by SJ McCoy
He’d tried to manage her life without truly being a part of it. She’d stayed with her aunt and uncle—his brother Johnny and his wife—whenever she could. They had three boys, her cousins. They were better able to supply her emotional needs than he’d been. He couldn’t even handle his own.
He blew out a sigh. She’d once told him that she wished he cared as much about being close to her as he did about being in charge of her. It hurt so much because it was true. He couldn’t bear to allow himself to be close to her. He’d tried to orchestrate her life so that she was cared for and provided for—and so that he didn’t have to look into her eyes every day. Her eyes were the same as her mothers, and every time he looked into them, he saw his own pain mirrored there. He’d failed them both.
He gave himself a shake and went back inside. All of that was behind them now. Hope was her mother’s daughter. She had a big heart, and she’d forgiven him for all his mistakes. She’d been much kinder to him than he’d been to himself.
He closed the door behind him and went to sit at the dining room table, where he opened up his laptop.
It was strange how things worked out. He and Hope had grown close when she met Chance. And Seymour’s initial intention had been to run Chance out of her life.
Now, because of Chance, they were here in Summer Lake, and it seemed to Seymour that his life was about to move into a new chapter—if he was ready to let it.
He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and took out Kate’s picture. She smiled back at him—so beautiful, so young. She’d been gone such a long time. He smiled at her. “You can stop looking at me like that now. You told me before you went that I had to find someone new. I told you it’d take a long time and someone very special. I wasn’t wrong, Kate, but I think I might be there now.”
~ ~ ~
Chris sat down at the kitchen counter and pulled the bag toward her. She couldn’t help smiling as she opened it and saw the cookies. Who would have thought that the formidable Seymour Davenport was a secret cookie baker? She went and poured herself a glass of milk to go with them.
She groaned when she bit into one. It was wonderful. That didn’t surprise her. He was one of those men who seemed to be good at everything he did. Baking cookies might be outside his comfort zone, but she couldn’t imagine him screwing it up.
She pulled her phone out of her purse and took a photo of them with the glass of milk beside them and sent it to him.
I knew I was in for a treat tonight. Thank you.
She smiled when his reply came almost instantly
You’re most welcome. But you know that wasn’t the treat I had in mind.
She laughed. It wasn’t what she’d had in mind either, but she was kind of glad it had worked out this way. If he’d come back here with her, they would have gone to bed together, and their friendship would have changed. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to go to bed with him or for their friendship to take the next step, but she was enjoying the anticipation. They were getting to know each other better first. In her experience, once sex was part of the equation, things changed. Men tended to fall into two camps, the first kind stuck around while the sex was new and exciting, then drifted away after a while, dates and phone calls becoming fewer and further between. The second kind was scarier; she thought of them as the needy ones. Once you had sex with a needy guy, they wanted to spend more and more time with you and started to treat you like their mom. Maybe in their minds, that was how relationships worked—old school, traditional gender role relationships, that was. Chris wanted nothing to do with that kind of thing. She was a free agent and a free spirit. She valued her independence, and she valued a strong, independent man. She had no intention of trading cooking and cleaning for financial support—or anything else, for that matter.
That was her one hesitation with Seymour. He’d admitted a few times to being old school in his views. Granted, he hadn’t shown any kind of sexism or even shown that he was a traditionalist when it came to gender roles, but still. In everything else, he seemed almost too good to be true. So, it wouldn’t surprise her if, once they slept together, he transformed into a needy guy. That would be a shame, but she was a practical soul, and she knew it was a distinct possibility.
She tapped out a message. That was why she planned to enjoy this initial phase of their friendship as much as she could—just in case it came to a crashing halt once things got physical.
It wasn’t what I had in mind either. But I can make do. For now.
She wondered how he’d respond to that. She didn’t have to wait long to find out.
I don’t think I’m going to be able to make you wait too much longer.
She smiled.
Good. I don’t want to.
You don’t?
Yes and no.
Why no?
Because it might spoil things.
That’s what I’m afraid of too.
You’re afraid?
Honestly? Yes.
Why?
Because right now, I feel so hopeful. Everything is possible. If we screw it up, then that hope dies.
You’d rather live in hope and never know?
Not never.
For a little bit longer then.
A little bit. How about you?
I’ve been thinking the same thing. When we take that step, everything changes. It either gets even better, or it all falls apart.
We could be cowards and never cross that line, so we never find out.
What, just live in anticipation and never …?
Forget I said that. Never isn’t an option.
Phew!
He didn’t reply to that, and she waited, wondering if this conversation had been a bad idea. Maybe they shouldn’t be talking about it all in advance. Maybe it’d be better to stick with her usual MO of playing it by ear. She couldn’t help feeling that this was right. She liked that they each felt comfortable enough to talk about it. She didn’t want to talk so much that they took the magic away, but this made her feel closer to him. They were figuring it out together, not staying in their own heads and trying to figure it out from there.
She jumped when the phone rang in her hand, and she smiled when she saw his name on the display.
“Hey.”
