Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
S carlet’s bravery just about slayed him. Her entire frame was trembling, but she forced her shoulders back and walked through Rebecca’s front door with a carefully composed expression on her face.
Following close behind, Matt passed a gated front room with a number of kids sitting in a circle and singing a familiar nursery rhyme. The young woman leading the group sported a strained smile as she called out to Scarlet, “She’s in the kitchen with Flora and Doc.”
They neared the back of the house, and Scarlet came to an abrupt stop in front of Matt. His hands shot to her waist to keep from knocking her over. Letting go, he easily looked over the top of her head, since she didn’t even come up to his chin, and into the kitchen.
Doc Buchanan—Hudson Island’s favorite doctor and father to one of Matt’s good friends—stood at the kitchen island with Daisy seated on the counter in front of him and Flora standing beside him.
The little girl was wearing a pink dress with purple and pink unicorns on it, dirt smearing her entire front. Her legs dangled over the edge, and he could see her skinned knees. Her black hair was pulled into a ponytail that was half undone, and her matching pink unicorn bow was askew.
The corners of his lips twitched. The kid looked like a hot mess. An adorable hot mess, but a hot mess for sure. Regardless, her giggles filled the room. Doc must have said something funny.
Matt glanced down at Scarlet. She’d gone completely still. Frowning, he placed his hands on her slim shoulders and squeezed. Then, bending so he was closer to her ear, he whispered, “Breathe, sweetheart. She’ll be fine, but you need to breathe.”
With a nod, Scarlet complied. Her hand came up and squeezed his, and it was his turn to go still.
“Thanks,” she murmured. After another breath, she stepped away from him and into the kitchen. “Hey, baby girl.”
Daisy’s head whipped toward her mom, and in the span of a heartbeat, the little girl’s expression went from smiling to devastated. Her giant blue eyes widened, then tears streamed down her face. As she cried, she reached for Scarlet and winced in pain. She’d obviously been holding it together until now, until she saw her mom.
Scarlet carefully gathered her daughter in her arms and rocked her, whispering comforting reassurances.
Matt rubbed the center of his aching chest. Plain and simple, his heart broke for the sweet kid. Daisy wasn’t even his—hell, he’d only met her a handful of times—but her tears were like a two-by-four to the chin, and her hiccupping cries tore his guts out. He looked over at Cade. The despair and sympathy on his buddy’s face mirrored his own emotions.
Running a hand over his closely cropped hair, he caught Doc’s eye. “Hey, Doc. How can we help?”
Doc shook both his and Cade’s hands in greeting, then said, “We’ll need to head over to the clinic for X-rays.”
“What happened?” Scarlet asked in that soothing voice, steadily swaying side to side.
“I falled down,” Daisy wailed.
Her distress had Matt sucking in a breath and shooting a frantic glance at Doc.
The man chuckled, giving him and Cade a soft smile. “The little peanut’s going to be fine, boys.”
“Oh my sweet girl,” Scarlet said. “You fell down? Is that how you hurt your arm?”
Daisy nodded, and her lower lip wobbled.
Flora held out a small stuffed unicorn to Daisy, who shook her head and burrowed deeper into her mom’s arms. “We were all coming in from playing outside, and she tripped,” Flora explained. “But when she fell, she landed on the edge of the bottom step.”
“I falled down really hard,” Daisy said with another loud hiccup.
“You sure did, honey,” Flora said. “And you landed right on your forearm.”
“It hurts, Mama.”
Scarlet pressed a kiss to the top of Daisy’s head. “I know, baby.”
Matt’s gaze flicked around the room. Holy shit, why the hell was everyone still standing around? They needed to move. Not chitchat about what had happened. He waited a moment, expecting the others to recognize the situation’s urgency, but Flora and Scarlet continued to quietly discuss Daisy’s fall.
Nope. He was done waiting.
“I’ll drive,” he said, pulling Scarlet’s keys from his pocket. He nodded at Cade. “Call Poppy. Scarlet’s going to want her friend.” He turned to Scarlet. “You can sit with Daisy in the back and?—”
“Oh, can I now?” Scarlet’s eyebrow arched, and an amused look flittered over her face.
