Hanna pulled back before she gave in to the temptation to kiss him

That blue stare bored into her and held her captive.

“I need to go.”

“Don’t.” Before she could take a step, he pulled her to him. His lips covered hers, demanding and receiving. His tongue exploring and enticing.

Pressing her body into his embrace, she rubbed her hands up his back and tangled them around his neck. The short hair at the nape of his neck tickled her fingertips, but she could do little more than groan in satisfaction at the familiar scent of shampoo and sweat.

“Hanna,” Vince whispered against her lips as he held her tight against him. “I don’t want to be your friend.”

Dear Reader,

Although the characters and businesses created in this book are fictitious, Marble Falls is real—a cozy little town in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. If you’ve never been to Texas, driving across the huge state is like traveling to several different countries. From the towering pines in east Texas to the gulf coast to the mountains in Big Bend, each area is unique. However, the Hill Country in the heart of the state is one of my favorite locales. Rolling hills, lakes and rivers color the landscape of the many small towns famous for mouthwatering home cooking, rafting, antiques and fields of wild flowers. Marble Falls is nestled beside a lake, created by damming the Colorado River. Nice friendly people, a relaxed small-town feel and beautiful scenery create a perfect backdrop for Second Chance Dad.

I hope you enjoy the story and your little trip to the Texas Hill Country as much as I enjoyed writing it. As with all my heroes, there is a little bit of my dad in Vince. That dry sense of humor and unique parenting style that forms a special bond between father and daughter.

Pamela

Second Chance Dad
Pamela Stone

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ask how an accounting graduate who spent twenty plus years in the technology field became a romance writer. Take an only child with a wild imagination coupled with summers in the country and lazy walks on one grandparent’s farm or reading romance novels at the other and you have me.

Writing is pure escapism. Childhood imaginary friends developed into teenage fantasies. Later as a mother of two young sons, I began writing to keep in touch with the adult world. I continued writing as a method to wind down after exhausting days in Corporate America. Either way, writing keeps me sane. Cheaper than a therapist and tons more fun.

I still reside in Texas with my childhood sweetheart and husband of…well, we won’t mention how many years. In my spare time I enjoy traveling and spending time with friends and family, especially our adorable grandkids.

I’d like to again thank my editor, Johanna, for believing in my writing and helping bring this book to life. My family for their patience and support. My critique partners, Linda and Juliet, without whom this book might have never gotten written. I’d also like to thank my fans for buying my first book and giving me the confidence to put myself out there again!

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter One

Something was badly amiss in the Texas public school system: Hanna Rosser’s straight-A son did not participate in fistfights.

Hanna pulled into the parents’ parking lot of Marble Falls Elementary and tried to keep her cool as a motorcycle roared into the spot she’d been eyeing. Calmly she parked her white Volvo SUV two spaces down and tried not to notice how the tight denim hugged the guy’s long legs as he slid off the macho contraption and headed up the sidewalk, unbuckling his helmet.

Trade the helmet for a Stetson and the Harley for a stallion and he’d epitomize the phrase long, tall Texan. Six feet and some change, dirty cowboy boots and a swagger that said he couldn’t care less what anyone else thought.

Slinging the helmet by the leather strap, he jabbed his fingers through his disheveled hair and then opened the heavy glass door. He stepped back, allowing her to precede him into the hall. For each of his long strides Hanna made two, her heels tapping on the shiny waxed tile in her rush toward the office.

Ashton’s first day in a public school and he’d been involved in a fistfight? This couldn’t be happening.

She reached for the metal handle of the office door, and again, Mr. Tight Jeans leaned around and held it open for her. Deep dimples bracketed his mouth. “After you, ma’am.” His voice held the same interesting mix of smooth and tough as his jeans.

Leading the way into the office, she wondered if this man’s bully son was the one who’d taken a swing at Ashton. Fighting hadn’t been an issue in Ashton’s private school back in Dallas. She’d certainly brought him up to know better than to strike another child.

The secretary stood and nodded. “Ms. Rosser. Vince.”

Vince? Hanna glanced at him from the corner of her eye as he flashed those killer dimples at the little redhead behind the desk. This guy was on a first-name basis? Oh yeah, undoubtedly his son had been picking on the new sixth-grader.

“Please take a seat. We’re just waiting on one more parent, and then Principal Montgomery will see you.”

Vince stood until Hanna sat, and then folded his long, lanky frame into a matching wooden chair, placing his black-and-silver helmet on the one between them with a clunk. She inched farther away as Vince crossed one leg over the other, his giant cowboy boot further staking his claim on the center chair.

Please God, don’t let Ashton’s asthma have flared up. Was her baby boy okay? Richard would have a hemorrhage if any harm had come to his son.

A photocopier occupied one corner of the office, copying, collating and stapling, the noise adding to her nervousness and humiliation during the excruciating wait to go before the principal. The entire experience made her feel as guilty as if she’d been the one called to the office instead of her child.

“So who is the other parent?” Vince asked the secretary.

“William Baer.” She shuffled papers on her desk and looked up as the door creaked and a stocky male entered the office. Even sporting a company emblem on the breast pocket, Mr. Baer’s navy golf shirt and tan Dockers looked more respectable than Vince’s denim ensemble.

Vince stood and shook his hand. “Hey, Will.”

“Vince.”

Hanna smoothed her skirt as she stood, uncomfortable with the way Mr. Baer’s gaze roamed up and down her frame.

He extended his hand. “William Baer, ma’am. I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure.”

Accepting the overly zealous handshake, she almost choked on his sweet aftershave. “Hanna Rosser. We just moved to the area this weekend.”

“Well, I must say, you’re a most welcome asset to Marble Falls.”

Vince cleared his throat and for the first time actually seemed to notice Hanna’s appearance. Without comment, he turned his attention back to the secretary. “So, what’s the problem?”

She punched a button on the phone and within moments Principal Montgomery stepped out. Hanna had met the woman literally six hours earlier when she’d enrolled Ashton. Approximately forty, tiny, rather attractive in a no-nonsense sort of way. Short blond hair tucked behind her ears, black slacks and a bright-red blazer. “Please, step into my office.”

Both men stood, allowing Hanna to walk between them before entering.

Principal Montgomery nodded to each as they entered. “Ms. Rosser. Mr. Baer. Mr. Keegan.”

Hanna did a double-take at the girl sitting between Ashton and the other boy, as if separating the boys so they wouldn’t throw more punches.

Hanna rushed to Ashton, scanning him for any injuries. She gasped and ran her finger over the caked blood at the corner of his split lip. Jerking away, Ashton scowled and glanced at the other two kids.

Taking the hint, Hanna pulled her hand back, still assessing the damage. One shirtsleeve had been half ripped from the seam, Ashton’s lip was swollen and his dark hair was a mess, but he held the ice pack in his hand, not to his lip. At least, his breathing wasn’t labored, and there was no wheezing.

Afraid she’d embarrass him further, Hanna resisted the urge to pick the sprigs of grass out of his dark curls.

Taking a stance behind Ashton, Hanna watched the men as they waited for the case to be presented and Principal Montgomery to deliver her verdict.

“Who wants to speak first?” the principal asked the children.

Mr. Baer turned to the pudgy boy. “Billy, did you start this?”

“No way. I was just minding my own business.”

“So who hit who?” Mr. Baer demanded.

Billy shrugged and looked sheepish.

Hanna couldn’t imagine that Ashton had hit him at all, much less first. “Did you strike this boy?”

Ashton mimicked Billy’s sheepish shrug. “Not first.”

“So who threw the first punch?” Principal Montgomery asked.

Ashton cut his eyes sideways at the girl while Billy shuffled his dirty sneakers.

Mr. Tight Jean’s gaze landed on the girl with the falling-down ponytail and grungy jeans. “You’re unusually quiet, Mackenzie.”

The girl stood and placed her hands on her slim hips. She had a good three inches on either boy. “He asked for it.”

“Nuh-uh.” Billy leaned into her face. “You hit me first. I don’t hit no girls, not unless they punch me first.”

Ashton stood to the side while the other two faced off.

“Mackenzie, did you hit Billy?” Vince asked.

“He’s a yellow-bellied scum reptile, Dad. He’s always picking on people who won’t fight back just so’s he feels tough.”

Hanna stared at father and daughter. Both tall and slender with the same sandy-blond hair, Mackenzie’s only a shade lighter than her father’s. Even their honey-tanned complexions matched.

Mackenzie’s left eye sported a darkening bruise, but her father didn’t seem overly concerned. Hooking his thumbs in his pockets, Vince raised an eyebrow at Mackenzie. “Was Billy picking on you?” The guy’s eyes were the same blue-denim color of his jeans as he matched stares with his rebellious daughter.

