Please Don't Say Goodbye (Summer Lake Seasons Book 7)

by SJ McCoy

  He checked the clock on the dash. He’d only killed five minutes. He got out of the truck and went into the convenience store on the corner. He could get something for Skye—and something for Elle, too. If he could figure out what. He stood there looking at the candy. He didn’t even know if Elle let Skye have candy. It was probably a bad idea. He wandered along the aisle until he came to the magazines. That gave him an idea. Kiara, one of his nieces, used to get a coloring magazine every week when she was about Skye’s age. He spotted one with a picture of a duck on the cover and picked it up with a smile—he knew she loved ducks.

  He stopped at the candy again as he made his way back to the cash register. Elle probably didn’t eat much of the stuff guessing by her slim figure. But he just didn’t know.

  He turned at the sound of someone clearing their throat beside him. “Slacking on your workouts and eating candy? And I had high hopes for you.” Russ, who owned the gym, was standing there giving him a stern look.

  He laughed. “It’s not for me. And I’m planning to get back in to see you next week. Things have been crazy at work.”

  Russ chuckled. “I’m only pulling your leg. I was just surprised that we haven’t seen much of you after you joined. I thought you’d become one of my regulars.”

  “I plan to. I need to. I’ve been missing my workouts, but I’ve been all in at work, getting things set up. We’ve finally got to a place where we can breathe now. I’m not just saying it. I’ll be in next week.”

  Russ nodded and eyed the coloring book he was holding. “I’m guessing that’s not for you any more than the candy is?”

  Donovan looked down at it and then back up at the older guy. “Ah. Err. No.”

  Russ raised his eyebrows and waited.

  Donovan didn’t want to tell him. He’d learned fast about the way the small-town grapevine worked. He liked Russ, but he knew that Elle’s mom, Teresa, worked out with him a couple times a week. And he didn’t know if Elle had told her about this afternoon.

  “Is it supposed to be a secret?”

  Donovan shrugged. “Not exactly.”

  “I’m glad you don’t think it’s supposed to be because I can tell you that it isn’t. The magazine’s for Skye.” He smiled, and Donovan relaxed a little. “And if you’re trying to figure out what candy you should get for Elle …” He turned and looked at the display, then smiled as he picked up a giant Twix and handed it to him. “She always loved these things when she was a kid.”

  Donovan took it with a smile. “Thanks. I didn’t know. I don’t know …” He met Russ’s gaze. “I don’t know much of anything.”

  Russ’s smile faded. “Then I’ll tell you. She’s had a rough go. She’s a sweetheart. And her mom is one of my oldest friends. I’ve known Elle since she was born. I remember when she was just like Skye is now.” He laughed. “A precocious little madam with blonde curls and big eyes. She has a big heart, and she’s too trusting.” He gave Donovan a stern look. “You strike me as being trustworthy, but I’ll tell you now; if you don’t plan to be good to her, if you’re just looking for something quick and easy … Then you turn right around and go home. Leave her be. I’d tell you that I’ll kick your ass if you hurt her. But I won’t need to. We both know who’ll give you even more of a whooping.”

  Donovan nodded. “Yes, sir. I’m not … I don’t …” Damn. He didn’t need to be stammering like an idiot. He straightened his shoulders and looked Russ in the eye. “She doesn’t know it yet, but I’m serious about her. You said she’s too trusting, and maybe she used to be, but that rough go you were talking about has taught her to be wary. I’m hoping that I can earn her trust—and I intend to take it slowly. I understand how it is for her, especially with her having Skye. So, I’m going to take my time and do it right.”

  He could feel the heat in his cheeks when Russ smiled at him. He hadn’t needed to say all that—to explain himself—but he was glad he had, for his sake as well as Russ’s. He’d been trying not to wonder too hard about what he thought he was doing. Now the words were out. He was serious about her. That might be a little premature, and possibly even crazy, but he was—if she’d let him be.

  Russ grasped his shoulder. “I wouldn’t have given you the Twix if I didn’t already think you were a good ‘un. But I’m glad you had the balls to set me straight.”

