Chapter 34
Chapter 34
The house glowed with a thousand twinkling bulbs. Fairy lights lined the steps leading to the front door and shone like beacons on the A-frame roof. Through the big front windows, Daphne could see guests milling as they drank and laughed.
She jumped when Calvin’s hand landed on her thigh.
Brows arched, he stroked the crinkling fabric of her dress. “You’re on edge.”
“I’m fine.”
“We’ll stay long enough to make it through the ceremony, and then we can leave. If anyone bothers you, including my mother, I’ll talk to them. I know last time we were here wasn’t the most pleasant time for you.”
His kindness made Daphne’s heart ache. She swallowed back her protests and forced a smile. “I’ll be fine, Flint,” she said. “I’m tough.”
His smile was soft and sweet. “That you are,” he said, then exited his truck and jogged over to her side. The evening was cool, but hints of spring were in the air. Daphne huddled in her jacket and watched where she stepped in her high heels, still slightly unsteady on her ankle. Calvin was there like a pillar at her side, and she let herself lean on him, just this once. They were supposed to pretend to be together, anyway. She might as well enjoy it while it lasted.
They walked up the steps, and Calvin slid his hand to her lower back. His warmth surrounded her as they rang the doorbell and waited for the big timber door to open. She wondered how many other moments they’d have like this, how many casual touches they’d be able to exchange under the guise of meaning something to each other?
Daphne straightened. Best not to think about that now. She had a cooking pot to steal. An heirloom to return to its rightful owner.
The door opened. Eileen and Archie Yarrow stood in the opening. Eileen threw her hands out like she wanted to hug Calvin, then pulled back and clasped them at her breast. “You came!” She beamed at them, gaze flitting to Daphne. “Thank you for wearing the dress. Come in. I’ll take your jackets.”
“Thank you,” Daphne said, shaking out her nerves as she shed her outerwear. The house was warm and bright, with music and laughter filling the air. Down the hall, caterers milled through clumps of guests, bearing trays of finger food and flutes of champagne.
Behind them, the doorbell rang again, and Eileen shooed them down the hallway toward the party.
“Just long enough to stay for the ceremony,” Calvin murmured, his hand sliding over her upper back, fingers warm against the bare skin between her shoulder blades.
Daphne smiled at him. “Unless we accidentally have fun.”
“I won’t hold my breath.”
Grinning, Daphne let the sheriff lead her deeper into the home. He was greeted by half a dozen people within moments, and Daphne found herself swept up into small talk and polite smiles as she stood at his elbow. Her gaze darted around the room until she spotted Harry, sitting on a two-seater couch next to Dorothea, the two of them like queens holding court over their subjects. Harry’s eyes slid to Daphne’s, and her chin dipped the slightest bit.
Game on.
“Have you made any headway with the break-ins?” an older woman asked, and Daphne turned her attention back to the conversation.
“It’s an ongoing investigation,” Calvin replied coolly. “I can’t comment on it at the moment.”
“Oh, come on, Sheriff. Give us a little hint.” The woman winked at him, swatting his arm.
He flashed a charming grin at her as he said, “You know I can’t, Christine.”
“You’re no fun,” the woman replied, pouting.
“I can say that Daphne has been integral to the investigation. If you’re looking for a diligent and talented accountant, she’s the woman for the job.”
Daphne straightened, glancing at Flint in surprise. The praise sent warmth spreading through her chest. It didn’t sound like the usual dismissive kind of compliment, where people said she was smart as if it were a mark against her. It sounded like he truly believed what he said.
Daphne smiled at the woman. “He has to say that because I’m his date,” Daphne demurred.
Christine laughed. “And we’re all jealous of you for it, dear. Although I’m not jealous of that dress, or the fact that you have to dance in front of us all.”
A warm palm on Daphne’s upper back drew her gaze to Calvin’s, whose eyes were twinkling as he stared down at her. “We were both more than happy to do what we could to make my mother’s event a success,” he said.
Christine hummed. Calvin extricated them from the conversation with ease, but they were soon accosted by another couple, and another, and another. Daphne tried to keep up, but she very much felt out of her element. Then her clutch buzzed, and she excused herself.
A text in a newly formed group chat. We’ve got eyes and ears, people , Ryan wrote.
Yesssssssss , Ellie added. Then, a moment later, she wrote, Daphne, you look like you’re ready to puke or run away or both.
Daphne huffed and slipped her phone back into her bag without answering. Calvin’s gaze found hers. He raised his eyebrows, and she smiled at him. Shuffling back to his side, she did her best to be a good, unobtrusive, unnoticeable date. This was the whole reason they’d struck their silly bargain, after all. She might as well hold up her end of it.
