Creed didn’t look back. He had enough on his plate than to take a stroll down memory lane right now.
Sheriff Conley was waiting for him when Creed stepped into the sheriff’s office. “Thanks for coming, Creed.”
Shaking his hand, Creed looked down the stretch of hallway looking for his daughter in one of the wooden chairs. He didn’t see her. “What are we looking at, Conley?”
“Well, they didn’t do any damage to the property. The door was left unlocked. Isabella is getting forgetful these days and said she must have left it unbolted. She also doesn’t want to file any charges. Apparently, they snuck in the building to skate.”
“Thanks, pal. Can I see her?”
“Sure. She’s free to go. Just so we’re clear I gave her a good scare, just as I remember that Conley Senior used to give us when we were kids getting into mischief.”
“Why does it feel a whole helluva lot worse when it’s our kids getting into trouble?”
“Our parents always said karma was a bitch.” He chuckled and motioned for Creed to follow him down the long hallway. He stopped at a closed door marked “private”. “She’s pretty shaken up. I think she learned her lesson. The boy too.” Conley dipped his white Stetson and stepped across the hall into another room.
Creed sucked in a breath and opened the door. Livvy was asleep on the couch inside. She looked peaceful. When she was younger, he’d read her to sleep and say a prayer that she’d always know how much he loved her. Creed had tripped somewhere along the way. He’d made big mistakes—just like his Ma had said. Everyone made mistakes.
“Dad?”
“Livvy?”
She jumped up from the couch. “Daddy!” She raced into his arms, clinging to him like she’d done when she was little. He felt her shoulders shake as she sobbed into his shirt.
He squeezed her tight against him, comforting her. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m here.” He held her until her sobs turned to whimpers and faded. She lifted her head, looking at him with red-rimmed eyes and trembling bottom lip. Moisture streaked her puffy cheeks. His heart swelled three times its normal size.
“Daddy! I’m so sorry. It wasn’t Alex’s fault. I made him go into the ice rink,” she said on a rushed breath. “Please don’t make us stop being friends.”
“Come here.” He pointed to the couch. They sat down next to each other and he took her small hand into his. “Listen, what you did was wrong, but Sheriff Conley said there’s no damage to the property. Why did you sneak into the rink?”
“I wanted Alex to see my routine. I was so proud. He said he couldn’t wait to see me skate. Isabella always leaves the door unlocked and I knew that. I’m sorry. We shouldn’t have gone inside, but I didn’t think it’d hurt. We just skated. That’s all.”
He swiped away her tears. He remembered how his mom had handled the situations when he and his brothers got into trouble, and they’d done some pretty bad things. She didn’t threaten to go out back and get a switch like his father would have, but she would sit down, listen, and then give them a just and fair punishment. His Ma had been the best role model. Maybe he should have listened to her better. Creed was surprised what she’d confessed to him earlier, but it was important to forgive. No one was perfect. “Honey, it’s not the end of the world. Just don’t do it again. Okay?”
“I promise. I won’t. We won’t.” She swiped the back of her hand across her moist eyes.
“And I’m going to make a promise right now and stick to it. I’m going to stop working so much and be home more. I’ll hire more hands if I need to. I’m going to make you my focus from now on until you become an adult. You’re the most important person in my life and you need to always know that. I’m going to ground myself because I’ve grounded you at times when I shouldn’t have, when you were just trying to get my attention. That’s my fault. Not yours.”
“Does that mean I’m not going to be grounded now?” she asked hopefully.
“That’s pushing it. You’ll be grounded, but I’m not taking Alex away from you. He’s a good kid and a good friend to you. But you two will need to start being accountable for what you do and how you do it. Not following rules can lead to danger.”
“I will. I promise. I’ll never do anything wrong again.” She crossed her fingers.
He chuckled. “Although that sounds pretty darn good, we all make mistakes, even adults can make the worst.”
“I want to meet Jane, Dad. She’s my sister. I’m excited.”
“You will. We’ll make that happen. I want to meet her too.” He’d only met her in passing earlier when he’d stopped at Sage Ranch. “I saw her today. You look like her. You both look like the Hawke family.”
“I look like her?” The vulnerability he saw in her reminded him just how young she still was.
“Yes, you do. How about we get out of here? I spent enough time in here as a kid.” He stood, reaching out to help her up.
“Dad? You were in jail?”
“Not behind bars, but in this room. One day I’ll tell you about my brushes with danger if you promise to learn from my mistakes and not repeat them. The last thing this town needs is another misbehaving Hawke.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
CREED BRUSHED HIS hands
