“I’ll get right on it,” I promised Eirin.
“You’ve got three days. Then I want a final version of the Everett piece and your relationship article. No excuses.” She hung up before I could offer any more half-assed assurances.
As I took the muffins out of the oven, I contemplated whether to leave a note. I wasn’t feeling particularly sexy or sassy this morning.
My phone buzzed again with another message from Josh’s mom.
Aileen: Please, I’m worried. I haven’t heard from you. I’m here if you need to talk today.
I pushed my frustration down. She’d been witness to the darkest parts of my life. Not only the loss of her son, but the aftermath his death wrought. I couldn’t blame her for wanting to make sure I hadn’t inched my way back to the brink of a mental breakdown without allowing anyone to notice.
Sadie: Sorry I haven’t called. I’m out on assignment this month and haven’t had a block of free time during reasonable hours to give you a call. But I promise I’m okay. I hope you are too. I’ll catch up with you when I’m back home.
Guilt curled its talons around my heart. This day was hard for her too, and I should suck it up and call her. Make the time it would take for us to reminisce. But my head was already so muddled this morning. I wasn’t ready to toss a dose of past anguish into the mix right now. Maybe that made me selfish, but I needed to keep my head on straight at the moment.
As I stared at the tin of muffins on the counter, boards creaked from the front porch. No one had knocked or rung the doorbell.
Moving past the stairs, I stopped for a second but didn’t hear any movement upstairs, which wasn’t surprising since Drew had been out cold when I slipped out of bed earlier.
When I pulled the front door open, a woman hurried down the walkway in front of the house. The aroma of cinnamon and apples drew my focus from her for a second. A freshly baked apple pie sat on the table of the little patio set on the porch.
“Excuse me,” I called out to her retreating back.
She froze, stood in place for a moment, then turned around, wearing an expression like she was about to face a firing squad.
“Hi.” I bounded down the steps with my hand extended, hoping to ease her anxiety. “I’m Sadie.”
“Ivy.” She shook my hand with trepidation.
“Did you make that?” I hooked my thumb over my shoulder toward the pie still bubbling around the edges of the crust. “It smells amazing.”
“Yeah.” She glanced at it with a sheepish look. “I’m sorry. This wasn’t well thought out on my part. I knew you were here, but I didn’t realize you’d be awake this early. I don’t want to disturb anyone. I know I shouldn’t keep leaving him baked goods…I just—” She swallowed down a sob as her eyes grew red around the corners.
Until this moment, it hadn’t occurred to me to wonder about Drew’s history with anyone else in town besides Gwen. Questions of whether he still pined over her had invaded my wandering mind during some of the longer committee meetings I’d sat through with Kobie. But now I wanted to dig into whatever Ivy’s story was. Unfortunately, she looked like a deer caught in headlights. Strange reaction, considering the act of leaving a pie seemed pretty innocent.
“Drew’s asleep, but I can go grab him if—”
“God no.” She glanced up at the second-floor window like she expected the same treatment I got the night I showed up on his porch: a door in the face. Her brow furrowed before her shoulders dropped, and she let out a long sigh. “He’s never let me thank him. No matter how many times I try. He dodges me or shuts me down, and I need to thank him. Russ is going to be eight next month. I thought maybe this year…” She stared down at her feet.
My heart ricocheted in my chest.
Russ.
Surely he hadn’t fathered a son no one mentioned. Drew was standoffish, but he didn’t strike me as a deadbeat dad. Plus, I couldn’t imagine she’d be baking him pies if that were the case.
Once I’d calmed myself down enough to voice the question, I asked, “Who’s Russ?”
“My son.” A smile lit up her face. “Drew saved his life.”
My heart hammered for a totally different reason. Intellectually, I knew Drew had likely saved plenty of people as a firefighter. But seeing the joy and gratitude on the face of a parent who knew what it was to escape an unimaginable loss made me want to reach out and hug her. She looked like she’d bolt if I tried though. So, I settled for the next best thing.
“Do you want to come inside? Like I said”—I cut off her protest—“Drew’s asleep. Why don’t I bring the pie inside, we can have a cup of coffee, and you can tell me about Russ? I’m only in town for a few weeks, but maybe if I know a little more…I can try to get Drew to change his mind and let you thank him.”
“Um…”
“Come on. We can’t let the birds get to this pie. And this might be my only opportunity today to hear about something other than the hunt for a new Valor King.” I hopped back up the steps, picked the pie up and opened the front door, gesturing with my head for her to join me.
She looked back to the street like she worried someone would see us before tucking a piece of hair behind one ear then hugging her arms across her chest. “All right. As long as you’re sure I won’t be intruding.”