Together With You Read Free

and Carly swallowed a familiar lump of grief. She’d been fourteen when her mother died of a fast-moving cancer, leaving her to be raised by her father and older brother and sister. The gold locket hidden under her red polo shirt, warm from her skin and memories, had belonged to her mother and was Carly’s most treasured possession. She made Lance dip his head in a kind of prayer. “I’m sad for you, Miss Penny.”
    Penny nodded solemnly. “I’m sad, too.”
    â€œDo you have a daddy?” Lance asked.
    â€œSort of.” Penny heaved a very adult sigh. “Mostly I have nannies. Dr. Tremaine—he’s my daddy—he works all the time. Kyle is nice, but I hate Eric. He took me to the arcade, and I hate the arcade. It smells bad.” Her lower lip popped out, stiffened, and trembled with the threat of tears.
    Tiffany Rabbit hippety-hopped to the rescue. “I need a mommy, too. Can I come home with you?”
    Penny raised her skinny little arm and patted Tiffany on the head. “I want this one.”
    Tiffany turned to Carly, who looked at Lance, who did another puppet shake of his mane while speaking to Carly. “We both want to go home with Miss Penny. Is that okay?”
    Carly finally used her own voice. “I think we can work something out.” She had already decided to buy both animals for Penny, who probably didn’t understand the price tags. Every dollar counted for Carly, but she could live on Cup O’ Noodles a few extra days. Aware of the Code Adam and the ten-minute limit, she tucked Lance under her arm and reached for Penny’s hand. “Let’s go pay.”
    Penny took Carly’s fingers as if they were already best friends, and they walked together to the counter where Carly made the call to Security.
    â€œKeep her there,” the operator said. “Her father’s on his way.”
    Good, Carly thought. She wanted a word with the man about his daughter. She understood a child getting lost in a mall. It happened. They were little human beings with minds and feet of their own. But Penny’s instant attachment indicated a dangerous lack of healthy suspicion. If Carly could win her trust with a stuffed animal, so could a predator. Penny needed to be taught to protect herself, especially with her mom in heaven.
    Carly paid for the toys with her employee discount, then handed Tiffany Rabbit to Penny, who told the rabbit she’d get to sleep in Penny’s bed tonight along with a bunch of other stuffed friends. Carly joined in the conversation with Lance, who did lots of growling while they waited for Penny’s dad—the man she called Dr. Tremaine. The more Carly thought about the circumstances, the more she worried.
    â€œPenny!”
    A deep voice shot through the store. Turning, Carly spotted a tall man with close-cropped dark hair, narrowed eyes, and a lanky build striding toward the cash register. Presumably this was Dr. Tremaine. Dressed in khakis and a navy polo shirt, he dodged children and parents with the agility of an athlete. She supposedhe was handsome, even striking, but his steely gaze lacked warmth of any kind.
    Carly laid a protective hand on Penny’s shoulder. “Your daddy’s here.”
    The child looked at her father, her expression blank as she lifted Tiffany Rabbit and made her talk. “Hi, Dr. Tremaine,” she said in a squeaky voice. “I’m Tiffany Rabbit, and I’m going home with Penny. Lance is coming, too.”
    The man stared at the rabbit, speechless. He clearly didn’t know how to play with a child, and Penny plainly needed someone who did. When his gaze shot to Carly’s face, his blue eyes collided with her brown ones the way an empty sky touches flat brown earth. Fear glittered in his irises, but so did arrogance. Carly didn’t like that cold glare, not one bit. Penny needed a daddy, not this man who oozed tension, maybe anger.
    Determined to