by Ali Parker
“Trust me.” I pulled into the edge of the drive and entered the pin code for the gate. “Khaki is much less assuming. You don’t want to draw attention to the background itself.”
“Yeah, okay,” she admitted.
I drove into the garage, doing my best to hide a grin. Taking a few hours out of the afternoon to pick up Raven from school and take her shopping had been the best choice I’d made in a long time. She’d been in a great mood at the hardware store, going so far as asking my advice on some color choices for her room.
The only thing that could have made the afternoon better would have been a peek at Lanie. She hadn’t been in front of the school when Raven hopped in the car, though, her absence left me with a hunger that gnawed at the edges of my soul.
Two days since we’d spoken on the phone, and I teetered on the edge of insanity. Saturday could not come quickly enough.
For the first time in years, I was thinking about things other than work. For so long, I’d used my purpose in the investment world as a distraction. It had been there for me when everything else seemed to be falling apart.
Then, suddenly, things had turned upside down. Someone walked into my life and challenged me in a way others didn’t. Now I was noticing the people around me, taking time to fill my head with more than numbers.
When had I gotten so off track? When had I stopped noticing all the little things around me? The way Raven laughed. The subtle changes in September leaves each day. Years had gone by, and I’d been blind to everything. Then one day, thanks to a nudge from someone I’d only just met, things were changing.
I glanced over at Raven as I climbed from the car. Did I tell her about my asking her school counselor out? She seemed to like Lanie all right, but I couldn’t know for sure. Maybe she would freak out over me dating someone from her school. The information dropped at the wrong time could lead to her regressing and acting out again.
Baby steps. That was probably best. Lanie and I hadn’t gone on even one date yet. No point in sending out announcement cards. If things went well, and we kept seeing each other, then I would think about telling Raven.
Popping the trunk, Raven and I grabbed the cans of colorful paint she’d picked out. She planned to paint her room with vines of delicate flowers. A few months ago, my answer would have been a flat-out no, given without thinking it through first. Now I realized there was no reason not to let her do what she wanted with her room. It could only be messed up so badly, and any mistakes could be painted over.
We took the cans through the kitchen, and Karen straightened up from the dishwasher to watch us go by. “You two starting your own painting business?”
“Something like that,” I answered. “We can do your house next if you like.”
She laughed and muttered something about how her husband liked their place just fine.
“These are so heavy,” Raven complained on the steps.
“It’s a workout. See?” I did bicep curls with my cans, taking the steps two at a time.
“When you fall down the steps and get paint all over the carpet, I’m going to laugh my ass off.”
In her bedroom, we set the cans down on carefully-laid plastic. All the furniture had already been pushed to one wall, something she and Karen had done the day before. Against the old white paint, a wrapped frame waited.
“What’s that?” Raven asked, a hint of annoyance there.
“Open it up and see.”
I folded my arms and leaned in the doorway as she pulled the paper off the canvas. Karen had texted me while we were out, letting me know the painting had finally arrived. For some reason, Lanie had gotten hers two days earlier, but I couldn’t complain. As Raven realized what she’d received and turned to me with a glowing face, the wait became worth it.
“Are you serious?” she asked.
“Do you want to put that up in here? Is there going to be room around your own art?”
“Yeah! I can put it right between the windows. It’s the perfect size.” Her gaze raked across the painting, and when she spoke again her voice was softer. “Thanks, Dad.”
A ball of emotion formed in my throat. “You’re welcome.” Before I could completely lose myself in sentimentality, I straightened up and gestured at the painting materials. “What’s your plan?”
“Well, I have to outline everything in pencil first, but I can’t do that until the base coat dries.” Without any further ado, she went to the cans. “How do you open this?”
“Here.”
I showed her how to crack the paint, and together we laid strips of blue tape along the perimeters of the windows and ceiling. A calm enveloped the room, the gentle sounds of our paint brushes against the walls relaxing me further.
My phone ringing again broke the peace.
Setting my brush down, I took a quick peek at the screen. “I’ll be back in a little bit. I need to take this.”
I half-expected Raven to be pissed, but she gave a cheerful, “Okay,” and kept right on painting.
Taking my phone down the hallway, I went into the little library across from my room that I never used and closed the door behind me.
“Bob,” I answered. “How are you doing?”
“Swell. How are you? Haven’t heard your voice in a while.”
“Yeah, things have been crazy.” I went to the window and looked down at the backyard, where the covered outside swimming pool and the dilapidated tree house I’d had built for Raven when she was five sat ignored. Maybe it was time to tear that old tree house down and build something in its place. A little studio for Raven, maybe?
“Crazy never stops,” Bob answered.
On his end, a phone rang. It could only be assumed he was at the office. Like me, Bob lived and breathed work. We’d known each other for years, having met at a work-related—of course—event years before.
Though we often went weeks without talking, he was my closest friend. The way we could connect after days of not talking was a testament to the strength of the friendship. Though he was as busy as me, I knew Bob always had my back no matter what.
