“I should get back inside to check and make sure Summer’s doing okay.”
His eyes were still hot, still intense when he nodded. “Go.”
She was halfway to the French doors when she realized she was still wearing his jacket. She turned, moved back to where he was staring after her, and lifted it from her shoulders. “Thank you.”
His fingertips moved across her knuckles as they made the transfer and she was glad for the excuse the cold weather gave as goose bumps suddenly appeared on her skin. Only she needed to know it wasn’t the outside temperature that had caused them.
She didn’t wait for him to say “You’re welcome.” She simply turned and hightailed it back to safer ground.
* * *
When the kids found out there was a bonfire outside, they all went to find sticks in the backyard for the marshmallows that Mrs. Sullivan had put out on a nearby table. But the melted sugar on a stick wasn’t the end of the delightful surprises for them.
“They have a clubhouse up in one of the trees,” Summer told Megan, her eyes wide and thrilled. The party had clearly been as much fun as she’d thought it would be. “Gabe said he’s going to take us up and show us around, if our parents say it’s okay.”
Ignoring the voice inside her head that was saying I want to play in the tree house, too, Megan ran a hand over her daughter’s silky, soft hair. “Of course you can go. Just don’t fall out.”
Summer rolled her eyes. “I’m not a baby.”
Megan had to pull her in for a hug. “You’re my baby.”
“Mom!” Summer pushed away. “I’ve got to grab a flashlight before they’re all gone.”
She ran across the yard to where Gabe was waiting with flashlights and Megan tried not to let her insides turn to mush as he headed off with the kids toward adventure, laughing and joking with the energetic group.
She’d never known a man to be so comfortable with kids. But it was more than that, she quickly realized. He liked kids, plain and simple. Even Summer’s father, while he’d clearly adored his baby girl, hadn’t really known what to do with her. And Megan always had the sense that David was counting down the minutes to nap time so that he could get back to something more exciting.
Megan was giving herself a little shake, thinking that she shouldn’t be comparing David to Gabe, when she saw Sophie moving quickly across the patio, out of a dark corner and into the light for a brief moment before heading around the side of the house.
She’d looked for Sophie when she’d arrived, but hadn’t been able to find her so that they could catch up on old times. They’d tried to connect a few times over the past couple of days, but between Sophie’s busy schedule at the library and Summer’s winter break from school, they’d accepted the party would be their first chance to chat.
Now, however, instead of just wanting to have some girl talk with someone she’d always liked a great deal, Megan was a little worried.
Knowing Summer was in good hands with Gabe, Megan followed the path that Sophie had taken around the yard to a small shed. Opening it slowly, she looked inside and found her friend sitting on a large upturned pot.
“Sophie?”
“Oh!” Sophie started to jump up, when she realized who it was. “Megan, hi.” She looked a little sheepish at being caught in the potting shed, but she smiled and said, “Care to join me?”
Megan grinned at her old friend, closing the door behind her. There was a light bulb in the ceiling that illuminated that tidy interior, permeated with the smell of potting soil. “Is everything okay?”
Sophie blew out a shaky breath. “Have you ever wanted something you really, really shouldn’t want?”
Megan was struck by her friend’s honest question. There was no pretense with Sophie. There never had been. It was one of the things she’d always been drawn to in the other woman.
So although she was tempted to try and evade Sophie’s question, because she was hoping that they could make good on the budding friendship they’d started in college, especially living as close to each other in the city as they did, Megan nodded.
“I know exactly how that is,” she said, thinking about being in the backyard with Gabe, and the heat that had nothing to do with the fire jumping to life in the fire pit.
Only, her admission didn’t seem to make Sophie feel any better.
As the other woman looked at her hands, Megan followed her gaze to neatly trimmed nails with no polish. Sophie was wearing a simple navy knit dress that covered her arms and most of her legs. She had on no makeup, no jewelry, and yet where other women would have been plain, Sophie was undeniably beautiful. After having spent a good half-hour on her hair and makeup, not to mention trying on all of the new dresses she’d bought since the fire, Megan felt a little overdressed.
She found an empty pot and turned it upside down, sitting across from Sophie. “Do you want to talk about it?”
It didn’t take a genius to figure out that Sophie was upset over a man. Only, Megan was a little ashamed she couldn’t possibly have known who, since she’d barely been able to focus on anyone but Gabe all night.
Sophie shook her head and she looked around the small shed. “I’m sorry, Megan. I think I’m just about the worst friend in the world, inviting you to a party and then disappearing off into the potting shed to mope.”
Megan had to laugh at the funny expression on Sophie’s face. “I’ve always liked gardening.”