Destined To Be A Dad (Welcome To Destiny Book 9) (10 page)

“Oh, sweetie, that was wonderful,” Elise gushed.

“What an amazing voice you have,” Katie added. “I love your version of that song.”

Fay knelt next to her son, unstrapping him from his car seat and lifting him into her arms. “You do realize you’ve spoiled this young man,” she said, giving Casey a smile. “He’s never going to be happy with my sorry attempts at bedtime lullabies again.”

Missy handed Fay the warmed bottle once she settled onto the sofa, and then she came and sat next to Casey. “That was smashing. I’ve missed hearing you while I was gone.” Then she looked over at him. “It’s nice to know you still play, too.”

Liam smiled, remembering how he used to serenade her during those stolen hours in the boathouse attic. He’d managed to learn a favorite song of hers, a popular country tune at the time. He was no Tim McGraw, but he’d managed to sing to her about what her love did to him.

And how she made him who he wanted to be.

“Yeah, he still entertains the family from time to time,” Nolan said, reaching over and lightly punching Liam on the shoulder. “You two should get together with Abby and do a—”

“Do a what?” Abby asked, interrupting her father as she strolled into the room with Luke and Logan right behind her. “What’s going on?”

“Casey and Liam just sang a duet,” Fay said. “A lullaby for A.J.”

“Oh, really?” Abby walked to the piano and perched on the short end of the bench, one hand lightly running across a few of the keys, the clear notes filling the air. “How sweet.”

“She’s great,” Katie said. “You really missed something.”

“I’m sure I did.”

Liam studied his niece. Something was bothering her. There was a stiffness in her posture, an indifference that set off his radar. Before he could say anything, Casey spoke up.

“Do you sing?” she asked, directing her question to Abby.

“Are you kidding? She sounds like a bullfrog in heat.”

“Logan.” Nolan shot his son a warning look. “Knock it off.”

“No, I play.” Abby turned and faced the piano. Using both hands this time, she played a quick classical piece with precision, ending with a flourish before looking back over her shoulder. “In fact, Uncle Liam and I play together all the time. We’re the musical ones in the family.”

“I can see that.” Casey’s voice was flat as she placed the guitar on the sofa next to her and got to her feet. “Well, I better tote our bags to the boathouse.”

Liam blinked; the quicksilver change in Casey’s demeanor surprised him. Gone was the beaming girl he’d just had an incredible moment with. In fact, her face was wiped clean of any emotion at all.

Missy reached out, placing a hand on her daughter’s arm before the girl could grab the first bag. “Casey, what’s wro—uh, I thought you wanted something to drink.”

“I’ll get something for all of us,” Elise said. “Katie, would you like to help me?”

The two women disappeared into the kitchen, but Liam was more interested in the abrupt tension in the air, not to mention the nonverbal conversation going on between mother and daughter.

Casey stared at Missy for a long moment, blew out a dramatic puff of air and flopped back to the couch. “Fine.”

Missy grabbed for the guitar before it toppled to the rug, handing it to Liam. “Here, you might want to put this away for safekeeping.”

“But I thought she might—” His gaze moved from her to Casey. “I thought you might like to keep it. Take it back to the apartment with you.”

Casey shrugged, not looking at him, her focus now on the silver rings decorating her fingers. “I know where it is if I want to play again.”

“How did you know where to find these in the first place?” he asked.

“I noticed the door to the cabinet was open and spotted the buggers.” She finally looked at him again. “Why? Can’t I touch them?”

The chill of her tone surprised him. “Of course you can.”

“Hey, you never let us play with them,” Luke said.

“Because they aren’t toys.” Liam softened the words with a smile. “Casey knows how to play, quite well, I might add. If I were to guess, I’d say she also knows how to take care of guitars because she has one of her own?”

The hardness eased from her eyes. “It’s nothing special. A secondhand Cordoba C5.”

Liam nodded. “Nice. These are both Fenders, not new by any stretch, but they do hold value to me, especially sentimental. And you’re free to use either one. Any time you want. Any place you’d like.”

