Nic

by J. M. Stewart

  The pride in his voice expanded the same emotion in her chest. Anna squeezed his fingers and glanced at him. The sight of him awed her, the way it always did. His shoulder had healed well. After a few months of therapy, he’d regained the use and strength of his arm. With his shirt on, you couldn’t tell he’d almost lost his life.

  When his gaze connected with hers, a soft smile bloomed. The love in his eyes never ceased to amaze her, but this time, it filled her heart to near bursting.

  Anna offered a watery smile. “Thank you. Lacey now has the daddy she’s always wanted.”

  “And Ella has a mother who won’t ever leave.” He hooked her around the waist and tugged her close, planting a soft, reverent kiss to her lips, then released her and turned to the girls. The two of them ran back up the stone steps and stopped one below, grinning like little girls who’d caught their parents kissing. Nic bent to scoop Lacey into his arms. “That means you, my girl, are now officially a Rossi.”

  Joy erupted across Lacey’s face. Anna’s heart stuttered, and her already watery eyes filled with more tears. Her eyes were forever full of tears of gratitude lately. She and Nic had gotten married a month after she’d come home. They’d agreed on one point—neither of them wanted much fanfare. They’d both done the big wedding, and both first marriages had failed miserably. Anna hadn’t wanted anything to remind her of Tony. How she and Nic got married didn’t really matter to her, anyway. Only that, at the end of the day, he was hers. Nic had agreed.

  So they’d taken a shortcut and gotten married at the courthouse. The ceremony had started out small, family only, but by the end, half the town had packed into the office and spilled out into the hallway. One of her regular customers at the restaurant had told her a few days later the applause could be heard out in the street. Life in a small town. She’d become a part of the town, and the residents had celebrated their nuptials with them.

  They were now a single, official unit, no longer separate, broken pieces but one whole. Lacey had been using her new last name on her own for months, telling everybody who’d listen that Nic was her daddy. The judge’s signature had merely made it legal.

  Lacey wrapped her arms around Nic’s neck and squeezed him tightly, and for a moment, Nic closed his eyes and hugged her back. Ella, apparently moved to join the hug-fest, wrapped her arms around both of them, at least as far up as she could reach. Anna giggled, and, unable to resist, wrapped her arms around all of them. She couldn’t believe these beautiful, wonderful people were hers.

  Nic tipped his head back and laughed, kissed Lacey’s cheek, then leaned around her and kissed Anna again. He set Lacey on her feet and completed the love-fest by planting one on Ella’s upturned forehead, then straightened. “Let’s go get some lunch. I’m starved.”

  Lacey looked up at him, eyes hopeful. “Can we have meatballs?”

  Nic clutched a playful hand to his chest. “A girl after my own heart. Meatballs it is. Come on, ladies. Let’s go invade Uncle Luc at the restaurant.”

  Nic slipped his hand in hers and the four of them started off. The girls skipped slightly ahead. Ella had a hold of Lacey’s hand, swinging it back and forth, and Lacey seemed content to let her have it.

  They walked in companionable silence two blocks down and two blocks over, to where the restaurant sat on the corner. Well acquainted with the drill, the girls pulled open the door, and ran inside, no doubt in search of their favorite booth. Nic stopped Anna outside, using the purchase of his hand in hers to pull her close. “I’ve been waiting for a minute alone with you. I have something for you.”

  Anna stroked his chest and shook her head. “You’ve given me so much already.”

  His gaze roved her face before he drew a deep breath. “I know you said you didn’t want to find your mother, but I did some searching.”

  Oh God. She opened her mouth to protest, to tell him she didn’t want to know.

  Nic put a finger to her lips. “There’s some not so great news, but it’s mostly good.”

  She swallowed hard, then finally nodded. “All right.”

  “I found her.”

  Nic didn’t say anything else. He was good at waiting her out, giving her time to catch up on her own. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know what to feel, either. The giddiness of the little girl she’d been once, who’d always wondered where her mommy had gone, warred with anger at her father. If her father was right, did she really want to know?

  The only thing she could be sure of right then was Nic. If the news had turned out to be something horrible, he wouldn’t have come to her with it.

