Chapter 21
It had been years, if ever, since Daniel had had lunch with two beautiful ladies at once, longer than he wanted to admit. And Holly was gorgeous, just like her mother, so make that three beautiful women, one much younger than the other two. He was not real thrilled when Sarah Anderson had invited him and Holly to join her and the lady from last night, because he knew that Sarah had a massive crush on him. Word traveled fast in small towns. She was sweet and attractive, and an excellent teacher, but he felt nothing even close to attraction for her.
Now, this other woman, Ivy, she was unlike any woman he’d encountered lately. Maybe even ever. There was something sad and haunting in her green eyes. They reminded him of newly sprouted seedlings, they were such a deep green. Her skin was as white as a fresh-picked gardenia.
He chuckled, realizing that he was thinking like a lovesick puppy.
“Dad, are you okay?” Holly asked. “You look weird.”
“Thanks, but I’m fine. I’m just tired, I guess,” he said to her, then smiled.
She shook her head. “I haven’t seen you smile this much in a year.”
Again they all laughed, and Sarah blushed.
He had to let her know he was not interested in her, not in the way she wanted. It was hard to date with a young daughter. He did not want Holly to get attached to any of the few women he’d dated, and she did crave a woman’s attention. He’d never introduced her to them, and he wanted to keep it that way. His job was to raise her and keep her from getting hurt. Then, when she was in college or married, he’d worry about his own love life. When she spent the night with Roxie or Kayla, those were his nights to venture out as an adult man and enjoy the company of a woman. He was not dead, despite what his daughter thought.
Dead, like Laura. She had been his first true mature love, but there’d been times in their marriage that Daniel thought she was more in love with her career than with him and Holly. And this was playing a big role in the way he was raising Holly. He could not encourage a musical career in any way. It had cost him a wife and Holly a mother. He knew he was strict, but she would thank him for this when she was older, or so he told himself. Though sometimes he wondered if he was just putting a good face on his own fears and desires.
“So, Holly, how is the practicing going?” Sarah asked. “I have seen the posters everywhere, and it’s going to be the best musical yet. And I cannot believe you’re the star of the show.”
Ivy looked at Daniel.
“Holly is not the star,” he said to Sarah. “I have told her she’s way too young to get involved in the music business. She spends too much time with those women at The Upside.”
Holly’s eyes filled with tears. “Dad! You are so mean! I have to perform in the musical, I just have to. My life depends on it.” She let the tears fall, which Daniel thought unusual.
“We can discuss this when we get home. We’re here to have lunch, okay?” he said to her, knowing his voice was stern, but when it came to all the music garbage, he had to be stern.
The twangy waitress showed up, holding a tray above her head and a stand in the other. “Yummies are here,” she announced in her bright, perky voice.
She placed their plates in front of them. “You’ll love the quiche. Mama used our eggs from the hens this morning. Fresh as you can get.”
Ivy and Sarah had both ordered the spinach quiche.
“Thank you,” Sarah said politely. “I’m sure it’s delicious.”
Ivy, on the other hand, wished she had ordered a rare hamburger, but quiche seemed so ladies-who-lunch–like that she had told the waitress she would have the same as Sarah. She had never been one of “those” types, not that there was anything wrong with them. It just was not who she was. And really, she thought as she sliced into her lunch, after eight years of what she had gone through, who, exactly, was she?
Unsure, but ready to start the process of discovery, she bit into the quiche, and it was indeed excellent. She would take back that rare-hamburger thought.
“Holly, eat your sandwich, okay? Now is not the time to sulk,” Daniel said. He’d ordered a cheeseburger, medium rare, Ivy had noticed.
Sarah took a bite of her quiche. “This is fantastic. I think I have found my new favorite restaurant. How’s your cheeseburger, Daniel?”
He had a mouthful of food, so he nodded up and down, and muttered something that sounded like, “Good.”
“I didn’t know you were a singer,” Ivy said to make polite conversation.
Holly looked at her dad. “I’m not.” She crossed her arms over her chest.
“Holly, that’s enough. Ivy is trying to be polite to you,” Daniel admonished.
“I’m sorry, I guess this is a touchy subject,” Ivy offered, looking at Holly. The girl rolled her eyes, but directed her gaze to her father. Ivy got what she was trying to convey.
“It is. Dad hates music. Hates me singing. Hates everything,” Holly said. She took a bite of her club sandwich and sent glaring daggers at her father.
“This was a bad idea. We should have stayed home. You can’t act like this in public. If you want me to stop treating you like a little kid, you need to stop acting like one.”
All eyes went to Daniel.
He shook his head. “I did not mean that the way it came out.” He inhaled and exhaled. “She’s eleven, I realize that, much too young to begin a singing career. I want her to stay a kid as long as possible.”
