by Dora Hiers
A noise outside the bedroom snapped her out of the pandemonium waging war in her head. Gunner smiled at her from the open doorway, then, upon closer inspection, frowned.
Agony gripped her inside, tightened her shoulders. Her foot beat out a tune on the rug, but she couldn’t seem to make it stop.
Gunner stepped into the room, concern drawing his face tight, and cupped her chin in his hand. “Are you all right?” he whispered, jerking his head at her cell phone. “Is it Malcolm again?”
She covered the phone with a hand. “No. It’s Regi. Can you take me to the airport?”
He looked hard into her face, nodded, and left the room, pulling the door closed behind him.
Willow pinched the bridge of her nose, closed her eyes, already missing Gunner’s touch. His presence. His calm. “Regi, where is Tessa, now?”
“She’s in the school office talking to a police officer. I’m on my way there now. They called me first because Tessa told them she stayed with me last night. I told them I would call you. I didn’t want you to freak out.”
Freak out? Freak out? Wasn’t this every parent’s worst nightmare? How could she not freak out? “Did they catch the guy?”
“Not yet, from what I understand.”
“Do they have any idea—”
“That’s funny. The principal said to ask you that same question.”
“When you get to the office, don’t let Tessa out of your sight. I’m on the next flight out.” Willow disconnected, grabbed everything again, and raced from the bedroom.
How could such a wonderful weekend lead into such a horrible Monday?
Her daughter almost abducted?
Her daughter needed protection. Who could she ask…?
Gunner.
No.
This is exactly what she never wanted to explain. A position she never expected to be in. But did she have a choice?
Willow wheeled her suitcase into the kitchen.
Gunner sat at the table eating a bowl of cereal while Avery poured coffee into a gigantic mug.
Willow tweaked out a thin smile. “Good morning.”
“Looks like you’re today’s winner of the monster coffee mug.”
Willow ditched her suitcase by the back door and accepted the mug Avery handed her, filled to the brim with coffee. She inhaled deeply, but the powerful aroma did nothing to calm her frazzled nerves. “Thanks, Avery, for everything. It’s been a fabulous, relaxing weekend.” Willow sniffled and swiped at an eye with her index finger.
“Everything okay, Mina?” Gunner asked, rinsing his cereal bowl in the sink. The concern on his face almost did her in.
She couldn’t lie to him. Not after everything he’d done for her. “No. Everything’s far from okay.”
She set the coffee mug on the counter with shaky hands and lost the struggle with her emotions, her face contorting with the need to release the tears. She finally gave in.
“Whoa!” Gunner tugged her wrists and pulled her against his broad chest, wrapping his arms around her waist.
She cried until she felt Gunner’s wet shirt against her cheeks, never seeing or hearing Avery leave the room. Gunner hugged her against his side and slowly guided her to the couch in the great room. He grabbed a tissue and handed it to her then sat down next to her, slinging his arm along the back of the couch. He wouldn’t be sitting so close in a couple of minutes. Not after she got through with what she had to say. Was that why her chest ached so much?
How do I even start? Willow hid behind the tissue. She wiped her eyes, blew her nose, fidgeted with a piece of lint on her jeans. Anything to keep from telling him about Tessa.
She glanced at her watch and gasped. Nine o’clock. She had to get on the next plane. She was wasting precious time. Time that might make all the difference in protecting Tessa, in keeping her daughter safe.
“Gunner.”
“Yes, sweetheart.”
She winced at the endearment. How did life orchestrate their circumstances so that she was here with him now? When she’d never needed him more than this minute. Totally beyond her comprehension.
She licked dry lips. As if that would help her get the words out. “Gunner, I’d like to hire you as a guardian for the next month. While you’re on vacation.”
“Sweetheart, I don’t think you realize I didn’t intend to leave you alone until this guy was caught.”
“It’s not for me.”
The look of surprise on his face would have been comical in any other circumstance. Not today. “For who, then?”
