“Are we playing a game?” Willa asked in a soft, conspiratorial whisper. “Can I play?”
Damon lowered his arms and frowned at her with red rimmed eyes. “Stop it.”
Willa drew back. “You’re sad.” It wasn’t a question. She wiggled closer. “Don’t be sad.”
“Go away,” Damon mumbled.
Willa’s little face fell. Beth started forward only to be stopped by Cole’s hand on her wrist.
“Wait,” he said.
Willa continued to watch Damon, her four year old mind busy trying to decide what to do next. Damon studied her back. Willa smiled. Damon blinked.
“It’s okay,” she whispered.
“What is?” Damon asked.
Willa leaned forward and rested her chin on his knees. Their faces were mere inches apart. Damon didn’t pull back, not that he could. She had him cornered.
“I’ll be your friend.”
A muscle moved in his cheek. “Why?”
Her sweet little face broke into the biggest smile. “Because I see you.”
It was a process getting Damon back into school. It took nearly a week of paperwork and phone conversations between Ms. Barns, the principal, Beth and Cole. The social worker had to make the school aware to watch for Damon’s father and that the only people allowed anywhere near Damon were Cole, Beth, Lily, or Sloan. The school had to get a report from the police, another one from the social service worker, and a medical record from the hospital. But in the end, Damon was finally allowed to return to his normal routine. The only person who didn’t like the new arrangement was Calla.
Since the moment Damon walked into Lily and Sloan’s house for dinner the very first time, Calla had taken it upon herself to make him as unwelcome as possible. She had refused to talk to anyone, until Damon was sent away. It didn’t matter what anyone said, she was dead set on alienating him. Willa, on the other hand had fully embraced and accepted Damon into the family, which only seemed to infuriate Calla all the more. Damon seemed unperturbed by Calla’s hostilities. Maybe because he was used to it, or maybe he knew there was nothing he could do about it, but he kept away from her and focused all his attention on Willa every chance he got.
Every day, Beth and Cole woke Damon up for school. Cole drove him before heading off to work. In the evening, they both came home. Beth helped Damon with his homework at the kitchen counter as Cole made supper. Afterward, the three of them would find something on the TV Cole had ordered for the sole purpose of killing aliens—a past time that was rubbing off on Damon—and watch it together until bed. Beth noticed the change in Damon with every day that passed. He no longer jumped at every noise, or shut down when someone moved too quickly. Most days, he even spoke without being prompted. It wasn’t a huge drastic change all at once, but gradual. It was more obvious when Willa was around. The girl hadn’t lied to him about being his friend, and while Beth knew he had friends at school his own age, she knew it wasn’t like the friendship he shared with Willa. There was something deep there, something that wasn’t easily describable. But whatever it was, she was grateful for it.
By the third week, just when things had finally settled down and everyone was getting comfortable, Beth got a call from work, asking her when she would be returning, a reality she hadn’t wanted to dwell on, because she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She knew she couldn’t leave Damon, not when he was as much her responsibility as Cole’s. But she wasn’t sure if staying was the right option either. The conflicted emotions were in constant turmoil. So much so that sleep had become an issue, even with Cole’s arms a secure knot around her. More mornings than not, Beth found herself wandering the apartment, her mind a mess of questions. The biggest one being: what if she ruined things again? Aside from being her biggest fear, it was her biggest weakness, because in the days since moving in with Cole, she had come to realize something; it hadn’t been Cole’s fault they hadn’t worked out. It had been her. She was to blame. Cole had never hurt her. Never intentionally. If anything, he had all but smothered her with love, attention, and respect. In the end, she’d been the one to hurt him. She’d been the one to push him away. She was the one who had been so thoughtless with something so perfect. How could she ever ask him to forgive her after that?
“Hey, you’re up earlier than usual.”
Watching the gold and orange bleed through an ink spill of black, Beth gave a start. She turned away from the window to blink at Cole’s silhouette hovering in the hallway opening.
He looked painfully endearing in his flannel bottoms, white t-shirt, and bare feet. His hair was sleep tussled, slightly flattened on one side, and his jaw was a field of stubble her palms actually itched to touch. He offered her a lopsided grin.
“Morning.”
Beth tried and failed to smile back. “Morning.”
“Something wrong?”
Beth glanced at her phone sitting on the counter, next to her lukewarm coffee mug and sighed. “Just thinking.”
“Yeah?” His feet made no sound as he crossed to her. “Anything you want to share?”
She saw no point in hiding it. She would have to tell him eventually.
“My work’s been calling,” she confessed. “They want to know when I’m coming back.”
He nodded slowly like he’d expected that. “What did you tell them?”
Beth shrugged. “That I had family issues I had to deal with. My shift supervisor gave me an extra two weeks, but she told me to handle it, or don’t bother coming back.”
“She said that?”
The look of stunned horror on his face made her laugh.
“No, but that was the gist.”
The floorboard creaked with his slight forward step. His hand lifted and brushed a lock off her cheek.
“What do you want to do, Beth?”
“I can’t leave Damon—”
“No.” He took her chin in his fingers when she tried to duck her face. “What do you want to do?” He tipped his head ever so slightly to the side. “Do you want to stay?”
