Sweet Forgiveness Read online

  “Oh, hon.” She reached over to cup his cheek. “You know getting tipsy at lunchtime on Saturday in the South is just fine.”

  He acknowledged that with a twist of his lips. “Talking to him doesn’t always bring out the best in me. I really resent how he claimed Jaelyn.” Ashton heaved a sigh. “I’m desperate to see her, but I know it’s better for her in the long run if I stay away.” He shook his head, his heartbreak evident. “He said she was fine if I wasn’t around.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Me, too.” Zoe could see he was struggling to find the bright side. “I’m glad I was there when Jaelyn needed me, though. She’s healthy now, because of it.”

  “Is that why Quentin refused to be named as the father? He knew she’d have big medical expenses?”

  Ashton shook his head. “I don’t think so. But I really don’t know why he had a change of heart and came back for her. At least not the true reasons. I only know he wasn’t there when Maliki and Jaelyn needed him.”

  Zoe gave his knee a squeeze. “But you were.”

  “Yeah.”

  But it meant losing Zoe, didn’t it? What an impossible choice. She leaned over the gap between their seats and gave Ashton a long, slow kiss. He was such a good man.

  “Let’s go play golf,” she whispered.

  They climbed out of the car and took the two-minute walk to the zoo-themed course. It was next door to a real golf course that had a great clubhouse restaurant with a shrimp salad worth returning for.

  They played the first four holes with Zoe slightly in the lead, then her ball zipped straight up a hippopotamus’s tongue for a hole-in-one.

  She stepped aside, secure in the fact that there was no way he was going to match her score on this round. “Let’s see how you do.”

  “I plan to get a lot of use out of my ball on this hole,” he said as he placed it on the green outdoor carpet. He carefully lined up his shot. “I like to ensure I get full value from my entertainment dollar.” There was a twinkle in his eye as he hit the ball in what Zoe confidently knew was the wrong direction to get anything close to her results. The ball ricocheted off the course’s edging and went in a side hole she hadn’t known existed, putting him significantly below par for his own hole-in-one.

  “Nice job, Ash.”

  His head jerked up at how she’d shortened his name. She had once called him that, and it had felt natural, but now, with him looking at her, she felt self-conscious, as if it was too much, too soon. Too significant.

  “Is it okay if I call you that?” she asked.

  “Be my guest.”

  Before Zoe could feel nervous, Ashton’s cell phone rang. He pulled it out and frowned at caller ID before pocketing the device again.

  “Who is it?” Zoe asked.

  “Quentin.”

  “Answer it!”

  Ashton moved nervously, finding his way off the course, muttering as he retrieved his phone again, “Is it too early to start drinking?”

  His whole demeanor had changed, and it was like he was suddenly carrying the burden of the world upon his shoulders, that sorrow from last week returning.

  “He probably just forgot how to put the car seat in again or something,” Ashton said as he answered.

  She knew it had to be almost impossible for him to walk away from Jaelyn, but at the same time she feared he was going to turn his back on Quentin and Jaelyn’s needs—just like he had done to her last summer.

  Zoe allowed a family to play through while she waited for Ashton, who had moved to the shade of the ice cream stand, phone lifted to his ear, head bent. She stepped a little closer to see if she could catch snippets of the conversation.

  Ashton ended the call and came over.

  “Everything okay?” she asked.

  His jaw was tight as he took his golf club from her. “He wants me to babysit.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know.” He was squeezing the golf club like he wanted to strike something with it, and Zoe hoped he didn’t hate giraffes—the animal for the impossible sixth hole, where last year they’d each needed nine shots to complete their turns.

  “He didn’t say?”

  “I didn’t let him. My scheduled visitations are over, and it’s just too darn hard seeing her, making her cry when I leave. It’s for the best…” His shoulders were drooped, his face a mask of anguish.

  “Did he say who might be looking for him at the cottages?”

