portion of her will into blocking his memory. If she was going to survive, being ruthless about her wandering thoughts was a priority.
“We should put a nice, big, potted bush or a tree right out there in the corner,” Lynda murmured. She was pointing out the window. “Something green and lush will add to the view.” She turned to Summer with a smile on her face. “Don’t you think?”
She peered out the wide window and visualized a green display. There was certainly enough room despite a good portion of the backyard area taken up by a pool and hot tub.
“Something with color might be nice. Lots of options for trees in planters. You could even do a lemon tree. That way, you’d get the visual and fruit as a bonus. More bang for the landscaping buck.”
“Ah ha ha,” Lynda chortled. “What a great way of putting it. You just gave me the perfect script for convincing Bud to take on another project.”
Summer laughed along. “That’d make a great slogan for a landscape business.”
She rubbed her tummy and shifted on the chair. “Tinker Belly is active today. I think she’s doing somersaults in there.”
“A little gymnast? Just like her mommy. How precious.”
She snorted and pressed her fingers against the spot where the baby was thumping. “Yeah, real precious,” she drawled. “Is it possible to be black and blue on the inside?”
Lynda regarded Summer’s large baby bump. “She’s gonna be a big girl. Isn’t that what the obstetrician said?”
“Yes. At my last ultrasound, the nurse made a huge deal about her length and weight.”
In a gentle, encouraging voice, her new friend murmured, “So, she takes after her daddy too, eh?”
Biting her lip to stop the sudden rush of tears she feared was about to happen, Summer clasped her hands together and squeezed. The damn pregnancy hormones did not help.
“Lynda”—she sighed—“I can’t go there.”
Scooting her chair closer, Lynda brushed some hair behind Summer’s shoulder and patted her clasped hands. Their eyes met.
“Honey, are you absolutely sure …?”
“Don’t say it,” Summer pleaded. “Please.”
“I understand.” Lynda nodded. “But let me just say this, okay?”
She scowled but not because she didn’t care what her new friend thought. Summer’s scowl had everything to do with the agony she felt whenever the subject turned to her baby’s father.
“O-okay,” she stammered. “Motherly guidance couldn’t hurt.”
“Good girl,” Lynda said with a smile.
Summer tried very, very hard to forget someone else saying those very same words.
“Things aren’t always as simple as appearances suggest. Oh, don’t frown so,” Lynda scolded when Summer’s expression turned dour. “Let me finish before you get all grumpy.”
“Baby daddy conversations are not my favorite.”
In fact, she was sick of hearing it from her brother. It pissed her off every time Reed went off on one of his “Imma kick that motherfucker’s ass” rants.
“Yes, well, I’m relatively sure the input you’re getting from the opposite sex runs along angry, confrontational lines. I’m here to offer a different view.”
“What view is that?”
“The view from a woman’s heart.” Lynda leaned closer and rubbed Summer’s belly. “Hon, here it is. I’ve heard the story from a bunch of different angles. Your version. Cy and Joanne’s perspective. Even Reed’s take.”
Summer swallowed hard. Where was Lynda going with this?
“Nowhere in any of those versions is there a single mention of this man having done something threatening. To hear you talk, I would say there was never a moment of doubt or regret on either of your parts. Is it possible he doesn’t know any of this?”
“Of course it’s possible!” Summer vehemently popped off without warning. “When someone simply vanishes, anything is possible. For all I know, he was a visiting alien called back to the mothership. Or a time-traveling Viking, for Pete’s sake.”
“Both sound terribly romantic, dear.”
“Oh, jeez, Lynda. What do you want me to say? If I knew what the hell was going on, I wouldn’t be in the endangered mother’s underground. I don’t know where he is or why I haven’t heard from him. All I know for sure is someone he knows threatened me and tried to buy my baby. Nothing romantic about that.”
“Maybe you haven’t heard from him because he isn’t clairvoyant and doesn’t realize you have a burner phone.”
Lynda’s words struck a chord.
She glanced at the framed photograph of Merlin’s cave hanging on the living room wall. Her eyes dropped to a tabletop shadow box where she kept the treasured memories she picked up the day they hiked to her special place. Other than a few special crystals,