A Broken Soul(26)

I slid my purse off my shoulder and hooked it onto the back of one of the dining room chairs. The princess-designed paper plates and napkins were stacked on the end of the counter, so I grabbed everything and moved to hold the back door open for Quinn as he headed that way with the cake. As soon as he got close enough, just a handful of inches away from me, I lowered my voice and spoke adamantly.

"I'm helping you, so get over it. That's what friends do. There's clearly something wrong, and if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine, but I'm helping. Don't bother fighting me on it because I'll win. And I'm not above recruiting any damn person at this party to do so, you got me?"

His green eyes flickered, the dullness from seconds ago slowly creeping out of them as he gave me a tiny smirk. "You finished?"

I paused just long enough to consider his question. "Yeah. If you don't force my hand, I'm finished."

His smirk grew just a bit more. "No forcing necessary. You made your point and I accept it. But this cake's pretty fucking heavy, so if you don't mind … " He tipped his chin in the direction of the picnic table all the children were crowded around.

"Oh! Yeah, I got it." I stepped out of the way and let him through. Just as he cleared the doorway, he turned to look back over his shoulder.

"Hey, Lilly?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you're here. Really glad."

My knees grew a little weak, but somehow I managed to get the plates and napkins to the table without completely melting into a puddle of goo.

Quinn just seemed to have that effect on me.





THE CAKE HAD been served before any of the kids went into shock from waiting. As soon as that was over, Sophia dove into the pile of presents Quinn and his father had moved outside. A few of the mothers from the dance school came up to say hello during that time, but mostly, I stood on the periphery, comfortable enough as an observer. I was having too much fun watching Sophia's face light up with every single present she opened. I didn't need to force myself into the very center of it all like some of the other mothers there.

If it hadn't sent a spike of jealousy through me, I probably would have laughed at the number of women who were unnecessarily helpful, overly touchy. It wasn't like I could blame them, really. Quinn was undeniably attractive. Any single, hot-blooded woman would want him, myself included. We were just friends, but that didn't make watching those women flirt any easier.



       
         
       
        

The only good thing about it was that Quinn didn't seem interested in the slightest. He smiled that smile that didn't come near his eyes, laughed when the situation warranted. But it was clear - to those watching closely - that he didn't return their attention.

Just as that thought occurred to me, I was hit with another, more unpleasant one. He wasn't interested in any woman. Myself included.

It wasn't like I didn't already know that, but the reminder didn't hurt any less.

Just friends. Just friends. Just friends.

The sound of Sophia's voice pulled me out of my head and back into reality. "Ms. Lilly! This one's from you!"

I smiled from a distance as she held up the wrapped present I brought. Then my heart gave a little jump when Quinn waved me over and added, "Come over here."

My cheeks heated as I picked my way through the crowd of unhappy-looking mothers to get to Quinn and Sophia's side. Quinn leaned in so close I could feel his breath across my neck as he whispered, "What are you doing all the way over there?"

I tried not to shiver as Sophia ripped into the wrapping paper. "Just watching. Didn't want to be in the way," I whispered back.

One corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk as he turned back to his daughter, muttering, "Impossible," under his breath.

I really was going to melt into a pile of goo if he didn't stop. Luckily, Sophia's high-pitched squeak distracted me from Quinn's potency and turned our attention back to her.

"Daddy, look!" She pulled the pale pink, satin ballet slippers from the box by the long ribbons that would wrap around her ankles. She held them up and stared at them, her face a blanket of wonder and awe. "Wow," she breathed after several seconds. Turning from the slippers to me, her eyes were wide as she asked, "Can you put them on me? Please, Ms. Lilly?"

"Of course, sweetie." I sat down on the bench next to her and lifted her feet up. The ballet slippers didn't quite go with the princess dress she was wearing for the party, but she didn't seem to care. I showed her how to lace them up around her ankles and tie them in a little bow, and as soon as I stood up, she and her friends took off like they were on fire, screaming and running around the back yard. It always tripped me out how short kids' attention spans were. Present time was officially over and it was back to playing.