Love Enough For Two (Love Inspired) (7 page)

“I don’t know,” Matt said with a shrug. He had no idea what Sierra’s thoughts were about marriage. But then he couldn’t honestly say he knew much about her thoughts on anything. But if he had his way, they’d soon get to know each other better.

His gaze shifted and settled appreciatively on Sierra’s curvy figure.

Yes, he’d like to know her much better.

And that couldn’t happen soon enough to suit him.

S
ierra patiently answered her mother’s question about the timing of Maddie’s allergy medication and then spoke with her daughter briefly before hanging up. She handed the phone back to Libby.

“Is everything okay with Maddie?” Libby asked.

Sierra smiled, remembering how her daughter had chattered happily about her evening with her grandmother. “She’s fine. She and my mother are having a great time.”

Libby nodded absently, her attention focused on Matt and his sister.

“Who’s the handsome hunk you were talking to?” Libby asked.

“You don’t recognize him?” Sierra asked in surprise. “Everyone says he’s the spitting image of his father.”

Libby’s gaze returned to the dark-haired young man. “Lawrence Dixon’s son?”

Sierra nodded.

“Who’s the girl?”

Sierra lifted her glass of tea that the waitress had refilled and took a drink before she answered. “That’s his sister, Tori.”

“His sister?” Libby shook her head. “Having dinner with a woman you’re related to is a complete waste of those good looks.”

Libby took a sip of water and studied Matt beneath lowered lashes. “He’s so cute. I can’t believe he’s not involved.”

“He’s so arrogant, who would want him?” Sierra said.

Libby smiled, her appreciative gaze still lingering on Matt. “You’d be surprised. I can think of a dozen women off the top of my head who’d like him.”

Something in her friend’s voice made Sierra pause. “Are you saying
you
want him? ’Cuz if you do, you’re welcome to him.”

Libby laughed out loud. “In case you’ve forgotten, I have Carson. I can only concentrate on one man at a time.”

Sierra wondered how she could have forgotten. After all, Carson Davies was all Libby talked about lately. Only in his late twenties, he already owned a restaurant on the pier. He was also Libby’s boss for the summer. With his sun-bleached blond hair and a surfer’s body, the guy had captured Libby’s attention from the moment she’d walked through the door pretending to be Sierra.

“Besides,” Libby added, “Matt is
your
boyfriend.”

Sierra thought about arguing the point, but what did it matter?

The “William Tell Overture” filled the air and Libby reached for her cell phone.

Sierra frowned. “It’s not my mother, is it?”

Libby glanced down at the phone. “I’m not sure who it is.”

“Hello,” Libby said, then rolled her eyes, pointed a finger to her chest and mouthed the word “mother.”

Sierra sat back in her chair and studied the tourists passing by on the street until Libby hung up.

“That was the weirdest call,” Libby said.

Sierra lifted an eyebrow.

“I can’t believe it. Mother really
is
interested in the Child Advocacy Center,” Libby said. “She called to find out if I’d met with Matt Dixon yet.”

Stella Carlyle inched up a notch in Sierra’s estimation. It was nice to know the woman wasn’t as shallow as she’d always thought.

“Mother seemed truly interested,” Libby repeated.

“She wanted to hear every detail of our meeting. For a second I wondered if she trusted the man. But I think she was just curious about everything. She even wanted to know what Matt looked like.”

Sierra’s eyebrows drew together. “What does it matter what he looks like?”

“It doesn’t.” Libby lifted one shoulder in a slight shrug. “But then it doesn’t really matter what the outside of the Center looks like and she wanted to know all about that, too.”

“You let her know that Matt was doing a good job, didn’t you?” Sierra didn’t know why she asked, other than she knew how important this project was to him.

Libby nodded. “I said he was doing a fabulous job. Didn’t you hear me bragging him up?”

“What did Stella say to that?”

“She seemed pleased,” Libby said. “Especially when I told him that I thought we worked well together. I even mentioned that I hit it off so well that we’ve started seeing each other socially.”

Sierra frowned in confusion. “Why did you tell her that?”

Libby wrinkled her nose. “It was a spur of the moment thing. Besides, you’re me this summer and the two of you
have
started dating.”

“Lib-by, Lib-by, Lib-by.” Sierra shook her head. “You shouldn’t tease your mother like that.”

“I couldn’t resist,” Libby said with a smile, seeming not the least bit sorry. “She just seemed so interested in everything that I decided to give her what she wanted and—” Libby’s smile widened “—maybe a little bit more.”