  Ashton didn’t answer. He’d gone still, his brow pinched. “He thinks he can just call me up, tell me it’s my problem to solve, just like Maliki.” He straightened, staring at Zoe.

  “I’m sorry he thinks he can use you,” she said.

  “I’m going to take a break from golf for a bit.” Without waiting for her to reply he took a stool at the ice cream stand at the edge of the course.

  Zoe followed him. Maybe this was why they never went back to the places they’d enjoyed. It was never as good the second time.

  She settled onto the vacant stool beside him.

  “I’m tired of people taking advantage of my kindness,” he said, as soon as she sat down. “They aren’t kidding when they say nice guys finish last, and that’s all I ever seem to do. It’s not Jaelyn’s fault that Quentin’s her real father and I’m not. The situation is impossible.”

  Zoe rested a hand on his shoulder and he seemed to snap out of it, saying, “I’m sorry.”

  “Do you want some ice cream?”

  “What?”

  She gestured to the teen waiting to take their order.

  Ashton shook his head. “Do you?”

  She shook her head as well, and the teen moved down the stand to serve a family.

  Ashton stared at Zoe for a long moment, then let out an extended breath. He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tight. “I am sorry. I’m spoiling our day.”

  She pulled back to look at him. “I happen to like that you’re a nice guy. And please know that there are more people who appreciate that trait than there are who want to take advantage of it.”

  “It doesn’t feel like it.”

  “That’s only because you’re in the middle of a big storm. Together we’re going to find a way to get you out of it. Starting Monday. But right now, you’re mine for the weekend. So let’s forget about the rest of the world and enjoy ourselves.”

  Ashton was angry at himself as well as Quentin. He was supposed to be enjoying a lovely weekend with Zoe, where they could patch fences, mend bridges or whatever the expression was. He was supposed to be winning her back. Instead he was fuming over the guy’s lack of responsibility and worrying about Jaelyn. He’d bet anything Quentin had told his friend that he’d meet him at the Indigo Bay Cottages, where he’d drop off Jaelyn for some free babysitting courtesy of Ashton, and then he and his buddy could go out on a wild adventure, child-free.

  Ashton was not going to be used, and he wasn’t going to allow Jaelyn to be jerked back and forth like that.

  Knowing he was distracted and edgy, he took Zoe’s hand across the table, and her features softened as she smiled at him.

  This was what he needed to focus on. Zoe. Not everything that was whirling through his mind, or the way his stomach flipped over whenever he thought of Jaelyn.

  Zoe had called him Ash again. That was what he needed to remember. That and the fact that she wanted to be here with him, and nobody else. No problems, just the two of them.

  “As your official bodyguard, shall I walk you back to your room?” he asked as he stood, giving a gallant bow. They’d had a relatively early supper thanks to his quitting mini golf early, and now had numerous empty evening hours to fill, which had never been an issue in the past. But with how edgy he was, he knew in a way he’d just blown the weekend for Zoe.

  She tucked her arm through his, feeling so natural and right that he wanted to stop and kiss her until they both forgot the past, forgot everything but each other and she begged him to take her home. Instead, he kept it all in
side as they moved through the clubhouse toward the outer doors.

  “It will be Sunday night when we get back to Indigo Bay,” he said, once they were outside.

  Zoe stopped a step above him, looking as though she expected him to continue with his line of thought.

  “I was thinking maybe we could order in pizza and watch a movie. Like old times.” He brushed a strand of hair from her face, wanting to kiss her perfect cherry lips.

  Her eyes lit up for a second before she dampened her excitement, pulling away ever so slightly.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Maybe we need new habits,” she said.

  He was worried this was going to turn into a breakup—before it had even become a true relationship. Either that or she was trying to outwit the future and any possible repeated mistakes by giving up on old routines. Routines that had brought them closer together the first time around.

  “Are you okay?”

  She shook her head, her curls tumbling over her shoulders, her long lashes brushing her pale cheeks as though she was summoning an inner resolve to be strong.

