Page 4 of Second Chance for the Grump

A woman with bright red hair walked out of the daycare, and my heart stopped. She turned, a chunk of her hair getting caught in the fall breeze as she shut the door. When she stepped away, our gazes connected.

Maisey sucked in a breath before raising her hand to her chest, covering her pale pink T-shirt. She stared at me as if she’d just seen a ghost.

I leaned forward, ready to march across the sidewalk and… do something when Maisey’s lips stretched into a huge smile that cut across her face.

She came to me before I decided what to do and wrapped her arms around my waist. I hurried to adjust my duffel bag so it wouldn’t hit her when it swung away from my arm.

“You came,” she said, but it sounded more like a question than a statement.

I sucked in a breath as she squeezed me harder. “I said I would.”

Maisey laughed, the sound assailing me with memories that tugged at my heart. “I thought maybe I dreamed it.”

She gave me one more big squeeze before releasing me and stepping backward. I swear she took my heart with her, except she dropped it right on the sidewalk for everyone to walk on.

I knew coming back here would be trying, but as my chest caved in on itself, I had a moment of regret. Who knew it would be this hard? Over the last two years, I’d made excuse after excuse for why she turned me down, but they didn’t help. We would have been so amazing together as a couple, so what could have happened to keep us apart?

Lying in bed alone at night, I thought of every reason imaginable. Maybe she’d lost a leg in a shark incident—difficult in this part of the world—or it’s possible, she’d decided to join the circus and travel the US as a lion tamer, or the hardest one to accept that she’d found someone else. The worst: She hadn’t felt the same spark.

Now that I had her standing in front of me with both legs and missing a lion companion, I had to admit she’d let me go to Alaska without her because she didn’t feel the same for me as I did her.

“I’m sorry,” she said, fanning her face as she stared at me. “I just didn’t expect you to come.”

She’d said that already, and her lack of faith in me gnawed at my emotions, fraying them more at the edges.

“Well, I did and I am, so do you want to talk about Charlie?”

Maisey flinched before scanning in one direction then the other. “Yes, but not here. My dad doesn’t know.”

What the hell? Her dad didn’t know that someone had kidnapped her son? Why hadn’t she called the police? Who was this woman? What had happened in the two years since I’d last seen her?

“Let’s go back to my place,” she said, grabbing my arm and leading me to the parking lot behind her family’s daycare building.

I nodded toward the building as I let her lead me away. “Does your mom still own the place?”

“It’s still family-owned,” Maisey said, keeping her eye on the front door of the building. “I’m working there to help out while we decide what to do with it when my dad retires.”

We crossed into the parking lot and headed toward a light blue Ford Focus, the same car she’d had two years ago. “You want to take over the daycare business?”

Our rendezvous was short, but she never mentioned a desire to run the daycare. Or kids.

Her nose crinkled. “No, but what else can I do? Dad won’t retire unless someone takes it over because he’s attached to the place and doesn’t want to disappoint the town.”

“I think there are other daycares.”

She hit the key fob and unlocked the door. “Yeah, you try telling him that.”

“What about your mom?” I thought that’s who ran the daycare.

Maisey stopped, just froze on the sidewalk. “We lost Mom a little bit after you left. It’s been hard on my dad, and he’s found some comfort in running the daycare.”

“Oh,” I said, running my hand over my hair as we got into the car. “I’m so sorry to hear that.” Is that why she didn’t leave?

She nodded but seemed okay. “Thanks. She was a staple in the town, but I think my sister wants to continue her legacy and run the daycare after my dad retires. It will be good for her.”

“Are you still living in the same place?” I asked to change the topic as she drove us through town without speaking.

Maisey shook her head. “No, my grandma passed away last year, and I inherited her home. It’s a cute little place.”