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He pulled another chair closer to her. “Are you really okay?”
“I’m fine. Really,” she said. “I’m worried about Hannah, though. The hit and run incident and now this, but she won’t tell me anything.”
“The police will keep us posted and I can promise you Darryn will not rest until this thing is resolved.” He touched her arm. “If you’re feeling better, may I take you out to dinner tonight?”
“That sounds great.” She looked at her watch and turned to leave. “I want to call my mother, though, and want to do it now. I’m amazed she hasn’t tried to call me already. I thought you’d have told Don and Caitlin what happened.”
Dale shook his head. “No, we didn’t want to say anything before we knew exactly what was going on. We didn’t want to upset Caitlin further. She was ready to throttle Darryn and myself.”
“What did you do?”
Dale laughed. “Because she blamed us for the fact that you and Hannah had left early for Mahé,” he said and handed her his phone again. “Here, call your mom from my landline then I can also speak to her. She’ll need reassurance and I can’t give it to her.”
*
“Hannah has justalso called me. She’s not telling me everything,” Zoe’s mom said after Zoe told her what had happened.
Zoe grimaced. She’d tried to skim over what had really happened, but her mother was nobody’s fool. To try and keep anything from their mother, was a hopeless exercise. She always knew when something was wrong. “Dale and Darryn are talking to the police, Mom. Hannah will be surrounded by people during the photo shoot on Mauritius and hopefully she’ll be back home soon.”
“I hope so. And how are you feeling?”
“I’m fine, Mom, really.”
“And your Dale flew all the way over to Mahé because you were hurt?” her mother asked, and Zoe groaned out loud, glad Dale had stepped out to his secretary’s office for the moment. Of all the things she’d just told her mother, that was what she was focusing on?
“Mom, you’re such a die-hard romantic!” She laughed. “He’s not my Dale. We’re… I don’t know what we are, but please don’t start writing about fairy lights and white dresses, okay?”
Her mother inhaled sharply. “Fairy lights?” she gushed. “Of course, that’s what you’ll want. And you’ll wear a sleek white dress in satin and lace. Oh, darling, I can just see you!”
“Mom,” Zoe said, tightening her hold on the phone. “Listen to me. Nobody is getting married, please.”
“Who’s getting married?” Dale asked from behind her and she closed her eyes.
“Nobody. My mother is telling me about her latest romance,” Zoe said. “You know she writes fairy tales for grown-ups, don’t you?”
“I write romances, not fairy tales,” her mother said indignantly. “Let me talk to him.”
With trepidation, Zoe switched on the speaker and gave Dale the phone. She had no idea what her mother would say, but she wanted to be able to stop her when necessary.
“So, you write romances?” Dale asked her mother, his eyes twinkling. “Tell me about it?”
“Don’t ask!” Zoe called out. “She’ll never stop talking about it.” She groaned. Of all the things to be talking about! She closed her eyes.
Her mother’s voice was very clear over the phone. “Yes, I write romances. I love to write about love—there’s always a new side to it I haven’t discovered before. And I adore the happy endings, especially those that end with a beautiful wedding. One where fairy lights guide guests down the stairs to a small beach. Our heroine wears a satin gown, the top part covered in lace, and she has a bouquet of exquisite pink roses. The groom waits for her at the bottom of the stairs and when he sees her, he”—her mother paused dramatically—“falls in love with her all over again, because he realizes so many of his smiles begin with her. In fact, I’m writing such a scene right now.”
“Oh, Mother, you’ve been updating your Pinterest board again, haven’t you?” Zoe said, trying not to think about the scene her mother had just described. It felt all too real.
She didn’t want to catch Dale’s eye—he must be trying his best not to laugh out loud.
“Lovely line, I thought,” her mother said.
*
Dale stared atZoe. The line her mom had just recited echoed deep within him. It was so true—all his smiles did begin with Zoe. Corny, yes, but it explained a little of his confused feelings, things he felt but found hard to put into words. He smiled more when he was with her than he’d ever done before. And it wasn’t because she was funny or wittier than other women he’d met. But somehow, when he thought of her, he ended up smiling.
“Now, Dale, what I have to say now is not meant for Zoe’s ears,” her mom said, and Zoe shook her head vehemently, mouthing for Dale not to switch off the speaker. He smiled and ignored her. He turned off the speaker and moved towards the windows.
“I like you, Dale Cavallo,” Zoe’s mom said. She lowered her voice. “My Zoe doesn’t think she’s worth anyone’s love. The man who wants her will have to make sure she knows how deeply she is loved, how deeply she touched him.”
Stunned, Dale kept the phone against his ear long after Zoe’s mom had hung up.
