Chapter Nine #2
“Seriously,” she growled, then crossed the kitchen in three quick steps and grabbed the phone again. “What do you want from me, Michael?”
Two more messages greeted her.
There’s a small chance I could be sent with special ops to one of the bases in Alaska.
I ran into a friend of ours, who mentioned that you were going back to Alaska for a while. If our schedules sync, it would be great to see you in person. Let me know if you’re interested. Here are the dates…
“No, I am not interested.” She set the phone down and then glared at the device. Was she interested, though?
If she was honest, it felt good to have some attention from him.
And a tiny part of her was feeling quite smug that he was having second thoughts.
Okay, a huge part of her wanted to shout I told you so .
But the rational side of her brain couldn’t fathom why she’d even entertain talking to him, much less meeting up with him.
Honestly, could he be more insensitive?
Surely he knew it was almost Valentine’s Day. Did he choose this month intentionally to reach out? Maybe he was lonely too.
Good for him.
So many questions spooled through her head. Instead of responding, she found the recipe she needed and gathered the ingredients.
Cutting the stick of butter into smaller pieces was so satisfying.
Once she added them to a glass bowl, she slowly poured in the heavy cream.
Then she put the bowl in the microwave, set the time, and turned it on.
Turning away, she eyed the corn syrup and sugar on the counter.
Working with sweet sticky substances wasn’t her gift.
So much could go wrong. But playing it safe and not attempting to make the salted caramel chews didn’t get her anywhere either.
“Just try,” she whispered. “How bad could it be?”
The kettle came to a boil, so she paused to fix her tea, then went back to heating the sugar, corn syrup and water in a pan on the stove.
The appealing aroma of sugar mingled with the scent of the melted butter, making her mouth water.
As soon as the concoction started to boil, she double-checked the recipe.
Oh, no. She didn’t have any parchment paper. She peeked inside the empty grocery bags, then searched all the cabinets. Nothing.
Really? Couldn’t one thing work out? She’d have to substitute wax paper or aluminum foil, because that was all she had, and these ingredients were too expensive to waste.
Her phone pinged yet again. Nope. Not looking.
Lost in the memories of helping her grandmother make candy, Jovi measured the temperature, stirring almost constantly until she had the concoction to the appropriate consistency. Well, the consistency she thought looked right.
After lining the glass baking dish with foil, she poured in the hot, smooth mixture.
As the caramels cooled on the counter, she added a bit of honey to her mug. Soft knocking on the door got her attention. What now? She’d planned to hunker down, enjoy her desserts alone and try to pretend that Michael hadn’t reached out.
The knock sounded again. Maybe it was an emergency. She’d better answer. Cradling her tea in both hands, Jovi crossed to the door and opened it. Her heart skipped to find Burke and Darby Jane standing on the porch. Their breath left puffy white clouds in the night air.
Not a bad surprise. Maybe they could help pull her out of her Michael funk.
“Hey there. It’s two of my favorite neighbors. Come on in.” She stepped back and waved them into the house.
Burke smiled, although there was something in his eyes that she couldn’t quite name.
He seemed slightly guarded. He sure looked handsome, though, in his red-and-gray plaid lined button- up over a gray thermal Henley.
His jeans had the perfect amount of fade in the denim, and he’d invested in some practical winter boots.
Darby Jane looked cute as ever, all dolled up in her head-to-toe pink and purple winter garb.
“It smells good in here,” Darby Jane said, quickly making herself at home by shedding all of her stuff.
“Darby Jane, please pick up your coat and hat.” Burke gestured to her coat that she’d tossed on a chair.
“It’s fine.” Jovi smiled. “I’m glad you feel comfortable here, sweetie.”
“We’re sorry to interrupt.” Burke unlaced his snowy boots, then nudged them against the wall. “I tried texting, but when you didn’t answer, we decided to invite ourselves over. Because frankly, I’m desperate.”
A muscle in his jaw twitched as his eyes met hers, then darted away.
Desperate. Interesting. She glanced between Burke and Darby Jane, silently assessing them both. They looked well. “Oh, you’re not interrupting. I’m trying to make this candy that I remember from my childhood, but—”
“Ooh, I like candy.” Darby Jane craned her neck to see past Jovi into the kitchen.
“Yes, she does. But that doesn’t mean she needs to eat any.” Burke firmly clamped his hand on Darby Jane’s shoulder. “You just had a cupcake, remember?”
Jovi chuckled. “Why don’t you both join me in the kitchen? Burke, can I offer you some decaf coffee or hot tea?”
“Either works,” Burke said. “Please don’t go to any trouble.”
“It’s no trouble. I have plenty of decaf coffee.” She quickly prepped the coffee maker for a fresh pot. “Darby Jane, would you like milk, water, or, if it’s okay with your dad, hot cocoa?”
“Hot cocoa, please.” Darby Jane climbed up onto a stool next to Burke and eyed the box of goodies Jovi had brought home from the candy company.
While Jovi waited for the coffee to brew, she found some hot cocoa mix in the cabinet for Darby Jane, then retrieved her phone from the counter. “I’m sorry I didn’t respond to your texts. I got caught up in the candy-making.”
That was true. She had. No need to mention Michael, though. She quickly scanned Burke’s message lamenting a last-minute need for a costume for Darby Jane, a plea for help, and a confession that he had absolutely nothing to offer other than his gratitude.
She chuckled, then tucked her phone out of sight. “Wow, you are in a pickle. So tell me about this project.”
“I need a costume to celebrate the hundredth day of school, which is tomorrow.” Darby Jane rested her chin on her hands.
“Oh, wow. I didn’t know that was a thing.” Jovi combined the cocoa mix and hot water from the kettle in a green mug with the Evergreen Candy Company logo printed on the outside.
Amusement gleamed in Burke’s honey-brown eyes. “Darby Jane was hoping you could help her.”
How could she say no to these two? There had to be something in this old house Darby Jane could wear.
Jovi retrieved the cream and sugar and then brought them to the counter.
“My first-grade teacher, who was also my kindergarten teacher, really wanted us to read, so I think she gave us stickers for every book we finished. But I don’t remember celebrating the hundredth day. Have you come up with any ideas?”
“Nope.” Burke leaned his elbows on the counter. “We’ve mostly just panicked.”
“You panicked.” Darby Jane slanted a look in Burke’s direction. “I’m not worried at all.”
Jovi pressed her lips together to hold back another laugh. The child said the funniest things.
“Some of us were supposed to stay on top of the communications coming home from school.” Two splotches of color appeared on his cheeks.
“Well, that someone is also a single parent who recently moved across the country, broke his arm and probably has a few other responsibilities to juggle. Right?”
“All true.” Burke’s genuine smile made her pulse speed up. “Thank you for understanding.”
“You’re welcome.” Jovi gave the hot chocolate a quick stir, then eased the mug across the counter toward Darby Jane. “Has anybody tried an Internet search? Scrolled through Pinterest, perhaps?”
Burke’s brows drew together. “What’s Pinterest?”
Jovi gasped in mock horror. “Haven’t you marketed your novel on Pinterest?”
“Evidently not.” Burke sighed. “But maybe I should?”
“We’ll talk marketing strategies later. Let me get your coffee, then we’ll see what we can come up with.”
Isabel’s warning about spending time with Burke echoed in her head.
Was she getting too involved? Probably. Was this a nice distraction from Michael’s texts?
Also probably. But who could resist a handsome single dad in need?
Besides, she couldn’t bring herself to disappoint Darby Jane.
So she’d help out. Just this one last time.
Because she wouldn’t let her heart get broken again.