“He must be, to pass up a rainbow and gold,” Barbara told her. Tickled, she looked at the woman standing between her granddaughter and Luke. “You must be Kayley,” she concluded warmly.
Kayley put her hand out toward the older woman. “And you must be Mrs. Baxter,” she surmised. “So good to finally meet you.”
Barbara ignored the hand and drew the woman into a welcoming embrace.
“My sentiments exactly. And call me Barbara, please.” Releasing her, Barbara looked at her son-in-law. “Luke, why didn’t you bring Kayley in?” She turned toward the young woman and hooked her arm through Kayley’s. “You have to forgive Lucas. He is a brilliant orthopedic surgeon, best in his field, bar none, but he’s a bit lacking when it comes to people skills.”
“I hadn’t noticed,” Kayley replied.
From the tone of her voice, it was hard for Barbara to determine whether she was kidding or serious.
Lily took the opportunity to grab hold of Kayley’s hand. Tugging, the little girl began to lead her into the house.
“I’ll take her in, Grandma!” she declared and proceeded to do just that. Eyeing the pink box in her guest’s hand as they came in, she cried, “Are there doughnuts in that box?”
“Lily,” Barbara admonished, coming in behind her.
“Actually, I brought a cake this time,” Kayley told Lily. “Tiramisu,” she specified.
Lily wrinkled her brow at the brand-new unknown word. “Terri-meow? What’s that?”
Kayley tried to think of a way to describe the cake to the girl. “Do you like chocolate and cream?” she asked.
Lily nodded her head up and down so hard it looked as if it was in danger of coming right off. “Oh yes!”
Kayley smiled at the enthusiasm Lily displayed. “Then you’re going to love tiramisu,” she promised.
Lily’s blue eyes fairly gleamed. “Okay,” she answered with excited anticipation.
“All right, everyone, take your seats, please. Dinner is ready,” Barbara announced.
* * *
Rather than the awkward conversation interwoven with equally awkward silences that Luke had expected at dinner, in the capable hands of his mother-in-law, his daughter and his physician’s assistant, the discussion sped comfortably along without a single lull and barely a pause to allow for the intake of breath.
Barbara nudged him under the table with her foot not once but several times and nothing happened. The expression on his face told her that he knew what she was doing but he chose to simply hang back and listen rather than participate in a conversation that was racing along at a sixty-five-mile-an-hour clip without him.
Barbara gave him a reproving look but refrained from verbally admonishing him.
Eventually, Kayley leaned back from the table, so stuffed she was afraid she was going to explode. “That had to be one of the best meals I’ve had in a very long time,” Kayley told the woman who had extended the invitation to her in the first place.
Barbara appeared exceptionally pleased by the compliment. “Then we definitely need to have you over more often,” Barbara told her.
Kayley slid a glance toward the man she worked for, fully anticipating that he would be red in the face from holding his peace right about now.
“I think the doctor sees enough of me around the office,” she said, politely turning down the idea of another invitation.
“I doubt that, but even so, the invitation doesn’t come from him,” Barbara informed the younger woman. “It comes from me—”
“And me!” Lily cried, exuberantly joining in. “And maybe you can bring some more terri-meow cake.”
“Tiramisu,” Luke corrected.
Well, it was nice to know that he could still speak, Kayley thought. “Actually, I think I like her way better,” she said, laughing and giving the little girl who’d been seated next to her a hug.
The next moment, Kayley rose from her chair.
“You’re not leaving, are you?” Barbara asked, surprised by this sudden movement.
“Oh no,” Kayley assured her hostess, realizing how this had to look to the older woman. She glanced around at the plates, which contained just the barest of remnants from the dinner. “I’m just clearing the table.”
“You’ll do no such thing,” Barbara protested, rising to her feet herself.
“Since you did the cooking, it only seems fair that I take care of the cleanup,” Kayley told her. When Barbara made no move to sit down, Kayley tried again. “Please sit. It’ll make me feel better.”
“You might as well give in, Barbara,” Luke said. “I’ve learned that Kayley is exceedingly stubborn. She won’t stop until she wears you down and wins.”
But Barbara wasn’t a pushover herself. She was not about to give in that easily. “My house, my rules, my dear. Now you three go out into the living room and enjoy yourselves,” she instructed, waving them away from the dining room table. “I find the sound of Lily’s laughter refreshing.”
Seeing as how the older woman was determined to have her way, Kayley didn’t want to insult Luke’s former mother-in-law by arguing with her. In addition, she reminded Kayley too much of her late mother and there had never been a single argument between them.
“Luke?” Barbara said in a voice that he was well acquainted with. It said she expected no further resistance from either of them.
“Lily, take Ms. Quartermain into the living room. I’ll be right there. I need a minute with Grandma,” he told his daughter.
“Who’s Ms. Quarter-something?” Lily asked, completely bewildered.
“That’s me,” Kayley told the little girl. She bent closer to Lily. “But you can call me Kayley.” She winked at the five-year-old. “It’s easier.”
