Page 2 of Wanting Happily Ever After

“You know I wouldn’t miss it.”

She did know. Still, it was worth saying, and she didn’t like to miss an opportunity to tell her father how much she appreciated him.

After Sarah’s mom died when she was barely a toddler, it had just been the two of them. And then, after the accident that had left Sarah a widow five years earlier, when Rory was only a baby, Sarah had leaned heavily on her father.

“Wasn’t that a great game?” Brody, clipboard still in hand, appeared next to her. Sarah couldn’t help but notice how he always made a point to greet her before any of the other parents. It was a detail that didn’t seem to be lost on anyone, her father included. Next to her, Ed tensed ever so slightly. “What did you think of that, Mr. Walker? Pretty great game, wasn’t it?”

“It was pretty close there until the end.” Ed crossed his arms over his chest, but his lips twitched up into a flicker of smile before it disappeared again. “It’s a good thing that granddaughter of mine is so quick.”

She didn’t know what it was, but it didn’t seem to matter what Brody did or said; her father didn’t seem to like him very much. She couldn’t figure it out because Brody had been a great friend to her over the last few months. He’d been nothing but helpful and kind and…she forced herself to stop the line of thinking she was on as the fluttering in her stomach made a reappearance.

“That is a good thing, Mr. Walker,” Brody answered diplomatically. “She’s a very talented little girl.” He turned to smile at Sarah. It was a simple action, but it warmed her. “I should go make my rounds,” he said to her. “But I’ll give you a call later. I have an ice cream cake in the freezer at the restaurant that needs to be tested, and I thought Rory might want to help out.”

Sarah laughed. “Oh, I think she’d love to help you out with that.”

“Sounds good.” Brody put his hand on her arm and squeezed.

Did he hold it just a moment longer than was necessary?If Sarah had any experience with men at all, she might know. But beyond her late husband, she’d never even dated. She smiled as he took his leave and went to talk to the other parents, who were all waiting to congratulate their star coach.

She watched as he was swallowed up by them with cheers and pats on the back before turning back to her father. Ed’s mouth was still turned down in a frown. She stopped herself before reminding her dad, just like everyone else, that she wasn’t dating Brody. Because even though he hadn’t said as much, Sarah was pretty sure that was her father’s issue. Just as he’d remained single, it seemed that he thought his daughter should do the same. But he didn’t have to worry—she had no intention of coupling up again. Like father, like daughter.

Suddenly exhausted and overwhelmed by the heat, she shook her head and ignored her dad and whatever it was that he clearly wanted to say. “I’m melting,” she said instead. “Let’s go celebrate Rory’s goal with some iced tea.”

Brody Morris tried to stay focused on the parents who were showering him with completely undeserved praise. After all, it was youth summer league soccer, not the World Cup. First place prize was a medal. The same as every other place. But to the parents of Glacier Falls, his adopted hometown, he might as well have been training their daughters for the Olympics.

“What do you think their odds of winning are, Coach?”

“That team from Cedar Springs is pretty tough.”

“I heard they have a ringer.”

“A ringer? Does anyone check the birth certificates of these kids?”

Brody handled each of the questions, with a smile and a chuckle. “Win or lose, you should all be so proud of your girls out there. They’re playing their hearts out and having so much fun,” he said good-naturedly. “They’re all great kids. We should celebrate that.”

“And their championship,” Audrey Hill said confidently. “I mean, it’s obvious that they’re going to win. We should plan a party as a wrap-up.”

Brody shook his head, but did his best not to look disagreeable. He’d met women like Audrey Hill before, and he knew well enough to stay on their good side. The last thing he wanted or needed was to be involved in any kind of drama, or to have Audrey Hill on his bad side, which would be worse. He tried to sneak a glance at Sarah, but she was turned away from him, kneeling on the grass, helping Rory unlace her cleats. Sarah had mentioned once or twice that Audrey had mastered the art of passive-aggressive bitchiness. Something aboutmean girlsyndrome or something like that. Whatever it was, Brody believed her and did his best to keep Audrey at arm’s length.

“A wind-up party sounds like a great idea.” He smiled. “Let me know the details.”

“Oh, I thought maybe Sarah could organize it.” Her voice dripped with a false sweetness. “After all, she didn’t bring team snacks as much as everyone else. It’s really the least she could do.”

Brody noticed a few of the other parents roll their eyes and shake their heads in disbelief, but not one of them said anything. He knew, just as well as they all knew, that Sarah did her best to attend all of the games and practices. But there were a few times when she wasn’t able to make it due to work because she was a single mom who essentially supported and raised her little girl by herself. Obviously that little detail wasn’t about to be recognized by this group.

He usually bit his tongue, in an effort to remain a neutral party as much as possible, but this was too much. “You know Sarah does her best to be here whenever she can. She has a lot on her plate.”

Audrey took a step back and raised her eyebrow. “Sounds like someone is getting a little defensive.” She clucked her tongue. “I didn’t mean to stir up anything.”

That’sexactlywhat she’d meant. Still, Brody kept a smile on his face. “Oh, of course, Audrey. All I’m saying is that Sarah—”

“Makes sure that her father brings the team snacks when she can’t be here. And has never missed once.”

Brody turned to see Sarah, speaking about herself in the third person, walk up to the group. He tried, but failed, to stifle a smile.

“And I’m pretty sure you know, Audrey, that my father brings Rory’s snacks onallthe days that I get caught up at work. After all, the snacks are assigned bychildand not byparent.Isn’t that right?”

Audrey stammered and struggled over her words, but finally swallowed hard and nodded curtly. “I was just—”

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