Why hadn’t she told him about Tessa earlier? At least softened the blow slightly by telling him she had a child. She didn’t have to say whose child. This was not the way she wanted to tell him, or the time. He was going to hate her.
“For my daughter.”
He moved back slightly, took his arm from behind her, turned to look her square in the face. Disbelief and disappointment flitted across his face. Or was that disgust? “Your daughter?”
Willow’s heart raced. She swiped her forehead with sweaty palms.
His face appeared frozen, disconnected. Or was that because she had disconnected, disengaged herself? Whatever it took to make this less painful. “This daughter.” He gulped, swallowed. “How old is she?”
“Nine.”
“Nine?” His words were sharp and piercing, scaring her. She lifted eyes to peek over at him, could see him mentally calculating the years.
“She’s not yours, Gunner.”
“What?” Was he angry? Relieved? She couldn’t tell.
“Her name is Tessa. She’s nine years old, but she’s not yours. That’s all you need to know, for now.” Would that stop him from asking any more questions? From expecting more answers than she felt compelled to offer him now?
He stood up, paced the length of the family room twice, came back over to the couch, and sat down next to her. Gunner took hold of her hands and held them in his bigger ones.
Who was this Gunner? The old Gunner would have flipped a gasket. Probably would have uttered a few choice words and stormed out.
“Sweetheart, I’ll move heaven and earth to help you. And your daughter Tessa.” He rolled the name off his tongue gently, almost caressing. “But don’t you think you owe me the truth about her? If she’s not mine, whose daughter is she?”
He thought she was lying. She could see it from the questions lingering in his eyes, the raised eyebrows, the slight lift to one corner of his lips.
She gently tugged her hands free, used one to push hair back out of her eyes. She bit her upper lip and winced, refused to stop the tears that spilled down her cheeks. He needed to know the ugly truth. The ugly, dirty truth about her.
“Tessa is your brother’s daughter.”
9
Mark’s? No way.
Absolutely no way. Tessa had to be his daughter. He knew he had been the first to take advantage of Mina’s youthfulness, her trust, her—
He shook his head, a strangled groan escaping. No. She had never been with anybody else. That had been painfully obvious. And she had only surrendered herself to him a month before their wedding date. No amount of pleading or cajoling on his part had swayed her until then. She would never have allowed Mark the same liberties.
And his brother would never have gone behind his back like that. Not after all Gunner had done for him. Wasn’t Gunner the one Mark always called in the middle of the night to bail him out after his drinking binges? The one who always gave him a few bucks to last him until the next payday?
Or he had been, up until—
Up until Gunner broke off his engagement with Mina.
Mark had been at Gunner’s apartment and started a fight about something, a stupid fight. Gunner couldn’t even remember what it had been about. But Mark had stormed out of Gunner’s apartment, and Gunner hadn’t seen him since.
Well, there you go.
Tessa should have been his. He wanted her to be his.
He lowered his head. Salt
burned his eyes. The sting of pain tightened like a clamp in his chest.
“I’m sorry, Gunner. It wasn’t my intention to spring Tessa on you like this.”
He looked at her then, seeing regret and truthfulness replace the tears in her eyes. “What was your intention?”
She hiked her chin. “I never would have told you.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“I haven’t seen you for ten years. I didn’t know I would run into you again. I didn’t intend to meet up with you.”
He could understand that. Not accept it. But, he could understand.
“And you have a job here now. So, you see, I really didn’t need to tell you. Until now.”
“Does my brother know?”
She nodded, lips clamped in a tight line. “I told him. He didn’t want anything to do with Tessa. He signed an agreement waiving any custodial rights in exchange for not paying child support.”
That sounded like Mark. To wipe his hands of all responsibility.
