by Alison Stone
“I believe she’s being sarcastic.” Bunny approached the group, her face in a pinched expression, rubbing her forearms. “There’s a chill in the air. Come in. Close the door.”
Patrick pushed the door closed, brushing past Danielle as they jockeyed for position in the tight foyer. The clean scent of her hair tickled his nostrils. He lingered for the briefest of moments, enjoying the proximity.
When he stepped back, Danielle offered the flowers to Bunny, who handed them to Ava. “Child, put some water in the glass vase on the hutch and set them on the kitchen cabinet.”
His daughter skipped away with the flowers, always happy to have a job of some importance.
“Gram thanks you for the invitation, but she’s tired,” Danielle said, wringing her hands in front of her.
“I understand. I’ll send you home with a plate for her,” Bunny said. “I’m sorry about your sister. We’re praying for her at church.”
“Thank you.” Color infused Danielle’s cheeks. “And this…” Danielle picked up the dish she had set down. “I brought a pie. It’s one of those frozen ones you heat up. I hope it’s okay. It’s all I could find at the grocery store on a Sunday.”
Bunny waved her hand in dismissal. “I’m sure it’s just fine.” Her lips curved into a small smile, but her eyes seemed flat. “I already made a dessert anyway.”
The color on Danielle’s porcelain cheeks grew deeper.
“We missed you at church service this morning.” Bunny’s perfectly groomed brow arched in disapproval. Without waiting for an answer, she added, “If I remember, your mother wasn’t much of a churchgoer either.”
“Mother, I don’t imagine our guest wants to be interrogated,” Patrick said.
“I’m just—”
“Bunny…” Patrick scooped the plate from Danielle’s hands and angled his face away from her to give his mother his best be-good stare.
Smiling, Patrick turned to Danielle and slipped his hand in hers and led her to the kitchen. “Sorry about that,” he whispered in her ear, “she has a certain charm.”
“I remember.” Danielle pulled free from his grasp and smoothed her hands on her jeans. He immediately missed its warmth. “Maybe my coming over here wasn’t such a good idea,” she whispered, her long hair brushing against his cheek. He had to refrain from reaching out, touching her hair, breathing in its clean scent. His resolve to keep her at arm’s length was quickly deteriorating.
Ava popped up from where she had been collecting the vase from the bottom cabinet. “Bunny made my favorite dinner.” She took in a deep breath, closing her eyes briefly. “Spaghetti and meatballs.”
The spicy aroma of sauce and garlic made Patrick’s stomach growl. “I hope you’re hungry.”
“I am.” Danielle stood with her hands clasped in front of her.
“Well, go on now.” Bunny stepped into the kitchen and shooed them away. “Go on now and have a seat. Dinner is about to be served.”
“Can I help with anything?” Danielle asked.
“No. You’re a guest.” Bunny picked up a tray of garlic bread and shoved it toward Patrick. “You can carry this.”
Once in the dining room, Patrick pulled out a chair for Danielle, taking the opportunity to whisper in her ear, “I’m glad you made it.”
Danielle looked up, a question in her wide eyes.
When Ava entered the room, Patrick asked, “Did you wash your hands?”
“Yes, Dad.” The young girl seemed exasperated. She plopped down in her seat and stared across at Danielle. “Are you moving in next door?”
Danielle visibly swallowed. “No, I’m only visiting. I’ll have to get back to my law practice soon.”
“You keep bad guys out of jail, right?” His daughter’s eyes rose expectantly. “Like on the cop shows on TV?”
Both Bunny and Patrick turned toward Ava at the same time. The young girl shrugged. “Sometimes when I’m flipping the channels I see them.”
“No, not that kind of lawyer,” Danielle said, a smile in her voice. Patrick tried to imagine her in a crisp black suit arguing cases in a court of law. Danielle exuded a quiet confidence she’d lacked when she was a teenager. “I work for a law firm that mostly handles corporate real estate. We help people buy and sell office buildings downtown.”
Ava nodded, a tiny line creasing her forehead. “So you don’t help people buy houses or anything?”
“Sometimes, but not often.”
