Dani placed the backpack she’d been carrying onto the picnic table, then stretched the kinks from her back and arms. Sun pennies sparkled in Glade Creek, and the slight breeze smelled fresh and warm. Another gorgeous day in an already memorable holiday weekend. On Saturday she and Brett had played two rounds of miniature golf with so much mischievous cheating they gave up keeping score, browsed the local antique stores, and had dinner at a little Italian café in town. A mini Cary Grant marathon whiled away a lazy Sunday afternoon. And now here she was at Glade Creek, eager to enjoy a Labor Day picnic with Brett and his family. She breathed in the sun-scented air and sighed with contentment.
“I can’t believe we’re the first ones here.” Brett removed a water bottle from his backpack and took a swig. “That was a longer hike than I expected.”
“I’m just glad we found this place,” Dani said as she sat on top of the table. “That backpack was getting heavy.”
“I told you I’d carry it.”
“You were carrying your own.”
“I could have carried both.” Brett flexed his biceps. “I big strong man.”
“But you sure are a cute one.” His fingers brushed her arm, then he took her hand. He pointed toward a massive weeping willow near the bank. Its graceful fronds swept over the creek and into the water. “Let me show you the engagement tree while it’s just us.”
“The one with all the initials?”
“Come on. I’ll show you.”
She let him pull her from the table, and he held onto her hand while they sauntered to the willow. Her head insisted the gesture didn’t mean anything. Just Brett being Brett. But his touch, no matter how casual, exhilarated her.
Time to focus on something else. Like the rural landscape in front of her.
“There’s something almost mystical about the way the sunlight filters through the fronds. It’d make a lovely photograph.”
“Did you bring your camera?”
“Wish I had.”
“Me too. That’d be a great wedding gift for AJ and Shelby. Are you interested in helping me with that?”
“I’d love to.”
“Great.” Brett pushed aside the fronds, and they ducked into the shadows of the ancient tree.
“Look here.” He pointed to the carved initials. “These are Shelby’s ancestors. When they became engaged, they added their initials. And this”—he pointed to a metal heart securely attached to a limb—“is for the latest couple.”
The heart’s engraved inscription read “Shelby & AJ.”
“Why didn’t they carve their initials into the trunk like everyone else?”
“This is more tree-friendly. A new tradition.”
Dani pointed to a set of initials: J. L. + E. W. “This carving somehow looks older than the others. Is it the first?”
“Could be. Shelby can tell you when she gets here. I know the story of this one.” He pointed to S. L. + J. O. “Shelby was a teenager when her boyfriend, breaking family tradition, carved these.”
“Who’s J. O.?”
“Jason Owens. He and his family live up the road from Shelby.”
“They took care of Elizabeth and Tabby when we went to the banquet.”
“That’s right.”
“A teenage romance, huh?”
“I guess. But Shelby’s parents zipped her away to Mozambique.” He walked around the tree, then knelt. “Like father, like son.”
Dani knelt beside him. The carving appeared fresher than the others. “E. K. and A. O. Elizabeth and her young man.”
“You mean the scurvy rat who’s trying to run off with my niece.” He slightly smiled, seeming to revel in his role of indulgent uncle.
“She’s not really your niece, you know.”
“I know, but it’s what we decided.”
“Who’s we?”
“Elizabeth, Tabby, and me. Instead of being ordinary old cousins, I’d be their uncle and they’d be my nieces.” He cocked his head. “I think I hear them now.”
They emerged from the shelter of the tree as the whine of a motor grew louder. Only a moment later, a utility four-wheeler pulling a trailer appeared from beyond a low rise.
Brett nudged Dani. “We need one of those.”
“Maybe they’ll give us a ride back.”
“The walk too much for you?”
“I thought it was too much for you,” she teased as they wandered back to the picnic table. AJ parked the vehicle nearby and waved.
“You got a new toy?” Brett asked.
“Better than carrying Tabby all the way back to the house.”
“Voice of experience?”
“Carried her to the cottage once. That was enough.”
Their conversation ended as the two little girls pounced on Brett, each insisting on being spun in a circle. He obliged, whirling them one at a time as Lila bounced and barked.
He set Elizabeth on her feet, then knelt in front of her.
“I saw your initials on the tree,” he said, his voice as serious as he could make it.
Elizabeth’s pixie face turned crimson, and she unconsciously leaned forward. “Mine and Austin’s?”
“Are you really going to marry him?” Brett asked solemnly.
“Someday. When we’re all grown.”