Completely won over, Lily cried, “Okay,” then took Kayley’s hand in hers and led her into the other room, just as her grandmother had said.
Barbara waited until her granddaughter and their guest were out of earshot before she turned toward her son-in-law. “Lucas, I’m in no mood for a lecture,” she warned him.
“No lectures,” he replied as he began to mechanically help her clear the table. “But I do have a question for you.”
Barbara paused, bracing herself. “All right, Lucas. Go ahead.”
“‘My house, my rules’?” he repeated, obviously questioning her use of the phrase.
“Technically, it’s your house,” Barbara allowed. “But you did ask me to move in with you, so that makes it my house, as well,” she pointed out. Looking at her son-in-law knowingly, she said, “Now stop stalling and get out there and keep our guest company.”
Instead of doing as she asked, Luke continued clearing the table. He carried the near-empty side plates and bread basket out to the kitchen counter. “I’m sure that Lily can adequately fill that position,” he told Barbara.
“I know that she can,” Barbara said without any hesitation. “But it’s getting close to Lily’s bedtime,” she reminded him. “Now go out there and be the charming man my daughter always claimed you were.” Just as he was about to offer another excuse, Barbara looked at him and said, “Do it for me.”
Luke had no defense to offer against that. Barbara Baxter had been an answer to a prayer for him when he needed someone to be there for Lily, a position he willingly admitted that he couldn’t seem to fill, because he had fallen apart himself.
He sighed. “You fight dirty, Barbara Baxter.”
The smile on Barbara’s lips humored her son-in-law’s observation. “I know.”
Resigned, he left the kitchen.
When he came out to join his daughter and the woman who worked for him, he heard Lily laughing at something that her newfound friend had just told her. For a second, he felt as if he was intruding and almost turned on his heel to retreat to his office, which he co
nsidered a place of refuge.
But then Lily saw him and came running over to grab his hand. For a tiny thing, he noted that she had a pretty good grip.
“Kayley said she made that cake, Daddy. She bakes. She knows how to make doughnuts, too, but she says they’re a lot of trouble. That’s why she buys those in the bakery. Isn’t that amazing, Daddy?” Her blue eyes were wide with wonder. “I never knew anyone who could make doughnuts. Did you?”
Luke pretended—for Lily’s sake—to think the matter over before he replied, “No, can’t say that I do, Lily.”
Kayley attempted to put her ability in proper perspective. “Your daddy knows a lot of important people, Lily. People who save lives and make people’s lives better.”
But Lily was her father’s daughter and not about to give in so easily. “Doughnuts make people’s lives better, too,” the little girl protested.
Kayley began to laugh as she hugged the child to her. “I do love your simple way of looking at life, Lily. It would be wonderful if everyone else felt that way about doughnuts.”
“Then all the cardiologists would have their hands full,” Luke speculated drily.
“Good point,” she acknowledged.
Luke found the woman’s smile was doing unusual things to the state of his stomach, sending it into something resembling a spin cycle. This was new—and it was unsettling.
Seeking shelter in the familiar and the routine, he looked at his daughter. “It’s time for bed, Lily.”
His usually obedient daughter surprised him by pouting. “But I want to visit some more,” she insisted, looking at Kayley.
Kayley saw the warning look that rose in Luke’s eyes. She was quick to defuse the situation and play the peacemaker.
“I tell you what. As long as it’s okay with your daddy, why don’t I help you get ready for bed and then, once you’re all snug under the covers, I’ll read you a story. How’s that?” she asked, hoping to win over the little girl.
“That’s good,” Lily agreed, suddenly seeming almost eager to go to bed. And then, almost as an afterthought, she looked at her father and asked him, “Is that okay, Daddy? Can Kayley read me a story? I like hearing a story before I go to sleep, and Grandma’s busy in the kitchen.”
Kayley understood that to mean that Luke was not the one to read bedtime stories to his daughter. But then, how could he? Until just recently, he hadn’t been getting home before his daughter went to bed.
That needed to change, she thought.
Glancing in his direction, she said to Lily, “You know, maybe your daddy would like to read a bedtime story to you.”
“No, you go right ahead,” Luke told the woman who had somehow managed to burrow herself into his family’s life like a determined jackrabbit. He was more than happy to relinquish the position of bedtime-story reader. He knew without being told that he wasn’t animated enough to satisfy Lily anyway.
Small fingers had already locked themselves around hers, pulling on Kayley’s hand to lead her upstairs to her bedroom.
“I’ve got lots of storybooks to pick from,” Lily told her.
She was so vibrant and sounded so intelligent that Kayley had to keep reminding herself that Lily had turned five years old only recently. She sounded more like a preshrunk adult, Kayley thought, and she found her utterly adorable. Someday she hoped she would have a child just like Lily.
Once in the girl’s bedroom, she was ready to help her prepare for bed. But not knowing exactly how independent Lily was, she gave her space and waited to take her cues when they were offered.
Pulling out her nightgown from the bureau drawer, Lily said, “I’ll be right back,” and took the garment into the bathroom to change.
Very grown up, Kayley thought.