Every part of her, even her ever sensible brain, begged her to say yes, to stay and try again. Every part of her ached for what they had. Having spent the last three weeks curled up in his arms had filled that place inside her that had been empty the last four years. It felt so right. Being there, being with him felt right. Leaving meant giving all that up again.
“I want to stay,” she murmured truthfully.
“But…” he urged.
Beth shook her head. “No buts.”
His eyes narrowed. “You sure?”
She closed the space between them and touched his face. “I’m sure.” She nibbled nervously on her bottom lip while she studied his. That close, there was no chance to second guess her decision. Being in his arms only intensified the desire. “I want to fix things,” she admitted. “If you’ll forgive me for being so stupid in the first place.”
It was as though her words had the power to remove the weight pushing down on him. His entire body seemed to relax. His eyes softened. His beautiful mouth bowed into a gorgeous smile that made her insides shiver. Sunlight caught the pale gold in his hair and shimmered like a field of wheat when he cocked his head an inch to the side.
“On one condition.”
Beth nodded. “Anything.”
His arms enfolded her. “No more running. If there’s a problem, we talk about it.”
It was her turn to smile. Her arms rose and circled their way around his neck. Her toes arched, forcing all her weight against him.
“I can definitely do that.”
Grin broadening, Cole took hold of her hips and she was lifted. Her legs automatically wound around his hips, anchoring her to him as she was carried back to the bedroom.
“I think we should notarize that promise.”
Chapter Fifteen ~ Cole
Word of his computer knowledge and dirt cheap prices had become wildfire, spreading across town with a vengeance that shocked and amazed Cole. A month after h
elping Mr. Hobnish’s prehistoric machine, every person in Willow Creek had found their way to him at some point. The office doors had never seen so much action. It barely closed. Cole knew he should mind—he was a lawyer, not a technician—but he didn’t. If anything, he loved it. It finally gave him something to do. He was no longer spending his days watching the clock countdown to five, or three as of lately since he had to go pick Damon up from school.
Maybe his new found passion wasn’t the only cause for the skip in his step. It certainly wasn’t the thing that came to mind when he thought of something that made his heart smile. Lately, it was Beth and Damon. It was the thought of going home and seeing their faces. It was the sound of Damon’s laughter when he picked the boy up and tossed him into the air and the smile on Beth’s face when he walked around the kitchen counter to kiss her waiting mouth. It was eating supper while listening to Damon tell them about his day and the routine of bedtime as he and Beth got Damon ready. It was standing in the doorway of Damon’s bedroom as Beth snuggled in with their little guy and read.
Most of that wasn’t new for him. He’d spent the last six years doing those things with Calla. It was something he missed. Even though he made it out to see her at least once a night, he hadn’t tucked her in since Damon’s arrival. There was just no way, not when Damon’s bedtime fell at the same time and while Lily hadn’t said as much, he knew Calla was taking the change pretty hard. She had been the center of his world for six years. Now, not only was there someone her age taking up his time, but it was the boy who had ridiculed her. He couldn’t imagine that being easy for her, but he didn’t know what to do about it either.
“What’s wrong?” Beth murmured, from her side of the bed.
Cole stepped into the room illuminated by the light he left on in the bathroom for Damon and the lamp lit on Beth’s side of the bed. Floorboards groaned as he made his way to the bed and crawled in.
“Just thinking about Calla.”
“Something wrong?”
He shook his head and pulled the blanket up over his legs. “I used to be there every night to put her in bed and I haven’t since…”
“Since Damon,” she finished. “Did Lily say—?”
Cole shook his head. “No, but I called earlier today and Calla wouldn’t come to the phone.”
“Maybe she was busy?”
“She was never too busy before to talk to me.”
Beth was silent for several seconds.
“Well…” she started finally. “Then maybe you need to go over there tomorrow and talk to her in person.”
He had been thinking the same.
“Want to come with me?”
Beth shook her head. “I think you should go alone this time. Calla needs to see she hasn’t lost you, without me and Damon there to remind her that things are changing. She’s only a little girl. All of this has to be very confusing for her.”
Cole went to Lily’s straight after school. He let himself inside as he had done a million times before and stepped into the living room. Willa looked up from the puzzle she was doing on the coffee table and her tiny face lit up. Her blue eyes darted past him as they always seemed to do lately and searched for the person who wasn’t with him.
“Sorry, babe.” Cole crossed to her. “Damon’s not here.”
Her smile slipped along with her shoulders. “Why?”
Cole crouched down on the other side of the table and examined the Disney Princesses puzzle. “Because I came to see my girls.” He picked up a pink piece that looked like it belonged to one of the blonde princesses. “I thought maybe we could get some ice cream after supper and finish our book.” Willa said nothing as he slid the piece into its proper place on the board. He looked up. “Is that okay?”
One tiny shoulder jerked in a shrug. “I wanted to show Damon my puzzle.”
“You can show him another time,” he suggested. “I’ll talk to your mommy and daddy and see if you and Calla can’t come over for the weekend.”
He wasn’t sure his offer made any difference to her. Her drawn expression didn’t change.
