The Bachelor Boss (16 page)

It also helped that she and Danny had no extra living expenses. Food was provided, as was gas for her car, and Ty had even paid for her license tabs because she was living under his roof when they came due. She wished she could buy better clothing, but because of her small size, she did fairly well at the sale racks of discount stores.

Only last week, Tyler had complimented her on a sleek emerald dress that Hannah had found discarded and wadded in a lump in the dressing room of a store. The final sale price had been fifty percent off fifteen dollars. After laundering and restitching the hem, it had turned into a perfectly nice dress that highlighted her red-gold hair.

Those thoughts only reminded her that she needed to talk to Trisha again, to see if she was keeping up with the bills. She knew her sister was working hard. Trisha’s roommate Jane had assured Hannah that her new boyfriend, Jason, who Hannah had finally met, wasn’t contributing to the problem. Apparently, he had more than one job himself, besides school, and would get on Trisha’s case if she tried to slack off. That was the kind of man her sister needed, Hannah thought grimly—one who didn’t let her slip back into her immature habits.

“Come in,” Ty called.

When she entered, he was standing, sorting through a four-drawer file cabinet. He wore casual trousers and a blue cotton shirt. When he turned to look at her she saw that the blue of his shirt made the color of his eyes even brighter and more piercing. Those baby blues alone were enough to make a woman weak in the knees.

“Yes?”

She slumped into a chair. By now, they’d had enough of these heart-to-hearts about Lily, Danny, Clara and Trisha and her finances that she was no longer intimidated by the vastness of the room and its furniture.

“I think we have trouble, but I don’t know what it is.”

Ty scowled. “Lily was so tired after her day out that I thought she was laying low. What is she up to?”

“What are
they
up to, you mean. She and Danny have been terribly secretive. Every time I walk in the room they both get very quiet and look delighted when I leave again. When you were a boy, did she include you in the schemes she hatched?”

Ty thought about it, walked to his desk and dropped into the chair across from her. “Always.” He rested his forehead on his hand as if he’d gotten a sudden headache.

“I can’t wait until she’s back on her own two feet and living in her own house again.”

Hannah’s spirits sank a little. She understood what he was saying, but that would mean she’d no longer be needed here. Even if they did decide to keep her on in some capacity, it would be in Lily’s home, not Ty’s. She felt an empty spot within just thinking about it. She’d come to look forward to her time with Ty.

“Is there any particular reason for stirring the pot?”

“No, nothing. It’s a very ordinary week.” She cocked her head and thought about it. “Except it is my birthday tomorrow. Maybe she and Danny are planning a cake and candles.” Her frown cleared. “I could handle that.”

“Your birthday?” Ty asked. “Do you have plans to celebrate?”

“I thought I might put a candle in my oatmeal in the morning.”

“Very funny.”

“My husband always used to make a big deal of that day. I haven’t done anything special in years. Less sad, I suppose.”

“That’s why you
should
have a celebration. He wanted it for you when he was alive. I’m sure he’d want it for you now.”

“Maybe you’re right. Steve always wanted me happy. And he loved birthdays.”

“You loved him a lot, didn’t you?” Ty said softly.

He was so compassionate that Hannah was touched. “With all my heart.”

Sometimes when he looked at her she felt as though he were seeing her soul. Hannah twiddled with the chain she wore around her neck. “You know, I’ve been a widow almost three times as long as I was married.” She felt a flush flood her cheeks.

“How do you feel about that?”

His question startled her. No one had ever asked her that. She realized she’d never even asked
herself
that.

“I...I’m not sure. It sounds like a long time, doesn’t it?” She chewed her lip thoughtfully. “Sometimes I feel like I’ve been alone forever.”

“Are you planning to do anything to change that?”

His voice was bland, but the question sent up flares in her mind.

“What could I do?” She suddenly felt off-kilter.

“Get out more. Live your life. Make friends.”

“I must look like a real loser to you, Ty.”

“Not at all. In every aspect of your life—except your driving, of course—I think you’re a winner. I find it odd that you don’t realize it yourself. It’s not my business, Hannah, but maybe it’s time for you to have some fun in your life.”

“What with raising Danny and Trisha, my sister’s financial immaturity, paying the bills, losing my job...”

