by Cindy Kirk
Ami wrapped her fingers around a pretty china cup decorated with a ring of pink roses and studied her.
Keeping her expression carefully neutral, Hadley picked up a cookie and tried not to squirm under the assessing gleam in her friend’s green eyes. Absently, she took a bite, then widened her eyes as her taste buds registered the hint of bitter.
Lavender cookies with rosewater icing were a Bloom family tradition. They were also an acquired taste. Hadley had grown to like the unique flavor. Which was fortunate, as the Bloom sisters marked each momentous occasion with these particular cookies.
Hadley lifted a brow. “What’s the occasion?”
Ami’s lips curved.
Hadley set the cookie down. “Gladys nailed it. You’re pregnant.”
When Gladys had told Ami she was having a baby boy, Ami had insisted she wasn’t pregnant.
“We’d been trying, but not having a lot of luck. I did the test last night, and it came back positive.” Ami grinned. “Of course, it’s too soon to know boy or girl. We’ll have to wait a couple of months to find out if Gladys is right.”
“She’s rarely wrong.”
“As long as the baby is healthy, Beck and I will be happy.”
“Congratulations.” Hadley reached over and grasped Ami’s hands. “I’m so happy for you.”
“We’re pretty thrilled.”
“Was it difficult to tell Marigold?”
The brightness in Ami’s eyes dimmed. The youngest Bloom sister and her husband had been trying to get pregnant since they married last year.
“I called her last night. She and Cade are very happy for us.”
“Marigold is young. She has lots of time.” Hadley remembered thinking when her own pregnancy test had turned positive how unfair it was so many couples tried to get pregnant and couldn’t, while she had the opposite issue.
“Since they’ve been trying for nearly a year, they made an appointment with a doctor in Milwaukee to make sure there aren’t issues needing to be addressed.” Though Ami’s voice remained confident, her brows furrowed. “It will work out. Giving birth isn’t the only way to become a parent. Look at David.”
“He’s a wonderful father,” Hadley agreed, having observed firsthand that David’s love for his daughter ran deep.
“Is that all he is to you, a good father?” Ami’s probing question broke through her thoughts.
Actually, Hadley had been surprised at how quickly she’d grown to admire and like David. She gave an absent smile. “That’s all he can be.”
Ami broke off a piece of cookie, her eyes never leaving Hadley. She arched a questioning brow. “You’re both available.”
As it was common knowledge David’s divorce was final, Hadley figured that question was directed at her.
“Yes.” Hadley nodded.
Her friend exhaled a breath and took a long sip of coffee.
“You’re attracted to him.” Ami’s tone, low and soothing, invited confidences. “What’s holding you back?”
“It’s complicated.” Hadley wanted to add a smile, but couldn’t get her lips to move properly.
It was a response Hadley often used when anyone pressed too hard or asked for details about her past. Not that Ami was pushing hard. She was simply being a good friend.
“I know what keeping secrets is like.” Ami’s eyes took on a faraway look. “It can be a very lonely place.”
Hadley thought back to the bash Ami and her sisters had thrown for their dad when Steve had reached a milestone with the school district. Such a fun, happy time. Until Eliza had opened her mouth and spewed her venom. “Eliza said horrible things at your father’s party.”
Ami lifted the cup, but didn’t drink. “She tossed the secret I’d kept all those years down like a gauntlet.”
“It almost broke up you and Beck.” Hadley pursed her lips. “I admit Eliza has changed since she met Kyle. But I still don’t understand how you can call her your friend. Not after what she did.”
“It hurt Eliza deeply when Lindsay was seriously injured in the accident. She blamed me for driving after drinking.” Ami cleared her throat. “I blamed myself.”
Hadley sipped her coffee, not sure how to respond. She wasn’t even certain Ami expected a response.
“In a weird kind of way, she did me a favor.” Ami broke the silence with her quiet words. “The truth needed to come out.”
“Why did it need to come out?” Hadley lifted her hands and fought to keep her voice even. “What happened was past history. All that happened way back when you were in high school.”
“If it hadn’t come out, what actually happened that night would have been a wedge between me and Beck. I planned to tell him. Eliza just pushed forward my timetable.” Ami’s gaze searched hers. “Is there something you need to tell David?”
Hadley kept her expression impassive.
“David and my relationship—if you want to call it that— isn’t anything like yours and Beck’s.” Hadley fought off a pang of envy. What she wouldn’t give to have David love her the way Beck loved Ami. “There’s no need for us to bare our souls. We’re just casual.”
“I hate to break it to you, but the way you two look at each other could scorch earth.” Ami’s eyes sparkled as she broke off a piece of cookie and popped it into her mouth.
“He’s a handsome guy.” Hadley’s lips curved, despite her best efforts. “With those gorgeous gray eyes and all that thick, dark hair.”
It helped that David was the complete opposite of Justin, who’d been her height and as blond as she was.
Ami’s gaze turned shrewd over the rim of her cup. “I can’t believe how long it took me to see it. Looking back, it was obvious even at the ice cream social you two have the hots for each other.”
Actually, that day Hadley had been more concerned about Gladys’s odd “reading” than jumping David’s bones.
