For His Daughter

by Dani Sinclair

  “Are you coming on to me?”

  The laugh lines beside his eyes crinkled. “Would you like me to?”

  “Of course not.”

  She pulled her hand free and then didn’t know what to do with it. She thrust it inside her slacks’ pocket to keep it from reaching out to touch him again.

  “Are you seeing someone?” he asked.

  “I’m a Realtor. I see people every day.”

  “But no one special? Why not? An attractive woman like you should have someone special in your life.”

  He thought she was attractive?

  “Are you offering to fill the void?”

  The question came out almost breathless instead of laced by the sarcasm she’d intended.

  Lee’s gray eyes gleamed wickedly. A small cleft appeared on one cheek as he smiled. Darn, but the man was attractive. He knew it, too.

  “Forget I said that!”

  Lee shook his head. “I don’t think so. We’ll come back to that later. Is Fay seeing anyone in particular right now?”

  The question reined in her speeding imagination. He’d only been leading up to asking her questions about Fay, but that was no reason to feel so deflated. Did he still care for his ex-wife?

  “You’d better ask her that question, not me,” she retorted. His mouth dipped wryly.

  “Loyal to a fault, aren’t you?”

  Kayla straightened her shoulders stiffly. “I don’t consider loyalty a fault.”

  “No. You wouldn’t.”

  And what did that mean? “Look, if you want answers about last night, talk to the Ruckles. I left right after you did. I was tired and I wanted to get Meredith from the sitter and get her home to bed.”

  “You sound like her mother.”

  How astute. Kayla often felt like Meredith’s mother.

  “Sorry,” he said. “I’m putting you in an awkward position, aren’t I? You two are so different. How did you ever become friends?”

  Great. He’d moved from one sore topic to another. Kayla didn’t discuss her past with anyone if she could help it. She’d spent too many years living it down.

  “We went to school together.”

  “Here in Fools Point?”

  “Yes.”

  Lee abruptly turned away. Startled, Kayla realized he only wanted to move closer to the tall sliding board. Meredith and her friends had lined up behind it. Kayla followed, uneasily searching for a safe topic of discussion.

  “Do you like being a cop?” she finally asked.

  He flashed her one of his rare smiles and that secret dimple appeared.

  “You said that like I pull the wings off butterflies instead of working to keep the public safe from harm.” Once again, shadows haunted his expression.

  “Yes, well, it’s a dangerous career for a husband and a father.”

  “I suppose it is.”

  He stepped to one side for a clearer view of his daughter. The move also brought him much closer to where she stood.

  Kayla tried not to like him so much, but it was harder now than ever before. Especially when he smiled like that. Lee was entirely too likable for her own good.

  He moved closer to the slide as Meredith began to climb. Her childish laughter made him chuckle, as well. He stayed beside her as she slid down, chortling with glee.

  “Again!” she demanded.

  “All right, sport. Get back in line. One more time and then we’ll go get an ice cream, okay?”

  Her head bobbed agreement.

  “You’ll ruin her lunch,” Kayla chided as he returned to stand beside her.

  “As opposed to chocolate-chip cookies?” The teasing glint in his eyes was unmistakable. She’d known he could be charming. She’d just never had that charm turned on her before. Actually, she’d never given him a chance.

  She only wished he wouldn’t stand so close to her. Close enough for her to know he didn’t wear a heavy aftershave or cologne, yet he smelled good. Clean. Masculine. Dangerous.

  Prudence dictated that she give herself a bit more space, so Kayla took a step back. Lee caught her as she stumbled over an exposed tree root.

  The shivery warmth intensified all over her body as his fingers settled on her bare skin. His touch seemed to radiate a sensual heat that had nothing to do with the weather. She tried to slow her rapid pulse without success. Lee Garvey wasn’t at all what she’d thought. He was a man she could like in a completely personal way.

  “You...you can let me go now.” Her breath seemed to be trapped someplace deep inside her lungs.