  Finally, she drew a deep breath. His hands in hers gave her strength as her stomach tied itself in knots. “Is she … ?”

  Nic gave her a sad frown and shook his head. “That’s the bad news. She died when you were a little over a year old.” He lifted a hand, stroking his fingers over her cheek. “Baby, your mother had cancer when she got pregnant with you. They couldn’t treat her during pregnancy. She chose to postpone treatment and have you.”

  Anna could only stare at him as the news sank in, swirling around in her brain. It didn’t quite make sense, and yet … it was like watching the pieces of her life finally come together. Her mother hadn’t left them at all.

  “I thought maybe I’d overstepped, but after everything you’d been through, I figured you’d want to know. Your mother loved you so much she gave her life for yours. Whatever crap your father told you was—”

  “Lies. He hated me so much because I took her from him.” As the news finally slid home, so did the shock of realization. Everything she’d thought about her childhood, her life, had been based on the bitter lies of a grief-stricken man too caught up in his own pain to be a good father to a little girl who desperately needed one.

  Anna waited for the emotions to come. The pain of grief and loss. The anger for all the years of her father’s selfish lies. Her father had robbed her of memories, of knowing she’d been loved.

  Nothing.

  Nic stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “Baby, talk to me. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

  Anna looked up. Meeting the worry etched in his gaze, the echo of pain written in his eyes, she could only smile. “Nothing. I expected to feel sad, perhaps, or angry with my father, but I don’t. I think that’s what hit me the hardest. I’m glad I know, so thank you.” Hands braced on his hips, she lifted onto her toes and kissed him softly. “But it doesn’t matter anymore.”

  Relief flooded his face, and Nic pulled her to him, wrapping his arms tightly around her. He rested his cheek on the top of her head, his voice a low rumble in his chest. “You scared me. I thought maybe you were angry.”

  She rested her head against his chest, listening to the thump-bump of his heartbeat. He was nervous.

  “I could never be angry with you. I have faith in you, Nic. I knew if it was something awful, you wouldn’t have brought it to me. I’m realizing I didn’t really need to know.” She lifted her head, meeting his gaze through once again watery eyes. “I’ve got you and Ella. Angel Bay is home because you’re here. What more could a girl want?”

  Nic tightened his hold on her and bent down, brushing his lips over hers. “You’re amazing, you know that?”

  She smiled up at him. “Ditto. And I’m smitten.”

  “Good.” Nic grinned this time, boyish and gorgeous, and nipped at her bottom lip, then released her and stepped back. He pulled open the door and held out his hand. “Now feed me. I need sustenance. Somebody’s been keeping me up at night.”

  She slid her hand into his, following him inside. As she slid into the booth beside him, the thought she’d had in front of the courthouse cemented. The girls, seated across the table, were happy and content, coloring with crayons on little cartoon pages and slurping down soda. Nic’s hand was warm in hers, his body solid beside her.

  This was her family, what she’d searched her whole life for. Nothing had solidified the knowledge more than Nic telling her
he’d found her mother. Her past no longer mattered.

  Because she had them. These glorious people were all hers, and she was theirs. She’d fought hell to hold on to them, and she’d never them go. Life really didn’t get any better.

  Acknowledgments

  Special thanks to Alana Lorens for the legal expertise. Without your counsel, most of this book would not have been possible. Thank you very much for your kindness.

  About the Author

  J.M. Stewart is a coffee and chocolate addict who lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, two sons, and two very spoiled dogs. She’s a hopeless romantic who believes everybody should have their happily ever after and has been devouring romance novels for as long as she can remember. Writing them has become her obsession.

  For more about J.M. or her books visit: Website / Twitter / Facebook

  More from This Author

  Luc

  J.M. Stewart

  Liz Anderson stared at the familiar bright red door. She and her longtime best friend, Samantha, and Sam’s husband, Joe, had done dinner and board games once a week since she’d come home to Angel Bay not quite two years ago. Sam insisted on it, and on any other day, it would’ve been something she looked forward to, if only because it broke up the lonely monotony of her day.

  Tonight, all she wanted was a bag of dark chocolate and a box of tissues.

