“I am too.” His eyes lingered on her face, and her heart stumbled. “Despite joining the land of the living again, I couldn’t bring myself to look people in the eye. All I saw was pity, so I interacted with people as little as possible, and spent my time working on cars. I think your face was the first one I actually saw for almost a year.” He reached up and stroked her cheek with his thumb, setting her skin afire. “I could look you in the eye because you didn’t know what I’d been through. And when I saw you were going through something difficult too, I had to help you.”
Warmth filled her chest. “Do you realize the lifesaver you were to me that day?” she asked, struggling to keep her emotions in check. “You rescued me and Kallie.”
He shrugged. “I don’t know about that. But when I heard Lance try to threaten you with Kallie, I decided I needed to start living again, and that means returning to the law practice.” He gave her hand a squeeze before releasing it.
Amy missed the contact immediately.
“Smells like Mom has lunch ready. If I’m going to eat here, I need to hurry. I’ve got a lot of work to do. Besides, I need to make Aunt Charity realize Scott is capable of running the garage and see if Uncle Brent is willing to take me back.”
Amy’s mind raced while they ate grilled cheese sandwiches and fruit. She couldn’t seem to clear it of the revelations she’d had before Lance left. The year-old memories that had surfaced left her reeling. Then Ben’s announcement had taken her by surprise. She needed time to process everything.
“You’re quiet, Amy. Is everything okay?” Hope asked.
Amy jumped, startled out of her revelry. She shrugged. “I’m fine. I just have a lot on my mind right now.”
Aware of Ben’s eyes on her again, she studied her food. He probably thought her conversation with Lance occupied her thoughts, but he couldn’t be further from the truth. Amy couldn’t get her mind off Ben and possibly reuniting him with his daughter.
Could she do it?
Yes.She was going to find Eddie and bring Cassey home to her father. But she needed time to sort things out and do some investigating.
Problem was, she had no idea how to do investigative work.
