“It’s fine.” Was it? “So, um . . . w-what are you doing here? Is everything okay?”
I could feel his eyes on me, penetrating deep, like he was trying to see inside my head at everything I was thinking and feeling. “Can we talk?”
At some point, Roscoe had heard my voice and was currently barking like crazy, so I gave him a little nod and started up the steps. “Sure. Come on in. I need to let Roscoe out.”
He stayed a few steps back as I unlocked the door and pushed it open. I was hit by my little ball of fur the second I stepped through the door. “Hey buddy,” I cooed, bending to scratch behind his ears. “You need outside? Come on, let’s go outside, yeah?”
He started dancing around as I dropped my purse and hung my keys on the hook by the door. I looked back at Leo, asking, “Um, do you . . . would you like something to drink?” At one point I’d felt safe and secure with this man, free to be myself in every way. But standing in front of him now, I’d never felt more awkward or unsure of myself.
“Okay.”
I started down the hall with Leo and Roscoe following behind me on the way to the kitchen. Once I let Roscoe out, I moved to the cabinet and got a glass, filling it with water, and handing it off to Leo.
To keep my hands busy, therefore hiding the fact they were starting to tremble, I moved around the island to my wineglasses, pulling one down and filling it with the Cabernet I’d opened the night before, doing all of this while keeping my back to him and trying to shake off the nerves that had taken hold of me.
When I finally found the courage to turn back and face him, what I saw made me pause in my tracks. I’d seen Leo mad, I’d seen him happy, I’d seen the full gamut of emotions from this man, or at least I thought I had. But I’d never seen him like this. With his hands braced on the counter, his head was hung low as he stared down into the glass of water I’d just given him and he looked . . . crushed. That was the only word I could think of to describe him just then.
“Leo?” I started hesitantly. “Are you okay?”
He didn’t answer directly. Instead, he did it by saying, “I had to tell Sidney Callo that her husband wasn’t ever coming home. I had to sit across from her, in the house they’d made a home together, and watch as the life they’d built crumbled around her. And I felt fucking helpless.”
Placing my glass on the counter, I rounded the island, stopping less than a foot from him. “Leo, I’m so sorry. I know you’re feeling it now, but you’ll find the person who killed Darrin. I have complete faith in you and Micah.”
He lifted his head, pain radiating in his hazel eyes. “It’s not just that.”
My brows slammed down in confusion. “What is it, then?”
“She lost her husband, and that’s a kind of pain that will stay with her forever, but she had happiness, and there’ll come a day when she’s able to look back and remember that. She had more in twenty-five years than I’ve had in thirty-six. I was married. I had kids. Hardin and Macie give me a kind of joy I’ve never imagined, but there has always been that darkness lingering in the background that I can’t escape. I love them with everything I am. But I’ve never had happiness like she had. Not really.”
My heart was tearing apart for him, hearing his pain. I took a step closer, reaching out to place my hand on his arm, but he wasn’t finished.
“Not until I met you.”
My whole body locked. My hand stopped, freezing in midair as my eyes widened and my lips parted on a tiny gasp. My heart started beating so hard it rattled my chest.
My body might have been frozen, but Leo’s wasn’t. He pushed off the island and turned to me, placing his hands on either side of my neck and running his thumbs along my jaw. “That month I had with you was the happiest I’ve ever been.”
“Don’t,” I whispered, that burn returning to my eyes. I tried pulling back, but he held firm.
“Hurting you is the worst thing I’ve ever done. It’s the one thing I regret the most, baby. Because I took something good, something fuckin’ spectacular, and ruined it. Ending us was the biggest mistake I’ve ever made. I knew it then, but today, watching Sidney and her girls . . .” He closed his eyes against the pain, giving his head a shake before returning his gaze to mine. “I had what she did, but it wasn’t taken from me. I threw it away. But I’ll do anything to get it back, Danika.”
