The Single Dad Next Door

by Jessica Keller

  “I think we need some distance. With the money Alan gave me I can strike out on my own and rent a place in town. It’ll buy me some time in case I don’t find a new job right away. You know, I’ve never traveled. Maybe I will.”

  Money. There it was.

  Kellen’s knuckles turned white on the steering wheel. She’d been handed money and now she didn’t need him. “So that’s just it? You don’t need me anymore? I get it. Another guy gave you a wad of cash and now you can leave.”

  “A wad of cash? You make it sound dirty. Like it’s horrible of me to accept my own money back.”

  “Maybe because it is.” He could have taken care of her, if Maggie had let him.

  A small voice in the back of his mind reminded him that he was talking to Maggie, not Cynthia—but a wolf of fear panting down his neck told him they were one and the same. Women. All women leveled up at the first chance they could. Now Maggie could find someone without his past indiscretions. Someone without kids.

  “That’s not fair. You know you’re not being fair.” Maggie leaned against the window, away from him. “What would you have me do? Give back the money?”

  “No. Take it. Have fun.” Kellen unbuckled his seat belt and got out of the car. He stalked a few feet away. Get under control. This was fear talking. That was what his counselor used to say. Don’t give fear a voice—only hope, speak through a megaphone of hope. Wow. He’d messed up, hadn’t he?

  Maggie stood at a distance. “I can’t believe you’re reacting this way. You’re being completely unreasonable.”

  “Maggie, I shouldn’t have—”

  She held up a hand. “Listen, we had a nice morning. Let’s leave it at that. I’ll still watch the girls tomorrow so you can take your mom to the airport. But let’s consider this day done.” She took off across the yard.

  Kellen raked his hands through his hair. “Maggie! Maggie, please,” he called after her, but the side door to the inn slammed.

  What was wrong with him?

  Chapter Fifteen

  Early in the morning the clearest sounds were birds waking up and the river in the backyard slapping against the small pond mill. Today they were joined by Kellen’s Subaru idling as he waited to bring his mom to the airport.

  Maggie swallowed against the knot in her throat. “Safe travels. Send a note when you’re home, okay?”

  Susan Ashby pulled Maggie in for a tight hug. “My son is a hard nut to crack. He wouldn’t admit it, but he’s wounded by his past and he’s scared to open up again and get rejected.”

  Maggie jerked her head back, talking low even though Kellen was in the car with his windows up. “Maybe if he watched his mouth a little more, he wouldn’t have that problem. I’m sorry. That was rude. He and I had words yesterday.”

  Susan nodded. “I know. Be patient with him, but firm.” His mom held on to her arms. “He needs you to let him love you.”

  “Love?” Maggie stepped back, breaking contact. Susan was a sweet lady, but a bit confused. Kellen love her? Not likely. They’d known each other for only a little more than two months. And not on a romantic level. No, that ship had passed by Maggie a long time ago. All ports were closed. No, it was time for Maggie to move on. Yesterday had confirmed that for her. As much as she loved the inn, she couldn’t live there anymore, and if Kellen was going to continue acting out the pain of his past relationships on her, then she couldn’t work there any longer, either. She’d decide about the job later, but for now she was almost certain she’d leave the private portion of the inn.

  Susan picked up her hand gently and cradled it in her own. “Ida and I have been praying for the two of you for years. She might have given the inn to Kellen to provide for his girls, but she did it just as much to take care of you. Through him.”

  Praying for the two of them for years? Maggie’s mind spun. She wanted to ask what Susan meant, but all she could muster was “He’s...he’s a great boss.”

  “Oh, he’s more than that.” Susan waggled her eyebrows. “I do believe with his newfound faith, he’s going to make you an excellent husband. Just as Ida always said. He’ll need loads of patience, of course.”

  Love? Husband?

  Maggie shook her head. “I think you’re confused. This is Kellen we’re talking about. Ex-rocker Kellen Ashby, who was a lead singer. I’ve read the articles. He was fawned over by women. He’s dated movie stars.”

