“Dad!” Chloe waved her hand in front of his face. “Are you thinking
about that woman—the pretty one?”
He nodded and turned around to preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
“She seemed really nice.”
“She is,” he said to the stove top, unable to put on a happy face for his
daughter. Allie was more than nice. She was ... charitable. Like, pure love
of Christ kind of charity.
“So, are you going to date her?”
He flipped around in time to see the uncertainty on Chloe’s face.
“Would that be bad?”
She shrugged. “I don’t think so—not with her. With that Aspen woman,
yeah.”
He chuckled. “I can guarantee you Aspen will never set foot in this
house.”
Chloe tipped her chin in an I know you love me kind of way. “You
smiled funny at Allie. I’ve never seen you look at someone like that
before.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. I think she makes you happy.”
“She did.”
Chloe pulled her shoulders up to her ears. “Did she leave because of
me?”
“No, darlin’.” She left for you. For us—to protect us. And in the process
made me fall in love with her. Allie had given up everything and asked
nothing of him in return. Mark sucked in through his teeth as if he’d stuck
his hand in the hot oven without an oven mitt.
He’d fallen in love with Allie.
She’d put Chloe before herself, once again showing the depth of her
character. If he was going to deserve her, he needed to lay all that he had on
the table. Gaining custody of Chloe was of the upmost importance. He’d