She didn’t back down. “He knows better than to mess with me, but he figured Ashton was fair game showing up in church clothes and all.” She flipped her bedraggled hair behind her shoulder and glared at Billy. “Didn’t count on getting whipped by no girl when you picked on my friend, though, did ya?”

With a bruise on his chin, the remains of dried blood in his nose, on his upper lip and down the front of his dirty white T-shirt, Billy had obviously taken the worst of the beating. But he too held his ice pack in his hand instead of to his bruised face.

“Billy?” his father asked, but Hanna couldn’t decide whether his perplexed expression had more to do with his boy hitting a girl or being bested by one.

“It weren’t no fair fight. Two against one. They ganged up on me.”

Glancing at Ashton, Hanna was stunned that her son’s bruised lip actually snarled as he took his spot beside Mackenzie, toe to toe with Billy. “Don’t mess with me if you don’t want to fight.”

“Ashton!” What had happened to her mild-mannered son? “Sit down.”

William turned to Vince. “So what are we going to do about this?”

Vince slanted a grin and jabbed his fingers through his sandy hair, only tousling it more than it already was from the helmet. “Maybe you should warn your boy not to tangle with my daughter.”

Was he insane? Holding her breath, Hanna waited for the other shoe to drop. Her friend’s son in Dallas had once had charges filed against him for hitting another boy on the soccer field, and they’d ended up in court. The boy had received forty hours’ community service. Just the kind of ammunition her ex could use in court to make his case that Ashton would be better off in Dallas with him and his new girlfriend.

Instead of the anger she’d expected, William Baer simply rubbed his forehead and grinned.

Both men were morons to make a joke out of this.

The principal motioned for the kids to sit as she remained behind her desk. “Totally unacceptable behavior. Billy and Mackenzie, you two are in this office way too frequently. Ashton, as you’re new here, I’m going to withhold judgment. But you’re starting out on shaky ground. You’re all assigned to ISS for the remainder of the week. Tomorrow morning you will report to the office, collect your assignments and proceed to the library. In addition, I expect a five-page report from each of you by Friday on how you’re going to learn that violence doesn’t solve problems and how to get along. There will be no more incidents. Understood?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Ashton said, but he flashed Mackenzie a conspiratorial grin.

Billy shuffled his feet. “I promise.”

Mackenzie returned Ashton’s grin. “Okay. As long as you make Bully Baer sit at a different table.”

THE EARLY-SPRING WIND popped the flag and clanged the cable against the flagpole in front of the school as Hanna shuffled Ashton toward the SUV. She couldn’t believe he’d actually gotten into trouble, much less a fistfight. At least nobody had mentioned involving the police. She folded the form she’d received explaining In School Suspension and the possible consequences if this did not resolve the behavior issue.

Now that the divorce was finalized, she was fighting to regain control of her own life. She hadn’t expected her control of Ashton to be tested so quickly.

Vince and Mackenzie stood on the sidewalk beside the macho motorcycle, both holding helmets. Was he actually going to drive his daughter home on that unsafe vehicle?

Ashton waved goodbye to Mackenzie, but Hanna pointedly ignored Vince Keegan. With any luck, Ashton’s friendship with Mackenzie would run its course quickly. Hanna had hoped he’d pick his friends more wisely.

He carefully placed his backpack in the backseat and buckled his seat belt. “Sorry, Mom.”

Staring in the rearview mirror at those deep-brown eyes, she wanted to reach back and ruffle his curls the way she did when he was little. “I’m sorry you had such a horrible first day.”

“It wasn’t that bad, just some of the boys kept messing with me. Walking by my desk and knocking my pencil off. No real biggy. Morning recess was okay. I was talking to Ms. Jones. But at lunch, I didn’t have anybody to sit with so I found a seat at one end of a table when Billy and these other guys crowded me. Billy knocked my milk over into my plate. He said he was sorry, but his grin was all full of meanness and the other boys laughed like it was a big joke.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetie.” Hanna stopped at a four-way intersection and looked back at Ashton.

He shrugged. “That wasn’t so bad, either. But then at afternoon recess Billy kept calling me names, and Ms. Jones wasn’t noticing since she was talking to another teacher.” Visibly brightening, Ashton continued. “So I’m standing there wondering what to do, and Mackenzie swoops in like Wonder Woman. She shoves Billy and tells him to back off. He shoves back, and I don’t know who hit who, but I couldn’t just stand there like a wuss and let a girl fight my battle, you know? So Billy grabbed Mackenzie’s ponytail, and I socked him in the nose.” Ashton’s eyes sparkled with pure male elation. “Blood spurted out like a fountain, just like in the movies. It was cool. He swung back and busted my lip against my tooth, but it didn’t hurt much.”

“Ashton, I do understand. But this behavior cannot continue. You should resolve your problems with your words and not with your fists. No exceptions. No excuses. Okay?” She didn’t mention that his lawyer father would twist such incidents to seal his argument that Ashton belonged in Dallas. “Your asthma didn’t flare?”

“No, Mom. Anyway, I had my inhaler.”

As they pulled away from the intersection, Ashton pointed to the Super Wal-Mart. “I need some new clothes before tomorrow.”

Snapping her gaping mouth shut, Hanna wondered who this boy was and what he had done with her son. “You want to buy clothes at Wal-Mart?” She hadn’t been in a Wal-Mart in fifteen years. To her knowledge, Ashton had never set foot inside one.

“Yeah. Mackenzie said they have jeans. I want the kind that looks like you’ve been playing in them already. And she said you can buy three-packs of T-shirts.”

Oh—my—God. “We can get you some jeans and shirts at the mall this weekend.”

“No!” He looked frightened, almost horrified at the thought of waiting four more days. “I have to have Wal-Mart clothes tomorrow or Bully Baer will smear me all over the playground.”

Wal-Mart. She cringed at Ashton’s ruined polo shirt. She hadn’t thought twice about paying fifty dollars for that shirt at the Galleria last summer. Only three days living back in Marble Falls and she was already considering updating her son’s designer wardrobe at Wal-Mart? Would Bluebonnet Books ever generate enough profit that she could again afford to buy her son designer clothes?

Chapter Two

Punching Billy Baer! Vince followed Kenzie’s little red electric bicycle into the garage and parked the Harley next to it. They both slid off and placed their helmets on the respective seats. It amused him that she mimicked everything he did. He tugged on her ponytail as she adjusted her backpack. She wrapped her arm around his waist, he wrapped his around her shoulders, and they headed across the backyard playing their game of trying to see who could put their foot in front of the other one as they walked.

He watched her small sneaker jab in front of his boot in the tall grass and figured he’d better mow tonight or old Mrs. Haythorn would be over here cutting the lawn for him.

Boo stretched his paws out in front of him and yawned from his afternoon nap, his rear end straight up in the air and tail wagging in excitement as they climbed the three stone steps onto the back porch. Kenzie turned Vince loose and squatted, throwing her arms around the gigantic red beast. “Hey there, Boo. You should’ve been at school today. Bully Baer was a total dweeb again.”

She giggled as Boo’s long pink tongue lolled out and licked her neck in unconditional adoration.

Vince headed into the kitchen, closely followed by Kenzie with Boo trotting along behind. The screen door slammed shut behind them, and the dog sat his butt on the floor and waited patiently while she tossed her backpack on the chair and handed him a doggie biscuit out of the daisy-painted canister on the bar.

The mutt stretched out full-length on the cool vinyl and made short order of the biscuit. Kenzie grabbed two sodas from the fridge and gave one to Vince on her way to the pantry.

Vince popped the top and dodged Boo’s flapping tail. If he’d realized he was allowing Kenzie to adopt a horse seven years ago, he might have been more insistent on one of the smaller pups. But she’d tossed a fit at the animal shelter for the red puppy with the huge feet. It had reminded her of her favorite TV show at the time, Clifford. Part Irish Setter and part Great Dane, Boo was a bottomless pit. Girl and dog were inseparable, leaving Vince to justify why half his grocery bill went for dog food.

“So, who’s the new kid?”

Rummaging through the pantry, Kenzie retrieved a package of cookies and plunked it and her soda on the bar. She hoisted herself onto the bar stool and waved a cookie. “Ashton and his mom just moved here from some fancy park in Dallas. His dad lives there with his new, very hot girlfriend.”

“Highland Park?”

Kenzie nodded. “Yeah, I think so.”

“Highland Park is a ritzy, old-money neighborhood, not a park.” Vince grinned. “But what does his absentee dad and very hot girlfriend have to do with why you got in a fight over the kid?”

She took a drink and her blue eyes lit with mischief. “I couldn’t just stand by and let Billy pick on him. Then I’d have been no better than Bully Baer.”