A flicker of a smile returned to Casey’s face as his mom and Katie came back into the room with a tray of glasses, pitchers of iced tea and lemonade, and a large platter of homemade cookies that the twins immediately dug into.

Picking up both guitars, Liam returned them to the cabinet and then took his seat again, noticing Casey’s gaze following his every move.

“So what are everyone’s plans for dinner?” Elise asked. “I know Fay is heading home for her date with Adam, but who’s interested in homemade pizzas?”

The twins’ hands shot up, Nolan’s, too, but it was the shared glance between Missy and Casey that had Liam speaking up. “None for us, Mom,” he said. “I thought I’d take these two ladies to the Blue Creek Saloon tonight.”

Casey’s eyes sparkled with life again. “Really? We can eat at that place that was once a real Old West saloon?”

“Sure.” Liam caught Missy’s eye. “Don’t worry. It’s changed from the rowdy bar you might remember. Well, somewhat. It doesn’t get crazy there on Friday nights until later. It’s very much a family restaurant. At least until the band kicks in.”

“Band? They have live music? That’s dench!”

Liam laughed, glad to see Casey’s good mood was back. “I take it that’s a good thing.”

Casey nodded. “A cracking good thing. Let’s go!”

“I think we should take our purchases back to the flat first. I’d also like to grab a shower and change,” Missy said. “If that would be all right.”

Liam nodded, fighting off the urge to picture her doing both of those things in vivid detail. It took a moment, but he got his head back on straight and held out his hand when they started to rise. “Before you go, there’s something else I’d like to talk to Casey about.”

“Can’t we chat over dinner?” Casey asked.

“Well, sure, but this includes Nolan.” Liam looked at his brother. “At least partially.”

Casey’s gaze flickered to Nolan for a moment, then to Abby, who’d left the piano to perch on the arm of the chair where her father sat, before coming back to Liam.

She shrugged. “Okay. What’s up?”

A sliver of caution sliced through his chest as he looked at the curious expressions around the room. Hell, maybe he should have waited until they were alone to bring this up. Too late now.

“I want you to know I’m really happy you and your mother still have a few weeks in Destiny with me—with all of us—but I’m worried you might find your days...boring, especially after next week, when Abby and the twins head back to school.”

“Man, don’t remind us,” Luke said.

“Yeah,” Logan agreed. “Back to having tons of homework coming out our as—ah, ears.”

Casey smiled at that and Liam took that as a good sign. “So, I thought maybe we could get you permission to attend classes at the high school,” he continued. “To let you see what life is like at an American school, which I’m guessing is somewhat different than the private all-girls academy you go to.”

“Is that possible?” Missy asked.

“Well, we’ve got an inside track.” Liam glanced at his brother. “Nolan’s been dating the vice principal for the last month, so I thought he could talk—”

“What!”

Abby’s outcry and the jarring clunk of a glass against wood cut Liam off midsentence. He—and everyone else—looked first at Abby and then at Katie, who’d righted her drinking glass but was hastily wiping at the spill she’d caused on the large hand-hewn coffee table with a handful of napkins.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t—” Katie jumped to her feet, tossing the wet mess onto the tray. “How clumsy of me. I’ll just take this into the kitchen. Please, don’t let me interrupt...your plans.”

Katie hurried from the room, tray in hand, but Abby wasn’t finished.

“Dad, you can’t be getting serious with Ms. Elan,” she cried, jumping to her feet. “Just because she won you at that silly bachelor auction? And as for her going to the high school—” Abby waved a hand in Casey’s direction “—forget it! She was bragging the other night how she has nothing to do but laze around because she’s on a holiday!”

“Hey, back up a minute.” Nolan pointed at his daughter. “I’ve been out with MaryAnn twice since the auction date. That’s hardly getting serious. And what Casey does or doesn’t do during her stay isn’t your call.”

“Oh, she doesn’t have to get her knickers in a twist.” Casey stood as well. The anger flashing in her eyes as she glared at Abby told Liam his idea was shot all to hell. “I’d rather be bloody bored out of my skull than go to the same school as her. And I’m quite sure the feeling is mutual.”

