by Holly Jacobs
As if the significance of this picnic hit them all, they ate in silence. After they finished, Sophie curled up on the blanket and dozed.
“Joy?” Gabriel whispered.
“Shh. Sophie’s sleeping.” Joy slid across the blanket, putting some distance between herself and Gabriel. Distance. That’s exactly what she needed. Tomorrow, she’d have all the distance she needed, she thought glumly.
“Good.”
“Good?” He was looking at her. Oh, people looked at people all the time, but not like this. There was an intensity in his gaze that made Joy nervous. Very nervous. She wadded up the sandwich bags.
“Joy,” he said, his big hands stilling hers. “Do you know what I’ve wanted to do since we fell in the pond?” He stopped. “No, I take that back. Do you know what I’ve wanted to do for longer than that?”
“What?” It was a foolish question. Joy could see what he wanted. He was going to kiss her. And most foolish of all, Joy was going to let him. She was leaving in the morning, and one last time she wanted to feel Gabriel’s lips on hers. She wanted to capture a piece of him and hold onto it tight.
“Come here and let me show you.” Cautiously, Joy moved closer.
She looked nervous, and Gabriel could sympathize, because he was nervous, too. This small woman was dangerous to him. For a comfortable woman, there were times that Joy was decidedly uncomfortable, and this was one of them.
Tentatively, he reached out and stroked her cheek with his fingertip.
“Gabriel?” she whispered.
“I’m going to kiss you. You know that, don’t you?”
She nodded.
Not exactly the most enthusiastic invitation, but it was enough for him. He wrapped her in his arms, once again overwhelmed by the sense of rightness. This woman belonged in his arms.
But she was leaving tomorrow.
The thought was an unwelcome intruder. As his lips finally met hers, he realized he didn’t want her to leave the next day. He didn’t want her to leave at all. Holding Joy, kissing her . . . It felt right. She belonged with him and Sophie. They needed her, and Gabriel suspected that she needed them as well.
He deepened the kiss. He didn’t want Joy to leave, and he was going to do his best to keep her from going anywhere.
“Daddy, why are you kissing Joy?”
Joy and Gabriel jerked apart. “I—”
Before he could form a coherent answer, Joy said, “Your daddy was just giving me a goodbye kiss.”
“Oh.”
Sophie’s sad response tore at Gabriel’s heart. There was no way Joy could leave. They needed her. He had to make her understand. He’d been thinking about it since last night and had finally come up with an idea. A brilliant idea. He was going to tempt her with the most precious thing he owned. Hopefully, it would be enough to keep her here. And he wanted her here—here with him, here with Sophie. It’s where Joy belonged.
Now, if only he could convince Joy.
AN HOUR LATER, THE three soggy slime skaters plodded into the house.
“To the shower,” Joy commanded the littlest, least slimy skater.
“That was fun,” Sophie said. “And I liked pickles on my peanut butter and jelly.”
“Me too.” Joy’s secret peanut butter and jelly ingredient used to gross her family out, but she figured a kindred six-year-old would enjoy it.
“Yuck,” Gabriel said.
“He’s got no taste,” Joy told Sophie.
“Yeah, he’s an old fogey,” Sophie said. She squealed and bolted up the stairs when Gabriel made a face and lurched toward her.
“Thanks for a wonderful day,” Joy said. “I’m going to de-slime and then get the truck packed so all I have to do is hop in tomorrow morning.”
“We’ll miss you,” Gabriel said softly. “Sophie’s going to be lost without you.”
“I’ll miss being here,” she admitted as she fled up the stairs before Gabriel could say anything more.
She was going to more than miss them. Joy was afraid leaving the St. Johns would leave a permanent hole in her heart. She put the thoughts and the empty feeling out of her mind as she emptied drawers into her bag.
Gabriel knocked softly on her open door, and stood there, filling the frame. “Joy, I wanted to talk to you.”
“About?”
“You know Sophie’s going to be devastated without you here. What am I going to do with a six-year-old who’s pining for her kindred spirit before she’s even gone?”
“I’ve got to get back to work. I’ve been thinking about that trip to Alaska. Maybe it’s time I took it.”
A scream shattered the silence. “No!”
Sophie hurtled into the room, wrapped in her bathrobe. “No, you can’t go to Alaska! I won’t let you!” she screamed, throwing herself into Joy’s arms.
Using her sternest voice, Joy said, “That’s enough out of you, young lady. First off, this was a grown-up discussion and you were eavesdropping, which is rude. Secondly, I have an important job to do, and though I love you, I have people who count on me. If that means I’m going to Alaska, then so be it.”
Joy felt the child convulse as she clung to her. “Please don’t leave me,” Sophie whispered.
“Well, I’m not leaving tonight.” She untangled Sophie’s arms from around her neck and gave her a push towards the hall.
She watched her walk slowly toward her room. “Joy,” Gabriel said.
“I’m sorry, Gabriel. I didn’t mean to hurt her. You have to believe me, that was never my intention.”
“I’d like a chance to talk to you,” he glanced at the stairs, “without any interruptions. I’ve come up with a solution to our problem.”
“And what did you decide?” Joy asked, afraid of the answer.