Of course, she had no doubt the man had very nice bones. Just recalling the hardness of his body when they’d kissed in the bedroom had her face heating.
Ami’s laugh reminded Hadley of the tinkling of a bell. “Beck says I’m a born matchmaker. I do so wish I’d been the one to fix you two up.”
“David and I are just friends.”
“Friends who are exploring possibilities.” Ami’s green eyes danced.
“I kissed him.” Hadley heard her voice soften as the confession spilled from her lips.
Leaning forward, Ami rested her arms on the table, pushing aside the plate. “How was it?”
Hadley crumbled her cookie between suddenly restless fingers. “Which time?”
Ami squealed. “This news surpasses my wildest expectations. Is he a good kisser?”
“Amazing.” Hadley lifted her hands. “Before you ask, no, I haven’t slept with him and I don’t plan to.”
“Trust me. Plans have a way of changing.” Before Hadley could protest, Ami continued. “I’m just happy you’re dating and getting more involved in the community. I was worried about you.”
“Really?” Hadley forced a laugh past the sudden tightness in her throat. “Why would you worry about me?”
Without warning, Ami reached across the table. She took Hadley’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “When you came to Good Hope, I knew you were running from something, or someone.”
“My life is complicated.” The well-practiced statement rolled from her lips.
“You know I’m here for you.” Ami’s gaze remained solemn. “If you ever want to talk, please know that whatever you say to me will be held in strict confidence, even from Beck.”
As far as Hadley knew, Ami and her husband didn’t have any secrets. Doubt must have shown on her face, because Ami placed a reassuring hand on her arm and repeated, “Even from Beck.”
“You’re a good friend.” Because tears had begun to press against the backs of Hadley’s eyes, she took a bite of bitter cookie and chased it with a gulp of the chicory blend. “If I could tell anyone, it’d be you. But sometimes, it�
��s best to leave the past where it belongs and not let it sully the now.”
“Sometimes you can’t truly move forward without dealing with the past.” A shadow traveled across Ami’s face, then disappeared. “I’ll be here for you, Hadley. Wherever, whenever you need me.”
“Thanks.” Hadley sat back, determined to get the conversation back on solid ground. “I’m looking forward to the street dance on Friday.”
Bopping in the Square was one of many weekly events leading up to the big Founder’s Day bash.
Ami’s lips curved. “That isn’t why you’re excited.”
Hadley cocked her head.
“At least be honest with yourself.” Ami rolled her eyes, an almost indulgent smile on her lips. “You’re excited because you’ll be going with your good friend David.”
David knocked on his brother’s office door. Hearing a grunt of assent, he pushed the door open and stepped inside. “Am I interrupting?”
Clay motioned him inside with one hand. “I’m alone and I’ve got no medals to show, so it’s safe to come in.”
David shot his brother a sardonic look that had Clay grinning like a loon.
His brother had on his principal look. Blond hair carefully combed, dress pants and a cotton shirt with tie.
“Why so formal?” David took a seat in a leather chair facing the desk. “School doesn’t start for another month.”
“Our biology teacher is moving. Her husband got a job out of state. I have three interviews this afternoon.” Clay leaned back in his chair and studied his brother. “Enough about me. How’s the sexy nanny?”
David ignored the glint of mischief in Clay’s eyes. “Hadley is at Ami’s house this morning. They’re doing some kind of marathon baking session.”
“Does Brynn enjoy baking?”
David shrugged. “No idea.”
“I think it’d be boring for Brynn to watch Hadley and Ami bake.”
“Brynn stayed home with me.” David paused, then qualified. “That is, until twenty minutes ago when I dropped her off at Muddy Boots. She, Mom and Greer are having a girls’ lunch.”
A speculative look settled on Clay’s face. “Isn’t watching Brynn and taking her places part of a nanny’s duties?”
“Hadley and I talked about our week and figured out how to make everything work.” Because David didn’t want his brother thinking that Hadley wasn’t pulling her weight, he added, “She loves to cook, so in addition to watching Brynn, she’ll be making dinner in the evening.”
Everyone around the table, enjoying a meal and sharing news, had been something David had taken for granted growing up. That had changed when he married. Whitney hadn’t been big on sitting down for family meals, even when it had been just the two of them.
“You’ll like that.”
“I will.” David smiled, thinking of his paltry attempts at cooking. Though he had to admit Brynn never complained. “She’s also taking over the laundry, which is something I hate.”
“Let me get this straight.” Clay steepled his fingers beneath his chin. “In exchange for her cooking and doing the laundry, you babysit Brynn.”
David frowned. “Brynn is my daughter. You don’t babysit your own child.”
Clay studied him so intently, David wondered if there was something more behind his brother’s call this morning than simply wanting to give him a baseball uniform.
“Your arrangement doesn’t sound like employer-employee. It sounds more like a marriage.”
David laughed. “Where do you get your crazy ideas?”
“Think about it.” Clay abruptly leaned forward, resting his arms on the desk. “Talking about your week, deciding who does what, working together to see that everything gets done.”
“That’s called a good working relationship.”
“You also have some serious chemistry, if what I witnessed in your bedroom is any indication.” Clay straightened. “Have you slept with her yet?”
