After All These Years (43 page)

What had she been dreaming?

Cal. She dreamt Cal came while she slept, and he said he was taking Chloe to Sunday school.

Cal.

The sensation remained.

Cal. Calhoun Huntington.

“Lord, I've made up my mind!”

Imagine having Cal beside her every time she woke up.

Lia sat up. “Lord, don't make me change my mind!”

Something across the bed caught her eye. On the end table was a single red rose in a crystal bud vase.

She groaned, threw back the covers, and climbed out. Where was Isabel? Lia glanced at her watch. They were very late for church. “Chloe! Isabel!” She hurried down the hallway. The bedrooms were empty. “Chloe! Isabel!” She ran back out into the living room and pulled aside the curtains. Isabel's car sat there. Cal's truck was gone. Tony had driven over last night, but his car was gone.

The sensation returned full force, this time with a tickle like floating gossamer brushing her from head to toe. Maybe it hadn't been a dream.

God changed her mind. Sunlight crystallized the new day, chasing away the fears of recent weeks as it did yesterday's storm. Chloe was safe today because Cal loved the little girl. He had nurtured their friendship and become privy to secrets such as a favorite place she would run to when upset. And why had he spent all that time with Chloe? Because he had a special passion for children? Hardly. It was because he loved Lia. Pure and simple. To run from that was a slap in the face of her heavenly Father. Pure and simple.

Shaky from the revelation, she tried on three different outfits, unsure what to wear to Cal's for lunch. Jeans? Slacks? Skirt? She chose black slacks and a red turtleneck sweater.

When she noticed his truck was parked again on the street, she decided to wait a bit for Isabel and Chloe to show up. Anxiety gnawed at that absorbing sensation of bubble baths and chocolate threatening to squish it. Maybe it had been a dream. The rose was for Isabel from Tony. Maybe Cal
was
just interested in Chloe's welfare. Maybe he wasn't interested in pursuing a serious relationship with her. Maybe…

Thirty minutes went by. Chloe and Isabel didn't show up.

Lia grabbed a jacket, strode out the back door, across the yards, and up to his kitchen door. The crisp air, so clean and calm, bit at her, stealing her breath away. She knocked.

He opened the door. “Come on in. I didn't know if you'd remember my invitation. You were pretty sleepy. Lunch is almost ready.”

She followed him into his kitchen that smelled of tomato sauce. A soft flannel shirt hung from his broad shoulders and was tucked into blue jeans. She asked, “Where's Chloe?”

He stood at the stove, stirring. “Tony and Isabel took her out to lunch.”

“I just came for my hug.”

He turned, his clear green eyes questioning.

“Chloe said you had a hug for me last night. I didn't collect it.”

“I didn't think you needed it. Do you need it?”

“I'm going to need at least one every day for the rest of my life. Do you have that many?”

He turned back again to the stove. “Hmm. It sounds as if Miss Impressively Independent is back, making decisions.”

“It's about time, don't you think?”

“Well, let's get one thing straight. I'm in charge of making proposals around here.”

“Fine! I just came for a hug.”

He tapped the spoon on the edge of the pot, set it down, and turned. “You sure?”

She nodded.

He smiled and held his big arms wide open.

She stepped into them and took her first normal breath since… Since? Since the fire, weeks ago. He embraced her in a bear hug. “Oh, Cal. I wanted to run so far away from this.”

“But you didn't. Hey, I seem to remember making a promise to you about when Miss Impressively Independent showed up again.”

She smiled up at him. “Hey, I seem to remember that promise.”

“I'd better keep it. I hear you can't make a promise to a big girl and then not keep it.”

“It would break her heart.”

He lowered his face and whispered, “I promise I will not break your heart.”

When he kissed her, all the built-up tensions of the past weeks scrambled into oblivion. “Mmm, I think I'm going to need at least one of those every day, too.”

“You got it, China Doll.” He kissed her again. “What is it?”

She hesitated. “Cal, I'm scared.”

“Of what?”

“Trusting you.”

“Listen.” He lifted her chin and lowered his face until those lovely eyes were all she could see. “I am not Nelson Greene. I do not resemble any of the weak ninnies you dated who didn't know the first thing about commitment. I love you, Lia, and I will never leave you or Chloe.”

Like that rainy night in the alley when he first strode into her life, she sensed his big teddy bear shoulders coming alongside, lifting the burden she carried. He had been doing that ever since. And she had subtly been leaning more and more on his trustworthiness, falling in love.

“I love you, Cal.”

He grinned his big grin, the one that pressed his cheeks into an accordion now hidden behind a beard. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. But I did want to marry a pediatrician.”

“Really?”

“Mm-hmm. I had everything planned out. Then Chloe came along, and now
you've
come along. I don't know about giving up—”

He rumbled like thunder and kissed her again, this time with an urgency. “Marry me? Soon?”

When she could catch her breath, she asked, “Is that one or two questions?”

His beard scratched her cheek as he murmured, “Mmm, two. Will you marry me?”

“Yes.”

