey.

  As long as it was close to me.

  “Where’s Elijah?” I queried.

  Mike looked to Pat then to me before he advised, “Don’t ask.”

  “Oh,” I mumbled.

  Elijah had not retired to his apartment.

  He’d gone to Verity.

  An interesting development.

  I spoke up when I announced, “It’s pie time. I need orders. And Coert, honey, will you help me?”

  He was studying me, but when I made my request, he didn’t answer verbally.

  He got up and walked to the kitchen, meeting me there.

  I’d made two pies that afternoon and they were right there on the counter.

  I didn’t go to them nor did I go to the fridge to get the whipped cream and ice cream.

  I went to Coert, grabbed his hand and pulled him to the sink.

  His content, he-has-his-woman, he-has-his-daughter, he’s-at-a-fabulous-lighthouse-chatting-with-good-men-holding-a-whiskey-in-his-hand expression changed as he grew concerned while he continued to study me.

  He set his whiskey on the counter by the sink and asked, “Everything okay?”

  “Well . . .”

  Quickly, I ran down what happened with Janie in the observation room.

  As I spoke, his gaze drifted to the stairs.

  When I started to wind down, it came back to me.

  I finished with, “I think this confirms a variety of things. One, you were kind of right. But she doesn’t absorb everything, as such. She observes everything. And for a five-year-old, she processes it as it fits in her world with amazing perception. It’s uncanny but also fantastic and I don’t know, but it might be indicative that she has an exceptional IQ.”

  When I said that, Coert’s lips quirked.

  I liked the quirk but I wasn’t done talking.

  “And two, because of this, what’s happening between you and me and even Kim is not lost on her in the slightest. She’s right there with us. She gets it completely.” I leaned into him and tried not to let my smile break my face. “And she’s happy with it.”

  “I’d say it confirms all that,” he murmured, no longer looking concerned, no longer quirking his lips, a smile was in his eyes too.

  “And last, Coert, Kim is being really amazing with all this, and I don’t know, but I think with the way she’s handling this, we might actually be able to build something for Janie that’s extraordinary. Most exes don’t get along and there’s usually not a nice division of Dad and Mom that the kids have to negotiate. But if there isn’t t
hat for Janie . . . I mean, wouldn’t that be great?”

  He slid an arm around my waist, pulling me closer, before he informed me, “Part of that might still be guilt, Cady. She knows I love Janie. She knows I can’t imagine my life without my daughter. But that doesn’t erase what she did or how I spent five years making her pay for that. She could still be making amends.”

  I was confused. “Is that bad?”

  “I’m just saying, Kim’s acted rashly before when she panicked or didn’t get her way. And that rash was using me to get her pregnant without my consent in order to force me in one way or another to stay in her life, and then using our daughter to try to get me to fall in line when she thought I wasn’t by threatening to take Janie away from me. So I’m grateful she’s being so cool about this and she’s demonstrating she’s on board to help us settle Janie into her new reality. But I think it’s going to take more than a couple of months of Kim being cool in response to me being cool now that you’re involved in all that before I’m going to relax.”

  “What were you not doing to fall in line?”

  “She wanted us to get back together.”

  I felt my lips part as I stared up at him.

  “Yeah,” he said. “She knew I was not anywhere near there and she said that didn’t matter. Janie needed a mom and dad together. She told me we’d had something before. If we worked at it, we could get it back and she was ticked I refused to work at it. For me, I was ticked she’d think for a second I could get past what she did. So we can just say it was an ugly situation that was already that before it got uglier by dragging a judge into it.”

  His other hand came up to cup my jaw and he bent his neck so his face was close to mine.

  “She made some nasty plays,” he shared, and he could say that again. “But I spent as much time with her as I did because she’s sweet and she’s funny and she’s a lot of other things. I think you and I both have learned anyone is capable of doing really stupid shit when they feel lost or jammed up. I honestly think she’s grown up and she’s a great mom and it’s been a very long time since she’s pulled anything. I don’t want you to go in thinking the worst of her. Just knowing the story. But I want us both to go cautious. Does that make sense?”

  I nodded.

  He nodded back then said, “Now, as awesome as this is, knowing where Janie’s at is a lot further than where we thought she was, we gotta get to the pie because Janie needs to be home and in bed soon, and she shouldn’t eat real close to going to sleep. So we should get on that.”

  I nodded again.

  He gave me a touch of the lips and when he moved away, he murmured, “It’s still awesome.”

  I smiled at him.

  He gave me another touch of the lips.

  The door to the walkway to the garage flew open.

  Coert kept his arm around me but twisted that way and I leaned to the side to see Verity storm in, close the door, spy us in the kitchen—or Coert in the kitchen—and come our way.

  “Coert, do you have a guest room?” she asked.

  Oh no.

  “No, honey, I—” Coert started, going careful, and I knew he’d read the look on her face.

  She interrupted him. “Do you have a couch?”

  “What’s going on?” Pat asked.

  Verity turned to her father. “I can’t stay here.”

  “Why not?” Pat asked.

  “I just can’t. All right?”

  Mike and Daly were up (as was Pat) and they looked at the door Verity had come through.

  Pat kept his attention on his daughter.

  “Do you need your mother?” he asked gently.

  “I need to stay with Coert,” Verity answered and turned back to Coert. “I know it’s rude to invite myself over. And I’m sorry. I won’t be any trouble. I promise. But it’s either stay with you or catch a plane back to New Haven.”

  “What the hell happened in the studio?” Pat asked.