“My point exactly.” Ty gave her an enigmatic look and shrugged those wide shoulders of his.

“Maybe
you
should take some of your own advice,” she pointed out bluntly.

“Touché.”

She was still considering her conversation with Ty at bedtime. He asked too many questions for which she had no answers. How
did
she feel about her widowhood after so many years? She’d tried not to think too much about it until she’d met Ty. She slept restlessly that night and woke up feeling ragged and weary. It was Ty’s fault, Hannah decided. He asked too many questions.

* * *

The next morning when Ty returned from his run Danny, Irene and Lily, in her wheelchair, were in the kitchen.

His grandmother was managing to leave her room more often lately, probably because Hannah insisted on having her do therapy exercises three times a day. She was almost back to her old self.

“What’s going on here?”

“We’re making breakfast for Mom,” Danny said proudly. “Did you get the flowers?”

“I did. Three dozen. I’ll put them on the table. I also got a card. I’ll sign it from Lily and me.” If anyone deserved flowers, it was Hannah. He didn’t feel the least bit guilty about not solving her curiosity of last night.

“Don’t put my name on the card.
I
already have a present for her,” Lily told him.

“Shh,” Irene said. “I hear her coming down the stairs. Everyone in their seats. Sing when she walks in.”

Doing as they were told, they scrambled into chairs and began singing when a disheveled Hannah stepped into the kitchen. She clapped her hands to her face and a sweet smile spread over her features.

“So this is what you were planning.”

“Irene made your favorites, Mom. Baked French toast, turkey sausage and yogurt parfaits.” Danny patted the chair beside his. “Sit here.”

Irene began to serve, while Lily regaled them with a story about the birthday party Ty had organized for her when he was Danny’s age. Ty had thought that Lily would love having a party with all his young friends, and Lily had found herself playing softball and ruining her outfit when she slid into third base.

That was, Lily reminded them all, when she was just a spring chick—still in her 60s.

“Now it’s time for my present,” Danny announced. “You’re going to love it, Mom. Lily helped me with it, but it was my idea.”

The child jumped up and ran to the far end of the room, opened a cupboard and pulled out a wicker suitcase. It was obviously heavy, but he was determined to present it to his mother by himself. He dragged it across the kitchen and set it at Hannah’s feet.

“What’s this?”

Danny hopped on his tiptoes excitedly. “Open it, Mom. Open it!”

Ty felt his curiosity increase. If Lily was involved in this, that small case could hold just about anything.

Hannah lifted it to the table and slowly opened her gift.

It wasn’t a suitcase at all, Ty realized. It was a picnic basket. A packed picnic basket. There were plastic containers labeled
chicken, potato salad, pickles, strawberries
and
dessert.
At least that was all he could see. The thing was chockablock full.

“How lovely!” Hannah picked up a brightly colored plastic plate. “You and I are going on a picnic.”

“Yeah. Lily said the mountains are great and that she and Ty used to go there.” Danny’s smile was wide.

“You want to go on a picnic today?” Hannah looked confused. “What about school?”

“I thought you could let me skip school today. Please? Your birthday is special.”

She looked at him sadly. “But yesterday you brought home a note from your teacher saying that today everyone would be testing, remember? You can’t miss that.”

Danny’s eager expression dissolved. “That’s today?”

“I didn’t mention it, honey, because I thought it wouldn’t matter. I’m sorry. We can go on our picnic this weekend. Maybe after church?”

“But the basket is full
now!
”

“I have an idea,” Lily said. “This way your mom can have two birthdays. Ty needs a break as much as you do, Hannah. Why don’t the two of you go and enjoy the picnic?

“Irene will pack another lunch when you and Danny want to go. We want you to have a wonderful day. Isn’t that right, Danny?”

Hannah saw Danny relax. Poor little guy. He’d worked so hard on this only to have it fail over something he didn’t anticipate.

“Ty, will you?” Danny’s eyes were so pleading that Ty would have agreed to any of Lily’s machinations. Besides, spending the day with Hannah was appealing.

“I can swing it.”

“But you have so much work to do,” Hannah protested. “You don’t have to—”

“Where did you plan to go on your picnic, Danny?” Ty asked.

