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To Summer’s surprise—and relief—Maddie wasn’t behind in her education at all. In fact, academically, she was probably ahead of most four-year-olds, with a complete grasp of the alphabet, numbers to one hundred, and a keen sense of who should win the next presidential election. Yes, Grandpa had covered all the important bases.
Socially, on the other hand, the little girl would definitely benefit from some interaction with other children in her age group. Concepts such as sharing, please and thank you, picking up after herself, and gracefully accepting the word no escaped her childish mind. A drawback for the lone little girl in a household of men. Maddie, treated like a princess, ruled the Hartmann homestead with the whims of a tyrant. Summer realized she had an uphill battle with this little girl. She’d have to address her concerns with Craig though, see how far he’d allow her to discipline Maddie.
While they sat together in the living room, reading The Cat in the Hat for the umpteenth time, Summer’s cell phone jangled. Caller ID displayed Flowers by Monet.
“Excuse me a sec, sweetie.” Extricating herself from Maddie and the sunken couch, she answered on the second ring. “Hello?”
“Summer? It’s Elsa. How are you today?”
“Fine, thanks. What’s up?”
“I wanted to let you know. Those new roses we talked about? They’re in.”
“They are? Oh, that’s great.”
More than great. Phenomenal. Stupendous. April would be thrilled. But the first law of business was never let the seller see your excitement.
“I was hoping you and April would have time to stop by and see them this afternoon.”
Frowning, she cast a glance at Maddie still cuddled up with Dr. Seuss. “Today?”
Tiny Terror in a flower shop? She shivered at the imagined destruction. At least with April there, though, she’d have reinforcements. April had lots of experience with troubled children.
“If you can, yes,” Elsa replied. “I know it’s last minute, but I’ll need extra time to order from the wholesaler. Every day counts. That is, of course, if you want them.”
Roses with blooms shaped like hearts? Oh, she wanted them, all right. Based only on the photos Elsa had shown her weeks ago. She took a deep breath to calm the adrenaline racing through her bloodstream. “Let me check with April and see when she’s available. I’ll call you right back.”
“Okay, but don’t wait too long—”
“I understand,” Summer interjected. “As soon as I hear from April, I’ll be in touch. Thanks, Elsa.”
Before the floral designer could argue, she disconnected the call, then punched in April’s number. As she waited for her sister to answer, she picked up a few of the tiny cars that littered the floor like a salvage yard.
One ring, a yellow Mustang. Two rings, a lime green Corvette. Three rings, a red pickup. At last, on the fourth ring, with a bright blue PT Cruiser in her palm, April answered. She barely got her hello past her lips before Summer jumped in.
“How soon can you get to Monet?”
A pause. An orange VW Beetle.
“The florist?” April finally asked.
“Yes, the florist. Elsa just called me. The heart roses came in, and we’re getting first look, but we’ve gotta hustle if we plan to use them in your bridesmaid’s bouquets.”
“Oh, my God. Really?” Excitement crackled like static between them. “How soon can you get there?”
After setting the collection of cars into the open carrying case on the floor, she gazed at the booster seat in the corner of the room. “I’ll have to bring Maddie, but we can be there in about a half-hour.”
“You’re on! I’ll see you there.” She took a deep breath, exhaled, then added sotto voce, “How’s everything going over there?”
Summer stole another glance at Maddie, smiling and tapping the toes of her pink sandals to some unheard song. “Okay. A lot to do, but that’s a good thing, right?”
“Just remember I’m a phone call away if you need me.”
She turned and tiptoed into the kitchen, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Actually, there is something you can help me with. Rainey-Day-Wife has preschool referrals, right?”
April’s reply was a guarded, “Yes.”
“I want to set up some appointments for Craig and Maddie to check out a few.”
“Isn’t it a little too soon to start phasing yourself out? You’ve only been there a day.”
Did April really think she planned to turn tail and run already?
“No, sister dear. I’m not that flighty. Maddie needs social interaction. She’s sweet and smart as a whip, but a little spoiled.”
“Ah. Okay. Got it. In that case, I’ll have Bonnie make a few phone calls and print off a list of possibilities. Anything else?”
“Nope. Just get to the florist asap.”
“Honey, I’m in there like swimwear.” She hung up before Summer inhaled the next breath.
Stuffing the cell in her pocket, Summer returned to the living room where Maddie still sat, clicking her toes. “Want to go see some really pretty flowers?”
The child looked up from her book and shrugged. “Okay.”
Good. I have to strap your booster seat in my car. While I’m doing that, put your book on the shelf and pick up some of your Barbies.”
Maddie’s expression darkened, and she tossed the book on the floor. “I don’t wanna.”
“It’s important that we pick up after ourselves, Maddie.”
Folding her arms over her chest, she stuck out her lower lip. “Why?”