“What if you meet someone else? Someone you like better?”
“There’s no one I could ever like better than Austin.”
“He’s a lucky kid.”
“Are you going to put your initials on the tree?”
“Naw. That tree’s just for Lassiters.”
“But you’re part of our family now. Isn’t he, Mommy?”
“He will be soon,” Shelby said. “How about if we give you your own branch?”
Elizabeth clapped her hands together. “That would be tremendous, wouldn’t it?”
“Sure would, Bitsy,” he said, poking her ribs. “Now I just have to find someone to marry me. How about you? Can I steal you away from Austin?”
Elizabeth giggled then squealed as he whirled her around again.
Dani stuck her hands in the back pockets of her shorts. She was an outsider to this family tableau, and at this moment she was acutely aware she didn’t belong. Not really.
It’d been less than two weeks since Brett asked her to the movies. But it seemed she’d been playing this charade for most of her life.
The thought caught in her throat. For the first time, she associated her deceit with Charade, the movie that had inspired the name she’d originally given Brett. Except it was Cary Grant’s character who had hidden his identity, not Regina Lampert. Even as she fell in love with him, Regina knew she couldn’t trust him. Not until the final scene, anyway.
The chances of Brett falling in love with her were as slender as a Hollywood film classic not having a happy ending. And while he might be Cary Grant gorgeous, she certainly was no Audrey Hepburn.
In the movie, Regina forgave the man she loved for deceiving her, but if Brett ever discovered the truth about Dani, he’d never speak to her again.
A physical ache squeezed her heart at that possibility.
The notion to eventually tell Brett the truth had made sense late last night, but in the stark reality of this sun-soaked day, she knew she never could. At least not the truth about who she was. But she should tell him about her mishap with the amethyst ring.
“You okay?” Brett stood next to her and ran his finger along her bare arm. “You look a little sad.”
“No, I’m fine,” she said, forcing a smile. “Just thinking.”
“About?”
The confession stuck in her throat. “Nothing important.”
“Hey, Brett,” AJ called. “How about giving me a hand with this stuff?”
“Coming,” Brett said over his shoulder. He turned back to Dani. “If something’s bothering you, I hope you’ll tell me about it. I’m a good listener.”
“Are you?” The question popped out of her mouth before she could stop it.
“When I want to be.” He leaned closer, his mouth tantalizingly near her ear. “I want to be when I’m with you.”
Before she could respond, he jogged over to help AJ unload the trailer. Dani tried to catch her breath.
He didn’t mean it. Not really. That’s what guys like him did. Flirt with lonely women to boost their own vanity.
So why couldn’t she just accept that and enjoy his attention while it lasted?
Because she wanted something more.
As Brett and AJ set up the charcoal grill, her heart practically burst from her chest. Both men were handsome in their own way, Brett blond and almost Nordic, AJ dark and athletic. But something deeper lay beyond their good looks.
With a jolt, Dani realized her glimpse into Brett’s heart was rare—an intriguing facet hidden from the women he dated.
None of them, not even Tracie, had seen him with Shelby’s daughters. They didn’t know how he teased and played with them. How sweet he could be with shy Elizabeth.
Or the fun and playful side she’d seen this morning as they got in each other’s way making potato salad and baking brownies.
It was as if God was giving her a peek into the joy of belonging to a family. But why? She couldn’t keep her secret forever. And even if she could, her initials would never appear on the engagement tree.
Suddenly aware that everyone was busy preparing for the picnic except her, she hurried to the table and unzipped her backpack. Shelby had already laid a blue-checked cloth over the table and was clipping the corners so they wouldn’t fly away in the random gusts.
“Brett and I made brownies this morning,” Dani said as she removed the container from her pack.
“Brett? He baked?”
Dani laughed. “He stirred. And licked the bowl.”
“You’ve cast a spell on him.”
“I . . . no, I haven’t.”
“It’s a good thing,” Shelby said reassuringly. “Everything that’s happened recently has been like a wake-up call for him, but I know it’s not been easy for him to break old habits. You are exactly what he needs.”
“We’re not dating, you know. We’re not a couple.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Pretty sure.”
Shelby glanced toward the men, then back at Dani. “I wish you were. He seems to be a better ‘Brett’ when you’re around.”
“I guess I’m still surprised he ever gave me a second look.”
“Don’t say that. He needs someone like you. Someone genuine. Authentic.”
Dani busied herself pulling more food containers from the backpack as the sharp arrows of Shelby’s words pierced through her heart. If only she knew.