by Lisa Dyson
“It’s less likely since they’ve had therapy, but I honestly don’t know. I’m not sure anyone can predict that.”
What kind of mother would Callie make, considering her background? That was something she’d never even contemplated.
*
TYLER OBSERVED CALLIE become subdued after he answered her question about the girls’ potential behavior. He truly didn’t know the answer and wouldn’t trust anyone who might try to forecast the future.
He decided to change the subject. “So what’s your plan when it comes to seeing your family again? Or are you done after today’s visit?”
Their main courses arrived. Callie waited until they were alone again before answering. “I think I might try visiting again. Today went well, and my dad and I have a lot of catching up to do.” She surprised herself with her answer.
He nodded. “What about your stepmother?”
Callie froze, staring at him. “What about her?”
“Aren’t you going to see her, too? She raised you, right? You only talk about seeing your dad.”
Callie chewed her bottom lip, moving her fork through the sauce on her plate. “She’s had several strokes and seemed almost catatonic when I was there today. I had no interaction with her, and I have no desire to, now or ever.” She paused. “Can we talk about something else?”
“Sure. Of course.” He was taken aback, not realizing she didn’t get along with her stepmother even now. He’d only witnessed that one argument between them when he and Callie were teenagers. “How about those Orioles? Or are you a Nats fan since you live outside DC?”
She gave him a slight smile. “They’re baseball teams, right?”
He laughed and put his hands on his head and shook it. “Oh, no! How can you not be a sports fan?”
She laughed with him. “Actually, I am a fan. My company has season tickets for the Nats, and I went to several games earlier in the summer.” She leaned in closer. “Although my favorite sport is hockey.”
“I’m surprised, but I probably shouldn’t be. The Caps are a fun team to root for.” He cut into a scallop and took a bite.
They spent the rest of the meal talking about the local pro teams and their chances of having good seasons.
Later, when they pulled to the curb in front of Aunt Poppy’s, Callie turned to him. “Thank you. I had a really nice time.”
“Me, too.” He cut the engine and came around the truck to help her out. He reached for her hand. She stepped out and nearly lost her footing. With both hands, he grasped her waist and lowered her to the ground. He knew instantly, when her body grazed his, that he wasn’t going to resist kissing her.
With lips soft and warm, she kissed him back. Her arms slid around his waist and her breasts pressed against his chest. He put a hand to her cheek, tilted his head and deepened the kiss.
He wanted to lift her into his arms and take her to his bed, but he knew better. At least, his mind did. His body had another plan developing.
He ended the kiss and leaned his forehead on hers. He opened his mouth to speak, but the words came out of Callie’s mouth first.
“This is a bad idea.” She took a step back.
“I know,” he said with a grin. “It’s just hard to remember why.”
She smiled. “How about the fact that I’m going to be leaving soon?”
He sobered. “Not a good idea to get involved in a long-distance romance.”
She cocked her head. “Romance?”
He shrugged. “Affair?” He ran his fingers lightly over her bare shoulder and he felt her shiver.
“What about an affair with a time limit?” she suggested, entwining her fingers with his.
He was surprised. “A time limit?”
“Until I have to leave. No commitment, no worries, no hurt feelings.”
He didn’t have to think long and hard. “That works for me.” He paused, capturing her gaze as he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it. “You’re sure about this?”
She nodded. “Absolutely. We’re obviously attracted to each other, so why deny it?”
“Okay, then.” He put an arm around her waist and they began walking to Poppy’s front door. “Your room? My girls sometimes come into my room in the middle of the night.”
“Perfect. Wouldn’t want to scar them for life because of me.”
He gave her a squeeze and then opened the front door, allowing her to go ahead of him.
There was a light on in the front hall, but everywhere else on that floor seemed to be dark. He heard a noise coming from the living room. “What was that?”
Callie pointed in the same direction. “It sounds like someone crying.”
He stepped into the living room and, as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he saw Aunt Poppy curled up in a chair by the window.
“Aunt Poppy? Are you okay?” He stepped closer.
“I’m fine.” But she didn’t sound fine.
“I’ll leave you two alone,” Callie whispered to him and left them before he could reply.
After listening to Aunt Poppy tell him about Gino’s plans for the Lincoln Hotel, Tyler understood why she was so upset. “And he never mentioned this at all until now?”
She shook her head fervently. “Not a word.” She wiped her nose with her balled-up tissue.
Tyler didn’t reveal that he knew Aunt Poppy and Gino were sleeping together. She’d be embarrassed, and she was upset enough already. And he had no clue how to help her.
*
CALLIE DIDN’T KNOW what to think when she woke up in her bed alone the next morning. Slivers of daylight shone through the window treatments.
Tyler never showed up. Callie had stayed up late reading, hoping he’d knock on her door, but no such luck. The book lay next to her on the bed where she’d left it when she couldn’t keep her eyes open anymore.
She stretched and got out of bed. Then she showered and dressed, not knowing what to expect when she ran into Tyler. She had to assume that whatever Poppy’s problem was, it had taken quite a long conversation before Tyler could leave.
She smelled food cooking when she opened her bedroom door. She heard voices in the kitchen, so that’s where she headed.
