Chapter 16
The next few days flew by for Amy. Fortunately, she kept busy at work, because whenever it got slow, she thought about the photos she’d seen in Melanie’s file and the picture on Ben’s desk. She couldn’t seem to stop thinking about where she’d seen that baby and a blue Suburban with a grill guard. She’d seen a vehicle like that, she was certain of it—just as sure as she was about the baby—but she couldn’t remember where. On both accounts.
It drove her crazy. She wanted so badly to help Ben, to find his daughter, but she didn’t know how.
To stay busy, she called the local businesses, including some in neighboring counties, for donations to the Fall Festival.
Wednesday afternoon, she received a text from Ben.
Do you want me to tend Kallie tonight?
Yes. Please. I promise I will keep my mouth shut.
And she did. After dinner she kissed Kallie and walked out without giving him a single instruction.
She enjoyed getting involved with the festival, making make new friends while cutting fabric and assembling crafts. It felt good to be a part of the community. Providence was really beginning to feel like home.
When she returned, she sat stiffly on the couch, reminding herself not to say anything she would regret.
Before she could ask if everything went okay, James got a phone call and excused himself. Amy wanted to follow him. As much as she liked Ben, she didn’t want to be alone with him. Now, if she asked how things went, he might take it wrong.
Ben watched her. “Are you okay?”
She nodded.
“You meant it when you said you’d keep your mouth shut, didn’t you?”
“Trust me, it’s better this way,” she said with a tight smile.
He tilted his head and smiled. “Not as fun, though. For me, anyway.”
“I don’t trust myself to not say something I’ll regret.”
“You mean like, you find me attractive?” A twinkle lit his eyes.
Her lips curve up of their own accord. “Something like that.”
“Guess what I caught my dad doing?” Ben said, changing the subject.
“What’s that?”
“He was trying to get Kallie to call him Papa.”
“I guess you’ve heard that she calls your mom and Faith Nana.” Amy had mixed emotions when she first heard Hope trying to get Kallie to call her grandma. She was torn between feeling guilty that Kallie didn’t know her own grandma and grateful that Hope wanted to be a grandmother to her daughter. Hope was a much better role model than Amy’s own mom would be.
“Does it bother you that Kallie calls your mom Nana?” She cringed at the way that came out. So much for not saying something she’d regret. “I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer that.”
She hid her face in her hands.
Ben shifted from the armchair to sit beside her on the couch. His nearness made her insides flutter.
“Amy, don’t.” He pulled her hands away from her face. “Don’t apologize for saying what you think.” Then his lips curved up at the corners. “Especially if you think I’m good looking.”
His teasing elicited another smile.
“Seriously, I can’t dance around the fact my wife and daughter are gone, and I don’t expect everyone else to either. No, it doesn’t bother me that Kallie calls my mom Nana, or that my dad wants her to call him Papa. But I am sad that they’ll never get to hear my daughter say it.”
Amy’s chest tightened in the way it usually did every time she thought about all Ben had lost. But she didn’t think it was his loss that made her heart race and her breath hitch.