“Soon? Before a pediatrician comes along and sweeps you off your feet?”

She chuckled. “I think you already did that.”

Lia stood in the wide, arched opening between Cal's dining and living rooms. It was Thanksgiving Day, much to her surprise. The usual weeklong fanfare of preparations had been eclipsed by life in the sleepy little town of Valley Oaks.

Nelson Greene was history—for many years to come at any rate. Documented phone calls between him and Mitch Conway, withdrawals of large sums of cash, and Mitch's confession guaranteed that he would serve a sentence behind bars. Chloe might want to meet him again some day when she grew up, but his record would prevent any judge from granting him custodial rights as her biological father.

Mitch, on the other hand, was guilty of attempted murder but would soon be eligible for parole. The knife was found in a trash can in the alley with no fingerprints on it. Cal patiently explained the whys and wherefores of plea bargaining while Lia ranted and raved at the unfairness of it. Mitch paid teenagers from Rockville to harass her with phone calls, the letter, the doorbell ringing, and the broken window. He stole the drugs himself, going through their connecting basements, and started a new side business in dealing. Nelson figured if Lia were discredited, he could more easily gain Chloe, supposedly because he loved her. Now that was a twisted form of parental love if she ever heard one.

When things weren't happening fast enough, Nelson upped the ante and suggested a fire the weekend Chloe was 344
gone. Cal surprised Mitch at the wrong time. Or as Cal said, the right time. Fire damage was minimal and they were alive.

Thanksgiving Day sprang on them almost unawares. Her parents hadn't come. They celebrated the day as usual, in Chicago with relatives. Lia chose to remain at
home
. She smiled to herself. Less than a week ago she had packed her belongings in plastic bags, frantic to run away from home.

Earlier she, Cal, and Chloe had enjoyed a quiet dinner at his house, making plans that took her breath away. Afterwards, they watched football together, during which they determined that two people could fit at the same time in Cal's large recliner. Chloe sat in what had already been dubbed her own recliner, the one that once belonged to the woman recently renamed
Great
-Grandma Huntington.

Now it was early evening as Lia stood in the archway. A deep sense of belonging flowed through her as she silently observed the scene before her. The living room overflowed with a gathering of her new friends, all of them talking or laughing. They occupied every couch and chair and most of the floor space. The lamps were lit and the square coffee table held Chloe's Chinese checkers board, full of marbles at the moment. It was the center of a round-robin tournament…an incredibly clamorous round-robin tournament.

Isabel and Tony had arrived after having dinner in Rockville with her family. It had been Tony's first meeting with them. He had pronounced himself a success, even with her four brothers. Isabel seemed unable to stop grinning.

Tony was spending the week at Cal's, helping Isabel prepare to leave the following Monday. Lia would remain in the house and use her furnishings while her own were being refurbished. Meanwhile, Isabel would stay with a family in Chicago while she hunted for an apartment.

Anne and Alec Sutton had descended, bearing three children and enough turkey and rolls to feed everyone
sandwiches later. Lia appreciated the open welcome Anne had always displayed toward them. Her little Mandy and Chloe were the best of friends.

Gina and Brady arrived after their dinner at the Olafsson farm. Cal's best friend had given Lia an extra hug. “Thank you, Lia. Cal has never been so content.” They brought along Gina's parents from California, Maggie and Reece.

Celeste and Peter Eaton came with their three children and the pastor's bulky Day-Timer.

He raised his voice now above the clamor, calling out, “Who wanted to schedule something?”

Brady announced, “I did!”

Reece stood, hands on hips. “Just like an Olafsson, barging in.
I'm
the one who asked him to bring his calendar.”

“Well, that may be, but everyone knows Gina and I are planning our wedding.” Not one to back away from a challenge, even from Gina's dad, Brady stepped over sprawled bodies to reach him.

Nose to nose with his much taller future son-in-law, Reece continued, “I asked Maggie to marry me long before you asked Gina.”

“Before Labor Day weekend?”

“Oh, you're counting that showy public proposal? I heard you had to ask her all over again.”

Brady scowled.

“That one doesn't count. Before your
second
attempt, I proposed. We were on a gondola in Venice and the sun was setting.”

“You're counting
that
one? That was your second honeymoon. How can you propose on your honeymoon? Especially a
second
honeymoon?”

“I can because I did.”

“Mother!” Gina cried. “Do something with him!”

Maggie laughed. “I can't, honey. He's a new man these days. Besides, I accepted, and our schedule is very tight.”

“But you're already married!”

“Not to this man.”

Gina rolled her eyes and groaned.

Reece looked over at Peter. “We want the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's. And we want it in that little chapel outside of town, not in your big church.”

Brady's jaw dropped. “Excuse me! That's
our
date! And we need the big church.”

The teasing debate continued amid much laughter and raised voices.

Still standing in the doorway, Lia leaned back and threw an anxious glance up over her shoulder. “Cal?”

He secured his arms around her and whispered, “Don't worry, China Doll. I already talked to Peter. He penciled us in.”