Flame (Firefighters of Montana Book 5) (17 page)

And Cady. She’d made Lila feel special and safe and like a star.

That was how he should have made her feel. Instead, being with him had made her scared and frightened. The truth in her words still burned.

“Aren’t you going to eat your cupcake, Uncle Dex?”

He looked across the table. Lila’s plate was a mess of crumbs while his was still pristine. The red velvet creation was still sitting, untouched, in the centre of a gleaming white plate, on top of a napkin, placed on the plate like a diamond.

“Would you like it?”

Lila’s eyes widened. “But it’s yours! I can’t eat what’s yours, Uncle Dex. That wouldn’t be fair.”

Dex chuckled. The kid was going to grow to be an international human rights lawyer, he knew it.

She leaned her good arm on the table, her right arm tucked under the surface on her lap.

Dex was struck by a wicked idea. He put both hands on his lap and lowered his head. And when he opened his mouth wide and bit the top of the cupcake clear off, Lila laughed so loud people from surrounding tables looked over at the commotion.

*

Cady was at
a table across the room, taking an order from a young couple who looked to be on their first high school date. The girl was giggling nervously, matched only by the nervous throat clearing of the young man. When Cady heard the little girl’s laughter, she looked up.

Lila was laughing and laughing, her voice about the sweetest sound Cady had ever heard. And Dex… oh, Dex…he was sitting opposite, a huge grin on his face, chewing and laughing too, his face half full of frosting and red velvet crumbs and delight. Her heart lurched. Her knees buckled. Her feelings for Dex forced themselves up into her throat like a geyser and seemed to leak out of her eyes.

She still loved him. Damn, she still loved him. She doubted she would ever stop.

*

As Lila chatted,
Dex’s mind wandered back to Cady and her comment about working in the florist shop. He couldn’t believe all she seemed to remember was that she’d pricked her fingers on the roses. How could she not remember the blooms, or smell of fresh flowers, or the grateful customers who appreciated the arrangements she’d made for them?

Maybe Mitch and Sarah weren’t the only ones who’d built a wall.

When Lila yawned, Dex realised it was time to go. He helped Lila out of her chair and they slowly walked across the shop to the counter to pay the bill.

“No way.” Cady waved at Dex as he fished in the pocket of his jeans for his wallet. “Your money’s no good in here. This is on me.” She came out from behind the counter and kneeled down in front of Lila so they were face-to-face. “This was my special treat for a very important visitor.” She held out her left hand to shake Lila’s. “It was so delightful to meet you, Lila. I hope we see you here at Cady’s Cakes real soon.”

“Thank you, Cady. I loved my cupcake.”

“Oh, wait.” Cady reached for a box on the counter. “Dex, this is for Mitch and Sarah. Can you tell them I said hi?”

Dex looked at the box then down at Lila. “Care to deliver them yourself?”

Cady was confused. “I don’t do deliveries. I’m sorry if you thought—”

“Come to North Fork tomorrow. Mitch and Sarah are putting on lunch. Mitch is doing his famous barbecue. Would you like to come?”

Lila’s eyes widened. “You should come. Daddy does hot dogs and Mommy makes the best potato salad forever.”

Cady shoved her hands in her apron. “I don’t know…”

“I know you’re not working tomorrow. Sunday’s your only day off, right? I could swing by and pick you up.”

“No…”

“Right.” Dex rubbed his hand across his spiky hair.

Cady rested a hand on his arm. She was smiling. And to Dex that meant there was just the slightest hope.

“No. I mean, I can drive myself. I know the way to North Fork.”

“We’ll see you tomorrow then. Midday.”

“See you tomorrow, Cady!”

Dex took Lila’s hand and they walked to the front door. When he pushed it open, he turned back. Cady was still watching them.

A
s Cady drove
out of Glacier Creek and along the sweeping roads around Flathead Lake towards North Fork, she took in the towering mountains in the distance, snow at their peaks, the pine trees below the timberline and the bluest of blue water in the lake. This was her world; she knew that in the core of her being. It had been the place she’d wanted to escape from when she was younger, and now it was her haven. It was her life now. And it was a good life, but there were things about it she wished were different. She wished her mom and gran were still alive, not just so they could see how successful she was now, but because she missed them terribly. They weren’t there for weekend breakfasts and after work phone calls. They weren’t there to watch
Dirty Dancing
each Thanksgiving. It had been their ritual. Some people did the Super Bowl, but the Adams women had chosen Patrick Swayze and watermelons and no one putting Baby in a corner for as long as she’d been able to remember.

She opened the car window to let some air in and it blew her hair around her face. When Dex had offered to pick her up, she’d insisted on driving herself as an act of self-preservation. She needed to know she could leave when she wanted to. If she felt the need to get out of there in a hurry, she didn’t want to have to explain to anyone the reasons why. And that wasn’t about Mitch or Sarah or little Lila. Or even about Dex. It was about all of the McCoys, together. Cady still wasn’t sure how she would react to being in the middle of a loving family again. A mom and dad. An only daughter. A devoted uncle. Given the nightmares that had been plaguing her, Cady was filled with trepidation that being amongst all that love would remind her up close about how much she’d lost.

