by Cindy Kirk
“That’s a good start.” He continued to stare expectantly.
With an exaggerated sigh, Lindsay continued. “I ran into Shirley on the way. Or rather, Shirley crossed the street to intercept me.”
“Enchanted Florist Shirley?”
“The one and only.” Lindsay’s quick smile faded, and beneath his fingers, he felt her arm tense.
Owen felt a surge of anger. If that woman had deliberately upset Lindsay… “Was she nasty?”
Lindsay blinked. “Nasty? Oh, no. It was all good. We had a nice conversation.”
Though he sensed that was the truth, there was more she wasn’t saying. “What did you speak about during this nice conversation on this nice day?”
“We talked about floral design. And the girls. Her twins,” she clarified, as if noticing his confusion. “I guess the shop is super busy, so much so they’re having difficulty keeping up with orders. I believe, though she didn’t exactly come out and say, it’s because the twins aren’t as quick to complete projects as they’ll be once they’re seasoned designers.”
“She should have considered that before kicking you to the curb.” The way the woman had treated Lindsay still rankled.
“She didn’t exactly kick me to the curb,” Lindsay corrected. “I quit.”
“You quit when she gave away your duties to her kids. And cut your pay,” he added.
“The girls are her family, Owen. Her loyalty is to them, not to me.” One hand dropped to her midsection.
He stared as the fabric of her dress molded against a little pouch of a belly. His baby, he thought with a surge of emotion. Their daughter.
“I told her I’d help her out.”
He jerked his gaze back to her face. “What?”
Lindsay lifted her chin. “I said I’d help her out in the mornings until my business takes off. It’s a good deal for both of us. I need money. She needs help.”
The defensive edge to her voice surprised Owen. It was almost as if she expected him to second-guess her decision and argue with her. While Owen didn’t appreciate the way Shirley had treated her, if Lindsay wanted to help the woman out, that was her business.
He smiled and gave her arm a squeeze. “I’m sure she’s grateful.”
“Yes.” Lindsay cleared her throat. “Anyway, after speaking with Shirley, I went straight to Eliza’s home. Ami was there. We enjoyed cherry pie cookies and fresh-squeezed lemonade.”
“Now you’re making me hungry,” he teased.
“You wanted details.” Her eyes twinkled in the waning light. “Not ten minutes after I arrived, Eliza sprang the news that she and Kyle are pregnant. She’s due the beginning of May. They’re super excited.”
Something in the way she delivered that last statement had Owen wondering if it was aimed at him. His initial response to the news of their pregnancy had been far different than how he felt now. “You and I, we’re super excited, too.”
Lindsay’s startled gaze flew to his. “We are?”
“I can’t speak for you, but I’m super excited.”
Her smile started slowly. By the time it reached her eyes, her entire face glowed. “I’m super excited, too.”
His gaze locked with hers, and he couldn’t look away. That same intense connection that had caused him to take a big step back from her in July wrapped around him now like a tight glove.
“Eliza and Kyle haven’t been married very long.” Owen picked up a stone and flung it out over the water. It skipped several times, then plopped into the bay. “I take it they were trying to get pregnant?”
“Yes. They wanted a baby.” Lindsay thought for a moment. “When I was leaving, she mentioned something about them not getting any younger and wanting more than one. I don’t think they’ll wait long before trying for a second child.”
Owen thought of Eliza with her perfect wardrobe and mile-high heels. “I’m having difficulty seeing Eliza as the maternal type.”
It was a mistake. The off-the-cuff comment had Lindsay’s back stiffening. Not surprising, since Lindsay was fiercely protective of her friends.
“Eliza is a warm, caring person.” Lindsay bit off the words. “She’ll be an amazing mother. When Lolo stayed with them, Eliza was incredibly good to her.”
“Whoa. It was simply an observation. I meant no disrespect.” Owen raised his hands. “I know she’s your friend, but you have to admit Eliza can come across as prickly.”
