Chapter 28
Ben stood over the borrowed playpen, listening to his daughter’s steady breathing.I can’t believe she was only two-and-a-half hours away this whole time.
Tears filled his eyes. He could see glimpses of Melanie in Cassey’s high cheekbones, button nose, and full mouth.She’s so beautiful.
It was a small consolation, but with all the horrible things he’d imagined his daughter going through this past year, he was glad to know she was well cared for and loved.
Accepting he would never see Cassey again had been the most difficult thing he’d ever done, even more difficult than burying his wife. But Amy and Kallie had brought the sunshine back into his life.
He’d grown to love Kallie, his little angel. His chest tightened as he recalled the first time she’d called him Daddy. It had been a beautiful moment. He couldn’t wait to hear Cassey call him Daddy. He hoped the adjustment wouldn’t be too hard for her.
Cassey had clung to Amy most of the evening, and Amy had insisted on putting her to bed. Fortunately, Kallie had been content to let Ben put her down. He hoped Kallie’s closeness to him would help Cassey learn to accept him.
His thoughts turned to Amy. He’d almost lost her today. The thought tightened his chest all over again. He couldn’t believe he’d come to care for her and Kallie so strongly in the few short weeks they’d been here.
Thanks to Amy, he could find joy in a life with his daughter. He wanted to build a new life with more than just Cassey, though. He wanted Amy and Kallie to be a part of it. That’s part of the reason he’d decided to stay at his parents’ house. It provided a much better environment for Cassey than the small apartment above the garage, and here, he had Amy and his parents’ help.
When his parents had hugged and thanked Amy before going to bed, he’d followed suit, needing to assure himself she was really okay. It had felt so good to hold her in his arms. He’d almost told her he loved her, but he’d chickened out. These feelings were still so new and overwhelming. Besides, he didn’t want her to think he only said it out of gratitude for bringing Cassey home. Instead, he’d settled for pressing his lips to her forehead for a long moment.
Would he have scared her away if he’d told her how he felt?
Maybe. Maybe not.
She’d agreed to help care for Cassey. Hopefully, in time, she would come to care for him the way he cared for her.
* * *
Amy thrashed in her bed,trying to free herself from the support beam of the old barn. It was pitch black, except for the one bright headlight of the Suburban blinding her. The engine of the SUV revved, and panic surged in her throat, choking her. She pulled against her restraints, but they were too tight.
The engine revved again, louder, and the light grew bigger. Closer.
Soon, the Suburban would crush her against the beam.I’m going to die in this barn.Again, she struggled to free her hands, but a pressure on her shoulder pinned her against the beam.
A scream ripped from her throat. “Help!”
“Amy,” Ben shook her shoulder. “Amy.”
She awoke, sitting straight up in bed. “Ben?” She wiped sweat from her brow, her hands no longer tied. Fighting confusion, she focused on Ben’s words.
“I’m sorry to wake you, but Cassey’s crying, and I can’t get her to settle back down.”
Cassey’s desperate cries—cries, Amy had confused as the revving of the Suburban’s engine—grew louder by the second. She climbed out of bed and hurried from her room and closed the door, so Kallie wouldn’t wake. Good thing she had a habit of sleeping in a t-shirt and sweatpants.
Hurrying into Ben’s room, she picked up Cassey. “Shh...” Amy swayed and hummed Cassey’s favorite lullaby.
A twinge pulled at Amy’s back by the time she finally laid Cassey back in the playpen Faith had brought over.Poor baby had been so upset.When she left Ben’s room, she found him sitting on the floor, back against the wall, his shoulders slumped.
She sat near him.
A tear glistened on his cheek in the dim light.
“Are you okay?” She put her hand on his shoulder, belatedly becoming aware he was shirtless. Her first instinct was to jerk her hand away, but she wanted to comfort him. If she abruptly pulled away, it might make things worse.
“That song... Melanie used to sing it to Cassey every night before putting her to bed.”
“Clara said it was her favorite lullaby. It was the one thing that soothed her when they... first got her.”
Ben was quiet for a moment. “I wish I’d tucked her in bed more often as a baby. I should have been the one to sing to her.”