  Exactly two years ago today, she’d opened her front door to find two uniformed airmen on her doorstep. The kind of visit every military wife hopes never to receive. She knew what it meant even before the young serviceman opened his mouth—her “til death do us part” had come forty years too soon.

  Daniel wouldn’t be coming home.

  Which meant that tonight, she wasn’t in the mood to put on the act. To smile for Sam’s sake and pretend she was fine. Pretend that being alone one more day wasn’t killing her.

  Sitting patiently beside her, her golden retriever, Bruce, gave a soft whine.

  She glanced down at him at him and stroked his soft head. “Sorry, boy. I’m just not into it tonight. How ’bout we go to the park, instead?”

  Bruce whined again and pawed at the door, then looked expectantly up at her. His soulful brown eyes pleaded with her, as if to ask, “Please?”

  How could she resist that sweet face? She knew darn well he looked forward to these visits. He got to see his best buddy, Joe.

  Liz pulled her shoulders back and punched the bell. She could do this. Being here was better than being home alone, crying. Right?

  Barely thirty seconds later, the door opened to reveal Sam, looking as gorgeous as ever. At forty-one, Sam had the kind of looks that made women half her age clutch their boyfriends close when she walked down the street. She was all long limbs, willowy body, and big blue eyes.

  Liz was the polar opposite. She was short, wide-bottomed, and had twenty pounds too many. If she hadn’t known Sam for most of her life, she might have felt like a faded flower.

  Liz waggled her fingers in greeting. “Hi.”

  She barely got the greeting out before Sam dove across the threshold, wrapping her in a hug so tight Liz squeaked. “Oh my gosh, I’m so glad you’re here!”

  Liz let out a nervous laugh. Okay, something was definitely up. Sam’s expression held a little too much enthusiasm for a night of dinner and board games. “We just spoke this morning, Sammy. You’re acting like you haven’t seen me in ages.”

  Sam let out a laugh that sounded this side of uncomfortable and dropped her gaze, fingering one of the folds in Liz’s summer dress. “This is gorgeous. Is it new?”

  “Yup. I went shopping this morning. Found this at the mall in Oak Harbor. It’s completely not my style, which is exactly why I bought it. I needed something different. Something new.” Liz glanced down at herself, eyeing the low-cut neckline of her halter dress. Today, she’d felt like not being herself, and this dress, with its bold, exotic print, said wild and fun. Everything she currently wasn’t. She lifted her gaze to Sam. “Too much for a night with you and Joe?”

  “Not at all.” Sam reached for her hand, giving her fingers a squeeze. “It looks fantastic on you.”

  Instead of stepping back and inviting her inside, Sam drew her bottom lip into her mouth and gnashed it between her teeth. Suspicion skittered up Liz’s spine. She knew that look. Knew it well. Combined with her overenthusiastic greeting, that look suggested Sam had something up her sleeve.

  She pinned Sam with a narrow-eyed stare. “There’s something you aren’t telling me, isn’t there?”

  “No! I’m just so glad you came. You shouldn’t be alone today.” Sam straightened her shoulders, her expression suddenly bright and jovial. She waved a hand at Liz. When Bruce whined again, Sam looked down at him and nodded in the direction of the hallway behind her. “Well, go on. Go get him. He’s in the kitchen.”

  Bruce leapt into the house, tail wagging. His nails clipped the hardwood floors as he trotted down the long hallway left of the living room.

  Sam stepped aside, pulled the door open wider, and ushered Liz in with a wave of her hand. As Liz crossed the threshold, masculine laughter drifted down the hallway, halting her on the welcome mat. Joe’s hearty belly laugh she recognized, but along with it came a second, unfamiliar voice. A low, masculine rumble kind of laugh. The quiet hush of conversation followed. That second voice meant Sam had company.

  It was only supposed to be the four of them. Her, Sam, Joe, and Bruce. Like always.

  “I have a surprise for you.” Sam let out that nervous laugh again as she closed the door and stopped beside Liz on the welcome mat.

  Liz jerked her gaze to her best friend. “What did you do?”

