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“I haven’t said yes yet.”
He leaned toward her. “You have to do that right now. Get yourself settled. You shouldn’t have to worry about anything and this has been hard. Allison, I mean it. I need you to do this.”
She knew she didn’t have a choice, but she hadn’t expected Peter to be so...enthused. It was as if he was abdicating responsibility.
She looked at the man she loved, the man she’d thought she would spend the rest of her life with.
“Are you a criminal?”
“What?” He drew back. “No. I’m not. Accounting can be tricky. I was helping a client. You know I’d never do anything to hurt you. Allison, I never really understood what love was until I met you. We belong together. This is going to get worked out. You’ll see. Just hang in there.”
His shoulders slumped. “I miss you so much. You’re all I think about. Do you believe me?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “And I love you. I need you, Peter. Home.”
“I’m working on it.”
She wanted to say Work harder but knew there wasn’t any point. It wasn’t as if he wanted to be here.
They talked until the time was up, then she kissed him once and made her way to her car in the light rail parking lot. Her body and her spirit felt battered.
Levi would never have done this to her.
The thought came out of nowhere. She pushed it away, feeling guilty and disloyal. Thinking about him, about what he would or wouldn’t have done, wasn’t helpful. She had to deal with the situation she was in.
In her car, she dug out her cell phone. She carefully entered the unfamiliar phone number and typed:
Thank you for your generous invitation. Jackson and I would be very grateful to come live with you.
15
Erica placed the roasted golden beet, avocado and watercress salad on the table, along with the crispy French rolls. The cheese-stuffed shells were still in the oven. Killion was pouring the bottle of what she assumed was very expensive French wine for the three adults.
Summer waited until he was seated before passing him the beet salad. “We’re having a childproofing party. A couple of my girlfriends are coming over and we’re going to crawl through the house, figuring out what’s at Jackson’s level.”
She grinned as she spoke, obviously delighted by the prospect.
After receiving Allison’s text, Erica had informed Summer and Mara that they would have new roommates. The three of them had come up with a plan. Killion had come through, as always, recommending a moving consultant to coordinate everything. One phone call later, the woman had been hired and had promised to take care of it all.
“Summer and I went online,” Mara said, winking at her daughter. “Childproofing equipment is more sophisticated than it used to be. We’ll remove all the breakables and lock the cabinets. Our handyman is coming by on Friday to secure the big pieces of furniture to protect Jackson if he climbs.”
“Kids really climb furniture?” Summer asked.
“You were more monkey than little girl,” Erica said with a laugh. “Once we found you at the top of a bookcase and we had no idea how you got there.”
“I don’t remember that at all.”
“You were having fun. I, on the other hand, nearly had a heart attack.” She pressed a hand to her chest. “I kept talking calmly while I hurried to get a chair so I could lift you down. I was terrified you’d jump.”
“You should have tried gymnastics,” Killion said, his voice teasing.
“I guess.” Summer shook her head. “I don’t think we have to worry. So far Jackson likes to run but I’ve never seen him climb anything.”
“How are you going to like having a toddler and soon a newborn in the house?” Killion asked.
Summer grinned. “I’m excited! Jackson’s so great. We always have a good time.”
“You still have school and softball,” Mara pointed out. “Jackson could be a complication.”