  Susan looked up and to the left. “Well, yes, there was that one. But she was a C-lister at best, and it was one date. The papers try to make things in Hollywood into bigger deals than they are. They met in a grocery store. He asked her out. All she talked about was how attractive the hero of the latest movie was. They never talked again.”

  “Which is fine. But I can’t compare with the girls I’ve seen pictures of.”

  “You’re right.” Susan nodded. “You can’t.”

  Ouch. Maggie’s heart plummeted to the soles of her shoes.

  Susan patted her hand. “You’re so far out of their league, it would be unfair to them if we tried to compare. Besides, each couple works together differently. Just because the media decides someone is a big deal, it doesn’t mean they’re better or worse than anyone else. And it doesn’t mean they’ll make a good wife or mother.”

  “Do you believe there’s one right person for everyone?”

  “I don’t. And I’ve been happily married for forty-eight years, mind you.”

  “So.” Maggie licked her lips. “Your husband isn’t your soul mate?”

  Maggie always struggled with the thought that certain people were made for each other, but her mom had told her time and again that she should wait for that one special man. If there was only one perfect person for everyone, then was Sarah—Caleb’s first wife—his one special person, or was Paige, his second wife? Was Caleb not supposed to have married Sarah to begin with? In doing so, had he taken someone else’s soul mate? Then again, without experiencing the loss of Sarah, he wouldn’t have become the man who fell in love with Paige.

  It was all so confusing.

  Susan’s smile was so kind. “I look at it like your cabinet full of pots and lids. All jumbled up together. Almost any pot and lid combination will boil water. Sure, there are some lids that’ll be way too small that they’d fall in the pot, so we don’t reach for those ones. But by and large, most pots and lids will work enough to get the job done.”

  “That kind of kills my dream of romance.”

  “Oh, not at all. Choosing to love someone—bruises and all—is the most romantic thing in the world. It makes a marriage the most beautiful part of life.” Susan looped her arm through Maggie’s and walked her closer to the car. “I’m just saying, once you pick who you’re going to love and commit yourself to, a marriage can work. There is no perfect lid. Too many young people are waiting for perfect, and that doesn’t exist. That’s all I’m saying. We’re all sinners, and sinners make mistakes and fail each other. Marriage is about offering grace daily and loving through the hardest moments. And when it’s done like that...” Susan whistled. “Romance is everywhere.”

  Kellen rolled down his window. “Ma, we have to go if you’re going to make your flight.”

  Susan pulled Maggie in for one last hug. “See you at Thanksgiving if not before then. Oh, what am I saying? We’ll see you before then. I have a feeling fall will be a good time for a wedding.”

  Just humor her until she’s gone.

  Maggie waved, watching them pull away before heading over to the cottage. She opened the door as quietly as she could. The kittens, Pete and Repeat, greeted her, curling around her legs mewing as she entered.

  It was far too early in the morning to wake the girls. They’d said their goodbyes to their grandmother over a pecan pie at the inn last night.

  “Shhh, boys. I’ll get you some food in
a second, but let’s not wake Skylar and Ruthy, okay?” She scooped up the two balls of fluff. They erupted in purrs.

  She couldn’t recognize the cottage as Ida’s anymore. This was the Ashbys’ home now. Pink and yellow paint had been replaced by warm earth tones. A huge painting of a desert filled the back wall. Kellen had grown up in Arizona. Did he miss it? She traced her fingers over the back of the soft leather couch. Three different guitars rested on stands in the back corner next to a small area he’d turned into an office. There was an Apple computer with a microphone and a piano-like keyboard attached to it. Toys spilled from a huge plastic toy box near the television.

