Ready To Love Again

by Annalyse Knight

  “You must be Katie,” she said with a faint Italian accent. “I’m Mia, Chase’s mother.”

  When she realized she was meeting Chase’s parents for the first time in a bathrobe, Katie felt the blush rise to her cheeks.

  “And this is Connor, his father,” Mia said, motioning to the gentleman, who was setting Tony back on his feet. Katie mumbled a greeting, embarrassed she wasn’t better prepared, before Chase squeezed her shoulders.

  “I’m sorry. I got sidetracked,” he whispered in her ear. “Gina is finding something for you now.”

  Katie was torn between elbowing him in the gut and fleeing back to his room. She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to retain some semblance of modesty.

  “So, Katie, Chase mentioned you’d be joining us for dinner,” Connor said with a smile followed by a flirty wink. Katie immediately understood why Chase had warned her about him. Connor O’Donnell was an attractive man of around sixty, but he barely looked older than his son. She could see how his good looks and charm could get him into trouble. His auburn hair had a touch of gray, which gave him a distinguished appearance. She couldn’t draw her gaze away from his eyes—they were the same mischievous pale blue as his son’s and were filled with a kindness that wasn’t seen in many men.

  “Yes, Chase asked me to dinner right before he dumped me in the ocean,” Katie said, casting a teasing smile over her shoulder at Chase.

  He looked almost ashamed when his mother smacked him on the arm. “Ow! What was that for?”

  “Che cosa hai fatto?”

  “Nothing—it was an accident,” he said with a whine.

  Mia huffed and gave him a glare that could have brought a grown man to his knees. “You were taught better.”

  The look on Chase’s face as he backed away was hilarious. Serves him right for letting me get caught by his mother in his robe! His terrified expression made Katie giggle, since his mother only stood a little over five feet tall. Her petite frame seemed so much larger when coupled with her menacing stance. Her flawless, sculpted eyebrows were arched in an authoritative glare that demanded respect. She had the mommy-stare down to a science.

  “I’m going to see if Gina has found anything for you to wear.” Chase excused himself, leaving Katie alone with his parents.

  Chicken.

  “Well, I should go back up and get dressed.” Katie knew she couldn’t do much until Chase brought her dry clothes, but she needed an escape route. Mia smiled and nodded, and Connor gave her a crooked grin that reminded her so much of Chase that she blushed.

  “We’ve got all evening to get to know each other,” Mia said.

  When Katie reached the stairs, Chase came out of Gina’s room with his hands full of clothes. “Gina found a few things she thinks will fit, and I grabbed some other necessities I thought you might need.” He motioned to a brush and hair clips while he walked beside her up the stairs. “Do you need anything else?”

  His voice was a velvet whisper, and Katie wanted to tell him, Yes, I need you. Instead, she insisted there was nothing. He opened the door to his room, handed her the clothes, and then shifted from one foot to the other as if he wanted to say something. Finally, he shook his head and excused himself, apologizing one last time.

  Katie closed the door to his room and leaned against it with a long sigh. He was so cute when he was flustered. Discarding the robe, she slid on the clothes Gina had loaned her, adjusting the summer dress until it grazed the tops of her knees. She ran the brush through her hair and spent a little more time pulling it back into a twist and securing it with bobby pins.

  She took one last look in the mirror and gave herself a little pep talk before making her way back downstairs. Daniel had arrived, and Chase came out of the kitchen holding bowls of chips and dip. He gave her a big grin.

  “Can I help?” Katie figured if she was in the kitchen keeping busy, then she could hide for a while.

  He set the bowls on the table. “That’d be great.”

  Chase motioned for her to follow him into the kitchen and set her up with a cutting board. She went straight to work cutting vegetables.

  They fell into a comfortable silence while they worked side by side getting things ready for dinner. It always amazed Katie how they moved in sync with each other in the kitchen, despite his lack of culinary skills. When they were finished, Chase leaned against the counter across from her.

  “You look very nice,” he said, looking her up and down with an appreciative smile.

