Page 10 of Finding Home (Willow Valley #1)

TEN

EVERETT

I can’t decide if the fire station being beside the school is a gift or pure torture.

On one hand, I get to watch Lila play with her friends and run around during recess, on the other, I get to see Chloe and how good she is with those kids.

See what outfit she picked for the day and how it hugs her figure.

As I stand watching Lila this afternoon, she’s picking yellow dandelions and creating a bouquet.

She stops and stares at the flowers in her hand before running over to Chloe and offering them to her.

Chloe’s smile lights up her face as she accepts the handful of weeds my daughter picked for her.

Lila’s warmed up to her quite quickly. Last year, she wasn’t as close to her teacher as she seems to be with Chloe, and while it may be the new town and the fact that the school is smaller, I have a feeling it’s all Chloe and her sunshine personality, the way she just sucks you in.

That thought has an idea forming, and it’s either going to bite me in the ass down the road, or it’s going to be the best decision I’ve ever made.

As I leave my office, I yell out to the guys that I’m stepping out, and they nod, many raising a brow as I leave and walk into the field separating the school and station.

When Lila calls, “Daddy,” I can’t stop my grin as I crouch and she runs into my arms.

“What are you doing here?” she asks .

“I’m going to talk to Miss Maxwell, go back and play with your friends.”

I kiss her cheek and send her on her way. As I stand, Chloe is watching me. Something about her gaze has me puffing my chest, the fabric of my shirt straining a little more.

“Mr. Lawson,” she says as I approach. “How can I help you?”

“I have a proposition I think could benefit both of us,” I say, and her eyes widen.

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Your living situation.”

She crosses her arms over her chest, her eyes flicking to the kids running around before she stares me down. “I’m not sure how that’s any of your concern.”

“Come over for dinner and we can talk,” I say.

She bites her lip as she thinks about it.

“I’m not sure that’s the best idea,” she finally says, her voice a little breathy, and damn if it doesn’t make my cock stir.

“It’s a simple conversation, Chloe. It will be mutually beneficial.”

She pops her hip. “Have you ever heard the saying you’ll catch more flies with honey than vinegar?”

I lean forward, my breath dusting over her cheek, and I feel her intake of breath against mine as I whisper, “Didn’t seem to bother you the first time we met,” then step back.

Her eyes harden. “That was when I thought I’d never have to see you again. And I got the distinct impression you didn’t want to mention our first meeting the way you behaved when we ran into each other at Grounded Bliss.”

I cross my arms over my chest. “I don’t particularly like making those kinds of things known to my daughter,” I grunt.

“Still could have acted like you knew me,” she huffs, and I feel some of her sunshine energy fade, like she’s sad I didn’t acknowledge we’d met before.

“Chloe, please come to dinner.”

She huffs. “Fine.”

I tell her the address and tell her to come over tomorrow at six and turn to leave as she calls the kids to line up. When I get back to the station, the guys scurry and act as if they weren’t just watching me out the large window that faces the field.

In between the small calls we get during my shift, I decide what I’m going to make for dinner tomorrow. I’m not just going to order a pizza to feed Chloe, so I put together a shopping list and come up with a plan.

When I pick Lila up from school the following day and tell her that Chloe is coming over for dinner, she’s super excited and insists on helping me in the kitchen.

When I put the lasagna in the oven, she leaves me and heads outside, returning fifteen minutes later with picked wildflowers from the backyard.

She holds them out to me and says, “Look, Daddy. I picked them for Miss M. Do you think she’ll like them?”

“I’m sure she’ll love them, Peanut. We should get you cleaned up before dinner.”

She grins up at me and says, “Okay, Daddy,” before running upstairs.

I set the salad on the table and follow Lila, ducking into my bedroom and checking myself in the mirror.

There’s a splatter spot of pasta sauce on the front of my shirt, and I rip it off, tossing it in my laundry basket before pulling a fresh shirt on.

“Daddy,” Lila calls from her bedroom, and I find her in her white dress with purple polka dots.