Gunner moaned and scrubbed open palms over his cheeks. Who was he kidding? Up until he had given his life to Christ, that had been his motto, too. He had persuaded several women to share his bed, more than he cared to count. But after a couple of weeks, he would grow weary of their constant whining, incessant chatter, and phone calls during work hours. That would be the end of it. He had never accepted responsibility for those relationships. Isn’t that the same thing he was accusing his brother of? Wiping his hands of all responsibility?
It wasn’t until he learned about Denise’s attempt to kill herself that he had recognized his role in that ugly sin, and turned to Christ, begging for forgiveness. Accepted all responsibility for his actions. Regretted every non-committed relationship he had ever had where he’d gone beyond the boundaries God had set for him. And committed to never step beyond that boundary in future relationships.
God had washed Gunner’s hands with the right kind of soap, the only thing—the only Person—Who could clean him totally. Jesus.
Mina’s past was done. Over. She deserved to know that God could wash her clean too.
Gunner would help her. He would get to know Tessa. And then he would find his brother.
10
Gunner pulled the rental SUV to a stop in the driveway of a modest two-story condominium and pulled the keys out of the ignition.
Regi’s red sports car screeched to a halt beside him.
His eyes roved the immediate area. A thin, bald guy weed-whipped the shrubs around the building. An elderly lady walked a poodle. A plumber talking on his cell phone sat in a parked van a couple of spots down. Too much commotion for Gunner’s peace of mind, and the unmanned security gate he had driven through minutes ago meant zilch.
His brain still felt fuzzy, the scenes playing and replaying in his head as if in slow motion. Greeting Regi after so many years, seeing the look of shock and surprise on her face. Meeting Tessa for the first time, sensing that Mina watched him like a mama bear protecting her cub. Talking with the police officer at the school, hearing him discuss Tessa’s case as a possible child abduction, knowing that this was Mina’s child, his brother’s child. Feeling the rage rise up within him that someone would consider hurting a child, someone so helpless and dependent on adults, a petite human so innocent of every evil in the world.
His brother’s child.
Gunner closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his neck. It was all too much for his brain to process, to sort through and come up with any kind of logical conclusion. He couldn’t tuck any of this away for future reference. He had to live it, breathe it, right now, in real time. Mina needed him. His niece needed him.
His eyes jerked open as if he’d splashed caffeine directly onto his face. He glanced in the rear view mirror.
Mina huddled against the back seat, clutching Tessa close to her side. Tessa’s wide, brown eyes stared at him. The words lodged in his throat, almost strangling him.
She should have been mine. Could have been mine. She looks just like me, from the deep brown eyes to the cleft in her chin, right down to those lanky legs. Bet she has growing pains in her legs like I used to. At nine, he had been all legs, clumsily knocking over everything in his path. It had taken a few years for his body to catch up with his legs.
He swallowed his regret, the pain. No time for that now. “Okay, ladies. Here’s how it is. We’re going into the condo to pack some things for a few days, but let’s be quick about it. Tessa, you get your schoolwork and whatever, uh…” He stopped himself from saying “toys.” That word may not be appropriate for her age. “Things you need for, let’s say a week. Mina, you grab clothes and whatever else you think you’ll need for that long. Got it?”
Two heads bobbed, an older one with sun-kissed wavy hair that reminded him of summer days spent lounging at the beach and a younger version with black hair that hung straight to her shoulders.
“Yes. Thank you, Gunner, for thinking of everything. We’ll try to be quick.” Mina’s voice sounded weak.
“Mr. Gunner, where are you taking us?” Sweetness and innocence, summer and sunshine, all wrapped up in a nine-year-old package. And that’s the way he meant to keep it. He would do anything to keep her safe.
“To Regi’s apartment for now,” he answered, meeting his niece’s gaze in the mirror. “You don’t mind sharing a bedroom with your mom, do you?” Set the record straight from the beginning. He didn’t want either one of them to get the wrong idea.
“Yeah. But why do we need to go there? Why can’t we just stay at our house?”
