It was Bailey’s mom. “Me,” he agreed. “Is she here?”
She slammed the door on his nose.
He dropped his head, studied his shoes, counted to five, and knocked on the door.
It opened slowly. “I don’t talk to heartbreakers,” Bailey’s mom said.
“Mrs. Moore, I screwed up with your daughter, but I’m here to tell her I was an idiot and that if she’ll let me make things up to her, I’ll never be an idiot again.”
She sniffed. “No man can promise to not be an idiot. It’s in your blood. You’re cursed.”
“Okay, true enough,” he allowed. “I’ll probably be an idiot several more times this week alone, but if she’ll let me, I’ll love her for the rest of time in spite of it.”
She stared at him for a long beat. “She won’t let you love her,” she finally said, but her voice was warmer and hey, she hadn’t slammed the door on his nose in a whole minute now.
Both good signs. “Why won’t she let me?” he asked.
“She talks a good game, wanting to live the life she could only dream about before,” she said. “But she’s not all that good at putting herself out there. She used to do that with her dad. He’d promise to come visit and she’d get all ready for him, using energy she didn’t have to waste, making him cards and stuff. And then she’d sit in the window in the living room and wait for him.”
Hud’s gut tightened for the little girl she’d been.
Her mom made a noise of anger and remembered frustration. “He’d show up just enough to completely mess with her head, but more often than not, he’d forget.”
Hud knew that feeling. His dad had been no better.
Bailey’s mom hesitated. “And then there’s Aaron. I love that boy as if he was my own, but he screwed up once and Bailey’s…” She shook her head. “She’s used to a black-or-white world. Sick, not sick. Alive, making plans to not be alive. No gray. No middle ground.” She paused. “When she was so sick, forgiving came easy. Too easy. She was way too kind. But now…” She smiled a little. “Healthy Bailey isn’t quite as forgiving. It’s as if getting to live made her more human. And we all know humans are flawed. She’s working on that. She’s working on a lot of things. And she’s forgiven her father and Aaron, but she hasn’t forgotten. Karma or fate or God, whatever you want to believe, gave my daughter a second chance at life and she’s taking it. Thank God. But I’ve influenced her decisions enough. And I learn from my mistakes. She makes her own now, with only loving support from me.”
And with that, she pulled her head back inside her place and shut the door.
Hard to argue with that.
Hud continued along the path, winding his way until he found 10A, which was the address Bailey had listed as hers. Heart pounding against his ribs, he knocked.
No answer.
He knocked again and would’ve sworn he felt someone watching him. “Bailey,” he said, hand flat on the door. “Listen to me, I was wrong, okay? About a lot of things. But mostly about us. I want an us. I always did, I was just…” He sighed and set his forehead to the wood. “Scared.” He blew out a breath. “Bay, I need you to open up the door now and forgive me.”
Her door didn’t open.
Instead the door across the way did and… shit… Aaron stood there. “Nice on the spilling your guts,” he said, “but typically an apology involves more ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘please’ and question marks, not a demand to forgive.”
Hud ground his back teeth. “Where is she?”
“Not here.”
Hud blew out a sigh. “You all live in the same building?”
“Yes.” Aaron paused and his voice warmed slightly. “When someone you love gets as sick as she was for as long as she did, it takes a lot of care, twenty-four-seven sometimes. She and her mom had to downsize, sell the family house. The medical costs devastated them. They moved here and so did I, to be around to help when she needed it.” He paused. “She hasn’t needed it for a while,” he admitted.
“Where is she now?” Hud asked.
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
Hud stared at Aaron, who stared back, eyes clear. “You really don’t know,” Hud said.
“I really don’t know,” Aaron agreed. “She might be mad at you, but she’s even madder at me.”
“If you had to take a wild guess…” Hud said.
“I’d say she was after something she always wanted.” He shrugged. “You’ve seen her list. She could be anywhere.”
“You saw her leave, don’t tell me you didn’t. You see everything when it comes to Bailey.”
Aaron gave a barely there, slight nod. “So?”
“When?” Hud demanded.
“An hour ago.”
Ah, hell. One hour. He’d missed her by one fucking hour. “Did she have suitcases or duffel bags? Do you know if she had her passport?”
“You mean for a cruise through the Greek Islands, touring the castles in Scotland, visiting the glaciers in Greenland, whale watching…”