“You’re wearing your lucky dress,” I say, and she nods. “Why?”

She puts her finger to her lips and smiles. “If I tell you, Daddy, it won’t be lucky.”

“Ahhh. Is your dress why you called me?”

She shakes her head. “I need help with my hair. Can you do pigtails?”

I grab the brush off the top of her dresser and sit on the edge of her bed. She immediately sits on her knees between my legs, and I start brushing her hair .

“Daddy, do you know how to french braid?” she asks, her r sounds not coming out fully.

“No, I don’t, Peanut. Why do you ask?”

“Lucy had really pretty braids yesterday. I wanted to have my hair just like hers.”

It’s situations like this that emphasize how hard it is not having Renee around.

As Lila grows up, there will be more and more she’s going to want to do and experience that I know nothing about.

I make a note to start watching some online tutorials for french braiding so hopefully I can do them for her one day.

As I secure the hair tie around the last pigtail, there’s a knock on the front door, and for some reason, I feel nervous.

Lila’s already left her spot on the floor between my legs and is in the hallway calling, “Come on, Daddy,” and I shake my head, following her.

I pull open the door and am momentarily stunned by how gorgeous Chloe looks.

She’s wearing a light-blue sundress with little white flowers on it. Her hair is in gentle curls.

She smiles down at Lila when she excitedly says, “Hi, Miss M.”

“Hi, Miss Lila.”

Lila grabs her hand and pulls her towards the kitchen, and Chloe quickly looks at me before allowing Lila to lead her away. When we get to the kitchen, Lila holds out the flowers for her. “I picked these for you, Miss M. Do you like them?”

I stand in the entryway to the kitchen, watching them as Chloe crouches in front of Lila, taking the small bundle of flowers from her and putting her nose in them. “I love them. I’m going to put them in water and beside my bed as soon as I get home.”

Lila’s grin grows, and she points at Chloe. “I like your dress.”

“Why thank you. I like yours.”

Lila grabs the side of her dress and twists in place. “It’s my favourite.”

“Well, it’s a very pretty dress. I see why it’s your favourite.”

The timer on the oven goes off then, and I move past them, turning it off and pulling the lasagna out of the oven. “Dinner’s done.”

“We’ve gotta wash our hands, Miss M,” Lila says before walking towards the downstairs washroom .

Chloe follows her, and I listen to them talk as they wash their hands and I finish setting the table before washing my own in the kitchen sink.

The girls come back, and Lila takes her normal seat, and I pull the chair across from her out for Chloe. She smiles softly as she tucks her dress close to her thighs and sits as I push the chair in. I take my seat at the head of the table.

“This looks amazing,” Chloe says, and for some reason, that has me puffing my chest out with pride.

“Dig in,” I say and start putting some salad on Lila’s plate while Chloe cuts into the lasagna. We quietly load our plates, and when Chloe bites into the lasagna, she moans around her fork. I immediately take a sip of my water and clear my throat.

“This is really good,” Chloe says, and I wipe my mouth with my napkin.

“Thank you,” I half grunt.

“My daddy’s a really good cook. Last week, we ate a lot of frozen food because everything was in boxes.”

I hold back my groan as my daughter throws me under the bus about what I’ve been feeding her since we’ve moved, but Chloe being who she is, offers me a reassuring smile.

“I’m sure the move was busy. When I moved out of my parents’, I don’t think I cooked for two weeks,” she tells Lila. “You must be excited your dad’s cooking again.”

Lila nods. “Yeah. I asked Daddy if we can have cheesy chicken this weekend. It’s one of my favourites.”

“Cheesy chicken,” Chloe says excitedly. “That sounds really good.”

“It is. You should come over and eat some.” Lila looks over at me. “Daddy, can Miss M come over for cheesy chicken this weekend?”

“If she wants,” I say, knowing the conversation I want to have with Chloe later could impact that decision.

“I’ll need to check my schedule,” Chloe says, and when Lila visibly deflates she adds, “But if I can, I’d love to eat cheesy chicken with you.”

Lila perks up and smiles as she continues to eat .

