Chapter 27
“I really like that they need to go for walks on the weekend, too,” Grace said as they started their walk. “But tomorrow I can’t come with you.”
“Oh?” Ali asked.
“I have to go with her somewhere, all dressed up and silly-looking.”
“You, my dear, could never, ever look silly.”
Grace smiled, but it didn’t last. “I hate when she’s around all day and I have to hide in my room.”
Ali considered what to say as the dogs led them down to the sidewalk in front of the big house. Cutter, as always, was polite on leash, and better yet, he was teaching Ziggy to behave as well. Stops to sniff were allowed, but pulling so hard Grace had to fight him was not.
Of course, as soon as they were out of sight—they had to be more circumspect when Liz was home—she would pick up Ziggy and hand Cutter’s leash to Grace and they’d double their speed.
“I’m sorry you feel like you need to hide,” she finally said.
Grace made a face. “I’m afraid she’ll get mad and take away all my time with Daddy. I don’t trust her.”
“Then it’s good that you can completely trust him.”
The frown became a smile. “I do. And I think I trust the Foxy people.” That made Ali smile. The child had started using the term when she decided the Foxworth Foundation was too long to say all the time. “And I really trust you,” Grace added matter-of-factly, as if it were a given.
Ali stopped in her tracks. Grace stopped beside her and looked up, puzzled. She couldn’t stop herself, she leaned down and gave the girl a rather fierce hug. “Thank you. That’s one of the best birthday presents I’ve ever gotten.”
Grace’s eyes widened as Ali released her. “It’s your birthday?”
“Well, tomorrow is.”
“I didn’t know. I should have got you a present.”
“You just gave me a huge one.”
“But there should be something else,” the child protested, sounding almost upset.
“Tell you what,” Ali said as they started walking again, “write me a story.”
Grace looked intrigued. “About what?”
“Whatever you want. Maybe—” she gestured toward Cutter and Ziggy “—about two dogs who become friends.”
Grace’s face lit up. “Okay. But we’re past the trees, so now you can pick up Ziggy so we can hurry.”
Ali nodded and Grace reeled in the puppy. She settled him in the sling and he seemed happy enough, looking around with just as much interest as when he’d been on the ground sniffing everything within reach.
When they got to Foxworth, Grace let Cutter off the leash as they neared the front door to the big green building.
He started toward the door; Ali was even looking forward to seeing him hit that auto switch and open the door himself again.
But then he unexpectedly changed course and headed not for the main office, but for the building on the other side of the landing pad, where Colby had said they hangared the helicopter and stored other vehicles.
The dog looked back, as if to be sure they had registered the change in destination.
“I guess we follow him, huh?” she said.
“Of course,” Grace replied.
The big doors were shut, but the human-sized one was open. And when they got a little closer she could hear the sound of hammering.
“Daddy!” Grace exclaimed, and started to run.
By the time Ali got there, Grace was up in her father’s arms, both of them all smiles.
She hesitated in the doorway, thinking that now she knew the child was safely with him she should leave them be.
But then Colby turned to look, and the smile on his handsome face left her seemingly unable to move.
She’d never seen him like this, in work mode. It was warmer in the hangar than she would have expected, so he was down to just jeans and a T-shirt. A T-shirt tucked in, showing her just how built he really was. Not an ounce on him that didn’t look fit and muscled.
“Come on in,” he said.
“I… You two need alone time.”
“Come in, Ali,” Grace insisted. “Look at what Daddy’s building.”
She was curious, so with a silent promise she wouldn’t stay, she walked over to them.
“Quinn said he needed shelves and a rack for the tools, for all the equipment they store in here. He doesn’t like the metal ones. Too noisy, he said.”
She looked around at the tools stacked up along the far wall. “Wow. That’s a lot of stuff.”
Colby nodded, still smiling widely. As if having his little girl with him and work to do was all he needed to be happy.
“With the helicopter, a couple of generators, an ATV and three extra vehicles for various purposes, they need a lot of different tools.”
Ali gave a slow shake of her head as she looked around at everything he’d mentioned. Colby set Grace back down, and the girl proceeded to dart off to explore those same things.
“Sometimes,” Ali said, “I have to remind myself what a big deal they are, they seem so…normal.”
He nodded. “I didn’t realize they have five different locations. Here, down in Southern California, one each in the Northeast and Southeast. Then what used to be their main headquarters in St. Louis.”
