Hunter bent down in front of his small cottage and gestured for Zoey to climb onto his back. “Come on. I’ll give you a piggyback ride inside.”
The little girl squealed and threw her arms around his neck.
He hooked his arms behind the backs of her knees and bounced her up and down as he made his way up the stairs of his porch. “How was school? Did you learn how to turn your classmates into toads?”
She giggled. “Noooo. That just happens in fairy tales.”
“Oh. I see. Well then, did you kiss any and turn them into princes?” He unlocked the door and stepped through into the small foyer.
“Uncle Hunter,” she said, sounding just like her mother when she was exasperated. “That’s not real.”
“Really? Huh. Okay then, what did you do today?” He set her down in one of the dining room chairs and went into the kitchen. After pulling steaks out of the refrigerator, he moved to the sink to wash his hands while Zoey rattled on about her new friend Daisy and the magic lesson of the day.
“We were supposed to turn a bowl of water to ice, but neither one of us could do it. Another kid in the class was able to do it once he stuck his finger in the bowl, but then no one could turn it back and they had to send him to the healer before he got frostbite.”
Hunter raised his eyebrows. “They couldn’t just melt the ice with warm water?”
She shook her head vigorously. “Nothing worked. His finger even started to turn blue.”
“Ouch,” Hunter said, salting the meat. “Did the healer manage to free him?”
“She didn’t need to. Turns out he was holding the spell just so he could get out of a math quiz.” Zoey rolled her eyes. “What a drama queen.” She continued to chatter about the kids at school while he prepped dinner.
The sound of the front door opening caught his attention, and when he glanced up from the garlic he’d been mincing, he spotted Vivian leaning against the kitchen doorframe. Her eyes were full of love as she watched her daughter animatedly go on about her day. Vivian glanced over at him, and the two shared a smile. There was nothing better than seeing Zoey thriving in her new environment.
“Mommy!” Zoey called out when she spotted her mother. “You’re home!”
Vivian took a step forward and opened her arms wide, and when Zoey threw herself into them, Vivian lifted her up and spun her around. “I missed you today, love.”
“I missed you, too, Mommy.” Zoey buried her head into Vivian’s shoulder.
Emotion rolled through Hunter as he watched them. A vague image of his own mother hugging him on a warm summer day tugged at his memory, and he smiled at them. This was what her life should be. Safe, stable, full of love. And as sideways as it seemed, this was also why he knew he and Vivian should never be together. Zoey deserved to have parents who loved each other with all their hearts, like Hunter’s had before their accident.
The faded, dull pain stabbed at his heart as he remembered his parents. They’d been simple people who lived in the small town known as Keating Mountain. His dad had been the proprietor of the town tavern, and his mother had been a school teacher. But then one night a snow storm combined with a runaway logging truck had claimed their lives, and Hunter had lost them both, the only two people who’d ever really loved him.
“Hunter?” Vivian’s voice cut through his memories.
“Huh?”
Vivian pointed behind him. “I think your steaks might be done.”
“What?” He spun around and cursed. Smoke was filling the kitchen, and he hadn’t even noticed. He reached over and turned the grill off. “Son of a… maybe we should go out to dinner?”
She chuckled. “Sure. Just let me change my clothes.”
Zoey ran into the kitchen, eyed the charred steaks, and said, “Daddy always burned the meat, too. Did he teach you how to cook?”
A rumble of laughter escaped his lips as he reached down and picked her up. “No, baby girl. It was the other way around. I taught him everything I knew. That’s probably why your mom banned him from the kitchen.”
“So it’s your fault?” Vivian asked, walking back into the kitchen. She was dressed in a sweater, jeans, and leather boots. Her dark hair was swept up into a pony tail, and her cheeks were pink, making her look ten years younger. He hadn’t seen her that relaxed in forever. Not since before they’d lost Craig.
He grinned at her. “Yes. I take full responsibility.” Hunter carried Zoey over to her mother, draped an arm over her shoulders, and pulled her in for a sideways hug. “You look like you had a good day.”
“I did. I went to practically every store in town trying to find clients. I even stopped by Faith Townsend’s spa, but she was too busy to talk to me.”
Hunter felt a twinge of guilt. He’d been the reason Vivian hadn’t gotten to speak with Faith, but he wasn’t sorry. It was a conversation they had to have, and it had resulted in the two of them finally giving their relationship a chance. He wouldn’t take it back for anything.
“But that’s okay. Her sister Abby hired me on a trial basis to see if I can help her grow the distribution of her lotions, soaps, and potions. If that works out, it’s going to be really lucrative. Did you know she’s built quite the mail order business already? You’d never know it judging by that little studio she works out of, but she’s got quite the thriving business going.”
“I knew she was doing okay, but I didn’t know it was that successful. That’s incredible. Congratulations. I’m sure you’re going to shock her with how much product you’re able to move.” He gave her a sideways hug. “Well done, Vivian.”
“Well done, Mommy!” Zoey parroted.
Vivian laughed. “Thank you, little miss. Now give your mommy a kiss.”
Hunter handed the little girl off to her mother and for the first time since they’d lost Craig, he felt as if they were all going to be all right.
Faith walked into her father’s house with her mother’s note tucked into her pocket and Xena the devil dog running in circles around her. As far as she knew, it had been twenty years since her father had heard from his wife, and Faith didn’t want to be the one to bring her back into his life if he didn’t want anything to do with her. Whatever she did next about her mother, she wanted her father’s approval.
“Dad?” she called as she entered the living room. The television was on, a John Wayne movie playing on the screen. There was a blue blanket piled up on the overstuffed couch and an empty coffee mug on the end table.