* * *
“I’m going to need help with these buttons,” Lily called out to her less than three minutes later.
“You got it,” Kayley told her. Very gingerly, she opened the bathroom door. Lily was standing there waiting, with her back to the doorway.
Definitely a little grown up.
* * *
“Did you scare our guest away already?” Barbara asked as she came out of the kitchen and walked into the living room. Luke was sitting on the sofa, reading the latest copy of a medical magazine. She looked around for Kayley and her granddaughter.
“Nothing short of a zombie apocalypse could scare that woman away—and I have my doubts about that,” Luke added.
“Then where is she?” Barbara asked, her hands on her hips.
Luke jerked a thumb up toward the ceiling. “Upstairs, reading to Lily.”
Barbara frowned. “Why didn’t you go up together?” she asked.
“Because Lily wanted Kayley to read to her,” he answered. “It was her choice.”
Barbara sighed as she shook her head. “You know, Lucas, you have a great deal to learn about being a father.”
Setting his magazine aside, he looked at Barbara. He’d known it was just a matter of time. The woman always spoke her mind, even though it might take a while. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you have a lot to learn about being a father,” Barbara repeated. “I think, since Lily took to Kayley so quickly, it might be nice if both you and Kayley take turns reading to her until she falls asleep.”
“I think Kayley can handle it.” He didn’t add that he just assumed the woman was better at it. He’d never been one to read out loud. “She seems to like interacting with Lily.”
Barbara arched an eyebrow as she regarded her son-in-law. “What about you?”
He gave Barbara what amounted to a penetrating, scrutinizing stare. Was she trying to set him up with his physician’s assistant?
“What about me what?” he asked suspiciously.
“Don’t you like reading to your daughter?”
“Oh. That. Sure,” he mumbled awkwardly, although the truth of it was, he didn’t. It had nothing to do with Lily but with his own feelings of inadequacy when it came to that.
“Then why aren’t you?” Barbara asked. “Why aren’t you up there taking turns reading to your daughter?” she asked again. “Or, better yet, you can both read to her, taking turns reading different pages of the same storybook.”
He glared at her for a long, long moment. “You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d say that you were trying to play matchmaker. But I do know better because I assume that you know better, right?” he asked Barbara, his eyes holding hers.
“I’m sure that I have no idea what you’re talking about, Lucas. All I know is that there is a little girl upstairs who is starved for some attention from her daddy, so go upstairs and give it to her.”
Luke was about to demur, saying something to the effect that he really doubted Lily cared one way or another if he read to her and most likely would prefer having Kayley do the reading.
But then he shrugged and left the room. Arguing with the female of the species had never gotten him anywhere. He saw no point in doing it now.
Chapter Ten
He could hear the sound of Kayley’s voice as he drew closer to his daughter’s bedroom. The door was open, and as he had expected, Kayley was reading a bedtime story to Lily.
Luke recognized it immediately.
It was the story of a happy-go-lucky little tugboat that never listened. But when a storm at sea threatened to sink a big ship, it was the little tugboat that managed to come through and save the day.
The story obviously pleased Lily, but it also made his daughter think, something that brought a smile to Luke’s lips.
“But he was so little,” Lily protested. “How could he help?” she asked Kayley.
“It didn’t matter that he was little. He had a big heart,” Kayley told her. “And most important of all, he wouldn
’t give up. The big ship needed him or it might sink and the tugboat wasn’t about to let that happen.”
“I guess he was brave, wasn’t he?” Lily asked, clearly impressed by the little tugboat.
“Oh, very brave,” Kayley answered with feeling.
Eavesdropping and making sure that neither Kayley nor Lily could see him if they looked toward the doorway, Luke couldn’t help wondering how Kayley could sound so enthusiastic about a make-believe character in a children’s book.
“Can I hear the story again?” Lily asked in a voice that sounded as if she was growing sleepy.
Luke was certain that Kayley would tell his daughter that once was enough and that it was time for Lily to go to sleep.
Instead, he heard her say, cheerfully, “All right. Now close your eyes,” and then she began to read the story all over again from the beginning.
And then a strange thing happened. Rather than walking back downstairs—after all, he wasn’t needed—Luke leaned against the doorframe and listened to Kayley read the story about the brave little tugboat.
Again.
She was good with kids, he thought. She’d managed to calm down that young patient of his when the boy was terrified of having an MRI scan done, and Lily had opened up to her in less than an evening. The little girl hadn’t opened up to him like that since he’d returned home.
She’d been dealing with her mother’s death, but Lily was still dealing with that tonight and yet it didn’t seem to interfere any with her warming up to Kayley.
Abruptly, Luke realized that Kayley had come to the end of the story for a second time.
He heard her pause for a moment, then ask, “Would you like me to read it to you again, Lily?”
There was no answer from Lily. Nothing but the sound of her even breathing.
“Guess the second time’s the charm,” he heard Kayley say to herself. He peered in to see her rising from the side of the bed. Kayley tucked the blanket closer around his sleeping daughter. “Sleep tight, sweetheart,” Kayley murmured.
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