  Donovan let out an embarrassed laugh. “Thanks. I’m glad you pushed me.”

  “Yeah, me too. Now we both know. Anyway, I need to go.”

  Donovan looked at his watch, it was four-thirty already. “So do I!”

  Russ laughed and stepped aside. “After you. You don’t want to keep her waiting.”

  ~ ~ ~

  “Dondervan’s here!” shouted Skye.

  Elle went hurrying to the living room, to find her standing on the sofa. “Get down.”

  “Sorry, Mommy.” Skye climbed down and went running to the front door.

  Elle ran her fingers through her hair as she followed. She couldn’t believe it was four-thirty already. She should have told him five. But she’d been so eager to see him.

  Skye reached up for the doorknob, but Elle frowned at her. “Err, are you allowed to open the front door?”

  “No.”

  “Then don’t!”

  “But … Dondervan!”

  Elle tried to hide her smile. “Will knock on the door any minute now and then I will open it. You don’t open it, Skye. You know that.”

  “But you’re with me.”

  Elle blew out a sigh. She didn’t want to get into an argument about it—not now.

  They smiled at each other when the knock came. Skye bounced up and down. “Let him in, Mommy!”

  Elle opened the door and felt the air rush out of her lungs at the sight of him.

  “Hey.”

  Shivers chased each other down her spine at the sound of his voice and the way his big brown eyes shone as they looked into hers.

  “Dondervan!” Skye broke the moment as she threw herself at his legs, wrapping her arms around his knees. “I missed you, Dondervan.”

  “I missed you, too, Skye.”

  Elle marveled at the way he squatted down in front of her, and she wrapped her little arms around his neck. If anyone had asked before they came back to the lake, Elle would have said that her daughter was nervous around men. Now, she knew just how untrue that was. She’d accepted Cal into her life almost immediately. She hadn’t known him long, but she loved him already—and called him Grandpa. Now, it seemed that she was forming the same kind of attachment to Donovan.

  Her heart felt as though it might melt in her chest when he stood back up with Skye still clinging to his neck, giggling.

  He smiled at Elle and swung his head from side to side. “Have you seen Skye?”

  Elle laughed as she watched them.

  “I’m here!” Skye giggled.

  He spun all the way around. “I can hear her, but I can’t see her.”

  “I’m here, Dondervan!” She laughed and reached up to grab his nose, forcing him to look down at her.

  “Oh. There you are!”

  She was still laughing. “You’re silly.”

  He nodded. “I am. It’s good to be silly sometimes.” He met Elle’s gaze as he spoke.

  The look in his eyes made her feel as though he knew. He couldn’t, but it felt like he did. Tristan had never played with Skye like that. He hadn’t played with her at all, if she was honest.

  She smiled at him. “It is. Come on in. Do you want a drink?”

  He followed her through to the kitchen still carrying Skye, who was pawing at his face.

  “What’s in there?” Skye asked when he set a plastic bag on the counter.

  Donovan shrugged. “Maybe something, maybe nothing.”

  Elle raised an eyebrow at him, but he shrugged again. “We’ll have to wait and see.”

  “Okay. Skye, will you go and get your cup from the living room for me?”

  Donovan set her down and she ran off.


  “Do you want a …?” Elle’s words trailed off as she looked up at him. His full lips were smiling at her, and she couldn’t help but wonder again about how it would feel to kiss them.

  “A …?” he asked with a smirk. “If you’re about to offer a hug then, yes, please.” He held both hands out to her and her heart raced. She shouldn’t, she didn’t think it was a good idea for Skye to come back and see them hugging but … she took hold of his hands and let him draw her closer.

  Her breath caught in her chest when she looked up at him. She wasn’t sure if it was just his looks, or if it was the way being this close to him made her feel. He closed his arms around her, and she rested her cheek against his chest. It was just a hug. Friends did that. It was okay. Except, he was already more than a friend. She didn’t know what he was, or what he might become, but he was more than just a friend.

