“Yes,”Maya said instantly, her eyes lighting up. “Miss Lawrencelovesgames.”
“That’s true,” Ashsaid, smiling.
“Will Miss Lawrence live with us?” Maya asked. “Is she having a baby?”
“No, no,” Ash said right away. “We would just go on dates, at least at first. She would live at her own house, and she’s not having a baby.”
Maya frowned as she gazed at the toast on the plate, and he felt like he could see the wheels turning in her head.
“What are you thinking about, Maya?” he asked softly after a moment.
He’d sort of sped through the baby thing, hoping she wouldn’t dwell on the idea that her mom was having another baby that would live with her. Libby had basically given full custody of Maya to Ash and only visited occasionally. The idea that Maya might feel that she was being replaced in some way hurt him deeply.
“I was thinking that toast is better with peanut butterandjelly,” Maya said, giving him a meaningful look.
“Oh,” he said, relieved. “Of course, I’ll get the strawberry jam.”
“That’s nice, Daddy,” Maya said, smiling up at him.
He felt a rush of gratitude that almost took his breath away.
Ash just hoped that he could handle everything well, so that his amazing daughter could grow up happy and confident.
Thinking of adults that were happy and confident made him wonder how Allie Lawrence liked her toast.
9
ALLIE
Allie woke up the next morning feeling like something wasn’t right, but she wasn’t quite sure what it was.
As soon as she sat up in bed and saw the pink light of dawn streaming through the window, it all came back to her in a flash.
Pulling her blanket around herself, she gazed out at the sea of rose-tinted snow on the fields outside and wondered what in the world she had gotten herself into.
In spite of all her hard work and discipline, when push came to shove, she was still so impulsive sometimes. And this time it was going to cause trouble for more than just herself.
She’d rushed home last night to talk to her parents about Ash and Maya, but they had been over at the Robertsons’ place for dinner, which meant they would be out late. Doc Robertson was a talker and her dad delighted in his company.
Praying that the Robertsons hadn’t heard about herengagement yet, she had gone to bed, planning to get up early and corner her mom before the first milking.
But she must have forgotten to set her alarm somehow. By now, the milking was done and Mom would be scouring the farm for anything else that needed doing.
And it was a certainty that Mom had left the flip phone Tag bought for her last year charging in the laundry room, like always.
Dad might be getting things together for lunch by now, he liked puttering in the kitchen. But she hated to tell him without telling her mother.
Am I really so eager to lie to them both at once?
That idea sent her stomach twisting. But before she could think too much about it, her phone buzzed on the table by the bed, so she grabbed it and read the message.
Unknown
Hey, it’s Ash.
Little butterflies were suddenly fluttering in her chest. She smiled to herself as she reread the words before quickly adding him to her contacts.
Ash
