"Really?" Curiosity bloomed across Victoria's face. "So who's the teacher and who's the student?"
Alana glanced toward where Than had taken Caden before answering. When she spotted her son's curly mop, she looked back at Victoria. "We kind of both are. I'm teaching him sign language, and he's teaching me self-defense."
"Sign language? Why is Justin learning sign language?"
Not sure if it was her place to say anything about Genevieve, Alana just said, "Someone close to him is hearing impaired, and he wanted to make sure he was able to communicate with them. I'm also teaching his sister and her family."
"Has your son been deaf since birth?" Victoria asked.
Alana told her a bit about Caden's deafness and then they shared stories of trying to navigate in the world with something that set them apart from most others. She found herself relaxing the more they chatted. Victoria was easy to talk with, and Alana was glad she didn't try to bring Justin up again.
A light touch on her back startled Alana, and she looked up to see Justin beside her, his head bent down. "Should we go see what Caden is up to?"
Alana glanced around and saw that the others in the group had begun to move in the direction Than had taken Caden and Danny. Trent took Victoria's hand and after she shot Alana a mischievous smile, Victoria began to walk away, tugging on Trent's hand.
With a nod of her head, Alana followed them, acutely aware of Justin at her side. It had been her plan to stick close to Beth and not get into situations with Justin that fueled the fire of emotions within her. As they neared the large inflated slide, a couple of kids dashed past, bumping into her in their apparent eagerness to get to their destination. Alana stumbled as she took a step to the side which brought her right up against Justin. This time his touch wasn't light as he laid an arm across her back and his hand came to rest on her hip, keeping her on her feet.
"Sorry." The word slipped out as she quickly stepped away from him. His hand slid from her side without any further attempt to hold her. "Guess they were in a hurry to get to the slide."
"Yep, seems so." Justin's voice was steady. "It looks like Caden and Danny are having fun on it."
They stopped next to Than and Lindsay, who stood at the foot of the slide looking up.
"C'mon, boys!" Than yelled up to them then motioned with his hand.
Alana noticed Caden and Danny were each seated on one of the dual slides and after a glance at each other, they pushed off and slid down to the bottom. As they climbed off, they high-fived each other. Spotting her, Caden ran to where she stood with Justin, his cheeks flushed and his eyes bright with excitement.
It's so much fun! Can I keep going with Danny?
Alana nodded. As long as it's okay with his parents.
Caden's gaze darted to Justin then back to her. Can you tell Justin thank you for inviting us?
I will. She'd no sooner finished the signs when he darted away again to where Danny waited for him at the steps that led to the top of the slide.
Alana took a deep breath, the scent she'd come to associate with Justin alerting her to how near her he was. She turned to look at him. "Caden wanted me to tell you thank you for inviting him today. He's having a great time."
A quick smile transformed his face as his blue eyes warmed. "I'm glad. I wasn't sure it was a good idea to have something like this, but seeing Caden having fun makes it all worthwhile."
Alana nodded her agreement as she watched the boys climb up the stairs. It had been awhile since she'd last seen Caden having so much fun. And she was very thankful that Danny had taken Caden under his wing. "Danny seems like a neat kid."
"He is." This pronouncement came from Lindsay. "I'm his aunt, so one might think I'm biased but honestly, he just an all-around terrific kid. Made me rethink the whole 'not having kids' thing."
"I'm sure Than was glad to hear that," Justin said, his gaze going to the man at Lindsay's side.
Than laughed. "Well, I would have taken her regardless, but yes, I was glad to hear that." He slid an arm around Lindsay's waist and tucked her into his side. Lindsay laid her hand on his chest as she leaned her head against his shoulder.
Alana stared at them, wondering what it would be like to be in a relationship where affection came so easily. She hadn't seen it in her parents' marriage, and it certainly hadn't been present in her relationship with Craig.
