The Daddy Audition

Chapter Two

The offices of Crenshaw Construction occupied a soaring cedar-and-glass A-frame in Crested Butte South. The building was less than a year old, and every time Jack entered it, he felt a surge of pride and satisfaction.

When he’d joined his dad in the family business shortly after graduating from college, it had been a small concern specializing in remodels and the occasional new home build. Now it was a multimillion-dollar concern, one of the leading builders in the area.

Jack had been at work for more than an hour Friday morning when his father strolled in and settled his big frame into a chair across his son’s desk.

Jack’s dog, a golden retriever mix aptly named Nugget, trotted from his favorite spot beneath the open window to greet the older man and was rewarded with a scratch behind the ears. Jack had adopted the dog six months before and the pup had the run of the office, though he spent most of his time close by Jack. “Did you get those scrims over to the theater last night?” Andy Crenshaw asked in an accent that betrayed his Minnesota roots. Though he’d officially retired last year as president of the company, he still maintained an office in the building and spent a few hours a week there, helping out as needed. The rest of his time was devoted to fly-fishing in the summer, skiing in the winter and traveling with Jack’s mom, Carrie.

“I dropped them off on my way home last night,” Jack said.

“You work too late,” Andy said.

“There’s a lot to do, Dad.” The exchange was an oft-repeated one between them, with all the comfortable familiarity of a pair of worn boots. Next, his dad would remark that Jack needed a haircut, or that he was letting the construction hands get away with too much by allowing them to stop work an hour early on Fridays.

But Andy didn’t stick to the script this morning. “You should never let a job get so big it takes over your life,” he said. “That’s why I kept things small when you and your sister were kids. I wanted to be home to have dinner as a family and to coach your softball teams and be in the stands at your basketball games.”

Worry pinched at the back of Jack’s neck. Why was his dad bringing this up now? “I always appreciated that,” he said. His parents had been his biggest supporters, encouraging him to believe he was capable of anything. A nagging thought pricked at him. “Dad, you don’t think I expanded the business because I didn’t think you did enough, do you?”

“No, no! I know you did it because it’s what comes natural for you.” Andy smiled, deep creases forming at the corners of his mouth and eyes from years spent working out of doors. “Everything you’ve ever done, you’ve worked hard to be the best, whether it was basketball or construction. I’m proud of you, son, but I’d like to see you with more in your life than work.”

“I have more in my life, Dad. I have plenty of friends. And I have Nugget.” At the mention of his name, the dog fanned the air with his luxurious tail.

“I’m talking family.” Andy leaned forward, his bright blue eyes fixed on his son. “If you had a wife and kids to come home to, you wouldn’t be so interested in always working late.” He sat back. “Not that I’m pressuring you or anything—just making an observation.”

“Dad, what brought this on?” Jack asked. Andy wasn’t inclined to make impromptu lectures on serious subjects.

Andy looked sheepish. “Aww, Maggie Calloway’s youngest is pregnant with Maggie’s fourth grandchild, and your mother is getting antsy. She asked me to put a bug in your ear.”

Jack laughed, relieved that the explanation was a familiar one. “Tell Mom I’m sufficiently bugged. And she shouldn’t worry. I plan on getting married one day—when the right woman comes along.”

Andy nodded, and his gaze shifted to the view of the mountains afforded by the expanse of glass to their right. “See anybody you know at the theater last night?” he asked.

The tension immediately returned to Jack’s shoulders. Apparently the impending arrival of another grandchild for his mom’s best friend wasn’t the only trigger for this conversation. “Tanya was there,” he said.

“I hear she’s doing a good job with the theater and the Arts Center,” Andy said. “Folks say we were lucky to get someone with her experience.”

Tanya’s stint in Hollywood had certainly given her some impressive acting credentials, though from what he could see, her time out there had changed her in other ways he didn’t view as favorably. The brittle, sophisticated woman who had confronted him last night wasn’t the sweet, laughing girl he remembered.

“I always liked Tanya,” his dad continued. “I was glad to hear she’d come back to town.”

“Enough, Dad. Tanya and I are not going to get back together.”

“Who said anything about the two of you getting back together?” His dad tried but failed to master an innocent look. “The two of you were good friends at one time. There’s nothing wrong with renewing an old friendship.”

He and Tanya had been a lot more than friends. Tanya had practically been part of the Crenshaw family. In fact, everyone had assumed she would be part of the family as soon as a wedding could be arranged. Everyone, apparently, except Tanya herself.

“Let’s change the subject, okay?” Jack said. “What do you have planned for today?”

