Through hard work, which mostly amounted to picking the right contractor and paying out the nose for repairs, the place had been restored to its former glory. Where before there had been rot, there was now whitewashed wooden siding that practically glowed when the light hit it right. The cracked stone steps that had had weeds growing in them had been replaced and were now perfect, just as they’d been when he was a child. Before she’d left.
A part of him wondered why he’d done this, moved back into the house that he’d grown to hate and then invested a rather large amount of his hard-earned money into restoring it. But today was a reminder, and this time a positive one. When he looked at it like this, he could almost see himself as a little boy running up the stairs, Blake tagging behind him. Could almost hear his mom’s voice, see the affection on her face when she greeted him.
It was silly, he knew. She’d died when he was eight, and he halfway believed all the memories he had were figments of his imagination, dreams or wishes he’d convinced himself were reality. But then again, when he’d first moved back here, walked past the house, empty, desolate, in disrepair and as neglected as he’d been growing up, it had cut him to the core.
Maybe that was the answer, he thought as he headed up the stairs. He couldn’t have left it as it was, but maybe repairing the house made him feel closer to his mother, was a reminder to himself, and to her, wherever she was, he hadn’t forgotten her, that he wouldn’t let the grief that had lived in those walls and the sadness that had been apparent with one look at the house for so many years be the last testament to her.
“Matt?”
He whirled at the sound, surprised that he’d been so caught up in his own thoughts he hadn’t heard anyone approach. And to his further surprise, his heart gave a little lurch when he saw Ariel Mallick turn into his driveway.
She got out of his car and then walked around to the passenger door to let Dani out.
“I hope you don’t mind, but we had a few minutes and I wanted to get this back to you,” she said when she’d gotten the girl out of the car.
Though she was sexy, the tight jeans and tank she wore showing off her figure, her expression made her seem nervous, almost shy, quite the departure from their last meeting. Matt wondered what accounted for the change but the more he thought about it, the more he realized he didn’t like it. He felt the furrow in his brow deepen with the thought, and at the sight of Ariel’s wary eyes, he tried to smooth his expression.
“Hey, Dr. Matt!” Dani called, seemingly oblivious to the moment passing between him and Ariel.
“Hey, Dani,” he said, unable to stop the smile at her enthusiastic greeting, and as he spoke, he walked toward them. “How are you today, pretty girl?” he asked when he reached them, his eyes drifting to Ariel as he spoke.
“Good! We went to the park today, and then we came over here,” Dani said.
“That was very nice of you,” he said, smiling down at the girl and then returning his gaze to her mother. “Thank you, Ariel, but there was no need to go to the trouble.”
“No trouble at all,” she said, seeming a little more settled than she had moments ago.
“Well, how much do I owe you?”
“No charge,” she said, waving her hand. “I patched the tire, so it’s fine. And the pull you were feeling was a branch that had gotten wedged over the axle. I got it out, so it should be working perfectly now.”
“You’ve exceeded my mechanical knowledge, but you promised I was in good hands, so that all sounds good. I appreciate it,” he replied, his voice dropping a bit.
“No problem. It seemed neighborly,” she said, her smile now bright.
He nodded, and then they stood staring at each other awkwardly, Dani running in little circles while still clinging to her mother’s hand.
“Well—”
“Would—”
They both laughed out loud at the simultaneous conversation and then with a smile that made her positively luminescent, Ariel continued. “We don’t want to keep you. Have a nice day.”
“Mommy,” Dani whispered and then she glanced up at Matt, to which they both again laughed.
“I’ll give you ladies some privacy,” he said and then quickly jogged up the steps to wait on the porch.
Matt kept his gaze averted but could barely keep from laughing as he listened to the conversation.
“I gotta go,” Dani said in a whisper so loud they probably heard it in Charlotte.
Ariel, much better at lowering her voice, murmured something to her daughter.
“I can try, but I really gotta go,” Dani said, voice urgent.
Ariel whispered something else and then called out, “Matt, I’m sorry to intrude, but may we use your bathroom?”
He turned then, again struck by Ariel’s beautiful smile and how adorably bashful Dani looked.
“Of course,” he said, tilting his head toward the front door. “Right this way.”
They ambled up the porch, and Matt showed them to the guest bathroom, one that he’d added during his remodel. Ariel thanked him again and then Matt headed toward the kitchen to wait. It had only been a few minutes, but that time with Ariel and Dani had totally distracted him, taken away thoughts of the past, of pain, and left only the easy excitement of being around Ariel and her daughter and talking about car repair.
A wondrous thing, but one that left him confused. This simple little visit, less than two minutes of chatter shouldn’t have had the power to affect him so deeply, especially not today, but it had, and as he waited for them to return, he searched his mind for an answer, one that did not seem to be forthcoming. He helped people sort through their thoughts and emotions daily, but figuring out his own was proving elusive.
“What do you say?” Ariel whispered as she and Dani approached the kitchen, her soft voice breaking into his thoughts.
“Thank you, Dr. Matt!” the little girl called, voice ringing loud in a house that had been quiet, almost tomblike for more years than Matt cared to recall. It had sounded right though, that childish voice in the house—had given it a brief spark of life that had been missing for far too long.
“Do you ladies have plans?” Matt asked, surprising himself as he spoke.
“Nothing exciting,” Ariel said. The words were nonchalant, but Matt thought he saw an ember of excitement in her eyes.
“Would you like to stay over for an early dinner?” he asked, trying to maintain his own cool but feeling hopeful and excited.
“We wouldn’t want to be a bother,” Ariel said. She moved a few steps closer but her voice didn’t change, and Matt couldn’t tell if she was genuinely not interested or just being polite. Ordinarily, he’d have left it at that, but for some reason, he felt the urge to clarify.