“Because if we all left our belongings wherever we choose, the house would be cluttered, and people could get hurt.”
“Grampa left some staples in my room. I got hurt.”
“Well, then, there you are. You’ve just made my point. Now, you put away the book and pick up your dolls while I get us ready to go to the flower shop.”
She shook her head. “No.”
Oh, great. She soooooo did not have time for a diva scene right now. And if Maddie dug in her heels, what could she do? She couldn’t exactly leave the kid here alone.
But did Maddie know that?
With no other options, she’d have to roll those dice. “Suit yourself. You’ll have to stay here alone until I get back. Be sure you lock the door behind me.”
When Maddie didn’t move off the couch, she upped the ante and strode toward the stairs to fetch her purse from her apartment. “See you later.”
“No! No! No!” Maddie shouted loud enough to rattle the windows. Ear-piercing shrieks followed, along with the familiar gagging.
This time, Summer didn’t rush to the child’s aid. On the landing between the two floors, she peeked around the corner and frowned at the little girl stomping her feet. “Not another temper tantrum, Maddie,” she remarked with a stern look.
Maddie stilled instantly, one foot raised in mid-stomp. Slowly, she dropped the foot to the floor and shook her head, eyes downcast.
“Do you want to come with me or not?”
Sniff. “Yes.”
“Then you know what you have to do.”
Her head dipped lower, and she murmured in a barely audible voice, “Sorry.”
“That’s better.” A little more sincere this time. Progress. “Thank you, Maddie.”
The child bent to pick up one of the naked dolls. Looking up, eyes swimming, she asked, “Will you wait for me, please?”
Summer smiled. “Of course.”
♥
WHEN CRAIG OPENED THE front door in the early afternoon, Brandy, on a series of woofs, charged across the tiled floor and launched herself at him.
“Down, girl.” Her black nose swiped moisture across his cheek. “Brandy, get down.”
He gently pushed the dog away. Too late. Long golden hairs clung to his jeans and shirt. Stupid dog. Why hadn’t he convinced the kids to adopt a chihuahua? Or even better, a goldfish?
“Hello? Anyone home?” He hung his keys on the hook near the door and stood, waiting for some kind of human reply. Nothing.
Gut churning, he remembered the last time he’d come home to an empty house. The day Chelsea walked out. She’d left a note in the kitchen, telling him she couldn’t live with him anymore and she’d taken the kids with her to a hotel to consider her next move. Her next move. Like he didn’t have a say in the demise of their marriage.
His heart thudded in his chest as he approached the immaculate kitchen. Chelsea was currently in London. Wasn’t she? Or did she only say she was an ocean away to throw him off? To lull him into a false sense of security so she could swoop in and take the kids away from him while he sat blissfully unaware at work?
No. She wouldn’t dare, not so long as her new husband, Jake, had his eye on becoming the next big real estate tycoon. In Jake McIntyre’s eyes, bad publicity was worse than no publicity.
Besides, if she had shown up here, demanding her kids, surely Summer would have called him. Right? She wouldn’t just hand Maddie over to a stranger and leave. Would she? There had to be a reasonable explanation why no one was here.
Yeah, sure. Like Dad had another heart attack and Summer left in such a rush to get to the hospital, she forgot to call him. Or an accident at camp with one of the boys.
Or she was really a plant hired by Chelsea to kidnap the kids? First day—bam! They’re hiding out in some other town with new identities so he could never find them.
Maureen had done a news story on that about a year ago. Some guy had hired a close friend to kidnap his ten-year-old daughter from a playground and hide her in a motel in another town until the cops had verified the dad’s alibi. Once the authorities and ex-wife focused their attention on a stranger abduction, Dad retrieved his daughter from the kidnapper, and they high-tailed it to New Zealand.
New Zealand.
The little girl’s mom, who had full legal custody, wound up paying a fortune to private investigators, then fighting through international lawyers for years to get her only daughter back. By the time the kid came home, she was enrolled in college. Within a year, as an adult, she moved back to New Zealand, leaving the mom alone yet again.
Back in the day, Cliff Hanger had spent over an hour coming up with humorous commentary about that poor mother’s situation. He remembered quips regarding boomerangs and kangaroo pockets specifically. Funny stuff at the time. Now? Not so funny after all.
Calm down, idiot. Summer doesn’t even know Chelsea. Think of reasonable, banal explanations. We’re out of milk. Or Maddie’s foot got infected from chasing lightning bugs last night, and they went to the pediatrician. Or the boys forgot their lunches, and Summer and Maddie drove to the camp to drop off a few sandwiches.
The sound of a car door slamming outside broke the stillness. Craig rushed to the front door in time to spot Maddie leaping out of Summer’s Escalade. She wore a beaming smile, a wreath of roses around her head, and her Minnie Mouse costume. As she skipped along beside Summer, her little mouth moved rapidly. At this distance, he couldn’t hear what she chattered about, but her happiness registered clearly.
