Forest had a clear image of the judge and Mrs. LaRoche plotting his downfall. Who else was in on their scheme? “Judge Randall?”
“That part’s real, and convenient timing.”
“Why should I believe you now?”
“You should be complimented! I’m offering you my greatest treasure, my daughter.”
“Sir, she’s not yours to give.” And perhaps not Forest’s to have. The thought wasn’t as comforting as a confirmed bachelor should have wanted. “Anna has a mind of her own, and a lot more sense than you give her credit for.”
Wasn’t the irate father supposed to be coming after him with a double-barrel shotgun? This kind of endorsement was too weird, and distinctly uncomfortable. Worst of all, he hated the sense that he’d been played, Anna, too, for that matter.
The judge chuckled. “I do so enjoy being right. This is perfect for everybody. You get a new wife, a keeper this time, because I didn’t raise a quitter. Even that cute little boy of yours comes out a winner with a full-time mama.”
Wife? Mama? The judge had blindsided him with the shotgun after all.
Forest gasped for breath. Of course the judge was thinking rings and weddings. Anna was his daughter.
But Forest had screwed up his first marriage, and he hated making mistakes. He wouldn’t make the same one twice. He loved his son too much to put him through that again. He lov—
He liked and respected Anna too much to offer her anything but honesty. For now, he wanted picnics and friendship. They could continue or call it quits anytime. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t live without her.
Why then did he know without question that he planned to let Mrs. LaRoche finish her “vacation” just so he could have a few more days to play house with Anna?
Anna turned the last page on the Seedlings Braille book she’d been reading to Joey. “The end.”
“Again! Again! Again!” He bounced on the sofa.
“You’ve already memorized the words to this one.” As well as the feel of the bumps, she hoped. “How about we try a new one. It’s about a fire truck.”
“A fire truck?” He tipped his head in concentration. “I like trucks.”
She heard the rumble of Forest’s truck outside. “Oops. Daddy’s home. Maybe he can read this one to you.”
The front door creaked open.
Joey’s face lit up. “Daddy!”
He catapulted off the sofa and ran across the room, his tiny boot catching on a wrinkle in the rug. But Forest hefted him up just in time. What an amazing man. He’d been there in so many ways for Joey. Her heart ached a little more.
Joey plastered a big wet kiss on his father’s cheek, then pulled back. “Guess what, guess what, guess what?”
“What, big guy?” Forest gave him a bear hug hello before letting him slide back to the ground. The two held hands as they made their way toward the recliner chair where they always sat to share reviews of their day.
“Anna is teaching me to read.”
Forest settled, half in, half out of his chair. “Could you explain that to me again?”
Joey squiggled and squirmed to get more comfortable in his father’s lap. “Anna’s teaching me to read bumpy books. I don’t got it all right yet, but I like feeling the words while she tells me the story.”
Forest’s eyebrows met in the middle of his forehead.
Anna rose, raced over and knelt in front of him, giving him the small stack of books from her most recent Seedlings order. She placed them in his hands. “You have to let go and enjoy the books the same way you enjoy Joey’s baseball-beeper.” Her hands fluttered to rest on his knees. “Besides, you can’t expect to think of everything yourself.”
He covered her hands with his. “Thank you.”
The connection crackled between them, until she wanted to crawl up in his lap and kiss him until they both couldn’t think, much less talk, but Joey was in the room. And yeah, when it came to her shifting feelings for this man, she was a bit of a coward.
Anna slid her hands free, standing. “Well then, I guess I’ll leave you two to your supper.”
“Anna, do you want to—”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.” She cut short his invitation to join them before she caved and accepted. It would be too easy to let herself become a part of their evening routine and then be crushed when he found her unconventional ways unsuitable for a lawyer’s wife—much less the mother of his child.
Unwilling to end this time with Anna and not sure why, Forest slid Joey off his lap and picked up her backpack for her. “Don’t forget your bag.”
He tried to close the bag, but the zipper kept hitching on something. By the time he caught up to her on the porch, he had figured out the problem. He pulled out a crumpled piece of paper that was part of a stack of letters held by a clip. He took them out to straighten the top paper.
Across from him, Anna froze.
It was a letter to the editor about saving the park, with copies to be sent to everyone from the governor to the garden committee. The letter bordered on libel, and violated their agreement for Anna to lie low.
How odd that he felt more betrayed than mad, Forest thought.
He passed her the backpack and her letters. “What an interesting definition you have of lying low.”
She took the items solemnly. “People in this town express their displeasure about the part right and left, but no one else seems interested in doing anything about the situation.”
Forest cocked his head. “How can you be so sure?”
“I watch. I listen.”
“But you don’t know all that’s going on. Your father has a pal in the House of Representatives who owes him a favor. We’ve been working toward an injunction for over a week now.”
Her features froze. “It would have been nice if you’d told me.”
“The last thing your father wanted was you handcuffing yourself to the man’s waiting-room sofa.”
Her fists were clenched, her eyes wounded. “That’s not only unfair, it’s hurtful. I may not do things your way, but I am an intelligent adult.”
