Still, the gesture was appreciated and Morris had hidden the muffins in his pantry.
Making his way down the stairs and into the kitchen, Morris drew to a halt.
"Max?" he asked. He wondered if he was still stuck in a dream.
"Morris," Max said, lifting his coffee cup in greeting. "I hope you don't mind. I made a pot for the boys and a fresh one for us. Already passed out those muffins Eleanor made, too."
Morris nodded, heading toward the coffee pot and pouring himself a large, steaming cup. He took several gulps, not caring that he burned the roof of his mouth in the process. He topped off the cup and turned back to Max.
"Good morning," Morris said belatedly. "Thank you for the coffee and the muffins. I'll be sure to swing by and thank Eleanor in person."
"She'd appreciate that," Max said. He leaned his elbows on the table and bowed his head. It took Morris a moment to realize Max looked tired. The usually spry man with more energy than a five-year-old, looked like he was ready to fall off the kitchen chair.
"What's wrong?" Morris asked, though he knew the answer already.
"I think I've made a mistake," Max said, his voice unnaturally quiet.
Morris frowned. "About Allie leaving? That wasn't your fault."
Max shook his head. "It might be. I didn't fight for her, defend her. Not like a father should."
Sitting opposite Max at the table, Morris mimicked Max's posture. "What happened?"
"That man," Max spat out. "I don't know who he is, but he doesn't treat Allie right. Anybody could see that. Paige said the moment Allie saw him, it was like she shut down. The woman she had been, that she had grown into during her time here was just gone.
"But what did I do? Instead of fighting for her, I wished Allie safe travels. I told her that New York was her home. Just like I had been telling myself since her mother sent me that package. I left her when she might have needed me the most."
Morris shook his head. "Don’t blame yourself," he said. "For all you know, you're right. Maybe she did need to go home."
"She had been crying. It was clear to me she didn't want to leave. But I didn't know how to convince her to stay."
Morris' throat thickened. His heart pounded. Had that man threatened her? Whoever he was to her, hurt her in anyway–
"Why are you telling me this?" Morris asked.
Max met his eyes then, tears hovering in the corners. "Because we both love her and I believe it's time we do something about it."
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Allie stared at her computer screen, willing its contents to make some sense to her. But she couldn't focus. Couldn't get her brain to stop thinking about the last couple of weeks and wondering if she'd made a huge mistake.
Honestly, she had been behind since she got back from Washington. Her coworkers had done the best they could in her absence, but most, if not all, of them were grateful for her return. The only person who even gave a half-hearted attempt at protesting her early return had been her supervisor, who claimed she still needed to use up one more week of vacation or she'd lose it. Allie had muttered something about taking a week off for Christmas, and that had been that.
Her work load only grew larger the longer she sat at her desk. The last week had been torture. It had taken several phone calls from important clients to get her into some semblance of the working person she had been before. In truth, she did better while working. She could forget, just a little, about everything that had happened. But when she came up for air, that's when the memories surrounded her to the point of distraction.
Allie leaned back in her chair and let out a long sigh. She stared at the plant perched on one of her large filing cabinets. It was wilting, testament to the fact that it probably hadn't been watered in the last two weeks. Standing at her desk, Allie picked up her bottle of water and dumped the rest of its contents into the pot, thinking only of Eleanor and how she would never have let her own house plants and garden get to be in such a state.
Work hadn't been the only thing that had been near impossible to deal with since she'd been back. Gary had been merciless ever since the plane ride home. He wouldn't stop calling and sending messages. He would be waiting for her outside her apartment, which was easily resolved by Allie staying late at work. Something she needed to do anyway. The fact that Gary sent her a lecture via text message about how rude it was to leave a friend waiting was just icing on the cake.
She didn't know what to do. She knew she needed to stick her foot down, to tell him to leave her alone, but she was afraid it wouldn't be enough.
And then there was her mother. Her mother, who up until she returned to New York, had been giving her the silent treatment. The very next day, Gary and Julianne had arrived at her apartment, expecting a lavish dinner party, no mention whatsoever of her journey to the other side of the country. No mention of the fact that Julianne had never told Allie about her father.
Allie had been too exhausted, physically and emotionally, to do anything about it other than sit at the table and pick at her food.
She had tried going to church on Sunday. She went back to the church that her grandmother used to take her to, only to find that the building had been condemned. Heartbroken, Allie had wandered the streets, wondering where she could go.
The open doors of a church two blocks down the street had caught her attention and she walked inside.
The church wasn't anything like the church back in Washington. Nobody was there to save a seat for her, nobody looked twice at her. She sat near the back of the room, lost in her own memories of Morris sitting beside her, arm draped around her shoulders as she tried to listen to the sermon.