  “Thanks.”

  Chase stepped closer, and her breathing picked up when his hand came toward her face. He pushed a wayward strand of hair behind her ear and looked into her eyes. His fingers delicately traced over her ear and down her jaw before his hand dropped back to his side. Turning away, he apologized, but she grabbed his arm and pulled him back around to face her.

  “Don’t apologize,” she whispered. “I’ve missed your touch.”

  His eyes rose to hers. “Katie,” he whispered in a pleased sigh that sent tingles down her spine. “You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to hear you say that.”

  Chase’s hand cupped her face, and she relaxed into his touch, rubbing her cheek against his palm. Slowly, his thumb traced over her jaw, and he leaned toward her. She thought he would kiss her, but at the last moment, he pulled away and gave her a hesitant smile. Taking a step back, he dropped his hand, picked up his beer, and took a long pull.

  Trying to steady her erratic heartbeat, Katie picked up her own empty wine glass and grabbed the bottle sitting on the counter. After the almost-kiss, she had no doubt that Chase still wanted her, but she didn’t understand the hesitancy. Maybe he wasn’t ready. Maybe Liz wasn’t as far along as Katie had originally thought.

  Chase’s voice was soft when it broke the tension in the air. “Would you like to go on a date tomorrow evening?” he asked, taking the glass from her hand and pouring her another drink.

  Katie’s heart did an excited flip. Maybe Chase was just nervous about asking her out, and that was why he’d pulled away. She wanted to say yes, but she needed to ask him some questions before she put her heart on the line.

  “How’s the therapy going?”

  “It’s going really well,” Chase said. “We’re all pleased with how far Liz has come in such a short time.”

  Biting her lip, Katie tried not to jump up and throw her arms around him. His smile fell at her hesitation, but she needed to know one more thing before she could agree to a date.

  “Do you think she’d be okay with us going out?”

  Chase’s smile was all the answer she needed. “More than okay.”

  “How has therapy gone for you and Tony?”

  “Tony is doing great. He just needed reassurance that it’s okay for him to want to move on. The family sessions have helped each one of us open up and talk more about what we’re feeling. It was hard at first, but now the visits are more laid-back. We just talk about our ups and downs during the week.” Chase took a long breath, and Katie could see the shame in his eyes when he continued. “As for me, I realize I was the root of all the problems in our house. I was the king of avoidance, and I’m working on tackling problems head on instead of waiting to see if they work themselves out. There are some things I’m still struggling with, but I’m trying my best to give my kids the example they need. It’s not perfect, but what family is?”

  Katie was convinced Chase was on the right path, but she wondered what he still needed to grapple with. “What about your family? Shouldn’t you spend time with your parents since they’ve been gone for so long?”

  “They’re staying in the States for a few months. They’ll stay in their condo at Quail Lodge until after Gina’s wedding.”

  It sounded like he was on the right track. Combined with Liz’s apology, Katie didn’t feel like one date was going to hurt the situation. “I would love to go on a date.”

  “Would dinner be okay?” Chase sounded as excited as she felt. “Maybe we could go to
Francesco’s again, or would you like to try something new?”

  “How about I make dinner?” Katie said, taking a sip from her glass.

  “What? No, I don’t want to burden you. I asked you out.”

  “I thought that we could do something different—kind of like a new start?”

  He hesitated for a moment before agreeing. “If that’s what you want to do, then I’m bringing the wine and dessert.”

  “That would be perfect.”

  Chapter 22

  When Katie dropped off Shawn so she could do her grocery shopping without interruptions, Chase remembered what Allison had said about getting the kids involved in planning his dates. He made his way into the living room, where all three were engaged in a lively video game.

  “So Katie and I are going on a date tonight.” They stopped their game to give Chase toothy grins. “I thought I should make a dessert instead of buying one at the bakery. What do you guys think?”

  “Daddy, you don’t know how to cook. It might be better if you bought something,” Liz said with an apologetic smile.

  “What do you mean I can’t cook? How hard can it be?” he asked, pretending to be offended.

