Sweet Home Alaska. Beth Carpenter

y’all.” He got in the car and backed out of the driveway. When he looked up, Emma had walked down the steps and was watching him. She waved, and he waved back before driving off.

      Clearly Volta adored her daughter and her job, but he sensed something missing. He needed to spend more time with her, to earn her trust so she would be honest with him. Until he was sure she was happy, he wasn’t ready to let her go.

       CHAPTER FOUR

      “AND WE PAINTED BIRDHOUSES. Grandma painted hers green with little flowers on it, but mine has people.” On the drive back from the airport to fetch Volta’s car, Emma filled her mom in on everything she’d missed while she’d been grounded at Sparks. “And we read a story about a girl and a horse. It was really good.”

      “I’ll bet.” Any book or movie that included a horse was a hit with Emma. Ever since she’d taken Emma to the reindeer farm and she got to ride with Ryan, she couldn’t get enough of horses. Fortunately, the miniature plastic herd she’d collected didn’t eat, because Volta’s paycheck didn’t run to stable fees and feed bills. “Are you excited about your party at the reindeer farm?”

      “Yeah! Livy got me a present. She won’t tell me what it is, but I think it’s a horse. Rafe might come, too.”

      “Who’s Rafe?”

      “He’s in my class. He’s new. He looked sad yesterday, so I invited him.”

      “That’s sweet, but you need to ask me before you invite more people.”

      “Why? It’s my birthday.”

      “Because when people are planning parties, they need to know in advance how many people are coming to know how much food to make and everything. I already told Marissa at the reindeer farm how many to set up for.” Not to mention the cake she’d ordered and the goody bags she and Emma had assembled last week. Shoot, did they have enough goody bags? She should probably pack a couple of spares. “You didn’t invite more kids besides Rafe, did you?”

      “No.” Emma sighed, as though refraining from inviting everyone she’d come in contact with in the past two weeks had taken a terrible toll. It probably had. “Will Marissa be mad if there’s an extra person?”

      “No, I’m sure it will be fine.” Leith’s car pulled into the driveway behind her. “Let’s go get your stuff from Uncle Leith and carry it inside.” Leith handed over Emma’s purple duffel bag and her stuffed dog. Poor Rufus was starting to look a little worse for the wear, but Emma wouldn’t go to sleep without him.

      “Thank Sabrina for taking Emma to the movie,” Volta said to Leith.

      “Sabrina had a blast. I would have gone, too, but you know, princesses.”

      Volta laughed. “Well, thanks for helping me pick up my car. And thanks for driving Emma home. Emma, what do you say to Leith?”

      “Thank you, Uncle Leith,” Emma sang out and ran to give him a hug. “Tell Sabrina I had fun.”

      Volta and Emma waved goodbye. Volta grabbed the duffel and carried it into the garage, pressing the button that closed the door on the way. “What do you want for dinner?”

      “Macaroni and cheese,” Emma said immediately.

      Volta laughed. “You always say that. I’ll bet you had Grandma make you mac and cheese already.”

      “Yes,” Emma said. “Grandma likes to make macaroni and cheese with me. I helped grate the cheese, and I stirred the milk, and I mashed the bread crumbs with a rolling pin. Grandma says I’m going to be a good cook when I grow up.”

      “I don’t doubt it, but let’s try something else tonight. We have chicken in the freezer. Let’s make a chicken stir-fry.”

      “Can we use sesame seeds?”

      “Yes, and we have broccoli, too.”

      “Broccoli?” Emma asked, her voice heavy with suspicion. “Do I like broccoli?”

      “Sure you do. Broccoli looks like little green trees. Remember?”

      “Oh, yeah. I like little trees.”

      Volta set Emma’s duffel at the bottom of the stairs. She put supper together while Emma set the table. Once they’d eaten and loaded the dishwasher, Volta announced it was time for a bath. “When you’re in your pajamas, we can read some stories.”

      “Can we read about a horse?”

      “We can read anything you want,” Volta promised.

      Emma opened her bag and pulled out her pajamas. “Oh, my birdhouse. I forgot to show you.” Emma held up the wooden birdhouse she’d painted a cheery pink with three human figures and an animal along the side.

      Volta pointed at the smallest figure. “Is this you?”

      “Yes.”

      “And this one with the blue dress is me?”

      “Yes, because you like blue.”

      “So this one must be Uncle Leith.”

      “No, a girl and her mommy and her daddy and her horse.”

      “Her horse?”

      “Yeah, she had a mommy and a daddy and a horse. They’re a real family.”

      That nagging sense of inadequacy pricked at Volta. “Real families come in all shapes and sizes, Emma. Just because your daddy died doesn’t mean we’re not a real family.”

      “Well.” Emma peeked up from beneath her eyelashes. “If I can’t have a daddy, I should at least get a horse.”

      “Oh?”

      “Yes.” Emma tried the puppy-dog eyes.

      Volta chuckled. “Nice try, but we’ve talked about this. Horses are very expensive.”

      “Ryan has a horse.”

      “Ryan lives on a farm. We live in Anchorage.”

      “We could keep the horse in the backyard.”

      “Our backyard isn’t big enough for a horse to live.”

      “We could move to a farm.”

      “No, we couldn’t, Emma, because I’m not a farmer. I’m a paramedic.”

      Emma shrugged. “Maybe Grandma and Granddaddy will get a horse for my birthday.”

      Volta shook her head. “No, sweetie, they’re not going to get you a horse. We have no place to keep one. I’m sorry, but that’s how it is.”

      Emma frowned. “When I grow up, I’m going to live on a farm and have lots and lots of horses. And my friends can come and ride with me, and I’ll ride the prettiest horse of all.”

      “Sounds like a plan. But right now, it’s bath time. Do you want to take some of your horses swimming with you?”

      “I’ll take the Arabian and the Clydesdale.” Emma started down the hall, but she stopped after two steps to send back a parting shot. “But someday, I’m going to get a real horse.”

      * * *

      SCOTT WOKE UP restless on Saturday morning. He’d already written up his notes from his visit to Sparks and had nothing else scheduled until Monday. His plan had been to use this weekend to locate Volta and decide how to approach her, but their accidental meeting in Sparks had taken care of that. In theory, he could check it off the list, but it didn’t feel finished. In fact, it felt distinctly unresolved. He needed to convince her to accept that position as liaison. But he couldn’t do anything else about it for two more days.

      Spare time was a luxury and he hated to waste it.