  He relaxed his hold, but instead of letting her go, he quickly checked to see where Meredith was. Satisfied, he regarded Kayla quizzically. A spark of interest glinted deep in his eyes.

  “I said, you can let me go now.”

  “Too bad. I have a feeling I’d enjoy holding you.”

  Lee ran his fingers up and down her arm in a deliberate, teasing caress. His touch ignited quivers of excitement that raced for the butterflies spreading low in her stomach.

  He was only teasing. He was always teasing. Only, not her. Never her. Not like this! Kayla couldn’t tear her gaze from his. No man had ever looked at her like this. It was almost as though he could read her thoughts.

  “You...”

  He waited, but she couldn’t remember what she’d been going to say.

  “I...?”

  “You shouldn’t tease me,” she said, aware that his fingers still touched her.

  “What makes you think I’m teasing?”

  “You don’t even like me.”

  “I don’t know you, Kayla.”

  He turned her words back on her. Heat scalded her face.

  “But I’d like to.”

  His steady gaze invited carnal thoughts.

  “Why are you afraid of me, Kayla?”

  Maybe the man could read minds. “I’m not.” They both knew she was lying.

  She followed his glance toward the sliding board and his daughter. Meredith was giggling, watching two squirrels at play. Lee’s fingers moved to her face, brushing her cheek lightly in what could only be called a lover’s caress. But they weren’t lovers. They would never be lovers. Yet she was aware of her breasts, straining forward as if waiting for that touch to move lower still.

  Kayla mustered her defenses. “Why are you suddenly coming on to me?”

  He stilled. “Is that what I’m doing?”

  “You know you are.” Her heart labored as if she’d been running.

  Lee’s expression turned guarded, but there was still a hint of something seductive in the way he watched her. And he didn’t drop his hand.

  “There’s always been an attraction between us, Kayla. You know that. Isn’t that why you always hiss and spit at me whenever I get too close?”

  “I don’t know any such thing,” she blustered, frightened by the truth of his words. “And I’m not a cat!”

  He slid his fingers over the curve of her jaw, trailing them ever so slowly down the column of her throat toward the exposed vee of her blouse. Kayla couldn’t move. She couldn’t draw in any oxygen as he brought them to rest lightly, safely, on her shoulder.

  “No, you’re more like a kitten, all fierce aggression when threatened. That’s the mask you use to cover your naturally pleasing disposition.”

  “My pleasing disposition?” He made her sound insipid. Yet the desire in his eyes made her feel more like a woman than she had in years.

  He tilted her chin up toward his face.

  “I’m not a threat to you, Kayla.”

  Ha. She’d never gotten this close to a bigger one. But as he lowered his head slowly, words lay forgotten on her tongue. Her body strained toward his in anticipation. She couldn’t find her voice to tell him to stop.

  Because she didn’t want him to stop.

  Just once, she wanted to complete the fantasy that had riddled her dreams since they’d first met. She had always wondered what it would be like to kiss her friend’s husband.

  “
No, Mommy. I don’t want to go home!”

  The moment shattered. Lee released her, watching as the other women collected their children to take them home for lunches and naps. The squirrels scampered up a maple tree and Meredith came back to the slide. She climbed slowly while the playground emptied, leaving the three of them alone.

  Lee stepped over to the slide to talk to his daughter. Kayla moved farther back, careful of the tree root, and tried to stop shaking. What had she done? Almost done, she corrected. Despite the heat of the June afternoon, she felt strangely cold and hot all at the same time.

  She’d lost her mind. There was no other possible explanation. Fay and Elizabeth had been right all along. She needed to find herself a man.

  But not Fay’s man.

  Never Lee.

  “Watch, Daddy!”

  “I’m watching. Go ahead.”

  Anyone observing them would never question the love between father and daughter.

  “Ready for an ice cream?”

  Lee scooped Meredith into his arms. Her smile could have lit an entire city. When Lee turned around and met Kayla’s gaze, his expression became carefully neutral. Did he regret his momentary lapse with her? Perversely, part of her hoped not. If only he hadn’t been Fay’s exhusband—and a cop.

