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Snow fell at a steady rate as Damien steered the SUV into the township of Wills Crossing. Despite the inclement weather and the early hour, life bustled around him as people went about their chores. In the dark of dawn, he’d helped Hollywood plow the main streets, but a layer of white slush had already gathered on the road to prove Mother Nature had more in store for them. The huge tires of the SUV handled the slippery conditions like a champion as he guided it through the morning traffic, passed the police station to the bakery.
Pulling up out the front of the store, he cut the engine and grabbed his thick parka from the passenger seat. Before opening the door, he slipped his arms in and zipped it up to his chin. Outside, the icy wind chilled him to the bone. He hustled across the footpath and into the warmth of the shop, seeing Bob sitting at a table for two by the wall.
Damien caught the eye of the girl behind the counter, ordered a coffee and a croissant and moved in to sit opposite his longtime pal.
“How’s Stevie?”
Ah, so Bob had heard. “Better this morning. She had a good night of rest under Penny’s watchful gaze.”
Speaking to Penny first thing this morning had been the highlight of his day so far. He expected it would only improve once he laid eyes on her.
Relief relaxed Bob’s face. “And Penny?”
She sounded happy to hear his voice, at least. “I think we’re making progress.”
Bob smiled as a mug of coffee and a plate with a croissant was placed on the table between them. “She’s been through a lot, I suspect.”
“You don’t know the half of it,” Damien explained, lifting the mug to sip the hot brew. “You should catch up with her before you go back to Canberra.”
“I plan to. And what about you? How are you coping?”
The question took him by surprise. How was he coping? He hadn’t been kidnapped. He hadn’t been beaten or had a knife held to his throat. No, safe to say, he had it easy. He shook his head and took a bite of his breakfast. Soft, buttery pastry melted on his tongue. “I’m fine.”
Doubt stared at him. “Nope. I don’t buy it. I’m not someone you can fob off with I’m fine so start talking.”
“She needs the opportunity to adjust and work through some issues. All that time spent in conflict zones is going to have an impact.”
“I believe you, but I’m not asking about her. I’m asking about you.”
Damien sighed and bit off another piece of pastry, screwing his face up in silent protest of Bob’s interrogation. All of his wants and desires had taken a backseat the minute Penny told him about mortar rockets hitting her hospital, about delivering babies in the midst of war, and about treating innocent children with life threatening injuries. To think how close danger had come to her scared the pants off him, but it also filled him with gratitude to have her back in his life—in whatever capacity she could manage.
Based on Bob’s expression, he knew he wasn’t getting away with sugar coating anything. His friend demanded truth and right now, had put on his best parliamentary scowl to show he meant business.
“There’s so much distance between us,” he relented with a sigh. “When we reminisce, it’s like old times, but talking about anything else just proves we don’t know each other.”
“Well, you don’t. You know what you knew, that’s all. You need to figure out how to bridge the gap.”
No pressure.
“You did it with Stevie.”
“My daughter was different.”
“Oh?” Bob’s eyebrows rose. “How?”
“She wasn’t traumatized by war, nor was she drowning in guilt and regret. I can see Penny struggling but I don’t know how to fix it.”
Bob raised his coffee mug. “And there you have it. No one said you had to fix it. There might not even be a fix. Is she seeing a psych?”
Damien nodded.
“Then let the psych do their job. It frees you from the responsibility. Sure, you can be by her side and support her while she does the work, but the next question becomes what do you want from her? Would you be happy with a friendship, or do you want a relationship? Do you want to be her husband again?”
“Like I said, we don’t know each other.”
“Then that’s where you begin,” Bob grinned, as if he’d solved the problem. “Take her on a date.”
A date?
The thought sent a tingle of expectation down his spine. He hadn’t had a date in almost forty years and the suggestion turned the wheels of his mind. Would she even want to go? The only way to know was to ask, but the possibility of her declining his invitation made his heart race and his breath catch in his throat.
“What if she says no?”
In the middle of a sip, Bob made a dramatic show of almost spilling his coffee. He gaped at Damien. “There’s actual fear in your eyes, old man.”
Ugh. “Don’t mock me. What if she says no?”
Turning serious, Bob nodded as if to accept the chance of it happening. “Then you take it like an adult and respect her wishes.”
Mid-fifties and being denied a date? Damien didn’t want to think about it but out of love for the woman who’d brought their daughters into the world, he did and understood it’d hurt like hell. He wasn’t used to rejection and he didn’t know what their relationship would be like if that happened, but he couldn’t deny the prospect of her accepting his offer excited him. Hell, it made his palms all sweaty.
