“Yes, you and Lydia are taking me to work.” My voice wobbled as the realization hit that I would spend the whole day away from my baby girl.
“Come on, Lola. It will be fine.” Lydia turned her attention to Jenni in her arms. “And maybe around lunchtime, Jenni and Dee can head on over to see Mommy at her new job. Because I’m guessing by that time, I will very much need a good, strong cup of coffee.” She chuckled.
“Yes.” My voice was louder than I had planned.
Lydia grabbed the keys off the tall wooden table by my front door and headed out with Jenni still in her arms. Taking a fortifying breath, I swallowed my fear and followed her.
One thing I bought when I left was a car. Like my furniture, it too was secondhand. Despite being ten years old, it ran well and rarely had problems. It was an old blue Honda Civic, and from what Lydia had told me, the old Hondas were workhorses.
The car ride ran smoothly, with no complaints, except for my growing worry as we got closer to the center of Castle Ridge, a small town in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I was like something out of one of those Hallmark movies I used to binge-watch back when I could get any channel I wanted.
I thought it was the perfect place to raise Jenni, even though I knew my family had property nearby but rarely visited. With it close, if ever my brother visited, I might glimpse him.
That may sound silly, but I missed him... even if he was the reason I was hiding.
“Here we are. Your new employer, Hard Grind. My mouth is watering just thinking about their coffee. It really is the best coffee in the world.”
I double-checked my purse to make sure I had everything I needed. “Really? Never had it before.”
“What? You mean you’re going to work for a coffee shop and have never tasted their coffee before?”
“It’s not like I can afford to eat out. So, no, I haven’t ordered coffee at a coffee shop since moving here.”
“I hope you didn’t tell them that when you interviewed for the job.”
I thought about it for a moment. “The question never came up.”
“I’m sure you will have time to try it today. Say goodbye to Mommy, Jenni. We’ll visit her for lunch.”
I glanced back from the passenger seat to my little girl safely tucked into her car seat and felt my eyes burn with unshed tears. Damn, it was harder than I thought to work as a mom. I hoped it would get better, because I had the strongest urge to take my daughter out of her car seat and hold her, never letting go.
She lifted her little hand and made a fist a few times, her version of waving.
“I love you, Jenni. You be helpful to Lydia.” I gave a nod and turned in my seat, afraid I’d cry if I kept looking at my baby girl.
Right as I was about to open the car door, I glanced up and noticed two men leaving Hard Grind. I gasped and found I couldn’t move.
One guy was a blond, and the other was a brunette. They were both tall, seemed well-built, and wore expensive suits—something unusual to see in a rural mountain town. But that wasn’t what caused me to break out into a cold sweat.
It was the brunette. He chuckled at something the other guy said, and that tear I had fought back just moments ago fell.
It was him. The only man I ever trusted. The only man I gave my heart to.
It was Jenni’s father. Jenner Cartwright.
Chapter 3
Jenner
“This isn’t a good idea.” I rubbed the back of my neck as we knocked on the resort room door.
“It will be fine. Eric will probably move on to some other idea in a few weeks, like he always does, and you’ll be in the clear.” Hamish shrugged. “And if it all goes bad, we can always sic your sister on him.”
My brows popped up. “Jocelyn? Under no circumstances is she to ever be contacted. That would be like releasing a swarm of killer bees inside a car. No one would be spared.”
“It was just a joke. I wouldn’t actually contact your sister.”
I let out a sigh. Just hearing Jocelyn’s name caused my stomach to churn. She was the one person in my family everyone avoided. But staying away from Jocelyn was easy as she didn’t live near me, but, as I just found out, Eric did.