told her with no small amount of pride.
Olivia nodded. “I noticed.”
She gave the girls a warm smile, but Connor noted she wasn’t as calm as she appeared. Her breath was coming a little too quickly. She seemed nervous.
Because of him?
He cleared his throat.
“And this scoundrel—” he jiggled the puppy, earning him a happy yip “—is Samson, the newest member of the Mitchell household. He slipped out of his collar, which, as you can see, is still attached to this.” Connor lifted the leash in his other hand. “Apparently, I failed to cinch the buckle tight enough.”
“Ah.” Olivia reached out and scratched the puppy behind his ears. “I’ve never seen an animal this short and...um...round move quite so fast.”
“He’s fat but has lots of hidden moves.” Most of which Connor could live without.
The puppy had been his daughters’ idea and an added responsibility to his already full life, especially now that he and Ethan had discussed expanding their practice to include Saturday hours and two evenings a week.
Even without the added workload, as much as the girls tried to take care of their new dog, and they did try, they simply had no experience with pets. The bulk of the responsibility fell on Connor.
Dropping her hand, Olivia studied the puppy with laughing eyes. “I can only imagine what this little guy is capable of when you turn your back.”
Connor could give her a dissertation on the topic. “You have no idea.”
They shared a smile solely between them. For a brief moment, Connor felt the tension drain from his shoulders and the ache in his heart loosen just a bit. The sensation left him oddly shaken, as had this entire meeting.
He cleared his throat again.
Although the shyer of his two daughters, Megan moved in close to Olivia and tugged on her arm. “You’re very pretty.”
“Well, thank you. So are you.”
“What about me?” Molly asked, squirming in next to her sister.
Eyes crinkling at the edges, Olivia pretended to consider the question carefully. “You are easily as pretty as your sister.”
Both girls laughed.
Connor did, too. For the first time in days—months—he wasn’t worried about tight schedules, or running late, or forgetting something important. The girls were safe. The puppy found. And Olivia Scott was back in town.
Chapter Two
Standing close enough to make out the warm blend of bronze, amber and gold in Connor’s eyes, Olivia quietly studied him. Sure, he was good-looking. Really good-looking. But that wasn’t the reason for her sudden silence. It was the inexplicable desire to offer him comfort, as if she could somehow provide him with a place of rest from the outside world.
That made no sense.
The man was in the prime of his life. Strong, athletic, capable. Yet Olivia detected a hint of sorrow in him, a sorrow she understood all too well.
The slight sting she felt in her heart she attributed to missing her parents. Even now, over ten years after their car accident, the pain was still with her, would probably always be with her.
Did Connor suffer something similar?
How could he not? He’d lost his wife to cancer.
Olivia wished she could soothe away his grief, as he’d once done for her that day after her parents’ funeral.
Did he remember the momentary solace he’d given her with his kind words?
Out of the corner of her eye, Olivia could see his daughters watching her closely. She understood what they’d lost. But Olivia had enjoyed time with her mother for seventeen years. These girls had spent far less with theirs. The unfairness struck her. She smiled down at them.
They smiled back.
Shifting beside her, Connor drew Olivia’s attention back to him. He wasn’t looking at her, though. He was focused on his daughters. “Girls, it’s time to go.”
The arguments began immediately.
He shut them down with a look. “Say goodbye to Miss Olivia.”
A little grumbling ensued before Megan stepped close to Olivia and looked up. “Bye, Miss Olivia.”
Miss Olivia. Her heart tripped. Kenzie had called her that, too.
Olivia banished the thought, and focused only on the two girls staring up at her. They were at such a great age, when they still looked up to adults and chose obedience more often than not.
“It was nice to meet you, Megan.” Olivia circled her gaze to include the girl’s sister. “And you as well, Molly.”
Molly’s eyes rounded in response. “You can tell us apart?”
The surprise was understandable. On first glance the girls were identical. But on closer inspection, Molly held herself with more confidence. Her smile also came quicker, and with a mischievous glint in her eye. “Well, yes. I can.”
“That’s really...” Molly seemed to search for the right word “...cool.”
“Yeah,” Megan agreed. “Supercool.”
Connor set the puppy on the ground and reattached the collar. His elegant, efficient movements reminded Olivia of an artist’s expert strokes across a canvas. He had such nice hands, doctor’s hands. Steady, confident, yet gentle.
Still not looking at her, he gave the puppy’s collar a final check and then rose to his full height—all six feet two inches of casually clad male in those well-worn cargo shorts and a faded T-shirt. He was tall enough that Olivia had to tip her head back to look into his face. The shock of those intense amber eyes focused on her sent her heart stuttering.
What was wrong with her? Why this strange visceral reaction to the man? This was Connor Mitchell, for goodness’ sake. Her brother’s best friend since before Olivia was born. Ethan’s friend, she reminded herself, not hers. She hadn’t actually spoken to him for years before today.
“It was good to see you, Olivia.” He paused a moment, his expression easy. “I’m sure our paths will cross again while you’re in town.”
“I...” She tensed, started to tell him she was probably home for good, then thought, Why would he need to know that? “I certainly hope so.”
Even to her own ears, the words came out a little wistful.
And mortifying.
Hadn’t she learned her lesson when it came to single dads with demanding professions and adorable daughters in need of a woman’s love?
Having