Although Vince was proud she was willing and able to stand up for herself, and evidently others as well, he wasn’t sure that noble motive was entirely the root of this incident. “You used this new kid as an excuse to punch Billy Baer.”

Kenzie washed her cookie down with strawberry soda. “Stupid bullies tick me off.”

“Agreed. But next time you might give the new kid a chance to fight his own battle, or Billy and his gang of misfits will peg him for a sissy and continue to make his life miserable.” Vince tossed his empty can in the recycling bin and grabbed the pickup’s keys off the counter. “I’ve got to run over and check on the crew working on the Andersons’ dock before they skip out early and we miss our deliverable. Want to go with?”

“Come on, Boo.” She sealed the package of cookies, jammed her pink ball cap with the ridiculous logo Pink Is The New Black on her head backward and picked up the soda. “We need to stop for dog food.”

“Woof,” Boo chimed in, trotting out the door behind her.

Out of dog food already?

AFTER CHECKING ON the progress of the Andersons’ dock, Vince pulled into the crowded Wal-Mart parking lot. He loaded a fifty-pound bag of dog food, two boxes of breakfast cereal and other odds and ends into the cart and headed across the store for new socks for Kenzie. Where they disappeared to once inside the dryer was a mystery, but he’d never done a load of laundry and had the socks come out even. There had to be a huge cosmic black hole somewhere full of all sizes and colors of mismatched socks.

Of course, they didn’t make it past the video-gaming department without her spotting a game she couldn’t live without. “Dad, they have Wii NASCAR. Can we get it?”

“Forty bucks? You got that much saved from your allowance?” He flipped the game over and checked the rating.

“I have eighteen. Come on. You’ll play it as much as me, you know you will. If we get it, you can deduct the other two dollars for my half from my allowance this week.”

Her keen rationalization always suckered him into helping fund her plans. He tossed the game in the cart. “Fine, but don’t try to hit me up for the full ten dollars when you only get eight Friday.”

“Thanks, Dad.” She gave him a hug and headed toward the girls’ department. “I’m going to wipe you off the track when we get home.”

“In your dreams.” He should count himself lucky that she had only asked for one game this trip. “No games until all your homework is done. And you get me called up in front of Principal Montgomery one more time and the Wii goes in the closet until school’s out. It’s been years, but I distinctly remember graduating sixth grade. I’ve got no desire to go back.”

“It’s okay, you’re cool. You still like to play games. And you slowing down in your old age is what gives me the edge so I can win.”

Picking through the bins, she selected a plastic bag of assorted socks plus a new purple-striped sleep shirt and Vince herded her in the general direction of the checkout. His day had started at 5:00 a.m., and he still had to get home, unload the groceries, throw something together for dinner, make sure Kenzie did her homework and took her bath, and only then could he get time to work up the bid for the two docks on Lake Travis. He grinned. And now there was NASCAR to work into the schedule.

“Ashton! Hey!” Kenzie called out, making a ninety-degree turn into the boys’ department.

“Hey.” The kid Kenzie had defended at school today stood in the boys’ jeans section grinning at her. His mom didn’t look nearly as pleased.

“Can you make Mom understand that these faded jeans are way cooler than those dark-blue ones?” he asked.

Kenzie held the offensive jeans in front of her. “Geesh, these things are so stiff they can stand up even when you aren’t wearing them.”

Vince ventured a grin at the mom. She looked even more uptight here than she had at school. Chocolate-brown eyes and lashes, complexion like melted vanilla ice cream. He’d seen some bow-shaped mouths, but hers was classic. A pair of designer sunglasses perched on top of her dark curls. If he tugged one of those soft little ringlets, it’d probably spring right back into place.

She offered a half grin and took the jeans out of Kenzie’s hand. “These are nice. Tailored.”

“And Bully Baer will call me a nerd,” Ashton said.

“It’s not my fault if Billy Baer has no taste,” Ashton’s mother defended in a gravelly, Demi-Moorish voice. “I won’t have you going to school in sloppy, faded clothes.”

Vince leaned on his cart, staying out of the fight as he followed the woman’s quick perusal of his daughter’s faded jeans and pink ball cap. She dismissed Kenzie’s casual style, picked through a rack of three-button golf shirts and selected a banana-yellow-and-white-striped number.

This boy was going to get the crap beat out of him tomorrow.

With a mutinous scowl, Ashton slunk into the dressing room, the jeans and golf shirt grasped in a tight fist.

Undeterred by the mom’s ruling, Kenzie plowed through a shelf of faded jeans as if she could override her if she found just the right pair.

“Vince?” Hanna’s sultry pronunciation of his name sounded sexy as hell. She stared at him as if she’d rather be anywhere else than standing in the boys’ department at Wal-Mart. “I’m sorry, I don’t believe we’ve actually been introduced.”

“Pardon my manners.” He grinned and extended his right hand, hoping to at least get along, seeing as how their kids seemed to have hit it off. “Keegan. Vince Keegan. Nice to meet you.”

“Hanna Rosser.” There was a definite wariness as she brushed his hand with those long, delicate fingers.

He gave her right hand a gentle squeeze, avoiding the huge emerald solitaire. “Kenzie tells me you and Ashton just moved to town.”

“Last week. And it’s back to town. I grew up here.”

She didn’t sound too happy about that. “Right. And you and your mom are opening a bookstore in the old souvenir shop just off 281.”

“How come I’m not surprised you know that?” She pulled her hand away, then adjusted the shoulder strap on her neat little purse. Judging from those woven Cs on the fabric, he’d take bets it wasn’t the fifty-dollar-knockoff variety. Her left hand was bare, with a conspicuous pale circle around her ring finger.

“Small-town grapevine. Can’t beat it. When do you open for business?”

“Next week. Mom’s been overseeing the renovation the past couple of months while I handled the ordering and—” she appeared to have lost her train of thought “—wrapped up some things in Dallas.” Frowning at the video game in his cart, she didn’t even look up. “We’re including a large children’s section. Mackenzie might find some books she’d enjoy.”

Wow. He’d totally bombed as a father just because he allowed his daughter to play video games? What did Ms. Rosser have in her cart? He hooked his thumbs in his pockets and looked around, but there were no other carts in sight. How could anyone come to Wal-Mart and manage to leave without at least a dozen items? “Maybe I’ll bring her by.”

Ashton shuffled out, looking like a striped banana stuffed in dark jeans, his turned-down mouth showing he was almost as unhappy as he’d been earlier sitting in front of Principal Montgomery’s desk. “Mom.”

Kenzie handed him the faded pair she’d selected and a dull green T-shirt.

Clutching the ensemble, Ashton looked to his mother for approval. “No way, Ashton.”

“Might help him fit in,” Vince said, pitying the kid.

Hanna tugged at one of her short curls and the little wrinkle between her brows deepened. “I believe I know how to dress my own son.”

Maybe the woman could have the kid’s shirt monogrammed to match the beige initials on the collar of her starched white blouse.

Vince leaned in and whispered. “Faded jeans, fourteen ninety-nine. Green T-shirt, five bucks. Boy’s self-confidence, priceless.” Even the faint whiff of Hanna’s perfume smelled expensive.

Her big brown eyes scorched through him, then focused on her son’s face. She blew out a deep breath. “Try them on.”

Clutching the faded jeans like a trophy, Ashton raced back into the dressing room.

“So anything with a decent brand is still taboo in Marble Falls?”

“There are plenty of people around here who have a taste for expensive clothes, but they aren’t exactly the rage on sixth-grade playgrounds.”

Ashton bounded out of the dressing room almost as quickly as he’d entered, wearing the jeans, the T-shirt and a wide grin. “They’re cool.”

“They’ll be more comfortable once you get them broke in.” Kenzie tugged the green shirttail out of his waistband.

Judging by those ever-deepening frown lines between Hanna Rosser’s eyebrows, she wasn’t any more impressed with Ashton’s new fashion statement than she was with Vince and Kenzie’s intervention. “Do you know how hard your father works so you can wear nice clothes?”

Called that one right. Time to escape before he ticked her off even worse. Vince jerked his head toward the checkout. “We’d better get moving, Kenzie. Boo’s in the truck. Later, Ashton. Ms. Rosser.”

“Mr. Keegan.”

Kenzie dragged him back through the grocery section for fresh strawberries and by the time they finally worked their way to the checkout, Ms. Rosser stood at the next register, a small box of caramel chocolates on top of the faded jeans and shirt, and her nose buried in one of those entertainment rags they always stocked at the checkout to siphon more money out of people’s wallets.

It was fascinating how young she looked with her attention riveted on some bizarre story in a tabloid.

They’d both checked out before Hanna noticed Vince. She clutched her two plastic bags, the rolled-up tabloid sticking out the top of one.