Until someone barreled into her legs. She looked down to see Ceecee’s face enveloped in bright-pink ruffles, her hair pushed back with a headband, her cheeks rosy with excitement. “Daphne,” she whispered as if she were about to impart an important secret, “your dress is amazing .”
Pulling back, Ceecee fluffed the iridescent-pink tiers of her own dress and twirled so the fabric flared out and glittered as it moved. Daphne had to admit, the style looked pretty good on a nine-year-old.
“Don’t know if I’d say ‘amazing,’ but it’s growing on me,” Calvin muttered.
“Like a mushroom,” Daphne confirmed.
When Calvin and Ceecee laughed, Daphne couldn’t help but join them. For a few precious seconds, she felt nothing but happiness. It was right there in the sparkle in Calvin’s gaze and the sound of Ceecee’s snorts. Daphne’s heart sent out a soft whisper that said Don’t you want this for yourself?
Hot on the heels of her joy was a wave of grief and longing so strong she had to turn away from the two of them to hide her reaction. Yes, she wanted it. She wanted to get to know Ceecee better. She wanted to spend her days and nights with Calvin. She wanted to be the woman he thought he saw in her.
But she was just Daphne.
Her melancholy thoughts were interrupted by the tapping of a microphone. All eyes turned to Kathy, who wore a dazzling navy gown studded with sequins. She looked like a pillar of dark glitter with spiky blond hair plonked on top to give her a few more inches of height.
“We have a special treat for you today,” Kathy announced. “Would our performers please follow me?”
Ceecee hooked her hand in Daphne’s elbow and vibrated with anticipation. “Have you been practicing?” she whispered.
Daphne tilted her head from side to side. “As much as we’ve been able.”
“Hopefully Calvin doesn’t punch anyone this time.”
“I didn’t punch your grandmother, Ceecee.”
Ceecee shot Daphne a mischievous glance, and the crowd parted to let them through. They were joined by other dancers, the ladies dressed in hot-pink ruffles, the men in black with pink ties. Kathy used her powers as lead choreographer to clear the dance floor, which encompassed a third of the room by the French doors that led to the backyard. The pink feathers had already been stashed on the perimeter.
With a squeeze of Daphne’s arm, Ceecee shot across the dance floor to take her place. Calvin’s hand slid down Daphne’s spine in comfort or commiseration or both, and he took his spot on top of a mark on the floor. Across from them, just outside the circle, Jenna Deacon arched her brows at Daphne’s dress, then flicked her gaze to Calvin and smiled.
Daphne tried not to let it bother her. What use was jealousy? She had no claim over Calvin Flint. Sure, they were together now. But would they be together tomorrow?
She was used to being overshadowed by people who were more charming, more beautiful, more spontaneous. Prodding the old wound didn’t feel good, but it was familiar.
She shifted her gaze away from the other woman and focused on Kathy, who stood over them like a drill sergeant assessing the latest batch of new recruits—and finding them lacking. Her hands were clasped behind her back, her eyes were narrowed, and her lips were pinched in a thin, disapproving line.
Some unseen signal passed from Kathy to whoever was manning the stereo. The music started, and Daphne’s feet began to move. There was a slight ache in her injured ankle, but she made it through the turns, the shimmies, and the steps. The gasps and titters of the audience fell away, and all that existed was pink fabric and movement. It was utterly ridiculous and amateurish, and Daphne couldn’t help the smile that bloomed over her lips. Across the circle from her, Ceecee looked like she was having the time of her life.
Daphne glanced at Calvin, who laughed as they spun and shimmied like their lives depended on it.
She dove for her feather, then turned and tented it over the middle of the dance floor, shoulder to shoulder with Calvin. Ceecee’s face was beaded with sweat as she shook her feather, and the drama of the moment cranked tighter. Behind them, the French doors opened, and two people sneaked inside and crouched under the feathers. The music swelled, a crescendo of crashing cymbals.
Once the music had reached its peak, all the feathers lifted. Eileen and Archie Yarrow stood in the middle of the dance floor as their pink-clad dance troupe circled away to the beat of the music. They smiled at the clapping crowd and then put their arms around each other and began to slow dance.
Daphne leaned against the wall and blew out a harsh breath. Beside her, Calvin dropped his feather and leaned his shoulder against hers. She glanced up to find him watching her, his cheeks flushed, his hair in beautiful disarray.
