CHAPTER TWELVE
Stan waited for Annabelle on the porch. Talking to her about Mia wasn’t something he’d planned on doing today, but he only had himself to blame.
Kissing seemed too pure a word for what had happened in the kitchen. He’d wanted Mia with a force that derailed his brain cells and left him gasping for air. And now he had to face the consequences.
Annabelle stopped a few feet away. With her arms crossed and a scowl plastered across her face, she looked like this was the last conversation she wanted to be having, too.
“I’m sorry, Annabelle. I didn’t know anyone was in the kitchen.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You kissed Mia. On the mouth.”
His heart hammered as he remembered just how hot that kiss had been. “I did.”
He was grateful she hadn’t mentioned Mia’s legs wrapped around his waist or the way he’d held her against his body.
“I thought Mia was already your girlfriend.”
Stan hung his head in shame. He should have spoken to Annabelle sooner. “Mia and I have been working together on the gala for the neonatal unit. We met all the time because we had a lot of things to talk about.”
“But we visited Mr. Costas in his gallery. We had butter cookies and hot chocolate.”
“Mia knows you like painting and so does Nick. He wanted you to see the exhibitions. It wasn’t because Mia was my girlfriend.”
Annabelle looked over her shoulder at the wooden swing. “I heard you talking to Mr. Sullivan. He said you needed a girlfriend. I thought you’d chosen Mia.”
When she sat on the swing, Stan joined her. “Asking someone to be your girlfriend is a big step. They have to want you to be their boyfriend.”
“Stacey, my friend from school, had a boyfriend. But he dumped her two days ago.”
He wasn’t sure what to say. “Didn’t they like each other?”
“He said Stacey was too clingy. She used to follow him everywhere.”
Stan scratched his head. “How would you feel if Mia came with us to different things?”
“What if she thought we were too clingy?”
“We could talk to her and find out what she would like to do.”
“What if she doesn’t like us?” Annabelle asked softly.
Stan wondered if that was the reason he hadn’t asked Mia on a real date. He wanted her to like them, to be part of their lives. But he was afraid of losing something that he didn’t have the courage to start.
“Mia likes us, Annabelle. But sometimes, being someone’s friend is better than being their boyfriend or anything else.”
“Is that why you kissed her? Because you want to be her boyfriend?”
Heat hit Stan’s face. “Yes, but boys don’t usually kiss girls like that.” He watched Annabelle to make sure she’d heard him. If any boy held her like that, he’d chase them out of town.
Annabelle’s eyebrows rose. “How do they kiss?”
“On the cheek,” Stan mumbled.
She patted his hand. “It’s okay, dad. We’ve been learning about puberty and babies and things at school. Mr. Pointon said some parents have a hard time explaining everything to their kids.”
Stan didn’t know what was worse; talking to his daughter about kissing or knowing she probably knew more than he did at the same age. “How would you feel if Mia was my girlfriend?”
Annabelle looked down at her hands. “It would be better if she was my mom.”
He pulled her against his chest and held on tight. “Maybe one day. But for now, we could be friends with Mia.”
Annabelle’s shoulders rose and fell as she took a deep breath. “Okay. Would you mind if I don’t go on the snowmobile?”
Stan kissed the top of her head. “Of course I don’t mind. You could stay here with Nick and Auntie Eileen. Is everything okay?”
“I feel tired, that’s all.”
He placed his hand on her forehead. “You’ve got a temperature. I’ll get some Tylenol out of my truck. If you’d like a cup of hot chocolate, I could make you one before I leave.”
Annabelle shook her head. “I don’t want anything to drink, but you could make me one later.”
“It’s a deal.” Stan pulled Annabelle to her feet. “Do you want to rest on the sofa or in bed?”
“Bed.”
Stan wrapped his arm around her shoulders and walked inside. He wasn’t sure if he’d said everything that needed to be said, but at least they had talked.
After he found some pain relief for Annabelle, he would talk to Mia. This wasn’t the Thanksgiving Day anyone had planned, but at least they were together.
***
Mia didn’t have to wait long for her granddad to say what was on his mind. As soon as he asked to speak to her in the dining room, she knew she was in trouble.
“A young Greek woman does not act like that,” he fumed. “You are a Costas.”
“I’m not a teenager, granddad.” She knew she shouldn’t have jumped on Stan, but her brain had stopped working when his mouth landed on hers.
