A Daughter for Christmas Read online

  She cocked her head, looked at him for a moment then laughed. “You sound like my dad.”

  Her declaration stopped Max in his tracks. His grip on his bowl tightened. He really needed to figure out what he was going to do and soon. He felt as though he were picking his way through a field littered with bombs. “It’s the truth.”

  “Yeah, I know.” She swung around and hurried from the room.

  If only Alicia had let him know about Taylor all those years ago. He wouldn’t be here indecisive, feeling as if any control he had in his life was slipping away. The sound of Rachel’s soft voice wafted to him, niggling him with regrets. Any way this worked out, Rachel would be affected perhaps deeper than he because she’d loved and cared for Taylor for thirteen years. What was he doing here?

  “Max, I’m going to hold you personally responsible if Taylor starts climbing the walls because of a sugar overload.”

  Rachel had materialized in front of him, and he hadn’t even heard her approach. Suddenly, she was there—her gentle features arranged in a teasing look that lessened any intended reprimand.

  “Oh, Mom, it’s just a little ice cream. You could enjoy some if you weren’t always on a ridiculous diet.”

  Red flooded Rachel’s face. “I don’t diet. I just watch what I eat.”

  Involuntarily, his gaze roamed down her body. She certainly didn’t need to watch her weight. She looked mighty fine the way she was.

  Standing at the end of the hallway, with one hand on her hip and the other clutching her bowl, Taylor sighed—loudly. “Whatever.” She swept around and flounced back into the den, spooning some of her sundae into her mouth as she went.

  Rachel tilted up her chin. “I’ve changed my mind. I think I’ll make myself one.” Skirting around him, she crossed the kitchen to the counter and waited for him.

  He removed the cartons from the freezer. “Don’t let her get to you.”

  “She isn’t. She’s right. I usually pass on desserts and stuff like that because I’m worried I’ll gain weight. As a teenager I was overweight, and after I lost sixty pounds I promised myself I would never have to do that again.” Rachel spooned out two small scoops of vanilla, then squirted caramel on them. “I’ve never been much of a chocolate person, but I love caramel. Forget the chocolate-dipped bananas or even the cotton candy at the fair. Give me a caramel apple and I’m happy.”

  He took several bites of his melting sundae, her gaze tethered to his. “I’ll have to remember that.” The cold dessert slid down his suddenly dry throat. A connection with this woman, all tied up with the girl in the other room, swamped him. He didn’t want to feel. He needed to keep a certain amount of emotional distance between them.

  While Rachel put the cartons in the freezer again, he ate some more of his sundae and headed for the den, needing the physical separation to pull himself together. He’d worked over the years to keep his feelings under control. It had helped him deal with his difficult job.

  When he entered the room, he found Taylor studying a medal with a bronze star dangling from a red ribbon with a blue stripe. “Is this yours?”

  “Yes.” He watched her face carefully, seeing a play of emotions flash in and out of her features.

  “My dad had a Bronze Star, too. He kept it on the wall in his office. He was very proud of it.”

  Whereas he didn’t display his. It brought back too many memories of the war he didn’t want to remember or discuss. He hadn’t put it away yet, and it had still been on the top of his cluttered desk.

  “So you were a soldier?”

  “Yeah, in the army.”

  “My dad was in the air force. Once a year he would get together with some of his buddies. He was supposed to leave to meet them right before he had a heart attack. I’d asked my dad if I could go this time, but…”

  Each time she said “dad” a stab of pain pierced his heart. He took a step toward her, not sure what to say.

  Tears shone in her eyes. Averting her head, she laid the medal back on the walnut desk. She covered the few feet between them and held out her hand. “I’ll take your bowl back to the kitchen.”

  Numbly, he placed it in her grasp and watched her rush from the room, flying past her mother in the doorway.

  Rachel gave him a puzzled look. “What happened?”

  Glimpsing the medal, Max fingered it for a second then snatched it up and walked around the desk to put it in the top drawer. Memories of mangled bodies in a building after a bomb explosion took over his thoughts. He shook them away and lifted his gaze to Rachel. “She told me about her father being in the air force.”

