Tool Belt Defender. Carla Cassidy

some flavor of ice cream but always opted for chocolate ice cream with sprinkles when they got there.

      “What are you thinking, Daddy?” she asked.

      This was also part of the tradition that had been established in their walks to Izzy’s. Alex frowned in mock thoughtfulness. “I’m thinking maybe worm-flavored ice cream.”

      He was rewarded by her infectious giggles. “Daddy, that’s so gross,” she exclaimed.

      As they walked in front of Brittany’s house he was surprised to see her sitting on her porch. “Wait up, Emily,” he said. He jogged up the walk to her porch. “Good evening, Ms. Grayson.”

      “Good evening to you, Mr. Crawford.”

      Her smile warmed him as Emily came running to join him. “Emily, this is Ms. Grayson,” he said. “My daughter, Emily.”

      “Hi, Emily. You can call me Brittany,” she replied.

      “We’re going to get ice cream at Izzy’s. Want to come with us?” Emily asked.

      “Oh, I don’t think so. I don’t go into town much,” Brittany replied, but Alex thought he saw a touch of wistfulness momentarily flit across her beautiful dark eyes.

      “Emily, why don’t you show Brittany how you can do a cartwheel in the grass?” Alex said.

      Emily’s face lit up. There was nothing she loved more than showing off her gymnastic skills. “Okay.” As she raced off the porch Alex turned back to Brittany.

      “And why don’t you go into town much?” he asked.

      “Watch this, Brittany,” Emily yelled from the yard.

      She focused her attention on Emily. “You’ve probably heard about what happened to me.”

      “I’ve heard a little bit about it,” he admitted.

      “That’s super, Emily,” she called out as Emily performed two perfectly executed cartwheels. “People stare and whisper,” she said softly. “It makes me uncomfortable so I just don’t go out much.”

      He heard a hint of loneliness in her voice and it called to his own loneliness. “We’re not going to traipse down Main Street in a parade. We’re just going to Izzy’s for some ice cream.”

      “This time I’m going to do four cartwheels in a row,” Emily yelled.

      “Tell you what,” Alex continued. “If you feel somebody staring at you and you get all uncomfortable, I’ll stick an ice cream cone on my nose and cover my head with sprinkles. Trust me, nobody will be staring at you after that.”

      She looked at him in surprise and then laughed. By that time Emily had rejoined them. “Did you see me do four cartwheels?”

      “I did,” Brittany replied. “That was so totally awesome.”

      “So are you joining us?” Alex asked, vaguely surprised at how much he wanted her to come with them.

      She hesitated a long moment and then nodded. “Okay, just let me grab my purse.”

      “She’s pretty,” Emily said as Brittany disappeared through her front door.

      “Yes, she is,” Alex agreed.

      “Do you like her?” Emily slid him a sly glance.

      “I’m building a deck on the back of her house so she’s kind of like my boss right now.” The last thing he wanted was for Emily to get any ideas about a budding relationship between him and Brittany.

      Since they’d moved to Black Rock Emily had learned about stepmoms and had decided it would be nice to have one. Alex had explained to his daughter that finding a perfect stepmother was more difficult than it seemed and that she shouldn’t count on it ever happening.

      Brittany stepped back out the front door with her purse slung over her shoulder. “All set.”

      The two of them fell into step on the sidewalk while Emily danced just ahead of them. “What kind of ice cream do you like, Brittany?” she asked.

      “I’m definitely a chocolate lover,” Brittany replied.

      “Me, too!” Emily exclaimed. “Daddy says he’s going to get worm-flavored ice cream today.”

      “That’s gross,” Brittany replied.

      Once again Emily laughed in delight. “That’s what I told him.” She fell into step next to Brittany and gazed up at her. “Since you’re daddy’s boss, maybe you could tell him that he should let me get two scoops of ice cream instead of just one.”

      Brittany laughed again and Alex thought he could listen to her laugh for a long time. He was also aware of the scent of her, a clean, fresh floral with a touch of jasmine that teased his senses.

      “Let’s see when we get there how much arm-twisting we need to do to get your daddy to agree to two scoops,” she said.

      Emily nodded and then once again danced ahead of them along the sidewalk. “She’s a doll,” Brittany said.

      “She’s far too smart for her own good, as stubborn as the day is long, but best of all she’s my heart,” he replied.

      “That’s nice. Every little girl needs a father in her life.”

      “Are your parents here in town?” he asked.

      She shook her head, her rich dark hair gleaming in the sunshine. “My parents died a long time ago, but I have four brothers who stepped into the role of father figure and sometimes that feels like four too many,” she said ruefully.

      He grinned. “One of them is the sheriff, right?”

      “Yes, that’s Tom. Then there’s Jacob, Benjamin and Caleb. Right now they all work as deputies, but Benjamin is quitting in a couple of weeks to ranch full-time.”

      “And from what I’ve heard you were also a deputy at one time.”

      “Before the incident.” Her voice held a slight edge of stress. The incident—such pitiful words to use to describe what she’d gone through.

      “It’s been a beautiful day, hasn’t it?” He quickly changed the subject. The last thing he wanted to do was ruin this time with her by discussing something she didn’t want to talk about. “Emily and I spent the afternoon planting flowers along the walkway to our front door.”

      “We got flowers with a name like what my daddy sometimes calls me,” Emily quipped. “Impatients.”

      Brittany laughed again and Alex could tell she was relaxing with each minute that passed. There was something tragic about a woman who had lived through what she had and wound up being afraid to leave her own house because of the whispers and stares of the other people in town.

      “Once you have my deck up I intend to plant flowers everywhere in the backyard,” she said. “I want that deck to be the prettiest place on the planet.”

      “Then I’ll have to make sure that I’m on top of my game and give you a deck that will be the envy of everyone in town,” he replied.

      By that time they’d reached Izzy’s. The ice-cream parlor was a small shop with half a dozen small round peppermint-pink tables inside and a long refrigerated counter displaying almost every flavor of ice cream imaginable. Much to Alex’s mock dismay and Emily’s giggles, they had no worm-flavored.

      They were the only customers inside, and once they’d ordered and been served the three of them sat at a table near the window where the last of the day’s sun was visible, slowly sinking lower onto the horizon.

      The conversation centered on the merits of ice cream and the variety of flavors available. Brittany was good with Emily, talking to her with an easiness and respect that Emily responded to in the same way.

      There was