Everything I Desire (Lupine Valley #3)

8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Porter

I spent another day with Addy at the high school putting up some decorations where she couldn’t reach, then she roped me into helping put together swag bags for the kids.

I used that opportunity to ask her for yet another favor.

Kayla needs a dress for the Spring Fling.

I don’t think she wants to go shopping with me, I think she wants to go with her mother, like all her friends. But she’s too polite to tell me that. She’s too grateful to just be able to get a dress. She’s been showing me pictures on social media of her friends' dresses and they’re always accompanied by a photo of them smiling with their mothers. It breaks my heart for her.

Addy of course said she would absolutely take her shopping, and she asked Lacey and Scarlett to join them. I can’t wait to tell Kayla when she comes down for breakfast. I want to give her this surprise .

“Uncle Porter, are you cooking bacon?” She comes down the stairs, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

“I’m trying. I figure you can’t mess that up too bad.” I shrug.

“You’re hopeless.” She pushes me out of the way and starts pulling out all the ingredients to make pancakes. She’s picked up on Addy’s cooking lessons much faster than I have.

“Hey, how would you like to go shopping for a Spring Fling dress today?” I beam at her.

“Uh, yeah, sure. I guess I need to do that soon.” She continues on with the pancakes and doesn’t glance at me when she answers.

Her lack of excitement confirms that she doesn’t want to go with me at all.

“What if I said Addy and her sisters are going to take you to the city to go dress shopping then take you out to dinner?” I press.

She turns to face me from the stove and points her batter covered whisk at me, “Seriously? Are you messing with me?”

“Nope. They’ll be here in about an hour.” I go back to getting plates like I didn’t just drop the best surprise of the weekend on her.

She runs up behind me and hugs me so hard I almost drop the plates on the floor. “Thank you so much, Uncle Porter! Oh my gosh, I need to go get ready!”

She is already running up the stairs to her room when I realize I’m not getting pancakes anymore .

“Hey! What about my pancakes?” I yell after her.

I get no response and resign myself to eating eggs instead. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to master pancakes, unless blackened pancakes become a thing.

Precisely an hour later, I see three Harper women crossing my lawn. I open the front door to greet them.

“Hello ladies. It’s nice to see you on this fine day.” I say, leaning on the door frame, crossing my arms over my chest.

Addy is staring at my biceps so I flex them a little more than necessary for her. When she bites her bottom lip I know the effect wasn’t lost on her. It fills my chest with pride that she’s still affected by me the same as I am her.

“And it is nice to see you, Porter Jackson.” Scarlett says as she nudges Addy’s hip.

“Gross. You’re pregnant and I don’t think Preston would be happy to hear you hitting on another man!” Addy admonishes and pouts at her sister.

“Sure am, and Preston is not complaining about these pregnancy hormones.” She winks at Lacey who bursts into a fit of laughter at the teasing of their little sister.

Addy doesn’t join in the laughter with her sisters, instead she stands off to the side pouting. It makes me want to find out what’s going on in that beautiful head of hers and I make a mental note to ask her later.

“Have you ladies come to take my girl dress shopping and fulfill all her teenage girl dreams?” I interrupt, trying to bring Addy back from wherever she went in her head. I couldn’t take the sadness surrounding her while she watched her sisters together anymore.

We all hear Kayla coming before we can see her. “Yes! Yes, they have.” She shoves past me in the doorway. “No offense, Uncle Porter. I would have really appreciated you taking me shopping, but your fashion sense isn’t quite there.”

I open my arms and look down at my outfit. I wear my usual jeans and black tee, what is wrong with that? I look at the girls, “Are jeans and a tee not in style anymore? I’m confused.”

“Mmm those jeans and that tee will always work for you.” Lacey licks her lip this time, then looks at Addy.

I know for sure now that her and Scarlett are just trying to get under Addy’s skin, and it looks like it’s working. She is irritated as hell right now and it makes me laugh.

Her tell tale sign is the furrowed brows and the flared nostrils. Her foot taps slowly on the ground, and her crossed arms show her irritation growing by the second with these two. Something I’m sure started before they got to my house .

If I was a better man, one who deserves a woman like Addy, I’d be able to cross this yard and pull her into my arms.

But I can’t. It’s one thing to let her be in our life for Kayla, but it’s a totally selfish move to drag her back into my bullshit, more than she is now.

“Grooossss. Seriously? He’s my uncle !” Kayla covers her ears and makes a face like she is gagging.

Chuckling, I say, “Okay, okay, enough torturing Addy and Kayla. You guys go have fun, and don’t spend all my money.”

Addy’s face snaps towards me when I make it known that I know they’re teasing her about me. And that scowl she sends my way is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.

I wish more than anything I could believe her when she says I’m good enough for her. But her Dad was right, I should have left her alone all those years ago.

I watch the girls gather in Lacey’s SUV, or mom mobile as Lauren calls it, and wave at the end of my driveway as Kayla yells out the window, “You’re the best, Uncle Porter!”

As I drive to the shop I’m hit with a wave of sadness for Kayla. Sadness that she doesn’t have her mother to do these things with her, sadness that something so simple has been held from her all these years. A simple mother and daughter day or even outing was never given to her.

As if my thoughts summon Maura, my phone rings with a call from Sheriff Miller .

Equal parts of dread and hope course through my body. Dread that they found her, and hope that they found her. How can one act cause such conflicting emotions?

“Hey, Sheriff Miller. How are things going?” I ask, pulling into the shop.

“Well, Son, I got some news here for ya.”

I take a breath, trying to ready myself for his news.

“One of our patrolmen found Maura trying to get into the trailer at the park. She ran when she saw him, and we haven’t been able to find her, but she is back in town. Thought you’d need to know. I’d keep an eye out because she knows now that her home has been taken from her along with her child.”

I throw my truck in park a little harder than I needed to but the rage that is flowing through my body is too much to handle.

“Right,” I scoff, “because she really cares about her child.” I clench my jaw, and flex my fingers. The need to to hit my punching bag is growing. “Well, thanks for letting me know. I’ll call you if she reaches out.”

“Sounds good, Son. I’ll do the same.”

I slam my way into the shop, flipping on lights and slamming my stuff down.

“FUCK!” I yell out to no one. I pick up the tool closest to me and throw it at the concrete wall. I’ve never been so grateful to be alone in the shop.

Maura is back in town. What the fuck did she think was going to happen? She could just disappear for months on end and her teenager would handle it?

I need to tell Addy what is going on. Maura could show up at the school. And then what? Will Kayla want to go home with her? But, home where? Before I spiral into the what ifs, I need to text Addy.

I grab my phone off the tool box hoping I didn’t shatter the screen when I slammed it down.

Me: Got a call from the sheriff. Can we talk when you get home tonight? Alone?

Addy: Of course, did they find Maura?

Me: Yup. We’ll talk later. Don’t want to ruin the day for you.

I toss my phone into my toolbox again, not waiting for her answer, and blare my playlist. Putting all my anger at Maura into this car that has a rusted on wheel.

At least something productive can come of the fury coursing through my system.