“So, do you think Elvis weighs four hundred pounds and works behind the counter at the Memphis KFC?” he asked.

She glanced down at the bag and her cheeks turned the most adorable shade of pink. “They must have stuck it in my bag by accident.”

She shifted the bags to her other hand, fished her sunglasses off the top of her head and shoved them on her nose. As she adjusted her shoulder bag, her blouse gaped apart, giving him a glimpse of sexy pink lace against creamy breast.

He gulped and looked up, catching her eye as she noted the direction of his stare. Shit! What did he say now? Nice bra there, Hanna. “Let me know if you spot Elvis.”

Chapter Three

Hanna wiped her damp forehead with the back of her hand and grabbed a handful of mystery novels from the cardboard box. Smiling, she arranged them on the shelf she’d just polished. Bluebonnet Books was just what she needed to take her mind off the fiasco her life had become. Books had always been her escape. When Hanna was young, her mother had installed floor-to-ceiling bookcases in Hanna’s bedroom beside the padded window seat where she’d read to her. Books about faraway places and people with exciting lives. The stories had given Hanna a yearning for life outside of small-town Texas.

“I thought you were going to put those in the front display window to draw in folks strolling down the sidewalk. That author’s on the New York Times bestseller list.”

Taking a deep breath, Hanna straightened the books on the shelf, whether they needed straightening or not. “I plan to put some up front, too, Mom. Doesn’t hurt to have a few copies in both places so they’re easy to find.”

“I’m sure you know what’s best,” Mom said. “We also need a display of the latest romances on an end cap. Mrs. Haythorn reads a romance a day. Oh, and Mr. Miller always used to lend those adventure books to Daddy after he’d read them, so make sure they’re at eye level. His knees are bad.”

Toting the box to the front of Bluebonnet Books, Hanna dropped it on the wood floor, which was scarred and aged from years of various businesses that had opened their doors there. Hopefully the bookstore wouldn’t suffer a fate similar to the other shops. She glanced through the large plate-glass window as Darryl and Mary Wortham strolled by arm in arm, as much in love as they had been when Hanna went off to college. How could she have been gone fifteen years and returned to find everything the same? She took a breath and considered the wisdom of going into business with her mother. True, the combined funds helped. She’d never have pulled it off without her mother overseeing the renovation and being in the store to receive shipments while Hanna was still in Dallas battling Richard in divorce court. And it would be good to have two of them to switch off managing the store until they could afford to hire additional help. Plus Norma Creed needed something to keep her busy and out of everyone else’s business.

But after only one week officially back in town, Hanna already doubted the wisdom of spending twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week with her passive-aggressive mother. Not that she didn’t love her mom, but living under her roof again after fifteen years away put Mom smack in the middle of every aspect of Hanna’s life. That wasn’t good in the best of situations, and right now Hanna was still trying to recover from Richard’s heart-breaking betrayal and the bitter divorce.

In a few months, she hoped the store would start turning enough of a profit that she and Ashton could find their own place.

Scooping up a couple of books, she turned as a small red motorized bicycle putted up to the curb—with her son riding behind that girl.

“Ashton!” Her heart leaped into her throat as she dropped the books and raced out of the shop. “What are you doing on that thing?”

He slid off from behind Mackenzie and removed the red helmet, grinning as if he’d just descended from an amusement-park roller coaster. “You don’t have to pick me up anymore, Mom. I got a ride.”

No way! “You are not ever to get on that thing again. You could be killed.”

Mackenzie threw her leg over and stood beside Ashton, removing her own helmet. What was left of her ponytail hung in tangles. “We had on helmets.”

“He did not have permission to get on a motorized bicycle. That thing is small and hard to see and dangerous.”

“I know how to ride it and watch for cars and stop at lights and stuff,” Mackenzie said. “I’m a good driver. I took a class and got all the questions right.”

“Why are you two even out of school?” Hanna checked her watch. Oh my God. She’d been so busy stocking the shelves for next week’s opening she’d forgotten to pick up her son. “Both of you hear this very clearly. I won’t have Ashton riding on that thing. End of subject.”

Ashton stood on the sidewalk shuffling his new white sneakers. “But, Mom.”

“No but Moms. Do you understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Hanna stepped aside so Dave Barkley, carrying two plastic bags, could pass on the narrow sidewalk. Mrs. Barkley had probably given him a list of groceries to bring home from their corner grocery store. All the men in town gathered each afternoon in the old wooden chairs out front of Dave’s store to shoot the breeze. Hanna returned his nod and waited until he climbed into his truck. “Mackenzie, I don’t know how things work at your house, but we have rules in this family. The first rule is to ask permission before doing new things. The next time you would like Ashton to do something, he has to check with me first or he won’t be allowed to run around with you. If your parents let you risk your life, that’s their business, but Ashton’s safety is my responsibility. Do I need to spell this out?”

The girl set her jaw, took the extra helmet from Ashton and strapped it on the bike’s back bar. “Why don’t you just lock him in his room until he’s, like, eighteen? It’d be about as much fun as you let him have. At least nobody’d pick on him, huh?” She jammed her helmet on her head, straddled the motorized monstrosity and sped away from the curb.

Ashton squared his shoulders and glared. “Now you’ve chased off the only friend I have. You treat me like a baby. You dress me like a wuss. You don’t want me to have any fun, ever! And now tomorrow, when Bully Baer picks on me, Kenzie probably won’t even be on my side. Why do you hate me?” He slung his backpack over his shoulder and stomped past his grandmother and into the store.

“Ashton, come back here!”

Norma Creed stood in the doorway of the shop worrying the lace collar on her prim pink blouse and staring after Mackenzie. “You’re wise to restrict Ashton’s association with that wild child. You have to keep him safe.”

“Mom, I fully realize that.” She followed her mother back into the shop. “Where did Ashton go?”

Norma looked around the vacant bookstore. “You don’t think he took off out the back after her, do you?”

Wonderful! Hanna walked through the narrow store, looking each way until she reached the back door into the alley where Ashton was kicking up a cloud of dirt and gravel. “What are you doing?”

“I hate stupid glowing white shoes.” He jabbed his new sneakers in the dirt. “Why couldn’t you buy me blue or gray? I hate it here. I don’t have any friends and it’s all your fault. It’s worse than Dallas,” he accused, spinning around and stirring up dust like a Texas dirt devil.

His unhappiness jabbed through her heart like a rusty knife. “Honey, I want you to have friends, but I have to make sure you don’t get hurt and that bike is dangerous.”

“I don’t care. It’d be better to get hurt than to get made fun of,” he said, looking away.

“Slow down before you start wheezing.” She reached out and touched his shoulder, but he spun farther away. Sandy stains ran down his cheeks where the dust had turned his tears to mud. “Ashton, I love you. I just…”

He turned and raced down the alley. “I’m going home.”

Norma stood silently in the door, wearing her motherly wisdom like a halo, and once again, Hanna felt like the child who had performed below expectations. “Mom, can you lock up?”

Her mother touched Hanna’s shoulder. “Why don’t you lock up and let me go after him? He’ll calm down walking the few blocks. Take time to calm yourself before confronting him again.”

Hanna resented her mother stepping in and playing the good cop when Ashton was angry at Hanna, but it probably wasn’t a bad idea. “Okay, but I won’t be long.”

Collecting her purse from the office, Norma marched across the street to her blue Chevy, which was nestled against the curb between two tall pickups. The only time there was any real traffic was on spring weekends, when tourists descended on Hill Country to see the wildflowers.

Turning out lights and locking the back door, Hanna stopped short at the sight of Vince Keegan standing inside the shop. “Do you need something?”

For once, he didn’t smile. “It’s time you and I had a little chat.”

“If it’s all the same to you, I’m not up for any more confrontations today.”

“Lady, when someone upsets my kid enough that she calls me crying, I want to know why. And when you start telling people, especially my daughter, that I’m a bad parent, then Mackenzie’s the least of your problems.”

“Your daughter is out of control.” The more congenial approach would have been to offer him a cup of coffee and calmly explain that his darling daughter was a bad influence on her son, but Hanna’s temper won out over her manners.

His legs were slightly spread and his eyes narrowed. “Out of control? She’s the most in-control kid in town.”

“From what I can see, Mr. Keegan, she does whatever she wants and has no respect for authority.”

“Really?” He hooked his thumbs in his front pockets.

“Need I remind you that your little hellion got Ashton into a fistfight and placed in ISS? She inserted herself in the middle of buying him clothes, completely overriding my wishes. And now she brings him home on the back of some kind of dangerous motorbike without even asking permission. This is only day two! I’m biting my nails in anticipation of what she’ll do the rest of the week.”