  Something pinged off the top of the slide at his back. Half a second later, a tiny patch of ground at his feet burst apart, dirt flying outward in several directions. Bewildered, Kayla stared at the spot perplexed.

  Lee closed the distance between them in a blur of motion. With Meredith securely held in one arm, he grabbed Kayla, yanking her backward toward the huge maple tree that had spawned the exposed roots.

  “What are you do—?”

  “Someone’s shooting at us.”

  He shoved her behind the thick bole of the tree and thrust Meredith into her arms.

  There was a spat of sound as something struck the tree beside his shoulder. Only then did Kayla realize the popping noise she’d heard was the sound of a gun being fired.

  At them!

  “Crouch down and don’t move!”

  Meredith wriggled in an effort to go back to her father’s arms, but Lee raced away from them across the open playground. Kayla took a firm grip on the child and hunkered against the smooth bark, doing her best to cover the struggling little girl with her body.

  More shots rang out. Kayla saw wood splinter on the climbing gym as Lee ran past. He was drawing the gunfire away from them. Someone was trying to kill him!

  LEE CURSED OVER AND OVER as he sprinted across the clearing. How could he have grown so careless? His empty belt holster hung uselessly at his back. He needed a weapon.

  The shots stopped seconds before he plunged into the woods on the opposite side of the park from where he’d left Kayla and Meredith. Lee was no woodsman, but he’d marked the direction where the gunman had to be standing. Now he picked his way with care toward that area. The shooter was probably on the move as well. But in which direction?

  Based on the sound and distance involved, Lee guessed the person was armed with a .22 rifle. Not a powerful weapon, but enough to do the job if the gunman found his target.

  He moved forward carefully, staying visibly near the edge of the clearing so he could keep an eye on the tree where he’d left Kayla and Meredith. The shots were obviously meant for him, but the person was no marksman. Meredith or Kayla could easily have been hit.

  Lee paused to watch and listen. Nothing moved. The clearing was completely still. Not even a bird cheep broke the heavy quiet. Had the gunman left, or was he waiting for Lee to come into range? The person could even now be circling through the woods to get a better shot. Or, a much more chilling thought, he could be working his way behind Kayla and Meredith for a clear shot at the one person who mattered most to Lee in all the world.

  Kayla suddenly darted from behind the tree carrying Meredith. She ran awkwardly toward the empty school building. It was too faraway! Lee cursed. She should have stayed put! He broke from the shelter of the trees and plunged through the underbrush to go after her. No more shots rang out.

  Lee stopped running, standing in clear view to give Kayla a chance to reach a point beyond where he figured the rifle’s range extended. Nothing happened.

  He was torn. The cop in him demanded that he go after the bastard. The father in him insisted he get Meredith and Kayla away from this isolated park. Lee sprinted after Kayla. The half-expected barrage of more shots never came.

  Kayla pivoted at the sound of his running feet, her expression terrified. She came to a stop when she saw it was him. “Are you okay?”

  “Why didn’t you stay put?”

  She flinched at his angry tone.

  “I couldn’t hold Meredith still any longer.”

  “I want Daddy!”

  He took his daughter, cradling her against his body. The unexpected burn of tears made him close his eyes to prevent their release. Too close. Much too close. He’d kill whoever had put his child in danger.

  “It’s okay, Merzie. Everything’s fine. I’ve got you now.”

  Meredith squirmed in his arms. “Ice cream?”

  He opened his eyes and shared a poignant look of relief with Kayla over Meredith’s blond head. His daughter was mercifully unaware of the danger she’d been in.

  “The town hall is on the corner,” Kayla said. “The police station is inside. Chief Hepplewhite should be there at this time of day.”

  His stomach clenched while his emotions seesawed. Stay and fight, or run and keep running? He stroked his daughter’s head. What choice did he really have?

