Sealed With a Kiss (10 page)

Sam stuck her hands on her hips. “I don’t
care if I never see him again. And he wasn’t my boyfriend. He was a
friend of a friend.” Her nose tilted in the air. “It was a pity he
didn’t have a few extra brain cells between his ears. I wouldn’t
have canceled our date unless it was important.”

“That’s my girl,” Tanner said proudly. “Boot
his sorry ass out the door and look for someone better.”

Sam sent Tanner a withering glare. “I’ve
decided to take a vacation from dating. I’m surrounded by too many
men all day and it’s damaging my ability to think rationally.” She
turned her back on them and strode along the corridor.

Tanner turned to John and gave him one of his
‘I-told-you-so’ looks. John shrugged his shoulders. He was too
surprised by Sam’s outburst to do more than follow her.

He might know about business plans, strategic
warfare, and the latest surveillance techniques, but he was lost
when it came to women.

Tanner lengthened his stride until he was
walking beside John. “Was Bella looking forward to seeing Rachel
today?”

John nodded. “She was dressed before six
o’clock. When I left home, she was sitting in the kitchen with
Patty, counting the minutes until Rachel arrived.”

Sam waited at the reception desk for John and
Tanner. “I sent the images from Tony’s dash-cam to a friend at the
FBI. He’s going to have a look at it tomorrow.”

John waved at a security guard as they left
the building. “Thanks. You’ve both worked hard today. I appreciate
what you’ve given up to stay here.”

Sam glared at Tanner. “Don’t say a word.”

“I wasn’t going to,” he said with a smile in
his voice. “I’m going home to eat left-over pizza. Want to join
me?”

Sam wrinkled her nose. “No, thanks. I need
sleep more than cold pizza.”

John shook his head, too. “I’ve got a little
girl to kiss goodnight. See you tomorrow.” As he left the parking
lot, he went through the day he’d planned before Tony and his team
had been ambushed. That’s when he remembered his promise to go to
the mall with Bella.

With a sinking heart, he knew that he was
heading toward worst dad of the year status. Instead of choosing a
birthday present for Bella’s friend and eating hot dogs, he’d been
buried in paperwork.

Tanner was right. Something had to
change.

***

John tiptoed into Bella’s room, trying not to
wake her. The nightlight shone with a soft pink glow. He stood
where he was, watching his daughter as she dreamed what he hoped
were sweet dreams.

As soon as he moved, his foot hit a squeaky
floorboard and Bella’s eyes opened.

“
Daddy.”
She jumped out of bed and
rushed toward him, wrapping her arms around his waist. “You were
supposed to come to the mall with me.”

John hugged her tight. “I know, sweet pea.
Something happened at work and I couldn’t make it. Mrs. Daniels
said you went to the mall with Rachel and Tank. Did you have a good
time?”

Bella let go of his waist and pulled him
across to her bed. “It was awesome. We went there after we finished
math. Guess what we found for Poppy?”

“A pogo stick with pink tassels?”

Bella shook her head. “No,” she giggled.

“A purple people eater with yellow
spots?”

Bella shook her head again. “I’ll give you a
clue. It makes noise.”

John hoped she hadn’t bought Poppy a puppy or
a kitten. They might be making a trip back to the pet store if that
had happened. “A soft toy shaped like a sheep that goes, baa?”

Bella wiggled off her bed and took a box off
the dresser. “Close your eyes, dad.”

John closed his eyes and waited for Bella to
turn the box around. She turned the lights on, then lifted
something out of the box.

“You can open your eyes now,” Bella said from
beside him.

John looked at his daughter, then across at
the toy poodle sitting on the floor.

Bella put a remote control in his hands.
“It’s a miniature Labradoodle. Once she gets used to your voice,
she’ll follow all of your commands. Watch this…”

Bella took a step away from him and said,
“Jasmine, heel.” The toy dog stood up and walked across to Bella,
sitting in front of her with a little yip.

“Good dog,” Bella crooned. She scratched
behind the toy’s ears, then said, “Jasmine, follow.” Bella started
walking across the room and Jasmine followed her. When Bella
stopped, Jasmine stopped.