“Your father means he does not want you to grow up too soon,” Sarah explained to Holly. “Am I right, Daniel?” She smiled at him, and Ivy saw she had a speck of the spinach in her front tooth.
Ivy was trying not to laugh, but she could not help herself. She bit the insides of her cheeks, but could not keep it together. “Sarah, can you come with me to the ladies’ room? Now?”
Sarah looked at her as if she had lost her mind. “Now?”
“Yes, now.”
They both got up and went to the ladies’ room. As soon as they closed the door, Ivy burst out laughing. “Sarah, you have a giant gob of spinach on your teeth. If you’re trying to impress Mr. Greenwood, you need to rinse your mouth.”
Sarah looked in the mirror. “Oh, my Gawd! How embarrassing! I don’t think I can go back out there now.” She cupped her hands under the water and sloshed it around in her mouth, spitting the offending piece of spinach into the sink.
“Yes, you can. We can’t just stay in the bathroom while they eat.”
“Of course you’re right. I just feel like an idiot. It’s obvious I like the guy.”
It was, and Ivy did not have the heart to tell her that she was sure the feelings were not reciprocated.
“Let’s finish lunch. We’ll worry about that another time” was all she could say. He might like Sarah. Who was she to say? She had been out of the romance market way too long to know what the acceptable signals were now. Maybe she would Google it tonight, just for fun. Suddenly she felt overwhelmed with guilt. She had gone almost an hour without thinking about the family she had so tragically lost.
But wasn’t that the point?
Back at the table, Ivy did her best to make conversation that was not offensive to anyone. “Daniel, how long have you worked at The Upside?”
“I have been there since the beginning.”
“Dad’s the manager,” Holly said, finally out of her bad mood.
“I’m impressed,” Ivy said.
“Yes, I have been to The Willows for dinner, and the grounds throughout are a treat to the eyes,” Sarah gushed, then turned to Ivy. “That’s one of the fine dining restaurants at The Upside.”
Ivy nodded. “Yes, I have been there a few times.” Did Sarah know that her father had built The Upside and still owned the restaurant and the other two there? She was not sure, but she did not want to say anything . . . just in case.
“Have you tried it yet, Daniel?” Ivy asked. She was curious, and she knew Sarah would relish the info.
“No, I have not had the pleasure, but I’m sure I’ll get there eventually.”
“Can you take me with you?” Holly asked. “I have never been to a fancy restaurant.” She seemed to be in a better mood, her anger toward her father forgotten for the moment.
“We can do that for your twelfth birthday if you want,” Daniel said, and he knew she would hold him to it. “I’ll make reservations as soon as we get home.”
“When is your birthday?” Ivy asked.
“It’s the crappiest day ever. It’s New Year’s Eve.”
“Holly, enough with the language,” Daniel said, but he had a slight smile when he spoke.
“The biggest party of the year,” Sarah added. “I think it’s a perfect day to have a birthday. Wherever you go, you know there’s going to be a party.”
Holly seemed to be thinking, then spoke up. “That’s true. I guess I never thought about it like that. Dad, can Roxie and Kayla go, too?”
“Sure, why not?” He wiped his mouth with his napkin. “We’ll have a party of our own.”
“Can Ms. Anderson come? Please, please, please.”
Ivy saw Daniel’s discomfort, but she could not help smiling.
“Absolutely,” he said. “And would you like to join us as well, Ivy? The more, the merrier, I always say.”
Ivy watched Sarah. One minute she thought she had a date, sort of, and in the next, she was deflated like a day-old party balloon.
“Oh no, I couldn’t, really.” Ivy wanted to give Sarah half a chance with Daniel.
“I insist you come along, since you were kind enough to let Holly use your phone and look after her.”
She smiled. This was not going as planned.
“That’d be a great idea. Ivy, please come with us. I want you to meet Roxie and Kayla. They’re my BFFs.”
Ivy raised her brow in question. “BFFs?”
“Where have you been? You mean you don’t know what a BFF is?” Sarah asked, apparently stunned; then she realized what she had said.
Ivy felt tears well up in her eyes. Crud, she thought. This was not the time or place, but she couldn’t help it. She used her napkin to blot her tears. “Sorry, I have been . . . out of touch for a while.” She directed her attention to Holly. “What exactly is a BFF? I would love to know.” She gave her a big smile, just to let her know she was okay with whatever it was.
“It’s best friends forever, and we have been friends since we were little kids,” Holly explained; then she asked Ivy, “Do you have a BFF?”
Ivy smiled. “I’ll let you in on a secret. Ms. Anderson and I were best friends all through high school. We had a few adventures ourselves back in the day, didn’t we?” Ivy looked to Sarah for confirmation.
Sarah blushed. “We were quite the handful, and that’s all I’m going to admit to,” she said.
Ivy smiled again. Sarah did not want to advertise their past, and she agreed. Those were their memories, and now was not the time to share them, especially with an eleven-year-old.