Matt wasn’t quite sure if she was being sarcastic or not, but it didn’t matter. They were wasting time. Daisy needed to be attended to. Immediately. After all, what if her arm wasn’t the only thing that had been injured?
His chest seized. Holy shit, what if she’d hurt her ribs in the fall? “Doc, you’ll want to do a chest X-ray just to be sure. What if her fall?—”
Doc laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. “Calm down, son.”
“I’m perfectly calm,” he replied, making sure to keep the annoyance out of his tone. “But her arm isn’t going to X-ray itself, now is it? Let’s get moving, people.”
Placing his hand on Scarlet’s lower back, he ushered her out of the kitchen.
Forty-five minutes later, Daisy’s giggles filled the exam room, and Scarlet finally let out a relieved breath. The arm X-ray had revealed a fractured ulna, but luckily, it didn’t require surgery. As for Daisy’s ribs, Doc hadn’t believed there was any damage during his initial exam—there was no apparent bruising and she didn’t show any signs of pain when he’d poked and prodded her ribs. However, whether Matt had intended to or not, he’d planted that seed in Scarlet’s brain. When she’d asked Doc if he could do a chest X-ray just to be sure, she was certain he’d balk. But to her surprise, he’d simply said, “I understand. I’m a father and would do the same thing. I’d hate to miss something.”
In the back of her mind, she flinched at the added expense because she knew her crappy insurance wouldn’t cover the cost of the additional scan. It didn’t matter, though. She’d happily take on extra shifts—hell, she’d get a second job—to make sure Daisy wasn’t injured beyond her arm.
Thankfully, the chest X-ray had confirmed no damage to Daisy’s ribs.
Doc had given Daisy some over-the-counter medication to dull the pain, and now his nurse was distracting her sweet little girl with an impromptu puppet show.
“We’re doing a fiberglass short arm cast,” Doc said as he fit a stocking-looking thing over Daisy’s arm. “The fiberglass is lighter than plaster, and since this peanut is so petite, it’ll be more comfortable for her.”
Scarlet nodded, listening to him further explain that it would take between four and six weeks for her arm to heal, but with her being so young, it could be even sooner.
“I’ll have you bring her back in three weeks,” Doc continued. “We’ll take the cast off and do another X-ray. From there, we’ll see if we need to recast or move her to a splint for the final weeks of healing.” He paused in applying the padding and nodded to the door. “Why don’t you grab something to drink in the waiting room? After this padding, I’m going to apply the cast tape, and I think Daisy wants to surprise you with the color she’s picked out.” He looked down at her daughter and waggled his eyebrows. “Isn’t that right, peanut?”
Daisy nodded, a giant grin growing on her cherub face. “The color’s gonna be a surprise, Mama!”
Rising from the plastic chair, Scarlet leaned down and kissed the top of Daisy’s head. “All right, baby. I can’t wait to see what color you picked out.” She caught Doc’s eye and pushed back a wave of emotion. “Thanks, Doc.”
“Of course, dear.” He inclined his head toward the door again. “Now get out of here. We’ll call you in about twenty for the big reveal.”
Heading down the hallway, Scarlet let out an unsteady breath before she turned the corner to the waiting room.
“Hey, Scar. How are you holding up?”
Her head jerked up at the familiar voice. As her gaze locked on her friend, the emotion she’d been holding back surged forward, and a tear spilled free.
“Oh, sweetie,” Poppy said, rising to envelop her in a hug.
Scarlet took a moment and leaned on her friend. From the day she had arrived on Hudson Island just over a year and a half ago with a toddler on her hip, Poppy had been like a big sister. The woman was, hands down, the closest friend she’d ever had.
Scarlet didn’t trust many people—hell, she could count on one hand the number of people she trusted—but Poppy was one of them. She knew she never had to worry about Poppy stabbing her in the back or having some sort of ulterior motive, unlike her “friends” from before. Poppy was nothing but kindness, and while Scarlet was pretty sure she didn’t deserve the other woman’s friendship, she was hanging on to it with a death grip.
“Come sit,” Poppy said, steering her to the waiting room sofa. “Cade filled me in on what happened. How’s Daisy doing?”
