Danielle
“I am so sorry about him,” Jet Thompson says, through laughter as he wipes a tear out of his eye. “He hasn’t been in town very long. I would have told him to take it easy if I’d known you were here.”
“It’s fine,” she says, trying to keep her tone from being annoyed. “It happens. He’s not the first guy to come here and try to get my number, and he won’t be the last. ”
He was definitely one of the more attractive ones she had seen, though. All things considered.
“Still,” Jet says, standing to his full height and holding a hand out for her, “I didn’t know he was going to do that.”
She takes his hand and lets him help her up, brushing her jeans off as she does.
Danielle grabs the stack of books she had been shelving, and glances out the window.
The handsome stranger tugs a hand through his wavy dark hair, muscles in his arms flexing in the most delicious way, and kicks the sidewalk.
His mouth opens in what she assumes is a stream of expletives, judging by the way people cross the street to avoid him, and Danielle ducks her head to hide a laugh.
She turns away from the window so she can keep working on her shelving, noticing that Jet is lingering. It had been a long time since the feelings she’d had for him disappeared, but it didn’t mean that she wasn’t aware of him in her space.
“Did you get Ainsley’s order?” she asks, not looking over at him. “I saw it came in in the back.”
“Cara’s going to get it,” Jet says. “I also wanted to see if you’re doing alright, you know, with everything. ”
“I really wish people would stop asking me that,” she says, tone shorter than she had meant. “I’m not okay, like at all, but the only thing I can do is get through it, isn’t it?”
“I know what it’s like to lose someone who means everything to you,” Jet says, “so if you need anything, you know where to find us. Whether it’s watching Harper or helping you at your house, dinner, laundry… whatever. Just call, okay? We’re here for you.”
“I’m sure Ainsley would be thrilled to hear you say that,” Danielle says with a huff. “After everything I put both of you through, the last thing you should be offering is help .”
“It’s water under the bridge.” Jet says, waving her off. “Even if it wasn’t, we help each other here. Ainsley even brought it up this morning, so I’m not saying anything she hasn’t already thought herself. We help each other. That’s what community is for.”
The bell above the door jingles, and Jet’s friend walks back in, stopping at the coffee counter and shifting from foot to foot, looking anywhere but at her.
She kind of wishes he would look at her again, though .
“Are you Andrew Fisher?” one of the brothers, her regulars, asks. Jet’s friend stiffens before turning, wiping his hands on his shirt before extending one out to the man in question.
Danielle can’t hear what they’re saying, but she sees Andrew pull a marker out of the pocket of his shorts before she glances over at Jet.
“Andrew Fisher?” She asks, raising an eyebrow. His name is so familiar. “Is that…?”
“Right defenseman for the Carolina Hurricanes?” Jet supplies. “Yeah. He’s here for the summer, and my best friend.”
“Do they not have training?”
“It’s the off season,” Jet answers, “and he’s been through it this year, so he’s staying at my house until he’s ready to go back and play.”
“What happened, did his stick break during a game?” she asks, bitter edge in her voice that she doesn’t like. “Too many minutes in the penalty box?”
She immediately wants to take her words back as Jet levels her with a look.
“That’s not fair,” Jet says, folding his arms over his chest. “You aren’t the only one in this town who has gone through a hard time. ”
“I’m sorry,” she says, “it’s fresh right now, that’s all.”
“I know, but pain isn’t an excuse to step on other people’s feelings,” Jet says. “Andy’s hurt might not look like yours, but it’s there.”
“Does he always carry a marker around with him?” she asks, raising a brow and trying to cut tension that’s built between them.
“He makes a habit of it, I guess,” Jet says, shrugging, “both of us did when we were playing together.”
Andrew excuses himself from the conversation with the twin brothers, and heads in their direction. Danielle turns away again, shelving another book before grabbing another stack from the floor.
“Hiding outside not doing it for you?” she asks.
Jet rolls his eyes, but makes no move to leave. Andrew flushes, and it’s the most stupidly endearing thing she’s ever seen. Much to her chagrin, everything this man has done in her presence has been stupidly endearing.
“I needed some air,” he says, his voice isn’t as deep as she expected it to be, but it’s smooth. The kind of voice you would associate with a fall afternoon .
“I’m sure,” Danielle says. “Not your best move.”
“I’m normally not that big of an idiot,” he replies, “I haven’t exactly been talking to just about anyone for the last month. I’m Andrew.”
