Wren shook her head. “He hasn’t even started them yet, Miss Delaney.”
“Don’t go tattling on your brother.” Jace put his hand on Wren’s shoulder. “He doesn’t have the same enthusiasm for art that you do, sweetie.”
I watched Wren disappear a little bit inside herself. “Come on, Eli. I’ll help you with them.”
The two of them sat down at a table in the back of the room. My heart ached for the little girl who so desperately wanted to be seen by her dad. It wasn’t my place to say anything, but I sure wanted to.
Jace lingered at the edge of my desk. “How’s camp been going?”
“Good. Wren’s been enjoying journaling and Eli’s been enjoying everything else.”
He nodded. “It’s hard to believe they’re twins since they’re so different.”
“Different but equally as talented in their own unique way,” I offered, hoping I wasn’t crossing a line.
Jace’s shoulders hitched, and he sighed. “Sometimes I don’t know how to connect with Wren. Eli is so much like me. Heloves the outdoors and we’re into the same things. But Wren”—he shook his head—“I feel like I’m losing her.”
Without thinking, I set my hand on top of his where it rested on my desk. “She just wants to be seen.”
He looked up, his gaze locking on mine. “You seem to see her.”
“Maybe I recognize a little bit of myself in her.”
Janice poked her head through the doorway and Jace immediately pulled his hand away. “District Park Ranger Ramsey, there’s a hiker out front who wants to talk to you about the forecast.”
Any hint of softness disappeared as Jace nodded. “Be right there.”
My hand tingled from where we’d touched. I felt like I needed to say something else, something to set his mind at ease. “Just notice her,” I whispered. “Ask to see her art. Her drawings are really good.”
“Thanks.” He held my gaze for another beat, then lifted his head to check on his kids. “You two behave today. If I get a good report from Miss Delaney, we’ll pick up cupcakes to take tonight.”
“You’ve got big plans?” I teased.
“Just poker night with the guys. How about you?”
“I’m going to do some hiking and set some stuff out for the scavenger hunt we have starting on Monday.” Pretty exciting for a Friday night, but it beat hanging out in the cabin all alone like I’d been doing most weekends.
“Be careful. There’s a storm coming through later. Should pass us by, but there’s always a chance it might shift direction at the last minute.”
I was both touched and offended that he wanted to warn me. “You know, I can take care of myself.”
“I’ve no doubt about that.” He gave me a final smile then disappeared through the doorway, leaving me to wonder if I’d imagined the attraction between us again or if it was real. I wasn’t sure which option I wanted to be true.
CHAPTER 8
JACE
I satat the table and stared at the cards in my hand, but my mind was a million miles away. I kept replaying my interaction with Delaney this morning. The way she looked up at me and smiled. The way her hand felt covering mine. The way she told me to notice Wren, like she cared about me and my daughter more than she should.
“You in?” Brody asked, elbowing me in the ribs.
“Folding.” I tossed my cards onto the table. Luck definitely hadn’t been on my side. The stakes were never big during our weekly games, but my cards were killing me. It didn’t help that images of Delaney kept running through my mind.
I sat back and watched Tucker bluff his way through the hand. Thunder shook the house, and a flash of lightning lit up the dark sky outside.
“Thought the storm was supposed to slide past us,” Walker said as he shuffled the cards.
I’d thought so too. We got our fair share of summer weather, but usually we knew when it was coming. I pulled out my phone and tapped on my weather app. A line of red spread over the screen, indicating Big Wood was about to be in the middle of the storm.
