A knock at the door caused her to jump and almost fall. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then went to the door. Colt stood there with a glass of wine for her in his hand. He handed it to her. "I fixed us dinner. Can we talk?"
"I guess." She took the glass. The jumpiness in her dissipated a little. She smelled the white wine. "Thank you."
His cheeks had a slight blush as he guided her to the table. As they made it to the dining room table, he held her chair for her. Colt's manners were stiff tonight. Then she inhaled the delicious dinner. A simple steak was fine with her right now. She waited for him to push her seat in. "Thank you."
"You just said that." Colt sat across from her, unfolded his napkin, and then added broccoli to her plate. "You are allowed to yell at me. I was a jerk."
"My lawyer let you believe it," she said, as she reached and brushed her fingers on his shoulder.
He gazed in her eyes. "This is not a judgment, but where were you today? I was scared you took Clara from me and wouldn't bring her back."
She sighed. "Didn't you get my note?"
His brown eyes were big. "No. What note?"
She pointed in the direction of the kitchen. "The one left on the refrigerator."
He stood, walked over, and shuffled everything. She followed, and he shook his head. "No. I don't see any note."
"I left it there." Vicki bit her lip. She crouched to the floor and tried to peer under the huge machine. There was a paper there. She tried to reach it. A few seconds later, she placed her hand on his shoulder. "Your sister needed a ride to her doctor's appointment. I forgot about it until she called. John had to go out of town for the day."
"You were with Alice? That makes me a double jerk..." His phone rang and interrupted whatever he'd say next. He stared at the caller ID then answered, "Hello."
She took a sip of wine and waited.
A moment later, he hung up. "Lawsuit was withdrawn. Vicki, I'm sorry."
"You were scared for Clara." She placed the glass on the table.
He ran his hand through his hair. "What is it you wanted to say to me?"
"In your dreams, you call out my name." She stared at the ground. She needed to start this conversation. They had to build trust. "My first night here, the night of the hurricane, and then the night Belle was here."
"Belle mentioned your name as the reason I changed my mind, but I denied it." He dropped his hands to his lap. "I must have set her up to believe the wrong things."
Neither of them had done anything wrong. She took his hands in hers and squeezed. "I went to your room. She asked me to help her, and in exchange she'd ensure I had Clara full time. She wanted you to go with her to D.C., but I never responded. Then at the dress shop, she reminded me that she was yours for years."
He squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry."
Vicki gazed into his eyes. "We did nothing wrong. None of us are pure and none of us are guilty. Don't put mental roadblocks in the way now."
"I have no defenses against you."
Tears escaped her eyes, and she wiped her face. "You kept Clara safe. I owe you my life, and we're a family. We have to work together."
His hands trembled. "You don't owe me anything. Clara is my daughter and the biggest blessing I ever had. After you disappeared, I was happy I at least had a part of you."
Colt was perfect. She bit her lower lip again. "One more thing. You kissed me as you slept. You don't remember, but I came into your room to check on you. Then you kissed me."
His eyes widened. "Those visions were vivid, but the other day was far more than a stolen kiss."
Her heart had flutters. "True."
He froze in place. "Vicki, I don't think we're a good long-term anything right now."
"Relax." Colt sometimes reminded her of a skittish horse. He had to know they were connected for the rest of their lives, through Clara. They'd work together. She squeezed his hands. "One day at a time, Colt. Be thankful for what we already have."
He kissed her forehead and sighed. "You deserve far more than I can give."
She nodded and smiled. "You are doing it again. Stay in the present, Colt. I haven't asked for anything other than a chance to be a mom. Personally, I don't want to think you're going to run off and disappear because of the mountain of responsibility that you're sticking on your sexy shoulders."
"Vicki, you're slightly insane. Tomorrow, we'll tell Clara first thing in the morning. No more delays."
She let go of his hands and tipped her glass of wine to clink glasses. He met her offer with a beer bottle. Then they sipped. "I'm happy we talked like parents who both love their daughter. You listened to me, Colt. It's what made me fall in love with you years ago."
"What do you mean?" He stiffened in his chair.
Her face heated. Her mouth spoke without thinking. Love was too soon right now. She sipped her wine until she settled on her words. "You never ignored me or thought of me as your property. Not like my dad. Even angry, you confronted me, and listened. I like that, and you take care of our daughter as the best father you can. And all of this makes us family, and families love each other, Colt. There are no conditions."
His entire face was still pale, but he nodded, "Let's finish our drinks and go to bed."
She thought he meant together. Then the thought vanished. She'd not push him. They had too much to live for now, and she'd not rock the boat.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Colt woke up fast. His heart beat fast, and he listened. Something was off. Adrenaline rushed through his veins. His muscles tightened. Silence greeted his ears as he stood, but then someone banged on his door. He ran at full throttle out in the hall.
Vicki stood in her blue cotton two-piece sleep outfit with her head tilted toward the door. Clara also slipped out of her room as she scratched her head. Colt pointed Clara to Vicki, and motioned for everyone to be quiet.
Another loud bang on the door reverberated through the air. Colt held the handle and peeked outside. Two adults were there. He waited for Vicki to get closer to Clara, and then said, "Stay back."
Vicki nodded. With his shoulders tight, he opened the door and someone snapped a picture of him. The lights blurred his vision for a moment, as he called out, "Who are you?"
The man shoved a microphone under his nose and yelled out, "Colt Collins, would you agree to an interview?"
"No." Colt clenched his jaw and his hands tightened into a fist. "You have thirty seconds to get off my porch and off my property before I call the cops and I tell them I shot an intruder."
The cameraman jumped down a step and the reporter flinched. Good. Colt slammed the door shut in their faces.
Ten seconds later, he heard the patter of footsteps and a car engine spark to life. Just to be safe, he marched into his room and unlocked his gun closet. He stared at his rifles, took one, locked the closet, and returned to the front door.
Vicki winced and hugged their daughter tighter.
No one stood there. He would never agree to interviews, and Vicki had been here all week in a simple life.
He double-checked the locks on the door, and stared outside. His porch was empty now.
From behind, his daughter asked, "Daddy, why do you get the big gun?"