  She could feel his heart hammering in his chest, it was a fast steady thump that synced with her own. She closed her eyes and just breathed him in. He felt good, he smelled good, and he calmed her somehow. He made her feel as though everything was right with the world, that nothing could ever be wrong while he was here. She swallowed. She’d been reading too many sappy romance novels, apparently.

  Her eyes closed again when he dropped a kiss on the top of her head. Her mom and Cal did that to Skye all the time, but Donovan doing it to her didn’t make her feel like a little girl. It made her feel like a woman; a woman who was cherished by a decent man. Yeah. She needed to start reading thrillers or something. She stepped away from him. He’d be horrified if he could hear what she was thinking.

  Then again, maybe not. He looked sad. “I’m sorry, I …”

  “No.” She went right back to him and closed her arms around him again. Relaxing when his arms came up to hold her closer. “I’m sorry. I panicked.”

  “Why?”

  She looked up into his eyes. “Because I was getting carried away.”

  He shook his head. “Still not following.”

  She blew out a sigh. “You’re a good guy, Donovan.”

  His smile was back. “I’m glad you think so. You know I intend to prove to you that I am.”

  “You’re too good for me.”

  His smile disappeared and his arms tightened. “Nope. Don’t give me that. It’s not true, and you know it.”

  “It is though. You’re a great guy. You’re kind and decent, you have a great job, and you’re …” What the hell? She might as well say it. “Gorgeous. And—”

  “Hold on a minute. Rewind a bit. What was that last one?”

  She smiled through pursed lips. “You heard me.”

  “I think I did, but I’d love to hear you say it again.”

  “You’re gorgeous. And don’t go trying to make out that you haven’t heard that before.”

  “Not from you, I haven’t.” He was grinning and swaying her from side to side as he looked down into her eyes.

  “No, but I’m sure you’ve heard it from lots of girls. Because you are. And my point is that you’re a great catch for some girl. And you’ll have lots of them to choose from. Lots of free, single girls.”

  He narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you saying I can have my choice of girls—any girl I want?”

  She nodded sadly. He could and they both knew it. There was no point in him wasting time with her. Of course, she was attracted to him, but he’d make it way too easy to fall into bed with him, and she’d only regret that when he moved on.

  “If I can have any girl I want, then I want you.”

  A flash of heat raced through her veins and settled between her legs. She wanted him, too. But …

  He lowered his head so that his eyes were just a few inches from hers. “I don’t mean it like that.” He chuckled. “Well, of course I do. But I don’t just mean like that. I mean if I get to have any girl I choose in my life, then I choose you—and Skye,” he added as he stepped back.

  Elle hadn’t heard her coming, but Skye appeared in the doorway at that moment. She walked in between them and reached up to set her cup on the counter. She always did that, even though it was too high for her to reach. She just knew that Elle would take it. This time she didn’t get the chance to.

  Donovan picked her up so that she could set it down herself, then lifted her up high above his head, making her giggle.

  “Do you want to read Benji Mouse?”

  He looked over at Elle. She loved the way he did that before he answered. It felt like he understood that there were implications to everything you said to Skye—and he didn’t want to screw up and make things difficult if Elle needed to contradict him.

  “We’re going to make our drinks first, sweetie. Then I thought you wanted to do some coloring.”

  “Oh!” Skye’s eyes widened. “Yes!” She looked up at Donovan. “Do you have crayons?”

  To Elle’s surprise, he nodded. “I do. You can share.”

  Skye grinned at him. “You can share mine, too!”

  Elle laughed as she watched her daughter run to the dining room where she kept her coloring books. Once she’d gone, she looked back at Donovan. “You brought crayons?”

  He picked up the plastic bag and brought out a coloring book and a huge box of crayons. “I knew she liked to draw. And … I saw the magazine when I was in the store.”

  “Thank you so much!” She had to swallow around the stupid lump in her throat. He was amazing.

  “You’re welcome.” He looked down into the bag and then back up into her eyes with a smirk on his face.