Every day was hard, but this time of year was especially so. Thanksgiving was around the corner and, for the third year in a row, she’d have to watch her favorite film on her own. And then after that, it would be Christmas and a fresh set of memories to make her sad.

As she drove, getting closer and closer to North Fork, Cady thought about
Dirty Dancing
and about Johnny and Baby. She’d never wanted to think about what happened after the movie ended, after they’d done the lift and Baby’s father had shaken hands with Johnny. Did the rebellious drifter really end up with the good girl? Perhaps it was better not to know so there would be no disappointment, so the dream couldn’t be crushed. Baby had probably gone off to college and fallen in love with someone else and Johnny most likely went back to his old neighborhood and taken up the plastering and decorating job his father had lined up for him. No matter how much love there was, some things were just never meant to work out.

She and Dex were not meant to work out. That was all.

Up ahead, Cady saw the turn off to North Fork and took it, her little car bouncing over the rutted road. She hoped she’d still believe that by the time she reached the farmhouse in the distance.

*

When she pulled
up, Cady she saw movement on the porch. Lila and Sarah were waiting on the swing. She cut the engine, and looked up at the ranch house. It wasn’t grand. It wasn’t expansive. It was simple but beautiful—stone and timber, with a long and wide porch running all along the front. Not a bad place to raise a family. Not a bad place to want to keep a little girl safe, either.

Everyone wanted a safe haven, didn’t they? When she left, she’d never imagined she would need one and she was lucky enough to have one back home in Glacier Creek.

Cady got out of her car, slung her long-strapped handbag over her shoulder, opened the back door, and swept up the boxes from the back seat. She heard her name as she walked across the lawn to the porch.

Sarah and Lila were standing at the railing, waving in her direction.

“Cady! Cady!” Lila’s golden hair shone in the sunshine.

Sarah put a protective arm around her daughter’s shoulder, ready to steady her if she lost her balance.

“Well, hello, Miss Lila,” Cady said.

“What’s in the boxes?” the little girl called out.

Cady and Sarah laughed. “Something for you, of course!” Cady climbed the front steps slowly, judging with every step if walking into their home would stir up the feelings she was trying to suppress.

“Hey, Sarah.”

“Hey, Cady.” Sarah’s smile was warm and open and the two women hugged each other.

“It’s been a really long time. Thank you for inviting me to lunch today.” Cady and Sarah had gone to school together, although Sarah was a couple of years older. She still had the slim physique of a teenager, her hair pulled back into a high ponytail, but there was a story in the lines around her eyes.

“It’s our pleasure. I hear Cady’s Cakes is doing really well. Congratulations.”

“It is, thank you.”

Sarah grinned and tugged on Lila’s long plait. “Lila hasn’t stopped talking about your cupcakes.”

“And the hot chocolate, Mommy! Cady gave me extra marshmallows. It was the best hot chocolate in forever.”

Cady looked at mother and daughter. There it was, a tugging pang about her own mother. But where she’d been worried it would make her jittery with grief, it was comforting instead. This wasn’t going to be as hard as she’d imagined.

“Well, thank you, Miss Lila. That’s the best review I think I’ve ever had.”

Cady followed them inside, taking care to hold the door open for Sarah and Lila to go in first. The open plan living area was cosy, with fabric-covered sofas and throw pillows arranged like a family might use them, not as a designer would. There was a big, open fireplace at one end, stacked with logs, with a large rug in front. A bookcase filled with books stood against one wall and expansive windows opened up the view and brought the stunning Montana skyline inside.

“Daddy! Uncle Dex!”

It seemed Cady wasn’t the only one who knew the sound of Dex’s old truck. Through the windows, she could see it come rumbling around the drive and then pull up out front.

“Watch out on the steps, Lila,” Sarah called after her daughter, who was trying hard to run towards the door like any other little girl would. “Make sure you hold the handrail.”

Cady and Sarah watched Lila head out to her dad and her uncle.

Sarah looked apologetically at Cady. “I have to remind her every time. She gets excited but I don’t want her to go tumbling down the stairs.”

“Of course you don’t.” Cady put the boxes on the kitchen bench. “North Fork is incredible. You’re so lucky to live here.”

“We know, but it was touch and go for a while. Mitch and Dex’s father had to go into care just after Lila’s accident and we didn’t know if we could keep the place. Once Mitch mentioned it to Dex… well, Dex did what he always does. He gave us his savings, even sold his brand new truck, and came back to Montana. He became a smokejumper so he could help us with Lila. He’s been amazing.” Sarah wiped her eyes. Cady felt her eyes welling. “He’s done everything possible to help her recovery and allow us to keep the ranch, to keep her protected and safe her at North Fork.”

Dex was so much more than the drifter she’d imagined he was. Something shifted inside Cady, rearranged itself.