Abound in Love (8 page)

“That’s
Dan,” Thomas murmured, relieved. 

Kenny
apparently spotted his father, since he drew to a stop in the driveway.  He
stared at the oncoming patrol car, kicking at the gravel beneath his feet. 
Laura could see puffs of air, where his warm breath merged with the bitter cold
outside.

They
watched as Dan pulled to a stop about midway along the gravel drive.  He opened
his door and stepped out of the car.  Even from a distance, Laura and Thomas
could see Dan was concerned about his son.  His posture was stiff, wary.  He
spread his hands, as if asking the little boy what was wrong.  He started
toward the boy, and when he reached him, pulled him into a hug.

Laura’s
heart tugged.  Father and son stood together, locked in one another’s arms.  It
was apparent Dan was talking to him, since he saw his mouth near Kenny’s ear. 
The boy was nodding his head up and down.

After a
moment, Dan took him by the shoulders, spoke to him, and nodded.  He followed
by gesturing to the patrol car.  They watched Kenny shuffle to the car and
slide into the passenger seat.

Dan
turned and walked toward the house.  When he reached the steps, he immediately
spotted Thomas and Laura.

“Dan,
I’m…” Thomas began.

He only
shook his head and gave a dismissive wave.  “Please.  No.  You didn’t do
anything wrong, Thomas.  Even Kenny told me that.  He knows his mother and I
have relied on you too much.”

“Hey,
no, that’s not it at all,” Thomas assured him, but sighed.  “Dan, you know I
love those kids.  I really do.  I’m just worried about Candace.  I’m worried
about…”

“Macy,”
Dan said knowingly.  “And you should be.  You didn’t sign on to fix my and
Candace’s problems.  I want you to know I appreciate everything you’ve done for
us, and I’m sorry we’ve taken advantage of you.”

“You
haven’t,” Thomas assured him.

Dan
gave a humorless laugh.  “Oh, yes, we have.  It’s just…”  He ran a hand through
his short blond hair.  “I just don’t trust anyone else with the kids.  I’m not
accustomed to Candace…”  He sighed and stared at the ground.  He finally shook
his head and glanced up, and appeared to spot Laura for the first time. 
“Laura…”  His mouth tugged into a smile.  “Wow, is it really you?”

She
smiled in return, and when he opened his arms to her, she stepped into them for
a brief hug from her brother-in-law.  “It’s good to see you, Dan.”

“You’re
looking well,” he told her, and snared Thomas’ gaze.  “Certainly better than
the rest of us.  I guess you’ve heard, we’re falling apart at the seams around
here.”

She
gave him a sad smile.  “I wish there was something I could do.  If…”  She
sighed.  “If there’s anything—
anything
—I can do, please let me know.”

He
smiled softly, his sad eyes twinkling briefly.  “If anybody can figure out this
mess, it’s you.  Candace may even listen to you.”

Laura
was taken aback by the remark.  She had no idea what he meant by it.  How could
she do anything to fix his marital woes?  Candace certainly wasn’t going to
listen to her?  She never had before.  Why would she start now?

“Well,
anyway,” Dan said, “I’m taking the evening off.  The kids are going to stay
with me tonight.  They’re going to forget what I look like if I don’t spend
more time with them.”

“Do you
want me to drop them by your place?” Thomas asked, indicating the patrol car
with a nod.

“Naw,
I’ve cleared it with my sergeant,” Dan said.  “He gave me permission to pick
them up.”

“Okay,
well, I’ll go and get Krissy.  I think she’s upstairs.”  He glanced at Laura
for confirmation.

She
nodded.  “She’s doing homework.”

He left
them to retrieve her.  Dan watched Laura with imploring eyes.  “Laura, will you
talk to her?  Please?”

She was
uncertain what he meant initially.  “You mean, Candace?”

He
nodded.  “She won’t talk to anyone else.  Maybe she will talk to you.”

“Dan,
I’m probably the last person Candace is going to confide in.”

