Bachelor Dad. Roxann Delaney
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in her eye.
Libby knew what her fellow waitress was thinking and decided her best course of action would be to ignore it. “I suppose I should. It will only take a couple of minutes, and then I can go home and sleep until Noah gets home from school.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Jeanine said. “I’ll finish cleaning up.”
Libby hesitated. “You’re sure?”
Jeanine gave her a gentle shove. “Of course.”
“Okay, thanks.” Libby pulled the towel from her waistband as she hurried to the bar and stepped behind it. She hadn’t slept especially well the night before. Usually she had no problem, but she’d been restless and dreams that bordered on nightmares had plagued her, waking her with a pounding heart. She was sure there was no reason to be worried, and she tried not to, but something would trigger memories she thought were buried, and that’s when the dreams would start.
Grabbing her purse from under the bar, she slipped the cell phone inside, then headed toward the door, giving Jeanine a wave as she stepped outside. The early afternoon sunshine was bright, and she blinked as she crossed the gravel parking lot to her car. The car door groaned when she opened it, but she ignored it and slid inside. For a brief moment, she was afraid the car wasn’t going to start, but the engine finally took hold, and within seconds she was on her way down the street to the city building.
Within a few minutes, she’d quickly parked the car, hurried inside and pulled the phone from her purse. Expecting to give it someone at the front desk, she was surprised to find no one there. With a shrug, she moved on and discovered a hallway that she hoped would lead her to the city offices where she’d find Garrett. A few steps later, she heard him before she saw him.
“Why didn’t you call me?” he said, his voice not far away.
“I did, if you remember.”
Libby could see Garrett and silver-haired Tootie Fredericks standing just inside a small office she suspected was Garrett’s. Not wanting to interrupt or appear to be eavesdropping, she stopped and waited. But not overhearing what was being said was impossible. Although Tootie’s voice was low, the volume of Garrett’s wasn’t.
“You gave me some crazy talk about a package.” He raked his hand through his hair, leaving part of it sticking straight up. “It wasn’t as if you even gave me a clue.”
“You need to lower your voice,” Tootie said, sounding like a teacher reprimanding a student.
Garrett happened to look up at that moment, and Libby knew the moment he saw her. “Sorry to bother you,” she said, quickly approaching them and ready to get this little visit over with, “but no one was up front.”
Tootie stepped out of the office and into the hallway. “I thought Geri was watching the front.”
“You can’t leave!” Garrett said as she started to walk away. There was no question in Libby’s mind that something had him in a panic. She didn’t recall ever seeing him ruffled by anything.
The frown Tootie shot him immediately softened to what might be recognized as a smile by some, and she patted the hand he now had on her arm. “You’ll be fine for a minute or two. I’ll find Geri. She’s probably upset because I lit into her earlier. I’ll be right back. Until then, Libby can keep you both company.”
“Both?” Libby repeated as Tootie left them. She turned to Garrett. “I’m sorry. I’ve obviously picked a bad time.”
“It’s not that.” He cleared his throat but said nothing else.
Attempting to ignore his obvious discomfort, she quickly handed him his cell phone. “I stopped by to give you this. You left it at Lou’s.”
He took the phone from her and shoved it inside his jacket. “Thanks.”
“Is something wrong?” she finally dared to ask.
“No,” he said, but followed that with a nod. “Okay, yes, there’s something wrong.” He glanced over his shoulder, and then quickly added, “Not wrong, just …”
Libby heard the tap of footsteps coming closer down the hall and looked back to see Tootie. Good. Now she could leave. Whatever was going on with Garrett, she didn’t feel comfortable being a part of it. Talking to him at Lou’s was one thing. Being around him outside of where she worked was something completely different.
Before she could make a move to leave, she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. Looking more closely, she saw a small girl sitting perfectly still on a straight-backed metal chair near a tall filing cabinet. The child held a battered teddy bear in her arms.
“Hi, there,” Libby said, smiling at the child, and then turned to Garrett. “Daughter of a client?”
“That’s a good question,” Tootie said, stepping inside the office. “You should answer her, Garrett.”
“Libby came to bring me my phone,” he explained, ignoring her suggestion. He headed for a coffeemaker near the filing cabinet and poured himself a cup. “I accidentally left it behind at Lou’s.”
Tootie chuckled at the information. “Saturday he left it at the post office.”
All Libby wanted to do at that point was leave. “Yes, well—”
“Would you like some?” he asked Libby, gesturing toward the coffeemaker.
“No, thank you. I really should be going.”
“Tootie? How about you? It seems we’re having some sort of get-together here.”
But Libby was watching the little girl, who slid down from the chair and walked slowly to Garrett. Holding her teddy bear in one arm with what appeared to be a fierce grip, she tugged on the sleeve of Garrett’s jacket with her free hand.
He looked down at her as if he was seeing her for the first time. “Do you want something?” he asked carefully.
She nodded and pointed to his coffee cup.
“Oh, mercy me,” Tootie exclaimed. “She’s thirsty. Don’t you dare give her coffee, Garrett Miles. It’ll stunt her growth.”
Libby had to clamp her mouth shut on the laugh that threatened. “Is there water somewhere?” she asked. “An extra glass or cup, maybe?”
“I have something even better,” Tootie said and turned to the little girl. “Do you like milk?”
The child nodded her head and almost smiled.
“We have some in the refrigerator in back for people who use it in their coffee. Why don’t you come with me and we’ll get you a glass.”
The girl took Tootie’s hand when she held it out, and they stepped out into the hall. Garrett let out a loud sigh of what was obviously relief, just as Tootie stuck her head back in the door. “Why don’t you show Libby that letter? She’s a mother. Maybe she can make some sense of it all.”
This time Garrett watched them as they walked away. When they’d disappeared around a corner, he shook his head and leaned his hip against his desk. “This is …” His hand went to his hair again, but stopped midway. He turned to Libby, saying, “I’m sorry you were dragged into this.”
Concerned that whatever was going on was not only serious but very private, she didn’t know what to say. “Since I don’t really know what’s going on, there’s no reason to be sorry. And before I do know too much, maybe I should go.”
She’d taken a step toward the doorway, when he spoke. “I’d rather you didn’t.” When she glanced back at him, he pushed away from the desk. “I could use a more unbiased yet knowledgeable person to counsel me.”
“Knowledgeable? Me?” She couldn’t imagine how she could help him. The only thing she knew about that he didn’t was how to disappear, and he might even have