He smiled at her, wide and bright, and Daphne knew she was in love with him. Pain and pleasure twined around each other as she held his gaze, her breaths heaving, her heart galloping, her mind certain that she could never have him.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Caught in the storm of her emotions, Daphne didn’t understand what he was talking about. “For what?”
“For being here,” he said. “For being you.”
It should have been the best compliment anyone had ever paid her, but it felt like he’d just punched her in the gut. She hid her reaction by turning toward Harry, who’d stumped her way over to them, leaning heavily on her cane.
“That was the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen in my life,” she said while Eileen and Archie twirled on the dance floor. “I wish I’d gotten it on tape.”
“Eileen promised to save the recording to torture Ceecee with when she’s a teenager,” Calvin told her. “I’m sure we can get you a copy.”
Daphne forced a laugh, but it came out as a hiccup. Harry narrowed her eyes at Daphne but said nothing. On the dance floor, Eileen and Archie took a bow as the music faded to nothing.
“Eileen and Archie, everyone,” Kathy announced into a microphone. “Ten years of love. Ten years of commitment. Let us all come together and join them in renewing their vows to each other.”
“Have you lost your nerve, girl?” Harry asked quietly as she leaned close to Daphne’s ear.
Daphne shook her head, eyes darting to Calvin, who was staring at his mother in the center of the dance floor. “No.”
“After the ceremony is when we make our move. Meet me by the kitchen when Ryan gives the signal.”
Daphne straightened and focused on the happy couple. She glanced at Calvin, but he seemed lost in his own thoughts as he watched his mother recommit to her husband. In another world, Daphne might ask him what he was thinking. She might coax the truth of his emotions from him and let him know that she was here for him. In another world, that would be her place, her responsibility.
But their agreement was coming to an end. Her job at the department was over. She didn’t have the right to ask about the investigation into the shady BDT, LLC, and she didn’t have a right to ask Calvin to lean on her if he needed to.
It had taken all her courage to close the distance between them and finally spend the night with him. It had felt like a leap into the unknown, as terrifying as it was thrilling. Now Daphne wondered if she’d made a mistake. It would’ve been easy for Calvin to tell her that he didn’t want their arrangement to end, especially after she’d taken the first step. But he hadn’t. His promises had ended with ice cream on the couch when his mother’s event was over.
No one had ever looked at Daphne and said, I choose you. Pete had tossed her aside and made her feel boring and worthless. He’d used her for stability, for emotional support, for the mediocre sex they’d shared throughout their relationship. Then he’d decided that he was happy to turn his back on her without a second glance and without a thought to what Daphne had invested in their life together.
She didn’t want Pete back, but she wanted to be someone’s first choice. She wanted to be worth the risk. What had Calvin risked so far? A bit of gossip that would always be more favorable to a man compared to a woman. The inconvenience of hosting her in his guest room. His dignity during a silly dance.
Was that all she was worth to him? How long until he saw her through Pete’s eyes and decided he’d rather have someone better?
After she got her grandmother’s pot back, Daphne would be done with high-stakes heists. She’d avoid getting punched in the face by runaway thieves. She’d focus on getting a steady job and doing what needed to get done.
She wasn’t the woman he thought she was, and she had no right to pretend anymore.
It was better that their agreement was nearly over. She’d gotten too close. She’d slept with him—repeatedly—which had been a critical mistake. But she could finish this right here, tonight, and then crawl back into her shell and return to the life she was meant to lead. One of safety, stability, and responsibility.
She knew it was better this way. She knew herself. At the end of the day, Daphne was a coward. She’d fallen for Calvin, but she didn’t have the guts to see if he’d love her back once he remembered who she was when the dust settled. His rejection would hurt far, far more than Pete’s ever did, because Calvin had looked at her like no one ever had. He didn’t see Good Girl Daphne Davis. He saw a figment of his imagination. He saw the woman Daphne wished she was in reality.
Tonight was the end, and that was a good thing.
When applause filled the room, Daphne murmured something about finding a bathroom and ducked away from him. Her eyes stung, and she took deep, shuddering breaths to pull herself together.
Harry waited for her near the hallway that led to the kitchen. Nodding to the older woman, Daphne glanced over her shoulder.
Jenna Deacon had made her way to Calvin’s side. Her hand was stroking his arm, and she batted those beautiful eyes up at him. A dagger twisted in Daphne’s chest; they fit together better than Daphne and Calvin ever had. Two beautiful people who made sense, side by side.
Yes, it was better for this to end. And tonight, it would.
Her clutch buzzed at the same time as Harry’s phone let out a loud ding. They exchanged a weighty glance, then pulled out their phones.
It was time to get Grandma Mabel’s pot back.