Allie had prayed through the whole service. Prayed that God knew what he was doing, bringing her back here. She had done the only thing she had known how to do. So why was she feeling as though her grandmother had died all over again?
In the end, Allie had left before the final worship song, knowing she wouldn't find what she was looking for there.
She wished she could have shown Morris what New York was like. Really, she did love the city. New York had her quirks, her ups and downs, and to share those with Morris would have been just as fun as the day he had shared his county fair with her.
Allie's eyes teared up at the memory of the fair. That perfect day. She wanted the rest of her life to be like that day. An adventure of discovery with the man she loved.
Allie’s phone rang, a soft muted sound designed to promote a quieter, peaceful atmosphere in the office. Allie’s heart jumped regardless, a Pavlovian response. She picked up the phone, narrowing her eyes at the identification. Reception.
Why was Jenny calling her?
“This is Allie,” she said when she answered.
“Hi, Allie. It’s Jenny downstairs,” the receptionist said, her voice warm. She had been their receptionist longer than Allie had been alive and was considered the unofficial mother of the office. “You have a visitor.”
Allie frowned. “Not a distraught customer, I hope,” she muttered, running a hand over her hair to check it.
Jenny laughed. “Give me some credit, dear. He said his name was Max Greene.”
Allie’s breath caught. Her father was here? In New York?
“Allie?” Jenny’s voice brought Allie out of her thoughts. “Is everything alright?”
Code for: “Should I have him escorted out?”
“Yes. Everything’s fine. I’ll be right down,” Allie said in a rush, slamming the phone down into its cradle. She grabbed her jacket as she rushed out of her office, New York still hanging on to the bitter chill of winter.
As the elevator doors opened on the ground floor, Allie spotted Max standing near the doors, looking out at the busy streets. He wore his jeans and cowboy boots, with a denim jacket on top.
“Dad?” she asked softly, making her way toward him.
Max whirled around to face her. He looked tired, and more than a little wary.
“What are you doing here?
” she continued.
Max gave her a tentative smile. “I know this is short notice, but I had to see you.”
Allie stared at him, wondering if he meant it. If he really had dropped everything just to see her again.
Conscious of Jenny’s curious gaze, Allie turned and smiled at her.
“We’re heading to lunch,” she called, then looped her arm through Max’s and pulled him through the door. “Hungry?” she asked.
“Sure.”
Allie escorted them down the busy street, heading for her favorite place in all of New York. Max laughed when they stopped in front of the hot dog stand just outside the entrance to Central Park.
“These are my favorite,” she explained, paying and accepting the two hot dogs. “Have you ever had a New York hot dog?” she asked.
“Once, a long time ago.” Max had a faraway look in his eyes.
“Come on. This way.”
Allie led the way to her favorite bench, one that offered a view of the pond and the birds that inhabited it. Luckily, the air was too cold and she was early enough to catch it unoccupied.
The sat and ate in silence. Allie knew Max would talk when he felt ready to.
"There was a time, not so long ago, when I had a choice," Max began, lowering the empty wrapper into his lap, forgotten. "I chose not to meddle. And it might have been the hardest decision I had ever had to make."
Allie kept her mouth shut. She knew he was talking about the time when he learned she existed and was living in New York.
"I prayed every day about you. Ever since I knew," Max continued, his voice growing rough. "I never knew what God wanted me to do. But I wasn't listening, either. He was telling me to come here, to find you, to let you know I was here. But I never listened.
"It was Paige," Max said with a wet laugh. "Paige, the meddler that she is, set this all in motion. I'm more than half convinced God uses her as his own personal messenger most of the time."
Allie laughed, knowing that Max spoke the truth.
"Then I made another mistake," Max said, staring straight ahead. Through the trees, a quiet pond stood, with ducks and geese surrounding its edges. This was the view Allie needed every day. The reminder that even while she was stuck behind concrete walls, nature still existed.
"You didn't—" Allie started, only for Max to cut her off with a hand on her knee. She studied the hand. It was large, tanned, wrinkled with age. But it was also a strong hand. Her father's hand.
"I did. I let that man take you away from me." Max's voice wavered, though this time, in anger. "Paige told me what he had said to you. And I knew, you didn't want to leave. But you had made up your mind, and I once again thought that I didn't have any right to step in and let you know otherwise. I couldn't interfere."
"Gary was just..." Allie tried again. Max's gaze met hers and her voice quieted.
"No man has any right to speak to a woman the way that man was speaking to you. And under my own roof. To my own daughter. I object to everything that he is.