“It’s her persona.” A smile tugged at the corners of Lindsay’s lips. “Her I’m-running-the-show-and-you-better-not-cross-me face is the one she shows the world. Inside, she’s really a big marshmallow.”
Not about to touch that comment, Owen released the other stone in his hand. Instead of skipping across the water, this one plopped and sank. “Kyle and Eliza are both busy people.”
When he didn’t continue, Lindsay cocked her head.
“Have they given any thought to what they’ll do once the baby comes?”
“You mean in regard to childcare?”
He nodded.
“They’ve got that figured out.” Lindsay squatted down and let the rocky sand sift through her fingers. She straightened and dusted off her hands. “Eliza is already hot on the nanny hunt. Though she and Kyle frequently work from home, there are times when he needs to be on a job site and she needs to be at the store. Katherine will help out when she can, but she has her own life.”
“I wouldn’t think a nanny would be easy to find in a community as small as Good Hope.” Owen deliberately kept his tone light. “Not to mention how will they know the unknown nanny will take good care of their baby?”
With all the reports of people abusing defenseless children in their care, it was his greatest concern. Granted, none of those stories had occurred in Good Hope, but the knowledge didn’t ease his worry.
“Eliza and Kyle are willing to pay top dollar for the right person.” Lindsay gave a little laugh. “Trust me. Whoever they pick will be screened within an inch of her life.”
They walked in silence for another minute.
“Do you realize”—Owen paused to pick up another stone—“our baby will likely arrive more than a month ahead of theirs, and we haven’t had a single conversation about childcare?”
Though he hadn’t meant it as criticism, Lindsay visibly bristled. “It’s on my list of parenting questions. There hasn’t been time—”
“You’re absolutely right. We’ve both been busy.” Owen offered an easy smile. “But we have time now.”
Not only didn’t she smile back, but two lines formed between her brows. “What do you think we should do?”
Owen nearly groaned aloud. This was why he’d rarely spoken up in school. One saving grace was his conversation with David that morning had gotten him thinking about his first marriage and his lack of support of Tessa and her career.
His wife had been in college when Mindy had arrived. Tessa had given birth on Tuesday and returned to school the following Monday. Taking a few weeks off to care for their daughter hadn’t been an option.
Instead of empathizing with the difficult position she’d been in, he’d resented her being gone so much. Instead of being supportive, when she had been able to eke out a few hours with Mindy, he’d questioned her parenting skills.
Shame flooded him.
“Owen.” Lindsay touched his arm, her voice soft and filled with concern. “What’s the matter?”
“Nothing.” His chuckle sounded more like a croak. Owen cleared his throat. “I haven’t given the matter much thought. Why don’t you kick off the discussion?”
“You’re not getting off that easy, mister.” Lindsay’s tone held a teasing lilt. “You brought up the topic. You go first.”
Owen shifted from one foot to the other and went wide. “I see us being in the same boat as Eliza and Kyle. I have my business. You’ll have yours. Should we join the nanny hunt?”
Owen kept all judgment from his voice, though the thought of leaving their infant with a strange
r—even a fully vetted one—made him feel a little sick. But he accepted that finding a caregiver was necessary.
“Having someone come into the home can be pricey. I’m thinking we’ll have to drop her off, either at someone’s home or at a center.” Lindsay blew out a breath. “The day care that recently opened in the Living Center might be a possibility. They take infants, but give priority to teachers and other school personnel. I’m hoping if we get on a wait list, by the time the baby is born, they’ll have a space for her.”
Owen shoved his hands into his pockets. “Are you thinking of taking any time off?”
“You know how it is when you’re building your own business.” Lindsay’s gaze shifted to the water. “Taking time off, much less during peak wedding season, is tantamount to business suicide. The floral shop will be my bread and butter. I can’t fail.”
The determination in her voice took him by surprise, until he realized that she and Tessa had more than him in common. Lindsay would likely have the baby one week, then need to jump back into an insanely busy life the next.
