More Than One Night (20 page)

"Melodie certainly enjoys burying herself in a book, even if she forgets a real world exists outside of the pages."

Well, the break was nice while it lasted.

"She's the best story reader ever." Annie returned to her meal.

"Thank you, Annie." With each word of praise or reassurance from the wonderful people sitting on either side of her, her confidence ventured the smallest of steps away from a lifetime of anxiety and inferiority.

Jason added, "You're right, princess, Auntie Mel's stories are better than anyone else's. Everyone at the library loves when she reads during story time."

Evelyn turned her attention to her son. "Princess?"

Jason's expression turned earnest, his eyes focused solely on his mother. "She's a princess, and I'm her brave knight, like in the stories you used to read me. Remember, Mommy?"

Her big sister's expression softened and revealed the slightest hint of regret. Her perfectly manicured nails tousled his hair. "I remember. I guess it's been a while, hasn't it?"

He nodded. "Mmm hmm."

"Maybe I can read you one tonight when we get home?"

Melodie blinked a couple times. Whatever Daniel had said to Evelyn certainly had prompted a slight and positive change in her actions…
like he's done for me
.

Jason's eyes brightened. "That would be awesome! But…" he chewed on his bottom lip.

"Oh, for heaven's sake, what is it Jason?" Marie's fork hit the plate with a loud scrape, drawing everyone's attention her way.

"Mother, please." Melodie's heart constricted at the tears forming in her nephew's eyes.

Evelyn turned her attention away from Marie's and spoke to her son. "It's always important to mean what you say and say what you mean. You should never be afraid to voice your thoughts or opinions."

Not waiting for Jason to answer, Marie continued. "I agree completely, Evelyn. There are people who make things happen in life and others who read about it." Her attention diverted to Daniel. "Don't you agree? You want your daughter to be a leader in life, don't you?"

Daniel smiled at Annie. "I want the very best for her, everything the world has to offer. I served my country in an effort to make sure she had the freedom to pursue whatever her heart desires." He turned his attention completely to Marie. "What I want most for her, though, is to be happy. So wherever her path to happiness takes her, is good enough for me."

Melodie blinked quickly to keep the tears at bay. Daniel's words echoed the sentiment she'd wanted to hear from her mother for years. She wanted to be good enough. Turning to Daniel, she reached out and squeezed his hand. "Beautifully said."

Marie interjected. "Yes, I do suppose you'd feel that way Melodie. Your father certainly ascribed to that sentiment with you. Didn't you, dear?"

"Marie." Her father's quiet voice cut through the escalating tension and sarcasm. "Perhaps we should move on to other subjects for the dinner discussion?"

Melodie's attention split between her mother and father.
Now is not the time for a family fight.
"Great idea, Dad. Evelyn, how is Michael doing this year in swim?"

Marie interjected and smiled broadly at Evelyn. "Before you do, dear, why don't you fill Melodie in on all the news she missed at the party we hosted for you last week? It really was quite an accomplishment."

Melodie noticed her sister shoot Daniel a quick glance before taking a bite of her food.
What the hell? I've never seen Ev like this.
When she finished her bite, she shrugged her shoulders. "I was lucky enough to settle a big deal in favor of one of our clients."

"Earned your firm millions." Marie beamed with pride.

"That's great, Ev. I'm very proud of you." Melodie really was proud of her big sister.

Evelyn nodded. "Thank you. About Michael, he's really improved on his lap times."

"Yes, darling, that's wonderful. Do tell us more about your deal, though. You know how I love the details. Maybe we could all learn something from your experience. I'm certain hearing about initiative and hard work would be a good life lesson."

"Or…" Steven interrupted, "we could hear more about Michael's lap times. I'd love to hear how my eldest grandson is doing."

Daniel turned, lowered his head, and grinned at Melodie. She was glad he found this exchange amusing. She was rather embarrassed by it all. Reaching under the table, she put her hand on his thigh and squeezed. Maybe for reassurance…maybe to keep him from grabbing Annie and running.

Marie stood. "Fine, you catch up on Michael, and I'll get dessert." She leveled intense blue eyes in the direction of her husband. "I'm sure we can discuss this more later."

