One Look: A grumpy, single dad small town romance(75)

“I gotta go, Dad. Thanks.”





On Saturday afternoon, Penny and I walked through Outtatowner and browsed the shops, looking at blown-glass artwork, trinkets, and an assortment of crap designed to cater to the tourists. For the millionth time, I thought about asking Lark to join us and spend a lazy day in town before getting dinner down at the beachfront restaurant she loved so much.

Meetings and practices kept me busy, and while we still fumbled for stolen moments, we hadn’t talked about her audition or what happened when summer inevitably came to an end.

My heart sank every time I thought about it.

“Look at that one, Daddy!” Penny tugged my arm and pointed at a glass suncatcher casting long bands of colored light. It was shaped like a bird with a yellow face and a black mask that stretched across its eyes. It cast sunshine like a prism, and the detailed work was impressive.

“Can we look at it? Pretty please?”

I nodded and followed her into the little shop. “Don’t touch it,” I warned.

Penny tucked her hands behind her back and gazed at the array of little glass trinkets—birds and fish, a fox.

“What bird is that?” Her nose got closer and closer to bumping the glass shelf.

“I don’t know, baby. I’m not really a bird guy. A yellow finch, maybe? Grandpa Red would probably know.”

“That would be a horned lark.” The shop owner stepped closer as Penny’s eyes went wide. “It’s a rare and special songbird. They’re the only larks native to North America.”

“Can we get it for her? Dad, it’s the perfect present!” Penny was practically vibrating out of her skin with excitement.

I thought back to Lark and our conversations about love languages and all the ways I could show her how I felt. “You know what, Pickle, I think it is.”

Later that night I sat on the steps of the porch with a beer and looked up at Lark’s apartment. It was dark since she had her book club, and I already missed her. I spent my time thinking about what my dad had said—that Lark needed to see this audition through. It was the only way to be sure I wasn’t holding her back, that our relationship had a solid foundation and we both dove in with a clear head.

Dread pooled in my stomach as I thought about her leaving us. We’d miss dinners together. Laughing with Pickle. I wouldn’t have her in my bed, warm and pliant. Her laughter wouldn’t float through the farmhouse as Penny did her homework and I cooked something on the grill.

Every fiber of my being rioted against the prospect of willingly watching Lark leave us.





32





LARK





Something was definitely up. Wyatt had been acting strange for the past few days, and I couldn’t pinpoint what it was. When the Fourth of July came, he invited me to a party where we would watch fireworks on a private lake. It was swoony and magical and exactly what I imagined a small-town Fourth of July to be. When the fireworks were exploding overhead, I sneaked a glance at Wyatt and caught him staring.

I still blushed at his attention. “Everything okay?”

He nodded and rested his chin on top of Penny’s head. She oohed and aahed over the fireworks as she sat in his lap.

On Thursday I got his note.

Dinner. Friday night, 8 p.m.

Excitement danced through me, and I pushed away any uneasy feelings that had popped up, regarding them as me just being paranoid. Most nights were spent together after Wyatt arrived home from work. Oftentimes I would excuse myself to the apartment to give Wyatt and Penny some time together, but more and more I would get an invitation for dinner or a walk or to go out for ice cream.

I never said no.

The love between Penny and her dad was so strong, and somehow I’d gotten lucky enough to be a part of it. Things felt easy and natural. The only thing missing was the ability to wake up next to the man I was falling for.

But for now it had to be enough.

I glanced at my phone, and the date staring up at me made me pause. My deadline for the Grinstead Casting Agency was only a few days away. More than once I’d almost deleted the video audition, but then I’d watch it and laugh at how seriously Penny and the boys had taken it, how much fun we’d had, and how they’d defended me when I was teased. After that I always tucked my phone away and tried to put that particular ticking clock out of my mind.

Staying in Outtatowner had never been the plan, but if I was finally casted for a day player part, staying would no longer be an option. I would have to pack everything back into my tiny car and drive the two thousand miles to LA.

My phone buzzed, and a picture of Mom’s face lit up the screen. In it she had purple hair, and her bare face was smiling, eyes closed. Affection warmed me as I answered.

“Hi!”

“It’s Aubergine, dear.”

I chuckled at the way my mother always felt the need to announce herself despite my constant reminders that my phone told me it was her calling. “Yep. Hey, Mom.”

I heard muffled talking in the background as she added, “Eagle sends his blessings.”

I could hear the low drone of rhythmic, chanting music as she continued. “Lark, I experienced a cosmic shift and needed to call right away.”

Oh boy.

“Wow. That sounds important.”