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Her hands slid slowly off his shoulders, like she didn’t want to let him go, either. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Not soon enough.” He hit the intercom. “Brenda, send them in.”
If he spent any more time alone with Summer, his promise to be patient would go right out the window along with his good intentions.
Chapter Sixteen
Summer stepped away from Cody, putting some distance between them for propriety’s sake as her father and their clients came into the office. She didn’t like being the center of attention, or the way her dad looked from her to Cody, like they’d been doing something inappropriate in the office.
But Nate’s happiness at seeing her didn’t diminish, and she gave him a welcoming smile.
Cody walked to his clients and greeted them with a handshake.
Summer looked at her father. “Ready to go, Dad?”
The huge smile on his face warmed her heart. So much pride and appreciation shone in his eyes.
She wished her mother found this kind of joy in simple things.
“I’m ready, if you are.”
“Then let’s go have a long lunch and get to know each other.” She hooked her arm through his.
He put his hand on her arm. “Gentlemen, I’d like to introduce my daughter Summer.”
“My apologies for taking up Cody’s time and making you wait.” She stepped closer to the men and shook their hands. Their smiles and appreciative glances didn’t go unnoticed by Cody, or her father, as Nate gave her arm a little tug to move her farther awayfrom the men. “If you’ll excuse us, gentlemen. I’ve got a date with my father.”
They left the men to their business and walked out. After Brenda handed her the file folder containing the proposal she’d been waiting for, Summer walked beside her father to the elevator.
They rode the elevator down to the lobby. Her father took her elbow and guided her out the massive glass doors into the warm sunshine. He helped her into the car, went around, and got in beside her. “Where do you want to go?”
“I’ll defer to you, since this is your town.”
Nate started the car. “There’s this great Italian place not far from here. It’s my favorite.”
“I love Italian,” she said with a huge smile. One thing to add to the list of things they had in common.
They parked behind the restaurant and entered through the front. The hostess steered them through the white linen–covered tables to a booth along the windows. The view was of a side courtyard lush with bougainvillea climbing the trellises.
She took her seat and accepted the menu from the hostess. Setting it aside, she studied her father. The strange awkwardness was slowly beginning to dissipate. Soon, she hoped, they’d feel like family. She very much wanted that easy way of knowing someone so intimately that she could let down all her defenses and just be with him. She didn’t want to have to guard her words or choose her actions carefully to ensure she didn’t make a mistake and tarnish the relationship. When you were family, loved like that, nothing else mattered.
He met her gaze. “What is it?”
“You. Acting like my dad. I like it. I’ve missed it.”
“We missed so much. I wasn’t there to give you guidance while you grew up, or the safety and protection of my being there for you over the years. I didn’t put a roof over your head, food in yourstomach, clothes on your back, or send you to the best schools. Your mother did those things. I didn’t have a say in any of it. There’s no way to go back and make it right. I can only meet you where you are right now in your life and offer what wisdom I’ve gained in mine and be there for you when you need me. You’re a grown woman. Smart, capable, independent. But I hope that doesn’t mean you don’t need your dad.”
“I need you very much.”
He squeezed her hand, let it go, his shoulders relaxed. He sat back in his seat, relief in his eyes. “I think we both agree this is an impossible situation. We’re both angry with Jessica for what she did. We both regret missing the details of all those years. It’s time we can’t get back.”
“I’ve spent so many years wondering about you and how things might have been different for me if you were around.”
“If I’d wanted you.” He voiced the very thought she’d had for years.
Often, it was the very thing that kept her up at night and filled her dreams. If only he’d wanted her, had been a part of her life, she might not have been so sad, or angry, or alone when Jessica was wrapped up in her own life, Summer just an afterthought. And now she knew. When Jessica had been self-involved and unavailable, Summer could have turned to Nate and found the safety and support she’d needed so desperately at times.
“You did want me. And that’s what makes looking back so hard. My mother wasn’t always there for me. She knows it and has never made excuses for the way she is.”