He’d been there to pick me up from the hospital the time I crashed my car in the middle of the night and cracked a few ribs several months after Danica died. He’d also been the one to shut down rumors of employees embezzling at my company several years before. Bob was a badass, the kind of man no one fucked with unless they wanted a fight.
“We need to do lunch soon,” Bob said. “Before the event, if possible.”
“That would be great.” I settled down in the window seat, neglecting to tell him the charity event for a documentary filmmaking program for at-risk kids coming up in a couple of weeks had completely slipped my mind.
We were cohosts for the event, along with a woman who was the creative face of the program. Bob and I were the money behind it. An important aspect, but one that didn’t require a lot of time. Bob had been the one to wrangle me into the program, and this would be my first year attending the kickoff night.
“We’ll make something happen,” he promised. “If we can.”
“I know how it is with you.” I laughed. “Don’t worry. I won’t hold you accountable for anything.”
He gave a guttural chuckle. “Good. How’s Raven?”
I glanced at the closed library door. “Really good.”
“That’s a change.”
“Yeah.” I sighed in contentment. “It is.”
Bob knew a little bit about Raven’s issues, which was still much more than most people did. I’d been pretty mum on the topic, but a few times, needing to rant, I’d found his patient ear.
“How are Elizabeth and Janice?”
“Same. What can I say? I’m a lucky man.”
I smiled to myself. Though I’d only met Bob’s wife a few brief times and never his daughter, I’d always gotten the impression they made a happy family. For a moment, jealousy flickered in me. It would be nice to have a full home again.
My phone beeped in my ear, and I
pulled it away to see who called.
Lanie.
Excitement catapulted through me.
“Bob, can I call you later?”
“Uh-huh,” he answered, already sounding distracted with something else, judging by the keyboard clacking under his voice. “Set up lunch with my assistant.”
“Great. See you then.”
I couldn’t hang up and get Lanie on the line fast enough.
“Hey,” I breathed.
“Hi.” Her light voice tickled my ears and brought back all the lust and hunger I’d been unable to act upon in the gallery.
“How are you? Please don’t tell me you’re canceling our date.” I bit down on my bottom lip, praying she wouldn’t change her mind.
“No,” she loudly gasped. “Why would I do that?”
“Good. As far as why, I don’t know. Maybe to drive me even more crazy.”
Even through the line, I could hear her breathing hitch. “Um. No, I, uh, I’m excited.”
I’m already making her breathless. God, just wait till I get my hands on her.
The thought distracted me from the present moment, and I had to rub my eyes to bring myself back to the conversation. “I am too. I can’t wait to see you. Do you know where you want to go?”
“I don’t really care. You can pick.”
I knew what that meant. She was putting the decision in my hands because my choice would show her whether I was capable of making good decisions or not. That kind of handing over of power annoyed me with some women, but with Lanie, I found I loved it. Stepping up to the plate and becoming the man who took care of things for her would only make me happy.
“I’ll take my time, then,” I purred. “Wherever we go, it needs to be special. Text me your address soon, and I’ll pick you up around six.”
“Sounds good,” she said, a little sigh under the last word.
I licked my lips, thinking about her on the other end. Where was she sitting? What was she wearing?
“Raven came into my office today,” she suddenly said.
My sharp inhale burned. “She did?”
“Not because she got into trouble,” Lanie quickly explained.
“Good.” I exhaled.
“It was really sweet. She stopped by at lunch to thank me for inviting you guys to the art show. And then she asked about schools that had good art programs. I gave her a few applications.”
I hardly believed what I heard. “She hasn’t talked about college in months. At least for a year. I’m always trying to bring it up.”
“Maybe she needed someone from the outside to talk to.”
“Right,” I agreed, now knowing full well that had been just it. Once again, with what seemed hardly any effort, Lanie knew what Raven needed. The woman was a miracle-worker.
“I can’t wait to see you,” I found myself saying. It wasn’t just because Lanie was sexy and sweet. It was her power that had me going as well. I wanted to be around this woman who had not only woken physical desire in me but who had also positively impacted my family.
How would I ever be able to show her how much good she’d done?
“I can’t wait, either.”
Raven’s muffled yell came through the door, asking where I was.
“I’m going to go,” I slowly said into the phone. “But I’ll be looking forward to Saturday night every minute until then.”
But it wasn’t only Saturday I was excited about. Suddenly, it had become the rest of my life I couldn’t wait to get to.
13
Lanie
Mom opened the back door of her car and frowned at the pumpkins covering it. “You don’t think this is too early, do you?”
“It’s September.” The wind must have been listening, because at my words, it picked up, cutting through my sweater and making me wrap my arms around myself.
“None of the neighbors have pumpkins out yet.” She pressed her fingers against her lips in concern.
“You’re a maverick. Let’s get them out. It’s so cold.”
Not waiting for her next protest, I pushed my way forward and hauled out the closest pumpkin. Once we’d gotten all of them out and set on the front porch, we used the kitchen to escape the chill.