  The place was far too small for his family’s needs. It had been a picture-perfect home for Ida and Henry, but not for Kellen, his girls and the kittens. Maggie should have offered them the private part of the inn when they’d first moved. As much as she loved the connection to her family, it had been selfish to remain there when Kellen, Skylar and Ruthy needed it. Seeing how squashed they were confirmed it. She’d start looking for a place to rent next week and make arrangements in the next month to be out of the inn.

  Entering the kitchen, she was determined to busy herself until either Kellen returned or the girls woke up, but she found the sink empty and everything in order. A small table with two chairs gathered around it fit snugly by the back window. Kellen’s huge coffee mug sat there, with a half cup of his favorite brew growing cold. Maggie crossed to the table and snapped a lid over his travel mug. He’d probably meant to bring it along and forgot to. She was about to put it in the fridge, but she spotted his Bible and what looked like a journal resting on the chair.

  She made eye contact with Repeat, the little orange kitten. “I shouldn’t snoop. I really shouldn’t.”

  But a Bible wasn’t private, was it?

  The pages were dog-eared and the Bible was twice as big as it should have been because every other page had a Post-it stuck to it or a piece of paper with notes scribbled on it shoved inside. Maggie smiled. So Kellen wasn’t always organized. A single sheet of computer paper lay under his journal. She moved the journal to the side. She wouldn’t look in there. No doubt that was private.

  SG with a question mark was written at the top of the page along with a few incomplete sentences. Scanning the list, she leaned against the wall and slowly dropped to the floor.

  Leave Maggie.

  Sell the inn.

  Girls with Mom and Dad?

  The muscles in her shoulders went hard and she worked her jaw back and forth, wanting to yell but not doing so because of two sleeping girls. Daughters it looked as though he was planning to shove off on his parents at some point. Why?

  It didn’t matter. She’d been right all along.

  An artist through and through, just like Alan. Goose Harbor would never be good enough for Kellen to call home. He was passing through. Using it as a stepping-stone to something else. Kellen’s plan wasn’t to continue being an inn owner. He’d lied to her when he said he cared about their future guests. He was going to rebrand it and sell it for top dollar. Leaving Maggie high and dry with nothing just as Alan had done. Not that Kellen owed her anything. But he should have warned her. Should have told her to start looking for another living situation. Another job.

  Why would he hire Nika just to sell the place? Unless she was part of the rebranding. Maybe he’d assure her a position with whoever bought the place.

  Maybe Maggie could make an offer to purchase it from him? She could probably secure a loan using the money Alan had paid back as a down payment. Who was she kidding? She didn’t know the first thing about running a business.

  Forget making arrangements in the next month. She needed to leave. Now.

  Shoving the page under his journal, she yanked her phone out of her back pocket and pulled up Paige’s number. Her friend wouldn’t be awake yet, but Maggie wanted her to get the message right away.

  When can I move in?

  * * *

  The girls still hadn’t woken up when Kellen returned. Which was a good thing because after finding Kellen’s cruel list, she wasn’t in the best mood for entertaining kids.

  Maggie waited only until he’d parked the car before smoothing down her hair and opening the door. Kellen was still in the driveway, his phone to his ear.

  “I can have it cleared out by the end of the month.” He paused.

  Maggie froze.

  “I’m perfectly happy with that price. Honestly I’ll be glad to have the place off my hands.”

  Sell the inn.

  So he’d already worked out a deal to sell the inn? When was he going to tell her? As far as he knew, she’d still planned on continuing on at the inn. Well, no longer. Good thing she’d found the note in his house. If not, she wouldn’t have been able to bite her tongue after listening to his phone conversation.

  She prowled back across the yard, making sure to let the gate between their yards creak loud enough for him to hear it so he wouldn’t think she’d abandoned Skylar and Ruthy before he’d returned. No, abandoning was Kellen’s style. Not hers.

  Girls with Mom and Dad?

  Back in the inn’s kitchen, she eased the door shut and then ran to her room. Without stopping to think, she yanked her suitcase out of her closet, opened up a drawer and shoved everything inside. She needed to leave before she saw him again.