With those words, she turned and left the room. At Marie's departure, Jason's eyes grew wide as moisture collected and spilled from his baby blues. "Is Gramma mad at me?"

Annie jumped out of her chair and ran to the other side of the table. She threw her arms around him. "It's okay, my brave knight." She leaned in, her voice lowered in a comforting tone. "The grumpy queen is gone."

Jason leaned into Annie's embrace, "Thank you, princess."

Steven smiled affectionately at the children. "Don't worry Jason—if Gramma is mad at anyone, it's me." He winked at Annie. "Any ideas on how I can handle the grumpy queen?"

Melodie smiled at her father and was relieved to see Daniel and Evelyn smile too. Daniel's hand covered hers, still resting on his thigh, the pride on his face was evident. Annie moved away from Jason to the elder Alexander male at the table and wrapped her small arms around his waist. "Maybe your queen needs you to slay a dragon for her. My daddy says that's what wins her heart."

He smiled and returned Annie's hug. "You might be right, princess. Maybe this old king needs to pull out his rusty ol' sword and go to battle." He looked to Daniel and Melodie. "I'm sorry if our dinner conversation has been uncomfortable for you and your daughter."

Daniel stood and extended his hand toward Annie to bring her back to her chair. "Don't worry, sir. I come from a family where it wouldn't be a real dinner if at least one person didn't storm away before the end of the meal."

"Regardless, you and Annie…"

"Princess," Annie interjected.

Steven winked. "You and the princess are our guests. I promise the next time you come over for dinner, things will be better."

Did her father say next time? Could she have finally found someone who wasn't intimidated by Evelyn and her mother and had Dad's approval too?
Too good to be true.

As if on cue, Marie arrived with coffee and dessert. Melodie only half listened to the conversation, smiling and nodding at the appropriate times.
This feels so right.
Finally, dinner and dessert were over. A sense of peace, despite the ongoing tension, wrapped her in contentment—the same sensation as a warm fuzzy blanket on a cold winter night.

Annie stood and moved to stand in front of Marie. She executed the perfect Southern curtsy. "Everything was wonderful, Your Majesty. Thank you for dinner."

Steven smiled at Melodie and Daniel. "That's a beautiful princess you have there. Isn't she, Marie?"

A small smile replaced the usual hard lines of Marie's mouth. "She is rather charming." She nodded at Annie. "Now, why don't you let Jason show you to the coat room, and you two bring the coats back for Mel and your daddy?"

The little girl bounced with excitement. "We can do that, can't we, brave knight?"

Jason smiled and wiped at the tear stains on his cheek. He looked up at his mother, silently asking for permission. At her slight nod and smile, he jumped down from the table, grabbed Annie's hand, and they ran off.

Once they were out of the room, Marie turned toward them. "Daniel, a pleasure meeting you. Thank you for joining us for dinner. Melodie, I will expect you to not miss another family party. Now, if everyone will excuse me."

Children's laughter could be heard from the other room. Evelyn laughed. "I think he may be as into Annie as her daddy is into Mel."

Melodie couldn't believe her ears—Evelyn laughed. By far, the strangest dinner party she'd ever been to at her parent's house. She couldn't leave without saying anything. "Thanks for sticking up for me with Mom earlier, Ev. It means a lot."

Her older sister's blue eyes darkened for a moment and cut to Daniel before a loud bellow came from the back of the house. "Evelyn!"

Steven stood. "I'll go." He moved over to Melodie and gave her a hug. "Take your guests and go home. I'll check in with you later." He turned and extended his hand to Daniel. "Pleasure meeting you, son. Amazing little girl you have there—reminds me of Mel at that age."

"Thank you, sir. It was a pleasure meeting you and the rest of your family."

"Evelyn!"

"I feel bad leaving you two to deal with her."

Fatigue and stress she'd never noticed showed in her sister's eyes. A pang of compassion for her archrival throughout life flooded her limbs, weighting them with empathy. Maybe being the apple of Mother's eye carried different burdens, equally as challenging as being the black sheep of the family?

Jason and Annie appeared with the coats.