“Oh.” Ava shifted toward her grandmother. “Bunny sells houses. Maybe you could move here and work in her office.”
Bunny and Danielle locked eyes. Tension zinged between them. The older woman spoke first. “My office is not very exciting.”
“Are you showing houses next Saturday, Bunny?” Ava asked, twisting the noodles on her fork.
“Dear, you know Saturday is my busiest day at the office.”
“Maybe Miss Danielle can take me to the fall festival at church. Jenny was going to take me…” Her small voice drifted off.
“Ava, we’ll talk about that later. It’s a week away,” Patrick said, keenly aware of Danielle’s gaze on him.
“But you said you had to work and Bunny has to show houses…” Ava shifted in her seat, a pout on her lips.
Danielle shrugged. “I don’t mind. One way or another, I’ll be here next weekend.”
“You’ll be here that long?” Patrick asked, trying to keep his tone casual.
“I’ll be back and forth.”
Patrick nodded and watched Danielle spread her napkin over her lap. His precious daughter stabbed a meatball, a brilliant smile lighting up her face.
“Yay! I’m going to the fall festival with Miss Danielle.”
Patrick’s contented mood evaporated. How would his daughter deal with it when Danielle left for good?
The delicate teacup clinked against the matching saucer. “Thank you, Mrs. Kingsley. Dinner was delicious,” Danielle said.
“Please, call me Bunny. Everyone else does. I’m sorry your grandmother wasn’t feeling up to the company.” Bunny’s eyes drifted to the stairs where Patrick had ascended with his daughter to tuck her in for the night. “I’ll be sure to make her a plate.”
“Thank you.” Danielle crossed her legs and adjusted the napkin on her lap, smoothing the soft white linen across her thigh.
“So—” Bunny turned her assessing gaze to rest squarely on her guest, “—how long do you plan on staying in town? I know how real estate is. It’s not something you can be away from for long.”
Danielle cleared her throat. “There are people in my office to handle my clients, if necessary.” She neglected to mention Tina Welch. There was no one to help Tina while she was gone.
Bunny lowered her chin, her perfectly sculpted bob didn’t move. Her lips spread into a thin line. “That’s okay with you? Handing your clients over to your coworkers?”
Danielle ran pinched fingers along the edge of the cloth napkin on her lap. She imagined this was how insects felt under a microscope. “My sister needs me now.”
Bunny gave her a knowing smile. As if saying, “You were never around for her before.” Or perhaps Danielle was projecting her own feelings onto Bunny.
“I’ll juggle everything I can until things settle down,” Danielle said, searching the stairway for any sign of Patrick’s return. “And I will be making a short trip to Atlanta this week.”
“Really? So you don’t have plans to move back to Mayport?” Bunny lifted a pale brow, skepticism etched on her features.
“No, not at all.”
Bunny gave a quick nod and rose to her feet. She gathered a few plates and disappeared into the kitchen. Picking up a few dishes of her own, Danielle followed. Bunny grabbed a flowered apron from the hook near the sink and draped it around her neck. She tied it at her waist and smoothed her hands down the front.
“Dear, Ava seems to have taken a liking to you.” Bunny turned on the faucet and let the water run over her fingers. “She invited you for dinner. Now she wants
you to take her to the fall festival at church.”
Heat crept up Danielle’s neck and checks “I don’t mind taking her.”
“I’d go myself, but I have to work.” Bunny hiked her chin with a sniff.
“I understand.”
“Do you?”
Danielle opened her mouth, then shut it again, realizing Bunny wasn’t looking for an answer.
“My son and granddaughter have had enough loss in their lives. They don’t need you flitting in here, into their lives, then leaving when it suits you.”
“I have no intention of staying in Mayport, Mrs. Kingsley—” Patrick’s mother flashed her a look and Danielle immediately corrected herself, “—um, Bunny. I never pretended otherwise.” Nervously, she bit her lip, then quickly schooled her expression. She felt fourteen again, trying to gain approval of the woman next door who always seemed to look down her nose at her.