“That’s
not true” he said adamantly, shaking his head.  “Before she…  Well, she talked
about you all the time.  She was desperate to see you—to make amends.  She
always said…”  He sighed.  “She said you were a ‘better’ person than her, and
that, if she had known ‘then’ what she knew ‘now,’ she would have done things
so differently.  She said she wished she could get on a plane, so she could
talk to you…”

“Why
didn’t she?” Laura cut in.  “Get on a plane, that is.”  Suddenly, the old hurts
came to the forefront.  Candace could have apologized at any time over the
years.  She
could
have gotten on a plane.  She
could
have picked
up a phone.  She could have apologized.

It was
as if Dan read her mind.  “She wanted to,” he told her.  “She wanted to more
than anything, but she was afraid…”

“Afraid
of what?”

“Afraid
you would, as she said, ‘give her what she deserved.’”  He stopped speaking
when little Krissy appeared in the doorway. 

“Daddy!”
she cried, obviously delighted to see her father.

“Hey,
there, Pumpkin.” 

Krissy
turned toward Laura.  “I’m going home with Daddy,” she announced, obviously
pleased.  “Wait, I thought Kenny and me were going out to dinner with Mommy and
Aunt Laura.”

“Not
tonight,” Dan said.  “We’re going to let Aunt Laura and Mommy visit.”

Krissy
looked terribly disappointed, but queried, “Are we ordering pizza, Daddy?  And
watching the Disney Channel together?”  He nodded and she grinned, clearly
placated.  “Okay, bye, Aunt Laura.  I’m leaving.”

Laura
chuckled at the quick-turn in her mood.  “You’re going to have to hug me
first,” she said, with a mock-frown.

“Oh,
Aunt Laura, as if I would really leave without hugging you first.”

Laura
pulled the little girl into an embrace.  “I love you,” she whispered into ear. 
“Tell your brother I love him too.”

“I
will.  I love you too.”

 Thomas
cleared his throat and spread his arms.  “Hey, you’re forgetting somebody.”

Krissy
shook her head, as if her uncle simply wore her out.  “I could never forget you
either, Uncle Thomas,” she said with an exaggerated sigh.

A
moment later, as they watched the kids drive away with their father, Laura
uttered a prayer.  “Please, Lord, be with them…”

“H
ave fun
tonight,” Laura urged her brother, as she ushered him out the front door.  “And
tell Macy ‘hello’ for me.”

“Will
do,” he said with a grin and a salute.  The salute reminded her of Dalton. 
Thomas reminded her of Dalton.  The truth was, just about everything in Battle
Ground reminded her of Dalton.

When
she heard the sound of a car’s engine, and then the crunch of gravel, and spied
the patrol car pulling up, she knew who was behind the wheel. 

Dalton.

He was
probably coming home for something to eat.  She held the door open as he strode
up the steps, a broad smile creasing his face.  “Hey, Laura.”

“Hey,
yourself.”

He
glanced behind him.  “Was that Thomas I just passed on the road?”

“Yes,
he’s going on a date with Macy.”

He gave
a relieved smile.  “That’s great.  I know the two of them haven’t had much time
together lately.”

“Yeah,
I figured as much.  He was awfully foul-tempered when he got home from work
today.”

He
stepped past her and into the house.  He came to a stop.  “Where are the kids?”

“With
their dad.”

“That’s
good to hear.  Poor Dan’s been working so much O.T., he’s in dire need of a
break, and those kids are in dire need of an evening with their father.”

“From
what I understand, they could use some time with their mom too.”

He only
nodded gravely in reply.

“Did
you come home for something to eat?  I’d be happy to fix you a sandwich.”

“I
appreciate the offer, but I don’t have time.  I actually stopped by to get my
gloves.  It’s so cold out there tonight.  I’ll just go get them.  I’m on the
way to a call and need to get moving.”

Laura
closed the door and sat back down on the couch.  She checked her watch.  It was
after six and she hadn’t seen nor heard from Candace.