“My little hellion kept your little prep from getting his ass kicked on the playground yesterday. And best I can figure, that was her goal again with the clothes advice.” Vince leaned forward and maintained eye contact, grinding his teeth. “Today she gave him a lift home because he was afraid Billy would show up before you got there to pick him up. What exactly do you take issue with?”

“Why would any sane parent buy a sixth-grader a motorcycle?”

“It’s an electric bicycle, and I bought it for her twelfth birthday so she could get where she needed to be while I was working. Unlike you, I realize I can’t be everywhere at once.”

“Just please ask Mackenzie to stay away from Ashton. I can’t do anything about your poor judgment, but I won’t put my son at risk.”

His jaw ticked. “She and I took a class before she was allowed to ride it, and she only rides the side streets where any regular bicycle would go.” He glanced around the store and let out a long sigh. “Why in hell am I defending myself? Since you don’t seem to mind condemning my parenting style, how about we discuss yours?”

“Excuse me?” She stared at his wide shoulders. Why was it that good-looking and cocky were directly proportionate in men?

“Maybe you should reexamine your theory that keeping Ashton under your wing is the best way to protect him.” His voice remained soft and mellow, but his words bit. “Maybe consider what’s going to happen when something goes wrong and you aren’t Johnny-on-the-spot to stand between him and danger. Might consider teaching him to take care of himself and make his own decisions.”

Not hard to see where Mackenzie inherited her disrespect for authority. “So I should let him wear ratty clothes and race around town like a delinquent in training, fighting with other children?”

Vince’s denim-colored eyes narrowed, but he still didn’t raise his voice. “The most important thing to teach kids is judgment and how to make intelligent decisions. If you lock them in a protective bubble, when they do escape they have no idea how to function or protect themselves in the real world.”

“Do not insult my son’s ability to think for himself.”

“He’s giving it his best shot, but you’re dictating how you want him to dress and act. Kids should fit in with their peers, feel like they belong. You’re making Ashton a laughingstock trying to dress him like a miniature yuppie instead of a regular kid.”

Blood pumped through her veins and she took a step toward him. What did this irresponsible father know about how to dress? He was wearing old jeans and a navy T-shirt, blue plaid flannel flapping in the breeze and a Keegan’s Docks cap topping off his faded outfit. Clothes that fitted his self-assurance and tight body like a glove. “You justify letting Mackenzie run wild as teaching her to make wise decisions? Might I ask what her mother thinks of this approach?”

His features stiffened. “Mackenzie doesn’t have a mother.”

Crap. Leave it to Hanna to put her foot in her mouth. Had Mackenzie’s mother deserted them? Died? “I’m sorry.”

He didn’t even acknowledge her apology. “I can’t be with Kenzie every minute, so I teach her how to handle herself.” He came closer, bringing them nose to nose and continued to speak in a deep, controlled tone. “Kid gets invited to a party. All the other kids are swimming, but one kid’s parents didn’t teach him to swim because they were afraid he might drown. He wants to be part of the fun. Guess which kid is most at risk?”

“If the child didn’t know how to swim, a responsible parent wouldn’t let him go to a swimming party to begin with.”

“Yeah, that’s the way to raise a well-adjusted kid. That really helps him grow up and fit in, make friends.” His jaw set. “You have any further issue with Mackenzie, you take it up with me.” He sauntered out of Bluebonnet Books and onto the sidewalk, the bell on the door clanging in his wake.

She vibrated with anger as she locked the front door and made her way home.

HANNA FOUND ASHTON sitting cross-legged on the living-room sofa, his nose buried in his homework while her mom rattled around in the kitchen.

Giving Ashton’s shoulder a gentle squeeze, Hanna put her purse on the credenza and left him to finish his work. “Need any help, Mom?

Norma turned from the fridge. “You can wash your hands and peel the carrots.”

Hanna bit her tongue. Like she was six and needed to be told to wash her hands? “Thanks for stepping in and calming Ashton down.” Hanna dug the carrot peeler out of the drawer. “What do you know about Vince and Mackenzie Keegan?”

Norma ripped apart a head of lettuce. “Mackenzie is Belinda Maguire’s girl. Since Belinda was killed, her father just lets her run wild. Spoils her rotten. Even in church, which is the only time I’ve ever seen her in a dress, she still manages to look like a tomboy.”

“Belinda Maguire? I remember her from school.”

“They were living in Austin. Huge pileup on I-35. Both Belinda and their older child were killed, but if I remember right, Mackenzie wasn’t in the car. She was a toddler.”

Putting her hand over her mouth, Hanna tried to imagine what Vince had gone through. Such a tragic loss. And then to be faced with the awesome responsibility of raising a small daughter alone. She’d think after losing a wife and child Vince would be even more protective than Hanna.

After getting the carrots on to cook, she took a break and joined Ashton in the living room. “I’m sorry if I overreacted this afternoon, but you frightened me.”

He stuck the paper between the pages of the book and closed it. “You embarrassed me in front of my friend. It’s bad enough that all the other kids think I’m a sissy, but now Kenzie knows I am.”

“I’m afraid Mackenzie is going to get you hurt.” The loneliness in his eyes made her weep inside. “Ashton, I’ll try to do better if you’ll exercise more caution.”

He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”

HANNA HESITATED IN FRONT of the Keegans’ porch and looked down the street of manicured lawns and homey little houses that could have come straight out of an episode of The Andy Griffith Show. She allowed the fading pink-and-purple brushstrokes of the Marble Falls sunset to calm her nerves. Hanna the mother wanted to turn around and leave. What if this girl pulled another dangerous stunt and Ashton got caught in the crossfire? But whether she approved of Mackenzie Keegan or not, she was the only ally Ashton had in his new environment, and that was worth something. Hanna the still-insecure child knew firsthand what it felt like not to have a friend.

She clapped the brass knocker and waited. On the second rap, the porch light flashed on and the door swung open. But instead of a twelve-year-old girl, she faced a navy blue T-shirt stretched to the max attempting to cover a muscled six-pack. No denim jacket or loose flannel shirt for camouflage tonight.

Vince cocked his head. “Ms. Rosser.”

“Please call me Hanna.” She focused on his face. “I come in peace.”

“Then you might want to come in off the porch.” Standing back, Vince motioned for her to enter.

She stepped inside the room and whirled around as a massive reddish dog came up from behind and nuzzled her hand. She jerked her hand away and jumped sideways into a solid chest.

Vince’s arm encircled her waist and he grabbed the dog’s collar with the other hand. She fought to breathe as Vince leaned around and captured her gaze. “He’s harmless.”

The dog, maybe. Heart pounding, she stared into Vince’s intense blue eyes and something inside her flipped. Hormones surging into high gear, she eased away from him. She wasn’t sure whether to be more fearful of man or beast.

Vince retained his grasp on the dog’s collar. “Come on, Boo. Let the lady settle in before you slobber all over her.”

“I…uh.” Eyeing the dog, she stood in the center of the living room and prayed for her voice to return. She didn’t even trust dogs behind fences, and this one was too close and too big. “I came to apologize to Mackenzie for jumping on her today.”

Vince turned the dog loose. “Lie down, Boo.”

Obediently, the dog walked a couple of feet away and stretched out in front of the rustic stone fireplace. But his ears remained perked, and his black eyes focused on Hanna as if waiting for Vince to leave the room so he could pounce.

“Kenzie is at my in-laws’ house for dinner.”

“Oh.” She was alone with Vince Keegan. On his turf! This had been a bad idea to begin with. “I’m sorry for not calling first. I just thought…” Trying not to look at the dog in case he might interpret that as an invitation to come closer, and avoiding Vince’s gaze because, well, just because, Hanna scanned her surroundings. Framed family photos on the mantel, including a family shot of Vince with one hand resting on the shoulder of a small brown-haired boy as they posed beside a woman holding a lacy pink bundle of frills and blond curls.

Quickly looking away, Hanna focused on a soft beige leather sectional sofa. A large wooden coffee table with drawers and shelves under it, scattered with books, magazines and a crystal vase of silk daisies. A white king lay on its side in the center of a chessboard along with various other pieces and the rest off to the side. “You play chess?”

Vince narrowed his eyes. “Surprised?”

She adjusted her purse on her shoulder and clasped her hands together, not sure what to do with them. “Oh, no. I mean, my father played chess.”

“Would you like to sit down? We could discuss the kids and figure out how not to be at each other’s throats.”

Sit? Okay. Sitting was good. She eased down on the end cushion of the sofa and placed her purse on the wood floor.

“Coffee is made or I have iced tea.”