“Hey. I wanted to hear your voice.”
She laughed. “Do you want me to talk dirty to you?”
He laughed with her. “That’s okay. I can wait on that, too.”
“You might be waiting a very long time. That’s not a talent of mine.”
He was quiet for a moment. A shiver ran down her spine when he spoke again. “I can teach you if you like.”
“Ooh! Yes, please! Wait, are you joking with me?”
He laughed. “I guess you’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?”
She chuckled. “You’re making the waiting option sound less and less appealing all the time.”
“Maybe I’m just teasing.”
“If you are, you’re very good at it. Though you might regret it on Saturday night.” He didn’t reply, but she could tell straight away that she’d said something wrong. “What?”
“I can’t go on Saturday night. Hope asked me to watch Dylan. I’m sorry.”
“Oh, my goodness, don’t be sorry. Evenings with grandbabies come before anything else. I understand that completely.”
“Thank you. Since that was going to be our next date, I called to ask what else you’d like to do and when. Maybe tomorrow?”
She smiled. “I’ll be finished at the center at three.”
“Do you want to do something then or wait until the evening?”
“I don’t want to wait if you don’t. You can meet me in the bakery just after three if you want. Did you bring your hiking boots?”
“I did.”
“Good. You should wear them. And don’t worry about Ivan; I’ll drive.”
“Okay.”
“Okay. I’m going to go finish my cookies now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
/>
“Goodnight, Chris.”
“Goodnight.”
Chapter Eight
“Call me if you need anything, won’t you?” said Hope.
Seymour smiled at Chance. “You’d think that she’d trust me with him by now, wouldn’t you?”
Chance laughed. “I’m not entirely sure she trusts me with him.” He hugged his son close to his chest and then nuzzled his face into his belly, making him laugh and wave his arms.
Hope pursed her lips. “Of course, I trust you. I just question your wisdom in getting him all wound up like that before you hand him over to Dad.”
Chance grinned at Seymour and handed Dylan over. He wrapped his little fingers around Seymour’s nose and giggled.
“We’re fine, see?” said Seymour. “He’s investigating my nose, then, when you two finally get out of here and leave us in peace, we’re going to play with the blocks.”
“I know you’re fine with him, really. I suppose I’m just feeling guilty that I messed up your night out with Chris.”
“You didn’t mess up anything. We’ve seen each other plenty. We’ve been hiking, been out for dinner and for coffee, walked on the beach. And we’ve got the whole week left before I leave. She even suggested we should go four-wheeler riding—though I’m not sure if she was joking about that.”
Chance laughed. “My money says she’s serious. Chris knows how to have fun; she’s always up for anything.”
Seymour smiled at Hope. “So, you can relax. You might be doing me a favor giving me a night in to rest.”
“Didn’t she want to come over?”
He frowned. “It didn’t occur to me to ask her. I love watching Dylan but I wouldn’t have thought it’d sound like a fun date.”
“Oh, I thought you’d asked, and she didn’t want to.” Hope gave Chance a look that Seymour didn’t understand.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“No, tell me. That look you just gave Chance says I screwed up somehow, but I have no idea how. I thought I was being considerate, not asking if she wanted to give up her Saturday night to spend it in domestic mayhem with junior and me.”
Chance raised an eyebrow at him. “I’m no expert at this kind of thing, but my guess would be that Chris might have liked that.”
Seymour stared at him. “You think?”
Hope laughed. “I do. This way it seems that you’re happy to share dates and fun times with her, but you’re not inviting her into your real life.”
He frowned. “That’s not true. I …” He shook his head. “I suppose it could seem that way.”
“Don’t sweat it,” said Chance. “I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.” He looked at Hope. “Is it?”
“No. Sorry. It’s just me thinking too much into it.”
Seymour nodded, but he felt a little deflated. “Jack had asked her if she wanted to go out and see everyone. I wasn’t going to ask her to give that up.”
Hope smiled at him. “No, you’re right. Ignore me.”
Dylan had grown bored with all the talking and tugged on Seymour’s ear, making him smile. “What do you want, grandson?” He giggled and then got a very determined look on his face as if he were concentrating hard. A moment later, Seymour smelled what he’d been concentrating on. He made a face at Hope. “I’ll have to ignore you. This little guy needs a fresh diaper.”
Hope held her arms out for him. “I’ll change him before we go.”
Dylan leaned away from her and snuggled against Seymour’s chest, making his heart buzz with happiness.
“That’s okay. You two get going. We can handle this, can’t we?”
Dylan smiled up at him and gripped the collar of his T-shirt, as if to say, I’m sticking with you, Granddad.
Hope laughed. “Okay, fair enough. But call me if you need anything. We can always come back early and trade out with you so you can get some time with Chris later.”
He waved at hand at her. “I told you, it’s not a problem.”
Dylan grabbed hold of his fingers and gummed on his knuckle, making him laugh. “You two can stand around here as long as you like, but we have a diaper to take care of.” He picked up the changing bag and slung it over his shoulder before carrying Dylan through to the living room where he laid out the mat on the floor.