“Give it up, Clay. Hadley is my employee.”
“Camille was your employee.” Clay’s smile turned to a smirk. “I bet you never kissed Camille. Or had your hand up her shirt—”
“Enough.” David’s voice snapped like a whip in the quiet of the office. “You didn’t see anything. Understand?”
The smirk disappeared. Clay’s eyes, the same smoky color as his brother’s, held a knowing glint. “You like her.”
David thought about telling his brother his feelings for Hadley were not open for discussion. But despite Clay’s needling, he knew his brother could be counted on to keep his mouth shut. “I do. She’s amazing.”
“Hadley is better suited for you than Whitney.”
“Whitney and I were together for ten years,” David reminded him.
“Sort of, but not really.” When David opened his mouth, Clay held up a hand. “I’m betting Hadley will be at the baseball game on Sunday.”
“She’ll be in town.”
“Whitney could have been in town and still not been there.” Clay’s expression softened as he pushed back his chair and stood. “Life is about choices, bro. If you think you and Hadley might have something, don’t back off just because you got burned before.”
Clay must not have expected a response, because he turned toward the closet and retrieved a vintage baseball uniform, complete with white stockings that would cover David’s legs from knees to feet. “We’re the same size, so this should fit you.”
Several years earlier, Good Hope had started including a vintage baseball game as part of its Fourth of July celebration. It had proved so popular that the community had decided to include a game as part of the Founder’s Day festivities.
“Thanks.” David took the uniform from his brother and met his gaze head on. “I’m not taking advantage of Hadley.”
“Hadley knows her own mind. I don’t think she’d have any trouble telling you to back off.” Clay grinned. “For the record, that wasn’t the impression I got in your bedroom.”
“I have to be careful,” David said, more as a reminder to himself, “because of Brynn.”
“Be as careful as you think necessary.” Clay clapped him on the shoulder when they reached the door. “Just don’t overthink and second-guess your own instincts.”
On the way to the car, David heard the ding of a new text. It was from Whitney’s friend Kim. She was concerned that Whitney seemed unusually depressed and irritable.
David texted back, asking her to keep a close eye on Whitney and let him know if she noticed any involuntary movements—no matter how small—or any changes with Whitney’s coordination.
The depression and irritability could simply be Whitney, well, being Whitney. But Kim knew her friend’s medical history, and he appreciated her concern. Just because he and Whitney were no longer married didn’t mean David didn’t care what happened to her.
He parked the car in front of the café. From where he sat, he could see Brynn with her grandmother and aunt at the table by the window.
Being a father came easy for him. His own dad had set a good example. His parents had been a team, guided by their love for each other and for their children.
It hurt to admit that he and Whitney had never been a team.
On the way home, he listened to Brynn chatter about the next step in her Founder’s Day project. When she stopped to take a breath, David forced a casualness into his tone at odds with the churning in his gut.
“This evening is the street dance.” David tossed the words out there and waited. “I thought we’d go.”
Brynn lifted her gaze. When those blue eyes locked on his, for some reason he was reminded of Hadley. “Will Gram be there?”
David chuckled. “I’d say yes. Nearly everyone in Good Hope will attend. This is the official First Friday kickoff leading up to Founder’s Day at the end of the month.”
Taking the next exit off Highway 42, David turned south onto the road that would take them home. “It won’t be just dancing. The town square will be filled
with all sorts of booths.”
Brynn’s expression brightened. “I bet my friends will be there.”
Before he could respond, her expression grew somber. “Mindy loved games. She was really good at them. At the school carnivals, she always won something. Last year, she won two cakes and gave one to me. Remember, Daddy?”
David’s heart ached at the pain in her eyes. Brynn had suffered so much loss in her young life. “I remember. She let you pick the one you wanted.”
“I picked the coconut.” A slight smile lifted the corners of Brynn’s lips. “Mindy didn’t like coconut.”
“You were a good friend.”
Brynn’s lips trembled and her hand shook as she brushed back a strand of hair. She picked up a to-go cup filled with water and took a sip.
“I have a surprise about tonight.”
“Surprise?” She turned, and the tears in her pretty blue eyes were replaced by curiosity. “What kind of surprise?”
“Hadley is coming with us.”
Chapter 11
“Then he said, ‘Hadley is coming with us.’” Brynn giggled. “I almost spit out my water.”
The child’s eyes danced as she giggled again.
A warmth traveled through Hadley’s veins. It appeared she’d worried needlessly about being the third wheel tonight.
The congestion on the sidewalks reminded her of mornings in a big city when everyone rushed to work. But instead of stepping lively, no one seemed in much of a hurry.
Hadley understood. The fact that the day had turned sunny and there was a light breeze off the water practically demanded one linger to soak in the ambience.
Flags and banners advertising Founder’s Day hung from the ornate light poles that edged the street. Off in the distance, the high school band’s brass section blared a rousing rendition of a tune Hadley couldn’t quite identify. Still, the beat was infectious and had her tapping her foot.
Eventually, the budding musicians would vacate their seats and be replaced by a popular band out of Milwaukee who would rock the stage for the street dance.