Chapter Nine

T
rying to find a spot for a moment of privacy wasn’t easy around here. Casey could only stay holed up in her room for so long. Thankfully everyone seemed occupied on Sunday afternoon, including her mum and Liam, who both had work-related issues to deal with, so she’d grabbed an apple, bottled water and her journal, thinking maybe she’d find some solitude here in the boathouse to put her jumbled thoughts down on paper.

She thought back to the night Liam and she had played guitar together. She’d been tempted all weekend to grab one. Then she’d spotted that piano and remembered what Abby had said to ruin the moment.

Trying to find common ground with Liam wasn’t as easy as she’d thought it’d be.

The horseback riding had been fun, something she’d never been interested in despite her grandmother’s attempts at getting her into lessons. But finding out that her real father was a former champion cowboy had changed that. And she was good at it. Liam had come right out and told her so.

Still, the moment he’d picked up that second guitar and started playing alongside her...

That simple act had caused a rush of powerful emotions. Then when their voices had blended in almost perfect harmony, all those crazy bounding sensations had boiled down to a simple longing she’d never felt before.

Longing to be connected.

It was the same—and yet different—feeling that she had toward her mum. The bond between them was as natural to her as breathing. But for the first time Casey had felt a link, even if it was fragile, between her and the man who was her real father.

Until that blonde prig had come along and ruined everything.

Not wanting to relive that memory again, Casey stepped out of the sunshine and into the cool, shadowy interior of the lower level of the boathouse, drawn by the sounds of the lake gently lapping against the boat slips.

Pushing her sunglasses to the top of her head, she looked around, debating if it’d be okay if she curled up on the bench seat of the wooden powerboat that sat bobbing in the first slip. It wasn’t as if she planned to power that baby up—

“We’ve got plenty of kayaks, singles and doubles, not to mention a few—what are
you
doing in here?”

Casey whirled around. Blimey, just what she didn’t need. Abby stood just inside the arched opening of the boathouse near the first slip, surrounded by a half dozen hangers-on this time.

The princess and her minions. Geesh, did they multiply?

“Looking for a little peace and quiet, but I guess that’s a bust.” She hiked her drawstring bag higher on her shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll get out of your way.”

“Good.” Abby’s voice dropped away, but she wasn’t done.
You’re not wanted
, she added, mouthing the words silently.

Biting her tongue because it just wasn’t worth it, Casey settled for an old-fashioned eye roll as she brushed past her cousin, refusing to back down when Abby didn’t move aside. Her minions scattered, so there was some satisfaction in that.

“Hey, Casey. I was just thinking about you. What are you doing?”

Her footsteps faltered and she looked up into familiar green eyes, but even the appearance of that good-looking lad she’d met last week couldn’t save this moment.

“Leaving,” she said.

“Wait.” Nathan reached for her as she started past him, gently grabbing at her elbow. “Don’t go. Stick around. Hang with us.”

Casey stared at him. She could almost hear her cousin’s head exploding behind her at the invitation. “No, I don’t want to get in the way.”

“You won’t. Right, guys?”

Nathan let go of her and looked at his buddies, who all either nodded or shrugged with indifference as they walked past her and deeper into the boathouse.

Casey made a quick count. Seven lads, including Nathan, and six girls, not counting her. She wouldn’t be the odd one out this time. At least not numerically. And she did have a good time when they all hung out at the pool, as long as she kept blinders on where her cousin was concerned.

Still, she wasn’t sure—

“Don’t tell me you can’t swim?”

Nathan’s question pulled her from her thoughts. “What? No, of course, I can swim.” Casey looked over to where the crowd was putting kayaks in the water, slipping into the seats and heading out into the sunshine. “I’ve just never done that before.”

“Oh, that’s too bad.” Abby called out in a false voice from where she sat on the edge of the dock, holding a double kayak in place with her feet. “All we seem to have left are singles.”

Meaning Nathan was going to be getting into hers.

Casey gave what she hoped was a casual shrug. “Maybe next time.”

“What next time?” Nathan walked backward toward the boat slips with a cocky grin. “You and I can take one of the rowboats. How about this blue one?”

Abby’s eyes grew wide as she got to her feet. “Nate, wait.”