Tyler was packing a casserole dish into a container. He looked up and gave her a smile when she stood in the doorway. “Good morning.”
She smiled back, although a little tentatively. “Good morning.”
He zipped the container and came over to Callie. “Come in here,” he whispered, taking her by the arm and directing her into the living room. “I’m so sorry about last night,” he said quietly. “Believe me, I’m really, really sorry.”
“Is Poppy okay?”
He nodded. “I think so. I’ll tell you about that later. She was only part of the problem. Both girls were up during the night.”
Callie’s eyes widened. “Are they okay?”
“They’re fine now. Alexis had a bad dream, and she started screaming, which woke Madison and she began crying, too.”
“I can’t believe I didn’t hear a thing.”
His eyebrows rose. “I’m surprised, too. They were pretty loud.”
“But you’re sure they’re okay now?”
“I am. Just nightmares. They were at a park yesterday, and one of the other kids found a small snake—”
“Ew!” Callie shivered.
Tyler chuckled. “It was a little snake.” He put his hands out to show her it was about a foot long. “But that’s what Alexis was dreaming about.”
“I’d have had nightmares, too.”
“It was little. Tiny. Like a big worm.”
Callie shivered again. “I don’t like worms, either.”
Tyler shook his head, grinning. “Anyway, they’re fine.” He rubbed his neck. “So I should have asked you sooner, but I completely forgot about it. There’s a picnic today at church, and I wondered if you’d like to join us. That’s why Aunt Poppy is making food. You don’t have to bring anything, and it’s casual.
There’ll be a short outdoor service and then we’ll cook hamburgers and hot dogs. There are games for both kids and adults.” He paused and gave her a sexy grin. “Have I sold you on it yet?”
She hadn’t grown up going to church. The only time she’d been in one was the occasional wedding or funeral as an adult. “Maybe I could show up after the service. I don’t want to embarrass you by doing something wrong.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it. It’ll be very casual. Impossible to do something wrong. A few upbeat songs accompanied by a keyboard, a short sermon, and then we eat.” He put up a hand. “But if you’d rather not go, I understand. I’m sure the girls will, too.”
Callie laughed. “So now you’re trying to guilt me into going?”
He shrugged. “Hey, whatever works.”
“Oh, wait. What about the picnic with Pete and his friends? Didn’t you tell him we’d go?” She’d completely forgotten about it.
“Don’t worry. I’ll tell him something came up.” He leaned closer to whisper, “I think Aunt Poppy could use the moral support.” He didn’t explain her distress and Callie would never ask.
“Okay, you win,” she said on a dramatic sigh. “I’ll go. What can I do to help get ready?”
He smiled, a pleased expression, and she grinned back. Spending the day with him, no matter who else was around, was a great idea.
They went to the kitchen to see what Poppy needed, but she had most things ready to go. Callie couldn’t help noticing Gino was nowhere to be found, and Poppy’s eyes were obviously red and puffy. Callie’s heart ached for whatever Poppy was going through.
By the time they made it to the large grassy area next to the church, the girls were practically bouncing out of their car seats. Callie hadn’t seen them this excited, and she’d seen them pretty excited at different times over the past week.
Poppy had insisted on taking her own car since five in Tyler’s truck would be tight, especially with car seats. Callie had offered several times to drive herself so Poppy could go with Tyler and the girls, but she wouldn’t hear of it.
Tyler handed things down to the girls and Callie from his truck bed. There were lawn chairs, a blanket and the food. Between the four of them, they were able to carry everything and Poppy was left with only her purse.
Callie helped Poppy open the food she’d made—a pasta salad and chocolate cupcakes in ice-cream-cone cups—when Poppy said, “Oh, I forgot my hat in my car.”
“I’ll go get it,” Callie offered. “You finish here and I’ll be right back.”
“Thank you, dear. I appreciate it.” Poppy pulled her keys from her purse, which she wore across her body.
Callie hurried to where Poppy had parked next to Tyler’s truck. She was unlocking the driver-side door when she heard a voice behind her.
“So you finally hooked him.”
Callie spun around to see her stepsister.
Wendy squinted as she faced the sun and she had an ugly expression on her face.
“What are you talking about?” Callie asked.
“Tyler. You’ve always wanted him. So you heard he was back in town and, here you are, sniffing around after him.”
Callie reminded herself to stay calm. She breathed in and out. In and out. “Wendy, I don’t know why you think anything I do—or Tyler does—is any of your business, but please go away and leave me alone.” Her hands fisted and relaxed as she turned her back on Wendy to get Poppy’s hat.
She had it in her hand when she was suddenly pulled out of the car and landed hard on her backside on the macadam parking lot.
CHAPTER NINE
TYLER FINISHED SETTING up their lawn chairs under the tents erected on the church’s large side lawn. The weather was beautiful. The sun was popping in and out of the clouds, accompanied by a light breeze, and the humidity was slightly lower than most August days.
“Hi, Daddy.” Alexis suddenly appeared in front of him, with Madison not far behind.
“Hi, sweetheart.”
“Is it okay if we sit with Brittany and her family?” Alexis’s hopeful expression was nearly comical. “Her mother said it’s okay.”