“I’ve heard,” Danielle says, turning to look at him and trying not to let her immediate attraction show on her face.
He’s tall, easily 6’3, with broad shoulders and soft, dark hair that falls in waves around his ears and ends just above his shoulders.
It’s the kind of hair you want to run your fingers through and tug on, just to see what sound he would make.
She’s not sadistic, she swears. She just really likes a man with grabbable hair.
He has a sharp, square jaw, with the slightest shadowing of a beard along it and she’s immediately wishing she had never noticed that detail.
This one right here, he’s a man .
Not one of the boys in this town she’s wasted her time with. She’s looking at an honest-to-goodness Man .
She clears her throat and holds her hand out. He takes it, and she takes note of a leather bracelet wrapped around his opposite wrist. “I’m Danielle. It’s nice to know your name, first. ”
“Yeah,” Andrew says, running a hand through his hair again. A nervous tick, maybe? “I’m usually not one to word-vomit all over the place. It’s been tough out there.”
“Join the club,” Danielle replies.
Jet’s warning echoes in her ears, but seriously. What does this guy even know about life being hard? He’s an NHL player with more money than the entire town is worth. Millions of people fawning over him and giving him whatever he wants or needs, while playing a sport he loves.
She doesn’t think the word ‘tough’ could even be in his vocabulary. And if it is, it’s certainly not with the definition the rest of the world goes by.
The bell above the door jingles again, and Danielle looks up to see Erick following Harper into the store. She’s running down the center aisle, dirty blonde hair trailing behind her as she does.
“Hey, Sparrow!” Danielle says, setting her remaining books down on one of the ladder steps just in time for Harper to crash into her and fling her arms around her waist .
It takes her all of two seconds for her to realize that Harper is crying.
Big, wet tears that she’s trying to hide in Danielle’s shirt.
She glances over at Erick and he sighs, shrugs, and runs a hand over his face.
He’s still in his emerald green scrubs, and she thinks that might be blood on his pants.
“I picked her up from school like this,” he offers in explanation. “They called me. Said they tried to get a hold of you but you didn’t answer.”
“My phone was in the back,” she replies.
“Make sure you keep it on you,” Erick says. “I have to get back to work, but I’ll stop at your place tonight to make sure everything is okay.”
“Thanks, Erick.”
He gives her a nod before heading back out the door and to his car.
Danielle crouches down so she can pick Harper up, and Harper buries her face in Danielle’s shoulder.
Jet and Andrew are watching her, with matching expressions of concern on their faces. Jet looks sad, and Andrew looks slightly confused by the whole thing, but his eyes are soft and on Harper as Danielle adjusts her in her arms .
“It was nice to see you, Jet,” she says, “and nice to meet you Andrew. Maybe I’ll see you both soon?”
“Don’t forget what I said,” Jet says as she starts to walk towards the back office. “Anything you need, just call.”
“Thanks,” she says over her shoulder, “tell Ainsley I said hi.”
She shuts the office door behind her and sets Harper on her desk. She’s stopped crying, but her eyes are red-rimmed and wet with tears. Danielle runs her thumb under Harper’s eyes to wipe them away.
“What happened, Sparrow?” she asks softly. Harper sniffs and hides her face behind her hands.
“I was in art class,” she says between sniffles, “and the teacher asked us to draw our families, and I didn’t know who to draw.”
Danielle’s heart shatters, and then falls out of her chest onto the wood floor of her office as Harper begins to cry again. She doesn’t know what to say, she can only hug her again and let her cry.
“Why did my mom and dad have to go?” she sobs into Danielle’s shirt. “It’s not fair, everyone else has their mom and dad. ”
“I know it’s not, Sparrow,” Danielle says softly, trying to hold back her own tears, “I know. You can still draw them when they ask to draw your family.”
“But they aren’t here,” Harper says, pulling back and wiping her nose along her whole arm. Danielle hands her the hem of her shirt for her as a tissue.
“It doesn’t mean they aren’t your family,” Danielle says, crouching so she’s eye level with Harper again. “They’re always going to be your mom and dad.”
Harper sniffs again, but Danielle can tell that she’s put out today’s fire, even though there’s going to be plenty more where that came from.
“Do you want to come help Miss Cara in the café?” Danielle asks. “I’ll make you a vanilla Frappuccino.”
“Can you put caramel in it?” Harper asks, sniffling, “and chocolate?”
