Page 24 of Dancing With Doubt

12

Roxie

“Time to wake up, Roxie.” A voice intruded into her dreams, and she smiled without opening her eyes. She knew that voice.

“Good morning to you too, Lincoln.” She opened her eyes at last and saw Lincoln standing at the side of the bed, a tray in his hands. “Breakfast in bed?”

“Not just any breakfast in bed, birthday breakfast in bed.” He set the tray down once she’d slid up against the pillows.

“You remembered my birthday?” She stared up at him, touched that he’d remembered her real birthday.

“Of course. Why wouldn’t I?” He took the extra glass of orange juice from the tray and had a sip before he spoke again. “You’re 28 today, even though everyone you know here still thinks you’re 26.”

She blushed when he mentioned the lie she’d told all those years ago. It had been a silly thing, a lie to keep her from opening a bank account to deposit checks more than anything. Back then, she wanted to be paid in cash and employers didn’t like to pay people underage working in strip clubs with checks. So, she’d lied about her age.

“I thought I explained that.” She told him, not certain now.

“It was about being paid in cash, wasn’t it?” He sat down and watched her, not saying anything else.

“Yes, that’s it.” She picked up her fork, pleased that he’d made her pancakes. And if she wasn’t mistaken, he’d made her most favorite pancakes in the world. Her first bite after pouring maple syrup all over the stack of fluffy, golden pancakes told her she was right. “Damn, you’re after my heart! You made these just like Mr. Parker used to.”

“Well, we’ll talk about that later.” Lincoln winked at her, and she knew there was something more, but he wasn’t ready to reveal what yet. “I have a full day planned with you, so I hope you don’t have other plans?”

“Nope, I don’t work on my real birthday, even if people don’t know about it, so I have no plans at all.” She took her last bite and put the fork down. “Those were amazing, and I haven’t tasted anything like them in ten years. Thank you.”

He took the kiss on the cheek she offered as she got up to dress. “Wear something…nice. Comfortable but nice.”

“Hm, where are you taking me?” She went to the door and looked back at him.

“Somewhere special. We have to take a short flight to get there, so hurry.” He stood up, went to his own closet, and began to take his clothes off to change.

Excitement made her ignore how good he looked without his clothes on, even if he was drop-dead gorgeous. What did he have planned for her now?

It had been a week since that day Nathan was seen near the house and he hadn’t been seen since. She wasn’t completely relaxed now, but she wasn’t as on edge as she had been. Lincoln would keep her safe.

She looked through her closet, found a dark blue, flounce-sleeve Stella McCartney dress she’d bought online from a shop she trusted with her hard-earned cash. The hemline hit her mid-thigh, but Lincoln would appreciate the look. She pulled a pair of black heels to wear with the dress, a white knit cardigan in case she got cold later, and showered before dressing quickly.

Once she was dressed, with some light makeup on, she twisted her hair up in a sophisticated knot and put her shoes on. Just as she was walking down the stairs she caught a familiar smell. It smelled just like the diner where Mr. Parker made his delicious pancakes. Did Lincoln figure out the recipe or something?

Puzzled, she walked into the kitchen to find the last person she expected, Mr. Parker. He was older now, of course, with more gray in his hair than black, but it was him. “Mr. Parker?”

“Hiya, Chloe! How you doing, babes? Come give me a hug. I haven’t seen you in forever.” He held his arms out to her and Roxie immediately walked into the tall, very round man’s arms.

“What are you doing here?” She asked as she stepped back.

“Making you birthday pancakes. Oh, and this.” Mr. Parker turned to the fridge and opened the freezer door. He pulled out a tall glass filled with what she suspected was her favorite milkshake, another treat Mr. Parker used to make.

“Is that…?” She pointed at the glass, too stunned to say anything else.

“A pineapple milkshake? You know it is, babes. Come on, sit down and enjoy it before the rest of Lincoln’s bunch come down for their breakfast.” He waved at the table across from where he was cooking.

Roxie sat down, feeling for the first time in ages like the Chloe she used to be. With the first tug at the straw, her mouth filled with pineapple goodness and she moaned in pleasure. The pancakes were heavenly, the best in the world, with vanilla being Mr. Parker’s secret ingredient. But add in the milkshake and this might be the best birthday ever.

“Happy birthday, by the way, Chloe. I hope you’ve had a good day so far?” Mr. Parker flipped over another stack of pancakes as he waited for her to answer. Her eyes fixed on the delicious stack and she decided that she would have some more later.

“Oh yes, heavenly really.” She smiled a smile full of innocent pleasure. “I guess Lincoln brought you down here?”

“He did yes, and I’m glad he did. I always wondered what happened to you.” His round, red face was full of concern.