It was the confidence Lindsay and Than had in each other that Alana found most intriguing. Than had reached for Lindsay with a confidence that said he knew she wouldn't reject his advances. Alana had never been confident enough in anyone's feelings for her to approach them like that. Except for Caden. She knew he'd never rebuff her affection, but would she ever be able to feel that way about anyone else? A man? Like Justin?
Alana pushed aside her thoughts. Being around Justin like this was putting too many things into her mind. She needed to just concentrate on Caden and the fun he was having. Today was about him. Not about her screwed up past. Not the longings in her heart. No, it was about Caden being able to just be a little boy doing fun things.
She crossed her arms over her torso as she watched Caden go up and down the slide a couple more times. Eventually, Lucas stepped toward the slide as Danny and Caden reached the bottom. The tall man waved the boys over. Reluctantly, they abandoned the slide and made their way to Lucas. Before Alana could move, Than slid his arm from around Lindsay and walked over to join Lucas and the boys. She saw him signing to Caden and then reached out to take the boy's hand.
As they walked back toward them, Alana saw that the excitement had dimmed some on Caden's face, but his gaze was darting around, no doubt looking for the next thing they would do. When he reached her, he let go of Than's hand and signed to her asking if they could go do more.
At her nod, Caden took her hand and then slid his other hand into Justin's. The corner of Than's mouth lifted as he looked at Caden and then Justin. They continued to move as a group, taking in the carnival-like setup of the event. When they came upon a booth that offered the opportunity to shoot, Caden jerked his hands free and quickly signed that he wanted to try.
"Let me guess," Justin began before Alana could say anything, "he wants to have a go at the shooting game."
She nodded. "Yeah, he wants to give it a try."
"Well, then let's go." He took Caden's hand then looked over at Than. "You think you can beat me, man?"
Than groaned. "Probably not, but I'll give it a whirl."
As Alana watched, Justin and Caden were joined by Danny, Than, Trent and Victoria. She walked to where Justin and Caden stood so she could interpret for them if need be.
Justin picked up the gun and gave it to Caden. He glanced at Alana and then gave instructions on how to do it.
Do you understand? Alana asked Caden once she finished interpreting what Justin had said.
Alana waited for Justin to pick up a rifle, but instead, he dropped down to his knee beside Caden and put his arms around him to show him how to position the rifle and then helped him hold the gun. After Caden had fired off a couple of shots, Justin lowered his arms but still stayed on his knee, his hand on Caden's back. Than and the others had taken up their rifles and began to shoot as well.
Justin stayed with Caden for a bit and then when it was apparent he had a handle on it, he stood and picked up another free rifle.
"How's it going there, Than?" Justin called. "Shot out the star yet?"
"Shut up, man, and start putting some shots in your own star."
Alana smiled as the insults flowed between the men. Justin settled in with the rifle pressed against his shoulder and began a steady stream of shots at the small target. She moved closer to Caden and Justin to watch them. Caden's shots were a little wild and he rarely hit the target, but she could see the smile on his face as he pulled the trigger over and over. In contrast, every time Justin pulled the trigger, he hit the target.
She wasn't sure how many of the BBs they had to shoot, but by the time all was said and do
ne, only two had managed to shoot out the red star. Justin, of course, but more surprising was that the other person was Victoria. She and Justin slapped hands in celebration.
“You've been my best student, Tori," Justin said with a grin at the woman.
Even though Caden's target showed that he'd only managed to hit it a handful of times, Alana could see the excitement coursing through him. Already, his gaze was moving toward the other games that were set up. He slipped his hand into hers and pointed to the next booth, looking up at her with a question in his eyes.
Alana noticed that Justin was still standing with his friends, so she walked with Caden to the next game. There were already several people playing it so they had to wait. As they did, she tried to explain to him what to do.
They stood for a couple of minutes before he tugged at her hand again. She looked down at him with a smile that faded when she saw the serious look on his face.
What's wrong?
Caden's brows drew together and it took him a moment then he slid his hand from hers to answer. Can Justin be my dad?
