Once Upon a Proposal

by ALLISON LEIGH,

  She glanced at the large-faced round clock hanging on the wall. “Don’t you want to get going? It’s nearly ten o’clock.” He was still bearing a heavier load than usual at work because of his injured construction manager, and she couldn’t stop thinking how…alone…they were.

  He sat forward, forearms on his thighs, his hands loosely linked together. His blue eyes didn’t waver from her face. “Turnabout is fair play. You know all the secrets of the Gannon family,” he pointed out. “And I’m not feeling particularly hurried.”

  Which didn’t do a thing to calm the butterflies that had been flitting around inside her midsection ever since they’d gone to the grocery store together.

  As if they’d been playing house together. Just a quick trip around the grocery with the kids, honey, then back home for dinner and a little homework, consisting solely of creative Halloween costume-planning. For Lisette, they’d come up with a fitting Odette costume made out of a fuzzy white sweater that Bobbie had unintentionally shrunk in the laundry and feathers from a white boa from costumes past. Todd would be a thoroughly hilarious video game character, complete with a French beret that would have probably shocked Georgie—who’d given it to Bobbie as a gift from one of her travels—and a set of fake glasses and mustache.

  It didn’t matter how good her intentions were to keep things “safe” between her and Gabe: she kept backsliding into the overwhelming allure of him.

  And right now, that allure had her wanting to move over to him, to put her hands on those wide shoulders and sink into his lap and…

  She dragged her thoughts, kicking and screaming, out of fantasyland. Hadn’t they already agreed not to complicate things?

  She cleared her throat.

  “My mother, Cornelia, raised all of us pretty much on her own once my father died. Frankly, she’s the most accomplished, independent, elegant woman on the planet.”

  “You love her.”

  “Of course.”

  The corners of his lips kicked up. “And the other Fairchilds?”

  Butterflies danced even more frantically in response to that sexy half smile.

  She swallowed and fixed her gaze somewhere over his left ear. But even that seemed fraught with setbacks, because he had exceptionally nice ears.

  She honestly couldn’t remember ever noticing a man’s ears before.

  “Well?”

  She hoped he couldn’t see the flush riding up her neck when he had to prompt her out of her silence. “My eldest sister, Georgie, has a master’s in counseling, but works for the Hunt Foundation, basically vetting out worthwhile charities for them to support. She’s based here in Seattle but travels all around the world. She’s been in Haiti and I think the Sudan is up next, as a matter of fact.”

  “Hunt Foundation as in your Uncle Harry.”

  “It’s a philanthropic foundation that came out of HuntCom, yes. Alex—that’s Harry’s third son—runs it.”

  “I’ve seen him in the news,” he murmured.

  “Right. Well, anyway, what can I say about Georgie? She’s this tall.” Bobbie straightened her arm above her head, waving at an imaginary height. “Long blond hair. Curves in all the right places. Loves to tell people what to do.” Her lips twisted wryly. “She’s always right, too, which is maddening. She’s got more brains than I do curls and can play the piano and men’s hearts with equal ease. There’s nothing Georgie can’t do.”

  “Sounds scary.”

  Bobbie smiled a little. “Intimidating, maybe, but she still has a heart of gold. Then there’s Frankie.”

  Hand still in the air, she bent her elbow a little. “She comes to about here. More blond hair. More curves. She’s next in line—we’re stair-steps—she’s a librarian at the University of Washington and probably the sole reason why most of the male students there like to frequent the place as much as they do. Not your stereotypical librarian. But she’s still probably memorized every textbook there by now—and understands them.”

  Her hand dropped a little more, but still hovered above her head. “You’ve already met Tommi. She put herself through culinary school and even worked in Europe for a while. Opened her own bistro here and I don’t have to tell you her wonderful reviews are well-earned, since you’ve tasted her food for yourself. But if Tommi could, I think she’d feed every hungry person in Seattle. Love through a full tummy. That’s Tommi.”