“You should act like an adult, then. There were six children in the kitchen. Six! I do not know what Annabelle thought. She is a young girl. Impressionable. You do not act with such wild abandonment unless you are married.”
Mia straightened her spine. “I made a mistake. I’ll apologize to Eileen and Mark.”
“How do you explain your behavior to the children?”
“If we don’t make a big deal of it, neither will they.”
Nick shook his head. “What has become of you, Mia?”
She took a deep breath and sat down. “I’ve grown up. I’m sorry I disappointed you.”
Sitting beside her, Nick patted her hand. “You have not disappointed me. I am angry, yes. But I am Greek. What about Stan? Does he feel the same way?”
An uneasy suspicion made her peer at her grandfather. “We aren’t getting married, granddad.”
“He asked Annabelle if she was happy for you to be his girlfriend. That is one step away from marriage. A man of Stan’s age does not waste his emotions on the first person who comes along. Especially if he has a daughter.”
“Stan isn’t that old.”
“He is old enough to know better.”
There was no point disagreeing with Nick. He had grown up in a traditional Greek household with four sisters who worshiped him.
“What do you think about Stan?” she asked.
Nick’s eyes narrowed. “You want to know what I think of a man who would compromise my granddaughter?”
“He didn’t compromise me. We had our clothes on!”
Nick slapped his hand against his forehead. “I cannot believe you would speak this way. Did I not raise you to be a lady?”
“I am a lady.” Mia pulled out a chair and sat at the table. “I don’t know what to do, granddad.”
Nick muttered a string a Greek words. “When I was a young man, my sisters would ask me, ‘What do I do, Nickos? I like this boy, but I don’t know if he likes me.’ What did I know? I had never been in love until I met your grandmother. For me, there was no other. So I told them I could not answer their question. This is the answer I will give you, too. You are your own person, Mia. What I think of Stan does not matter. It is what is in your heart that is important.”
“What if I don’t know what’s in my heart?”
“Then it is up to you to find out. Your pappouli loves you. If Stan is the right man for you, you will know.”
Mia dropped her head into her hands. “I don’t want to fall in love.”
“What makes you say this?”
“I want to be a successful artist. I can’t do that if I’m worried that I’m not spending enough time with someone.”
“Do not let your art consume you, my darling. Set boundaries. Do not fall into a life that is not healthy. Love is too important to be pushed to one side.”
Mia took a deep breath. “Why didn’t mom ever exhibit her work? She was so talented.”
“Your mother worried about the same things you do. Her choice was to spend as much time as she could with you. Her painting…that always was less important than her family.”
“You used to argue all the time.”
“I was wrong.” Nick’s eyes filled with tears. “I wanted so badly to see my little girl exhibit in my gallery. But she wouldn’t consider even a small exhibition. I was stubborn and your mother was like me. If your grandmother had been alive she would have told me I was an old fool, but that is another story. In the end, I lost my little girl before I could tell her I was sorry.”
Mia wrapped her arms around her grandfather’s shoulders. “Mom knew you loved her.”
Nick kissed her cheek. “That is my one wish. You cannot take back time, Mia. Make the most of every minute, but not at the expense of the people who love you.”
“I love you, granddad.”
“That is good, because I love you, too.” Nick wiped his eyes and sat taller in his seat. “Now, it is time I spoke to Stan.”
Mia’s eyes shot open. “No! Absolutely, positively, not. You cannot speak to him, granddad.”
Any softness in Nick’s face was replaced by fierce pride. “He will answer my questions or he is not the man I believe he could be.” With the speed of someone half his age, Nick left the dining room.
She didn’t know where Stan had gone, but she hoped it was as far away as possible from the house. When her grandfather had something on his mind, no one was safe.
***
Stan quietly closed Annabelle’s door. He hoped she was able to get some sleep. It wasn’t like her to be so tired, but she hadn’t been sleeping well for the last week. He’d put it down to the excitement of her exhibition at school, but that was over and she still wasn’t feeling herself.
Mark grabbed Stan’s elbow and pulled him into Max and Wyatt’s room. “Is Annabelle all right?”
“She’s tired. I think she’s got a virus.”
“She could have caught it off Olivia. She was off her food last week and feeling sleepy.”
Stan looked at the model airplanes hanging from the ceiling and the purple dinosaur blankets on the beds. “What are we doing in here?”
Mark held his finger to his lips before closing the door. “Mia’s grandfather is looking for you.”