This time, however, his situation was different. When Mindy had been born, he’d been growing his business. The money from the Greasy Wrench had been critical to keeping a roof over their heads. Now, ten years later, the business was firmly established, and he had a crew of men and women he could count on.
“Most centers won’t take infants until they’re six weeks old.” Owen kept his tone conversational, not sure what she’d think of his offer. “I can clear my schedule so I can be home with her until she’s old enough for day care.”
“You’d do that?” Surprise lit Lindsay’s eyes even as her brow furrowed. “Take off that much time?”
“If you’re agreeable, I’ll make it work.” Supportive, he told himself, make sure she understands you support her career. “I know how important getting this new business off the ground is to you.”
“Thank you, Owen.” Relief blanketed her face. “Seriously, I can’t tell you how much this means to me.”
“It’s not a hardship. I’m looking forward to spending time with our daughter.” As he voiced the words, he realized just how much he meant them.
Lindsay clasped his arm, her eyes intense and so very blue. “The thought of leaving her with a stranger when she’s so little, well, I was concerned. So, thank you for taking away that worry.”
“Parenting is a partnership.” His eyes never left her face. “I’m just doing my part.”
“There are so many things still to work out. Not only about the baby.” Lindsay’s gaze searched his face. “We still have to figure out us.”
Sensing her rising distress, Owen shifted, gathered her close and kissed her temple. “That will work out, too.”
Tilting her head back, she studied him for a long moment. “I’d nearly forgotten just how nice you are to have around.”
The sentiment soothed like balm on an open wound. Despite all that had happened between them, she was still happy to have him in her life.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he vowed, twining the strands of her hair loosely around his fingers.
Her eyes darkened to a deep blue. “Good.”
Without warning, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the mouth. Her lips brushed over his for only a second, but it was still a kiss.
Owen’s heart gave a solid thump against his chest.
When she stepped back and looked at him with a bewildered expression, he smiled reassuringly and trailed a not-quite-steady finger along the line of her jaw, then up the faint scar slashing across her cheek. “You’re so lovely.”
She shook her head. “I’m not.”
“Let me be the judge of that.” He studied her with an intensity that had bright patches of red blooming on her cheeks. “Your eyes are amazing. In all the time I’ve known you, I still haven’t figured out what color they are.”
“They’re blue.” Her blush deepened, and she looked away, but not before he saw desire reflected in eyes the color of storm-tossed seas.
“They’re also gray and a little green.” He let his gaze drop to her mouth.
He heard her breath catch, then begin again. She moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue, and his mouth went dry.
“I want to kiss you.” His voice was a hoarse and throaty rasp.
Unexpectedly, Lindsay laughed, a short nervous burst of air. “What’s stopping you?”
She’d said the same thing before, then pushed him away. Owen let the question hang in the air for several seconds before his mouth closed over hers. Her hands rose to his shoulders, and she pressed against him, so close that the beating of his heart mingled with hers.
Owen reveled in the pleasure of the contact, in the warmth of her mouth against his lips. Though they’d kissed before, made love before, this felt new and fragile.
He took it slow, pressing his lips lightly to hers, teasingly, his mouth never pulling away.
As they continued to kiss, her hands dropped from his shoulders. She curled her fingers in the fabric of his shirt, pulling him closer.
Owen slid his tongue lightly over her lips, and when she opened that sweet mouth, a dizzying barrage of sensual images of the two of them together flashed before him. When they came up for air, need was a stark, carnal hunger. “Let’s go—”
A jarring ring cut off his words.
Lindsay released her hold on his shirt and stumbled back.
Owen reached for her.
She shook her head. “Check your phone.”
He made no move to pull it from his pocket.
“You better look.” Her breath came in little puffs, and bright spots of pink dotted her cheeks. “It could be important.”
Retrieving his phone, he glanced at the display. “It’s Bayside. Our table is ready.”