John stared at the toy dog. “That’s pretty
advanced technology for a nine-year-old’s birthday present.”

Bella grinned. “She poops, too.”

John looked at the remote control in his
hands. Sure enough, what he presumed was a poop button was
strategically placed at the bottom of the console. “How much did
Jasmine cost, Bella?”

Even though they had a lot of money, he
wanted Bella to appreciate life and work hard for what she wanted.
She got pocket money each week, but she had a list of chores she
needed to do to get it. John didn’t want her to grow up expecting
life to come served on a silver plate. Or in this case, served to
her friend with a battery-controlled remote.

“The lady in the store said it was the last
one she had. It was the demo…demonstrating…the one that they show
people. Jasmine had a broken leg, but Tank knew a man who could fix
it. I didn’t think Poppy would mind if Jasmine had been to the
robot doctor. She’s going to love her.” Bella looked worried.
“Rachel thought it would be okay to give Poppy a dog. Jasmine’s not
real and she doesn’t even need to poop because she only pretends to
eat food.”

John looked into his daughter’s big brown
eyes.

“Please, dad. It was only a few dollars over
my limit. I told Rachel I would help Mrs. Daniels vacuum the house
tomorrow and take the trash out twice. Tank said I could help him
clean his truck.”

John was finding it hard to believe that the
Labradoodle had cost only a few dollars more than Bella’s budget.
Broken paw or not, the technology behind it should have made it
retail for hundreds of dollars. Bella was waiting for him to say
something.

He looked at the dog, then back at Bella. He
felt guilty that he hadn’t gone to the mall with her. Guilty that
he couldn’t spend more time with her each day.

He relaxed his face muscles and got rid of
the frown that Bella thought was for her. “I think Poppy’s going to
love her birthday present. It was a great choice.” He hugged Bella
tight and thanked his lucky stars for Tank and Rachel. Bella had
enjoyed her time with them and she didn’t think he was a jerk for
staying at work. “What do you say about going to bed now?”

Bella picked the toy dog off the floor and
flicked a black switch on its stomach. “Can you read me another
chapter of my book?”

“Where are we up to?” He put the dog in its
box and closed the lid.

Bella passed him her copy of
Anne of Green
Gables
. “The last chapter. Why do you think Marilla was angry
with John Blythe when she was younger? She really liked him.”

“I think she was trying to find her own
happiness,” John said carefully.

“Just like us.” Bella got into bed and
wiggled down until only her head appeared above her duvet. “I love
you, dad.”

“I love you, too.” He sat beside Bella and
opened her book to the last chapter.

As he started reading, he thought about the
characters LM Montgomery had created. More than one hundred years
after
Anne of Green Gables
had first been published, Bella
was still able to connect with Anne and the ups and downs of her
life.

He wondered what a modern day Anne Shirley
would have been like. He looked down at Bella and sighed.

She would have been just as brave and
stubborn as Bella was. And just as willing to let people into her
heart.

CHAPTER FIVE

John sat on the couch at Poppy’s birthday party,
listening to a woman tell him about her vacation in Canada. Bella
was sitting with a group of girls, painting her nails. He’d never
been to a nine-year-old girl’s birthday party before. It was a
crazy combination of sugar-loaded food, beauty products, and pink
presents.

So far, the ten girls at the party had
braided their hair with tiny beads, decorated cupcakes, and made
tattoos out of glitter. It definitely wasn’t the traditional
Pin
the Tail on the Donkey
and
Musical Chairs
party that
he’d been expecting. Not that he’d been to any nine-year-old girls’
birthday parties before.

“Do you enjoying living in Bozeman?”

John focused his attention on Donna, the
woman sitting opposite him. “It’s a great place to live. It’s taken
us a while to settle in, but having my brother here has
helped.”

“Is that why you moved to Bozeman?”

John nodded. “I’d been looking for a building
to convert into my business’ headquarters. When the old flour mill
came on the market, Grant and I had a look and decided that it was
worth the investment. It’s been a busy two years.”

He wouldn’t tell Donna that his brother had
kept him sane after his wife had died. He hadn’t known how to raise
a two-year-old, or even how to live a normal civilian life. It had
taken him another four years to realize that Bella needed to be
close to family as much as he did.