  She dropped her hand altogether. “Then there’s me. The one who usually has dog hair on her clothes, who barely managed to graduate from community college at all. We all got money when we graduated from high school, from Uncle Harry. My sisters used it for their educations and smart things.” She shook her head. “Not me.”

  “Okay, I’ll bite.”

  Her gaze got caught in his.

  An entirely different meaning to the words shivered through her.

  “I, um—” She blinked and marshaled her too-easily scattered thoughts. “I spent the last of it on Lawrence’s campaign, actually.” If nothing else could, surely that foolishly naive act would take the warmth out of Gabe’s eyes.

  “You believed in him.”

  “And he believed I had access to real money. Hunt money, remember? All things being relative, my last ten thousand dollars was a pittance compared to that.” She plucked her raincoat off the coat tree jammed into the corner of the office.

  “That doesn’t mean what you did was stupid.”

  Her fingers crumpled the coat. “It sure felt that way when he dumped me.”

  “Are you still in love with him?”

  If anyone had asked her that even just two weeks earlier, she wasn’t sure what she’d have said.

  But that was before she’d kissed—then met—Gabriel Gannon.

  She moistened her lips and slowly turned to face him. “No.”

  He studied her for a moment, as if weighing her answer. “Good for you.”

  She wanted badly to turn the question on him.

  Was he still in love with his ex-wife? No matter how badly things had ended between them, he’d cared about her enough at one time to marry her. To have children with her.

  She’d cheated on him, but that didn’t necessarily mean the end of his feelings, even if it had meant the end of the marriage. And Bobbie had seen for herself the tension between Gabe and his ex-wife at Fiona’s birthday party. Who was Bobbie to say what emotions were at the base of it?

  But the question stayed jammed high in her chest.

  Maybe because she was afraid of what his answer would be.

  So she stood there, twisting her coat between her hands and after a moment, Gabe pushed to his feet. “It’s late. Let’s get you back to your car.”

  She wasn’t sure if she felt relieved…or let down.

  But she managed a jerky nod and they left the administrative building, stopping only long enough for her to lock up.

  The rest of the grounds—classrooms, dining hall and the partially-covered outdoor training areas—were silent with only the safety lights flicking on then off when they walked past. They passed through the front gate, which Bobbie locked behind them. Gabe’s truck gleamed wetly where it was parked in the roomy parking lot beneath one of the light poles. She headed toward it, trying not to think anything of his light touch at the small of her back as they crossed the lot.

  He’d touched her the same way when they’d danced at Fiona’s birthday party, too. Probably just a habit of his. A gentleman and all that.

  They reached the truck, and he unlocked the passenger door and helped her up onto the high seat. She gathered her coat around her but he didn’t move away and close the door. She looked at him. His eyes were shadowed and mysterious in the light as he looked back.

  Her heart suddenly beat a little faster. Her breath suddenly felt a little shorter and then he leaned closer…and reached across her. She heard the safety belt snap into place and realized all he’d done was fasten her in. Like a child.

  She swallowed that unpalatable thought as he finally closed
the door and walked around the truck to his side and got in.

  They drove back to the hospital and her waiting car with only the low sound of music from the radio and the occasional swipe of his windshield wiper blades against the lingering drizzle to break the silence. Finally, by the time the hospital was in sight, that silence felt like corkscrews tightening around her nerves. “I hope your ex-wife won’t be upset about the costumes we came up with for Todd and Lisette for school tomorrow.”

  His thumb slowly tapped the steering wheel. “I don’t care if she is or not. At least the kids are happy with what they’ll be wearing. They definitely weren’t thrilled with the store-bought getups that Steph got them.” She felt the glance he slid her way. “Don’t worry about it.”

  “I just don’t want to be the cause of any problems.”

  “I’ll worry about Steph. I’m happy the kids have been content to be with me. Something else I have to thank you for.”

  “That’s not true.”