Across the table, Bob smiled. “Now you’re getting it.”
“You make it sound simple, Bobby. It’s not. After she left, she found out she was pregnant again. Had another daughter. I have a kid out there somewhere who thinks I’m dead and probably doesn’t know she has a sister.”
The news wiped the smile off Bob’s face. “How do you feel about that?”
“She could have terminated the pregnancy, but she didn’t. We’d always planned on a big family, so I have to find her.”
Bob shook his head. “You’re killing me with the avoidance. Answer my question. How do you feel about that?”
Damien felt the corners of his mouth tug into a smile. “I have another daughter, Bob, and I love it. I need to find her, make sure she’s okay. If she doesn’t want anything to do with me, then I’ll deal when the time comes. I have another kid.” He heard the awe in his own voice and couldn’t help but wonder what she was like.
“Do you know anything about her?”
“She was adopted. Her name is Abigail Winter.”
Determination settled on the man opposite. “Would you leave it to me? Trust me, I’ll find her.”
“She could be anywhere in the world, Bob.”
Bob nodded. “And yet I’ll still find her.”
Despite the desire to find his own daughter, Damien accepted Bob’s help. The keen light in his friend’s eyes gave him the confidence to place his faith in someone else’s hands. It also gave him the time to focus on Penny because as good as he was, he doubted he’d be able to do both at the same time.
“I will owe you big time.”
“Nah,” Bob picked up his mug again. “You brought Mia back to me when I thought all hope was lost. Trust me when I say we’ll be even.”
Leaving Bob at the bakery, Damien hit the street and headed back to the small hospital at the northern end of town. Though the hour was early, the full car park suggested a few adventurers had come a cropper on the slopes of the nearby ski resort, but he was in luck and slotted the SUV into the last remaining space. He could see the occupants in the emergency ward and steered clear, entering through reception and heading to Stevie’s room.
At the door, he paused to listen and heard mother and daughter discussing pregnancy care. Max babbled in the background and a machine beeped softly somewhere. Satisfied he wasn’t about to interrupt something deep and meaningful, he stepped into the doorway and found Penny pretty much where he left her: in the chair with Max in her arms. The sweet sight lightened his heart and put a smile on his face. He wanted to soak up the moment but Stevie beckoned him in the instant she saw him.
Damien crossed the room to find her bright-eyed and almost back to normal. She hugged him with her usual fierce embrace and patted the edge of the bed for him to sit, but when he turned, he found he had Max’s attention. Little arms stretched toward him, pudgy fingers opening and closing in a come here gesture. He couldn’t disappoint the little guy and moved closer.
Penny smiled up at him, looking tired but content as she lifted the boy. Damien picked him up and spun him around, making airplane noises. Max squealed with delight and kicked his legs. Damien brought him in for a cuddle and his grandson planted a kiss on his cheek.
“He’s so happy to see you,” Stevie remarked. “As am I.”
“You’re looking much better,” he nodded and sat on the edge of the bed. With one hand on the child, he pressed the back of his hand to his daughter’s forehead. “I take it your fever broke sometime during the night?”
She waved away his hand and looked to her mother. “About four this morning, wasn’t it?”
Penny nodded. “About then.”
“You stayed up all night?”
“I watched over both of them, as is my prerogative as Grandma.”
He heard the possessiveness in her voice and felt heaviness lift from his heart. “Have you eaten? Slept? You must be exhausted.”
Penny shook her head and stood. Moving closer, she adjusted Max’s singlet before setting a hand on Damien’s forearm. “Don’t fuss. I’m fine. In fact, we all are.”
Her words filled him with relief and he could finally take a moment to appreciate the precious treasures in the room. Bob’s suggestion to take Penny on a date echoed in Damien’s mind.
“So, what’s the plan?” he asked Stevie. “When will you and Max be released from hospital?”
She shrugged. “Not sure.”
He turned to Penny. “Would you mind seeing if you can track Colt down to find out?”
“Of course.” She smiled and squeezed his forearm. “I’ll be right back.”
Max squirmed. Damien sat him on the bed beside his mother as Penny left the room. “She looks more relaxed this morning.”
Stevie stroked her son’s head and smiled. “I can’t explain what it was like to wake up and find her here, cradling Max and looking after me.”
The emotion in her voice warmed his heart. “She’s going to need a lot of time.”
“I know, but there are good signs.”
Yes, there were, and Damien couldn’t wait to see more of them.