The doorbell rang while he was in the middle of washing a plate, snapping him out of his thoughts. He put the dish towel down and jogged to the front door. His father was taking a nap, and he didn’t want the doorbell to ring again.

He couldn’t imagine who would be coming by the house. His father had very few friends in the community. Even the local church had eventually stopped coming by, thanks to his ability to offend even the most patient visitors.

He opened the door and stopped short.

“Surprise!”

He stared at Dena for what seemed like hours. Surely she was a hallucination he’d conjured up to ease the misery of being in Colorado. She wore all white from head to toe, and her beautiful blond hair peeked out from under her hat. She looked like an …

Like an angel.

He stopped himself before he said it.

“What are you doing here, Dena?” he asked instead.

Chapter Thirteen

Present day

Jeff knew her well enough to see through her almost perfect fake smile. Not only that, but her lips quivered for a brief second while she stood in the doorway. She was trying to act like she had everything together, but he could see that inside she was scared as hell.

Of him?

“I, uh, probably should have called.” Her gaze looked behind him, over his shoulder, to the ground, anywhere but at his eyes. “But I wasn’t sure you’d answer your phone if you knew it was me.” She rushed on before he could say anything. “Okay, that’s a lie. I know you would have answered, but I was afraid you’d tell me to go back home.”

Hell, no, he didn’t want her to go back home.

“Come inside,” he said, holding the door open for her. He wanted to ask her a hundred questions, but they could wait. She was probably tired, and his father would be up soon. It was supposed to turn cold later in the day. Already the temperature was dropping. He looked over her shoulder. “Got any bags?”

“I’m staying at a hotel. I’m not so uncouth that I’d show up unannounced and expect you to put me up.”

He nodded and let her pass him into the house. He’d just closed the door when he heard his father call out from the living room.

“Who the hell’s ringing the doorbell at this hour?”

Dena stopped walking and raised an eyebrow.

“My father,” Jeff said.

The look on Dena’s face spoke of her sympathy, but before she could speak, his father called out again.

“Who are you talking to?” his dad asked. “Tell them we’re not interested.”

Dena started walking toward the living room.

“Dena,” Jeff tried to warn her. “Watch out. He’s …”

But she was already gone. He followed her.

“Hello, Mr. Parks,” she said. “My name’s Dena. I’m a friend of Jeff’s. From Delaware.”

“You must be what kept him there so long.”

“Well, Jeff and I do go way back. We’re close.” She draped her coat over the arm of the couch, then placed her hat on top and gave her head a shake. Her blond hair bounced around her shoulders.

His father looked her up and down, probably trying to determine just how close they were. “You and Jeff? Nah.”

Jeff watched, amazed, as she walked over to his father’s hospital bed and sat down on the edge.

“Between you and me, it shocked the shit out of a lot of people,” she said.

Then his father did something Jeff hadn’t heard since he’d arrived weeks ago. He laughed.

“I think I might like you,” he said in that raspy voice. But when a big smile broke across Dena’s face, he added, “I said I might. You two go and let me get some rest.”

They walked silently into the kitchen, and Jeff picked up a dish to wash. “Figured if you charmed my dad I’d let you stay?”

She looked pained, and he immediately regretted his sharp statement, but she only smiled and said, “Yes. Exactly that.”

“I’m sorry. You came all this way. I shouldn’t be such an ass.”

“At least not this soon.”

He smiled at her attempt to lighten the mood. “Why are you here?” And then another thought crossed his mind. “And by yourself? I can’t believe Nathaniel let—”

She held her hand up. “Cole flew with me and drove me here. He’s staying with friends.” She had told him it was the least he could do following the pep talk he’d given her. “I’m going to tell you the truth because you deserve it and you’ll know if I’m lying anyway.” She bit her bottom lip. He’d never seen her do that before. “I couldn’t stand to be away from you anymore.”

They were words he’d dreamed of hearing, but part of him feared it was much too late. They never seemed to be able to work things out permanently.

“I know we can’t start over,” she continued. “There’s too much history between us. And I don’t think we can ever be just friends. For the same reasons.”

He nodded. “Some people were never meant to be friends.”

“I don’t want to be just your friend, either, but there are things we need to deal with.”

Is that why you’re here? he wanted to ask, but he waited for her to speak.

Tears gathered in her eyes. He’d always hated her tears. Hated even more that he was often the cause of them.

“We’ve always been so honest with each other,” she said. “About everything except her.”

His heart broke anew just thinking about his daughter. “Dena,” he said in a broken whisper.

She held up a hand. “It’s true, and you know it.”

He did.

“I came because I want us to try to work things out. You told me you wanted to face things together. Do you still?”

“It can’t be like it was,” he said. “Neither one of us can go through that again.”

“I know,” she said softly.

“God, I can’t believe you’re here.”

“I have to tell you, I almost played with Cole.”

His heart pounded. He couldn’t bear to think about another man’s hands on her. Surprising since such thoughts had never bothered him before. Hell, there had been gossip that she and Daniel were a possible item. All before Julie, of course. “I have no claim on you,” he said, calmer than he felt. “You’re allowed to play with anyone you want.”