I reached up and grabbed his wrists, forcing them down and taking a step back, my chest tightening. “It doesn’t work like that, Leo.” I looked away exasperatedly, raking a hand through my hair. “You can’t just come here and apologize and expect everything to go back to the way it was. It’s not about words. It’s actions that matter, and it’s actions that prove a man’s worth.”
“Then tell me what to do,” he said emphatically. “Just name it. Whatever it is, I’ll do it. I just want you back, baby. I need you back.”
I looked at him, feeling the sadness pulling the muscles in my face into a frown. “I can’t do that.”
He nodded. “Okay. I get it. I understand. I just . . .” He blew out a heavy breath, reaching up to rub at the back of his neck. “I’ll prove I can make you happy, I swear. All I ask is that you give me the chance to show you. Can you do that, honey? Just a chance.”
There was a part of me screaming to say no, telling me the potential pain wasn’t worth the risk. But another part of me, a much bigger part, was almost desperate to give him that chance. In the end, that was the part that won out.
“Okay,” I whispered seconds later.
His whole body sagged with relief, and when he gave me that straight, white smile, I felt something inside me begin to melt.
“Thank you, sweetness.” He closed the distance I’d just put between us, taking my cheeks in his hands and leaning in to press his forehead against mine. “I promise you won’t regret this. I won’t ever ask for another shot, because I’m gonna make this one count, you have my word.”
I grabbed his wrists again, this time not to remove his hands, but to hold on as I let his promise sink in, feeling every emotion from hope all the way down to fear race through me like my veins were the track at the Indy 500. Hope was winning out, and that scared me to death because it meant the potential for having my heart crushed all over again had just increased exponentially.
He pulled back to press his lips to my forehead before letting me go and taking a step back. “I won’t take up any more of your time,” he said, soft and tender. “But we’ll talk soon, sweetness.”
With that, he turned and headed for the front door, leaving me reeling.
When I’d woken the next morning and saw I already had a text on my phone from Leo, telling me to have a good day, I couldn’t control the flip my heart did or stop the bubbles that had suddenly formed in my belly from bursting.
I’d spent the morning fighting my smile as I got ready for work and headed into the shop. I managed to lose myself in my work, spending the first few hours back in the kitchen, baking up a storm, only to have Candace peek her head inside shortly before lunch, smiling at me like a Cheshire cat as she announced, “Dani, you’re needed up front.”
I wiped my hands on a dish towel and slung it over my shoulder before following her out to the front of the shop. The first thing I noticed was the eerie silence. I looked around at all the customers curiously, noticing several of them were wearing the same grin as Candace. Then I heard, “Danika Parrish?”
My head whipped around, and I finally saw what had everyone in Muffin Top looking so damn giddy. The man holding a massive bouquet of flowers ducked around the arrangement. “I need you to sign for these.”
I moved to the counter woodenly, reaching for the clipboard and scrawled my name across the bottom.
“Thanks,” the man said, depositing the vase on the ledge in front of me. “Enjoy the rest of your day.”
I plucked the little white card from the holder and flipped it over to read. Thinking of you as always. Hope you’re having a good day. Yours, Leo
&nbs
p; Candace sidled up beside me, bumping her shoulder against mine. “Looks like someone’s making a serious statement.”
I didn’t say anything in return, too busy staring at the arrangement of peonies and hydrangeas in awe. He’s picked my favorite flowers. Not because I told him, but because he’d payed attention during those times he’d been at my place. He saw the vases I had set up all around my house, and he’d noticed of the kind of flowers I bought to put in them.
Oh wow.
“If those are an apology,” the woman standing in front of the register, waiting to order, started, “I say forgive him. If they’re just for the hell of it, I say go home and climb that man like Everest.”
I offered her a smile as everyone around started to laugh, grabbed the huge vase, and moved through the kitchen doors, going straight to my office. I set it down on my desk, moving back a step to take them in for a few more seconds before pulling my phone out and navigating to my texts.