“Faith? Is that you?” he called from the hallway. “I’ll be right out.”
Xena shot down the hallway, barking and growling as if she was going after an intruder.
Faith let her go and headed into the kitchen to make hot cocoa, the real kind with melted chocolate and whole milk.
“Xena, you crazy dog,” she heard her father say. “Sit. Sit down and be a good girl.”
The barking stopped.
“Good girl,” he said. “I knew you had it in you.”
The barking started back up immediately, and a second later Xena shot back into the kitchen, zooming around Faith’s feet.
“I see the puppy lessons are helping,” Lin said with a chuckle. “At least she knows what sit means.”
Faith sighed as Xena grabbed the rug in front of the kitchen sink and started dragging it out of the room. “She’s a work in progress.”
Lin reached down and saved the rug from the fluffy little brindled shih tzu. “She’ll grow out of it.”
“That’s what we keep saying.” Faith stirred the hot chocolate and bit down on her bottom lip, not sure where she should start.
“What is it, baby girl?” her father asked gently. “Something’s wrong. I can tell by the wrinkle in your forehead.”
Faith pressed two fingers just above her brow. “I don’t have a wrinkle, do I?”
He just laughed and opened the oven. The scent of freshly baked snickerdoodle cookies filled the room. After piling some on a plate, he put them on the counter and handed Faith two mugs. “Pour me some, too, will you?”
“Of course.” Faith filled the mugs and topped the liquid with a squirt of whipped cream from the can.
Lin took one look at the mugs and frowned. “Faith, what’s wrong?”
He knew her so well. Tears filled her eyes. Instead of saying anything, she pulled the letter out of her pocket and handed it to him.
Her dad gave her a curious look and asked, “What’s this?”
“It came in the mail this weekend.” A single tear rolled down her face, but she managed to keep her voice steady. “I’m not sure what to do with it.”
Lincoln Townsend focused on the letter, and Faith recognized the exact moment when he realized it was from his ex-wife. He sucked in a short breath and stiffened. It took a few beats for him to hand the letter back.
Faith smoothed the paper just for something to do while she waited for his response.
Lin focused on his hot chocolate, brought the mug up to his lips, but then put it down without taking a sip. Finally, he turned to her and said, “What are you going to do?”
She gave him a sad smile. “I was hoping you’d tell me.”
Lin reached out and put his aging hand over his daughter’s and squeezed gently. “Baby girl, I can’t make that decision for you. You know that. You should do whatever it is your heart tells you to do.”
She turned to him, her tears dry now. “It’s telling me to listen to your heart, Dad. I don’t want to invite her back into our lives if it’s going to hurt you.”
Emotion flickered through his deep blue-gray eyes, and Faith was sure she saw moisture there. But he blinked, and his eyes cleared. “My relationship with her was over a long time ago, and I like to think I’ve healed enough that if she wants to try to forge a relationship with you girls that I’ll survive it just fine.”
Faith nodded, appreciating his willingness to put his feelings aside for his girls. “Thanks, Dad. That’s big of you.”
They were both silent, and Faith wondered if she even wanted to see her mother. What kind of person just up and left her family one day and never came back? Add in the fact that she hadn’t wanted Faith to tell her sisters, and it just left a bad ache in her stomach. “I need to tell Abby, Noel, and Yvette, don’t I?”
“Yes,” Lin said without hesitation. “They deserve to know she’s made contact with you.”
Faith sighed and put her head down on the counter.
Lin caressed her hair and said, “It’s okay, Faith. You don’t have to meet with her if you don’t want to.”
“That’s what Hanna said,” Faith mumbled.
“You told her already?”
Faith lifted her head. “Yeah. I needed someone to talk to and she… well, she’s my person.”
Lin gave her a gentle smile. “Of course she is, honey. I just think you need to tell your sisters sooner rather than later. If they find out from someone else… well, Noel won’t take it well.”
“She won’t take it well anyway,” Faith said, but she was already pulling her phone out and starting a group text to them.
Are you guys busy? Can you come to Dad’s? It’s important.
Noel immediately texted back asking if their dad was okay. Lincoln Townsend had been diagnosed with cancer just over a year ago. He’d been going through treatments, and as of the last appointment his scans had been clean. But he was still weak from the chemotherapy, and the doctors said his immune system would be vulnerable for a while yet.
She bit her bottom lip and texted back: It’s not about Dad. It’s about Mom.
The texts from her sisters came in rapidly, each of them asking what about Mom and demanding answers.
Instead of answering, Faith texted back: We’ll talk about it when you get here. Dad and I have cookies and hot chocolate.
Then she turned her phone off. She wasn’t doing this over the phone.
“Come on, baby girl.” Lin slid off his chair and kissed her on the top of her head. “Let’s take these cookies to the couch and finish watching that John Wayne movie.”
Faith chuckled. Her father never changed, and that was just the way she liked it. “Xena, come on, girl. Time to snuggle.”
The young pup zoomed out of the kitchen and jumped up on the couch, commandeering her father’s blanket. After using her paws to get it into just the right bunched up bundle, she circled three times and laid right in the middle of her nest.
Faith shook her head at the dog’s silliness.
“Someone certainly knows how to get comfortable,” Lin said, sitting right next to the puppy. Faith sat on the other side of her, tucked her feet underneath her, and dug into the plate of cookies her father had put on the coffee table.
Lin eyed the plate. “They better hurry up or there’s only going to be crumbs left.”
Faith shrugged. “It’s not my fault they’re taking their sweet time.”
He laughed and turned the volume up on the television.