“Can Damon come?”
“For the sleepover?”
She shook her head. “For ice cream.”
“Don’t you want it to be just us?”
Wisps of dark blonde fluttered around her face when she shook her head. “I like Damon.”
Cole sighed. There was no winning this, he realized. “Let me ask Calla first, okay?”
“She’ll say no.” Blue eyes filled with tears. Frustration and sadness darkened her cheeks and her little lip trembled.
“Aw, sweetie!” He reached around the table and pulled her into his arms. “Don’t cry.”
“I want Damon.”
Footsteps on the stairs had him looking up. Sloan reached the landing. His gaze went from Cole, unsurprised to find him sitting in the middle of his living room, to Willa and his gaze sharpened.
“Will?”
At the sight of her father, Willa broke down. Her arms lifted and she was immediately lifted into a tight hug.
“What’s wrong, baby?”
“Calla won’t let Damon go for ice cream,” Willa cried into his shoulder.
“Ice cream?”
Cole got to his feet. “I was thinking of taking the girls after supper.”
Realization dawned across Sloan’s face. His large hand skimmed Willa’s back.
“Don’t you want to go just with Calla and Uncle Cole?” he asked her.
Willa shook her head, her face still buried in his neck. “I want Damon to come, too.”
“I told her I would ask Calla if that was okay,” Cole said.
“She’ll say no!” Willa protested. “She’s going to be mean because she doesn’t like him.”
“Then I guess that means she won’t be able to go,” Sloan justified. “Damon is part of this family now and we don’t turn our back on family, right?”
Willa nodded vigorously.
“Good.” He wiped at her cheeks. “Finish your puzzle. Supper will be ready soon.”
Willa didn’t protest when she was set down.
Cole followed Sloan into the kitchen. “Where’s Lily?”
“Upstairs resting.” Sloan crossed the floor to the stove and the steaming pot. “She’s not feeling well.”
“Something wrong?”
Sloan shook his head. “Head cold.”
Cole nodded. “It is that season.”
Sloan nodded as well as he dragged the pot off the stove and snapped the element off. “So, where’s Beth and Damon?”
“Home.” He pulled out a chair and sat. “Beth thought it would be best if Calla didn’t have to face them when I talk to her.”
Wiping his hands, Sloan turned, his brows furrowed. “I think Calla needs to realize she can’t always get what she wants.”
Cole frowned. “What do you mean?”
Tossing the rag down onto the counter, Sloan took the chair opposite him. “I know she’s very young and this is a lot of change, but she needs to realize life is full of changes and she can’t throw a fit every time something doesn’t go her way. One day, you are going to have other children, ones whose situations won’t be like Damon’s, who will be with us forever and she has to accept that you have enough love for her and them. Do you remember when Willa was born?”
Cole groaned at the mere memory.
Sloan nodded. “Exactly. She was a complete nightmare, screaming, throwing things. Remember when she tried to mail Willa to the North Pole? I know we’re as much to blame for the way she was raised as anybody, but I think she’s now old enough to start accepting that our family isn’t going to stay this small forever, starting with Damon.”
Anybody else, Cole would have socked them in the nose. This was his baby girl being called a nightmare and spoiled. But it was Sloan and if there was anyone Cole respected, it was his big brother.
“I’ll talk to her.”
Sloan rose. “Good.”
Cole walke
d out to find the pint-sized blonde. He paused outside Lily’s bedroom door, contemplated knocking and then thought better of it; if she was sick, she would need her rest.
He moved instead to the next door, his old bedroom door and nudged it open.
Calla sat on the floor, facing her dollhouse. Tiny, wooden furniture, dolls, and doll clothes littered the ground around her. She hummed as she brushed the hair of one of the dolls.
“Hey, you.”
Calla jumped. Her head snapped around and for a split second, her eyes lit up. Then, just as quickly, they narrowed.
“You brought him, didn’t you?”
Cole pushed deeper into the room. “If you mean Damon, then no. He’s at home.”
Relief and satisfaction relaxed the tension in her shoulders. “Good. He doesn’t belong here.”
“That’s enough, Cal. I don’t want to hear that.”
“He was mean to me, Daddy!” she protested, throwing down her doll. “He made all the other kids laugh and make fun of me. I hate him.”
Carefully, Cole sat next to her. “I know things were bad before, but he’s changed, hasn’t he? He’s not mean to you now, is he?”
Calla looked away. “Doesn’t matter. The other kids still pick on me because of him.”
“Calla.” He pulled her reluctant body into his lap. “Sometimes, we have to forgive those who have done us wrong. Not just because Damon is part of the family now, but because it’s good for your soul.”
“My soul doesn’t want to forgive him,” she retorted. “My soul wants to hit him.”
Cole smothered a grin into the crown of her scalp. “Well, baby, you’re just going to have to talk to your soul and make it understand.”
“I don’t get why everyone likes him,” she mumbled. “Even Willa, who is my sister. She should be on my side.”
“Willa’s still just a baby. She doesn’t understand.”
“Then she shouldn’t like him. I don’t understand spinach, but I sure won’t try and like it.”
Bye-Bye Baby Page 22