Wiping away a couple of stray tears, Scarlet relayed the information Doc had given her. “When I left the room, she was in good spirits, so I don’t know why I’m still so shaky.” She held up her trembling hands and frowned.
“Give yourself a break, Scar. This is the first time Daisy’s ever been hurt. You’re allowed to be scared, Mama.”
Scarlet never wanted to go through this ever again. Her heart couldn’t take it. Yes, she knew it wasn’t realistic to keep her daughter wrapped in a protective bubble for the rest of her life, but holy moly did she want to.
Glancing around the empty waiting room, she let out another breath. Her forehead scrunched as she sank deeper into the couch. “Where are Cade and Matt?”
“Oh!” Poppy gave her a one-armed hug. “That’s from Cade. He says he’s sorry, but he had to take off. And...” She dug in her purse and pulled out a familiar set of keys. “These are for you. Matt also apologized, but he said he needed to get going, too. However, he did ask that I text him updates on how you and Daisy are doing.”
Scarlet’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Your face right now?” Poppy laughed. “You know, I can give you Matt’s number so you can text the guy directly. I mean, after all this time, he’s finally started speaking to you in full sentences. Who knew it would take Daisy breaking her arm for that to happen?”
Scarlet chuckled, and her face heated. Unfortunately, Poppy was aware of the teeny-tiny-sadly-one-sided crush she had on the man. “Yeah, that was an unexpected twist.”
“Come on, girlfriend.” Poppy leaned back so they were shoulder to shoulder. “What’s going on there?”
“Nothing.” And wasn’t that the sad truth?
Poppy elbowed her in the side. “Riiight.”
“I’m serious. He and Cade were at the diner this morning, and Matt was his usual mumble-one-word-answers-only self. But then Martha told me about Daisy, and I bolted out of there. One second I’m running to my car, and the next second Matt’s in the driver’s seat, Cade’s in the back, and they’re taking me to Daisy.”
In hindsight, she was thankful Matt had driven her. She had zero recollection of the time between getting into her car and seeing Daisy in Rebecca’s kitchen. It was all one giant, panic-induced blur.
“I don’t know, Pop. I don’t know why, but Matt was just there. Cade, too,” she rushed on. “Cade was there for me, too.”
Poppy shook her head. “Scar, my man will be the first one to admit that he was just along for the ride. That whole thing? That was all Matt.”
It was Scarlet’s turn to shake her head. “You’re reading too much into it. Matt was just being nice.” And she appreciated it. Truly. But she knew his assistance didn’t mean anything. Just like her little crush on him.
“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Poppy asked after a few moments of silence.
“I knew Matt was nice. I mean, he’s friends with Cade, so he couldn’t be a giant asshat, right?”
Poppy smiled. “True. But . . .”
She shrugged. “But nothing. It’s just that he didn’t have to go out of his way for me today. But he did, and it was really kind of him.” It had been a long time since a man had been kind to her. At least, one who didn’t want something in return. But that was most likely a reflection of her. Of the type of men she’d surrounded herself with.
She fought a cringe. Holy crap, all this stress was making her reflective. And not in a good way.
Scarlet met her friend’s gaze. “You know when you have a crush on someone who you don’t really know? And then when you actually get to know them, the person becomes more real?”
Poppy frowned. “Like real bad or real good?”
She shrugged. “Like real good, but it’s in a way that makes you realize how ridiculous your crush is.” And hers really, really was ridiculous.
Her friend’s frown deepened. “I’m not following, Scar.”
She let out a sigh that sounded pathetic to her own ears. Because that’s what she was. Pathetic. With a side of delusional tossed in. “I’ve been crushing on Matt since the moment I laid eyes on him. He’s crazy hot and does that sexy growly thing, you know? And did I mention he’s smoking hot?”
Poppy chuckled. “Once or twice.”
“But my crush on him was safe since I didn’t know him. At all. Kinda like when you’re crushing on a movie star. It’s safe, right? Like, there’s no way in hell you’re ever meeting that movie star in person, so it’s totally okay.”
Poppy’s lips pursed, and her eyes narrowed in confusion. “But you know Matt.”
“Sort of.” Scarlet released another sigh. This one defeated. “There’s no way he’d go for someone like me.”