  He gave a rueful laugh. “Yeah, it is. Believe me. So…you didn’t say what you’ll be dressing up as tomorrow, but I heard Lisette laughing about it when you and she were in your room while Todd and I cleaned up the kitchen.”

  “Oh, right.” She looked out the side window. Did he think it was immature to dress up? “Pippi Longstocking.” He was so silent that she finally looked over at him. “Silly, I know, but I’ve got a few things that’ll work for the clothes without much effort, and the only thing I’ll have to worry about are getting the braids to stick out from the sides of my head.”

  “Considering your curly hair, I almost expected a Little Orphan Annie.”

  “I’ve already done that one once.”

  “You dress up every year?”

  “Pretty much. Either there’s a party to go to, or where I’m working requires it.” She gave him a quick look. “Like this year.”

  “Do you mind? Get tired of it?”

  She thought about denying it. But what would be the point. “Not usually. When’s the last time you dressed up for Halloween?”

  He slowed to turn into the hospital parking lot. “A long time ago.”

  She plucked at the folds of her coat. “Not since you were a kid, I suppose.”

  He exhaled. “Steph dragged me to a party when we were dating. I dressed up then. Does that count?”

  Suddenly wishing that she hadn’t brought up the matter at all, she pulled her purse onto her lap to root through it for her car keys. “Sure. It counts. Um…what—”

  “Zorro. And yes, I felt like a damn idiot wearing the mask.”

  She managed a smile for him. “I’m sure you were very dashing.” And his date had probably looked like some svelte bombshell in whatever costume she’d worn. Bobbie knew well enough not to voice that question. And fortunately, he’d pulled up behind her parked car, anyway.

  Her keys jingled when she pulled them out of her purse before pushing open the door. She waved him back. “Don’t get out. I’m fine.”

  He subsided in his seat. “Thanks again for everything.”

  “You don’t have to thank me.” She looked up at the tall hospital building. “It’s probably too late to go in and see her again.”

  His hand slid up her spine, not stopping until he reached the nape of her neck. He squeezed gently. “Probably. Come and see her tomorrow. She’d get a kick out of Pippi.”

  She didn’t know why she suddenly felt tears burning deep behind her eyes, but she did.

  Which meant that she needed to get out of his vehicle and into hers before she completely lost her composure. “I’ll probably do that. Maybe after my shift at the Bean.” She cleared her throat. “Don’t forget to take Fiona the signature card from the bank so she can get another signer on her checking account.”

  “I won’t.” He could have sounded amused that she’d reminded him of something that he, himself, had suggested in the first place, but he didn’t. He just pressed his fingers gently against the back of her neck again, and then his hand moved away. “Do you want me to follow you home?”

  “No!” She swallowed and slipped out of the vehicle. “No,” she said more normally. “I am a big girl, you know. I can make the drive on my own.” And if he followed her back to her place, what were the odds that she’d be able to keep herself from inviting him in?

  Not good. Not good at all.

  And then he would probably be uncomfortable, and try to let her down without hurting her too-young feelings.

  “Drive carefully, then.”

  She nodded and closed the truck door and went to her own car. She’d just fit the key in the ignition when she realized he’d gotten out of his truck anyway, and was looking down at her through her window.

  She rolled it down. “Did I forget something?”

  He hunkered beside the car, folding his arms on top of the opened window. “Just for the record, no. I’m not still in love with my ex-wife.”

  Her jaw went loose and her insides suddenly went soft. “I didn’t—”

  “—ask. I know you didn’t.” His gaze roved over her face. “Strangely enough, I still wanted you to be clear on that point.”

  She felt breathless. “Okay.”

  He nodded once. “Okay.” Then he nodded again, straightened enough to lean inside the car, and pressed an achingly slow kiss to her lips. A kiss that said all too clearly that he knew she was definitely not a child. And when he finally pulled away, she could only sit here, dazed and silent. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  He thumped his hand on the roof of her car and was moving back to his truck before she could shake herself out of her trance.