  As they crossed the road, Lee resisted an urge to walk and keep on walking with Meredith. Once he entered the police station, he might not come out again without the help of a good lawyer. Any minute now, someone would discover Fay’s body, if they hadn’t already. Once that happened, his choices and his chances narrowed considerably.

  Kayla half ran at his side as he hurried them away from the park. His thoughts kept pace with the pounding in his sluggish head. The shooting cast a whole new light on everything. The only person in Fools Point with any sort of motive to shoot him was Fay. And Fay was dead.

  “Ice cream?” Meredith asked.

  “In a few minutes, sweetie,” Kayla answered for him.

  He led Kayla inside the large brick building. The front desk was empty and he realized he hadn’t seen a soul since they’d left the park.

  “Where is everyone? Has war been declared or something?”

  “It’s noon,” Kayla said, as if that explained everything.

  “Fools Point shuts down at noon?”

  “Most people are eating lunch. This isn’t D.C., Lee.”

  He would have made a comment about the appropriateness of the town’s name, but Kayla was heading inside a door marked Police.

  “Kayla. Hi. What brings you here?”

  An attractive young woman with untamed black hair set down her fork of salad greens and addressed the question to Kayla, but she leveled an interested stare at Lee.

  “Someone just shot at us over in the park, Carolyn. Where’s Chief Hepplewhite?”

  Brilliant blue-violet eyes widened in shock. The woman wasn’t dressed in uniform, so Lee assumed she was a dispatcher or receptionist or something. Both assumptions were confirmed as the woman efficiently turned to the radio at her desk. “John and Thad were called away. Who was it?”

  “We never saw him, but he nearly hit Lee!”

  Lee set his daughter on the floor and reached for his identification.

  “Lee Garvey,” he told the woman. “Tell your chief I’m guessing the shooter was using a 22-caliber rifle. He fired from the woods, east and a little north of the front side of the slide.” ,

  The woman called Carolyn looked closely at his badge. A staticky voice spoke from the receiver. Briskly she relayed Lee’s information, looking up at him for confirmation.

  “Yes, sir,” she said to the disembodied voice.

 
“Kayla Coughlin is standing here with little Meredith and...her father?” she asked him.

  Lee nodded.

  “Lee Garvey,” she said into the radio. “He’s showing me a D.C. police badge.”

  “Have them wait,” Lee heard the voice order. “Call Derek and get him in. I’m sending Thad over to the park right now. I can’t leave this situation just yet.”

  Carolyn looked surprised. “Yes, sir.”

  “You’ve only got two cops in town?” Lee asked Kayla.

  “Four. Derek and Ron alternate nights. Thad covers days with the chief. It’s a small town, Lee.”

  Meredith tugged on his pant legs. “Ice cream?” she asked hopefully.

  Lee resisted an urge to lift her back into his arms. Instead he squatted in front of her. “In a few minutes, okay, sprite?”

  “’Kay.” Meredith stuck a grimy finger into her mouth. He resisted the urge to take it out. Instead, he stood, finding himself under approving scrutiny from the two women.

  “Is there someplace nearby where we can get Meredith an ice cream while we wait?” he asked.

  The child’s face glowed approval.

  “The General Store is across the street,” Kayla told him.

  “Would you mind taking Meredith over there while I wait for the chief to get back?”

  Kayla hesitated.

  “Something wrong?”

  She squared her shoulders. “I’d rather stick with you.”

  Lee started to ask why and stopped. Kayla was scared. Now that it was all over and they were safe inside the police station, she had begun to shake.

  He pulled her against his body. She didn’t even make a token resistance.

  Carolyn looked genuinely concerned.

  “Do you think the shooter followed you here?”

  “No,” Lee assured her. “I gave him a clear shot at me before we left the park and nothing happened. I’m pretty sure he took off before we left.”

  “I’m sorry,” Kayla said, stiffening and trying to pull away. “I don’t usually react—”

  “Like you were just shot at?” He let her pull back, but kept his hand on her shoulder. “It’s a normal reaction, Kayla.”

  “I don’t see you shaking.”