by Cara Colter
“She just wants her daughter back,” he confessed. “How can I not understand and want it to work out for her? How can I make it more difficult for her when I want the same thing for me and Peyton?”
“You can’t,” Ms. Bee said. “You wouldn’t.”
“Yeah. You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” he said bitterly.
“She cares about you,” Ms. Bee claimed.
Simon lifted his head and stared at her, at that, knowing Ms. Bee wouldn’t have said it if she hadn’t thought it was true. She’d always been a fine judge of people. Oh, she’d been skeptical of Audrey at first, but she was like that with any woman when that woman first came into Simon’s life. Now that Ms. Bee had gotten to know Audrey, Ms. Bee thought Audrey cared?
“I hope you’re right,” he said.
Although, what the hell was he supposed to do about it if Ms. Bee was right?
“I’m always right,” Ms. Bee said.
Simon shook his head, then turned once again to go.
It would almost make it worse if Audrey did really care about him.
Because he couldn’t figure out how to make this work.
For the first time in his life, he had no idea, no plan, not even any confidence that he could make it work.
Chapter Twelve
Ms. Bee came home, and Simon and Audrey, working separately but with the same purpose, managed to keep her off her feet for a whole forty-eight hours, which they both considered a victory.
And she was being suspiciously nice to Audrey.
Audrey had no idea what to make of that.
Ms. Bee hadn’t even tried to kick Tink out of the house recently, which everyone found puzzling except the dog. He acted as if he’d always know he’d win over the woman.
Peyton came to stay for two full weeks while her mother was on a cruise, and Audrey knew Simon was extremely happy about that. But he was home almost all the time, too, which meant they had to work even harder at avoiding each other.
He couldn’t be serious about wanting a relationship with me, Audrey told herself over and over again.
But Simon was either very, very mad or very, very hurt, and the mad part didn’t make sense. If he just thought he’d been rejected and wasn’t used to it, mad would be normal for a while, but not this long. But if he was truly hurt, that meant he must truly care about her, and she couldn’t make herself believe that, either.
And she missed him.
Terribly.
She worked as hard as she could over those few weeks, exhausting herself and the dog on their runs and finally coming up with a landscaping plan Simon approved of. She showed it to him one morning before he was to go into the office for a few hours to get some work done before coming home around noon and spending the rest of his day with his daughter.
Audrey placed the photos overlaid with the drawings she’d done of the plans in place on top of the hood of his car, ready for him when he came outside, and he took a moment to study each one.
“These are beautiful,” he said, sounding surprised, studying her anew. “You drew these?”
“Just the new landscaping. There’s a photo of the house and the existing yard underneath.” She lifted the tracing paper and showed him.
“I kept having to look at graph paper with little circles on it when the others showed me their ideas. Couldn’t figure out what the hell they were planning. I like this much better.”
Audrey nodded. They hadn’t said this much to each other in weeks.
True to his word, he’d left her alone to do her job, and he’d done his.
“So, do you like any of them?” she asked.
“I like them all but this one most of all.”
He pointed to the one she’d done with all different shades and textures of green, broken up by lavish flowers and bushes that bloomed in white. It was a nice contrast to all the green and, Audrey thought, gave the yard that simple but lush look, maybe even a bit elegant.
“How much do you think it will take?”
She named a figure she thought was adequate without being extravagant, much more than she’d spend on her own yard, but he would want only the best and he’d want it now. Which meant he wouldn’t wait for small plants to grow in and give him the look he wanted in several years. Which meant spending more.
“Fine. Do it,” he said, reaching into his wallet and pulling out a credit card he extended to her. “Put anything to do with the dog and the yard on this. The bill will come to the house, and Ms. Bee will give it to you. Just make a note of what the expenditures are on the bill and give it back to her. As long as you stay under your budget, I don’t need to know any more than that.”
Audrey took the card from him. “All right.”
He let out a long, slow breath. “I’m sorry about everything, Audrey. I know I was out of line.”
She looked him in the eyes, trying to read what she saw there.
Regrets?
Anger, still?
Impatience?
What?
“Want to go back to Morton’s?” He gave her a forced smile, then added, “It’s what I’d offer you if you were any another employee I’d treated badly.”
“I know. Natasha told me that with as much business as you send her, you should own the place.”
He frowned, his face taking on that hard, carved-of-stone look. “I know I’m not an easy man by any measure. But I’m trying to let you be here and do your job without having to see me.”
“I know you are,” she said, surprised by how serious he sounded, how impossibly controlled.
“And I just want you to know, I’ll do anything I can to help you get your daughter back. The offer comes with no conditions, no time limit. If there’s anything I can do, all you have to do is ask.”
Audrey stood there, stunned.
By his generosity.
His kindness.
The way she believed absolutely in what he’d said.
He would do anything, at any time, to help her get Andie back.
