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Pulling up to Abby’s townhome, I knocked on the door, hearing laughing from around back as Abby pulled open the door. “They’re out back. Come on.”
I followed her down the hall, through the living room, and out the back slider. The yard was long and narrow. A nice size for a townhouse. The kids were using rocks for each of the plates.
“Daddy!” Cammie said, running up to me. I caught and lifted her into my arms.
Putting her down, I asked, “Did you have fun?”
“It was so much fun. We had s’mores and slept in the tent.”
“You stayed in a tent all night?” I asked.
“They made it until about midnight before they came inside,” Abby said.
“Can we sleep in a tent tonight?” Cammie asked. When she latched on to an idea, it was hard to get her off it.
“We’ll see.”
She looked up at me with pleading eyes. “We could invite Hunter over.”
“We can, but probably not tonight,” I said to her. And then to Abby, I said, “Thanks for keeping Cammie. I hope it wasn’t too much trouble.”
Abby smiled. “It was a lot of fun.”
“You ready to go?” I asked Cammie.
Her face fell. “Do we have to?”
“I’m sure Ms. Abby has things to do, and your grandparents will be home soon.” That got her moving. She loved my parents.
Hunter and Cammie headed inside, hopefully to gather her things and not get lost in another game.
“Seriously, thanks for watching her. You went above and beyond,” I said to Abby, suddenly very aware that I was talking to Brooke’s sister, and she’d seemingly set us up.
“I hope it was worth it.” Abby gave me a knowing smile.
She was matchmaking. I wondered if her desire to see us together meant she’d give some insight into Brooke’s history. “It was good to get to know Brooke better.”
“It was worth it, then.”
“Do you know why Brooke would be reluctant to be in a relationship?” I should have been asking Brooke, but I knew she wasn’t ready to talk about it yet.
Abby’s lips pressed into a straight line. “It’s not my place to say.”
“I can respect that, but I don’t want to inadvertently hurt her or push her into something she doesn’t want.”
Abby examined me closely, then finally said, “She’s been burned and doesn’t trust easily.”
“It’s more than just the business?”
Abby seemed to consider her words before continuing, “That’s part of it. She’s scared to put her trust in the wrong person and have everything come crashing down.”
I was even more intrigued. Had someone screwed her over in business? If so, it made sense why she wouldn’t want to mix business with pleasure.
Abby shook her head like she knew what I’d been thinking. “I won’t tell you any more. You have to earn that information from her.”
It was a challenge I was willing to accept. Satisfied I was more prepared than when I came, I said, “I appreciate you telling me what you did.”
I turned to head inside, but Abby stopped me with a hand on my arm. “Please be careful with her. If you’re not planning something serious, leave her alone.”