He watched Bella blow on her nails. She
compared her nail color with the girl beside her and they both
started giggling. She’d grown so much since Jacinta had died. Six
years ago she’d been running around in diapers, chasing the
neighbor’s cat and climbing on top of anything she saw.

“If Bella wants to come to our home for a
playdate, I’m sure Anna would love it. The two girls get along so
well.”

John watched Bella pass Anna another bottle
of nail polish. “Thanks. I’ll check with Bella.”

John picked up his cup of coffee and checked
the time. It was nearly five o’clock. Tanner was waiting outside
for them, parked on the side of the road and trying to look as
inconspicuous as possible. Luckily the snow had stopped falling and
the temperature had risen a few degrees above freezing.

“Coffee anyone?” Poppy’s mom carried a tray
of coffee across to the parents.

When she reached John, he shook his head.
“Not for me. I’ve got one already.”

“Would you like a piece of birthday cake to
go with your coffee?”

John looked at the bright pink frosting and
frowned. “Sure. Just a small piece, though. Bella and I need to go
home soon.”

Donna, the woman sitting opposite him,
pouted. “It’s far too early for that. We were just getting to know
each other.”

John gulped back the last of his coffee. He
might be a little rusty in the dating department, but he knew when
someone was flirting with him. Anyone else would have said
something witty, broken the silence that had descended around the
table. But not John. He couldn’t think of one thing to say that
wouldn’t hurt Donna’s feelings.

It wasn’t that she was unattractive. In fact,
she was probably one of the most attractive women he’d ever met.
And it wasn’t that she didn’t interest him. She did. But not in the
‘let’s date’ kind of way that she was hinting at.

John had married the only woman he’d ever
love. He couldn’t imagine spending time with many women, especially
the romantic kind of time that he’d never been very good at.

An image of Rachel popped into his head and
he sighed. She was off limits and even if she wasn’t, nothing was
going to happen. He left his coffee mug on the table and wiped his
hands down the side of his jeans. “It was great spending time with
you, but I really need to go.” He looked at Poppy’s mom and tried
to smile. “Thank you for inviting us to your home. I’ve got a
feeling that Bella’s going to be talking about Poppy’s birthday for
a long time.”

Poppy’s mom smiled. “I’m glad you’ve had a
good time. I know another little girl who’s incredibly happy. Poppy
loved the robotic dog you bought her.”

“It was all Bella’s idea.”

“Well, it was very sweet. While you’re
getting Bella ready, I’ll get each of you a slice of cake to take
home.”

Before John could tell her not to worry about
the cake, she’d disappeared into the kitchen. He glanced at Donna
and tried not to worry about the glare she sent back to him.

It was just like college all over again.
Except this time, there wouldn’t be a happily-ever-after ending for
anyone. Cupid had left the building, now all John had to do was get
Bella into their truck.

He looked at where he’d last seen her. She’d
moved across the room to another group of girls. She was sitting on
the floor, laughing and talking and waiting to have her hair
curled. He watched her for a minute, wondering where the last eight
years had gone. His little girl was growing up and he wasn’t sure
how he felt about it.

He walked over to her and kneeled on the
floor. “We need to go home.”

“But I haven’t had my hair curled,” Bella
said with a sigh. “Could we stay for five more minutes?”

John shook his head. “We need to leave. Do
you want to thank Poppy for inviting us?”

Bella stood up. “I already have, but I’ll go
and say goodbye.”

“I’ll get our jackets.”

Bella nodded and John headed off toward the
hallway. He looked through the windows either side of the front
door. The snow was falling thick and fast, covering everything in
its path with a white, icy blanket of cold snow. The weather that
had been forecasted had arrived.

All he had to do now was get himself and his
daughter home safely. Donna and her playdate offer could wait for
another day.

***

Rachel slammed the tailgate closed on her
truck and hauled the last box of bridesmaids’ dresses into Tess’
loft.

Since taking the job as Bella’s tutor three
weeks ago, she’d had less time to help at The Bridesmaids Club.
With Christmas fast approaching, all of her friends were finding it
more difficult to balance their own lives with the brides and
bridesmaids who were desperate for dresses.