Her eyes filled with tears in a rush so unexpected she had no hope of stopping them. Honestly, she hadn’t thought she’d ever trust anyone that way again, hadn’t wanted to, but she trusted Simon to do what he said, had no doubts at all that he would.
“I … I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything at all. You don’t have to do anything. It’s just … I just wanted you to know that.”
She took a shuddering breath, took a step toward him, to touch him, maybe. She wasn’t sure. But he put a hand out to stop her, shaking his head wearily. She looked at him, not understanding, questioning.
“I told you I’m trying, but it’s not easy for me. And if you get any closer to me, I’m going to touch you. I’m going to pull you into my arms and hold on to you, and it’s not going to be easy for me to let you go. And I don’t think that’s what you want,” he said, “so I’m going now.”
He gave her a smile that was painful to watch, that made her want to cry right there in the garage.
“Simon—”
“And don’t you dare do all the heavy work on this yard yourself,” he said, trying to sound annoyed with her as he walked away. “Hire some men with big muscles. They need to work, too.”
Andie got home a little after three, surprised to find her father’s car and another she didn’t recognize parked in the driveway.
She got inside to find the house looking unusually perfect, as if there was a new cleaning lady or something and she’d gone all out to impress her father. They’d never had household help before, until her father moved back in with Barbie, who did not cook or clean or do much of anything except spend Andie’s father’s money and complain.
Maybe it was just a new cleaning lady.
Andie walked into the kitchen, knowing she should eat something, something bland such as crackers, to try to settle her touchy stomach.
It was always a little off these days, but at the hint of something being up, somethin
g about to change, it twisted itself into knots.
Maybe she could head it off this time with a little bland food.
Her father was in the kitchen talking with a blond woman in a business suit, clipboard in hand.
“Andie, what are you doing home?” her father asked, looking as if he’d been caught at something.
Her stomach lurched, anger soaring along with the fear.
“It’s three-thirty. I’m always home at this time,” she said, then let the anger talk. “New girlfriend already, Daddy?”
Barbie showed up in the doorway to the dining room, glaring at Andie.
Okay. Apparently not a new girlfriend.
Her father shot her a warning glance. “This is Ms. Ballantine. She’s here to see the house.”
“See the house?” Andie repeated. “Why?”
“Just to give us some information,” her father said.
Lying.
She could tell.
“What kind of information?” she tried.
“About the current housing market. Some updates we might make. That sort of thing. Nothing for you to worry about,” he claimed.
Andie didn’t think so. She thought it was definitely cause for worry.
Things kept changing. They never stayed the same.
And lately, all the changes had been bad.
She thought she’d prepared herself for that, but maybe she was wrong.
This one had certainly come out of the blue.
Then she saw the little pin on Ms. Ballantine’s lapel, one she was trying to hide behind that clipboard, but Andie caught a glimpse.
“You’re a real estate agent,” Andie said.
The woman just smiled.
Barbie came to her father’s side and took his arm in a way that said she thought she owned him, that Andie did not. “You might as well tell her, Richard. She’ll know soon enough anyway.”
“Know what?” Andie demanded of her father.
Ms. Ballantine excused herself, saying she’d look over the upstairs and give them some privacy. Andie’s father asked Barbie to show the woman around, and with a very smug look toward Andie, Barbie left, too.
“You’re selling the house?” Andie asked, incredulous.
“I’m exploring a number of possibilities,” her father claimed.
“Like selling the house. And doing what? Going where?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe just to the other side of town. Bethany used to live on the west side, and she’s always talking about how nice it is there—”
“You’re moving us because Bethany wants to?”
“Andie, this house is getting older. You’ll be going off to college soon, and it’s much too big for two adults alone—”
“I’m going to be a senior next year! I’ve gone to school in this district my whole life. Everyone I know is here. You can’t take me away for my senior year!”
“The schools on the west side are excellent and much newer—”
“But they’re not my school. They don’t have my friends.”
Not that she had a ton of people left that she considered friends. Many of them had turned away from her in the last year, and she’d turned away from a lot more who hadn’t really been her friends at all. But still, her whole life had been spent here. Everyone she knew was here.
And Jake …
She couldn’t lose him.
She couldn’t.
“Don’t do this to me,” she begged. “Not now. I’ve lost too much already. You can’t take this away from me, too.”
“Andie, you’re being ridiculous. Nothing is certain yet—”
She didn’t even listen to the rest.
If Barbie wanted this, Andie’s father would give it to her. He gave her anything she wanted.
Andie didn’t stand a chance against Barbie with her father.
She’d tried not to think about that, who he would choose if it came down to a choice. She tried not to get into that kind of confrontation with him. Truth be told, she was afraid she’d lose, and then where would she be? Who could she count on?
No one?
And now, here it was.
Barbie wanted a house on the west side, one of those newer subdivisions with younger people and the kind of nightlife Barbie was used to, and she didn’t give a damn about how Andie felt. So what if they were an hour away from where they were now? New county? New schools? New house?
