Joining her at the window, she smiled as more joyous chatter filled the air.Bumping Kit with her hip, Parker smiled down at her daughter and nodded out the window.“Go on.”When Kit’s eyes widened, Parker started steering her to the door.“You know you want to.”
Kit wrapped her arms around Parker’s waist so tightly that she felt her spine crack.“You’re the best mom ever!”The declaration made Parker’s heart kick in her chest before warmth spread throughout it.It wasn’t something she often believed, but it was something she’d needed to hear anyway.“Are you coming too?”
Parker shook her head.“I’m going to let you have all the fun this time kiddo.”She kissed the top of her head and opened the door.“Bring me back a biscuit or something?”Kit nodded and rushed down the stairs, grabbing Boots and dragging the cat along with her.
Not three minutes later, there was a knock at the door.Shaking her head, Parker opened it expecting to see her daughter.“Did you forget—” Her words cut off as she took in the tall, slender blonde woman in front of her.“Oh, hi.Willa, right?”
Willa nodded, her light hair bobbing in its high ponytail.“Yes.It’s nice to see you again.”She fiddled with a plate in her hands before passing it over to Parker.“Kit mentioned that you wanted a biscuit, so I thought I would bring some for you.Cora’s biscuits are pretty legendary.”
Parker smiled awkwardly as she accepted the plate.“Thank you.”As Willa stood there looking at her contemplatively, Parker gestured toward the family room.“Would you like to come in?”
Willa seemed to sag with relief at the invitation.“That would be great, thanks.”She walked into the apartment, taking a seat on the small chair near the window.When another wave of laughter poured in, Willa gazed outside, looking past the tops of the trees with a smile.“I didn’t really realize how loud we all were.”
Parker shrugged as she sat on the couch opposite Willa and tore a bite from one of the biscuits.The flaky bread crumbled in her mouth, hints of rich butter bursting on her tongue.“Wow, this is really good.”
Willa smiled.“They’re even better fresh from the oven.”She fidgeted for a moment as she seemed to gather her thoughts.Parker sat patiently, wondering what on Earth could be making the woman seem so nervous.“Did you know I live with Lottie?”
Parker shook her head having no idea why Willa was bringing the other woman into the conversation.Willa smiled.“I’ve lived with her since I moved here, and Beckett moved in after we got married in the summer.”She waved her hand in front of her face as if to dismiss what she’d just said.“That’s not really the point.”
Parker laughed lightly.“What is the point then?”she asked politely.Willa seemed like a nice person, but Parker was getting more confused by the minute.
Willa smiled and laughed along with her.“The reason I bring Lottie up is because after she met you, she came home and told me a little about your situation.”When Willa’s gaze flicked to Parker’s tattered clothing, the nervousness the woman had been displaying suddenly made a whole lot of sense.
“Oh,” Parker muttered.Embarrassment flooded her system and she wrapped her arms around her middle to try to hide herself away a little, hating being exposed in front of a stranger.“We’re all good now.”
Willa lightly touched Parker’s knee, drawing her gaze to the woman’s knowing expression.“It definitely seems like that’s the case, and I won’t force you to talk about it if you don’t want to.”She sat back, gazing out the window once more.“I can’t pretend that I know exactly what you’ve gone through because I don’t know your story, but I had a rough go of things a couple of years back and I thought I would lend an ear if you wanted one.”
Parker swallowed the giant lump of emotion that was clogging her throat.Even though she’d only just met Willa that morning, the empathy the other woman was displaying was more than even her own mother had shown her.The kindness in the people of Applewood seemingly knew no bounds.It was touching and also a little hard to accept.
“I appreciate that,” Parker managed to choke out.Blinking away moisture, she looked up at Willa.“I’m not sure I want to get too into it, but let’s just say that it’s been hard.Being a single mom and moving around so much isn’t easy, and it didn’t help that everywhere we went, the people seemed nothing like the ones I’ve met on this farm.The Kemps don’t have an unkind bone in their bodies and as nice as it has been, it’s also an adjustment.”
Willa nodded.“The Kemps are definitely a special breed.I’m glad that I know them, and that I was able to get over my own past to let a little love in.”She smiled and spun the rings on her left finger, hesitating only a moment before going on.“I always had food and shelter, but I did deal with an ex who was controlling and manipulative.It took me too long to see it and a lot of strength to leave.Even when I did, it took months of therapy and meeting Beckett to help me really start to heal from it.”
Parker smiled sadly as she squeezed the other woman’s hand.Just because she hadn’t ever gone hungry like Parker had didn’t mean she hadn’t experienced something just as awful.“I’m so sorry you went through that.”
Willa squeezed back, the gesture feeling like the start of another bond with someone that wasn’t her daughter.Parker was growing roots in a place she may not belong in forever, but knowing that didn’t stop her from doing it.The feeling of connecting with other people was too good to pass up, even if it would come back to bite her later.
“Thank you, and I’m sorry for whatever you’ve gone through too.”Willa smiled and nodded toward the open window.“I spent all of two minutes with your daughter and I can tell that she is a sweet, caring little girl.You’ve done an amazing job with her and should be very proud.”
Parker sniffled, between Kit’s earlier declaration and Willa’s just now, her heart was fit to burst.“Thank you,” she rasped, coughing into her hand to clear the emotion from it.
Willa stood and stepped over to draw Parker into a hug.“We’re huggers in this family, so you better get used to it.”
Parker huffed a laugh at the kind woman.“I don’t know if we’ll be here long enough for that.”
When Willa pulled back, there was a sly smile on her face.“If the way Travis has been talking about you and Kit is any indication, my guess is that you’ll be around a lot longer than you think.”At Parker’s wide-eyed gaze, Willa chuckled and started toward the door.“Don’t look so surprised.I’m sure you’ve seen the way he looked at you this morning, all hopeful about you joining us for breakfast before looking like a lost kitten when you said no.”
Parker laughed again.She had seen the interest in Travis’s eyes, making him seem more “stalking lion” than “depressed kitty.”“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”Just because she’d kissed the man and hoped to do it again didn’t mean she needed to advertise that to his family members.
Willa opened the door, shooting Parker a playfully withering look.“We’ll play it that way if you like.”A flicker of sadness passed over her eyes as her expression turned serious.“Just do yourself a favor and don’t hide your feelings away.I made the mistake of waiting a little too long once and almost lost my chance.I don’t want the same thing to happen to you.”
Parker nodded, curious as to what the rest of that story was but deciding to let it go for now.They’d bonded over past trauma, and would talk again.Parker would make sure of it if for no other reason than to make a new friend.
“I’ll try to keep that in mind.”With a friendly wave, Willa descended the stairs, leaving Parker with her thoughts about her future and not wasting opportunities.
The longer she sat and stared out the window, the sounds of endless enjoyment hitting her ears, the more Parker agreed with Willa that waiting to express her feelings wasn’t something she wanted to do.Right now those feelings for Travis were just the beginnings of a relationship that could blossom into so much more, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t still show him how she felt.Popping another bite of biscuit into her mouth, the beginnings of a plan to do just that solidified in Parker’s mind, bringing a wicked smile to her face.
