Read Pinky Promise (Riverbend Romance 2) for Free Online

is a bit quieter.”
    “It doesn’t take much to be shyer than Elena.”
    His face crinkled into a grin. “I should give you my cell number in case you need to reach me, and I’m not in the office.”
    “Right.” Kelly plucked her phone off the kitchen table and thumbed it on. “The number?”
    He held his phone out to her. “Probably less chance of a mistake if we put our own numbers in each other’s phone. Allow me?”
    “Um, sure.” She took his cell and added her name and number to his contact list.
    A second later he offered her hers back. “All done.” He gave her a lopsided grin. “I guess I’d better be going or I’ll be late. Have a good day.”
    “I’m sure we will. I forgot to ask if Sophie has any food allergies or anything like that I should know about.”
    Ian reached for the doorknob. “Nothing I know of.”
    “Okay. Have fun at the office.”
    He grinned and waved as he left.
    A moment later she heard his vehicle start up and drive away. Now for those girls. Kelly walked down the short hallway to Elena’s room. The door was slightly ajar. Surely eavesdropping was appropriate?
    “My daddy said I couldn’t ask your mom to be my mommy.”
    Kelly sagged against the wall, her knees nearly giving out. Both of them? She and Ian were dead in the water. There’d be no way to have a casual friendship with these two around. They would either have to separate the girls, or... She kind of liked the sound of or but hated the feeling of being so out of control. This pair would just keep pushing.
    “I know. My mommy even made me pinky promise not to ask your dad the same thing.”
    Kelly should’ve made her pinky promise not to tell anyone that, too.
    “What’s a pinky promise?”
    “It’s when you do this.” There was a second of silence. “And then you make a promise you have to keep or else .”
    “Or else what?” asked Sophie.
    Kelly imagined Elena’s shoulders doing her ever-so-dramatic shrug. “Or else your baby finger breaks, and that would hurt a lot.”
    “But I like your mommy.”
    “She’s nice. I like your daddy, too.”
    Silence. The girls were probably staring at each other and thinking hard. No good could come of this. Forewarned was forearmed, right? Kelly had to listen to the rest of the conversation.
    “My mommy says that grownups have to decide stuff like that. They have to love each other.”
    “Like kissy stuff? You said my daddy was hugging your mommy, but I didn’t see it.”
    Right. Because Ian had stepped back after Elena’s announcement, and they’d all had some of those chocolate chip cookies she’d baked the night before.
    “Yeah, kissy stuff, I think. If they do that, then your daddy will be my daddy, too.”
    Kelly put her hands to her cheeks. She’d known she and Ian needed to be careful around the girls, but good grief. The two of them were practically planning their flower girl dresses. Whoa. Now where had that thought come from?
    “How do we make them do kissy stuff?” asked Sophie.
    “I don’t know. We’ll have to think about it. Do you want to play princess? My grandma made me some dress-up clothes.”
    “Yes!”
    Kelly took a deep breath and tapped on her daughter’s door before sticking her head around it. “Elena, want some breakfast? Sophie, are you hungry?”
    The two little girls glanced at each other and nodded before joining hands and following Kelly back to the kitchen. She didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry.

    ~*~

    Ian turned the corner onto Kelly’s dead-end street just in time to see a pink bicycle tip over in the driveway. The child was wearing a helmet and Sophie’s clothes. He pulled in a sharp breath. Was his daughter okay?
    Kelly extricated Sophie and gave her a high-five, which Sophie returned with little enthusiasm, pointing at her knee. Kelly crouched and kissed Sophie’s knee as Elena, also wearing a helmet, righted the bicycle and pushed it to the top of the barely sloping driveway.
    He pulled to a stop at