“One week before Halloween is a good time to carve,” Mom mused as she frothed milk using the fancy coffee machine Dad had given her on their last anniversary. The contraption was huge and bulky with two group heads for pulling shots of espresso. It could have replaced the espresso machine at the coffee shop near my apartment. Still, it only took up a minuscule amount of space in the huge kitchen.
Sliding into one of the seats at the corner table, I looked out at the backyard. Perfectly manicured hedges traced the property’s perimeter. Every time I went over to my parents, a part of me expected to go out back and find myself in the childhood home I’d grown up in. That place was long gone, though. They’d sold it while I was an undergrad and moved to a bigger house farther outside the city.
Some people downgraded as they approached retirement. For my parents, there was no such thing. Life was all about constantly moving up.
“You don’t want sugar, do you?” Mom asked, her hand hovering near the ceramic sugar dish while her eyes gave me that look that said, Don’t you dare.
“Yeah, I’ll take some,” I answered, just to mess with her.
Deep-red lips pursed, she carried the tray laden with lattes, and the sugar dish, to the table.
“Thanks, Mom.”
The gratitude calmed her some. “You’re welcome, sweetie.”
“Am I gonna see Dad today?”
“Are you staying for dinner?”
“No. I’m going to Erica’s tonight. We always have dinner on Thursdays.”
“Oh, well. He won’t be home for it, anyway. He’s taking a business meeting.”
Good lord, woman. Why hadn’t she told me that in the beginning?
Keeping my sigh checked, I sipped my latte. If ever I needed a reminder of why I lived on the other side of the city, all I had to do was return home for an hour.
“How’s school, sweetie?” Mom touched my arm.
“It’s good. I think I made the right choice.”
“That’s great to hear.” She smiled at me, but there was worry behind it. “Dad and I have been concerned about you.”
“Why? I’m fine.”
“But you’re so far away, and you only have Erica over there. You must get lonely.”
The smile I gave her was genuine. As annoying as my mother could be, she was also incredibly loving. She might have grated my nerves, but I knew I could go to her at any time and for any reason.
“Mom. I’m all good.”
“Okay,” she said in a voice that made it clear the topic would pop up again soon. As she absentmindedly stirred her coffee, she eyed me. “Have you met anyone nice at the high school?”
I knew where this was going. As much as I wanted to meet a nice man, there was one person who wanted it to happen even more. Yep. My mother.
“I haven’t had the chance to get to know any of the teachers that well.”
She shrugged. “You’ve looked them over, right? Are any of them cute?”
“No,” I slowly said. “But I do have a date this weekend.”
Her eyes lit up like fireworks. “Lanie, that’s wonderful! With whom?”
“This guy named Andrew. He works in investment, and he’s nice. We spent a little time together at this art show last weekend.”
“And he’s cute?”
“Very,” I admitted, doing my best to check my smile. There was a fine line when it came to dishing on guys with a parent. Mom probably didn’t care if it was crossed, but I certainly did.
“So he has a good job.” Mom nodded. “And he’s attractive. He doesn’t have a secret wife, does he?”
“Not that I know of.” I laughed.
“Then he’s perfect.” She raised her latte, and I clinked mine against hers.
“It’s the first date,”
I reminded her. “I can’t get too excited.”
“Oh, get excited.” She dismissively waved her hand. “After What’s-His-Name, you deserve to.”
I wasn’t sure which What’s-His-Name from my past she referred to, but it didn’t matter. They all pretty much sucked.
“When are you getting the new mulch?” I asked.
“Don’t change the subject. Tell me more about this Andrew guy.”
“There’s nothing else to say.”
I didn’t want her to know anything else. Once she got a mouthful of tidbits, she’d be giving me hell on anything that seemed less than perfect.
“How old is he?” Mom pressed.
I sighed. “Fine. He’s forty-five.”
Her eyes went wide as beach balls. “Forty-five!” she shrieked. “Lanie, that’s seventeen years older than you!”
“Thanks, Mom. I know how old I am.”
“Don’t mock me,” she snapped.
I pressed my lips together hard. “It doesn’t matter how old he is.”
“How are you going to marry a man that much older than you?”
“No one said I was marrying him.”
“But that’s what you’re looking for now. You’re almost thirty.”
Correction, it had been what I was looking for. At this point, after so many hurdles and punches, I would have settled for nothing more than a nice time. I’d been let down so much that getting my hopes up had begun to hurt.
“Your father is going to freak when he hears you’re dating a forty-five-year-old.”
“It’s one date,” I protested, leaving out the part about me praying it would be more. Marriage or not, having a guy around to have some fun with would be amazing. A deep connection would be a bonus, but I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for that.
Mom’s tongue clicked. “You’ve already agreed to the date, so I suppose it would be distasteful for you to cancel it.”
I stared at her, annoyance surging.
“Lanie?”
“What, Mom?”
“Don’t tell your father about this.”
“Why would I do that?”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”
I started to respond that I hadn’t, but maybe I had.