Before the child could answer, Lily jumped in smoothly. “I think the two of you should go to the mountains. Then Danny can take his mother to the park just as he’d planned.”

Ty wondered fleetingly if Lily had somehow finagled all this, but he discarded the notion. She had, however, definitely taken advantage of the moment.

The clouds on Danny’s face fled. “Two picnics? That’s even better, right, Mom?”

He looked so hopeful that it nearly broke Hannah’s heart. “The best, sweetheart. Twice as wonderful as one picnic.” She glanced uncertainly at Ty but couldn’t read his features.

Hannah jumped to her feet and made her way around the table, giving each person a grateful hug. “I’ll go upstairs and get showered right away.” She pressed a kiss onto the top of Danny’s head and hurried away.

“Are you mad at me?” Danny’s eyes were wide as he addressed Ty. “I really forgot about the testing.”

“No, Danny, I’m not mad. It will be a privilege to take your mom on a birthday picnic.” If he were to admit how he really felt about the change in plans, he’d be smiling himself silly.

Chapter Twenty-One

T
y backed his BMW convertible out of the garage. Top down, music playing on the radio, he yelled teasingly, “I’ve got a need for speed. Hop in.” He flashed a boyish grin. Only one word came to Hannah’s mind.
Hunk.

She put the picnic basket in the backseat, rounded the silver car and jumped in.

They caught I-70 and wound their way toward and up the mountain. The slopes grew gradually steeper and the landscape greener. She could even feel the air change. The higher they climbed, the more lighthearted Hannah became.

Impulsively, she put her hands in the air. “Wheee!”

“What kind of driver am I if you think you’re on a roller coaster?” Ty asked with a grin.

“This is as close as I’ve come to a roller coaster for a while. Trisha and I went on one once and I threw up all over her.”

“Then you are wise to err on the side of caution.”

The air grew cooler and thinner as they climbed and Hannah’s excitement grew.

“I love to come up here. It’s so beautiful and so grand,” she said. “It’s a snapshot of what our Creator can do.”

“When I was a kid, we came to the mountains a lot. My grandfather always said he could have been a mountain man given half a chance. He was a big, strong fellow.”

“Not exactly a place for Lily, however.”

Ty laughed out loud. “Now there’s a picture.” He turned to look at her. “Is there someplace special you want to go?”

“Take me to the place you and your grandparents used to go for picnics.”

“It’s been so many years. We spent a lot of time around Evergreen. If you take this road far enough, you’ll end up in Vale.”

“Do you ski?” Hannah asked.

“Yes, when I have time. I’m particularly fond of black diamonds.”

“And I’m on the other end of the spectrum. Give me a bunny hill any day. Steve and I never had a lot of extra money to spend, so my abilities are pretty limited. My parents were excellent skiers, though.”

“Then someday I’ll teach you.”

Pleased, Hannah closed her eyes against the sunlight and enjoyed the feel of the wind whipping through her hair.

She must have dozed off because when she awoke, the car was parked and Ty was spreading a quilt on the ground beneath a canopy of trees. The picnic basket was at his feet.

She stretched sinuously as she got out of the car and walked toward him. “I don’t know why I’m so sleepy. I didn’t think I was that far behind on rest.”

“You’re relaxing. We have all day. Take a siesta if you like.” Ty sat down on the blanket and pulled the basket into the center of it. “It’s your birthday.”

Her curiosity got the best of her. “Let’s see what Irene put in that basket.”

As she was removing containers from the basket, Ty reached for the largest one. “If this is Irene’s fried chicken, we’re in luck. Best I’ve ever tasted.” He popped the lid to reveal crusty golden pieces. “Perfect.”

There was a mound of potato salad, crisp pickle wedges and fresh strawberries with a creamy fruit dip.

They filled their plates and ate in comfortable silence.

“This mountain air makes me ravenous,” Hannah helped herself to a third piece of chicken and another scoop of salad. “This is embarrassing. I usually don’t eat like a hard laborer.”

“I’d think something was wrong with you if you didn’t.” Ty stretched out along one side of the blanket, one hand propped beneath his head and the other forking food into his mouth. He looked like a model for a Ralph Lauren photo shoot—a sophisticated man of the manor lounging against the lush, green background of his estate.