"So, I'm here to do something I should have done so many years ago. I'm here to tell you that we want you at Greene Pastures, than you have family there that will welcome you with open arms."
Allie's throat tightened and tears blurred her vision. She wanted to go right now. Go back to her apartment, pack up what little belongings that actually mattered to her, and leave the city. Permanently.
But could she do something so reckless?
"Don't make your decision right away." With one more squeeze to her knee, Max stood. She watched him, wondered where he would go. "I'm staying at a hotel a few blocks from here. I'll be there for a few more days, if you need me."
"You should be staying with me," Allie said. "I have a guest room."
Max smiled. "I'd like that. But take your time. Think things over. You have my phone number." And with that, Max turned and walked away.
Allie wanted to jump up and run after him. But he was also right. She had so much to think about.
Her father's words struck a chord deep within her. She knew he was right. The way Gary treated her, threatened her, overwhelmed her to the point where she couldn't even make her own decisions was unacceptable. And the fact that her mother encouraged this sort of behavior was even worse.
A fire burned within Allie. Not of anger, though there was a little of that mixed in. No. This fire was one she had found while in Washington, a fire that had gone dormant the moment she saw Gary standing in her father's sitting room.
That fire was courage.
____________
Allie called off work for the rest of the day, claiming "personal issues." She felt terrible about it, though her supervisor was more than understanding. He had tried to convince her to take a couple more days off, and was all to happy to grant her the afternoon.
Next, Allie called Gary to see if he was free for lunch. He hadn't been, but she demanded that he cancel his plans and join her for lunch. Gary had been so startled, he had agreed, telling her he'd meet her at their favorite restaurant at noon.
She almost told him that it had never been her favorite restaurant, but there really would be no point after today.
When Allie arrived to see Gary and her mother sitting at a table, waiting for her, Allie bit her tongue in irritation. Then she stood up taller, plastered a smile on her face, and marched forward.
"Gary, Mother," Allie greeted, giving her mother air kisses and leaving Gary hanging, with one arm out as though to caress her back. Allie nearly recoiled. Then she picked the seat next to her mother, across the table from Gary, wanting as much distance between them as possible. "I wasn't aware you'd be here," she told Julianne.
"Well, when Gary called to cancel our lunch date, I had to know why. Imagine my surprise when he said you called him. Naturally, I had to come see." The hint of offense was clear to Allie. It took all of her effort to not roll her eyes at her mother.
Allie sent another prayer heavenward, clutching her newfound courage close.
"I had invited Gary here to talk about a personal matter," Allie said, picking up her glass and taking a sip of her water. "But since you have no sense of boundaries in that regard, and your relationship is so close, I might as well share this news with the both of you."
Julianne smiled, though Allie could see the tightening of the corners of her lips with the effort.
"Good afternoon, ladies and gentleman," a waiter stopped by their table, unaware of the tension among the three of them. Or he was ignoring it. "May I offer you any other beverages besides water?"
"Scotch, neat," Gary said, voice clipped, not even bothering to offer that the ladies order first.
"Coffee, please," Julianne said. “Cream and sugar.”
"Just water for me. I won't be here long."
The waiter nodded and left the three of them alone.
"Won't be here long?" Gary said, his lips pursed. "You cancelled my lunch date just so you 'won't be here long?'"
"That's exactly what I did. Just like all those times you cancelled whatever plans I had made just because you could. Just like you came to Washington and ruined my vacation, just because you could."
"Allison," Julianne started, her voice hard.
"I'm not finished," Allie said, turning her gaze to her mother, trying to keep her voice low. Steady. Then she turned back to Gary. "I’m here to tell you to leave me alone."
"But hon—"
"No." Allie cut him off. "You don't get to call me that. You don't get to touch me. You don't even get to talk to me. Not anymore. I obviously can't stop whatever you and my mother have been up to, but I can say that I'm not playing anymore."
"What has gotten into you, Allison Blanchard?" Julianne snapped.
"A backbone," Allie answered simply. "And stop interrupting, it's rude."
Julianne gaped. Allie had to press her lips together to keep the smile from spreading.
"Gary," she continued, then paused as the waiter brought Gary and Julianne their drinks. When he tried
to ask what they might like for lunch, Allie cut him off with a look and said, "We'll let you know." He retreated.
"Gary, I'm done. This game. Your actions. All of it. It's over. It was over when I found you with the maid. It was over when we signed those divorce papers. I'm not yours to control. Believe it or not, I'm my own person. I have a say in what I do with my life. And that will not include you. Do I make myself clear?"
A Delivered Heart Page 16
