Chapter Nine
GRAHAM
It was getting late, and Allie still wasn’t home. Snagging my phone off the kitchen counter, I sent her a quick text.
Me: ETA? I thought you said you’d be home in time for dinner.
I opened the refrigerator, sighing when I recalled I’d meant to swing by the grocery store on the way home today. It was one thing to forget to feed myself, but I had Allie to consider. Just then, my phone rang, and I lifted it to see my mother calling.
“Hey, Mom.”
“Hi, Graham. I was wondering if you and Allie wanted to come over for dinner tomorrow night.”
“Of course,” I replied.
That was an easy yes. My mom was a fantastic cook, and I actually liked my parents. Maybe tonight, I’d just drive back to town to pick up a pizza.
“Excellent. How are things with you?”
“Busy, but what else is new?”
She laughs softly. “You’re always busy. I heard Alison canceled another trip. Did Allie know she was coming?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” I said, leaning my hips against the counter and running a hand through my hair.
“How did she take it?”
“She cried, and then I made spaghetti.”
“Smart man. You’re a good father.”
“I try. I forgot to go grocery shopping this week, though, so I’m zipping back into town to get some pizza for dinner.”
“By the way, I heard you have a new neighbor.”
I chuckled. “News travels fast. I’m glad Harold’s house isn’t going to sit vacant.”
“I’m sure his granddaughter is nice.”
“She seems nice enough,” I said, keeping my tone nonchalant. My mother was the equivalent of a bloodhound following a scent when it came to picking up on things from me.
“Oh, have you met her?” my mother asked, her voice lilting. This was her nosy voice. I knew it well.
“You didn’t hear the whole story? Rex called me because he got a report about somebody seeing the lights on there.
Janet was the only one who knew his granddaughter was showing up, but she didn’t know when.
I ended up checking on the place. I don’t think she loved me showing up like that, but she handled it.
I didn’t even know Harold had a granddaughter, but Allie did. ”
My mother laughed warmly. “Your daughter knows how to get the scoop, and Harold had a soft spot for her. Tell me about your new neighbor then.”
“I just told you she seems nice.”
“That’s it?”
“Mom, I’ve met her three, I mean, two times. I don’t know much more.”
“Three times!” She practically barked in my ear.
“Two times,” I corrected. I was lying, but I wasn’t about to fill my mom in on my encounter with Madison before she landed in Willow Brook. “We ran into her at Firehouse Café too. Allie’s over there now. I’m gonna have to check on her because she’s running late.”
“Well, be nice to Madison. It’s not easy to move to a small town.”
“Jesus, Mom. I’ll be nice to her,” I insisted, thinking in the back of my mind that my mother probably didn’t equate being nice with kissing.
That kiss was a one-time deal, and I was blaming it on Madison. “I will absolutely be a good neighbor. We’ll see you tomorrow night.”
After getting off the phone, I pocketed my keys and jogged out to my truck, calling into Alpenglow Pizza to order two pizzas once I started driving. Allie still hadn’t replied to my text. If she didn’t reply soon, I’d stop by Madison’s place on the way home.
In short order, I had pizzas in the truck and still hadn’t heard a peep from my daughter. This wasn’t like Allie. She was usually record fast with her replies because her phone was practically an extension of her body.
I didn’t want to blame this on Madison, but I was disgruntled when I got to her house. I recognized Wilbur’s sharp bark when I knocked on the door. I could hear Allie’s laughter in the background. I had to knock a second time before I heard footsteps approaching.
Madison swung the door open, looking way too pretty.
Her hair was pulled up in a messy knot with loose tendrils dangling around her cheeks and along the sides of her neck.
Her cheeks were pink, and she was wearing sweatpants and a T-shirt.
My eyes dipped down, taking in the way the shirt stretched across the generous curves of her breasts.
I yanked my gaze up when she said, “Well, hi there, Graham. Allie just checked her phone.”
I nodded, almost not trusting myself to speak to her since my body felt too charged. “Allie,” I called.
Allie came into the entryway looking relaxed and happy. She held up her hands and wiggled her fingers. “Look, we did our nails together. What do you think?”
Madison unsettled me, and I was annoyed that my daughter couldn’t be bothered to check in with me. I didn’t mean to be snappy, but I was. “I think you should’ve checked your phone and let me know you weren’t going to be on time for dinner.”
Allie set her chin in a mulish line. “It’s not a big deal, Dad. My phone died, and I didn’t have my charger. I didn’t even think about it until just a few minutes ago.”
“I let her use my charger as soon as she told me,” Madison said, her tone placating as she glanced back and forth between us.
“It’s fine,” I said, probably too sharply. “You ready?”
My daughter looked like she wanted to cry, which frustrated me further because I didn’t want any of this to happen in front of Madison. I was always working to be a halfway-decent father, and now I probably looked like an ass.
“You don’t have to be so cranky about it,” Allie said as she spun away. She would have stalked, except she was wearing socks, so it didn’t have much impact.
Wilbur circled my feet excitedly, and I finally leaned down to greet him. Madison’s tone was low when she spoke. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t paying attention to the time. You could have texted me.”
“It’s fine,” I replied.
Allie had been an easy kid for most of her childhood.
In the past year or so, I felt like I was fumbling and screwing up over and over.
I didn’t know how to deal with her having an attitude, and her emotions could shift in a blink.
Her doctor told me hormones were the reason, but that didn’t make me feel any better when I didn’t handle things well.
A moment later, Allie returned, shrugging into her jacket and stuffing her feet into her boots. She looked toward Madison. “Thank you. It was nice to visit. I’m sorry my dad’s a jerk.”
“Allie,” I began.
She slid me a look, and I stopped. As it was, I didn’t even know what else I meant to say.
“Good night,” I managed.
As we left, Allie paused to stroke Wilbur’s head, and then we were gone. I felt Madison’s eyes boring into my back as we walked down her stairs and crossed the drive to my truck.
Allie gave me the silent treatment on the way home. I decided that was better than the alternative, which was an argument. When we pulled up in front of our house, I said, “I have pizza for dinner.”
“I thought you were going to the grocery store.”
“I forgot.”
“Oh, sort of like how I forgot to charge my phone and didn’t pay attention to the time. So, it’s okay for you to forget, but not me?”
I turned to face her. “Allie, I don’t ask much. You could have checked the time and just sent me a text. No biggie. I’m sure Madison would’ve let you use her phone.”
Allie pressed her lips in a line. “Next time, I won’t forget. I’m glad you got pizza, but we don’t have any oatmeal or yogurt for breakfast.”
She flounced out of the car. After we ate, the tension settled. I apologized for being cranky, and she apologized for forgetting to let me know when she’d be home.
The following morning, it was Saturday, and I didn’t have to work.
Allie was sleeping in. Even though every fiber of my being protested it, I knew I needed to apologize to Madison for being cranky in front of her.
After a cup of coffee, I sent Allie a text, letting her know I’d be back shortly.
I figured I wasn’t required to notify her that I was going to apologize to Madison.
A subtle tension spun inside me that I wasn’t telling her where I was going, but I would go to the grocery store after that. Technically, I wasn’t lying completely.