  “What else is in there?”

  He laughed. “I might not want to tell.”

  The first place her mind went to was that he might have brought condoms. She closed her eyes in an attempt to block out the memories. Tristan used to come home drunk and wave a packet of them at her. He hated to wear them but there was no way she’d have sex with him without one. Skye wasn’t planned, and Elle had gone on the pill after she was born, but she suspected that he’d been sleeping around while she was pregnant. There was no way she wanted to have another child with him, or worse, catch something that he picked up.

  When she opened her eyes again, Donovan was watching her. “I will tell, if it upsets you that much.”

  “It’s not … I don’t …”

  He put his hand on her shoulder, sending another wave of heat rushing through her. His eyes were full of concern and his smile was so gentle. “It’s okay. I promise it’s nothing to be scared of.”

  She nodded. “I’m not scared.”

  “You looked terrified.”

  “Oh, sorry.” She felt stupid. She forced herself to smile. “Are you going to show me what’s in there?”

  He pulled out a giant Twix with a flourish and presented it to her. “For you.”

  Her hand came up to cover her mouth. “Aww! Thank you. That’s so sweet of you. How did you know?”

  “Know what?” He tried to look innocent, but he didn’t pull it off.

  She laughed. “I thought you were supposed to be honest with me.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Okay then, you got me. I was standing in the store, clutching Skye’s magazine, trying to figure out what candy you might like when I ran into Russ.”

  “And you told him you were coming over here?” She didn’t mind, she wouldn’t broadcast the fact that he was coming to see her, but she had no doubts that someone would see his truck outside tonight and put two and two together and set the grapevine humming.

  His smile faded. “I’m sorry. I didn’t tell him, but he guessed.”

  “It’s okay.” She touched his arm. “There’s no way to keep anything a secret around here.”

  “I gathered that much.”

  “And you don’t mind?”

  He gave her a puzzled look.

  “You don’t mind that … what … what people will assume?”

  He didn’t give her any help. He still looked puzzled.

  “That people will assume that we’re toget
her.”

  He chuckled. “Why would I mind? You know that’s what I want. If everyone else in town starts saying that’s what’s going on, maybe at some point you’ll believe them.”

  She had to smile. He looked so pleased with himself. “I don’t know …” Was she crazy? He was a great guy. He liked Skye, and Skye liked him. He’d been open and honest with her. He wasn’t just trying to get her into bed. Even she could admit that if that were all he wanted, he’d find it much more easily elsewhere.

  “I know you don’t.” He smiled. “And you can take all the time you need to figure it out. There’s no pressure, Elle. I can be patient. I don’t mind waiting.” He swaggered his shoulders, making her laugh. “I know you won’t be able to resist me forever. I’m a great guy.”

  She slapped his arm. “I never said you weren’t. I just—”

  “Don’t.” He put a finger to her lips. “You don’t need to explain. You just don’t trust me yet. And that’s fine. We should go and see where Skye got to with her crayons.”

  Elle glanced over her shoulder with a frown. He was right. They should.

  Chapter Eight

  Donovan looked around when he got out of his truck the next morning. He could only hope that people wouldn’t see it back again and assume that it had been parked here all night. It hadn’t. He blew out a sigh. He’d been a man of his word last night. In fact, he guessed that he’d been truer to his word about being a gentleman than Elle would have liked. The three of them had hung out and done some coloring and then watched one of Skye’s favorite movies that she’d insisted he had to see. He’d seen it a hundred times with his nieces, but he hadn’t told her that. Just before eight o’clock, he’d read her story about Benji Mouse. And then, he’d said goodnight—not just to Skye, but to Elle, too. He’d left so that Skye could go to bed. Elle had said he could stay, assured him that it wouldn’t take long to settle her in, but he’d left anyway. He’d had to. He hadn’t trusted himself to stick around and not kiss her. There’d been several moments throughout the evening when it would have been all too easy. Elle had kind of expected it, too, he could tell. But he’d told her he wasn’t going to rush her and the only way he could stick with that was to leave.