  Sam clasped her hands together and flashed a thousand-watt smile. “Do you remember that barbeque Mom and Dad threw right before Danny left for his last tour? He pulled me aside while you helped Mom clean the kitchen. He told me, ‘If I die out there, don’t let her grieve forever. Make her get up, Sammy.’ Every time he left for a tour, he made me promise the same thing.”

  Daniel was Sam’s older brother. If anybody knew what today meant, it was her. Of all days for Sam to bring this up.

  “I remember. He always made me promise him something similar.” Liz gave a bare nod as grief kicked her hard in the chest. She’d known the risks, what being an Air Force wife to an active duty airman meant. She’d known every time he left for deployment he might not come back. Yet somehow, she’d never expected the worst to actually happen to her. It always happened to someone else.

  She’d spent the last two years trying to pick up the pieces, to somehow learn to live without him. She hadn’t gotten far. Oh, she’d left the base in California to return home to Angel Bay, but she flat out didn’t know how to move on with her life. The need was there. To get out from beneath the grief. To feel the sun again. Joy. It was the “leaving Daniel behind” part she was having trouble with.

  “So, I’m making you get up.” Sam gave a firm nod, mouth pursed in stubborn determination, and grabbed Liz’s hand, tugging her up the hallway.

  Entering the kitchen a few moments later Liz’s suspicions were confirmed. On the other side of the center island, holding a wire whisk poised over a bowl, stood a man. A man who wasn’t supposed to be there.

  Liz dropped her voice. “You set me up.”

  And not with just anybody, either. Sam had set her up with Luc Rossi—Sam’s boss. Sam worked as the sous chef at Aldo’s Authentic Italian Ristorante and Pizzeria. Along with being the head chef, Luc co-owned the place with his brother and his grandmother. Liz had seen him there at least a dozen times since she’d moved back to Angel Bay. The restaurant had become a favorite, and one of the brothers was always out in the dining room. The whole place screamed family, but according to Sam, Luc ran a tight ship. Slave driver, she believed Sam had called him once.

  Luc blinked back at her, big brown eyes wide and stunned, before looking over at Joe. “You didn’t mention anybody else coming over.”

 
Joe’s mouth formed a thin, disapproving line as he shook his head. “I told you this was a bad idea, sweetheart.”

  So the rat had fed Luc the same cockamamie story to get him over here.

  Liz grabbed Sam’s arm before she could utter a peep and dragged her down the hallway. Once out of earshot, she whirled around. “How could you do this to me?”

  Sam held up her hands. “Don’t be mad. I knew you’d never come if I told you. He’s nice, Lizzie.”

  “I don’t care how nice he is.” Liz flung her hands in the air and pivoted, pacing several steps down the hallway. “You didn’t ask, Sam. From the look on his face, clearly you didn’t tell him either. You can’t do that.”

  Long moments passed as Sam stood, silent. Likely trying to come up with a good excuse to worm her way out of this one.

  Finally, she heaved a sigh. “All right, you want the truth? He reminds me of you. He works too much, and he never goes out. He’s as harmless as they come, and he’s grieving, too.”

  Liz whirled around to face Sam. “That’s not reassuring, Sam. That just tells me you’re playing matchmaker. With two people who aren’t ready.”

  “No. I’m forcing two people I care about to get up.” Sam hiked her chin a notch, staring at Liz at if daring her to argue. Stubborn, that’s what she was. And cocky enough to think she was always right.

  “I don’t care why you did it. You shouldn’t have.” She jabbed a pointed finger at Sam. She wanted to strangle her best friend. She really did. “You had no right.”

  “I’m sorry, but I don’t agree.” Her shoulders deflated, and Sam gave a sad, slow shake of her head. She sighed. “It’s time, babe. Time to get up and join the land of the living again, and I trust him. I just thought the two of you could chat, get to know each other, and have a little fun. No pressure, no strings attached. That’s all. I promise.”

  Liz let out a low growl and pivoted, pacing back and forth along the hallway with all the frustration winding through her. She hated to even admit it, but Sam was right on several counts. She’d promised Daniel the same thing. That if the day ever arrived when he didn’t come home, she wouldn’t spend the rest of her life mourning him. She’d promised him she’d live her life. Do all those things they’d talked about over the years.