Blindsided (Indigo Love Spectrum) (36 page)

“You forgive me?” Leslie murmured.

“I didn’t say that,” Dahlia said, “but I’m willing to try.”

* * *

“Dahlia.” Norris walked over to her the moment she
emerged from the unit. “How did it go?” he asked,
unable to read her expression.

“It went.” Dahlia released a breath. “We have a long
road ahead of us, but I think we’ll make it.”

“That’s good to hear.” Norris smiled. “Have you
eaten?”

“I had an apple earlier.” She rubbed her stomach.
“Much earlier.”

Norris offered her his arm. “How about a late
lunch/early dinner?”

“Sounds good.” Dahlia curled her arm around his.
“And while we’re eating, you can tell me all about the conversation you had with Jonah.”

Norris arrived home just before eight to find Reese
curled on the couch watching TV. He tossed his keys to
the coffee table and smiled. “Glad to see you out and
about,” he said. “You feel better?”

“I do, thanks.” Reese pulled up the blue bed sheet
wrapped about her knees. “How did things go with your
work?”

“My work?”

“Yes. Agnes told me you had to leave town to take
care of something.”

“Oh, that.” Norris walked to his desk and browsed
through the mail he’d asked Agnes to pick up. “It went fine.”

Norris hated not telling Reese about his feelings for
Dahlia, and honestly didn’t know how much longer he
could keep it up after what happened today. They’d
grown so much closer. He’d learned about Leslie and
Jonah and been introduced as a ‘dear friend’ to her par
ents. It wasn’t a ringing endorsement for a relationship,
but he’d met Dahlia’s parents, and that was huge. He
didn’t think he’d ever stop smiling.

“What did you do today?” Norris asked.

“Listened to music, ate, slept, thought,” she mum
bled. “I left you some of Ms. Castanza’s lasagna. Want me
to heat it up?”

“
I’m not hungry right now, but thanks.” Norris
picked up the newest edition of
Sports Illustrated
and
joined Reese on the couch. “What have you been
thinking about?” he asked, dropping the magazine to the
coffee table.

“What happened earlier.” Reese clicked off the televi
sion and gave him all of her attention. “I’m ready to listen
now.”

Norris studied his daughter closely. He didn’t detect
any anger in her expression or tone. She seemed curious and interested in whatever he had to say, a strange but welcome metamorphosis. “You’re not angry anymore?”

“I’m learning fathers and daughters don’t always see
eye to eye, and it’s normal. So, I guess we’re doing some
thing right.”

“You’re not giving up on me?”

Reese tugged on a curly lock. “Dahlia, Lara, Diana,
and Agnes won’t let me.”

Norris smiled. “I guess it’s a good thing so many
people care about us.” Norris reached for Reese’s hand,
and much to his amazement, she didn’t pull away. “These
past few months have been like none I’ve ever experi
enced. They’ve been the hardest and best of my life, and
a big reason for that is you.”

Reese scrunched her face. “I guess there’s a compli
ment in there somewhere,” she said.

He laughed. “There is. Reese, when I say I love you,
I mean it, and I am not ashamed of you. I want to shout to the world I have this beautiful and bright daughter.”

“To the world, but not your mother?”

“My mother and I don’t see eye to eye on a lot of
things, and today was no different. As you suspected, you
caught us in the middle of something. Introducing you
to this pain in my butt didn’t enter my head as something
to do.”

“You call your mother a pain in the butt?”

“It suits her. I bet you’ve said the same about me.”

“I haven’t. You’re more a pain in the neck.” She
laughed.

Norris dropped his jaw in feigned outrage.

“Yes,” she said. “I’ve learned it’s a condition most
fathers give their daughters. I’m trying to become
immune to its annoying effects, but it’s a challenge.”

“There are a few conditions daughters give their
fathers, too. Gray hairs, sleepless nights, indigestion.”

“Indigestion?” Reese laughed.

He nodded. “Fathers get it from worrying about the
boys that have this amazing way of lighting up daughters’
eyes. It’s enough to make them sick to the stomach.”

“From what I’ve heard, you lit up your share of eyes
in your day.”

“My day? You make me sound like I’m a hundred years old.”

“May as well be. You’re played out.”

“Pl—Are you kidding?” Norris stood and pranced
around like a fashion model. “Look at this. I’m just hit
ting my stride. There’s a lot of gas still left in Norris’s tank.”

“When the indigestion isn’t taking its share.” Reese
grinned.

“Touché.” Norris returned to the chair, laughing.

Talking, joking, dare he say it, bonding? After the
rocky start to the day, he and Reese had somehow managed to salvage the evening and get closer. He didn’t feel
the tension that seemed to always linger just beneath the
surface. It felt good. After months of struggle, in one day
he’d made some real headway with the two most impor
tant women in his life.

