Pausing, Autumn tipped her head. “Hello.”
Vivid blue eyes watched her. “I can’t talk to strangers.”
“Good rule.” She double-checked the address. “I was looking for Tash Ducker? Maybe I’m at the wrong place.”
“That’s my dad.”
Disbelief glued her feet to the walkway. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Dad? Tash had fathered this beautiful little girl?
The blue eyes narrowed warily. “What do you want?”
For such a tiny person, she did a fair job at showing hostility. “I have an appointment with Mr. Ducker.”
Still scrutinizing her, the girl went to the door, yanked it open and bellowed, “Dad!” In one hand she clutched a beat-up Barbie, and in the other a water gun.
Autumn heard hurried, heavy footsteps, and a second later, Tash stood there, filling up the doorway and sending her thoughts into a tailspin.
Oh, my.
Yup, he still looked crazy good. He still made her heart trip. He still...well, none of that mattered.
Tash was a father.
With a height over six feet and shoulders plenty wide, he seemed a Goliath next to his petite daughter.
“There’s a stranger here,” the girl announced.
He looked up and spotted Autumn standing there like a statue, then relaxed with a welcoming smile.
“Damn, I forgot.” Stepping out, hand extended, he said, “Autumn, hey. Good to see you.”
His brown eyes were the same, the color nothing extraordinary...except for the piercing intensity, the warmth and maturity that seemed to physically hold her.
He’d changed. Duh. One of the changes was sizing her up with ripe suspicion. A cute little red-haired, blue-eyed change.
Her mouth went dry, until Tash’s smile quirked.
It hit her that she just been standing there, openly gawking at him.
Get it together. Surging forward, her face hot, she managed to juggle her load and free one palm. Fortunately, she sounded mostly casual when she said, “You, too.”
After briefly gripping her hand, he turned to his daughter and smoothed her stunning red hair. “Honey, don’t yell like that, okay? I thought pirates were kidnapping you.”
She snorted with every bit as much verve as an adult. “She didn’t even get close. Besides, I’m not a baby. I wouldn’t let anyone take me.”
His smile widened but his tone sounded grave when he said, “Of course you wouldn’t. You love me too much to leave me, right?”
She rolled those heavenly blue eyes. “Yes.”
Hand to his chest, he feigned relief. “Whew. Good. So the next time you see a stranger, just keep your distance, come inside and calmly call for me, okay? See this?” He pointed to his throat. “My heart is still up there.”
She giggled and leaned into his leg, getting a one-armed, very affectionate hug.
Wow. He wasn’t just a dad. He was an awesome dad and she wanted to melt. Autumn looked at the adorable girl again. A purple-unicorn shirt worn over orange shorts with pink sandals clashed with her deep red hair. Beautiful hair—long, thick and silky.
Her eyes, a very bright blue, were far more striking than her own, and very direct when she glanced at Autumn again.
Tash said, “Autumn, this is my daughter, Sadie. Sadie, meet Ms. Somerset.”
Extending her hand again, Autumn smiled. “It’s nice to meet you, Sadie.”
Still brusque, she gave her tiny hand for a quick greeting, then asked, “Why are you here?”
Charmed by her blunt manner, Autumn lifted a shoulder. “Actually, I’m not sure yet since my sister set up the appointment for me, but I bet your dad will tell me.” She turned back to him and caught his curious scrutiny. “Or did you need to reschedule?”
“No, I wouldn’t do that.” Quickly, he held open the door. “Come on, Sadie. Join us.”
“I want to stay out here.”
Patiently, he said, “But I want you inside, so inside you go.”
Sadie stubbornly held her ground. “I’m watching birds.”
“They’ll be there tomorrow.”
“Not the same ones.”
“Sadie,” he said, his voice soft but insistent.
Grumbling, the little girl gave her a dirty look, as if she had any say in it, and preceded them into the house.
“We just got here a few days ago,” Tash explained as he led her past a few large shipping boxes. “We’re still unpacking and setting up. Since I saw Ember, we’ve had a dozen things come up.”
Following him to the kitchen, where something smelled really good, Autumn said again, “I really don’t mind if you need me to come back another time.” She could use the time to regroup, to get used to the idea that this particular man was back in town, still a hunk, but now a father.
And...oh. Did he have a wife tucked away somewhere? She glanced around, but didn’t find anyone else. Surely Ember wouldn’t have been so intent on matchmaking if he was married.
“Now is fine, if you don’t mind the mess. Here, have a seat.” He pulled out a chair at the table, his attention glued to her face.
Autumn paused.
“You haven’t changed at all.”
That alone proved how little he remembered her, because she’d seriously changed a lot. “Neither have you.”
His gaze cut to Sadie. “Oh, I don’t know about that.” He watched his daughter get into her seat, then thunk the Barbie and gun down on the table. Suddenly, he sniffed the air and turned fast. “Tacos.” He went to the stove to stir something in a skillet. “You like them?”
She and Sadie said, “Yes” at the same time.
Mortification rushed through Autumn. “I’m sorry. I thought you were asking me.” Oh, that sounded bad. “Not that I’m inviting myself to eat! I wouldn’t. But, of course, everyone likes tacos—”
“I was talking to you,” he said over his shoulder, his smile twitching at her nervous chatter. “I already knew Sadie liked them.”
Swinging her legs, Sadie sat back in her seat and studied them both. “How old are you?”
Laughing, because she’d just been wondering the same thing about Sadie, Autumn said, “I’m a few years younger than your dad.”
“So thirty-two.”
Wow, smart. “Yes. We knew each other in school. Or rather, I knew who he was. We weren’t really friends or anything.”