“Don’t worry, Abs, I can handle getting this thing off the storage rack—hey, what’s this doing in here?”

Liam’s guitar! Casey couldn’t believe Nathan had it. Her gaze flew to Abby, catching the fleeting guilt in her eyes before it disappeared. She’d done it! Abby had taken one of Liam’s prized possessions and hid it out here—for what?

Everyone had heard his offer that Casey could use one any time she wanted. Had Abby hoped someone would notice it missing and assume Casey had taken it without asking? Or worse, that the instrument would get damaged and she’d be blamed?

“I brought it.” The words popped out of Casey’s mouth before she could stop them. She had no idea why. She walked to Nathan and took the guitar from him, grateful to find it unharmed. “I was looking for a quiet spot to practice.”

“You play?” he asked, easily maneuvering the rowboat into the water and tying it to the slip. “Cool. Maybe you can serenade me once we get out on the water.”

Casey turned and narrowed her gaze at her cousin. “Maybe. But I wouldn’t want to get distracted and fall in. You might have to rescue me.”

Abby returned her look for a moment, and then wheeled her attention back to the kayak, calling out to one of the other lads, who quickly abandoned his single to join her.

Casey looked back to Nathan, wondering if seeing Abby with someone else would bother him. No matter how fun it was to tease the priss—who didn’t deserve any leeway after the stunt she’d just pulled—the last thing Casey wanted was to get in the middle of a teenage romance.

Been there, done that, never again.

“Don’t worry, you’re safe with me,” Nathan said, grabbing a couple of life vests from a nearby shelf. “I spent the summer working at the local kids’ camp as a lifeguard. But to be safe, let’s put these on.”

“Do you mind if I run upstairs and put these things away first?” Wow, did she sound like a breathless twit. “I mean, I trust you to save me, but I wouldn’t want anything to happen to the guitar.”

“Sure, I’ll wait right here.”

Casey gathered her things and started to walk around him when he stopped her. “Hey, Abby said you’re here until the end of the month,” he said. “What are you going to do while the rest of us are back in school on Tuesday?”

A zing raced through her when she realized he’d asked her cousin about her. “Going to school with you, I hope.”

The feminine shriek and subsequent splash from behind her were music to Casey’s ears.

* * *

“What do you mean you’re going on a date?”

Missy bit back a smile at Liam’s incredulous tone and watched his gaze move from Casey to her and back again. The three of them sat at the huge center island in the Murphy kitchen, eating a late dinner of takeout pizza.

“Did you know about this?” he asked, looking at Missy again.

His surprised expression was so genuine, she almost felt sorry for him.

“Of course,” she said. “Casey told me two days ago.”

“She didn’t tell me.” Liam turned back to their daughter. “You didn’t tell me.”

Casey shrugged. “You’ve been busy.”

“I told you,” Missy said, stealing a piece of pepperoni from a half-eaten pie still in the box, “that same night.”

“You did?” This came from Liam and Casey at the same time.

“Yes, I did.” She lifted one shoulder in a casual shrug. “You replied with a mumbled ‘that’s nice’ while your nose was stuck in a financial report. I figured you were—as Casey said—busy.”

Too busy to care?

Missy hadn’t wanted to think so, but a part of her had worried that Liam didn’t think the news of Casey going out with a boy was a big deal. In his defense, he didn’t have much experience at this, and the last two weeks had been hectic for all of them.

Her boss had pushed up the deadline for a design concept for a new film, a period piece set in the 1940s, due to start filming in the US next year, and Liam had had to deal with one work crisis after another, most of which kept him at his desk or on the phone long after the end of the workday.

Other than an overnight trip to Jackson Hole last weekend in which he’d flown the three of them in the company’s helicopter—an amazing experience even if the trip had been business related for Liam—they hadn’t seen much of each other.

Especially with Casey now attending Destiny High School.

She’d surprised them when she told them two days before school started that she’d changed her mind. Missy didn’t have any idea how he’d arranged it—maybe with his brother’s help after all—but Casey was now a full-time student with the understanding that she was expected to follow the same rules and guidelines as the other students, especially when it came to classwork.