She was right, and just like her father with Mrs. LaRoche and the congressman, he’d gone behind her back without asking for her input. He was just as guilty as her old man, whom he’d condemned a few hours earlier. “Wait, Anna, I’m sorry.”
She backed away down the steps, toward her bike. “Sorry may not be enough if that’s really how you feel about me.”
He didn’t want to let her go, ever. But what about her penchant for protesting? Would it increase over the years? Aside from giving him an ulcer, what kind of example would it set for Joey and any other children he and Anna might have together?
Other children. An impish little girl with freckles, red pigtails and stars in her innocent green eyes. The image was so distracting he almost walked into a ditch.
Not that Anna would agree to make babies with him anyway. She was looking at him as if he’d locked up Santa Claus on Christmas Eve.
Damn. There had to be some way to convince her to lighten up on the protesting, because he couldn’t imagine letting her walk away from him. Or rather pedal away.
She climbed onto her bike and raced down the sidewalk before he could blink. Even if her views differed from his, he’d always loved the way she—
Loved? Hell, yes! He loved her.
Forest rested his forehead against a porch post. How was he ever going to win her back now? She would probably slam the door in his face.
Turning to go inside, he noticed she’d left some of her books behind, which gave him a perfect excuse to show up on her doorstep.
Somehow that seemed a little too obvious, and she had said the books were for Joey. Forest needed something big to snag her attention. His hand gripped her purse, the spare set of handcuffs poking the canvas.
Inspiration hit. He had a pretty good idea how to make sure she listened. “Hang on, Joey. We’ve got a few errands to run.”
And he knew exactly where to go
for mentorship.
CHAPTER SEVEN
The next morning, Anna stuffed her backpack full of the supplies she needed for the nature-walk activities she had planned for Joey—presuming Forest still let her in the house after their argument.
After stomping around her cottage for an hour, then tossing and turning half the night, she’d finally called her father. He’d surprised her by simply including her in the endeavor to appeal to his congressman friend. Pop asked her to stop by the park on her way to Forest’s home this morning and snap some photos to go along with the paperwork he would be sending up to his friend in the House.
She tucked her digital camera into her backpack and zipped it closed before heading out. Pedaling over, she envisioned the different angles that would best show off the park’s beauty and community appeal. She even considered moving benches around. Or what if she had time to add some of the equipment Forest had in his backyard?
Forest’s backyard.
A vision began to form in her mind of a whole different park altogether—or rather a section of the park devoted to children with special needs.
Her excitement level rose as she envisioned a summer camp run in partnership with the library. It would offer activities for special-needs children that would give them the opportunity to stretch their legs, minds and emotional wings. Now, wouldn’t that put little Oscoda on the map faster than any strip club?
Of course, the cool, collected Forest would be the best front man for her plan. They would be working together, combining their individual strengths. Just as they’d worked together to give Joey everything he needed. Why couldn’t she have thought of that before?
Partnership. Passion. And love. The perfect blend.
After the way she’d dashed out yesterday, she had some apologizing to do. She thought about the photos she was going to take for her dad.
Working with Forest and her father. How funny. It was something she would never have considered less that two weeks ago. But then without Forest’s influence, she would never have been open-minded enough to envision this park idea at all. What an amazing man.
Her heart filled with a love for him bigger than Lake Huron.
So why had she run from him last night? Time to start taking some risks in her personal life as well as her professional life. Starting today—after she finished these photos for Pop.
Anna fished around inside her backpack and pulled out the digital. She aimed, focused, took one shot after another, figuring she could weed through the pictures and choose the best later. She would definitely have to stop by again this afternoon with Joey and snap more photos when the park was full of people. She wondered why Pop had insisted she come now, when it was so darn chilly the mist hadn’t even burned off the lake yet. A couple of joggers circled the perimeter. A lone man sat parked on the bench reading his newspaper.
Well, she could at least take some pictures of him to show the diversity of people who enjoyed the park. And it did make a romantic tableau—a handsome man, the Great Lake stretching out beyond him.
Handsome?
Her mind snagged on the shape of his head, the color and texture of his hair. It couldn’t be. She moved closer.
It was.
Deep breath. She inched nearer as the park slowly came alive with morning activity. A dog walker headed for the lake. Three mothers appeared, pushing strollers. Anna stopped in front of the man just as he folded his paper and draped it over his arm.
“Hi, Forest,” she said, her voice a breathless whisper. She glanced around. People were out for a stroll or a bike ride. “Where’s Joey?”
“I have a friend watching him while I came looking for you.” His wary blue eyes glittered behind his glasses.
She’d do anything to erase that wariness. “You were? I was just about to come over to your place so we could talk.”
“Good.” A lock of hair slid free and brushed the top of his glasses. “What did you want to tell me?”
“Not here,” Anna said. “Too many people, and this is kind of private.”
He clasped her hand in his and tugged her over beside him. “What’s wrong with a little audience now and then?”
Could that really be her reserved attorney talking?
