She set down the picnic basket she was carrying and knocked on the red lacquered door. When Chloe answered and threw her arms around Beatrice, Kate stepped back into the cover of the azaleas. The little girl looked so happy to see her friend.
That was a good thing. The last thing Kate wanted was for Chloe to look dejected or as if she had been pining away in Kate’s absence.
However, her heart had a different thought when she saw Aidan appear in the doorway after the two little girls had disappeared inside. When he leaned down to pick up the picnic basket, Dori flipped her glossy long, brown hair over her toned shoulder, leaned in and planted a kiss on Aidan’s cheek.
Kate couldn’t see his reaction because she didn’t want to get caught sneaking a peek and she would have melted in a puddle of mortification if he’d seen her lurking in the bushes. But as it ended up, her heart began dying a long, slow death after Aidan invited Dori inside and closed the door behind them.
Chapter Eleven
“After I got home from the park today,” Doris said from her seat at Aidan’s kitchen island, where she had settled herself to unpack the picnic basket she had brought. “I thought to myself, Aidan looked so sad. I think he could use a little help tonight. You know, a little pick-me-up, even though he would never ask. So I went home and packed a picnic supper for us.”
He must’ve made a face, because she quickly amended, “Or just for you and Chloe, of course, if you’re not up for company. And there’s plenty for Kate if she’ll be back later?”
When Aidan didn’t bite, she continued, “I brought some fried chicken. I whipped up some mashed potatoes and sautéed some green beans. And for dessert, I have homemade brownies.”
This time she waited for a response.
“This is nice of you, Doris,” he said. “You didn’t have to go to all this trouble, but thank you.”
“Oh, call me Dori, please.” She crossed her legs at the ankles. Aidan realized she had changed clothes since they were at the park. He didn’t remember what she had been wearing, but it wasn’t this red dress. It made him a little uncomfortable.
“And really, it was absolutely no trouble at all.”
“Well, thanks, again, Dori—” Aidan cleared his throat. “How did you pull all of this together so fast?”
Dori laughed and flipped her hair back over her shoulder.
“Okay, you caught me,” she confessed. “I might have had a little help, but what matters is that you and Chloe are taken care of while Kate is away. When will she be back?”
Doris’s eyes shone a little too brightly. Her questions, coupled with the red dress and heels, made Aidan wonder if she had an ulterior motive or, at the very least, she was here on an info-gathering mission. He couldn’t figure out what she wanted. Was she being sincere? Or, worst-case scenario, was she fishing for something he just couldn’t give her? Beatrice was Chloe’s best friend, one of the constants in an ever-changing sea of uncertainty. He would not allow himself to ruin that for his daughter.
“I appreciate you going to all this trouble, but I have to be honest, I’m not up for company tonight.”
“Oh.” The shine in Doris’s eyes dimmed a bit. She pursed her lips. “Of course. Bea and I don’t have to stay. I just thought it might be fun for the girls to play for a while. You know, a distraction for Chloe.”
How was she so certain that there was trouble in paradise after Kate’s absence from one rock group?
A text came in and Aidan pulled his phone out of his back pocket and checked to see if it was Kate. Once Doris left, he was going to call Kate and ask her to come home.
The text wasn’t from Kate, but he noticed there was a missed call from her. When had she called? It must’ve been when he and Chloe were at the park. How had he missed her?
“Dori, I’m sorry, I have to make a phone call. Will you please excuse me?”
He started to leave the room.
“Aidan, I hope I haven’t given you the wrong impression. Um... I don’t mean to pry, but you really do look so sad. If you need some time... I mean, if you need to go...somewhere. What if Chloe came over tonight and spent the night with Beatrice? I know Beatrice would love to have her best friend over. And for the record, Aidan, I like Kate a lot. I just want to make sure she’s okay. That everything is okay. It is obvious how much you love her.” She shrugged and smiled. “I guess this is me trying to help. Admittedly, not very eloquently.”
Aidan glanced at his phone again, at the alert reminding him that Kate had called, and he had missed her. She hadn’t left a message, but obviously she had wanted to talk to him. She had reached out. He hated to impose on Doris. But she was offering, and after her admission, she did seem sincere. If she had come here for...whatever...he hoped he had made it perfectly clear that he had nothing to offer because his heart belonged to Kate.
Chloe would love to stay over at Beatrice’s and play with her. It would be a safe place for his daughter, and if Chloe was there, it would give him a chance to go see Kate face-to-face. It would give them a chance to talk things out. Chloe didn’t need to be there for that.
But he needed to tell Kate how he felt. The sooner the better.
He loved her.
He had never told her that before. They were married. They were having a baby. But he had never allowed himself to express the depth of his feelings. Maybe it was because after