  How dare Kellen take away her right to leave her old home on her own terms! He was selfish and cruel—just what she’d originally pegged him as.

  Tears dropped in along with her belongings, but she didn’t care. She needed to get things packed and get on the road to Paige and Caleb’s as quickly as possible.

  She rubbed the ache in her chest. Why did it hurt so much?

  Despite trying to guard her heart, she’d gone and developed feelings for Kellen. Even now, losing the inn didn’t bother her as much as realizing that he’d never meant to stay. That he’d used her to pass time. Well, used was a harsh term for his actions. Kellen hadn’t been overly romantic.

  Yet he’d stolen her heart.

  Maggie dropped down on the bed.

  Each time he’d taken her hand to pray with her or share what God had been teaching him. Whenever he sent her a smile across the dinner table. The few hugs and time holding hands. That had been enough for Maggie to feel involved with him—to grow attached. More than attached...to fall in love.

  Groaning, she buried her head in her hands.

  Why did it always have to be the unstable artist?

  Kellen Ashby didn’t want her. Six years older than him, with crow’s-feet showing around her eyes—how had she ever allowed herself to hope? To believe he could care for her?

  “Such foolishness.” She shoved the butts of her hands into her eyes. “He could never love me.”

  Kellen had lied and led her on. They’d prayed and written verses upstairs, and that whole time he knew he had a deal in the works. Once again, she’d put her hope in the wrong sort of man. Not again.

  Never again.

  “Maggie?” Kellen’s voice. Why hadn’t she locked the doors?

  “Busy,” she growled and went back to packing.

  “Please. Can we talk?”

  She braced her hands on the edge of her suitcase. Don’t look at him. “Leave.”

  “Maggie—”

  “Don’t you get it? I don’t want to talk to you.” She spun around and stalked toward her closet. Hopefully he wouldn’t come into her bedroom.

  “What are you doing?” His voice held a raw, nervous edge.

  Don’t grow soft. He’d destroyed Ida’s belongings along with Maggie’s ancestral home. He’d kept the terms of the will from her even though they’d involved her—allowing her to unnecessarily worry about losing her job for weeks. And he’d already plotted out his escape plan to unload the inn
and leave Goose Harbor. Everything pointed to the fact that he’d never cared about Maggie. Not at all.

  “Packing. Clearly.” She shoved some shoes into her bag as her phone started to ring. Paige’s name showed up on the screen. “Paige? Thank you for calling me.”

  “I got your message about moving in. Caleb and I are happy to have you, but it came as a surprise. The last time I talked to you, everything sounded fine.”

  That was before Kellen had proven to be a liar. “Things changed.”

  “Okay. Well, when we get back we’ll get the room ready for you. It’s a wreck at the moment. Does next weekend work?”

  Weekend? A quiet panic swirled around her heart. “I was hoping today.”

  “Oh. Caleb and I are out of town. The principal sent us to a school safety conference and we’ll be here for the next three days. I didn’t leave a spare key with anyone or else I’d have them let you in. I’m sorry. We should have thought to give you one.”

  Maggie pressed her hand over her forehead. “The weekend will be fine.” She could rent a room at a hotel. No, she couldn’t. The town would never stop talking about her if word got out that she’d left the West Oaks Inn and stayed somewhere else. She’d leave quietly, with as few public ripples in the water as she could.

  “All right, we’ll touch base when we get back on Thursday, okay?”

  “Talk to you then.”

  Maybe Kellen had left. Maggie glanced over her shoulder, and her heart lodged into her throat. No—he was there. Still in her doorway with his hands shoved into his pockets. Looking way too handsome.

  Maggie went back to her suitcase and closed the lid. “You need to go back to the cottage. The girls are alone.”

  He rocked on his feet. “Will you come with me so we can talk?”

  “Frankly I’d be fine never talking to you again.”

  His face fell. “Maggie...what’s going on?”