  “Was that the Bronze Star?” Rachel gestured toward the desk.

  “Yes. She mentioned her father had one, too.”

  “Now I understand why she was upset when she left. She used to have her dad tell her about how he got the medal. I imagine he told her at least a hundred times over the years.”

  “Should I say something to her?”

  She shook her head. “I will. I need to put my dish in the kitchen, anyway.”

  As Rachel left, Max sank back against the still-empty bookshelf behind him. This wasn’t going to be easy. Would Taylor even accept him in the end? What would he do if she didn’t? The very thought swelled the tightness in his chest until he could hardly breathe.

  “I’ll handle the food at Granny’s reception. You and Mom can do everything else.” A few days later, Jordan sat at the table in Rachel’s kitchen jotting down the plans for their grandmother’s reception in two and a half weeks.

  “In other words, I’ll do everything else.” Rachel eased into the chair across from her sister. “You know Mom is going to be worthless. Throwing parties has never been her forte and she isn’t exactly into Granny’s marriage.”

  “Granny doesn’t want a fuss.”

  “Too bad. I want to fuss over her. She’s always been there for us. I’m glad she’s only moving across the street.”

  “Speaking of across the street. How did Sunday afternoon go with your new neighbor?”

  An image of Max popped into her mind. After Taylor asked about the medal, he’d been quiet. Even her daughter had commented on it when they left his house later. “What do you think about Sarah Johnson?”

  “Concerning what?”

  “Introducing Max to her.”

  “Why?” Jordan narrowed her eyes. “Never mind. I know why. You’re afraid.”

  “Of what?” Rachel dropped her gaze from her sister’s and stared at the wedding list she’d written.

  “Oh, let’s see. One, meeting a nice man who interests you. Two, starting to have feelings for him beyond friendship. Three, do I have to say anymore?”

  Rachel wanted to deny it. She couldn’t. It was true. “He is a nice man. Even Taylor warmed to him some on Sunday.”

  “And that probably scared you even more.”

  “No—okay, maybe a little. I think it was the ice cream sundae that got to her.”

  “The way to a female’s heart is through ice cream?”

  Rachel chuckled. “Yeah, something like that.”

  “How’s she doing at school this week?”

  “I’m not sure. Monday and Tuesday she came home and didn’t say a word. I mentioned again about homeschooling, but all she did was stomp off to her room.”

  “Zachary’s sister told me Taylor called Ashley last night to ask about homeschooling.”

  “She did? She didn’t say anything to me.” Frowning, Rachel pushed to her feet. “But then why should I be so surprised? We don’t talk like we used to. I’m usually the last one to know what’s going on with her. Did Ashley say if Taylor was interested in homeschooling?”

  “I think she just listened. Didn’t say much about how she felt.”

  The sound of the front door slamming closed jerked Rachel around toward the kitchen entrance. Her heart pounding, she rushed toward the foyer. She glimpsed Taylor stomping up the stairs.

  “Taylor, what’s wrong? Why are you home from
school at eleven?”

  Her daughter whirled around at the top. Her bottom lip quavered. She bit her teeth into it as tears filled her eyes.

  Rachel ascended a couple of steps. “Honey, what happened?”

  Taylor opened her mouth to say something, snapped it closed and spun on her heel. As she fled down the second-floor hallway, her sobs resonated through the house.

  “I’m leaving. Go talk to her.” Jordan sent her a reassuring look. “Maybe she’s ready to talk.”

  Or not. Rachel hurried up the stairs as her sister left. At Taylor’s room she knocked, waited a few seconds and turned the knob. Entering, she found her daughter on her bed, crying, her body shaking from the force of her sorrow. Her legs were curled up against her chest while her back was to Rachel. The painful throb in her chest expanded. Hearing her child so upset tore Rachel up more than if she were the one in distress.