Tyler looked over to where Brittany’s mother was waving her okay from the other side of the chairs. He waved back and then looked down at the girls, who were bouncing in anticipation of his answer. “Okay. Just make sure you behave over there.” He looked pointedly at his youngest daughter. “No talking during the service, Madison. If you absolutely have to say something, then whisper. I’m talking about things like ‘there’s a bug on you.’ Not ‘I have a hair doodad just like yours.’”
“Doodad?” Both girls giggled as they repeated the word.
He gave them a stern look.
“Okay, Daddy, we will,” Alexis said.
“We promise,” Madison added, her expression dead serious.
He grinned and urged them to hurry.
While his daughters moved their folding pink chairs with their favorite princesses on them to sit with their friend, he looked around for Callie, but didn’t see her anywhere. “Have you seen Callie?” he asked Aunt Poppy when she came over to sit. People were still milling around, getting their chairs situated or placing blankets on the grass.
Poppy shook her head and glanced in all directions. “Not since she said she’d go back to my car to get my hat. Maybe she ran into someone she knew.”
“Maybe,” he said. That was one of the reasons he’d asked her to join them. She might have a more positive feeling about Whittler’s Creek if she reconnected with the residents. That had been his experience after his dad had passed away. He’d had no desire to stay on in town—the memories of his dad had been almost more than he could bear. Until he was bombarded with people coming to the house with food and condolences, giving him a warm and welcome feeling. He also found the girls doing well in the pleasant atmosphere, and that’s when he decided to stick around.
“I’ll walk around and see if I can find her.” He checked the time on his cell phone and then put it on vibrate. “We should be starting soon.”
Poppy nodded and began a conversation with a woman nearby.
The first thing Tyler did was go to the parking lot since that was where Callie had been headed. Aunt Poppy had parked in the farthest row of the lot. As he got closer to her car, he heard a woman’s voice. She sounded angry. Very angry.
He couldn’t see the person speaking because parked cars were in the way. He assumed a child was being disciplined.
“Who do you think you are?” The woman’s tone was harsh.
A quieter voice answered but he couldn’t hear the reply clearly.
“I said, don’t get up.” The woman spoke louder, as if through clenched teeth.
This was not a parent-and-child situation, or at least he hoped it wasn’t. Tyler hurried toward the raging voice. He was shocked to see Callie sitting on the ground. “What’s going on here?” he asked.
The angry person turned around and Tyler immediately recognized Callie’s stepsister, Wendy. She appeared as unkempt as she’d been Friday night. In fact, she might be wearing the same worn-out clothes.
“You don’t need to get in the middle of this, Tyler,” Wendy said in a more neutral tone. “This is between the two of us.”
He stepped in front of Wendy and held out a hand to Callie to help her up. “How did you end up down there?”
Callie brushed herself off and didn’t answer, merely glanced in Wendy’s direction.
“Did you push her?” Tyler asked Wendy.
“Of course not.” Even her laugh sounded mean. “She must have stumbled. I was just coming over to help her up.”
Tyler looked at Callie to gauge her reaction. “Is that true?”
“If that’s what Wendy says happened,” Callie said calmly, “then it must be true.”
Tyler knew there was more going on and he was frustrated when Callie so readily agreed with Wendy’s version of events.
Before he could ask more questions, Wendy took off.
Not toward the group gathered under the tents but in the direction of the street. He didn’t know where she lived, but he made a mental note to find out and to keep an eye on her.
“Are you okay?” he asked Callie. She closed Poppy’s car door and brushed off the hat that had also landed on the ground.
“I’m fine.” She walked past him, her back straight and her head held high. “Let’s join Poppy and the girls.”
He had to walk quickly to keep up with her fast pace. “What happened back there?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“I heard some of the things she said. She sounded really angry.”
Callie shook her head. “It’s fine. Just forget about it.”
“Why?” He reached for her arm and made her stop at the edge of the parking lot. “Why should I forget about it?”
Callie hesitated, looked down at the ground then back up at him. “Because Wendy was being no different than she’s always been. She’s always hated me and she’s happy to remind me every chance she gets.”
He thought back to everything he knew about the two girls growing up. “But you just calmly took everything she was dishing out.”
“Old habits,” she said. “Fighting back only got me into trouble.”
“How?”
“I was the one who got punished.”
He digested her words. “You were punished when Wendy was mean to you?”
Callie’s eyes welled up and she blinked several times. “I really can’t talk about this right now.” She began walking in earnest and took a seat next to Aunt Poppy just as the young female pastor made some announcements.
When everyone rose to begin the service, Tyler had a difficult time concentrating. He couldn’t help wondering how bad Callie’s life in Whittler’s Creek had really been.
Maybe he needed to call his sister, Isabelle, and hear her side of the story since Isabelle and Wendy had been good friends back when Callie lived in town.
*
ONCE AGAIN CALLIE felt humiliated thanks to her stepsister. As the service continued, and people sang an upbeat song with the accompaniment of a keyboard and guitar, she was no longer concerned about her lack of knowledge when it came to church services. Wendy’s treatment of her was now Callie’s main focus.