  Then his truck slowly moved further away in the parking lot and when she saw his brake lights go on and stay on, she realized that he wasn’t going anywhere until he was certain that she was safely on her way home.

  Fresh warmth spread through her. The kind of warmth that came not just from passion, but from something else entirely.

  Something even more dangerous.

  Her hand shook as she started up the car and backed out of the parking space. His truck was still sitting there, so she inched past him. Only when she was driving in front of him did he begin driving again, too.

  He stayed behind her until their routes home took them in opposite directions. When she heard the staccato toot of his horn as he turned off, she rolled her window down enough to stick her hand out in a little wave.

  And then he was gone, his taillights disappearing into the night.

  But that warmth stayed inside her all the way home.

  Chapter Ten

  It took hours for Bobbie to get to sleep that night. And then when she did sleep, it was only to wake up tangled in her sheets and sweating from dreams about Gabe. Intimate dreams.

  The kind of dreams that had you jerking out of your sleep from sheer pleasure, only to realize that it was just a dream.

  She was due into work at seven-thirty in the morning. And even though she’d set her alarm for the usual ninety minutes earlier, she dragged herself out of bed with an extra hour to spare on top of it.

  Staying in bed, trying to sleep, thinking about the man she was engaged-in-name-only to, was just too torturous.

  So she took the dogs out for a chilly, dark walk around the block, fixed herself a yogurt and fruit smoothie, and set about transforming herself into some recognizable form of Pippi Longstocking. Once she was finished, she decided she hadn’t done too badly.

  The yellow dress that she’d sewn red patches all over was really a long T-shirt, but as long as she was careful not to bend over, the hem of it managed to cover the tops of the red and green thigh-high knit stockings that she’d found from a few Christmases ago. And once she’d wrapped enough wiry pipe cleaners around a red headband, she was able to work her two braids onto the wires so they were sticking out oddly from the sides of her head. A dozen freckles painted onto her cheeks with an eyeliner pencil and she was good to go, even if she did earn a few whines from the dogs when she ga
ve them a last pat before leaving the house.

  She started to head to the coffee shop, but since she was running early for once, she decided halfway there to face the music with her mother. So she drove to the house that Cornelia had moved them to not long after Bobbie’s father had died.

  Bobbie had only hazy memories of that first house. It had been much larger and grander. But the place where Cornelia now lived was the place Bobbie had called home and she let herself in without even knocking.

  Despite the early hour, her mother was exactly where Bobbie had expected her to be: sitting at the breakfast table with a pot of tea and the morning paper.

  She glanced up when Bobbie entered. “Bobbie, dear! What a surprise.” She got up to take the jacket that Bobbie was shrugging out of. “Look at you. You’ve outdone yourself this year. Is everything all right?”

  Bobbie let out a breath. “One day I’m going to pop in on you and you’re not going to automatically think something is wrong.”

  Cornelia frowned as she draped the jacket over the back of a chair. “I don’t always think that.”

  “Don’t you?” Bobbie bit her lip. “I’m sorry. It’s just been a bit of a day.” Or two or three.

  “It’s not even seven o’clock in the morning,” Cornelia chided gently. “And not that I’m averse to seeing you at any time, but this is a bit of a surprise.” She tugged gently on the end of one of Bobbie’s gravity-defying braids. “So…what’s wrong?”

  Bobbie let out a breath and sat down. “Fiona had a heart attack yesterday.”

  “Good heavens.” Cornelia touched the gold pendant hanging around her neck and sat back down in her chair. She reached across the table to cover Bobbie’s fidgeting fingers with her own. “I’m so sorry to hear that. Is she all right?”

  “She will be. But that’s only part of what I need to tell you.” Maybe it was the scare with Fiona or having already gone through a version of this conversation with Tommi, but Bobbie managed to condense matters more than usual when she was faced with telling her always collected mother about her marriage-bound pretense with Gabe.