“No bother. Not at all.”
He watched Ariel, trying to divine some idea of what she was thinking.
“We’d love to,” she said, the ember in her eyes sparking as bright as the smile now covering her face.
Matt felt twin surges of excitement and relief.
“Great! Dani, do you want to be my helper?”
Chapter Three
“Thanks for inviting us to dinner, Matt. Sorry about the surprise visit, but we had a great time. Didn’t we, Dani?”
The girl gave her mother an excited thumbs-up and then ran around the backyard, as she had been since she’d been excused from the table.
“Energetic, huh?” he said, tilting his head toward Dani.
“You have no idea. She has a new backyard to explore, which only fuels that fire. But I can see why,” Ariel said as she scanned the backyard.
Matt watched and for a moment he wished it was him that she was looking at with such naked appreciation.
“It’s beautiful. I mean just gorgeous.”
“Thanks. My mom’s pride and joy.”
Ariel’s brows knitted in confusion and she turned to him. “Your mother lives here?”
“In spirit only. She passed away when I was eight,” he said.
“I’m sorry,” Ariel said, casting her eyes down, a pained expression on her face.
Matt was such an ass. He knew about Ariel’s loss and that losing a spouse, especially at her age, was entirely different than losing a parent, especially since so much time had passed.
“It was a long time ago, so don’t apologize. In fact, I should be the one apologizing.”
Her expression slackened and some of the ease that had been growing between them returned. “So we’re both sorry, huh?” she said, the corner of her lips turned up.
“Looks that way,” he said, now smiling as well.
There was a flicker in her eyes, and she looked wistful. Matt could pretty well guess what she was thinking about.
“Every person in this town loved Daniel Mallick,” Matt said, not taking his eyes off her.
And they had. Preacher’s son, football star, all-around great guy, and taken far too soon in a tragic helicopter crash.
“So I’ve learned. Did you know him?” she asked.
“Well, everybody knows everybody here, but he was a little behind me in school, so we weren’t friends or anything. I think Verna knew him, though.”
Ariel nodded. “She did, even showed me her yearbook.”
Matt chuckled. “What did you have to pay her for that?”
She smiled faintly. “It was easier than I’d thought it would be, but then again, most everyone in town still goes out of their way. It’s part of the reason I stayed,” she said.
“And the other part?” he asked, letting curiosity get the better of him.
She tilted slightly to look out to Dani, who was digging in a soft patch of dirt with a small gardening shovel. “I guess I just wanted her to be as close to him as she could, you know? Like maybe if she was in his town with his people, she might have at least some idea of who he was.” Then she smiled, her face brightening. “Not to mention the fact, Matilda would drag the reverend to west Zanzibar if necessary to be close to Dani.”
“I’ll bet. And it’s kind of you to consider them, especially since Matilda can be…”
“Merciless? Relentless? Hell on wheels?” she supplied.
“Challenging,” Matt settled on.
Ariel laughed out loud and then took a sip of water. “Well said, Dr. Matt. I spend too much time at the shop to practice putting things as delicately as that, but you got the point. And besides,” she said, going slightly wistful again, “I don’t do it for Matilda. I do it to honor Daniel’s memory and for Dani. She’s more important than anything else, and I can put up with Matilda’s bluster for my baby girl.”
She stood abruptly. “But you don’t need to listen to me babble—give me a free session or have my daughter tunneling in your yard until she reaches the earth’s core. Dani,” she said, calling to the girl, “come say good-bye. It’s time to go.”
“You don’t need to go,” Matt said, standing as well. The conversation had taken an unanticipated heavy turn, but he resisted the idea of them leaving so soon. He didn’t want to try to put words to why but whatever the reason, it felt right, Ariel and Dani being there.
“No, we should go. I need to get her in bed soon anyway.”
Instead of arguing like he wanted to, Matt said, “I’ll drop you two off.”
“That’s not necessary, really. We can walk,” Ariel said, and this time, he could see that she meant it.
Matt scoffed. “Of course it is. Or I’ll walk with you.”
She shook her head, ready to protest, but he stopped her before she could start.
“What? You’re going to lug Dani’s car seat all the way home?”
“I’m capable,” she said, tensing ever so slightly, though Matt didn’t think she was angry.
“I know, but I wouldn’t let any friend of mine carry something like that while she’s trying to keep up with a four-year-old.”
He didn’t add that even a few more minutes with them would be better than nothing.
Her expression was skeptical for a moment, but he watched her lush, full mouth turn up into a smile that told him she was conceding his point.
“Fine, Matt. You win.”
“Usually,” he said.
“Don’t push it,” she tossed back, the words deep, smoky-voiced, though her face was still soft with humor.
Matt couldn’t stop himself from responding.
“I haven’t even begun—”
“I’m ready!” Dani interjected, running over to grasp her mother’s hand again.
A fleeting expression that Matt immediately recognized as guilt flashed across Ariel’s face before she recovered and schooled her features.
“Let’s go, then, but we should wash your hands first,” she said quickly.
After another stop in the bathroom, they headed out. Dani’s animated chatter filled his car, but it did nothing to cool the heated energy that flowed between him and Ariel, something that continued though they barely spoke another word during the drive over. When they reached her house, Matt helped her remove the car seat and then saw her and Dani inside.
“Thanks for the ride, Dr. Matt,” she said, smiling slyly before she closed the front door.
“Anytime,” he responded softly as he went back to his car.
Chapter Four
Even after getting Dani settled in bed, Ariel still couldn’t say what had come over her this evening. And as she sat in her living room, she didn’t think she was any closer to an answer.