Me: The flowers are beautiful. Thank you.
I wasn’t sure when he’d get a chance to reply, considering how tense things were at work, but those little bubbles popped up on the screen a second later.
Leo: Not as beautiful as you, baby. But I’m glad you like them.
I stuffed my phone back into my apron and headed back to the kitchen, but this time I didn’t try to hide my smile.
In the days that followed Leo’s declaration, he’d gone out of his way to prove he’d meant every word he said. He stopped into the shop as often as he could, making it known he wasn’t keeping us a secret by leaning over the bar to place a short, chaste kiss on my lips every time.
I knew he’d told his kids what was happening, because when he’d call at night, there was no whispering on his part, and I could hear them in the background loud and clear. There were even times Hardin or Macie would shout at him to tell me hello.
But what clenched it for me was what happened the following Saturday. I’d been working in the kitchen at Muffin Top when the sound of power tools coming from out back snapped through the air, making us all stop.
When I pushed through the heavy industrial door that led to the back of the building I saw Hardin and Leo screwing together pieces of wood.
I yelled their names, but they couldn’t hear me over the whirring of the drill. Changing tactics, I started waving my hands in the air to catch their attention. Hardin’s head came up and the drilling immediately stopped. “Oh, hey Dani. Don’t worry about the noise. This shouldn’t take us long.”
“And what exactly is this?” I asked on a laugh.
Leo stood from his crouched position, wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. “Hey, sweetness,” he murmured, coming close and leaning in to place a kiss on my lips. “Good day so far?”
My lips pulled up in a grin. “It has been, yes. Now it’s your turn to answer my question.”
“We’re buildin’ a pen for Roscoe,” he said casually, oblivious to the fact that his admission just slammed into me like a wrecking ball. “I know you hired that dog walker, but I also know you don’t like bein’ away from him for so long, so we’re buildin’ him a place where he can hang close by while you’re workin’.”
“You . . .” It took several seconds, maybe even a minute, to wrap my head around what he just said. “You’re building a pen?”
“Yeah.”
“For Roscoe?”
He smirked and my insides melted completely. “Yes, honey.”
“You’re building a pen for Roscoe because you know I want him with me,” I said on a whisper, feeling those words, his actions, all of it, down to my soul. The hope I’d been keeping a vise-grip on for the past few days wiggled free and bloomed so big and so fast, it took me over.
His whole expression turned gentle as he hooked his arm around my waist and pulled me against him. “I take it from your face you like that?”
“No, honey,” I continued to whisper, leaning in and placing my hands on his chest. My lips pulled high and my nose scrunched in that way it did whenever I got that goofy smile on my face. “I love that.”
“Jesus,” he grunted, his second arm joining the first and holding on tight. “Jesus,” he repeated, sounding like he was in pain.
“What?”
“You just gave me honey back,” he said, rocking my world. Then he continued to shake its very foundation. “Didn’t realize givin’ you this would earn me back my smile, but I’m over the fuckin’ moon it did. Knew I missed it, but didn’t realize just how bad until this very second.”
He leaned in, pressing his lips against mine and speaking in a low, raspy voice. “Missed you, sweetness. More than you know.”
Oh God. I was going to cry. I managed to fight back the girly tears and gave him a wobbly grin.
“Think you guys could quit makin’ out for like two seconds so we can get this done?” Hardin called out. “Dani, I’m glad you’re givin’ my dad a second chance, but I really don’t need to see that. I think I’m gonna be sick.”
I tossed my head back on a laugh, clinging to Leo as I did. All the while, letting that happiness rush right through me.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Danika
Macie dipped the last éclair into the chocolate glaze and set it on the wire rack next to the others. Stepping back, she tilted her head from side to side, examining her work closely before looking to me and asking, “What do you think? Do they look okay?”