Snap. Forest clicked a handcuff around her wrist.
Anna stood frozen with shock.
Snap. He closed the other around his wrist until they sat side by side, the chain looped through a bar on the same park bench where she’d staged her protest.
“Forest!” Had he gone nuts? She tugged. “Forest! Unlock us. Stand up!”
“Nope.”
“Have you lost your mind?”
“Nope.” Her uptight lawyer had never looked more at ease. He was even grinning.
What did he find so amusing?
Clusters of people gathered around them. Forest’s secretary, Kay, wandered over with a few of her friends from the garden club, and Shirley Rhodes and her friends waved from the beauty salon across the street, clutching their morning lattes from a nearby coffeehouse.
“Forest, you’re really causing a scene here.” Frantically, Anna looked left and right, expecting a police officer to appear. “Quit this! Now, before somebody calls the cops. You’re a lawyer. You can’t afford to be arrested.”
He didn’t budge.
“Be reasonable! What do you think you’re doing?”
Forest gripped her hand in his. “I’m protesting the way you walked away from me without giving us a fighting chance at working things out.”
His words sunk in, and her knees folded. She wilted down beside him. “Oh!”
From behind a dilapidated visitors’ center, her father stepped out with Trudy LaRoche, who held Joey by the hand. Edward Bonneau winked at Anna as he slung an arm around Trudy’s shoulders. “Hello, Anna.”
“Pop?”
“I love you, daughter dear.” He smiled at her with an openness she hadn’t seen since her mother was alive. “I just want you to be happy.”
Anna smiled back, but she was beginning to understand how Alice had felt in Wonderland. Just what was going on here?
She looked around at the familiar faces and realized their presence here couldn’t be simply coincidence. Had her father and Trudy been matchmaking?
Anna turned to Forest. “You planned this, for me?”
He nudged his glasses. “You of all people should know you can’t have a protest without an audience. So I’m making my statement.”
Something warm and wonderful unfurled inside her, a renewed flicker of hope. “You are?”
“You bet.”
While she told herself it shouldn’t matter after he’d made such a grand gesture, she couldn’t help asking, “What about last night and your disapproval of my protest methods?”
His thumb caressed the inside of her wrist. “I started thinking about that after you left, and letters are a perfectly acceptable means of protest. You were right. I was just…uh…”
“Hurt?” she dared ask.
“I thought you would have come to me for help with something like that. But then I realized your father and I should have trusted you as well with our congressional plans. My only excuse is that I can’t think when you’re around.”
She understood completely, since she couldn’t form coherent thoughts around him most of the time either. “You do say the sweetest things, Counselor.”
“No, I don’t, but I’m going to try, because I happen to think we’ve got something pretty special going between us.”
Could this be real? “I agree. I want to work with you, and today I had a great idea for this special park. I want us to work with each other.”
“You do?”
She gestured to the crowd and tapped the cuffs. “You sure know how to get your point across.”
He smiled that wonderful lopsided grin. “All in the name of love.”
Anna sure hoped she’d heard right. Just in case, she needed to hear him say it again. “For love?”
“
For love. Isn’t that what it’s all about?” Forest linked hands with her. “Anna, marry me. Not because you’re great with Joey or because we’re attracted to each…” He paused, glancing at the crowd gathering around them. “Marry me because I love you.”
Anna cupped his face with her free hand. “Those words beat a bouquet of flowers hands down, Counselor.”
“Wait, I’m not finished yet.” Forest stood, dragging Anna up with him. He turned to Trudy LaRoche and the judge. “Did you hear that? I love her! Did everyone hear me? I love this incredible woman. And if she’ll have me, I’ll even buy a tandem bike—with helmets.”
Applause broke out, echoing up through the trees speckled with autumn leaves.
Forest rested his forehead against Anna’s, creating a bubble of privacy in the overpopulated park. “Let’s plant our own seedlings to grow into trees that we can sit under for picnics with our children and grandchildren. What do you say? Will you marry me?”
“Yes.” She whispered the word, hearing it echo in her heart. “Yes to you, Forest, and yes to Joey.”
She extended her arms for Joey, the precious child who’d really brought them together. “Joey?”
“Anna!” he shouted, arms outstretched as he launched himself toward Forest and her.
“She said yes!” Mrs. LaRoche squealed.
A rousing cheer filled the park. Anna eased away with a laugh just in time to see her father kiss Trudy LaRoche. She hoped he was feeling as happy as she was.
Shifting her attention back to Forest, Anna caressed his face. “I love you so much.”
He gave an exaggerated sigh. “Thank heaven. Now I can cancel the circus that was going to perform on your lawn if you’d said no.”
“Well, in case you’re in doubt, my answer is yes! Forever.” What a perfect team they would make.
Forest nuzzled her ear. “Are you ready for a family breakfast picnic? I’ve packed all your favorites.”
She rattled the cuffs. “Shouldn’t we ditch these first?”
“Good idea,” Forest agreed. “Hey, Judge, pass me the keys.”
More Than Words: Stories of Hope Page 22