Boo stood and she held her breath. Vince could not leave her alone in this room with that animal. “No, nothing for me. I can’t stay but a minute. I left Ashton doing his homework and my mom cleaning the kitchen. I have to get back soon and make sure Ashton brushes his teeth and gets his bath. His bedtime is nine o’clock.” She clamped her mouth shut in an attempt to stop babbling.

Vince shoved the chessboard and vase of daisies aside and sat on the edge of the coffee table, only a foot from her face, his knee bumping hers. Breathe, Hanna, breathe. Deep dimples bracketed his full lips. “So my daughter isn’t the only one in the family who makes you jumpy?”

The room closed in on her. The man was hogging all the oxygen. “I don’t like dogs.”

His dimples deepened as he rested his elbows on his knees and leaned closer. “I wasn’t talking about Boo.”

Instinctively she started to lean back from his nearness, but caught herself and held her ground. She gulped at his muscled forearms and large hands. “Look, Mr. Keegan…”

“Vince.”

“I…we need to come to an understanding about Mackenzie and Ashton. I am glad he has a friend, but I insist on maintaining more control over what he does. I can’t risk him getting hurt.”

“He’s going into middle school next year. If your goal is to keep him safe and out of fistfights, I’m not sure overprotecting him is going to work in your favor.”

“I can see the wisdom in that. But I do not condone fighting.”

“Me neither, unless the other kid throws the first punch. In which case, Kenzie will defend herself.”

Hanna twisted her hands in her lap. “She should tell a teacher.”

“And then the kid would pick on her the next day and the next because he’ll take her as weak, looking for someone else to fight her battles.” Vince’s eyes narrowed. “Give Ashton a chance to fit in. To be like the other kids. He might come out with a black eye or busted lip, but that’ll heal and his self-esteem will be stronger for having not backed down.”

The intense raw masculine aura that surrounded Vince Keegan consumed her. She pictured Ashton earlier, sitting in the living room, so alone and desperate for a friend. He could benefit from some of this man’s confidence. But too much physical activity caused his asthma to flare up. Richard might lack the down-to-earth, take-care-of-himself attitude Vince had, but he made up for it in polished courtroom expertise. If he learned about yesterday’s fight, he’d have one more reason to yank Ashton out of school and re-enroll him in the private school in Dallas.

Hoping to keep Vince from noticing her shaking hands, Hanna stuck them beneath her thighs, sandwiching them between the cushions. “How about this? I’ll loosen up on Ashton if you’ll meet me halfway and make Mackenzie understand that Ashton has to ask permission before trying new things.”

“Okay, and about the bike.” Vince took a deep breath. “I realize you don’t want me or anyone telling you how to raise your son. But Kenzie said Billy Baer and his group of misfits always wait for Ashton after school and torment him. Riding home with Kenzie saves him from getting into a fight.”

Hanna closed her eyes. “Why wouldn’t he tell me something like that?”

“Because he’s trying his damnedest not to be a sissy! Not to run to his mommy to solve all his problems.”

“Maybe I’ll ask Mom to pick him up on days I can’t.”

“Oh yeah, his nana picking him up in a blue Chevy sedan every day is going to make him not look like a sissy. There’s just a couple of blocks between Bluebonnet Books and the school. Give him some space to handle this himself.”

“I want him to fit in, have friends. I guess as long as they’re only on neighborhood streets and come straight home. I certainly don’t want Billy Baer tormenting him.”

“Fair enough.” He grinned. “Now that we’ve resolved that, do you want to talk about what it is about me that makes you so skittish?”

Chapter Four

Hanna broke down a box and tossed it onto the growing stack, turning as the bell over the door clanged. A lady in jeans and a loose white blouse entered the shop, closely followed by an uncharacteristically docile Mackenzie.

The woman ran her hand through her short salt-and-pepper hair, actually more salt-and-cinnamon, and adjusted her enormous hobo-style purse on her arm. She was probably one of those perpetually prepared women who could produce anything from that monster purse from a wet wipe to a Swiss Army knife.

Eyeing Hanna, she extended her hand. “You must be Hanna Rosser.”

Hanna smiled and shook her hand. Tiny brown freckles dotted every exposed inch of the woman.

“I’m Claire Maguire, Kenzie’s grandmother.” She turned to Mackenzie. “Don’t you have something to say to Ms. Rosser?”

One corner of Mackenzie’s mouth turned up, but the other maintained her scowl. “I won’t make Ashton do anything without asking your permission first.”

Claire cleared her throat and arched an eyebrow.

Mackenzie yanked off her pink cap and twisted it. “I’m sorry.”

The apology was obviously coerced, but it was a start. Hanna extended her hand. “Apology accepted. And I apologize for getting so angry yesterday. Can we start fresh?”

Again Mackenzie shrugged. “Okay.”

Claire patted Mackenzie’s shoulder. “That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

“I guess not.” She looked around the store. “Is Ash here?”

Ash? Nobody had ever called her son that. “He’s at home with his nana doing his homework.”

“While it’s still light out?”

Hanna raised an eyebrow.

“I mean, why waste time indoors when everyone else is playing? I do my homework after dinner.” Mackenzie looked at her grandmother. “I mean, that way Daddy is home to help.” She grinned as if proud of her conjured-up excuse. “Can I wait outside now?”

Claire nodded, and Mackenzie dashed for the door, adjusting her pink cap back into place.

“Vince seldom has to help Mackenzie with her homework,” Claire said with a grin. “He dotes on her, but she’s a smart girl.”

“I’m sure she is, a tad precocious maybe, but I can see the intelligence.”

“Sharp like her daddy and book-smart like her mom. She whizzes through school with very little effort and maintains As and Bs.” Claire picked up a copy of Charlotte’s Web and thumbed through it. “Vince is a good son. I’m not sure how I’d have survived without him and Kenzie in our lives.”

Son? Vince was her son-in-law. The woman’s daughter had been gone nine years. Hanna wasn’t sure what to say. “I was sorry to hear about Belinda.”

“Thank you. Do you remember her?”

“We were only a year apart in high school. She was a sweet girl.”

“Her family was the world to her.” Claire swiped her hand across her freckled cheek. “I’d better get Kenzie home. Vince insisted she come by and apologize.”

Really? “I want Mackenzie and Ashton to be friends. It’s just that Vince and I have very different parenting styles.”

“Vince is an excellent father.”

Being his daughter’s best buddy didn’t qualify him as an excellent dad, but Hanna did envy the close relationship he had with Mackenzie. Richard had always been too busy earning a living to have time to bond with Ashton.

“I’m sure he is, but—” Hanna caught herself. “We just have different approaches.”

POSSIBLY BECAUSE THE KIDS were in ISS, the rest of the week progressed without serious incident. Each afternoon when Hanna picked Ashton up at school, he had some story about Mackenzie’s escapades, escapades that typically involved him.

Friday afternoon was no different, except they had to drive two hours to Waco to meet Richard so Ashton could spend the weekend with his father.

Ashton tossed his backpack on the floorboard and buckled his seat belt. “You should have been at school today, Mom. The teacher left the library to go to the restroom and Billy started being a jerk, called me a nerd, and then Kenzie called him a scum reptile. I thought they were going to get into it, but Kenzie didn’t want to get expelled so she ripped a sheet of notebook paper out of her binder, wadded it up and threw it at him instead. World War Three broke out and we were winning, but then she saw Ms. James coming.”

Geez. “Ashton.”

He laughed. “Dumb Bully Baer was so busy pummeling us with paper wads that he didn’t notice we’d stopped. So it looked like it’d snowed around our table when Ms. James came in, and paper was just flying one way so Bully Baer got in trouble, not us. And the best part was that he was really ticked that he’d wadded up his report and threw it, too, so when he was picking up the paper he had to unwad each one to find his report, then he had to copy it over.”

The tendons in Hanna’s neck threatened to snap. “Not getting caught is not the same as not misbehaving. You two were just as guilty.”

Ashton huffed and glared at her. “Mom, you are so lame. You’re never fun.”

“There are many ways to have fun without misbehaving.” Well, okay, that did sound lame. “Have you made any other new friends besides Mackenzie?”

Ashton let out a deep, exasperated breath. “Bully Baer, does he count? Why do you hate Kenzie? She’s cool.”

Mischievous and undisciplined was now cool? Following basic classroom rules and good behavior was lame? She’d hoped Ashton would avoid buying into the whole rebellious game. And he had, until he’d moved to Marble Falls. “I just think that next week when you’re out of ISS, you might meet some other nice kids to hang around with. It’s good to have more than one friend.”

“Kenzie is the only one I have since you made me move to dumb Marble Falls.” Ashton flipped down the DVD screen and snapped his headphones on. “Let me know when we get there.”

Great. The first weekend Ashton was spending with Richard in Dallas and the boy was going to leave angry at her. Just peachy. Wonderful start to an already stressful weekend.

