“I like being an early riser. Lets me get a head start on the day.”
She suddenly straightened, agitated. “And I’m keeping you from doing that.”
His hand came down on her knee. “No.” She looked at his fingers resting there, and her eyes flashed up to Lance’s. He drew his hand back quickly. “You’re not keeping me from anything important.”
She held his gaze for a solid moment, then waggled her shoulders and shook her head. “I should probably head over to the library, anyway. I don’t want to be late my first week on the job, and I know you need to get into the shop.”
As much as he wanted to stay all day with her, she was probably right. While his work schedule was somewhat flexible as part-owner, he didn’t want Sarah to arrive late for her new job.
“Things going good there?” Lance slid off the tailgate, his feet landing in the crunch of snowpack below. He’d parked his truck at the end of Main Street where the views were the most sweeping and wide. “You’re still enjoying it?”
“I really am. I love it. It’s the perfect fit for me.” Sarah took the hand Lance offered to help her down from the truck. He wondered if she also noticed that perfect fit, how their fingers wove together like they were meant for one another.
She kept her hand in his until he moved to shut the tailgate. Even after she’d let go, she looked like she didn’t quite know what to do with them. She pushed them into the pockets on her coat.
“I read a couple more chapters in that book,” Lance said as he gave the tailgate one last tug to make sure it was locked in place. The truck was old, and sometimes things didn’t work the way they should. “It’s getting really good. I really like how—”
“Nope. No spoilers.” She pulled a hand from her pocket and made a motion to stop. “I’m really behind but hoping to make some headway during my break today. I should be able to catch up. You think you’re up for another book club meeting soon?”
“Tomorrow night?”
“I’m free.” She grinned, but it quickly slipped into a frown. “But I’ll have Laney.”
“You two could come over to my place. I can make you dinner.”
The frown was immediately replaced with the most quizzical look.
“You wouldn’t want to have a toddler over for dinner, Lance. She’s a nasty food critic. She’ll literally throw an entire meal on the floor if she doesn’t like it. Zero stars.”
He just smiled. “Then I’ll have to cook something I know she’ll enjoy.”
“That’s honestly very sweet of you, but I think I should probably just try to find a sitter.”
He didn’t like the thought of that—Sarah paying for a babysitter and missing out on another evening spent with her daughter. “I’m serious, Sarah. Please bring Laney. I want her there.”
“I don’t want to put you out.”
“You do that a lot. You know that, right?”
Her shoulders jumped to her ears, pushing her burgundy scarf up around her chin in a shrug. “Do what?”
“Worry that the fact that you have a daughter is somehow an inconvenience.”
“I mean, in many ways, it is.”
Lance’s brows drew tight. “You’re wrong. And if anyone has ever made you feel that way, I’m sorry. Laney is a bonus, Sarah. Not a negative.”
Maybe it was the bite from the wind or the emotion in the air, but Sarah’s eyes instantly reddened. She sniffled a little and shoved the back of her hand against her nose. “I appreciate you saying that.”
“It’s the truth.”
She didn’t say anything else after that, other than to thank Lance for the sunrise, something he couldn’t really take credit for. They parted ways with well wishes for productive workdays, but as Lance buckled his seatbelt and started up his truck to drive to Major Hart Mountain Sports, his brain remained locked on their conversation.
What would make Sarah think Laney was anything less than an absolute gift? Darren hadn’t been interested in being a part of his daughter’s life, but that didn’t reflect on Laney one bit. It was her father’s loss, and a huge one at that.
Lance didn’t put the truck in reverse. Instead, he stepped down from it, threaded the buttons on his jacket, and made the brisk walk to Main Street Market at the far end of the block.
Lance spotted Stewart Joy on the sidewalk, diligently shoveling to clear a path to the front door of the establishment.