Sierra could see she wasn’t getting anywhere with her friend. From the time she’d been little, Libby had loved to “get her mother going” and this time would be no different. Sierra heaved a resigned sigh. “Okay, but will you at least promise me one thing?”

Libby’s gaze was questioning.

“Don’t embellish it too much, okay?” Sierra asked.

With all the innocence of a seasoned veteran, Libby widened her eyes. “What are you so worried about?”

“That if you keep up this charade, by the time the summer is over, your mother will have you married to the guy,” Sierra said.

Laughter crinkled the skin around Libby’s blue eyes. “That would never work.”

The agreement came too quickly. Sierra narrowed her gaze. “It wouldn’t?”

“Of course not,” Libby said, a wicked twinkle in her gaze. “If anyone marries the guy, it’ll have to be you.”

After dropping off Libby, Sierra headed for her apartment on the town’s northern edge. Although her daughter loved to spend the night with her grandmother, Maddie had an early-morning play date with a friend and that meant tonight she’d be sleeping in her own bed.

Her mother and Maddie were so intent on Candy Land they didn’t react when Sierra stepped into the living room. Just as Sierra was about to clear her throat, Maddie looked up. Pure joy crossed the little girl’s face and she immediately jumped to her feet. “Mommy.”

Maddie raced liked an out-of-control train across the living room. Her tiny body hit Sierra with a thud and she wrapped her arms tightly around her mother’s legs. “I’ve missed you so much.”

Sierra knew that Maddie had probably been having so much fun with her grandmother that she hadn’t had time to give her a second thought. Still, the sweet words made Sierra’s heart swell with love. Though she deeply regretted her marriage to Jerry, something good and beautiful had come out of the union.

Her hand stroked her daughter’s tousled blond curls and when she spoke her voice was thick with emotion. “I’ve missed you too, pumpkin. Did you and Gram have fun?”

Maddie took a step back and her blue eyes danced. She nodded her head vigorously. “We had ice cream and cake and—”

The little girl paused and her eyebrows pulled together. She cast her grandmother a beseeching glance.

Peggy Summers smiled, love and pride reflected in her eyes. “Fruit punch?”

“’N punch.” Maddie’s smile widened. “It gave me a stash. But Gram said that was okay.”

“A rash?” Sierra’s heart rose to her throat. Her gaze darted to her mother. With all of Maddie’s allergies, didn’t her mother realize that an unexpected rash could indicate a serious reaction. “Why didn’t you call me?”

Sierra didn’t wait for a response. Her hands moved to Maddie’s shirt. She couldn’t see any red spots on her arms and legs, so it had to be on her chest or back. Though her mother had apparently dismissed it as trivial, Sierra needed to see for herself.

Maddie laughed and brushed aside Sierra’s hands as if it were a game, her giggle at odds with the tight coil of tension gripping Sierra’s gut.

“Honey, there’s nothing to worry about,” Peggy said in a reassuring tone. “Maddie had a mustache, not a rash.”

Mustache?

For the first time Sierra noticed a faint red color on her daughter’s upper lip. She exhaled the breath she’d been holding.

If anything ever happened to Maddie…

“She’s fine,” Peggy said as if she could read her daughter’s thoughts. “Aren’t you, pumpkin? Tell Mommy you’re filled to the brim with ice cream and cake.”

Maddie smiled broadly, showing a missing front tooth. “’N punch.”

“Punch, too?” Sierra tried to join in the spirit, but the fear had left her drained.

Maddie nodded happily.

Sierra cast her mother a questioning glance. Though she didn’t mind her daughter having a treat now and then, it sounded as if tonight had been a junk-food feast.

Peggy rose to her feet and straightened her skirt.

For the first time Sierra noticed her mother was dressed in the new skirt and blouse she’d bought last weekend.

“Maddie and I went to Frank and Lynn’s anniversary party tonight,” her mother said in response to Sierra’s questioning glance. “They were going to celebrate on the weekend, but their plans changed. Her sister is leaving town earlier than expected so they changed the party to tonight.”

Her mother had been Lynn’s maid of honor thirty-some years ago and they were still good friends. Guilt sluiced through Sierra. She’d never have asked her mother to baby-sit if she’d known tonight was Lynn’s anniversary celebration. “You should have told me—”

Her mother cut her off, casting a pointed glance at Maddie. “Everyone was glad to see Maddie. You would have been so proud of her. She was very well-behaved.”

