“I’m afraid.” Maggie put the bowl on the coffee table and stood. All this energy pulsed through her.
“You’re always afraid.”
“What?” Maggie hadn’t expected Penny to say that.
“Think of everything you’ve been through.” Penny ticked each thing off on her fingers like a grocery list. “Your father left, your mother’s cancer, your unexpected pregnancy. We both know that it was awfully suspicious when Sam dropped off the money the first time. But the fact is, you were afraid of Brady then and you are afraid of Brady now. Because you love him.”
Maggie’s heart felt as if it was going to crumble into bits in her chest. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Why doesn’t it matter, Maggie?” Penny finally stood. “Because the Brown women never get what they want? Because your mother couldn’t make your deadbeat father stay? Because you’re afraid to love anyone who isn’t obligated to love you back?”
A touch of anger scorched the pity party happening in her body. “I love you. And you aren’t obligated to love me.”
“But I’ve always been there.” Penny flipped her red hair. “And you have no reason to believe I’m going anywhere. But Brady is only obligated to Amber.”
Tears welled in Maggie’s eyes. “But what if he feels obligated to me because of her? What if everything he thinks he feels for me is only because of her? He doesn’t love me. I would know it.”
Penny grabbed a tissue box from the coffee table and held it out to Maggie. “How would you know? You are so blind you couldn’t even tell you’ve been holding out for Brady for the past eight years.”
“That’s not true—”
“Really?” Penny narrowed her eyes. “Not one date—a date, Maggie—has been good enough for you since you found out you were pregnant. You hid behind your mom’s illness and then your daughter. It’s time to stop hiding, Maggie.”
Maggie breathed in deep. Everything Penny said touched at the heart of the matter.
“What happens if you put yourself out there?” Penny grabbed Maggie’s hand. “What happens if you sleep with Brady and he doesn’t want you anymore? It’d be freaking awkward for a while, but you’d get over it and so would he. But what if he wants you?”
That feeling of drowning came upon her quickly. She’d felt it before when she’d found out about her mother’s cancer. Overwhelmed, confused, but she’d found clarity in one moment. One moment that had cost her. A night with Brady Ward. It had been impulsive and she’d paid for it. She would never regret her daughter. Amber was her life.
“I keep asking the same question, but you never give me the right answer.” Penny sat on the couch and grabbed the bowl of chips before resuming her position in the corner.
“What’s the answer, then?” Maggie wanted this to be over.
“The worst thing that could happen is that you could never try to be with the man you’ve loved since high school. That you let him go because you are too scared to find out that he might love you, too.”
“You left her with Sam?” The accusatory tone in Maggie’s voice couldn’t distract Brady from a dressed-up Maggie. Her red dress wasn’t particularly fancy, but it hugged her in just the right places, making his thoughts less than pure.
“Sam promised her Dairy Queen, a movie and chores in the morning. Besides, Sam owes me a lot more than one night.” Brady offered her his arm. “Are you ready to go?”
She hesitated for a moment, almost as if she wanted to bolt up the stairs and hide in her bedroom. Instead, she gave herself a slight shake, which made her dress dance around her knees. “I’m ready.”
He led her to his rental car and opened her door. All afternoon he’d worked on the logistics of how to get her to New York. He’d even put together a presentation. More for himself than her. It was the way he worked through things. It was comfortable.
He climbed in and started the car, turning the music to a soft volume. Now that he was with her, all the preparation flew out the window with one look at that dress. The soft floral scent that emanated from her didn’t help the tightness in his pants. He’d be lucky if he could get through dinner—let alone the important conversation they needed to have—before he kissed her.
They had fifteen minutes to drive to the restaurant, an hour to eat, then the drive back before he could kiss her. When he kissed her tonight, unless she objected, he had no intentions of stopping.
“Did Amber enjoy the farm?” The thought of his daughter cooled him.
“She fed the lambs, and Sam let her try milking a cow.” Brady pulled away from the curb as he told Maggie all about the “pet” cow that Amber spent the better part of an hour trying to milk. By the time they reached the restaurant, he was completely in control.
The hostess sat them in a booth toward the back. Very few people were in the restaurant.
“I think last time I was in here it was a barbecue joint,” Maggie said from behind her menu.
“Looks like they decided fried chicken might work better.”
“Until next week.” Her smiling eyes peeked over the menu.
He couldn’t resist returning the smile. The waitress came over and took their order. When she left, she removed the menu Maggie had been hiding behind.
Maggie smiled at him and it seemed as though she wasn’t hiding anything like she normally did. Her makeup was subtle, but her hazel eyes seemed even more intense than normal, and a slight blush touched her cheeks. Almost the same flush she had after they kissed.
“You wanted to talk?” Maggie closed her hands on top of the table.
“We need to figure out where we are headed and what situation would be best for Amber.” This was what Brady was good at, presenting a solid plan to corporate for a new venture. He never felt nervous about it anymore, but now his stomach twisted slightly.
“We’re both adults, Brady. I think we can come up with some arrangement that makes sense.” Maggie leaned forward. “I’m glad you want to spend time with her.”
“I hope I’ll always be part of her life.”
“Of course. We could probably come out to see you for a few weeks in the summer. Maybe you could come here for holidays. Since Sam is here. We usually have holidays with Penny.”
“I was hoping for more than that.” Brady interrupted her flow, which seemed to throw her off balance for a moment.
“More?” Maggie sat against the booth back and grabbed the locket around her neck. “You mean like a month in the summer?”
“No, Maggie, I mean—”
“Here we go.” The waitress put down the plates, oblivious to the fact that she’d interrupted them. “Can I get you anything else?”
“Not for me,” Maggie said.
“Thank you.” Brady waited until the waitress was gone.
Maggie picked at her food. Tears hovered in her eyes when she lifted her gaze. “I can’t let you have her for half the year. It’s not going to happen. She’s my life. I know that’s not fair to you, but I can’t.”
He reached across and grabbed her hand. “I’m not asking you to, Maggie. I would never take Amber away from you.”
Her chest