“Saved by the bell,” Lindsay quipped, but something in her eyes told him he wasn’t the only one disappointed by the interruption.
Owen raised a brow. “One more kiss for the road?”
She laughed, a joyous sound like the tinkling of a thousand bells. “Better not. I don’t think either of us would be able to stop at one.”
Conceding the point, Owen extended his arm.
They walked back to the restaurant, leaning into each other like old friends, enjoying the renewed closeness.
Only when they reached the steps of Bayside Pizza did Lindsay release his arm.
She pushed at her wind-tangled hair. “Do I look okay?”
“Beautiful.” Owen couldn’t resist. Leaning over, he kissed her softly, wishing—not for the first time—he’d turned off the ringer on his phone.
Twenty-One
Lindsay finished off her second slice of pizza and reached for a third. If her mother had been sitting across from her, Anita would have slapped her hand and warned her about getting fat.
Telling her mother that she’d eaten light all day never made a difference. But it wasn’t her mother across from her, it was Owen, and he was smiling. The warmth and desire in those hazel eyes had her losing track of what she’d been about to say.
“Wh-what were we talking about?” she stammered.
“You were telling me about Cassie.”
“That’s right.” A lump formed in Lindsay’s throat. She sipped her drink to dispel it. “When Cassie got pregnant, I wasn’t there for her. Not the way I should have been.”
“You were very young.”
“I was twelve, almost thirteen. Old enough.” Guilt flooded her. “I wanted to be supportive, but I didn’t know how. I didn’t understand how it could have happened. As far as I knew, my sister had never been on a date.”
Owen lifted his third slice—not that she was counting—but didn’t take a bite. “How did your mother react?”
“She was stunned.” Lindsay’s heart picked up speed as she recalled that long-ago night when Cassie had called them all into the living room. “Bernie went ballistic.”
Owen finally bit into the pizza. He chewed
thoughtfully, his watchful gaze never leaving her face. “Bernie was your stepfather.”
“Bernie Fishback, the Bagel King.” Lindsay rolled her eyes. She’d done her best to forget the man her mother had impulsively married after her father’s death. “Marrying him was the biggest mistake my mother ever made.”
Owen set down the half-eaten slice and picked up his tumbler of tea. “What was he like?”
“On the surface, nice. Underneath, a bully.” Lindsay’s teeth found her bottom lip. “When Cassie announced she was pregnant, Bernie exploded. He called Cassie horrible names.”
A muscle in Owen’s jaw jumped. “Where was your mother when this was happening?”
“Right there. She stood there and let that vile man spew his venom.” Lindsay dropped the pizza back to her plate, her appetite gone. “Mom was shocked. I get that. She’d had high hopes for Cassie. I get that, too. But she shouldn’t have allowed Bernie to talk to her child that way.”
Lindsay shuddered. “Cassie began to sob. I couldn’t take it anymore. I stepped in front of her and told Bernie to shut up, to leave my sister alone.”
For a second, Lindsay was back in their old living room, the one decorated with Bernie’s money. Her stomach pitched.
“Did he?” Owen prompted, his voice a low rumble. “Did he stop?”
“He backhanded me.” Lindsay’s hand rose to her face, recalling the explosion of pain. “He hit me so hard it knocked me off my feet.”
Owen’s eyes flashed. “The son of a—”
“It brought Mom out of her stupor. She ordered him out of the house and called the sheriff. Bernie had poked the bear, and she was out for blood.” Lindsay’s lips lifted in a sardonic smile. “She filed for divorce and used the money from the settlement to open Crumb and Cake.”
“All’s well that ends well.” Owen’s sarcastic tone didn’t hide his rage.
“It was a long time ago.” Lindsay’s gaze settled on a couple a few tables over. The woman couldn’t take her eyes off her date. The guy couldn’t take his eyes off his phone. “Mom never loved Bernie. Not really. I think she married him for a whole lot of wrong reasons that seemed right at the time. Her experience taught me a valuable lesson.”