“I think they look amazing.” I wasn’t just saying that to make her feel good. They truly were exceptional, especially for her first time. There were some people who learned to bake through trial and error, and there were some who just had a gift. The more time I spent with Macie, it had become clearer to me that she fell into the latter category. “The first time I made these, the choux pastry fell flat and my cream separated. They were totally inedible.”
Her beautiful face lit with excitement. “So I did good?”
“You did incredible, sweetheart. Why don’t you get your brother? He’s gonna love these.”
She bolted out of the kitchen toward the front door.
I grabbed a handful of the dirty dishes and moved to the sink to start washing when Leo came up behind me, pressing his chest to my back as he rested his hands on my hips. “I love watchin’ you and Macie do your thing together. She lights up every time you give her a compliment.”
I snagged the dishtowel hanging off the sink and dried my hands before spinning around and looping my arms around his neck. “Your daughter is talented, honey. She’s capable of doing things most people can’t accomplish without schooling.”
His head jerked back a bit, his eyes filling with surprise and warmth. “Really?”
“Yeah, really.”
“Hardin!” we heard shouted from outside. My eyes drifted to the window as Macie continued to shout. “Hardin get in here. I have a surprise for you.”
I giggled and shook my head before looking back at my man. “How was dinner?”
Today was Hardin’s official birthday, so the three of them had gone out for dinner at the restaurant of Hardin’s choosing. Hardin had made a point to invite me to join them, but I bowed out so he could have his dad and sister to himself. Leo and I had been together officially for a week. The kids knew, and they seemed to be okay with it, but I was being cautious. Hardin had been hurt the first time, and while the truth was out and there were no secrets, I was mindful to keep an eye on him this time around. I didn’t want to overstep or set us back in any way. I cared too much about him to risk hurting him again.
“It went well. Hardin really enjoyed it. Especially when I handed over the keys to his new ride.”
“I bet,” I said on a laugh. The used Honda Leo had gotten him didn’t have any bells and whistles, but it was safe and drove perfectly. None of that other stuff mattered to his son anyway. He was a newly minted sixteen-year old with a set of wheels, so he was in heaven. I’d been at Leo’s a little over two hours already, and Hardin had be
en out in the driveway, messing around with his car that entire time, he was so excited.
We heard the front door open and stepped apart, but not completely. Leo shifted us both to face the opening that led to the entryway and looped his arm around my shoulders as we waited for the kids to appear.
Hardin spotted his surprise the instant he stepped into the kitchen. His eyes went big as he took in the éclairs before coming to me and asking quietly, “You made those for me?”
“Not me, honey. This was all Macie. All I did was supervise. She wanted to make you something special for your birthday.”
“I know it’s not a cake like you usually have,” his sister started hesitantly, “but I wanted to make you your favorite dessert. And we’re still having cake at your party, so I figured this would be okay.”
Hardin shifted his astonished gaze to his little sister. “Are you kiddin’? This is awesome!” He hooked her around the neck and pulled her into a playful headlock, dragging her over to the counter so he could snatch one of the pastries up and bite in clean in half. A second later, with his mouth full, he looked at Macie and declared, “These are amazing!”
Leo’s cell started to ring as the two of them began laying waste to the éclairs, so when he pulled it out and looked to the screen, muttering, “Gotta take this. Be right back,” I didn’t hesitate to join the kids at the counter so I could get one before they were all gone.
“You really screwed up now,” Hardin spoke to Macie, crumbs flying out of his mouth as he continued eating and talking. “Now I’m gonna make you bake these for every special occasion. That includes Flag Day and Groundhog Day. You’re gonna make so many éclairs, you’ll be sick of them, but I won’t care. I’ll still make you do it.”
Something moved through my chest, something warm and happy as I watched Macie light up under her big brother’s praise.
“Since you like these so much, we’ll stay in the same category for the next lesson, and I’ll teach Macie to make cream puffs.” They both made their approval of that known with enthusiastic nods before going back to decimating the desserts lined up on the counter.
Waiting for Forever (Hope Valley Book 8) Page 19