“Tell me, how much do you like Jack?” Norris asked.
Reese’s eyes took on the glossy shine he’d mentioned earlier. His stomach twisted in knots. He would probably
never get used to seeing that look in her eyes. He groaned.
“What?” Reese asked.

“What? That’s my indigestion groan. You can’t see
how bright and shiny your eyes are right now.”

Reese smiled. “But I can feel my happiness.” She
curled into the near corner of the couch and clutched the
throw to her chest, sighing. “Jack is wonderful. He’s con
siderate, kind, smart, athletic, and so fine. Mmm.” She fanned her flushed face.

Norris rolled his eyes. “Tell me how you really feel.”
Reese chuckled. “You asked,” she said.

“I did.” Norris paused for a moment. “That day at
the mall, I might’ve been a bit . . .”

“Might’ve been?”

“You didn’t let me finish.”

Reese held up her hands. “I’m sorry. Please continue.”
“Maybe I was a little rough on him, but I want to
know any guy you go out with. I guess my thoughts on
this aren’t very high on your list, but it’s important that I
k
now. Call it another one of those father things. I want
my daughter to have the best of everything. That
includes potential boyfriends.”

Reese gave his hand a pat. “Don’t worry about that,
Norris. Jack is a great guy. You know his father.
Chip/block.”

“I guess. Invite him over soon. Maybe he can give me
pointers on how to make you so giddy and happy.”

“You have your own ways of doing that,” she said,
bringing a moment of companionable silence between
them. “Now, enough about my personal life. What’s
going on with you? Is this drought about me?”

“Drought?”

“All the ladies. I see ‘em checking you out, but it’s like
you’re blind to them. What happened to the legend? Or
has the torch been passed on to me? You know, I do have
my charms.”

Norris shook his head at Reese’s beaming smile. She
was too much. “There’s been no passing of anything,
young lady. I’ve just grown.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means I’m not interested in a string of women. I’m
beyond that now. I want something better than the life I
had.” He smiled, imagining the future he could have
with Dahlia and Reese, and seeing it so clearly he could
almost reach out and touch it. “I really think I can get it.”
Dahlia had to deal with her demons, and after their dis
cussion today, he felt strongly she’d be professing her love
soon. He knew she felt it, but she had to be okay with
feeling it.

“
What are you talking about? You never go out. All
you do is work and spend time with the Andrews and
me.” She raised an eyebrow. “Wait a minute. You seeing
somebody on the sly?”

The ringing phone postponed Norris’s debate on how
much of the truth he should give Reese to her question. “I’ll get that,” he said. “Hello.”

“Norris, it’s Ryan. I’m at the hospital. Lara’s in labor!”

“Is she?” Norris smiled. “How’s she doing, pal?”

“Pretty good so far. The real party hasn’t started yet.”

“I’ll be right over.”

“You might want to wait,” Ryan said. “It could be a
while.”

“Or maybe not. I’ll be over soon.” Norris ended the
call. “Lara’s in labor,” he said. “I’m heading to the hospital.”

“Cool.” Reese stood. “Mind if I tag along?”

“You want to?”

Reese nodded.

“Feel free.”

“I need to change first. I won’t be long,” she said,
heading to her room.

Norris smiled. Closer to Dahlia, closer to Reese, and this much closer to having new godchildren. This had
definitely turned into a pretty good day.

He dropped to the couch and leafed through his
Sports Illustrated
. Another thing he’d learned about his
daughter, when it came to getting dressed, not long usu
ally meant an hour.

* * *

Twelve hours later, Norris and Reese returned home.
“Who would’ve thought two six-pound babies would
take so long being born. I was beginning to wonder if
they were coming by Pony Express,” Norris said.

Reese laughed. “They are the cutest little things.” She
cooed. “Brianna Evelyn and Christopher Boyd. I could
actually look forward to babysitting.”

“I’m sure Lara and Ryan would love to hear that.”
Norris stretched. “I’m beat.”

“So am I.” Reese yawned. “I’m gonna crash for a while.”

“Go ahead. I’ll turn in after I check in with Agnes.”

“Good night, then.”

“Good morning,” Norris corrected, smiling as Reese
disappeared down the hall.

Two minutes after Reese went into her room, Norris
ended his call with Agnes. His body was so tired, he won
dered if he could make it to his bed. In the middle of
taking the first step toward his destination, the doorbell rang. Norris turned to the offending sound.
What damn
cruel trick is this?

He checked the peephole to discover the cruel trick to
be a hellish nightmare. His mother. He pulled open the
door, desperate not to hear that ringing again. His heart
pounded with fury and hands shook with exhaustion.
“What do you want?”

“We needed to finish talking.”

“We were finished yesterday. Mom, I’m tired. I’ve had
a very long night, and I want—I need—to go to sleep.”

“Sleep? Norris, it’s nine o’clock in the morning.”

“
I was at the hospital for the past twelve hours. Ryan
and Lara’s babies were born earlier this morning.”

Genevieve grunted and brushed past Norris. “I see.”