“I decided marriage is the only answer.”
“You what?” Joy asked, sure that she’d heard him wrong.
“Let me get Sophie tucked in, and then we’ll talk,” he said. How like a man to drop a bomb and then leave her to stew in it.
The three fairies popped into the room.
Blossom, with her neon hair, was always shining, but now she was positively radiating as she twirled around in what could only be the brightest yellow bridesmaid dress in history. “See, he wants to marry you.”
“No,” Joy whispered. “Not me.” Could he be talking about them? Joy Aaronson St. John. It had a certain ring.
Sternly she shook her head. No, he meant Helen. He and Helen had decided to get married. That would solve a lot of Sophie’s problems. She’d see that Helen was there to stay, and she’d have to accept it.
“Helen. He’s going to marry Helen.” Gabriel wanted to tell her himself that he was marrying Helen. Maybe he felt guilty about those few stolen kisses. Thinking about them made Joy’s heart flutter. She pushed the feeling aside.
“That’s not what he said,” Fern argued.
“And what about those kisses?” Blossom put her hand over her heart and looked as if she was going to swoon.
“What kisses?” Joy tried to act innocent, and goodness knew she was still innocent where Gabriel was concerned, even though she might wish she wasn’t.
Myrtle looked far too pleased with herself. Her gown was a much more elegant affair, but almost scary in a blood-red sort of way. “You know what kisses.”
“You were spying?” Joy was going to have it out with Grace. How could she have released such menaces on an unsuspecting world?
“We don’t spy,” Fern huffed. She avoided eye contact with Joy and fussed with the huge moss-green bow on her gown.
“Well, not really spying,” Blossom hedged. “You’ve read the books, and you know that we can read your mind.”
“You spied.”
“It wasn’t spying.�
�� Myrtle’s eyes didn’t quite meet Joy’s. “We’re your godmothers, and we just know these kinds of things.”
“And he did kiss you, and you did like it.” Blossom obviously had no problem living with the guilt of spying. She still appeared ready to swoon at the idea of Gabriel and Joy kissing.
Those kisses had been nothing but hormonal urges. Gabriel was a healthy adult male—she was a healthy adult female. They’d been thrown together, and instinct had taken over. Yes, that’s what it was.
“Go away,” she whispered to the fairies before she went down the stairs with her briefcase. She’d set up a surrogate office on a corner of the table. She began stacking the papers in her case, but her mind wasn’t on packing. It was on kissing.
Joy would have to reassure Gabriel that she’d never seen those kisses as anything more than what they were—brief, hormone-induced mistakes. She would let him see that she was happy for him and Helen.
Her mind raced in circles. She hoped he would consider allowing her to stay a part of Sophie’s life, but she wasn’t really worried. She knew Gabriel well enough by now to realize he wouldn’t keep Sophie away from someone she loved. But Joy would have to back off and allow Sophie to bond with Helen. However, as newlyweds, he and Helen would probably enjoy the time alone, so maybe she could still see Sophie.
Thinking about what Gabriel and Helen would be doing with that time to themselves caused a ripple of pain in Joy’s chest, but she ignored that as well. She was happy for them. She forced a smile onto her face. Very happy.
But not so happy to see the fairies had beaten her downstairs and were sitting on the island between the kitchen and living area.
Joy’s heart sank. Though she hadn’t really expected them to listen, she’d hoped that just once they would. “I told you three to go away.”
“We weren’t done talking about kissing.”
“Well, you three don’t know anything,” Joy whispered. “There’s not going to be anymore kissing. Gabriel’s going to marry Helen. That will solve all his problems. He’s probably planning to tell me to distance myself a bit from Sophie. It’s obvious she’s too attached. She’ll need to bond with Helen.”
“How can a little girl be too attached to someone who loves her?” Myrtle asked.
Joy had no answer for that question, and she was saved from trying to come up with something by Gabriel’s appearance on the stairs.
“She’s down for the night, with a stern warning not to leave the room without permission.” He walked around the island into the kitchen. “Would you like something to drink?”
“We don’t approve of drinking,” Fern warned.
“Though a soda would be fine,” Blossom added. Suddenly, the three fairies all had a can in their hands. “Ah, it hits the spot.”
“I’m fine,” Joy said. She glared at the soda-swilling fairies, silently warning them to be quiet. Gabriel’s announcement that he was going to marry Helen would be hard enough to bear without juggling the objects of her dementia with her unrequited love.
“We’re not leaving, Joy, but we will be utterly silent. At least until you and Gabriel finish this business.”
Joy sent a powerful, silent wish that they’d all go away.
“Not on your life,” Blossom said, a bucket of popcorn appearing on her lap.
Fern reached for a handful of the popcorn. “This is too good a show to miss.”
“Pay attention, Joy,” Myrtle warned. “Gabriel’s talking, and it could be important.”
Joy caught the tail end of a sentence, “. . . our marriage.” Gabriel had grabbed himself a soda and taken a seat on the couch. “So what do you think?”
Gabriel and Helen? The thought was like a knife through her heart, but Joy didn’t say that. Instead she said, “I think it’s a good idea, Gabriel.”