A band wrapped around Alana's lungs and squeezed all the air from them. This was what she had been afraid of. Tears blurred her eyes, but she blinked them away as quickly as she could. She struggled to take a deep breath to ease the tightness in her chest. How did she explain this to him?
Justin is just a friend, sweetheart. Don't you like to have him as a friend?
Caden stared at her, his green eyes so full of emotion for one so young. I love him, Mama.
The shot of pain that pierced Alana's heart had her reaching for her son as much to comfort him as to keep her balance. She hadn't expected to hear something like that from Caden, but he had never been one to hide how he felt. And the way his face lit up whenever he was around Justin should have warned her of the growing affection he had for the man.
His revelation stunned her, and she had no idea what to say. She always thought her son's first heartbreak would be because of a girl. Alana had never imagined it would be because he loved a man he wanted to call dad.
"Everything okay here?"
At the sound of Justin's voice, Alana's breath caught and she tried to steady her nerves as she nodded. She looked at Caden and signed that they would talk about it later. He stared at her then gave a slow dip of his head.
Glancing around, Alana tried to avoid Justin's gaze. Unfortunately, the gaze she did meet was even worse. Than. He would have been able to follow her conversation with Caden. She didn't want to see pity in his gaze, but there was nothing there but understanding. He gave her a quick smile before looking down at Caden and signing to him.
Want to try this game?
Caden glanced over at the game then back at Than, a smile spreading on his face as he nodded. When a spot opened up, Caden took his place and began to shoot the water pistol. Alana approached Than and when he turned to look at her, she signed Please don't say anything to Justin.
Than nodded and signed back I won't. I'll try to distract Caden from him, but I'll have to explain to Lindsay. Is that okay? She doesn't really know Justin.
Alana nodded then turned her attention back to Caden, but her thoughts and emotions were scrambling to find firm ground again. She crossed her arms over her waist, wishing they could leave. But she was trapped with no way home until Daniel and Beth decided to leave.
"Well, that's hardly fair," Justin said.
She looked up to see that he had been addressing her. "Fair?"
"You not only get to hold private conversations with Caden but now with Than too?" Thankfully, she saw the quick smile on his face that told her he was just joking.
"Yeah. We're sharing state secrets," Alana said, hoping her tone was light even though it didn't sound that way to her.
"Well, that's a good incentive to learn sign language. All those secrets I'll be privy to."
At that moment, Alana was very grateful he hadn't been able to understand the secret Caden had shared with her. She glanced over at Than and saw him standing with his arm around Lindsay, their heads close together. When she looked back at Caden, she saw that Danny had joined him.
As they moved through the game booths, Alana tried to avoid being close to Justin. Since she was trying to do it without making it seem obvious, her body was tense and her nerves were on edge. If it had been just her, she wouldn't have worked so hard at it, but every time Caden finished something, he'd turn around to find her and then she'd see his gaze search for Justin.
Thankfully, Than, Danny, and Lindsay kept him busy and in spite of that one serious moment, he seemed to be back to having fun. And there was definitely nothing wrong with his sense of smell. As they approached the area where the food was, Caden darted over to her to ask about getting something to eat. The smell of hotdogs and hamburgers was definitely tantalizing, and Alana hoped her stomach would settle down enough to allow her to enjoy the food.
~*~*~
Justin was beginning to think Alana was avoiding him. He felt like he was constantly looking around to locate her. One minute she was standing near him and the next she was gone. It was as if she was making sure there was distance between them, and he couldn't figure out why.
The conversation she'd had with Caden and then with Than was also bugging him. He'd been watching closely enough to see Caden use the sign for his name and then Alana had used it again when she'd signed with Than. Unfortunately, he hadn't been able to decipher anything else. One sign had looked familiar, but he wasn't sure because it hadn't really made sense.
Even though he'd started out not really wanting to be some kid's hero, as he watched Caden interact with Than, Justin felt a twinge of jealousy. He hated that he felt that way because Than was a friend, and he could see how much Caden enjoyed being able to communicate with him.
