Her niece had never said she viewed Curt that way, but her actions did. She’d even given Curt the Father’s Day gift she’d made in school back in June. Ever since Reese started making such gifts in school, she’d always given them to her. This year, she’d insisted Curt get the present.
“You’re probably right.” He reached for her hand and laced their fingers together. “But I still want to ask her. I think she deserves a say in the matter.”
She didn’t doubt for a moment that Reese would agree. Still, she couldn’t fault him for wanting to ask Reese her opinion. “Do you want to talk to her tonight before we go home, or would you rather wait?”
Taylor liked to get Reese into bed by eight on school nights, not that her niece went to sleep then. Most nights, Reese stayed up for at least a half an hour reading. It was already closing in on seven thirty, so any conversation needed to take place soon.
“I’d like to do it tonight. And if she says yes, I can call Christian back in the morning. But if you want me to wait until we have more time, I’ll talk to her about it tomorrow.”
Since Taylor expected an immediate yes, Curt could get the answer he wanted, and she could still get Reese home and into bed on time. “Do it tonight. I’ll go get her.”
She found Reese curled up in her favorite oversized armchair in the living room. Reese loved it so much that Curt had purchased one, just in a different color, for Reese’s bedroom at his house. It would arrive this week along with the rest of the furniture Curt and Reese picked out—furniture Taylor had insisted Reese didn’t need. Her niece had a perfectly good bedroom set at home. Instead of buying an entire room’s worth of furniture, she suggested he let Reese pick out a few extras such as a desk or some bookcases, since her new bedroom was much larger than her current one. He’d disagreed. He’d argued that finding pieces to match what she already had would be difficult. Curt had also pointed out Reese would need someplace to sleep when she had overnights with her grandmother. At least on that account, she’d had a counterargument. Even if they moved Reese’s furniture over, hers would remain, and Reese could easily sleep in Taylor’s old room.
In the end, Curt took Reese shopping and, not surprisingly, let her pick out whatever she wanted. The man loved to spoil her niece.
“How’s the book?” Taylor asked, stopping alongside the chair. Reese had started the book she was reading last night. It was the third in a five-book series.
Reese didn’t even look up from the paperback. “Okay. The first one is still my favorite.”
Taylor had read none of the books, so she didn’t have an opinion. “Curt wants to talk to you before we leave. He’s waiting for you in the kitchen.”
“Can I finish this chapter first? I only have four more pages.”
“Nope, what he wants to talk to you about is important. You can finish the chapter when you go up to bed.”
With a sigh only a nine-year-old could conjure, she rolled her eyes as she stuck the bookmark between the pages and stood up. “Do you know what Curt wants?”
“Yep, and I think it’s going to make you very happy.” No way was she spoiling Curt’s surprise.
Taylor’s personal cell phone rang as they entered the kitchen, and she pulled the device from her pocket rather than retake her seat at the table. Unlike her work phone issued by the DEA, few people called her private number, so even before she looked, she expected to see the name Mom on the screen.
“Hi, Mom. Is something wrong?”
Mom was familiar with their Tuesday night routine, which meant she knew they’d be home soon. If she was calling, perhaps she’d gotten another flat tire. She’d gotten one last month, and rather than wait for the auto club to come and change it, Curt had driven over to the library and done it for her.
“I need you to come home. If Curt’s not busy, it might be good if he comes too.”
Mom’s statement sent Taylor’s memory back to the single worst moment in her life: the day Eliza, Reese’s biological mother, and Eliza’s boyfriend abducted Reese from a friend’s birthday party while Taylor was in Newport with Curt at his cousin’s wedding.
Without thinking, she placed a hand on Reese’s shoulder. “Why? What happened?”
Taylor had a handful of aunts and uncles as well as several cousins, although she was only close to a few of them. Something might have happened to one of them and Mom wanted to tell her. But if she’d received bad news regarding a family member, why did she want Curt to come over as well?
Curt and Reese looked at her, but both remained silent.
“Not long after I got home, I received a phone call from one of your sister’s friends.”
Taylor closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. She didn’t need to hear any more. “We’ll be right home.”
Considering the type of people her sister had hung around with before going back to prison, she could only imagine the conversation her mom had moments ago. She shoved her cell phone back into her pocket. “Reese, Mimi needs to talk to me. Please go get your things.”
“But Curt wants to talk to me, remember.”
“I know, but he’ll have to do it later. Go get your stuff so that we can go home.”
Remarkably without any more questions, Reese left the room.
“What’s wrong?” Standing, Curt came around the table.
“Mom got a phone call from one of Eliza’s friends.”
Although she’d suggested they get rid of the landline, Mom insisted on keeping it and the phone number she’d had for over thirty years. According to her, you never knew when you might need it.
“One of your sister’s friends called Priscilla. What the hell did they want?” A combination of disbelief and anger filled his voice.
Taylor shared the same emotions as Curt. “Mom didn’t go into details. She only asked me to come home and said it might be a good idea if you come over too.”
“Of course. Let’s go.”
Three
The wedding might be a few weeks away, but Curt already considered Taylor, Reese, and Priscilla a part of his family, and he’d do anything for them. And at the moment, he wanted to track down whoever had called Taylor’s mom and make sure they knew never to do it again.
Priscilla never mentioned her eldest daughter. Still, he knew the life choices Eliza had made and her current incarceration weighed heavily on his future mother-in-law. And he didn’t blame her. Regardless of the things Eliza had done, she was still Priscilla’s daughter. It couldn’t be easy to see someone you love make such terrible decisions. The last thing Taylor’s mom needed was one of Eliza’s friends calling her.
They found Priscilla seated in the kitchen frowning and drumming her fingers on the table with what looked like an untouched cup of tea. When she spotted Reese, though, she forced a smile and pushed back her chair.
“Hey, sweetie. How was your day?” Priscilla asked, hugging her granddaughter.
“School was boring, but Coach Bruno might let me play goalie first on Saturday. And Curt wanted to talk to me about something that Aunt Taylor said would make me happy, but we came home before he could.”