  “Maybe you should call Nona and ask her to help. She’s a great cook,” Tony said.

  “What if I get you all to help me make it?”

  Liz’s eyes lit up. “I would love to help.”

  Chase looked over at the boys, who both wrinkled their noses. “Liz can help. Me and Shawn want to see if we can find the princess,” Tony said, pointing toward the Wii.

  “That’s fine. Liz and I will go to the grocery store and pick up the ingredients. I found a recipe in Gina’s recipe box that Nona used to make when I was a kid, and I think Katie will love it.”

  They made it to the grocery store and back without any problems, only having to call his mother once to clarify the ingredients, but while he unloaded all the groceries onto the counter, Chase felt overwhelmed.

  “What are you doing?” Gina asked.

  “Making dessert.”

  He dug around in the cabinet, getting more flustered when he couldn’t find what he was looking for. Surrendering, he threw his hands in the air and looked at an amused Gina, who was propped up against the counter. “Do we have a springform pan?”

  “Yep,” she said but didn’t budge from her position.

  “Would you mind telling me where it is?” Chase asked with a sarcastic bite.

  “You’ve looked in the right cabinet three times. Do you even know what a springform pan looks like?”

  “Enlighten me,” he said through gritted teeth.

  Gina looked at Liz and gave her a nod. Liz walked over to the cabinet Chase had just checked and pulled out a round pan with latch on the side. She held it up, and he let out a long exasperated breath before taking it out of her hand.

  “So why are you making a cheesecake?” Gina asked. “Wouldn’t it be better for everyone involved if you just bought one?”

  I am a surgeon. I think I can handle making a cheesecake.

  He chose to ignore her taunt and went to work on the instructions. Chase gave Liz the task of crushing the cookies for the crust while he put together the filling. Gina watched, giving instructions or inserting her opinion whenever she could.

  When Chase put the bowl of chocolate chips into the microwave, Gina jumped off the counter.

  “You need to melt chocolate in a double boiler. If you nuke it on high, it’ll have a white film,” she said while she pulled the bowl out of the microwave.

  “It’s fine, Gina. It’s going to be mixed up in the batter anyway.”

  “No, it’s not. You’re going to swirl it, not mix it in, and you want the chocolate to look crisp against the white of the cheesecake like marble, not mud. Then you’re going to drizzle it over the top, so you don’t want it to look filmy. It’s all about the presentation.”

  “Seriously, does it matter?”

  Chase felt a tug on his shirt and looked down to see Liz holding his phone.

  He took it from her, puzzled because he hadn’t heard it ring. “Hello?”

  His mother’s voice rang through the phone. “Listen to your sister. You need to use a double boiler.” Chase narrowed his eyes at his daughter, who looked innocently back up at him.

  Traitor.

  “Fine. I can’t believe Liz called you.”

  “Don’t you get on her. I told her you were stubborn as a mule and that she was to call me at the first sign of trouble,” Mia said with a small laugh. “Now, listen to your sister and hurry up. You don’t have a lot of time before your date.”

  Chase grumbled about meddling family members when he hung up the phone and went back to work, sucking up his pride and letting Gina help.

  He let Liz do everything she could, and when the cheesecake was in the oven, they gave each other a high five. Gina helped clean the kitchen while she and Liz talked about last-minute preparations for the wedding.

  “My work here is done,” Gina said, heading for the door. “Since Mom is taking the kids, I’m going to Daniel’s for the evening. If you need anything, call me.”

  Chase swept her in his arms before she made it out of the kitchen and planted a sloppy kiss on her cheek.

  “Thanks, Gina, I don’t think we could have done it without you.”

  He set her back down on her feet. Gina’s eyes twinkled, and she smiled back at him, poking him hard in the chest.

  “Don’t screw up anything this time.” She turned and winked at Liz before heading down the hallway.

  “Daddy?” Liz said, drawing his attention back to her.

  “Yes, pumpkin?” Chase lifted her onto the counter and gave her his undivided attention.