“Your mom and I thought it might be a good idea to take you somewhere else for a few days. Don’t you think that’s wise after what happened this morning?”
Tessa glanced at her mom. Mina nodded her head.
“Tessa, your mom wants me to protect you until they catch this bad man who tried to get you into his car this morning. That’s what I do for a living. I’m a Deputy U.S. Marshal. I protect people. I won’t let anyone hurt you…or your mother,” he added. “I’m going to need your help, though. Promise me you won’t go outside without telling me.” Outside. In another room. Anywhere I can’t see you.
“Piece of cake. Will I be able to see my friend Katie?”
“I’m sure we can arrange that, sweetness. She can come over whenever your mom feels comfortable with things.”
“Epic.”
Epic?
“Can’t you keep up with a soon-to-be tweenager’s vocabulary, Gunner? Epic. You know. Awesome.” Mina must have seen the question in his eyes, and there was no mistaking the twinkle in hers.
He chuckled. “If you see that I’m drowning, just throw me a life raft, okay?”
Mina shot him a dazzling smile. If she kept that up, he would be visiting the doctor for heart palpitations. “Wait until I come around, please.”
He scanned their immediate vicinity again for any changes. Everything looked about the same, the lawn guy having moved on a little further. Gunner opened the back door and offered his hand to help Tessa out, but she ignored it and hopped out on the concrete. Tomboy, eh?
Regi took hold of Tessa’s hand.
He locked the car and herded the three of them to the front door. He always hated this part of his job. Being out in the open. Made him feel like one of those games at the fair, plastic animals lined up one after the other, just waiting for someone to take him out. Or the person he was trying to protect.
He moved in tighter to Mina and Tessa, waited while Mina unlocked the door, then slid in front of them. “Let me go in first, check things out. Regi, lock the door behind you.”
Mina followed him around the downstairs, her breath whispering against the back of his neck, her arm brushing against him. Could she feel the gun tucked in his holster? Not wanting to scare Tessa, he’d left it stowed. No reason to pull it out if nothing was amiss.
“Everything looks good, Gunner. Just like I left it.” Mina glanced at Regi. “Regi, did you and Tessa come over here while I was gone?”
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She nodded. “Yeah. We had to get one of Tessa’s books she forgot. But everything looks the same.”
“Okay, then. Let’s not waste time. Get what you’ve got to get, and let’s go.”
It was like watching that home makeover show on the television. Mina sailed toward what he assumed was the kitchen, and Tessa bolted upstairs, Regi’s shoes nipping at the girl’s heels. Gunner could only stand there and smile.
Until he noticed the picture on the fireplace mantel.
He couldn’t stop the sudden agonizing gasp for air. Walking slowly over to the fireplace, he clenched and unclenched his hands. With a deep, shaky breath, he pulled the frame down.
Mina, tenderly gazing down at a baby in her arms. Tessa? A smiling Regi, leaning over a hospital bed to touch the baby. Tessa’s father and Mina’s dad painfully absent.
When Mina told him that she had a nine-year-old child, he hadn’t even considered Tessa as a baby. Or the fact that Mina endured nine months of pregnancy with only Regi’s support. Or the demands placed on Mina to raise a child by herself.
He’d only thought of himself. His pain. His grief. His regret.
He brought the picture up to his forehead, closed his eyes to stem the throbbing. Oh, God. Forgive me. Help me make it up to them.
With gentle hands, he placed the picture frame back on the mantel and turned away. A collection of basketball trophies sat on a table in the corner. He walked over and picked up one, read the inscription. Tessa Berkshire. 1st Place Basketball. Trinity Hollow Recreation Center.
“Gunner.” Mina poked her head around the corner of an arched doorway. “Do we have time for a cup of tea? Or coffee?”
He had told them to hurry. But after catching a glimpse into Mina’s and Tessa’s everyday lives and touching things that were important to them, all he wanted to do was walk through the entire condo and savor everything. Every minute. Every inch of space.