“Used to be?”
He was smiling again. “Quinn said everybody seems to be migrating here. He started out in St. Louis, but fell in love with this region, then when he met Hayley decided to stay. His sister started there too—she’s the financial genius who funds it all—but she’s in love with the guy who keeps all this running.
” He glanced over to where Grace was looking at the ATV, as if to be sure she was out of earshot before adding, “Who also happens to be an extremely lethal sniper.”
That made her blink. “What?”
“Former Marine. Famous for it, apparently.”
“Wow.”
He glanced over again, clearly keeping track of his girl. Which prompted Ali to say, “Is Hayley here?”
He looked back and nodded in answer. “She’s over in the office, pulling strings, I think.”
“Good. I want to go say hello.” And leave you two to enjoy this precious time.
“Okay. Thanks for getting Grace here.”
She smiled. “You don’t have to thank me every time.”
“Yes, I do.”
“You don’t. Besides, Grace already thanked me in the best way.”
She told him about the child’s declaration of trust as they’d started their walk, and how she’d been so moved she’d nearly crushed her with a hug. She couldn’t quite put a name to his expression then, but it was happy and that was enough.
Colby watched Ali go. He found himself more than a little fascinated by the way she moved, that female way.
When he caught himself utterly focused on the back pockets of her snug jeans, he tore his gaze away.
He shouldn’t be looking at her that way, shouldn’t be feeling this way.
He should be focused on being grateful, not on her backside.
After all, the woman had rearranged her entire life to do this, to help them, and she would barely let him thank her for it.
He heard the rapid patter of running steps and spun around to see Grace headed for him at a trot, apparently finding the vehicles other than the ATV just boring everyday cars.
Personally, when he’d seen them parked here, he’d realized fairly quickly they could help Foxworth present any image they wanted, from the worn truck Liam had driven to the sleek, expensive import that he had a sneaking suspicion might be put to use impressing people like Liz.
Quinn’s sister must be quite the financial genius. Liam had told him she’d used the insurance payout from their parents’ deaths in a terrorist attack to build Foxworth, and she’d clearly done an amazing job of it.
“Did Ali leave?” Grace asked.
“She went over to see Hayley in the office.”
“Oh. Daddy, we need to do something special.”
“Sweetie, every extra minute I get to spend with you is special.”
She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. “I know, but we get to do that ’cuz of Ali, right?”
“Yes. Did you mean you want to do something for her?” He liked the idea, and even more that his girl had had the thought.
“We have to. Tomorrow’s her birthday.”
He blinked. “It is?”
Grace nodded. “She told me that me trusting her was a great birthday present, but I wanted to give her more, so she said for me to write her a story.”
That sounded so like Ali, to encourage his girl in that talent that was already obvious. “Are you going to?”
Grace nodded. “But Daddy, we need to give her something she has to unwrap.”
He reminded himself he was talking to his little girl to get rid of the image those words planted in his mind.
“You have something in mind?”
Grace’s brow furrowed. “She doesn’t like all the stuff the mother likes, jewelry and fancy clothes.”
“That doesn’t surprise me.” No, Ali was too genuine, too real for that. He had the feeling for her it was function over form, not the other way around as it was for Liz. “Have you ever heard her mention something she wants?”
Grace brightened. “Yes!” Her expression turned thoughtful again. He focused on her, thinking he wouldn’t trade the challenge of keeping up with his clever girl for anything. “But I don’t think we could wrap it up like a present.”
“What is it?”
“She wants a…a greenhouse? You know, the glass thing you grow plants in.” Well, having seen her garden, that didn’t surprise him at all. “Just a little one, but big enough to walk into.”
“She have a spot in mind?”
Grace nodded. “Out back, next to the deck. She says it gets the most sun. And she said the reason she didn’t already have one was she wasn’t sure she could put it together. You can do that, Daddy. You can build anything.”
For a moment all he could do was let those words, spoken with such love and conviction, play in a loop in his head. Then practicality rose up.
“It would have to be a late present,” he said. “I can’t be at Ali’s house while your mother’s home.”
“But she won’t be tomorrow.” Grace frowned. “Neither will I. She’s making me go with her to some fancy thing down near the big mall. She even gave Irene the day off.”
“Oh.” He tried not to dwell on not seeing her tomorrow and focused on making this wish of hers come true. “What time is this thing?”