“Is there any other way you’d drink it?” Danielle asks. Harper flings her arms around Danielle’s neck.
“Is Uncle Erick mad?” Harper asks. Danielle steps back so she can hop off the desk. “He didn’t seem happy when he came to get me.”
“He’s not mad,” Danielle replies. “He’s… figuring it out as he goes. This is new for both of us. ”
“You’re both grownups,” Harper says, looking up at her. “You’re supposed to know everything.”
Danielle laughs. “Grownups are just pretending to know everything, we’re just as confused as you are most of the time.”
Erick’s car pulls into Danielle’s driveway about fifteen minutes after Harper goes to bed. She sets out a plate of dinner for him, and he comes inside, clearly exhausted from his shift in the ER.
He looks like Emerson. The golden, All-American, classically handsome, boy-next-door. If he hadn’t practically been Danielle’s brother growing up, she would have probably married him by now and saved herself a lot of trouble instead of chasing Jet Thompson.
“You didn’t have to cook for me,” he says, sitting at the kitchen table, tired smile on his face as his eyes follow her around the kitchen. “But it’s better than ramen.”
“Are you doing okay?” Danielle says, sitting across from him. She sets a glass of water down, and his eyes soften when he looks at her .
“I should be asking you the same thing,” Erick says, shoveling mashed potatoes into his mouth. “Is Harper okay?”
“They asked her to draw her family,” Danielle says with a sigh. “And she didn’t know who to draw.”
“That’s it?” Erick asks. “Seems a little dramatic, if you ask me.”
“She’s six, Erick,” Danielle says, “and if we’re a mess, imagine being her. She went from her parents, to us. To me . How unlucky does she have to be to have all of this happen to her when she’s this young?”
“You’re right,” he says, “that wasn’t nice of me to say. And it was pretty insensitive of the teacher, since the whole town knows what happened.”
“I’m going to call the school tomorrow,” Danielle says, “see if there’s anything that can be done. Advocate, you know. Like a good parent does.”
Erick reaches across the table and takes her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze, letting his hand linger over hers just a moment too long. She pulls back and offers half a smile.
“You’re braver than me,” he says, “taking all of this on. Losing Em, and Jack, and now being a pseudo-mother to Harper. ”
“I did what anyone would do,” Danielle says, standing up. She goes to the sink to finish rinsing dishes.
Because that is what she’s doing, right? The thing that would honor her friends the most, and would reassure them that their daughter was going to be alright, no matter what happened to them? This wasn’t some sort of hero complex in action?
“I don’t think so,” Erick says, shaking his head, “I would have because she’s my niece and I would run through a wall for her. But you, you could have walked away the minute they flat-lined.”
“If it was anyone else, I might have,” she says, “but it’s Harper.”
“It’s Harper,” Erick agrees, nodding his head.
“I’m sorry I didn’t have my phone on me,” she says. “We had a rush this morning.”
“All good,” he replies. “Sorry I was so short about it. People understand and are giving me a grace period, but it’s hard to leave when a patient is coding in front of you. Who was that guy with Jet? He looked familiar.”
“Andrew Fisher,” she says. “He plays for an NHL Team in – ”
“Raleigh,” Erick finishes. “I knew there was a hockey player in town but I didn’t know it was him . He played with Jet, right?”
“Yeah. Apparently, he’s here for the off season,” she says, shrugging. “He seemed nice enough, if not annoying.”
“I can think of fifteen words to describe Andrew Fisher and none of them are annoying , Danielle.”
“Does someone have a man-crush?” Danielle asks, wiggling her eyebrows. “You’re obsessed with him, aren’t you?”
“Do you think you can introduce me to him?” Erick asks eyes going wide. “Since he’s friends with Jet, and everything.”
“He didn’t even introduce himself to me before he tried to get my number,” Danielle replies, rolling her eyes. “I don’t know if he’ll want to meet a fanboy. And, like I said, he’s annoying.”
“Take it easy, he doesn’t know you’re a grump by nature.”
“I am not a grump,” she says, “I’m grieving. If you want to insult me again, after I cooked your dinner and invited you into my home, you can leave. ”
Erick rolls his eyes and shoves his chair back from the table. “Whatever you say, Danielle. If you need anything, call me okay? I’m working a twelve tomorrow but I don’t have to be there until four.”
“I promise, you’ll be the first one I call.”