“I don’t blame him. I guess he’s not happy that he saw Mia and me kissing.”
“Is that what you call it? Last time I checked, you weren’t even interested in dating anyone. Now look at you.”
Stan scowled at his brother. “There’s nothing to look at.”
“There was about twenty minutes ago. The kids are still talking about it. It’s just as well they’re easily distracted by Eileen’s pancakes.”
Stan pushed past his brother. “If you’ve finished your comedy act, I’ll find Nick. The sooner we talk, the better it will be.”
Mark held onto his arm. “Not so fast. Mia doesn’t want you to talk to him. Not yet, anyway.”
“Why?”
“She said something about Nick being Greek. He needs time to cool off.”
“I’ve lived with you, remember. Most of the time you’re the most laid-back excuse for a human being I’ve met. But Nick has got nothing on you when you’re annoyed about something.”
Mark sniffed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Stan reached for the door handle. “Sure you do. I’ll leave you to think about it.” He stopped in the doorway, turning to where Annabelle was sleeping. “Keep an eye on Annabelle while I’m talking to Nick. Wherever he’s gone, we won’t be far away if you need me.”
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
“Of course I’m sure. What could go wrong?”
“More than you think,” Mark muttered. “If Nick brought a shotgun with him, I’m not going to be your best man.”
“Very funny. Do you know where he went?”
Mark pointed outside. “Last I saw, he was heading toward the barn.”
Stan left Mark standing under the airplanes and walked downstairs. Talking to Mia would have to wait.
***
Stan didn’t have to go far to find Nick. By the time he’d pulled on his boots, Mia’s grandfather was halfway back to the house. They stood in the middle of the front yard, staring at each other like two roosters in the same hen house.
“I’m sorry about kissing Mia in front of you,” Stan eventually said.
Nick’s lips thinned. “That is your apology?”
Stan stuck his hands on his hips. “I’m not sorry for kissing her. I like her.”
From the thunderous scowl on Nick’s face, that wasn’t the right thing to have said.
“You care about my little girl? A man who wraps Mia around his waist had better feel a lot more than that or you will have me to answer to.”
Stan was beginning to think his brother might have been right. He kept a careful eye on Nick, making sure he didn’t have any surprises under his jacket—things like a marriage license and a hotline to the local priest.
He knew he was taking his life in his hands, but yelling at each across the front yard wasn’t achieving anything. Stan stepped closer to Nick, dropping his voice so that the rest of his family couldn’t hear what was being said. “I didn’t mean to put Mia in an embarrassing position.” He clamped his lips shut when he realized what he’d said. “I didn’t mean to put her in any position.”
Nick relaxed slightly. “What are your intentions toward my granddaughter?”
Stan started to say he didn’t know, but Nick didn’t seem to be the type of person who took much notice of ‘don’t knows’. “I’d like to be her boyfriend and spend more time with her.”
After the sizzling kiss they’d shared, a first date seemed like taking ten steps backward. But they had to start somewhere and that seemed like a good place, especially with Nick scowling at him. The worst thing about this entire mess was that he had no idea how Mia felt.
“A wise man would be careful about what happened when he spent more time with my granddaughter.”
Stan nodded. “I understand.”
“You will respect, Mia. You will give her time to get to know you. She has a fragile heart that can break easily.”
Mia wasn’t the only person with a fragile heart. “I’ll do that.”
Nick sent him another ominous scowl. “I will be watching you, Stan Lewis. My Mia means the world to me. I am getting older, but I have lived a full life. If you hurt Mia, you hurt me.” He held out his hand. “In all of this, make sure Annabelle is happy, too. I take my role of honorary grandpa very seriously.”
Stan’s heart pounded. “I’ll do my best.” He shook Nick’s hand in a firm grip. He hoped Nick knew how much he meant those words. He would do everything he could to make sure Mia and Annabelle were happy.
The front door of the house flew open.
Mark rushed toward them. “Stan! It’s Annabelle. She’s really sick.”
He stared at his brother, shock paralyzing his brain before years of training kicked in. He ran across the yard, slipping on the ice and snow. “Get my medical bag out of my truck. Has someone called 9-1-1?”
“The paramedics are too far away. They’re sending a helicopter from Billings.”
“Helicopter?”
“She’s turning blue.”
Oh, God. He sprinted up the porch stairs and into the house. He should have known that Annabelle’s tiredness and temperature had nothing to do with a cold. It was her heart and he prayed they weren’t too late.