  She sat on the bed and laid her hand on Taylor’s arm. She stiffened beneath the touch and hunched her shoulders even more. “Taylor, talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”

  For a long moment her daughter didn’t say anything, then she muttered, “I’m the dumbest kid in school.”

  “What happened?”

  “I made the lowest score on the science test on Monday and then today in history. Everyone knows it.”

  “Did they say anything?”

  “No. But they don’t have to.” Taylor turned to face her. “I saw the pitiful looks I got. I’m not going back to school. Ever.”

  “You just got up and walked out?”

  “Yes, in the middle of class. I want to be homeschooled. It can’t be worse than what this year has been like.”

  “Okay, if you’re sure.”

  A tear rolled down Taylor’s cheek. She swiped it away only to have it replaced by another. “Yes. I can’t go back.”

  “Then we’ll start tomorrow afternoon. I’ll go up to school this afternoon and talk with them. I want to know where you are academically. Tomorrow morning you have an appointment to see Dr. Reynolds.” The office had called earlier that morning to say there was a cancellation, and the receptionist moved up her appointment from next week.

  “Why?”

  “I want to talk to Dr. Reynolds about Attention Deficit Disorder.”

  Taylor shot up in bed. “You think I have it?”

  “I don’t know what’s going on with you, but something is. You haven’t been for a check-up in a while. I want to make sure everything is all right.” She reached out to her daughter. “I’m concerned about you. You’re always upset and angry.”

  Taylor shrugged away from Rachel’s touch. “I’ll be fine now. Ashley told me about homeschooling. I can work at my own pace. I won’t feel so lost.”

  Something in her daughter’s expression doubled Rachel’s concern. “Yes, you’ll be able to, but you’ll have to work. Just because you won’t be in school doesn’t mean I don’t expect you to learn everything you need to.”

  “Whatever.” Taylor rolled over and presented her back to Rachel.

  She counted to ten, still wasn’t calm and headed straight for one hundred. Lord, I’m going to need lots of patience. I’ve always thought I had some, but now I don’t know if that’s true.

  Finishing up with a patient, Max exited the exam room at his new office and nearly ran right into Rachel and Taylor. “Kevin said you and Taylor were coming in this morning. How did the appointment go?”

  The smile Rachel gave him warmed his insides. “It went well.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with me,” Taylor said, then flounced down the hall.

  “That’s good.” Max watched his daughter disappear through the doorway into the waiting room.

  “It will be once we get into a routine. I’m starting home schooling this afternoon. Kevin diagnosed Taylor with ADHD. He gave me some stuff to read about it. Some tips for teaching her, which I’m very grateful for.”

  “Have you gotten a chance to read the book I gave you Sunday on ADD?”

  “Yes. Good thing I’ve got support through Helping Hands Homeschooling Group and my sister doing this. I don’t think I could do it alone. And Kevin suggested the science class he teaches.”

  She might not know it, but he would be there to support her, too. “That’ll be good. He’s already recruited me to teach it the week after next. He’s going to a conference.”

  “Great. I won’t have to deal with science then.”

  “She’ll have homework.”

  “Something my daughter doesn’t like to do. We’ve had battles over it at the kitchen table.” She glanced toward the direction of the waiting room. “What was I thinking? How is homeschooling going to be any different?”

  “You guys sound like you need something fun to focus on. Tell you what. I’ll take you all out to dinner tonight to celebrate the first day. I owe you for helping me on Sunday.” He wanted to spend as much time with his daughter as possible.

  “Sam and Will, too?”

  “Sure.” Like a regular family dinner.

  “You’re a brave soul.”

  “Are you warning me?”

  “Yep, if we don’t pick a fast-food restaurant, I don’t know how long the boys will last.”

  He snapped his fingers. “I’ve got a better idea. I fix a great pizza. Why don’t you all come over to my house tonight at say six? You can now walk through the den. My boxes are only confined to the living room.”

  “Are you sure you’re up for this?”

  No, but there was no way he would tell her that. He hadn’t figured out how to get to know his daughter without being around Rachel. And if he got to know her well, how was he going to be able to tell her he was Taylor’s biological father and he’d come to Tallgrass to be a parent to his only child? If he wanted to be in Taylor’s life, he didn’t have a choice.