Evelyn secured the garments before they hit the floor and handed them to the adults. "Go. I'll see to Mother."

Warmth and a sense of comfort settled over Melodie as Daniel's hand came to rest on her lower back, guiding her toward the door. She kissed her father on the cheek and clasped Annie's hand as they made their way to the car. Once on the interstate, she looked over to the man whose presence in her life defied explanation. Equal parts arrogance and compassion, a combination she was slowly learning to appreciate. Though aggravating at times, his ways of dealing with people were proving effective. Maybe she could learn a thing or two from him. Researching Daniel at length possessed the possibility of endless rewards.

"When we get home, are you going to share how you tamed my sister?"

His eyes cut in her direction briefly before he shrugged and returned his attention to the road. "Let's just say you're better at hiding secrets than your sister."

Evelyn has a secret?
"You blackmailed her?"

"I employed a tactical advantage to achieve our mutual goal. You wanted your sister off your back, and I needed to slay a couple of dragons tonight." His rugged jaw, barely visible in the glow of the dash lights, sported a shadow from the outgrowth of his beard, matching the do-what-you-have-to-do mentality he'd demonstrated since she met him. The hard set of his jaw softened, and a small smile appeared. "Did I prove my worth to milady tonight?"

"Daddy, I'm still hungry." Annie chimed in from the backseat. "A princess should never be hungry, right?"

Melodie smiled. "Well, we didn't get much dessert, did we? There's a place that has the best frozen yogurt. We can stop when we exit the interstate."

Daniel took her hand and squeezed. "I think some frozen yogurt sounds good. Let's eat some there, and then we'll grab extra for home. Once the princess is in bed, you and I are going to have the talk we've wanted to have since I arrived."

Looking out the window as the cars and buildings moved by her line of vision at a rapid pace, Melodie admitted to herself for the first time, in a very long time, the last thing she wanted to do was talk.

"This coffee fro-yo is amazing. I can't believe I've never had this flavor before." Daniel took another generous bite. A second later his face contorted in pain.
Damn!
He placed the heel of his hand against his eye socket. He should know better by now. A moment later a glass was placed in his hand.

"Here, sip some water, it will help. Those ice cream headaches are painful." Melodie's voice soothed the headache and his heart. Her family wasn't perfect. Hell, no one's was. But, he and Annie fit in nicely. He grinned behind the rim of the glass, not wanting Melodie to see. With a bit of persuasion, he might even be able to convince Evelyn not to hate him.
That might take a while…
Blackmail was never a good way to start a relationship, but a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.

"Ewww, that's gross." Annie wrinkled her nose before taking another bite of her vanilla yogurt.

"Why don't you like anything but vanilla?" Melodie wiped her mouth and then kept her attention squarely on Annie. Once she had more time to accept the doctor's diagnosis, they'd talk about options if she wanted to have more children. But he hadn't lied. He could see himself content and happy with just Melodie and Annie as his family.
And what about the men who can never return to their families?

"Vanilla is the best, just ask anyone."

He fought the urge to sigh—she sounded like her mother. Belle never appreciated the finer things in life—fried chicken, barbeque ribs, or even something besides vanilla ice cream. "You've never even tried anything but vanilla, little girl. How can you know you don't like anything else?"

"I know. When you have the best already, you don't have to try anymore." Annie delivered the lines in a singsong voice as though it were the most simple and logical statement in the world.

Out of the mouths of babes… He was still going to try to get his daughter to try something besides vanilla someday, but when it came to women he was pretty sure he'd just found the best. No need to keep looking. "You may have a point, but we'll talk more about this subject later. Finish up your boring vanilla. Then it's bath and bed time."

"Mel, will you read me a bedtime story?"

Daniel's heart surged as Melodie's fingers tousled through Annie's curls, her smile radiating a tenderness confirming that maybe, just maybe, she was the one for him.

"How about two since you were such a good girl tonight?"

"Yay! Thank you. May I be excused to get my bath?" Excitement danced in her blue eyes.

Daniel smiled at his daughter. She'd handled herself like a true lady tonight. "As long as your belly is full, you may be excused. Grab your pajamas, and I'll be there in a minute to start the water for you."