  “I want you back in my life,” she admitted. “But I’m scared.”

  “I want you back in mine, too.”

  Her glossy lips parted as she whispered, “If we’re honestly pursuing this again, then I need to know that you’re not going to shut me out. I know I said I don’t want to bring your problems into our weekend, but I can tell you’re thinking about Jaelyn and Quentin and that you’re worried about them. So I suppose I’m saying let’s be in this together. If you need to talk about it, let’s talk about it.”

  Yup. He was blowing the weekend despite his attempts not to.

  “And know that I’m here. Even when I’m not poking and prodding. And if you want to talk even though I said let’s not—you can.”

  “I know.”

  She waited.

  “I’m here for you,” she added.

  Ashton took her in his arms. “I’m here for you, too.” He met her gaze as he said, “Always.”

  “I think you need to say yes to babysitting Jaelyn.”

  Ashton dropped his arms and involuntarily stepped back. “What?”

  “What if you were the best thing in her life?”

  “I’m not welcome in her life any longer, and I make it difficult for her when I leave. It’s traumatic. For both of us. She’s bonded with Quentin now, and she can’t count on me to be there for her. Not with Quentin wanting me out.”

  “But doesn’t he want you back in?”

  “For how long, though? Does he just want a sitter so he can go party, or whatever it is he does? I can’t do that. I can’t bear to just leave her. It’s not fair to her.” Or him. It could break him just like losing Zoe had nearly broken him.

  “What if something’s going on with him? What if Jaelyn needs you? What if she needs a stable adult in her life?”

  Ashton felt the cold hand of dread give him a squeeze. He hated that rational, smart Zoe might be fearing the worst, too.

  “The courts found him fit,” he said, his voice uneven. The temptation to swoop back into Jaelyn’s life was unbearably strong.

  “We should call someone,” Zoe prodded. “Have them check in on her.”

  Despite the pain, Ashton met Zoe’s eyes and nodded. He could alleviate his worries without being used or making things hard on Jaelyn. “I have a friend in social services. Maybe he can check on them.”

  Zoe paced her room at the bed-and-breakfast after a few rounds of backgammon in the games area. Ashton had asked his social worker buddy to check in on Jaelyn, and the friend had logged into the system while on the phone with him, reporting that someone had just been by for a home checkup not that long ago. And that unless Ashton had something more worrisome than the father asking him to babysit, it was time to leave well enough alone. By the sound of it, it wasn’t the first time Ashton had called in a favor on Jaelyn’s behalf.

  He’d then called Quentin back, leaving a message on the man’s voice mail. He’d texted, too. No reply.

  Maliki didn’t have family other than an aunt in Seattle, and he’d quickly reached a dead end in regards to people who might be able to give him answers.

  By the end of the evening, Zoe had ended up feeling as antsy as Ashton who was regretting not prying more from Quentin when he’d had him on the line. She had given Ashton a goodnight kiss that she wished had been as carefree as it had been last summer, and then turned in early.

  Why was that man looking for Quentin? And why was Quentin really looking for Ashton? Was it simply for babysitting? If so, why not ask friends or family?

  Something had to be up.

  And while Ashton wasn’t getting anywhere with his personal connections, maybe Zoe could with hers. Mind made up, she picked up her cell phone, telling herself that she was interfering only because she wanted a true second chance with Ashton, and that the only way to do that was to get to the bottom of this.

  She dialed Dallas Harper first. “Dallas, it’s Zoe. I need a favor.”

  “Anything for my favorite employee. Did Margie tell you that your newsletter has already increased rebookings?”

  “That’s great.” She began pacing again, her free hand flexing. “Remember that guy who came up to my desk while you were trying to convince me to start the newsletter?”

  “Not really.”

  “He was looking for someone named Quentin Valant. He’s come in a few times, but there’s never anyone registered under that name.”

