help you. I’ll explain later,” Molly promised, giving the girl’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “Trust me. Everything’s going to be okay.”
Kendra followed the direction of her gaze and spotted Daniel. “He’s a cop, too, isn’t he?” she said at once.
“No, worse, in this instance. He’s with a social services agency.”
Understanding and alarm immediately flared in Kendra’s eyes. “Then he’s here for me?”
“More than likely.” She couldn’t imagine anything else that would have brought Daniel waltzing into her bar again, not after she’d made it clear that his presence here was unwelcome. “Just stay out of sight. I can handle Daniel Devaney.”
When she was satisfied that Kendra was safely out of the bar, Molly strolled over to Daniel’s table, order pad in hand, a neutral expression firmly plastered on her face. She ignored the once-familiar jolt to her senses. She would play this cool for Kendra’s sake. If there hadn’t been so much at stake, Daniel could have starved to death before she’d have given him a second glance.
“Fancy seeing you here,” she said. “I thought you preferred classier joints these days.”
Daniel frowned at her. “I never said that.”
“You never had to. Your disdain has always been evident.” And never more so than the night he’d declined to be a father to their child. Though he’d told her about his own father’s failings, she’d always believed that at least some of his reluctance had stemmed from an aversion to her choice to run her grandfather’s bar, rather than going off to some snooty college and pursuing some equally snooty career. Unlike his twin, Daniel was a snob in his fancy shirts with the monogrammed cuffs and his Italian leather loafers that were more suited to the streets of downtown Portland than the waterfront in Widow’s Cove. He was definitely no longer a small-town boy.
He didn’t even flinch as her barb struck him. “Save the judgments. I didn’t come here to fight with you. Just bring me a cup of chowder, please.”
Molly noted the order but didn’t budge. He was acting too blasted casual and innocent. Something besides chowder had brought Daniel into the bar. Given Joe Sutton’s recent departure, there was very little question in her mind that he was here because of Kendra.
“In town to see your folks?”
“No.”
“If you’re looking for Patrick, he won’t be in till later,” she said casually, in an attempt to get him to show his hand.
“I’m not looking for Patrick.”
“Oh?” She sat down opposite him, sliding onto the booth’s bench until her knees brushed his. The little spark of awareness that shot through her was an unwelcome surprise, but she tried not to show it. She couldn’t control the sparks, but she could refuse to give him the satisfaction of seeing that his presence bothered her. Besides, there had been an answering spark of heat in his eyes. She could use that to her advantage, assuming she could manage to avoid choking on her own words. She had to try, though.
“Then it’s my company you’ve come for? You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to hear that one more time.” She dropped her voice provocatively and made herself add, “What can I do for you, Daniel? Have you decided you missed me after all this time? Want to pick things up where we left off?”
He shook his head, clearly not taking her seriously. “As attractive as you make that offer sound, I’m here on business,” he retorted dryly.
Molly stiffened, fighting the sting of hurt, even though the rejection was fully expected. “What business could you possibly have that involves me?”
His gaze swept over her, lingering just long enough to make her toes curl, dammit.
“That girl you’ve got hiding in the kitchen, for starters.”
Chapter Two
Daniel hadn’t expected his conversation with Molly to go smoothly. Given their past history, he was probably lucky she hadn’t hit him with a cast-iron skillet on sight. It was no more than he deserved after the way things had ended between them. Even so, he wasn’t expecting her to flat-out lie to his face and judging from her expression, that was clearly exactly what she was contemplating.
“Well?” he prodded. “Cat got your tongue?”
He had to give her credit. She didn’t even blink. In fact, she kept her eyes locked with his and managed a look of complete confusion. She never once glanced toward the kitchen.
“What girl?” she asked with all the innocence of someone whose heart was genuinely pure.
“You have a runaway working here,” he said flatly, vaguely disappointed in her for the lie. It would have been more like the Molly of old to throw the truth in his face and dare him to make something of it.
Keeping his gaze on her face, he added, “Joe Sutton spotted her here earlier, and I saw her scurrying out through the kitchen when I came in. She’s thirteen, Molly. Shall I count the number of laws you’re violating by putting her to work in here?”
She visibly bristled, bright patches of color staining her cheeks. “If I had anyone that young working here, they wouldn’t be serving alcohol. Nor am I running a sweat shop with child labor, Daniel, and you very well know it, so get off your high horse.”
He reached in his pocket, pulled out the missing child poster and slapped it on the table, carefully smoothing out the wrinkles. “Then you haven’t seen this girl?” he demanded, his gaze locked on Molly’s eyes, which always gave away her emotions. They were stormy now, but she didn’t even blink at the challenge. In fact, she glanced at the poster without so much as a flicker of recognition.
Daniel bit back a sigh. She was good at lying. Damn good. She hadn’t been when they were together. Something always gave her away. Was she this good now because of what he’d done to her? Something inside him twisted at the possibility that he was responsible for the hard shell she wore so easily now.
Her gaze never wavered as she said flatly, “Never seen her. What’s she done?”
“She’s a runaway, Molly,” he explained patiently. “That’s plain from the poster, or didn’t you want to take a good long look at it? Were you afraid you might give yourself away if you had to read the fine print?”
“Go to hell, Daniel,” she said, sliding from the booth. “I don’t have to listen to this from you.”
He snagged her hand, felt her stiffen and tried to ignore the slam of regret that hit him. “Then let me see her.”
“You want to go poking around in my kitchen or even in my apartment upstairs, you do that,” she said loudly enough to be heard in the next county. “I won’t try to stop you, but I won’t forgive you.” Her gaze swept over him, cold as ice. “Oh, wait, that’s right. I haven’t forgiven you for a lot of things, have I? I can just add this to the list.”
Daniel wanted nothing more in that instant than to pull her into his arms and kiss her until the ice melted and she molded herself to him the way she once had. He wanted the heat and excitement and passion back, if not the complications.
