Perfect Embrace by Kaylee Ryan
Chapter 1
Laken
“Thank you,” I say to the UPS driver as my cell phone rings. Rushing around the counter, I grab my phone and smile when I see my sister, Leni, and my adorable nephew, Trace’s, smiling faces. I hit Accept and place the phone to my ear. “You two ready to move home yet?” I ask.
“Aunt Laken!” Trace exclaims, making me laugh.
“Hey, bud.”
“Guess what?”
“What?” I ask with all the enthusiasm my five-year-old nephew expects.
“Mommy and me are going to get ice cream.”
“You are? What flavor are you going to get?”
“Aunt Laken…” He laughs. “You know that chocolate is the bestest.”
“I knew you were my favorite nephew.”
“Yep!” he agrees. I don’t remind him that he’s my only nephew. That’s just details. “Mommy wants to talk to you,” he says, and then he’s gone.
“Hey.” Leni laughs.
“He’s a ball of energy today. Are you sure ice cream is a good idea?”
“It’s still early,” she says. “Besides, he’s been doing really well with keeping his room clean and getting his toys picked up. This is his reward. And, well, I just wanted some ice cream.” She chuckles.
“So, you two ready to move home yet?”
“He starts school in the fall.”
“That’s all the more reason to come home. Mason Creek is where you need to be with your family. I miss you, and I miss getting to see my nephew grow up. You know Mason Creek is a great place to raise a family.”
“I know, but it somehow feels like I failed.”
“What? No way, Leni. It means you miss your family, and you want to move home. You love this town. I know you do. Mom and Dad miss you too. Think about it. I love it when you come to visit, and that it’s been more frequent. I’d love it even more if you lived here full time. We could have girls’ night every week.”
“I have been thinking about it.”
“Good. That’s all that I can ask for.” The chime on the door alerts me to a customer. “I have to go. I’ll call you later. Kiss Trace for me, and tell him to enjoy his ice cream.”
“Will do. Talk to you later.”
“Bye,” I say, ending the call and turning to face the counter.
“Miss Waken!” two gorgeous little girls greet me.
“Hello to you too,” I reply with a smile. “How are you today, ladies?” I ask them, making eye contact with their grandmother Christine.
“We’re so good,” Harlow replies. She’s just a little shorter than her twin sister, Hayden. It took me a few visits to be able to tell them apart, and now it’s easy to see. Harlow is also the more outgoing twin. Both girls have energetic personalities, but Hayden seems to be okay with letting her sister take charge. Hayden is also just a little taller than her sister.
“Nana Chrissy said we can both get a new book!” Hayden exclaims.
I can’t help but smile at the two of them. “Well, you better start looking.” The words are barely out of my mouth before they’re sprinting off to the children’s books. “How are you, Christine?” I ask their grandmother. It’s usually Grayson’s mom, Jackie, who brings them into the store.
“Those two”—she shakes her head—“are impossible to say no to. Grayson tells me that I spoil them, but I just—” She shrugs as tears well in her eyes.
Reaching out, I grab her hand, giving it a soft squeeze. “I’m so sorry for your loss.” I don’t know what else to say. It’s been three years since Grayson Davis lost his wife and the mother of his twin girls. Holly was also Christine’s daughter. Her pain radiates from her. Then again, she lost two daughters that night. Holly’s sister, Heidi, was in the same accident. Mason Creek is a small town. We all see how she clings to the twins, and not one single person can blame her for that. It’s her only connection to her daughter Holly.
“How about a coffee?” I ask.
“That would be wonderful.” She smiles. “I was headed to Stitches next door, and those two insisted on stopping. I know Jackie usually brings them. They talk about you and this place all the time.”
“About once a week,” I tell her as I get to work making her coffee. I have a variety of coffee and tea, as well as a few bottled drinks and pastries for my customers. No, I don’t make them. I mean, I know how to bake, but not on this level. I stop by the bakery across town every morning and grab a small selection to serve to my customers throughout the day. At the end of the day, I usually walk what’s left of the treats, if there are any, to the firehouse. Those guys work hard and enjoy the treats. At least they seem to.
I mean, giving them some leftover pastries is the least that I can do after the show they give me. I live in a small apartment above the bookstore. The firehouse is just down the street. The guys wash the trucks behind the building closest to my building, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve peered out my window a time or two, taking in the show. Trust me. You would too if you were me.