In fact, if Barbie thought it would mean Andie was gone, it would make Barbie want the move even more.
“You’re going to do it, aren’t you?” Andie said, feeling as if she might throw up at any moment. “You’ve probably already picked out the new house, right? Done everything but sign the papers to put this house on the market.”
“Don’t be so dramatic—”
“Dramatic? This is my life! It’s already been turned upside down. Now you’re kicking me out of my house and taking me away from all my friends!”
“Andie, honestly. The way things have been … I know you’re not happy here,” he said. “The tension between you and me, and you and Bethany … It’s not good for any of us, and I think it’s time we addressed that.”
Addressed that?
“What does that mean?” she cried.
“If you don’t think you’d be happy with us when we move, we should explore some other possibilities,” her father said.
She gaped at him, feeling as if she’d just taken a blow to the stomach.
“You’re not trying to move me across town. You’re trying to get rid of me!”
He sighed, looking like a man completely misunderstood.
She wanted to hit him, actually wanted to smack her own father.
Andie whimpered. She was hurt, shocked, scared like she hadn’t been since she figured out how out of control her mother’s drinking had become.
“I’m saying we’re clearly not happy here together, and we should try to fix that. Now, there are several excellent boarding schools I’ve contacted. I think you could be happy at any one of them.”
“Boarding school?” She laughed, then sobbed.
“Or if that doesn’t appeal to you, I know you’ve talked about wanting to learn Spanish—”
“Three years ago,” she said. “I’m taking Spanish right now. I’m in my third year of Spanish.”
“Well, there you go. A year in Spain, in a Spanish-immersion program, you could finish the credits you need to graduate and come back fluent, ready to start college. I think that would be an excellent opportunity for you.”
“You’re willing to send me to Spain for a year, just to get rid of me?”
“Andie, no one’s trying to get rid of you—”
“Right. Bethany wants me gone, and you’re more interested in pleasing her than taking care of your own daughter!”
She couldn’t deny it now. A woman he’d known for a year or so was more important to her father than she was.
She sat down hard on a kitchen stool, her legs just going out from under her.
First she finds out she can’t count on her mother.
Now her father.
What was she supposed to do?
Audrey returned from the dog park with Tink one afternoon a few weeks later and found Simon and Peyton in the garage. Peyton lit up when she saw the dog and held her arms open wide to Tink, who went eagerly to her once Audrey released him from his leash.
Simon was on the phone, looking none too happy and as if the commotion was making it hard for him to hear.
Audrey got Peyton and the dog out into the yard to give him a moment alone, not that it was any hardship to be with Simon’s daughter.
Peyton was very sweet, obviously raised by two overly indulgent parents but not ruined by it. Very intelligent, inquisitive and funny. She’d been here more and more since her mother’s Mediterranean cruise, and Audrey knew Simon was happy about that. And she was happy for him.
Envious, but happy.
She saw Andie every now and then around the neigh
borhood, and though they weren’t exactly friendly to each other, they hadn’t had any ugly fights, either. Which Audrey tried to tell herself was progress.
She was doing her job, working hard, taking one day at a time, feeling … not comfortable exactly but not afraid all the time, like she had been when she first came here. Simon had been good to her. Very good to her, she had to admit, and had kept his word about keeping his distance.
She missed him, missed him a lot, was still at war with herself over exactly what he might want from her and what she wanted from him but was afraid to let herself have.
He walked out of the garage a moment later and said, “Thanks. I’m trying to keep the office stuff at the office, but sometimes things come up.”
She was actually amazed at how much he’d cut back on his travel and his work hours. Ms. Bee was, as well. When he said he wanted more time with his daughter, he meant it and was making it happen.
“Trouble at work?” Audrey asked. “Because if you need me to take care of Peyton for a while, I’d be happy to.”
Simon smiled, watching her and the dog. “I know she keeps showing up where you are—”
“She says Tink misses me,” Audrey explained. “But I miss him, too. So it’s fine.”
“Peyton loved it when you did her nails last week,” he told her.
Audrey laughed. “We treated ourselves to spa night upstairs. She was so cute with her tiny, hot-pink toenails. I used to do that with Andie when she was little. We could have another spa night, if you have something you need to take care of tonight.”
“No, it’s tomorrow. I’d already told Peyton I have to work. I have a guy coming in to interview, someone I hope can take over some of my own duties. You met him. One of the Michigan guys at the dinner party. The guy with the twins who were Peyton’s age.”
“Of course. He seemed very nice. So, what’s the problem?”
“His wife wasn’t supposed to come—some family thing—but now she can. We have a real estate agent who normally shows spouses around town while I interview job candidates, but I didn’t think we’d need her, and now she’s out of town.”
“Oh. Would you like for me to show his wife around, Simon? Because that’s not a problem, either.”
He turned to look at her, obviously trying not to overstep. “I’ll be taking the two of them to dinner tomorrow, but we could make your excuses for that. If you could just handle the day with his wife …”