Hanna drove in silence while Ashton sat in the backseat, headphones isolating him from further conversation. He laughed at the movie, but didn’t even acknowledge her. Waco was approximately halfway between Marble Falls and Dallas and where she’d arranged to meet Richard. This was the first time Ashton would be so far away from her since the divorce. What if he had an asthma attack? Would Richard know what to do? She wouldn’t relax until she had Ashton back with her.

Richard’s silver Lexus sat in the McDonald’s parking lot, but he wasn’t alone. That college student who had broken up Hanna’s marriage sat in the passenger seat, her hair twisted and stuck to the back of her head with one of those huge finger clips, blond sprigs sprouting out at odd angles. She stared straight ahead and avoided looking at Hanna. Good! The little home wrecker should feel guilty.

Hanna gulped as Richard opened his door and came around to collect Ashton’s suitcase. As always, Richard was dressed to the height of style. Gray slacks she’d bought him last Christmas and a white button-down. Both starched and pressed, courtesy of the Highland Park Cleaners. Short brown hair freshly trimmed every third Tuesday at five-thirty. Every detail attended to.

This whole situation was surreal. What had happened to their family? How had they gotten to this point? She glanced at the little blonde in the front seat. Hanna’s stomach threatened her with nausea. Suddenly this girl had Hanna’s family and Hanna was the outsider.

At least Hanna had primary custody. For now. She could take Ashton anywhere in Texas as long as she contributed half the expense of his transportation for designated visits with his dad.

But what if Richard didn’t bring Ashton back Sunday afternoon as agreed upon? When she’d announced her intention to move home to Marble Falls to be close to her mother, Richard had insisted that Ashton would be better off remaining in Dallas with him. He’d argued that the divorce had been hard enough on their son and it would only make it harder if they uprooted him from the home and school he was accustomed to.

What if Ashton decided he missed Dallas and didn’t want to come back to Marble Falls? Especially given that Hanna didn’t seem to be at the top of his favorite-person list at the moment. In a couple of weeks, Ashton would be twelve and the judge would probably go along with his wishes.

Engulfing Ashton’s slender shoulders in a tight hug, she breathed in his playground scent and forced back her tears. “You have fun with Daddy, and I’ll see you Sunday. Do you have your inhaler?”

Rolling his eyes, he dug the tube out of his pocket and held it up as proof. “I have it, Mom.”

She managed a cheery smile and prayed it reached her voice. “I love you.”

“See you in two days.” Ashton gave her a quick squeeze then crawled into the backseat of the Lexus and switched on his Game Boy. Was he trying not to cry, too, or was he just angry? Was this what they had to look forward to every other week for the next six years? A hundred and fifty more weekends!

Richard closed the car door and turned to Hanna. “Don’t look like I’m torturing you. You just can’t let him go without making him feel guilty for leaving you, can you?”

Her jaw dropped, but Richard only smirked. “You aren’t totally innocent in all this, you know.”

Snapping her mouth closed, she glared at him. “You’re blaming me? I honored my vows, fulfilled my duties, took care of the home and family, remember?” She took a deep breath. “Ashton has an extra inhaler in his bag and the doctor’s info is on a card in the side pocket just in case.”

“I’m still his father, Hanna. He’ll be fine.”

She crawled back into her car and slammed the door before he could notice her shaking. Maybe their marriage hadn’t been the most passionate, but she wasn’t the one who’d strayed, and she’d be damned if she’d take the blame.

The Lexus purred to life, and Hanna waited to start her own car until Richard had pulled out of the lot and out of sight. She stared up at the giant yellow M and blinked back tears. Families and small kids inside the window gorged on chicken nuggets slathered in ketchup while others climbed in and out of the colorful playground tubes. Okay, so Ashton was too old to enjoy crawling through tubes, but he still liked McDonald’s burgers.

At the thought of food, her stomach growled and she swiped the tears out of her eyes, took her sunglasses off the top of her head and put them on. Nostalgia wasn’t going to buy her anything tonight. She started the car and pulled into the drive-through lane behind a dirty white pickup with ladders sticking out of the bed. A person had to eat and who wouldn’t feel better after a bag of hot, salty fries?

On the drive home, she tried to think about anything rather than the fact that for every mile she drove one direction, Richard was driving one in the other and Ashton was two miles farther from her.

This was insane! Ashton was almost twelve years old and he’d been away from her before. Summer band camp. Weeks with his grandparents. But never a weekend with that other woman while Hanna was over two hundred miles away. It made Hanna’s blood boil to think about that home-wrecking co-ed taking care of her child. It wasn’t insulting enough that she’d stolen Hanna’s husband, now she had her son. And the three of them would spend the weekend in Hanna’s house! The Highland Park house she’d loved and spent years and a fortune remodeling and decorating.

Bluebonnet Books. Grand opening Monday. Think about all the things that had to be done this weekend. She needed this time to take care of all the final details. Ashton would be fine. It wasn’t as if he was a baby. He was perfectly capable of making himself a sandwich even if the woman was helpless. And he’d be comfortable in his old room.

Books. Coffee. Pastries. Her life was certainly in a big mess, maybe the bookstore could be successful enough to take her mind off the fiasco Richard had made of all their lives. Other than an occasional call from her friend Tiffany, there was nothing left of her life in Highland Park.

SLEEP AT LEAST WAS SOUND once Hanna got home. She woke up early Saturday morning ready to plow into all the last-minute details at Bluebonnet Books. If she kept busy, maybe she wouldn’t think about that girl in her house with her husband and son.

She left a note for her mother, who was still snoring like the little engine that could in the next bedroom, and walked to the bookstore. A late-April chill filled the air as the sun crept over the trees, turning the sky to pink and orange. Today Hanna was relieved her mother wasn’t an early riser. She relished the sanity time.

By nine-thirty, when her mother strolled through the front door, cell phone to her ear, the rich aroma of coffee filled Bluebonnet Books. Hanna had arranged copies of the latest magazines on the front rack. She quickly replaced the entertainment magazine she’d been thumbing through.

Norma Creed’s eagle eyes glanced at that exact spot in the display. She put her hand over the phone. “I can’t believe you’re planning to sell those gossip rags in our wonderful community bookstore. They’re nothing but trash.”

Hanna fought to keep a straight face, at least until her mother talked her way to the back office to stow her purse. Norma was the ringleader of the town gossip grapevine. The woman knew everyone’s little secrets and, although she professed to hate gossips, delighted in sharing whatever she knew with anybody she ran across. That was just one of the reasons Hanna had taken the first road out of Marble Falls as soon as her high-school diploma was in her hand. Thanks to good grades and a college fund, she’d headed for SMU and a degree in English and never looked back.

So much for her great escape.

Her mother’s cell phone rang again as she reentered the room. Hanna listened to a five-minute ramble about some poor woman whose husband was evidently having trouble making babies. It seemed that the only change in the grapevine in the fifteen years Hanna had been absent was that it had become turbo-charged thanks to cell phones.

Norma hung up, poured herself a cup of coffee and selected a Danish from the small box Hanna had picked up on the way in. “So, have you heard from Ashton this morning?”

Thanks, Mom. I really needed to be reminded. “Ashton is fine. He has my cell number if he needs anything.”

“I was just concerned, as I know you are. How was Richard? Did you two talk?”

“Richard had his new girlfriend with him. I wasn’t in the mood to stand around a parking lot and chat.” Hanna picked up the empty boxes and toted them to the back. It was going to be a long day.

About the time Norma settled into organizing the tourism and travel section and Hanna thought she might get a moment of peace, who should pull up to the curb on her red bike and slink into the store but Mackenzie Keegan. Helmet in hand, she spotted Hanna. “I was just wondering if Ash is around.”

Hanna stood and stretched. “Good morning, Mackenzie. Ashton is spending the weekend with his father. He won’t be home until late tomorrow evening.”

Shrugging, Mackenzie selected a comic book off the shelf and studied the front cover. “I knew that. But I thought maybe he’d come home early.” Mackenzie placed the comic book precisely where she’d picked it up, even straightening the arrangement. “Yeah, well, he wasn’t too thrilled with going so I just figured he might’ve gotten out of it.”

Sudden warmth bubbled up inside Hanna. “Dallas is four hours away. Unless something unforeseen happens, he’ll spend the entire weekend. But just for the record, I wasn’t too happy he left either. I miss him.”

Mackenzie jabbed the helmet on her head and buckled the strap. “I figured. So, just tell him to call my cell if he gets back early.”

Hanna’s day brightened. Not that she wanted to deprive Ashton of time with his father, but it was certainly a boost to know he hadn’t been eager to go. She poured another cup of coffee and hummed as she arranged the children’s section to accommodate the little wooden table and benches that had arrived.