Panic ebbed, freeing the constriction in his chest, before annoyance set in. He yanked open the front door and stood waiting on the top step.
“Daddy!” Breaking away from Summer, Maddie raced to him.
A dozen strips of red and white ribbons attached to the wreath streamed behind her like a vapor trail. When she reached him, she wrapped her arms around his waist.
Tension seeped out of him in a steady stream. “Hey, sweetheart. Don’t you look pretty?”
She glanced up at him. “Uh-huh. Summer let me wear my Minnie dress.”
A choice he definitely planned to address with Summer when they were alone. But for now, he just smiled. “I see that. Where’d you get the flowers?”
“‘April Showers bought me flowers,’” she replied on a giggle, then dropped her hold on him and headed for the door. “Gotta go potty.”
Well accustomed to the brief window of time between that statement and an accident, he whipped the door open for her. “By all means. Go.”
She dashed off at the same time Summer reached the porch. “Close. My sister, April Raine, gave her the wreath, not April Showers.” Hitching her purse higher on her shoulder, she flashed him a smile that could melt Antarctica. “Hi.”
“Hi,” he said, then steeled himself for a confrontation. “Got a minute?”
“Sure. What’s up?”
He frowned. “First off, why is my daughter dressed in her Halloween costume?”
A rosy blush flamed her cheeks, and she sputtered. “That was totally my fault. A breakdown in communication. By the time I realized what she meant by Minnie dress—”
“In other words, she hustled you.”
“Yeah, I guess so.” She laughed, light and joyful. “I promise it won’t happen again.”
When was the last time he laughed like that? He pushed the thought from his mind and focused on the emotions that had churned through his gut when he’d first come home. “More importantly, where did you take my daughter without telling me?”
She flinched as if he’d raised a hand to her. A moment later, her expression hardened to steel. “I didn’t exactly run away with her.”
“I know that!” While he kept his gaze level with her face, his feet shuffled slightly. Yeah, okay. He sounded like a lunatic. A fairly common occurrence whenever he was around her. Which was stupid, considering he’d made a name for himself as a talk show host. “I just would have liked some advance notice that I’d be coming home to an empty house.”
No reaction, not even a blink. “The empty house isn’t totally my doing. Your dad went for cardiac rehab this morning and called a while ago to say he’d stopped at the lodge to play poker with the guys. And in case you’ve forgotten, your sons will be home from camp in about fifteen minutes. That should pretty much cover any concerns you have.”
Not quite. He folded his arms over his chest. “And you and Maddie?”
“Something came up that couldn’t wait, and I had to run out. What did you expect me to do? Leave Maddie home alone for an hour or two?”
“Of course not. But you really shouldn’t be driving Maddie around without her car seat.”
Summer’s expression turned stony. “Out of curiosity, Craig, did you happen to read any of the paperwork you signed at Rainey-Day-Wife? Because I can assure you, my sister doesn’t hire idiots to work for her. The safety of the children we care for is always our main priority. Your father left me the booster seat in case I needed it. And son-of-a-gun, I did. I’m sorry I didn’t write you a note telling you where we’d gone, but by the time I got Maddie to pick up her toys, I was already late for my appointment.”
Dragging Maddie into the argument? Low blow. “So, it’s my daughter’s fault?”
Summer flipped up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “Oh, for God’s sake. It’s no one’s fault. Nothing happened. Maddie and I ran a quick errand. No accidents, no tragedies, everyone’s safe. If the worst that happened is you didn’t have your fan club waiting at the door when you came home from work, I don’t see the reason for an inquisition.”
“I—”
She didn’t give him a chance to finish. “How about I wait while you fetch a rubber hose to beat a confession out of me? You know what? Forget it. Don’t bother. I’ll tell all. I took your daughter to the florist for an hour or so. We looked at flowers. She got a wreath for her hair. Happy now?”
Yes and no. He’d insulted her, and he owed her an apology. But the passion in her tone impressed the heck out of him. “I’m sor—”
“Save it.” She sidled past, entering the house and didn’t even hold the door for him. “I’ve got things to do, and you’re holding me up. Unless I’m fired?”
What were the chances she wouldn’t cut him off a third time? Unwilling to roll those dice, he simply shook his head.
“No? Good.” Her expression stormy, she headed for the staircase. “By the way, my sister gave me a list of preschool options for Maddie. After dinner, I’d like to go over them with you.”
By the time he picked up his jaw and followed her, she’d disappeared up to her apartment. Her ire told him one thing for sure.
Chelsea wouldn’t stand a chance against Summer Raine.
And for that reason alone, relief flooded him from head to toe.