Thanks to a review of her school records from London, she was allowed to take many of the same classes as Abby—something the young lady wasn’t pleased about at all, at least according to Casey, who shared some of the snarky comments and subtle digs she’d been dealing with, both here and at school, all the while insisting her cousin’s attitude wasn’t a big deal and she didn’t want anyone to know about how Abby was treating her.

Especially Liam.

“So where is this date taking place?” He dropped his uneaten piece of pizza to his plate and instead reached for his glass of wine. “And more importantly, with whom are you going?”

“The Star-Lite Drive-In and Nathan Lawson.”

Liam choked on a mouthful of wine and both Casey and Missy slapped him on the back until he slipped off the stool and out of their reach.

“The d-drive-in?” he sputtered.

Casey nodded, confusion in her eyes. “Down near Laramie. Nathan says they close for the season at the end of the month and I’ve never been—are you okay?”

“Y-yeah.” Liam pounded at his chest with a closed fist a few times, and then cleared his throat. “Yes, I’m fine.”

“You look a wee bit pasty.”

Missy had to agree with her daughter, but she wisely kept her mouth shut. Hmm, it seemed that the man did care that Casey had plans with a young lad for the evening.

That meant more to Missy than she’d thought it would.

“Sweetie, it’s after seven,” she said, noticing the time. “Didn’t you say Nathan would be picking you up—”

“Bollocks! I’ve got to change my clothes, do my hair!” Chugging down the last of her milk, Casey raced for the door that led to the back deck and then stopped and spun back around. “Hey, we’re not going to make a big production out of this, right?”

“If you mean do I want to meet him, then yes, we are,” Missy said.

“Damn right we are.” Liam’s muttered words reached Missy, but thankfully they didn’t seem to carry across the room.

“But that day in the pool—”

“He was just one of the crowd.” Missy cut off her protest before it even began. “We were never introduced. You know the rules, Casey.”

She sighed. “Fine, but please, let’s keep this chill.”

“In a house with this many people? We’ll do our best.”

Another eye roll, and Casey was gone. Missy turned around, glad to see that Liam had retaken his seat and regained his coloring. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

He nodded. “I honestly didn’t hear you the other night. Please, next time, make sure I respond to news like that with a comeback more intelligent. Like
not until she’s thirty
or something.”

That was sweet, but with just a couple of weeks left to their stay, Missy didn’t think there would be a next time.

She ignored the pang in her chest and busied herself with cleaning up their mess. “Will do.”

“Are you really okay with this?”

“I’ll admit I was surprised when she first told me, but she has been out on group dates back home. She didn’t mention it just now, but there are a bunch of kids going tonight. It’s not like she’s going to be alone with this Nathan.” Missy put the box of leftover pizza in the refrigerator and tossed their used plates and napkins in the trash. “Besides, it seems the boy is a regular here at the house and he’s a friend of Abby’s. That’s in his favor.”

“The name sounds familiar.”

“According to Casey he’s the star quarterback of the football team and his father works for you.”

Recognition shone in Liam’s eyes. “Yes, Bill Lawson. One of our construction foremen. He’s a good man.”

“That’s good to know.”

“But Nathan is a senior. He might be eighteen already.”

“He’s not. His birthday isn’t until next spring.”

“And you know this how?”

Missy smiled. “Mothers and daughters do talk, you know. She’s been bubbly about this boy since the group of them went out on the lake the Sunday before last.”

“She’s never mentioned him to me.” Liam lifted a hand, cutting her off. “I know, I know. I’ve been busy.”

“We all have been. The last two weeks have flown by.”

As scared as Missy had been in coming here, even though she’d known it was the right thing—the only thing—to do, the last month had been wonderful...for Casey.

Liam and Casey seemed to be slowly finding their way with each other, especially since he’d found out Casey was keeping one of his guitars in her bedroom. And she’d surprised him in Jackson Hole when she sat at the baby grand piano located in their suite and gave a beautiful performance of a Mozart favorite.

But had they had enough time? Would the remaining days make their connection strong enough to survive being separated by so many miles? Being on two different continents?