“See you later.”
He glanced over his shoulder and smiled as Chance took Hope’s hand and they let themselves out.
~ ~ ~
Chris pulled up a seat at the bar and looked around. Of course, she was early, but she was even earlier than usual this evening. She was a little disappointed that Seymour wasn’t going to be here, but they’d spent plenty of time together in the last few days, and they had plans for the rest of the week, too.
She was a little surprised at herself that he’d filled her thoughts while she was getting ready, and that she wasn’t as happy about this evening as she usually was on a Saturday night when all her friends and family were coming out.
“Hello, stranger.”
She smiled when she saw Clay’s security guy, Adam, standing beside her.
“Hey, you! How’s tricks? I haven’t seen you in a while.”
Adam shrugged. “I’ve been around. From what I hear, you’ve been busy.”
“What do you hear?” she asked with a smile.
“That you’ve been spending time with Seymour Davenport.”
“I have. He’s a good guy.”
“I believe so. Good for you.”
“Thanks. I should introduce you to his driver, Ivan. He’s here by himself, and since Seymour’s been driving us around himself, I reckon Ivan will be at a loose end.”
Adam smiled. “I already met him. He’s a good guy. In fact, he’s coming out tonight. I’m off, since Davin’s keeping an eye on Clay and Marianne, so I said I’d hang out with Ivan for a drink.”
“Oh, that’s good. I don’t like to think of him all by himself with nothing to do.”
Adam laughed. “You worry too much. You don’t need to take care of everyone, you know.”
She shrugged. “I don’t. I don’t interfere, I just—”
“It wasn’t a criticism. You looked out for Davin and me when we first came here, too, and we appreciate it. This line of work can leave you with a lot of time on your hands in a place you don’t know. It’s sweet of you to look out for us. All I’m saying is don’t get so busy looking out for everyone else that you forget to have fun yourself. Where’s Seymour? Don’t tell me you’re early and he’s late?”
She laughed. “No. He’s never late. He’s as punctual as I am. He’s not coming this evening.”
Adam frowned. “Why not?”
“He’s watching his grandson while Chance and Hope come out.”
“I see.”
“Don’t look like that. I see it as a good thing. I like him better for wanting time with his grandson than I would if he gave that up to spend an evening with me.”
“I can see that. As long as you’re okay. Marianne and Clay should be here any minute. Are you going to hang out with them?”
“Them and everyone else who comes. You know me, I’m a bit of a butterfly. I like to flit around and check in with everyone.”
“Yeah. I’ve always admired that about you. My mom won’t go anywhere unless my dad or one of her friends goes with her. You’re not like that.”
“I’m not.”
“Look, here’s Dan.”
She smiled when she saw her younger son come into the bar and look around. She waved to catch his attention, and he made his way over to them with a smile on his face. “Hey, Mom, Adam.”
Adam nodded. “Good to see you, Dan. I’ll find you later. I have a couple questions for you about the new security system we’re running at the house.”
Dan smiled. “Okay. I don’t know much about the systems you use.”
“Yeah, but if anyone can figure it out, you can.” Adam turned back to Chris. “It’s good to see you.”
; “You, too, Adam.”
Once he’d gone, she smiled at Dan. “And how are you?”
“I’m good, thanks, Mom. I’ve been busy with work this last couple of weeks. I feel like I haven’t seen you much.”
“That’s okay. What are you working on?”
“You know I can’t say.”
She laughed. “I do. It fascinates me. I want to know.”
He shrugged. “It’s all classified.”
“I know. At least tell me how Ryan is? Is he going to come up to visit any time soon?”
“It’s funny you should ask. We were talking about that the other day. He said he’ll try to come in the next month or two.”
“Oh, good. He’d a good boy.”
Dan laughed. “He’s hardly a boy.”
“You’re all boys to me, Danny. Just because you’re all grown up now and have families of your own, it doesn’t make any difference. Has Ryan found himself a girl yet?”
“No. I don’t think he’s even looking.”
Chris made a face. “If he’s not going to get over Leanne, he should get back together with her.”
“They’ve been over for years, Mom. They can’t even stand to say each other’s names.”
Chris laughed. “And that should tell you all you need to know, right there. If they were over each other, it wouldn’t matter to them.”
Dan shrugged. “You know I’m no good at any of that stuff. I’m just lucky that Miss keeps me on track.” He gave her a sly smile. “What about you, though? How are things going with Seymour?”
“They’re going well. He won’t be here tonight, though. He’s babysitting Dylan.”
Dan nodded. “That’s good.”
She raised an eyebrow at him. “Good that he’s not here? You don’t like him for some reason?”
“No. Good that he’s getting some time with his grandson. From what Chance said, he’s a workaholic. They weren’t sure if he’d stay the whole ten days here or if he’d leave to get back to work. I figured he was sticking around to hang out with you. Hearing that he’s babysitting, too, gives me hope that he does know how to have a life outside of work.”
Chris stared at him. “You always see things differently than the rest of us, don’t you?”