Jeff headed for the back door. Ashley rose and followed. He was so good with her daughter. How tragic that he couldn’t have children of his own. He would be the best kind of father. Nicole had been wrong to tell him he wasn’t human. Jeff Ritter was very much a man—as flawed and frail as the next. But he was also decent.
She stepped into the kitchen where Maggie and Jeff had already opened several of the plastic eggs to discover the goodies inside. Her daughter laughed with excitement over a bright orange ring in the shape of a daisy. She looked up at her mother and grinned.
“This is the bestest Easter ever. Can we go to church now, and then to Brenda’s where I can see Muffin again?”
Ashley nodded and held out her hand. “Let’s put on our Easter dresses and get all pretty for Uncle Jeff.”
Maggie clasped her hands together in front of her chest. “We have hats,” she said happily.
Jeff raised his eyebrows. Ashley smiled. “I know it’s silly, but it’s a tradition. New Easter hats.”
“I can’t wait to see them.”
His gaze met hers. Ashley’s heart squeezed a little tighter. In that moment she knew that she’d fallen for Jeff. Fallen hard and fast with no hope of walking away without being crushed.
* * *
“Why is everyone staring?” Ashley asked in a low voice as they walked through Brenda’s house in Bellevue.
Jeff had also noticed the interested looks they were receiving. He put his hand on the small of Ashley’s back. “It’s because you’re so lovely.”
She glanced up at him and laughed. “Yeah, right.”
He took in her dark, wavy hair, the hazel eyes that seemed to see down to his soul, the way her mouth turned up slightly at the corners. She wore a cream-colored dress with long sleeves. The heavy fabric outlined her curves, falling gracefully to her calves. Atop her head sat a small scrap of lace and fabric that could only be called a hat under the loosest of interpretations. She looked beautiful and elegant and he couldn’t believe they were here together.
“Maybe it’s you,” she murmured. “After all, you’re not so bad looking yourself.”
“I’m sure that’s it.”
She chuckled and took a glass of orange juice from a tray circulated by a tuxedo-clad waiter.
Brenda’s house was spacious. Her husband had joined Microsoft in the days when the computer firm was in its heyday. Their wealth was reflected in the elegant furniture and attractive artwork. But while Ashley admired the decorator touches, Jeff counted exits and planned escape routes. He knew there was no point, but old habits died hard.
“So tell me about this brunch,” Ashley said. “She goes all out.”
“It’s a yearly tradition.” He glanced around the crowded living room. “Most of the employees from the security company are here, along with a lot of people from her husband’s work. The rest are friends and family.”
“Do you come often?”
“No.”
He didn’t bother to tell her that this was the first time he’d attended. That combined with him showing up with a gorgeous woman and her daughter explained all the attention they attracted, but he wasn’t about to tell Ashley that, either. From what he could figure out, she thought of him as relatively normal. He didn’t want to do anything to change her opinion before circumstances did it for him.
“Well, well, fancy seeing you here.”
Jeff held in a groan. Fate hadn’t taken long to burst his bubble, he thought as he turned to greet his partner.
Zane Rankin stood with a young woman clinging to his arm. She was in her early twenties, with long blond hair and a chest so large, it threatened her ability to stay upright. Her scrap of a dress barely covered her from breasts to thighs.
Jeff turned and shook hands with his partner, then introduced Ashley. Zane’s date, Amee—“Noyjust a doublee”—giggled.
“Zane says you’re really dangerous, like him. That you could kill someone with your bare hands.”
Jeff shot Zane a death look that was depressingly ineffective. “This isn’t the sort of place I can demonstrate that,” he said coldly.
“Oh.” The young woman glanced around at the crowd. “I guess not. It’s Easter. I guess we have to be nice to each other today, you know?” She cuddled against Zane. “Maybe you can tell me about it later.”
Zane leaned close her to ear. “Honey, I’ll give you a personal tour of the vulnerable areas.”