“I said please and thank you,” Maddie said. “And I ate my cake with my fork.”

The little girl made the announcement with such emphasis that Sierra knew her mother must have coached her and then praised her extravagantly for her efforts.

Thank you, God.

The prayer of thanks was for both of the women in her life. God had truly blessed her. Though her life hadn’t been without trials, she’d had her mother’s love and support every step of the way. And now her mother was showering the same unending supply of love on Maddie.

“Sounds like you girls had a fun evening,” Sierra said, emotion making her voice huskier than normal.

“We did.” Peggy moved across the room to stand close to her daughter. “A busy day and a fun evening. But now we’re both tuckered out.”

It was only eight-thirty. Sierra knew her mother rarely went to bed before midnight, but Maddie’s eyes were already drooping.

“I want to play another game.” Maddie whined, dropping back to her knees and shoving the Candy Land board aside.

Sierra’s gaze met her mother’s and they exchanged a knowing look.

“Maddie’s already had her bath and brushed her teeth,” her mother said in a low tone. “She’s exhausted but won’t admit it.”

Sierra took note of her daughter’s petulant expression. It looked like bedtime was going to be a struggle. She heaved a resigned sigh and turned her attention back to her mother. “I’m sorry you had to take her—”

Peggy laid her hand on Sierra’s arm.

“Not another word,” Peggy ordered in that same no-nonsense tone she’d used on her when Sierra had been Maddie’s age. “I was happy to have her. Some of my friends hadn’t seen her in a while and this gave me a chance to show her off.”

The pride in her mother’s voice warmed Sierra’s heart. “She’s a good girl.”

“Yes, she is,” her mother said.

“Can you stay for a cup of coffee?” Sierra asked. “I’d love to hear all about the party.”

“I wish I could.” A tinge of true regret laced Peggy’s tone. “But if I stay, Maddie won’t want to go to bed.”

“I can’t find it.” The urgent whine over a missing board piece told Sierra that Maddie was rapidly approaching meltdown.

“You’re right.” Sierra blew out a disappointed breath. Though she and her mother were close as sisters and talked every day, Sierra hadn’t seen her mother as much since the switch. Impulsively she gave her mother a quick hug. “Thanks so much for watching her.”

“We had a lovely time,” Peggy said, a smile of remembrance lifting her lips. “Reverend Carl was at the party. He asked about you. He’s so good with Maddie. Why he isn’t married with children of his own, I don’t know.”

“Maybe he’s just never found the right woman,” Sierra said lightly.

She wished she would have kept silent when a speculative gleam filled her mother’s eyes. “Maybe he has found the ‘One’ but she doesn’t know it. He talked about you constantly.”

Sierra tried to quell her irritation. “I’m surprised. I barely know the man.”

The words slipped past her lips before she had a chance to consider their impact on her mother. Peggy had the utmost respect for men of the cloth and in her eyes, Carl was practically perfect.

Her mother’s lips pursed together and though she’d said nothing bad about the man, Sierra had a crazy impulse to apologize.

“You went all through school with him,” Peggy pointed out when Sierra remained silent. “He’s the assistant pastor of the church you attend every week. I think you know him a bit more than barely.”

Sierra bit back the desire to tell her mother the truth was, that she already knew him better than she wanted. Instead she lifted a shoulder in a slight shrug. “You’re right. I do know Carl. And he is a nice guy. It just makes me uncomfortable to have him talk about me when I’m not there.”

“I think he’s sweet on you,” Peggy said, nodding her head at the conclusion. “I really think he’d like to date you. And you couldn’t find a better man.”

“I’m already dating someone,” Sierra said before her mother had a chance to visualize her and Carl walking down the aisle. And, though “dating” wasn’t exactly accurate, “I’m kissing someone,” wasn’t something she felt like saying to her mother.

“You are?” Her mother’s eyes widened in surprise and the look on her face would have been laughable at any other time. “Who?”

“Someone I just met,” Sierra said quickly. “His name is Matt and he’s involved with the Advocacy Center fund-raising.”

She didn’t mention his father’s connection to Jerry. If her mother knew Matt was Dix’s son, she’d never believe that Sierra would date him.

“Is this Matt the man Carl saw you with at Crane River?” Her mother tilted her head and her gaze grew sharp and assessing.

“Crane River?” Sierra asked stupidly.