school class to the sanctuary where she would sit with his mother while he led the morning music. They’d barely made it into the vestibule, though, before she broke free from him, her black-patent Mary Janes clicking across the tile as she then disappeared into the jungle of adults.
“Elizabeth Ann Warren. Come back here this instant.”
He used a louder-than-normal voice, but he shouldn’t have bothered. He would never be heard above the din of the Sunday chatter. Checking his watch to make sure he still had a few minutes before the organist would begin the processional, he hurried in the direction she’d taken.
Emerging on the other side of the crowd, he found the group his daughter must have seen first from her waist-high point of view. His mother was talking to Trina Scott, who must have said something clever because all three Scott sisters were laughing. He didn’t see a lot to laugh about because his disobedient child was giggling along with them to a punch line she probably didn’t understand, and she was doing it from her perch on Haley Scott’s hip.
Matthew pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache threatening. Of all those people standing there together, his daughter had to choose Haley to cling to, as if it had been years since she’d seen her instead of days.
“Looking for something?” Haley asked when he strode toward them. She gave the miniature misbehaver in her arms a squeeze, causing the crinolines in the child’s dress to crunch. Elizabeth pressed her cheek against Haley’s.
Crossing his arms over his chest, Matthew addressed only his daughter. “Young lady, you know better than to run in church. And it’s dangerous to run off like that.”
“I’m sorry.” Elizabeth bent her head and looked up at him from under her eyelashes. “But Miss Haley was here.”
As if that explained everything. “Well, I don’t want you to do that again, okay?”
“Okay, Daddy.”
“Elizabeth was just telling me about her Sunday school lesson.” Haley lowered Elizabeth to the floor before straightening the pink-striped blouse she wore with a black skirt. “I love the Noah’s ark story, too.”
“Animals go two by two,” Elizabeth said in a sing-songy voice.
His mother touched his shoulder. “Shouldn’t you be getting inside?”
Matthew glanced toward the open doors of the sanctuary and then at his watch. The first strains of the organ processional music filtered out the door. He was late. He hated having to go in after the music had already started.
Peeking at his watch once more, he turned back to Elizabeth. “Now I want you to behave for Grammy in church.”
The little girl frowned. “I want to sit with Miss Haley.”
He opened his mouth to argue, but his mother waved a hand to stop him. “We’re all planning to sit together.”
“Oh. Good.”
Matthew hesitated only a second before waving and making his way to the front of the church. Why was he acting like a protective papa bear this morning, anyway? Everything was under control, just the way he liked it. He’d even hired a perfect, new caregiver for Elizabeth. A pre-med student, who planned to specialize in pediatrics, Renee even came with references.
From his observation point stage left of the pulpit, he watched the two families file in the sanctuary, filling most of the fourth pew. Sure enough, Elizabeth managed to sit next to Haley, but his mother sat on her other side. No big deal. What harm was it for Elizabeth to befriend Haley anyway? Haley needed friends, apparently better ones than he was being.
He glanced over to his daughter in time to see her pull out a hymnal and hand it to Haley. In the Bible, God had instructed fathers to teach their children in the ways of faith and yet at only four years old, Elizabeth was a better example than Matthew was of how to reach out to others.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the organist motioning for him to take his place behind the lectern to lead the opening hymn. Obviously, he needed to listen better to the lessons in church instead of just leading the music.
He did his best to pay close attention to all the morning’s hymns and then through Reverend Boggs’s sermon on the “Parable of the Lost Sheep.” Church sometimes felt like just another obligation, but this time he vowed to search for deeper meanings that he could apply to his life.
Only a few times did he give in to the temptation to glance down at his family, but that was just to make sure his daughter behaved during services. Once he caught Haley holding her index finger to her lips to hush her, but other than that, Elizabeth was a model citizen.
Matthew was proud of Elizabeth’s behavior. When Elizabeth and his mother reached him in the receiving line after services, he tried not to notice that she stood there calmly holding Haley’s hand when she’d run away from him earlier.
“Well, sweetie, you sure were a well-behaved young lady during church services. Miss Renee will be very happy if you’re this good for her tomorrow.”
“Daddy, why can’t Miss Haley be my new babysitter?”
Matthew stiffened, trying not to look at Haley. “You know why, honey. We hired Miss Renee, and she starts tomorrow.”
“I don’t want Miss Renee. I want Miss Haley.”
“You know Miss Haley will be too busy taking care of the details from the…er…wedding to…” He let the words trail away, not sure what else to say.
“Your daddy’s right about that,” Haley said.
This time Matthew couldn’t help stealing a look at Haley. She was still smiling as she had been when they’d approached, but the look didn’t quite reach her eyes.
She bent to get on Elizabeth’s level. “Don’t worry. I’m sure she’ll be nice.”
When Haley stood again, her gaze connected with Matthew’s. Her sad expression made it clear that she understood his real reason for never even approaching her about the job. She seemed to recognize what he really thought about her, and his opinion hurt.
Something tightened inside his chest. He’d always known that parenting was a tough job. He’d found that out the hard way when Stacey had left. But he’d never realized that doing what he’d considered to be the right thing for his child—what he still thought was the right thing—would make him feel like such a heel.
Chapter Four
Matthew flipped through the stack of papers on his desk for the third time, hoping he’d simply overlooked something, but the legal brief still wasn’t there. Not just any legal brief but the one he was supposed to file in court in about, he paused to look at his watch, forty-five minutes. Shoving back his executive chair from his desk, he crossed to the row of filing cabinets on the south wall and yanked open a drawer.
“It has to be here somewhere,” he hissed. At least it had better be if he didn’t plan to get the chewing out of a lifetime from Judge Andrews for wasting the court’s time.
A tap at his office door brought his head around. “Sybil, I told you no visitors,” he began. His words fell away, though, when not his office assistant but his daughter and her brand-new child-care provider stepped inside.
“Hi, Daddy.” Elizabeth ran inside, scrambling into his office chair.
He didn’t have time for this. He didn’t even have time for a restroom break, let alone visitors. “Hey, you two,” he said, trying to sound calm. “I didn’t expect you to come by. Feel free to look around, Renee, but unfortunately, I can’t give you the full tour. I’m due in court in a little more than a half hour and I’m missing—”
“That’s a bummer,” the nineteen-year-old said to interrupt him. “I know you’re busy, so I won’t keep you long. I wanted to let you know I’ve found another job, so I won’t be able to keep