Free Bachelor Dad on Her Doorstep by Michelle Douglas Page B

seat for watching all the drama. I’ll enjoy seeing Gordon Sears brought down a peg or two.’ Mrs Lavender’s dark eyes twinkled.
    Jaz slid out from behind the counter and wrapped her arms around the older woman. Over the top of Mrs Lavender’s head, she met Connor’s eyes. ‘I don’t know how to—’
    ‘How’s Gwen?’
    She straightened and smiled, smoothed down her hair. ‘Great.’ The word emerged a tad breathy, but Connor was looking at her with such warmth that for a moment she didn’t know which way was up.
    ‘Gwen is great.’ Gwen had accepted her apology. They’d shared the bottle of wine, they’d eaten the chocolate and they’d forged the beginnings of a new friendship.
    He reached out, touched her cheek with the back of one finger. ‘Good.’ Then he stepped back and shoved his hands into his pockets. ‘Time for me to get back to work. I’ll see you ladies later.’
    He turned, left the shop and disappeared. Only then did Jaz realise he hadn’t given her time to thank him. He hadn’t given her time to refuse his kindness either. She reached up to touch the spot on her cheek where his finger had lingered for the briefest, loveliest moment.
    ‘Come along, Jaz. We’ve no time for mooning.’
    Mooning? Who was mooning? ‘I’m not mooning!’
    She gulped. Mrs Lavender was right. She had no time for mooning. Absolutely no time at all.
    But that afternoon, before it was time to close the shop and walk Melly home, Jaz’s painting supplies were delivered to the bookshop. Connor must’ve searched through her boxes until he’d found everything she’d need to paint her portrait of Frieda.
    She carried the box through to the stockroom, rested her cheek against it for a moment, before setting it to the floor and walking away. It didn’t mean anything.
     
    ‘Have you thought any more about telling your daddy about Mrs Benedict?’ Jaz asked Melanie as she walked her to Mrs Benedict’s front gate that afternoon.
    The child drew herself up as if reciting a lesson. ‘I’m not to worry Daddy about domestic matters. He has enough to worry about.’
    ‘Domestic matters?’
    ‘It means household stuff, money and babysitters,’ Melly said, rattling each item off as if she’d learned them by heart. ‘I checked,’ she confided. ‘So I’d get it right.’
    ‘Did Daddy tell you not to worry him about domestic matters?’ No matter how hard she tried, Jaz could not hear those words emerging from Connor’s mouth.
    ‘Grandma did.’
    Jaz wondered if she’d go to hell for pumping a child so shamelessly for information. It wasn’t for her own benefit, she reminded herself. It was for Melanie’s. She wanted the child safe and happy. She couldn’t even explain why, except she saw her younger self in Melanie.
    That and the fact that Melanie was Connor’s child. The kind of child she’d once dreamed of having with Connor.
    Which made her sound like some kind of sick stalker! She wasn’t. She just wanted to do something…good.
    ‘I think your daddy would be very sad to hear you say that.’
    ‘Why?’
    ‘I think he’d be very interested in everything you do and think, even the domestic ones.’
    ‘Nuh-uh.’ The child stuck her chin out and glared at the footpath. ‘He was supposed to take me out on the skyway on Saturday, but he didn’t coz he had to work.’
    Connor had broken a date with his daughter to work on the sign for Jaz’s shop!
    ‘Grandma made me promise not to nag him to take me Sunday because she said he’d be tired from working so hard and would need to rest.’
    ‘That was very thoughtful of you.’
    Melly glanced up, spearing Jaz with a gaze that touched her to the quick. ‘I don’t think he needs to work so hard, do you?’
    Jaz thought it wiser not to answer that question. ‘Perhaps you should tell him you think he’s working too hard.’
    Melanie shook her head and glanced away. Jaz wondered what else Grandma had made Melanie promise.
     
    ‘Order, everyone.