  “Not ringing any bells. Wait. Isn’t that the guy who left a message for Ashton?”

  “Quentin was, but this other guy is a mystery.”

  “Is Ashton in trouble?” She could hear the note of alarm in Dallas’s voice.

  “I don’t think so, but I need to find out if the little girl he was helping is.”

  “Why don’t you ask Ashton about these guys?” Dallas asked carefully.

  “He’s trying to get answers, but I have a feeling whoever that dude is, he’s someone who could cause trouble.”

  “So, just to be clear,” Dallas said, “you’re not asking me to break any guest confidentiality or privacy laws. You’re simply inquiring about a resort security issue.”

  “Yes. Exactly.” He was the best boss ever. “I’m hoping that someone can find security footage and send me a good picture of the guy.”

  “Send it to you?”

  Was that pushing it too far?

  “I’ll forward it to a man who can figure out who this guy is.”

  She knew Ginger’s husband was working as a private security agent these days. He could either help her or would know someone who could.

  After hanging up with Dallas, Zoe called Ginger. “I hate to ask for favors,” she said after their niceties. “But I need one.”

  “Oh, goody,” Ginger said. Zoe could practically see her in her mind’s eye, rubbing her hands, obviously thinking her matchmaking skills were in need. “I recommend a candlelight dinner on the beach.”

  “Not that kind of favor. I need one from Logan.”

  “Is everything all right?”

  “There’s this guy who’s been asking for someone I know, and I was hoping Logan could put a name to the face. Is he able to do something like that?”

  “Sure. Do you have a picture?”

  “Not yet. Dallas is working on it.”

  “I’ll forward you his email. He loves working on stuff like this. Thanks for thinking of him.” She added, “Are you sure everything is all right?”

  “I don’t know,” Zoe answered truthfully.

  “Well, best to find out then,” Ginger replied. “Logan’s good. And if he can’t track this guy, his partner, Zach Forrester, can.”

  Zoe ended the call, hoping Ashton wouldn’t be too upset with her when he found out she’d started digging into his life.

  But she already knew that it was always best to know the truth, even if it sometimes hurt.

  Chapter 7

 
Ashton hadn’t heard anything from Quentin since the weekend, and Zoe said nobody had come looking for him again. Ashton had a feeling he’d been right. Quentin had simply been planning a guys’ getaway, but hadn’t counted on him saying no to taking care of Jaelyn.

  Which meant Ashton could now focus solely on Zoe and his future, and stop worrying about Jaelyn—or at least not as much.

  He set down his coffee in Zoe’s gazebo and looked at the flyer for the Indigo Bay hardware store that she was pointing to. “I found a housewarming gift for you,” she said, her smile so pretty and open it nearly took his breath away. “Do you have one of these?”

  It was a power drill.

  “I don’t.”

  Ashton had helped Zoe move back into her fixed-up house yesterday, and she was still unpacking, her cats delighted to be home, and among so many boxes to hide in. Ashton had come over to help her move a large dresser that morning because Binx kept using it to launch himself at the window screen in her bedroom. Ashton had ended up staying for coffee.

  “I decided not to buy the place,” he said, surprised at how offhand he sounded.

  “Why not?”

  “It didn’t feel as though the timing was right.”

  Zoe watched him for a moment, no doubt trying to decipher the meaning behind his unannounced change of plans, and possibly fearing he was preparing to leave her again.

  He wasn’t. Quite the opposite. All week he’d come by to share her afternoon break with her, and they often sought each other out more evenings than not. All that had done was solidify the fact that he knew he was meant to be with Zoe. And that meant he wanted to find a way to ensure he had as much time freed up to spend with her in the future as possible.

  “What happened?” she asked. “What changed?”

  “I calculated how long the renovations would take.” As a teacher he had a lot of time in the summer, but once he was back at school his evenings and weekends were generally booked up with grading and lesson planning. “There are other things I’d rather do over the next few years instead of spending every free moment covered in construction dust.”