She
turned toward Dalton, when she heard him coming down the steps.  “Candace isn’t
here yet?” he asked, as he tugged on a pair of black gloves.

“No. 
But she didn’t mention what time she was coming.  I probably should have
asked.”

“Well,
I’m sure she’ll be here soon,” he said dubiously.

“You
actually don’t sound very sure,” Laura said, narrowing her eyes and studying
his face.  He was so handsome—even more so as a man of thirty-one than he had
been as a teen.   The smoothness of his face had aged into an even more
appealing combination of masculine angles and rugged lines.  She was drawn to
his sky blue eyes, the straight nose, strong jaw and firm, well-shaped lips.    

Laura
suddenly wondered if he was dating anyone.  As a teen, he had had his fair
share of admirers.  Girls had flocked to his good looks, but Laura knew he was
more than a handsome face.  Despite his inclusion in the ‘it’ crowd, she
remembered Dalton had had many friends in every tier of high school
popularity.  He had always been kind to others. 

Perhaps
she had been drawn to him as much for this reason, as for his looks.  At least
she hoped she hadn’t been so superficial as to fixate on his outward appearance. 
She gave herself a shake, when she realized she’d been staring intently at him.

She
missed the smile that tugged at his lips, since she turned toward the front
window when a pair of headlights illuminated the living room. 

“And
there Candace is now,” Dalton said, still smiling.  “Well, you ladies have a
good evening.  I need to get moving.”

“Be
safe,” she told him, as she rose to open the door for him.

He
paused at the door and caught her eye.  “I will.”  He left the house and passed
Candace at the base of the porch stairs. 

“Howdy,
Dalton,” she said.

“Candace. 
It’s nice to see you.”  He strode to his car.

Candace
noticed Laura at the top of the stairs.  “Hello, are you ready to go?” she
asked with what sounded like forced cheer to Laura’s ears. 

She
briefly searched her sister’s face.  She looked exhausted.  “Yes, I’m ready. 
Are you sure you’re feeling up to going out?  You worked all day, didn’t you?”

“I did,
but I’ve been looking forward to tonight.”  She gave her an imploring look.    

“Just
let me grab my coat.  Would you like me to drive?  Or follow you?”

“I’ll
drive,” Candace said.  “There’s no need for both of us to drive—with gas prices
being what they are.”

“You’re
right about that,” Laura said.

Once in
Candace’s car, Laura eased against the seat and took a steadying breath.  She
hadn’t been alone with Candace in years.  She couldn’t remember the last time
it was just the two of them in a car together and driving off to talk.  If
memory served, it had never happened.

“How do
burgers sound to you?” Candace asked, as she drove down the driveway and to the
main thoroughfare back to town.

“Anything
is fine,” Laura answered.

The two
attempted to make small talk as they headed into town, though Laura sensed
Candace felt as awkward as she did.  It was strange that two women—sisters—who
had grown up together could scarcely find anything to talk about.  But then,
they had had so little in common as kids.  Did they have anything in common
now?

In
town, Candace drove into the parking lot of a national fast food chain.  She
made an apologetic face.  “I hope this is okay.  I’m kind of on a self-imposed
budget these days and…”

Laura
waved her hand dismissively.  “This is fine.  But I’d be happy to take you out
this evening.”

Candace
shook her head.  “No, I invited you.  This is my treat.”

She
parked the car and the two women entered the restaurant.  “Do you know what
you’d like?” Candace asked.

“Well,
let’s see…”  Laura studied the menu board above.

“Would
you like to sit down for a moment?” Candace asked, looking behind her.  She
pointed at a nearby booth.  “If we sit there, we can see the menu and make our
selections.  I’d be happy to place the order once you decide…”

Laura
headed for the booth.  She was actually grateful for the opportunity to sit
down.  And Candace was right, she could easily read the menu from their table.

Candace
sat down across from her at the booth and smiled awkwardly.  “Gosh, it’s been a
long time, Laura.”

Laura
nodded.