Liz finally had her drink, but it didn’t help the way she had hoped. Throughout the evening, odd flashes lit up her mind. More than once, she thought she saw Dorian lurking in the far corner of the room, but every time she went to investigate, she found no one there.
She kept replaying their exchange, wondering why he would have asked the specific questions he did and why the mention of horseback riding had created such a vivid image in her mind’s eye. She fell hopelessly short of any answers.
Luckily, her friends kept her occupied. That is until Lauren and Shane had to leave early to make the long drive back to their home in Puffin Ridge, and Henry and Scarlett decided to leave shortly after so that Henry could study for an upcoming exam for his med school program.
So Liz found herself alone, unprotected, vulnerable.
As the night pressed on, a few random guests asked her to dance. None, however, were so handsome or so infuriating as a certain Dorian Whitley. Still, she smiled, nodded, played the part. Appearances were of the utmost importance to Vanessa, which sadly meant they were important to Liz now, too. She’d gotten very good at pretending in the course of this one never-ending evening.
It wasn’t until her father asked her for a dance that she finally let her unease known.
“You look beautiful tonight, sweetie,” he said, swaying with her to the band’s cover of “Butterfly Kisses,” a song meant specifically for fathers and daughters.
“I don’t feel it,” she answered with a sigh.
His eyes searched hers, and she wished she could tell him everything without coming across spoiled or ungrateful. When he didn’t find the answer in her gaze, her father asked, “Is something the matter?”
“It’s just Vanessa. I don’t think she likes me very much.”
“Oh, Lizzy. That’s not true. If anything, she likes you too well.”
Liz scoffed. She couldn’t help it. “Well, she has a funny way of showing it.”
“You must understand where she’s coming from. For more than twenty-five years, it’s just been you and me against the world. It’s intimidating to come into that. I think she feels as if she will always come second, and no new bride wants to feel that way on her wedding day.”
“I guess…”
“She loves you because I love you. I know you two don’t have the best track record, but she’s trying, sweetie—and I know you are, too. That’s all I want for us. To be a family.” He pulled her close in a part hug, part dance. She felt his strong, steady heart, knew it had always beat for her. Now it was time to beat for someone else. It was all a part of growing up for her, moving on for him.
He squeezed her hand, and the edges of his eyes crinkled in a grin. He was a handsome man, her father. A good man. It was no wonder Vanessa Price had noticed. He took a slow, wistful breath and said, “Her girls never had that, you know. Their father left when they were both very young. Be good to them while we’re away. I know Vanessa is very worried.”
He tucked a stray auburn curl behind his daughter’s ear and sighed. “Just like it’s always been you and me, Lizzie, it’s always been the three of them.”
“And now it will be the four of you, and the one of me.” Liz wished she could take the words back, but they were already out there.
Her father didn’t look angry, sad, or shocked. He simply held her close and said, “You are always welcome back home, Lizzie. Always.”
She loved him so very much, and she hoped Vanessa did, too. His new stepdaughters as well.
“Are you happy, Dad?” She had to know, and she knew he would never lie to her when asked directly.
He hummed to the music for a few beats before answering. “Of course I’m happy. I’m far happier than I deserve.”
His answer made her want to cry. “How could you say that when you’re the best person I know?”
Liz’s father chuckled softly and pulled her in closer to his chest. “Well, you don’t know too many people, but thank you. And for the record, you are still my favorite person in the world.”
They used to say this to each other when Liz was small, and the exchange comforted her now, proved that even if Vanessa was determined to put a wedge between Liz and her father, he would always keep them close. She batted her eyelashes as she always had and asked, “In the whole wide world?”
“A million times around,” he answered, pulling her hand up to give it a kiss.
Liz couldn’t deny that her world was changing, but as long as she had the man who had always anchored it for her, she would be okay.
No meddling stepmothers or probing journalists could take away what they had. This would always be theirs.