Bunny grew up with Danielle’s mom. Her mother’s reputation colored Bunny’s perception of her. She wanted to tell Bunny she was in no way, shape or form, her mother. But it didn’t matter. People in a small town would think what they wanted to think. Why bother wasting her breath trying to convince Bunny otherwise? She didn’t plan on sticking around anyway.
“As long as we understand each other.” Bunny plugged the sink and pumped some dish detergent into the water. Thick, sudsy bubbles filled the sink. Bunny tossed a glance over her shoulder. “I’ll be sure to keep Jenny in my prayers,” she added, by way of dismissal.
“Thank you,” Danielle whispered as tears threatened. “I better check on Gram.”
“Daddy, one more kiss.” Two pink-clad arms extended from a sea of stuffed animals. Ava’s strong arms clasped around Patrick’s neck and pulled him down, forcing him to come face-to-face with some Disney character. He never denied his only child one more hug. He was aware she was growing up, and soon she probably wouldn’t give him the time of day.
He pressed a kiss to her forehead, smelling the fresh minty scent of toothpaste. “Night. God Bless.”
“Dad…?” She let the word hang out there.
“Yes?” he encouraged her. His own father was distant, but his mother had made up for what his father had lacked. Inwardly, he rolled his eyes. Perhaps Bunny overcompensated, inserting herself into all aspects of his life. Regardless, he’d be forever grateful to his mother for loving her granddaughter with all her heart. Without a mother, she desperately needed a female’s influence.
His mind drifted to earlier this afternoon when he’d found Ava and Danielle playing in the leaves. He hadn’t seen his daughter so carefree in a long time. Had Danielle been responsible for the joy on Ava’s face? Something in his heart gave way.
“Dad?” Ava tugged on his sleeve. “Are you listening to me?”
“Of course, Snugglebugs. What’s up?’
“I like Miss Danielle.”
Patrick pressed another kiss to his daughter’s cheek and straightened. He studied Ava’s face in the shadows. “I like Miss Danielle too.”
“Do you like her like you liked Mommy?” Ava rubbed a hand across her sleepy eyes.
“I loved your mother very much.”
“I know.” Ava rolled over and tucked a hand under her pillow and closed her eyes. “But when you first met Mommy, you must have liked her enough to ask her on a date.” Sleepy, she drew out her words. It amazed him his young daughter had such insight. A slight shiver went through him as he imagined his sweet precious daughter entering the dating world. It would have to wait until she turned twenty-one. He’d see to that.
Patrick smoothed a hand across his daughter’s blonde hair. “Danielle and I were friends when we were in high school.” And I liked her very much. But between their youth and his disapproving mother, their relationship wasn’t meant to be.
Ava yawned and snuggled into her pillow. “That’s nice.” Her voice came out on a sleepy yawn. “Night. God Bless.”
“Night.” He backed out of the room and closed the door. “God Bless.” Patrick found Danielle waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs with her jacket on. A twinge of disappointment rippled through him.
“Leaving already?”
“It’s late.”
He glanced at his watch. It wasn’t that late. “Can I get you some coffee? Maybe we can have it out on the porch. It’s a little chilly, but…” Patrick wasn’t ready to say goodnight.
“I’m afraid if I have any more caffeine…” Danielle held out her trembling hand.
“Come on.” He cupped her elbow and led her outside. “Let’s just sit and talk a few minutes.”
Once settled on the wicker couch, Danielle hugged her jacket to her body.
“Cold?”
She shrugged. “I think my blood has thinned out.”
“Do you like living in Atlanta? We spent some time in Fort Benning. After growing up in the Great White North, the mild temperatures were a nice change.”
“Yeah, but I miss a good snowstorm. There’s nothing like snuggling up with a blanket by the fire with a good book while the wind howls outside, the snow piling up. The promise of the world stopping for just one day.” Danielle looked up, a soft smile playing on her lips under the moonlight. She shrugged, then stood up abruptly as if remembering where she was. “I’m sorry, I’m rambling. Did you have news about my sister?”
“Not yet.” He hated not being honest with Danielle. He knew far more than he could let on. It was too risky to reveal Jenny had been a drug informant. If word got out, Jenny’s life would be in jeopardy. Jenny’s battered body flashed through his mind. He clasped his hands and rested his elbows on his knees. “We’re working on it.”