  “Do you love Katie?”

  Her question caught him off guard. His first instinct was to avoid the subject, but that was the old Chase. Liz needed to know what his intentions were. He wasn’t sure how she would react to his answer, but he’d learned over the past few months that avoidance only made things worse.

  “Before I answer your question, can I ask you a couple of my own?”

  She agreed, and he took a moment to figure out how he wanted to approach this subject. “You understand that I love your mother, right?” Liz nodded. “And do you understand that even if I love someone else, I will still always love your mother?”

  “Yes.”

  Chase felt vulnerable at the thought of baring his heart to his daughter, and he hoped she wouldn’t overreact to what he would tell her. “I love Katie very much. I don’t want to give her up again,” he said. “She means a lot to me.”

  Liz let go of his hand and touched his cheek, and a tear slid over her nose.

  “I want you to be happy, Daddy.”

  Chase pulled her into a hug. “Thank you, sweetheart.” The timer for the cheesecake went off, and they gave each other big goofy grins. “Shall we see how it turned out?” he asked.

  Liz jumped off of the counter. Together, they opened the oven door and looked inside.

  Perfection.

  Liz squealed and clapped her hands when Chase took the cheesecake out of the oven. “Katie’s going to love it,” she said.

  ~*~

  When Katie opened the door, she had to remember to breathe. Chase stood on the doorstep, holding what looked like a chocolate swirl cheesecake and a bottle of wine.

  “Hi,” she said with a shy smile.

  Chase bent down to kiss her cheek. “Hello, beautiful.”

  “Is that what I think it is?”

  He shrugged. “It’s just something Liz and I whipped up.” The look on her face must have been one of utter shock, because he chuckled and shook his head. “Why is it that no one has faith in my ability to cook?”

  “I’m sorry. It’s just . . . I mean . . . well, you . . .” She’d figured that with all the tales of his disastrous kitchen mishaps, he would have bought dessert on his way over. “So you made this?”

  “Yes. Liz helped me.”

>   “And Gina?”

  He looked at her and rolled his eyes. “Gina hovered and told me when I did something wrong.”

  “Good!” Katie said, suppressing laughter. “Come on in.”

  “Something smells good,” he said.

  “I made lasagna.”

  She led him into the kitchen and handed him a corkscrew before she plated their dinner. While they ate, the conversation flowed as if they had never been apart. They talked about work, therapy, and the kids. Katie was curious about their therapy sessions, but she didn’t want to pry, so she let Chase guide the discussion. He was frank about the mistakes he’d made and happy to share some of the solutions he had been working on with Liz. Katie could see the changes in him. He talked about Liz’s improvements then reached out to touch her hand.

  “I want you to know that we’ve come a long way, and the kids and I are starting to heal. I can’t guarantee everything will be perfect, but I know we can work through anything that comes up,” he said with conviction. “I don’t want this distance between you and me to happen again. I need to know you won’t walk away if things get hard.”

  Had she given him that impression? She had good intentions when she left, but Katie recognized that some of the decisions she’d made were knee-jerk reactions.

  “My heart wouldn’t be able to take it again,” she answered.

  Relief flashed across his face, and his thumb traced over her cheek. Katie felt the shift in their relationship. Something had changed with her admission, and it was almost beginning over again, stronger than before. They could move forward—together.

  Chase’s other hand came up to hold her face in his palm, and with excruciating slowness, he leaned toward her. Katie’s heart slammed in her chest in anticipation. His tongue slowly licked his bottom lip before he closed the distance between them. When his lips brushed against hers, she felt the familiar stirring of euphoria. At first, he was hesitant, but when her hand traveled up to rest on his chest, he opened his mouth, pushing hers open in the process. Their tongues met, and a spark of electricity ignited the desire for him that always burned within her. Katie clenched his shirt in her hand, pulling him closer. She lost herself in his intoxicating scent and the tenderness of his touch until he pulled away. Her eyes fluttered open, and he gave her a lazy smile, brushing his thumb over her bottom lip.