over the years, as the pressures of building his business had closed in, she’d proven so capable and so willing that the focus had shifted. Instead of what he could do for her, it had become what she could do for him.
But that had never included her sharing his bed.
After finding her earring in his rug, his first thought had been how to avoid losing her help. But as the afternoon had worn on, his musings had deepened. He’d taken a long look at himself in the mirror and seen a first-class jerk looking back at him.
Steve, if he’d been here, would have punched him black and blue.
Somehow, he had to do a better job of keeping his promise. And he absolutely had to forget about taking her to bed again. As wonderful as it had been, he knew that a romantic relationship with Terri could never work. She was the kind of woman who would demand full honesty from her lover...and that was something he couldn’t offer. Not with the secret he’d kept from her all this time.
If she knew the truth about what happened with Steve, she’d never let him touch her again—not even as a friend.
Her friendship was something he had to keep, not just for Steve’s sake but for his own, too. She meant far too much to him for him to be willing to let her slip away. So that meant finding a way to make amends, to show her how much she meant to him—in a purely platonic way. But with a strong, independent woman like Terri, knowing where to start with winning her over wouldn’t be easy—especially after what had happened this morning.
“Come on, Daddy!” Quinn tugged at him, and he realized he’d fallen behind. Terri had already opened a door partway down the long corridor and stepped into the room. Still holding Quinn’s hand, he reached the doorway and paused on the threshold.
In the light of a single table lamp, the woman in the worn leather recliner looked as if a strong breath could blow out her life like a candle flame. Her face was as wrinkled as a walnut, her hair like white spider webbing on her ancient head. He would never have recognized feisty Harriet Cooper, Steve and Terri’s maternal grandmother, who’d raised them after their parents died. Remorse crept over him. How many times in the old days had he been in her home and eaten at her table? And now—damn it all, he’d barely been aware that she was here. He certainly hadn’t taken the time to visit.
“Hello, Grandma.” Terri knelt next to the chair, the lamplight falling on her face. “I came by this morning but you were asleep,” she said.
The old woman huffed, refusing to look at her.
“I’m sorry,” Terri said. “I came as soon as I could.”
“Sorry, are you?” Harriet snapped in a papery voice that sounded so different from the warm, maternal tones he remembered. “Then take me home. They steal things here. My wedding ring—”
Terri took one bony hand and lifted it to the light. “Look, Grandma. Your ring is right here on your finger. Nobody stole it.”
“Liar! That old thing isn’t my ring!” The old woman snatched her hand away. “Where’s Steve? He never lied to me! I want him to come and take me home!”
Still standing in the doorway, Buck felt the painful tightening in his gut. It hurt for him to watch this. But how much worse would it be for Terri, dealing with this poor woman every day?
And why couldn’t Steve have been here? Why had Steve been the one to die, when it should have been him?
“Look, Grandma.” Terri drew her attention toward the doorway. “You’ve got visitors.”
“Oh?” Harriet perked up. “Who is it? Is it Steve?”
“No, it’s Steve’s friend Buck. And he brought his little girl. Her name’s Quinn.” She beckoned them over.
Quinn gripped her father’s hand. Maybe Terri had been right about this experience being too much for her. But it was too late to back out now.
“Hello, Mrs. Cooper.” He offered her his free hand.
Her dim eyes brightened. “Steve! It’s really you! Did you come to take me home?”
Buck steeled his emotions. “I’m Buck, Mrs. Cooper. I used to come to your house with Steve.”
Her grip on his hand was surprisingly strong. “You were always my favorite, Steve. More than your sister. Why’d you stay away such a long time?”
He cast a helpless glance at Terri. She was doing her best to remain smiling and composed. “This is Buck, Grandma,” she said. “And here’s his little girl.”
“Steve’s little girl.” She reached out and touched Quinn’s cheek. “My, but you’re a pretty thing. Come give your great-grandma a kiss.”
Buck could feel Quinn trembling next to him. But she stepped forward and feathered a kiss on the wrinkled cheek. Buck had never been more proud of his daughter.
The old woman fixed her cataract-blurred gaze on him. “So, why are you just standing there? Get me up and take me home.”
“Grandma—” Terri began, but she was interrupted by a polite tap on the already-open door. The aides, thank heaven, had arrived to get Harriet ready for bed.
“No—I’m going home!” the old woman protested as one of the young women started unbuttoning her sweater.
“It’ll be all right, Grandma. I’ll see you tomorrow. We’ll talk then.” Terri kissed her grandmother, and the three of them made their exit down the hallway to the elevator.
“I’m sorry about the mix-up,” Terri said as they walked out the front door. “She does have good days...but I’m afraid the bad ones have become a lot more common. Lately, every time I come here, she breaks my heart.”
“But at least you keep coming. I’ve got to hand it to you, Terri. I had no idea she was so bad. Is there anything I can do to help?”
Terri shook her head. “All she wants is to go home. One of these days she will.”
Quinn, usually so chatty, had fallen silent. Buck hoped he could get her to talk on the way home. She needed to process what she’d seen and heard. But meanwhile, he needed to stall Terri a little longer so she wouldn’t interrupt the first part of his campaign to show her how valuable she was to him.
“Hey, how about ice cream sundaes?” he said. “The best ice cream parlor in town is right across the street!”
Quinn brightened. “Sounds yummy!”
“I really need to get back to my Jeep,” Terri said, moving on. “You two go ahead and get your sundaes. It’s a nice evening, and I could use the exercise of the walk back.”
“Oh, come on.” Buck caught her arm, his grip hard enough to stop her in her tracks. “Quinn’s here. Doesn’t that call for a party? We can drop you off when we’re finished.”
She sighed. “Okay. Ice cream does sound good.”
They entered the ice cream parlor, ordered hot fudge sundaes at the counter and found a booth. The place was done in pink-and-black ’50s decor with vintage rock and roll playing in the background. An elderly couple was holding hands at a corner table. The man was laughing, the woman tapping her toe to the beat. Quinn watched them a moment before she spoke.
“Do I have a grandma?” She showered her sundae with sprinkles from a canister on the table.
“Your mother’s mother lives in Florida,” Buck said. “She’s your grandma.”
“She doesn’t count. She and Mom are mad at each other. They don’t even send each other Christmas cards. What about your mother? How come I don’t know her?”
Buck had known that sooner or later she was bound to ask. But he’d never looked forward to answering. “She died when I was in the army, before I married your mother. She had lung cancer—from smoking.”
“What