“Here you go.” I hand Christine her usual.
“Thank you, Laken.”
“Nana, look!” Hayden comes running. “It’s bunnies.” She smiles.
“I see that. What about your sister? Did she find one?”
“Yep!” Harlow skips over to where we stand and holds up her book.
“Sheep. Good choice, ladies.”
“Will you read to us?” they ask at the same time.
“Girls, Nana has to run next door to the seamstress to see if the shirt I dropped off for Pap is ready. Maybe another time.”
“You can leave them here,” I tell her.
“I don’t know. I can’t imagine Grayson liking that.”
I try not to let her comment sting. I know he’s protective of his daughters. “The offer stands.”
“Just… let me call him.” She steps away, and I hear her talking on the phone. She comes back and smiles. “He’s just getting off work. He’s going to be right over. As soon as he gets here, I’ll walk next door.”
I try not to let it get to me that the sexy Grayson doesn’t want me left alone with his children, but it kind of stings. Then again, I understand. He lost their mother tragically, and those two angels are all that he has left of her. The sting, though, it’s still there.
“Why don’t you ladies go grab a spot in the reading nook and I’ll be right there?”
“He’s protective,” Christine says once the girls are out of earshot.
“It’s fine.” Walking behind the counter, I reach for the sign that says Reading in session, please ring the bell for service and place it on the counter. “All set.” Grabbing my coffee, I smile at her. “He’s their father, and even though we’ve all lived in this town our entire lives, I’m a stranger to him and to them.”
“You’re hardly a stranger.”
“Maybe.” I shrug. “Grayson and I went to school together, but our circles don’t really follow one another. Besides, they’re his daughters. He has every right to say who can and cannot spend time with them.”
She nods. “Thank you for understanding.” As soon as the words are out of her mouth, the chime over the door sounds and in walks the man himself.
“Hey, Chris.” He gives her a tired smile and kisses her cheek. “Where are the girls?” He looks at me, albeit briefly, before his eyes scan the room. Giggles filter from the back of the room, and he smiles.
“They love it when Laken reads to them.”
Something flashes in his eyes, and although brief, I can see the sadness and the pain. “They talk about it a lot,” he tells her before turning to me. “Laken.”
I’m well aware that I’m a twenty-eight-year-old woman. However, the teenager in me who had the biggest crush on one Grayson Davis is swooning over how he says my name. I’ve never heard my name fall from his lips, and let me tell you, it’s sexy as hell.
“Grayson.” I nod and turn my attention back to Christine. “It was good to see you,” I tell her.
“You know they won’t let me live it down if we miss a day. That was the first thing they asked when Grayson dropped them off this morning. They were sure to remind me that Nana Jackie brings them here every Thursday,” she explains. “I’m going to go say goodbye.”
Together, the three of us walk to the back of the store where the reading nook is located. The girls look up and spot their father and come running. I watch as he drops to his knees and catches one in each arm, hugging them close.
“Daddy, we missed you.”
“Are you here to read with Miss Waken? Wait, we don’t have to leave, do we?” This is from Harlow.
“No, Daddy. We have to read. It’s Thursday. That’s our story day,” Harlow explains. “Nana Chrissy bringded us here. Just like Nana Jackie.”
“It’s Thursday,” Hayden echoes.
“We’re not leaving. Nana had some things to do, and I just happened to be getting off work.”
“Yay!” they cheer and step out of his hold.
They each grab one of my hands and pull me toward the reading nook. It’s more of a cozy area than a nook, but nook sounds so much better. It’s a small corner in the back of the store. There is a round, bright green, super soft, plush rug for us to sit on.
“Girls, I’m leaving,” Christine calls after them.
“Bye, Nana!” They wave at her.
“All right, are we ready?” I ask them.
“Yes! Mine first,” Hayden says, thrusting her book about the scared little bunny toward me.
“Once upon a time—” I start but stop when Harlow yells for her dad.
“Daddy, you have to sit on the circle during story time,” she tells him with all the attitude of an adorable little four-year-old. She even gives a little huff at the end of her demand as if she’s irritated he didn’t already know.
“Yeah, Daddy, come sit.” Hayden pats the soft green carpet next to her.
“You’re more than welcome to join us,” I tell Grayson. “Or, if you’d prefer, there’s an adult lounge.” I point to the two small leather loveseats that are in the opposite corner of the store.