Poppy pulled away, annoyance etched on her face. “What’s that supposed to mean, Scarlet Miller? You’re amazing.”
She rolled her eyes. God, she loved her friend. Why couldn’t Poppy have been her sister for real? Holy shit, if she’d had Poppy in her life from the get-go, then?—
No. No matter all the shit in her past, Scarlet would never wish it away. Because without all the chaos and trauma, there wouldn’t be Daisy. She was what mattered. Everything else paled in comparison.
“I’m serious, Scar,” Poppy said, bringing her back to the present. “Do you think he’s out of your league or something?”
She gave her friend her best don’t-be-dumb-of-course-he’s-out-of-my-league expression.
“Might I remind you, young lady,” Poppy said in her most prissy mom voice, “that you lectured me not too long ago when I had doubts about Cade and thought that he was way out of my league.”
“That’s because you were being stupid.” When Poppy’s mouth dropped open, Scarlet held up a hand and kept talking. “You’re a successful business owner who’s raised two sons basically on your own. Two sons who are sweet and funny and who both got full-ride academic scholarships to one of the best schools. You’re not out of anyone’s freaking league.”
“And you aren’t either, Scarlet.”
She met her friend’s gaze, and for a moment, silence surrounded them. Poppy was one of the few people who knew about her sordid and checkered past. Not all of it—she made damn sure no one knew all of it—but her friend knew enough. “While I appreciate the sentiment, Pop, we both know that isn’t true.”
Poppy shook her head. “We’re going to have to agree to disagree on this one, friend.”
“Oh, come on. The man could have anyone.” She let out a sigh. “Besides, everyone would just think I’m a gold-digger since he’s so much older than me.”
Poppy snorted. “You forget that you know each and every member of the gossip train. And they know you. They’d never think that.”
She pursed her lips together. “Yeah, well, still. I’m not sure what he’d see in me. I mean, Matt’s a Seattle PD detective . The man has a whole freaking career. I’m a waitress living paycheck to paycheck, hoping to keep her daughter in clothes that fit.”
“Whatever. You’re a great mom, and I know for a fact that you live frugally because you’re trying to set aside money.”
Scarlet opened her mouth to argue but snapped it shut when Poppy arched an eyebrow. Fine. She’d asked her friend about the different types of savings accounts she could set up for Daisy and herself, so denial was out of the picture. Still, she appreciated what Poppy was trying to do. She really did. Having someone be her cheerleader was a precious novelty.
“But, Pop, that doesn’t take away the fact that I’m a ninth-grade dropout who doesn’t even have a GED.” Who’d been more than happy hanging around her local motorcycle club, doing whatever they’d told her to do. She hadn’t been good enough—or old enough—to be anyone’s old lady back then, but that’s what she’d been aiming for. God knew they’d been the antithesis of the altruistic motorcycle club she’d learned about this morning, but she’d turned a blind eye to everything. Until it had become impossible.
That was another thing that needed to be kept under wraps for... well, forever.
She rubbed her suddenly throbbing temples. “Look, Poppy, I’m exhausted and don’t know what I’m talking about. Please forget I said anything, okay?”
“But, Scar?—”
“Mama!” The familiar patter of little running feet came to a sudden halt, and there was Daisy. Holding her right arm out in front of her, a giant grin stretched over her face. “Look, Mama! It’s pink!”
Scarlet’s heart squeezed, and she let her daughter’s excitement wash over her. Let her sweet girl’s joy temper the nerves and worry simmering in her gut.
They were going to be okay.
She’d just have to figure out the details later. The clinic did payment plans, right? No, don’t dwell on that. As long as they had each other, they were good. However, knowing that she was all Daisy had was also utterly terrifying.
Stop! She needed to keep focus, needed to keep her wits about her.
“Scarlet, dear,” Doc said, pulling her from her spiraling thoughts. He gestured to the exam room. “We can go over the care instructions for Daisy’s arm.”
Poppy patted her back. “Take your time. I’ll wait for you.”
Giving her friend a grateful nod, Scarlet rose. She smiled for her daughter, scooped her up, and settled her on her hip. As they followed Doc into the exam room, Scarlet oohed and aahed over the tiny hot-pink cast. But the sour rock in her gut remained. Her baby had gotten hurt.