“How’s your grandma?” Chloe asks me, and I stiffen slightly.

No one besides Grandma and me knows about her cancer diagnoses, and I know she doesn’t want people in town knowing, but if my plan is to work, I’m going to have to tell Chloe.

Something deep in my gut tells me she won’t go spilling the secret, though.

There’s something about her that’s inherently trustworthy.

“She’s adjusting to her new reality,” I say.

I haven’t told Lila anything about Grandma being sick yet, because I don’t want to worry her until we have a better idea of what’s going on.

I know I’m going to have to tell her some things soon, but the concept of cancer is so big I don’t know how to yet.

“I get to spend the night at Grandma’s,” Lila adds. “We play games and watch movies. We also bake. I like Grandma.”

I can’t help but smile at Lila’s confession. Knowing she’s comfortable with her and starting to settle into this new life is important. It makes it not feel like I’ve completely fucked this all up.

“She’s a very nice lady,” Chloe says. “I’ve known her for a long time.”

“You have?” Lila asks, and Chloe nods.

“Yes. When I was a kid, my friends and I would go into her store with whatever money we’d earn and we’d buy candy. She was always very nice to us. I took my sister-in-law Hannah into her store this summer when she was visiting.”

“That sounds fun,” Lila says.

“It was.”

We finish eating, and I clear our plates and tell Lila to head upstairs and play while I have a conversation with Chloe. She seems a little more shy now as she sits at the table, her hands folded in her lap, her right thumb nail picking at her left.

“Would you like a coffee?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “No, thanks. Caffeine would just keep me up tonight.”

I nod and turn the coffee pot on to make a single cup.

“So, you wanted to talk about my situation,” Chloe finally says, breaking the tense silence that’s filled the kitchen since Lila left.

I lean against the counter, crossing my legs and my arms over my chest. “You mentioned needing to move out of your current place. ”

She nods. “Again, I’m not sure how this is any of your concern.”

I sigh. “My grandma isn’t telling people this, so this can’t leave this kitchen.”

She straightens. “Of course.”

I run a hand down my face as I take a deep breath.

“She’s been diagnosed with cancer. It’s why I moved to Willow Valley.

She’s going to have surgery, and then she’ll have treatment.

Right now, she’s been watching Lila while I work, and I know she won’t be able to do that after her surgery and when she starts chemo.

I need to find a solution, and that’s where you come in. ”

She raises a brow but doesn’t say anything.

“We have a spare room. You could move in, do whatever you’d like with the room, in exchange, you’d watch Lila while I’m on shift. Maybe pop in and check on Grandma.”

Scepticism is written all over her face before she opens her mouth. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

I grab my coffee and move to join her at the table.

“It’s a win-win situation. You have a place to stay that’s not your parents’, and I have someone to watch Lila.

Someone Lila likes.” I sigh. “She doesn’t warm up to people easily.

I’m completely blown away she’s gotten as close as she has to both you and Grandma.

I was worried she’d have a very difficult time adjusting to the move. ”

She gnaws on her bottom lip, something I’ve noticed she does when she’s debating something internally.

She did it that first night we met before she invited me into her place.

I want to use my thumb to pull her lip from between her teeth and bite it myself.

I want to know what her moans would sound like if I did.

I sit back in my seat, putting some distance between us, and push that insane thought out of my mind, because if we’re going to do this, have her move in and watch Lila, that means absolutely nothing can happen between us.

“Can I think about it?” she finally asks, breaking the long silence.

“Yeah. You can take a few days. I’ll need to figure out a solution as soon as possible.”

She nods. “Of course.” She rolls her lips together and pushes back from the table. “I should get going.”

“Of course. I’ll call Lila so she can say bye.”

I rush up the stairs, taking them two at a time, and pop my head into Lila’s room. “Peanut, Miss M is going to head home if you want to say goodbye.”

She immediately abandons her toys and rushes past me and down the stairs. I watch them say their goodbyes before thanking Chloe for coming over, and as I watch her get into her car, I think about how much I really want this to work out.