“Daddy.” Harlow stands and takes him by the hand, pulling him to the carpet. “Sit with us.”
He smiles down at her and does as he’s told. She climbs into his lap, and he snuggles her close. When Hayden moves beside me, I expect her to go to him as well. However, I’m surprised when she lifts my arm and settles on my lap.
“You can read now, Miss Waken,” she says, tilting her head back to look at me.
I can feel his eyes on me, but I don’t dare look. Instead, I smile down at his daughter and begin to read. It takes a lot of effort, but I pretend like it’s just the girls and me as I read to them, changing my voice to emulate the characters. They giggle here and there, but for the most part, they’re quiet little angels while I read.
“My turn!” Harlow climbs off her dad’s lap and moves toward me with her book in hand.
Without saying a word to one another, Hayden stands from her place on my lap and takes her sister’s place on their dad’s, while Harlow settles on mine and hands me the book.
“You ready to read about sheep?” I ask.
“I’m ready.” Harlow tilts her head back against my chest, and I can’t help it. I give her a little squeeze before I begin to read. When we’re finished, the girls stand with their books, and I expect happy smiles and a flurry of activity, but what I get is sad faces.
I’m still sitting on the floor, as is Grayson, but both girls are now standing with their books in their hands. “Hey,” I keep my voice soothing, “what’s with the sad faces?”
“Nana left,” Hayden whispers.
“And she didn’t give you the card. That’s what Nana Jackie does so we can take them home.”
It dawns on me that they’re sad they don’t get to keep the books. “Well, guess what?”
Their curious little minds can’t help but ask “What?” at the same time.
“Today, those”—I point to the book in each of their hands—“are gifts.”
“I can pay for them,” Grayson says.
I turn to look at him for the first time, and I can’t read his expression. His green eyes are watching me intently. “I insist,” I tell him. I force my eyes back to his daughters. They don’t need to see me drooling over their dad. “These books are my gift to you.” The words are barely out of my mouth before two little bodies, adorned with smiles that could give the sun a run for its money, lighting up the sky, are wrapping their little arms around me.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” they say in unison, and I have to admit this twin thing is a little freaky.
“You’re welcome. Now, there is one thing you have to do for me,” I tell them.
“What?” Harlow asks.
“You have to read every day. It’s good for your mind.” I tap my temple. “And your soul.” I place my hand over my heart.
“Miss Waken.” Hayden giggles. “We can’t read. We’re this many.” She holds up four fingers.
“Hmm.” I pretend to think of a new plan when this was my plan all along. “Well, I guess you’re just going to have to look at the pictures and make up your own stories.” There is nothing like the imagination of a child, and I know these two little angels putting their minds together could come up with some interesting stories. “How about next week, when Nana Jackie brings you in, you read to me? You can tell me the stories you create?”
“Yes!” they say together, bouncing on the balls of their feet.
Glancing over at Grayson, he has his head slightly tilted, watching the three of us intently. If I’m not mistaken, there is a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth. He’s even sexier now than he was when I had my crush on him in high school. He’s tall, toned, and tatted, and I realize I’m staring at him. Averting my gaze back to the girls, I block out the way the ink swirls around his arm and his muscles bulge in his T-shirt.
“Girls, we should let Miss Laken get back to work.”
“Okay,” they begrudgingly agree.
After a round of hugs, the girls each take a hand and pull me from the floor—after a few tries, of course, since we have to make a game out of it. Once I’m standing on my own two feet, their little arms wrap around my legs. “Bye, Miss Waken. Thank you for the books.”
“I’ll see you next week, ladies, and you’re welcome,” I say, patting their backs.
“Ready?” Grayson asks. He’s now standing next to us.
The girls release me, and each takes one of his hands, their books in the other. “Thank you.” He nods at me.
“You’re welcome,” I say as they turn and walk away. I follow along slowly behind them. Not so close that I feel like a stalker, but close enough that I can watch him in those worn fitted jeans as he walks away.
When the door closes, I push thoughts of the sexy Grayson Davis and his adorable twin daughters out of my mind and get to work putting away my delivery. I don’t know what it is about him that makes me feel like my sixteen-year-old self again. I had the biggest crush on him in high school, but that was years ago, and we’re both adults now. He’s a single father. He shouldn’t be making me feel all warm and gooey inside from just being in his presence.
I think Justine is right. I do need to get out more. I make a mental note to call her. It’s definitely time for a girls’ night.