  “I’ll find out,” Coert rumbled, letting me go and beginning to move to the door.

  “I’ll go with you,” Mike stated.

  Oh no!

  “No!” Verity and I shouted.

  But only I continued.

  “I’ll go.” I pointed at Coert. “You dish out pie.” I pointed at Mike. “You help.” I pointed at Daly. “You go up and get the orders again.” I pointed at Pat. “You go get Kath. I’m going to Elijah.”

  “Verity, pack your things. After pie, Janie and I gotta go. You’re going with us,” Coert ordered.

  I didn’t know whether to kiss him or yell at him for getting involved in something none us knew what was going on.

  “Thank you,” Verity breathed.

  The heartfelt words made me want to kiss him.

  I didn’t kiss him.

  I headed to the hooks by the front door, grabbed my jacket, then moved across the room to the other door to find Elijah.

  I didn’t go to the studio.

  I went to the garage where my Jag was parked, Elijah’s beat-up truck was parked, and I walked through it to the door at the back that led to the stairs up to the apartment.

  I hammered on the door.

  “Elijah!” I shouted. “It’s Cady!”

  I heard footfalls. They didn’t come fast, but they weren’t taking their time.

  The door opened and I took the hit of staring into Elijah’s ravaged face.

  My God.

  What had happened in the studio?

  They’d known each other barely a week!

  “Honey,” I whispered.

  “No good for her.”

  Oh my God.

  “Elijah—”

  “She’s so pretty and she’s so sweet and she loves you so much, Cady. I don’t think even you know how much she loves you. But I know the way she loves you, the way she talks about you, the way she talks about her family, she’s got a big heart. She’s got a big future. And because of that, I’m no good for her.”

  “How can you know that?” I asked.

  He threw out an arm and I didn’t know what he was indicating. Himself. His apartment over a garage. His truck. His life. Or all of that.

  “You haven’t even tried,” I stated.

  “What’s the point?” he asked. “She’s got the whole world laid out in front of her. What kinda guy would I be, she’s twenty, and I narrow that down to nothing in nowhere in Maine?”

  “That’s taking it pretty far, honey. You’ve only known her a few days.”

  “A guy knows.”

  “He knows what?”

  “He knows it when he meets the one.”

  I felt my middle shift back with the soft beauty of that blow.

  “She’s my one but I can’t be hers,” he declared.

  “Why can’t you be her one?” I pushed.

  He threw his arm out again.

  I still really didn’t know what he was referring to but that didn’t stop me from stating, “Elijah, I’ll hear none of that and Verity won’t either.”

  “Yeah, I know. She pretty much shouted the same thing with a lot more words in the studio.”

  Oh my God.

  Elijah was Verity’s one too.

  I moved closer to him. “Elijah—”

  “Cady, you’re the shit, pardon my language, but you just are. What you aren’t is a guy. And if a guy is any kind of good guy, he does right by the people he cares about. I’m doin’ right and if Verity can’t change my mind about that, you sure can’t.”

  “Do you know Jake?” I asked abruptly.

  “Say what?” he asked back.

  “Jake . . . um, the boxer who owns the strip club. The one we saw at Tinker’s tonight.”

  “The Truck?”

  His words confused me. “Sorry?”

  “Jake Spear. That guy tonight. He’s known as The Truck.”

  “I . . . yes,” I said but it was more of a guess.

  I mean, he was big. But The Truck?

  “Everyone knows him,” Elijah told me.
r />   “Do you know his wife?”

  He gave a short shake of his head. “No.”

  “Maybe you should meet her. Because she lives in Magdalene and she gives me the impression that she doesn’t think Magdalene is nothing in nowhere in Maine.”

  “What are you talking about?” he asked impatiently.

  “I only met her once but she’s beyond Verity and Jake’s beyond you, and they’re still together and from what I’ve heard, they’re very happy with their together.”

  “Yeah, but The Truck is a boxer who had pay-per-view fights on TV and makes a boatload at that club and I’m just . . .” He let that lie but threw out his arm again.

  “Elijah—”

  He shook his head. “No.”

  “Elijah,” I said urgently because he was closing the door.

  He looked into my eyes. “One day, you and her, she will too . . . one day you both’ll thank me.”

  At that, he closed the door.

  “Elijah!” I cried, slapping a hand on it.

  I heard footfalls ascending the stairs.

  “Gah!” I shouted, turned and stomped back to the lighthouse.

  I opened the door and stormed in.

  Riley and Corbin were climbing the stairs, plates of pie in their hands.

  Coert and Mike were at the counter with Dexter waiting to be loaded with plates, dishing out. Pat and Daly were doing whipped cream and ice cream duty, respectively.

  All eyes came to me.

  “Where’s Verity?” I demanded to know.

  “Your room with Kath. Packing up her stuff,” Pat answered.

  The kids were sleeping pretty much anywhere they felt like crashing between lighthouse, studio and RV.

  But every night after Coert and I got back together, except the first one and when I was with Coert, Verity had slept with me.

  I tossed the jacket I’d shrugged off onto the back of the couch and announced, “He thinks she’s too good for him.”

  Coert’s face turned knowing.

  Mike, Daly and Pat looked to the door I’d just entered.

  Dexter looked confused. “What are you talking about?”

  He got three, “Nothings” from Mike, Daly and Pat.

  Pat went on and he did it quietly, “Do I need to talk to him?”

  “Not now,” I told him and moved to stand by Dexter outside the island.

  “Is there some way to suspend Ellie and Melanie at this age forever?” Mike muttered.