“Well—” she dragged her hand along the porch railing, “—I really should go.”
He reached out and took her hand, encouraging her to sit back down. “Listen,” he said, “Ava can get ideas sometimes.”
Silence stretched between them.
“You don’t have to go to the fall festival on Saturday. She can be persistent when she wants something.”
Danielle laughed. “She reminds me of Jenny at that age. Since she knew she couldn’t talk my mom into anything, she’d always hit me up. With success, I might add.”
“Please don’t feel like you have to go.” He had to find a way to put the brakes on his daughter’s growing fondness for Danielle. Yet something squeezed at his heart at the thought of telling Ava she’d have to miss selling her crafts. She had worked so hard. “I’ll try to get out of work early.”
“Let me take her.”
“You’re busy.”
Danielle stood and glared at him, the moonlight reflected in the whites of her eyes. “Is this you speaking or your mother?” Without waiting for an answer, she strode toward the steps.
Patrick followed her down the steps. “Wait.”
Danielle spun around. “I’m not good enough to keep your daughter company?”
He jerked his head back. “What? I never said that.”
Unshed tears shimmered in her eyes as she jutted her chin out in defiance. “You didn’t have to.”
Patrick raked a hand through his hair. He turned and stared toward the street, then back at Danielle. Something in his heart shifted. “You’re not talking about my daughter. You’re talking about me. Us.”
She snorted. “There was never an us. Just a foolish little girl.”
“You were just a girl. You had to carve out your own life. Go to college.” He lifted his palm toward her. “You’re a successful lawyer.”
She crossed her arms and ground her teeth.
“You would have resented me. You needed to spread your wings.” He stretched out his hand, daring to stroke her smooth cheek with his fingers, but she stepped back, out of his reach.
“You never gave me a chance.” She lowered her gaze.
Patrick moved closer and tilted his head, trying to see into her eyes. “We were kids.”
“You got married the very next year.” Danielle’s eyes narrowed.<
br />
“I was being deployed.”
She lifted her hands in a surrender gesture. “I don’t care anymore. It’s not relevant to my life now.” She pointed at him. “I am taking Ava to the fall festival. I am not going to disappoint that little girl. I’d never do that to her.”
She spun around and Patrick caught her arm. “Please, don’t leave mad.”
Danielle froze and shook her head. Tears on her cheeks glimmered under the white light. He swept his thumb across the wetness and cupped her cheek. Her breath hitched. That was all the invitation he needed. Lowering his face, he brushed a kiss across her soft lips. The heat of the contact sent a keen awareness flowing through his body.
Danielle’s dark lashes swept her fair cheeks. She let out a shaky breath. Her eyes snapped open and she grabbed his wrist, forcing his hand away from her face. She shook her head and took a few steps backward. “I can’t.” She spun around to leave.
“Wait, I know Bunny fixed a plate for Gram,” Patrick said, hoping Danielle would stay long enough to calm down.
Danielle shook her head. “I made Gram dinner before I left. Thanks anyway.” Her voice cracked. “I really have to go.” She lifted her hand in a quick wave and ran across the yard.
A wind whipped up, sending a chill down his spine. He glanced around as an uneasy feeling dogged him. What was he doing? Rooted in place, he watched until he saw lights come on in Danielle’s home. She was safe.
He supposed that’s all that mattered for now.
Chapter Nine
Danielle’s heart jackhammered when she saw Patrick’s police cruiser in Gram’s driveway. Had something happened to Jenny? Or Gram? Fear welled up in her throat. She climbed out of the cab and handed the fare to the driver through the open window, nearly missing his hand in the exchange. The hundred-dollar bill would more than cover the fare plus tip.
Without a backward glance at the departing cab, Danielle strode across the gravel, immediately annoyed with herself for leaving Mayport for her trip to Atlanta. At the last minute, the bank had postponed Tina Welch’s foreclosure hearing until next week. The urgency of the trip had been lost before the landing gear of the Boeing 747 had hit the tarmac at Hartsfield International. Even though she had been gone less than twenty-four hours, it had been a total waste of time.