She opened an adorable book of bedtime stories and “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” chimed from one of those tiny embedded music boxes. Putting thoughts of Ashton out of her mind, she snapped the book shut just as the bell on the front door clanged again. She hoped they’d have this many patrons next week when the store actually opened.

“May I help you?” she asked, standing up from behind the low bookshelf and coming nose to shoulder with Vince Keegan’s Henley T-shirt.

His blue eyes twinkled as he noted the tiny children’s book in her hand. “Kenzie said she stopped by. I wanted to make sure she was on good behavior.”

Hanna carefully placed the book back on the shelf and gave her heart a second to stop fluttering. Why did she let his presence do that to her? “She did stop by. Looked bored.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “Now there’s a dangerous combination. Kenzie and boredom.”

“The town should be put on alert, I’m sure.”

Hanna was still grinning as Norma came out of the back room, wiping her hands down the front of her navy knit slacks and leaving streaks of dust. “Did I hear someone come in?”

“Good morning, Norma.” Vince twisted his cap in his hands and turned back to Hanna. “Kenzie tells me Ashton’s in Dallas this weekend. I thought maybe I could persuade you to join me for lunch at the Falls Diner.”

To discuss the kids? Hanna blinked. Lunch with a friend? Lunch as a—gulp—date? He didn’t elaborate. Just lunch.

Remembering the scene the other night at his house when Vince’s knees bumped hers still made her break out in a sweat.

Although her feminine ego was pleased by his invitation, she just wasn’t ready. Her heart still felt numb toward anything that remotely resembled romance. Besides, half the town gathered at the Falls Diner every day for lunch.

What happened at the bustling little diner did not stay at the diner. As in any other small town, the locals gathered at the local eatery as much for the daily gossip as for the food and wonderful selection of homemade desserts.

She watched her mom frown and move to a closer shelf to rearrange the books.

Nodding toward the coffee area in the front of the shop, Hanna led him out of her mom’s earshot. “With Blue bonnet Books so close to opening, I just can’t spare the time.”

“Fair enough.” Tilting his head, he grinned, flashing those deep dimples. “Maybe another time.”

She smiled. When was the last time a sexy guy had unexpectedly asked her out? A sexy guy with just a touch of mischievousness that if she wasn’t careful could suck her in.

For a long moment, he just stood there then pulled a card out of his pocket and handed it to her. “I realized after you left in such a hurry the other night that we didn’t exchange numbers. Just in case.”

Phone numbers? She paused. Not a bad idea, given the kids and all. She grabbed a brochure for the bookstore out of the rack and scribbled her cell number on the front. “Here you go.”

Vince folded the brochure and slid it into the front pocket of his jeans. “Thanks. And Kenzie mentioned a comic book she wanted.”

Hanna grinned. “Let me get it.”

She rang up the comic book and took the money from Vince. Their fingers brushed as he took the bag from her and tingles shot up her arm. She quickly pulled her hand back, rubbing it down her blouse. He’d been a gentleman and not stopped her from leaving the other night. But she reacted to his slightest touch and the worst thing she could do was send out sexual signals she was not ready to follow through on.

He slung the bag by the handle as he backed toward the door. “See ya.”

“See ya.” Hanna stared at his denim-covered ass as he left the shop. The guy did know how to fill out a pair of jeans. “Hmph. What was that all about?”

Norma walked up and followed the direction of Hanna’s gaze. “Heartache in faded denim, if you’re asking me.”

Chapter Five

Monday afternoon, as Vince was unloading tools from the truck, Kenzie’s bike pulled into the drive. Ashton jumped off from behind her and removed his helmet. “I hate Bully Baer!”

“Your mother is going to hate me if you didn’t tell her where you are. Does she know you’re over here?” Vince asked.

Ashton shook his head.

Vince handed him his cell phone.

Kenzie took off her helmet and looped the chinstrap over the handlebars, but she was too angry to pet Boo as he ambled up. “We were playing softball at recess and Ash was the last one picked. Bully Baer had a hissy fit when he had to have Ash on his stupid team.”

Rolling his eyes, Ashton fidgeted with the phone. “Yeah, like I was thrilled to be on the ‘moron’ team.” He kneeled down and buried his fingers in the dog’s silky red mane, letting him slobber all over his face.

“Dad, they just kept poking fun at him. Every time he was up to bat they made cracks like he wasn’t even on their team.”

“It doesn’t help that my mom gave me a stupid, sissy name like Ashton.”

Vince grimaced. “I grew up with Vincent so don’t complain to me.”

Ashton looked up. “I guess that would suck about as much as Ashton, but at least Vince is cool.”

“Now, maybe. About the third fight I got into over it, I went home ready to fight my dad for naming me Vincent in the first place. He told me it was a classy name and if I acted ashamed of it, the other kids would continue to torment me. But if I acted proud of it, like it was a cooler name than theirs, then the other kids would back down.”

“Did that work?” Ashton asked, scratching Boo behind the ears. The dog’s tongue lolled out in complete euphoria.

“Not always, but it helped. I actually started liking it by high school.”

“Yeah, but you were probably never a wuss. I suck at sports.” Ashton stood and jabbed his sneaker in the dirt on the drive. “I missed that fly ball.”

“The sun was in your eyes. Anybody would’ve missed,” Kenzie said, fisting her right hand.

Boo looked from Kenzie to Ashton as if giving his support.

Ashton did not look convinced. “I suck.”

Evidently softball wasn’t part of the prep-school curriculum. “Have you ever even played softball before?”

Shaking his head, Ashton looked more miserable by the second. “I played soccer one season, but I sucked at that, too. Mom says it’s okay. Some people just aren’t athletic and that I could beat them at chess or spelling and that they probably couldn’t play the saxophone.”

Yeah, not exactly going to make the boy feel manly. “Kenzie, go grab our gloves and let’s toss a few around.”

“I gotta go,” Ashton said, giving Boo a goodbye pat and holding out Vince’s phone without using it.

“Nobody is born knowing how to catch a ball. You gotta learn, practice. Now’s as good a time as any.”

Ashton smirked, but flipped the phone open. “I guess so.”

The first few balls, Ashton ducked rather than trying to catch them. Vince finally got him past that, and left Kenzie to toss him a few while he finished unloading the truck to make room for a load of lumber he needed to pick up the next day.

Ashton’s catching skills improved fast. How to hold a bat and actually make contact with the ball proved to be more of a challenge. But with Kenzie’s help and about twenty strikes, Ashton finally knocked the ball down the baseline. It didn’t even make it to first base, but it was a hit and enough to give Ashton cause to jump around as if he’d just won the World Series.

“Do it again.” Vince straightened up the garage and kept an eye on the kids as Boo watched from the sidelines. Vince did not need Ashton to get hurt and bring Hanna down on his case.

He laid his tool belt on the bench. Actually there could be worse things. Hanna was impressive when she got all self-righteous and mother hennish.

Vince grinned at the sound of wood cracking against the ball and Ashton’s “Woohoo!” If these two kept this up for a while, maybe by next year Ashton would be able to hold his own on the diamond.

Billy Baer and two of his buddies pedaled up the drive and spun their bikes sideways. “Mackenzie, you’re wasting your time on the nerd.”

Shit! Not what Ashton needed.

“The only time I’m wasting is any time you’re around.” Kenzie tossed the ball to Ashton, and Vince could see the concentration and focus but nervousness won out and he missed.

Billy guffawed. “You suck worse than a girl.”

“If girls suck so bad, then why do I always get picked before you?” Kenzie boasted.

Vince put his hands in his pockets and turned to Billy. “So, you any good? Maybe you could show Ashton?”

“Dad! We don’t want Bully Baer here.”

Vince removed his cap, stuck it on Ashton’s curly hair and took the ball from Kenzie. “Come on, Billy, let’s hit a few.”

Laying his bike down, Billy eyed Vince suspiciously. “Sure. Why not? I can hit better with my eyes closed than the nerd can.”

Vince threw a couple of balls and allowed Billy to hit them. “Good job,” Vince said as the ball sailed past the makeshift second-base sycamore tree.

Billy’s smug expression grew as one of the other boys retrieved the ball and tossed it back to Vince. He let Bully Baer hit one more and his two buddies clicked fists. “See, nerd. That’s how it’s done.”

Kenzie paced with Boo dogging her heels and Ashton looked downright miserable. Vince put a slight spin on the next throw and Billy barely made contact. The ball fouled off to the right just missing the mailbox—uh, first base.

“No fair, you didn’t throw it right. One more time.”

Kenzie tossed the ball back to Vince.

Adding more spin, Vince curved it directly over “home plate” and Billy swung, missing the ball as it curled to the left and bounced down the drive.

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