  “Yes, or I wouldn’t have offered,” he finally said as he began walking toward the waiting room with Rachel.

  When she got to the entrance, a frown crinkled her brow. “Where’s Taylor?” She took several more steps and made a slow circle.

  “Maybe she went to the car?” Although his voice was calm, his gut knotted.

  “Yeah, that’s probably it. I’d better go before she decides to walk home.”

  “I’ll come with you. If she isn’t out there, I’ll help you look for her.”

  Rachel made her way toward the office door. “I don’t want to take you from your patients.”

  “You aren’t. We’re shutting down for lunch.”

  They rode the elevator to the first floor in silence. The whole way Max couldn’t dismiss the thought that Taylor was hurting and upset. Many children with ADHD did impulsive things with no thought to the consequences. Had she?

  “My car’s in the second row.” Rachel pointed toward her Lexus SUV.

  As they neared, Max noticed the vehicle was empty. Glancing around, he saw no sign of Taylor. The tightness in his stomach hardened into a rock.

  Chapter Five

  Her heartbeat thundering in her ears, Rachel checked the car’s interior to make sure Taylor wasn’t hiding. Its emptiness mocked her. She’d handled this all wrong. Lately, that was all she seemed to be doing with her daughter—taking one step forward and two or three backward.

  “Where would she go when she’s upset?” Max asked, concern edging his voice and expression. He made a slow circle to scan the parking lot.

  Rachel did likewise. The glare of the noonday sun glinted off the vehicles’ surfaces and hurt her eyes. “Maybe a friend’s. But since they’re in school, I guess that’s out. Maybe the arcade. Maybe to Mom’s. She’s at work, but Granny will be there.”

  “Call your grandmother while we go to the arcade. I’ll drive.” Max led her to a red Mustang she’d seen in his driveway.

  After she settled in the passenger seat, she dug her cell out of her purse and called Granny. She let the phone ring until the answering machine came on. She left a short message about Taylor being gone.
/>   “Where’s this arcade?” Max started his vehicle and backed out of his parking space.

  “Three streets over on Sheridan near First. In the middle of the block.”

  “Does she go to the arcade a lot?”

  “She’s been there a few times. She likes to play video games. Some of the teens hang out there. It’s a safe environment thankfully. But dark and noisy. I don’t know how she can stay there for more than a few minutes.” The tremor in her voice leaked into her body. She clasped her hands together to still their shaking. She wanted her little girl back—the one who wasn’t moody. The one she could talk to.

  “We’ll find her.”

  As he turned down Sheridan, Rachel peered toward him. “I appreciate your help. I’m sure she’s okay, but I’m at a loss what to do about Taylor anymore. I’m hoping homeschooling will help, but what if it doesn’t?”

  “Then you’ll find another answer.”

  The tightness in his voice caused her to study the hard set to his expression. He caught her look and some of the tension eased from his features. “My brother went through a similar time with his son.”

  “What happened?”

  Max parked in front of the arcade. “He ran with the wrong crowd. Did some stupid, even some dangerous things. The last one, joyriding, woke my nephew up, but not before Brendan had gone through the wringer.”

  “How old was he?”

  “Fourteen. He’s seventeen now and doing much better.”

  Would it get that bad with Taylor? The thought sent terror through her. As she climbed from the Mustang, she gripped the door frame to steady herself. She felt so alone in that moment.

  Max appeared at her side. “She’ll be okay. My brother refused to acknowledge anything was happening until the situation got bad. You know Taylor is having problems and are willing to find a solution. And you’ve got my help. I may not be a parent, but I’ve worked with children, teens. Some very troubled.” He held out his hand.

  She fit hers in his, and for a brief moment she didn’t feel so alone. Walking toward the entrance, she thought about Max coming into her life at just the right time when she needed someone who understood what was going on with Taylor. Thank You, Lord, for sending him to Tallgrass.