On top of the jealousy was the frustration that this time together wasn't really working out as he'd hoped. He'd thought that in addition to being fun for Caden, it would give him a chance to get a little closer to Alana in a more casual way. Instead, he felt like he was following her around like a love-sick pup, and that was not him. She had alluded to the fact that he was like her ex-husband physically, so maybe she just wasn't interested in seeing beyond that to how much he wasn't like him.
As they approached the food area, Justin once again went to where Alana and Caden were. Yeah, he wouldn't be following her everywhere after this, but she and Caden were still his guests so he'd make sure they had what they needed for supper.
Beth and Dan were standing with her which made it a bit easier to approach them. There were several barbecues set up behind long tables loaded with food and all the condiments needed for the hamburgers and hotdogs. There was a large white tent with no sides just beyond the food that looked to be filled with tables. Alex and Marcus had definitely spared no expense for this gig.
"Ready to get some food?" Justin asked as he joined them.
Beth nodded. "This is just great, Justin! I only wish Genevieve was a little older so she could enjoy it more."
"I had my doubts about this, but it appears that Mel and Adrianne managed to pull it off." He looked at Alana. "Is Caden enjoying himself?"
She signed to Caden then he looked up at him and vigorously nodded his head. His hands flew as he signed back to Alana. "He says that it's the most fun ever. Which is high praise since he was just at the Mall of America yesterday."
As they moved into the line for the food, the others joined them. It didn't take too long to load up plates with food and then find a table. Justin settled into a chair next to Caden, who sat with Alana on the other side of him. He had a feeling that Caden was going to hurry through his meal in order to get back out to the fun and games. Not that he could blame the kid. At his age, he probably would have done the same.
"Hey, Justin. How are you enjoying everything?"
Justin looked up to see Adrianne standing behind Beth and Dan across the table from him. "Everything is great. You and Mel did a fine job pulling it all together."
"And I see you brought some family," Adrianne said as she looked down at Beth and Dan with a smile.
"Yes. That's my sister, Beth and her husband, Dan. The little cutie is their daughter, Genevieve." Then he laid a hand on Caden's shoulder. "And this is Alana and her son, Caden. They're family friends."
He could see the curiosity in her gaze as she looked at Alana and Caden. It was the same one expression he'd seen from everyone he worked with when he introduced them.
"Nice to meet you all. Be sure to stick around for the fireworks. This company came highly recommended, and we're hoping to end the evening on a high note." With another smile at them, Adrianne moved on to chat with Trent and Than a little further down the table.
As Justin ate, he looked around at the people who were in attendance. He spotted a few people in the crowd that he recognized as employees at BlackThorpe, but the majority were unfamiliar faces. He still had some security concerns, but all areas with access to confidential information were behind doors that needed codes and hand scans to gain entry to. At Melanie and Adrianne's request, none of them were visibly armed, but as usual Justin wore his ankle holster along with his knife. It had been too warm to wear a jacket that would have covered a shoulder holster.
Caden shifted on the chair next to him, and Justin looked down to see the boy's plate was empty. He tapped Caden on the shoulder and when the boy turned to him, Justin hesitated and then made the sign for more. A huge grin wreathed Caden's face even as he shook his head. Justin couldn't stop the warmth that spread through his body at Caden's obvious delight when he saw him make the effort to communicate using signs. It made him more determined to work harder to learn the language that would allow him to communicate with Genevieve and Caden.
"Nice one," Dan said with a smile. "I see you've been paying attention to Alana's lessons."
“Not sure one word warrants quite this much enthusiasm, but I'm working my way up."
"Gotta start somewhere," Beth said as she handed Genevieve a piece of hotdog.
Unfortunately, he had a ways to go still because he couldn't understand the conversation Alana and Caden were currently having. It seemed to be another serious discussion from the look of the expression on Alana's face. Then she reached out and put a hand on either side of Caden's face and pressed her forehead to his. The little boy's shoulders slumped. Whatever they had been discussing, it didn't appear to have gone Caden's way.
Signs of Love Page 16