“You do?” he sounded surprised.
“Sure. I mean, it would solve a lot of your problems with Sophie. She might not be very receptive at first—”
“You don’t think so? I thought she’d be overjoyed.”
Overjoyed? Joy didn’t think that was the word she’d used, but if Gabriel did, she wasn’t about to burst his bubble. “Well, maybe you’re right. When are you planning the wedding?”
“I was hoping as soon as possible. I know there are a lot of things to be cleared up, what with work, Sophie and everything, but—”
“That shouldn’t be as hard as you think. I mean, Sophie’s in school all day.”
“And with the Internet and phone, I was hoping it would work,” Gabriel said.
Why would Helen need the Internet? Erie was less than a half hour away, even during rush hour. She’d be able to work and still help care for Sophie. Helen, Gabriel and Sophie. She could see the three of them in her mind’s eye, and it drove a lance through her heart.
Ignore it, she commanded herself as she said, “I’m sure it will work.”
“We can tell her about the wedding, then.”
Nervously, Joy glanced at her fairy trio, and all three waved merrily. “I don’t think that telling Sophie is my place.”
“I’m sure she’d like to hear it from both of us,” he insisted.
“Gabriel . . .” Joy started to protest. She let his name drift off, unsure what to say next.
He reached in his pocket and removed a box. He thrust it at Joy. “What do you think? It was my grandmother’s.”
Why was he doing this to her? Joy realized he thought of them as friends, but this was too much. He had no way of knowing how deeply Joy cared for him. “I . . .” she stuttered, not taking the box.
“Joy, please?” he said.
It wasn’t in her to deny Gabriel anything, so she took the box. Slowly, she opened it. The ring was gold, and in the center there was a beautiful ruby.
The three fairies crowded behind the couch and looked over Joy’s shoulder.
“Oh, it’s lovely.”
“Stunning.”
“Just the ticket,” they exclaimed all at once.
“The perfect color,” Myrtle proclaimed.
Reverently, Joy touched the stone. She had pictured Helen as more of a diamond kind of woman. A big diamond. She looked at Gabriel, trying to think of something to say. “It’s beautiful,” she managed.
“Try it on,” he said.
She shook her head and handed the box back to him. “I don’t imagine Helen would appreciate that.”
“Why would Helen care when I gave it to you?” he asked.
He was annoyed. Joy could see that on his face, though she wasn’t sure why. “Gabriel, no woman wants another woman trying on her engagement ring. I’m sure Helen would prefer you see it on her finger.”
“What are you talking about?”
“What are you talking about?” she countered.
“You think I’m talking about marrying Helen?” Slowly, as if speaking to Sophie, he said, “I’m talking about you and me getting married.”
“You and who?” she repeated stupidly.
“You and him,” Blossom said.
“We were right,” Fern added.
“See, Joy. We told you this was going to work out. You’ve got a proposal.” Myrtle patted her sisters on their backs.
“You and me,” Gabriel repeated softly.
Joy sank back to the couch. “I think maybe you’d better start this all over again. You’re talking about you and me doing what?”
Eight
THERE WAS A HINT of a smile in Gabriel’s eyes. “You and me getting married.”
Joy shook her head. “You and Helen.”
He shook his head right back at her. “No. You and me.”
“But Helen’s the woman you love.”
“Love? Where did you get that?”
“Told you,�
� Fern said.
Joy glared at the fairies, and they all made a “zipping the lips” motion. “You and Helen have been dating.”
“We work together. She goes to business dinners occasionally, and I’ll confess I’ve been known to let people think it’s social. After Trudi, I wasn’t ready to go back to the meat market. So, Helen was a sort of buffer for me. Thinking we were a couple kept women away. But I thought you knew that’s all it was.”
“How would I know? You went on a date with her, and you talked on the phone with her all the time—”
“About business.”
“And, she babysat Sophie.”
“I can’t believe you thought Helen and I . . . I mean, I kissed you. What did you think that was about?”
“Hormones?”
“Joy, Helen helped me out because we’re friends. Anything else, well, it just isn’t there.” He sat next to her and took her hand in his. “Helen and I are friends, but I’d never date someone I work with.”
“You love her,” Joy insisted, trying to keep the wall she’d built between them from dissolving.
He shook his head. “As a friend.”
“Even with those kisses, I know you don’t love me,” she said, fighting for something to keep them separate—to keep her safe.
“I . . . we need you, Joy. There’s been something between us right from the beginning, and I think we’ll get along well together. I’d be a good husband, and Sophie would be overjoyed to have you as a stepmother.”
“But you don’t love me,” she insisted. She needed him to admit it, even though she knew it would tear at her heart to hear it.
“We’re friends. The short time you were here, you became a part of our lives. Sophie and I need you.”
“So what you’re asking for is a marriage of convenience?” she asked, needing to fully understand what he wanted. She’d say no, of course, but she’d hear him out.
“That’s not how I would classify it. I mean, we’re both adults, Joy. We get along well enough together. Sophie adores you. You’re not old, but you’re not getting any younger. Maybe it’s time you start thinking about a family. I’d like more kids, if you would.”
