Denim and Diamond

“Thank you…that’s very kind of you.”

From her vantage point behind the desk Piper watched the exchange, noting the look of relief that appeared in Marion Baxter’s eyes. She remembered the Baxter family. Their son, Ricky, had been a grade behind her in high school. Ricky had been the eldest of six children, and Piper remembered hearing some of the kids in school saying Ricky’s father liked to drink, and that he often drank his wages away before his wife had a chance to buy food for her family.

“Daddy, I’m hungry!” April announced when the door closed behind Mrs. Baxter.

“Me, too,” he replied. He glanced at his wristwatch. “It’s almost time for lunch. What shall we have?”

“Hot dogs!”

Piper heard Kyle sigh and tried not to smile. His rapport with his daughter was so relaxed, so natural and loving, she envied his easygoing manner.

“Hot dogs it is,” she heard Kyle say. “Just as long as you promise to drink all your milk.”

“I promise!” April ran up to Piper. “Wanna have a hot dog with us?” April stared at her expectantly.

Piper had planned to walk over to Main Street and grab a bite at one of the cafés before driving home.

“If you aren’t into hot dogs, I make a mean cheese-and-tomato sandwich.”

Kyle’s comment brought her gaze up to meet his. His gray eyes sparkled and Piper felt her pulse skip a beat. “It would be my way of saying thanks.”

Piper felt her face grow warm. “I’m glad I could help.”

“So, what do you say? Hot dog or sandwich?” he persisted, a hint of challenge in his voice.

“A sandwich, please.”

His smile flashed once more, and this time her heart slammed against her rib cage.

“Good! I’ll lock up here, and we can go upstairs.”

April was already off and running.

Piper hadn’t known what to expect as she climbed the stairs to the apartment, certainly not the spacious living area with windows stretching its entire length.

“What a lovely apartment,” she commented.

“Thank you. We like it,” Kyle responded. “April, bathroom please, and don’t forget to wash your hands,” her father ordered. “Make yourself at home, Piper. I’ll give you a shout when lunch is ready,” he said before following April down the hall.

Piper glanced around the room noting the old but well-cared-for sofa and easy chair, two small oak tables at either end of the sofa, and a matching coffee table.

Every surface was shiny and dust-free. The room was warm and welcoming with only a few toys scattered around, a gentle reminder that a child also occupied the space.

On top of the television set in the corner Piper spotted a row of photographs. Each picture was of April taken at various stages in her young life, from infancy up to a recent shot of her sitting on a grassy lawn with Mutt and Jeff.

She studied it more closely, deciding from the bad lighting and relatively poor color quality, it was an enlarged snapshot. Whoever had developed it hadn’t done a very good job. But even so, the photographer had captured the essence of the blue-eyed, golden-haired child whose smile was a replica of her father’s.

It had been a long time since she’d done any developing work, but Piper was sure that if she had access to the negative she could produce a better quality picture.

The only trouble was, she didn’t have any of her equipment with her. She’d packed everything, including her cameras, into a crate then arranged to have it shipped home.

Piper replaced the photo and crossed to the window. She’d forgotten that the property stretched as far back as it did, tapering off down a gentle grassy incline to a gully beyond.

On the left was a small vegetable and herb garden, and nearer the building a fenced area housed a row of kennels as well as a small dog run. Piper could see Mutt and Jeff lying in the shade of some blackberry bushes near the bottom of the garden.

“Wanna see my room?” April asked as she came running up to join her.

“Uh, sure, I’d love to,” Piper replied. “But, could you show me where the bathroom is first?”

“Okay!”

When Piper emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, she could hear Kyle talking to his daughter. She headed in the direction of his voice and found them in the kitchen, a small but decidedly modern room with cupboards painted white, a countertop in deep Wedgwood blue and walls the color of the sun.

A small pine table with four chairs already set for three, sat in a corner by the window overlooking the street. Kyle glanced up from the counter and flashed another of his killer smiles.

“Lunch is almost ready.”

“Can I do anything?” she asked, trying to ignore the leap her pulse had taken.

“You can put these on the table for me, and I’ll bring April’s hot dog.” He handed Piper two plates.

April had already scrambled into her chair and booster seat. Piper sat down next to April and Kyle joined them, placing a hot dog and bun in front of his daughter.

Piper bit into her sandwich surprised to discover she was starving. Kyle was right. The sandwich was delicious. He’d added crisp lettuce, slivers of sweet onion as well as a hint of Dijon mustard.

As she savored the tangy taste she studied Kyle from beneath lowered lashes. Two weeks ago she’d never have dreamed she’d be having lunch with Kyle Masters, the man she’d had a giant-size crush on eight years ago, the man who’d rejected her so coldly and completely.

He’d brought her crashing down to Earth, deliberately humiliated her, telling her he didn’t go in for eighteen-year-old virgins who thought sex was a game. With a few choice words and several cutting phrases, he’d sent her packing.

That he’d found her lacking was an understatement, and she could only speculate that blue-eyed brunettes were definitely not his type. Beautiful blondes like Elise had been much more to his liking.

But according to Spencer, Elise had walked out shortly after April was born. Did he still yearn for her? she wondered.

Kyle suddenly glanced up and caught her staring at him. For a heart-stopping moment their gazes locked and she felt her breath snag in her throat as his stormy gray eyes held her captive.

“Daddy, can I have some ketchup?” April asked, effectively breaking the spell.

“Sure!” Kyle rose and opened a cupboard nearby.

Piper let her breath out in a slow and silent exhale and took another bite of her sandwich. Her thoughts drifted back to the summer she’d first noticed the devilishly handsome Kyle Masters. She’d been sixteen and she and a few girlfriends had been hanging around the local hamburger stand when Kyle walked by carrying a stack of books. One of her friends shoved her, and she’d accidentally collided with him. The books had tumbled to the ground, and Piper herself would have fallen had it not been for Kyle’s quick action.

With lightning reflexes, he grabbed her and hauled her against him, knocking the breath out of her. Embarrassed, she’d started to apologize, but the words had fizzled and died in her throat when she found herself gazing at the most gorgeous male specimen she’d ever set eyes on.

She could have sworn her heart did a cartwheel, and when she’d glimpsed the twinkle of amusement in the depths of his silvery-gray eyes, she’d been a goner.

A shiver danced across Piper’s nerve endings at the memory.

“Want me to…” Kyle began as he returned to the table with the ketchup bottle.