“I thought I’d help the boys get that booth set up for the Humane Society for their fund-raiser tomorrow,” he said.

Jack nodded. Weeks ago, his dad had volunteered them to donate construction of a booth to house the Humane Society’s display for a festival. Andy had drilled into Jack the importance of giving back to the community. Jack also suspected these projects were yet another effort to encourage him to circulate among eligible females. “That’s great, Dad. I appreciate your help.”

Andy rose from his chair. “Do me a favor, son. Take off early tonight and go out and have some fun.”

“Don’t worry, Dad.” He kept a smile on his face until his father left the room, then he let out a breath and collapsed back in his chair. Fun. He had half a dozen major projects under way, bids to prepare for a new condo development, and a leak to fix in his roof, and his dad was concerned he wasn’t having enough fun. Well, there was a time and a place for fun and Jack didn’t think this was it.

Unbidden, his mind flashed an image of Tanya standing before him last night—arms folded, lips pursed, tension radiating from her like mist from a pond on a frosty morning. She hadn’t looked as if she was enjoying life much at that moment, either.

The two of them had had a lot of fun at one time. He recalled one evening, not long before graduation. Her parents had driven to California with her brother, Ian, who was reporting to Marine boot camp, leaving Tanya home alone with the family dog for protection and company. Tanya had invited Jack to spend the night with her, a wholly illicit and thrilling invitation. They’d sat in the hot tub under a soft fall of late spring snow, then made love in her bedroom by the light of a full moon pouring through the window.

He shook himself out of his reverie. Not one month after that magical night, Tanya had gone off to Hollywood to live her dream. He’d stayed home and worked hard to rebuild his.

And now she was back. Her dream had apparently changed. He told himself he didn’t care, but the fact that he was brooding over it proved he did. Memories of the girl she’d been and curiosity about the woman she was distracted him from mundane paperwork.

So what did he do now? Did he go back to avoiding her? Did he confront her about what had happened between them years ago? Or did he risk making a fool of himself and seek her out again, to see if there was any spark left in their old flame?

“MOMMY, I REALLY WANT to get a puppy!” Annie tugged on Tanya’s hand as they made their way Saturday morning past refreshment booths and games of chance at the Gunnison County Humane Society’s Summer Festival.

“Annie, we’ve talked about this before,” Tanya said. “Grandma and Grandpa already have a dog. It wouldn’t be fair to Misty to bring another dog into her house.”

“But Misty’s old,” Annie said. “I want a puppy. And I bet Misty would like a puppy.”

“No, sweetheart. No puppies.”

“We can at least look, can’t we?”

Tanya thought “just looking” at the cute, cuddly puppies the Humane Society had for adoption was a very bad idea. She was as susceptible as the next person to the allure of furry fuzz balls, but having to depend on her parents for a place to live was bad enough without introducing anything else into the already crowded house.

But it was too late for her protests to have any effect on Annie. The little girl had already spotted the large wooden booth with the banner that proclaimed Adoptions: Take Home a New Best Friend Today.

Annie let go of her mother’s hand and raced to the booth, where she almost collided with Angela and her boyfriend, Bryan Perry, who was the assistant manager of the Elevation Hotel. “Whoa! Annie, Fo-Fanny, where are you headed in such a rush?” Angela asked.

“I came to see the puppies.” Annie flashed a shy smile at Bryan. “What are you doing here?”

“We’re thinking about adopting a dog,” Bryan said. He nodded to Tanya as she joined them.

“Bryan wants a big dog he can take hiking,” Angela said. “While I’d like something small and fluffy that could be a mascot for my shop.” Angela ran the Chocolate Moose, a candy shop on Elk Avenue.

“I’m telling you, a chocolate lab would be the perfect dog,” Bryan said. “You could name him Cocoa or Hershey.”

“I was thinking of a little bichon,” Angela said. “I could call it Sugar.”

Bryan looked nauseated at the idea. “It doesn’t have to be a chocolate lab,” he said, “but please—we have to get something I’m not ashamed to take out with the guys. It has to be a dog that can get dirty.”

Angela laughed and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm. “Maybe instead of us choosing the dog, we’ll let it choose us,” she said.

“I want a puppy,” Annie said, “but Mama won’t let me have one.”

“Oh?” Angela’s eyes met Tanya’s.

“I’m sure Angela will let you play with her puppy all you want,” Tanya said. She stroked the top of Annie’s head. As a baby, Annie had been practically bald; Stuart had made fun of the little hair bands and ribbons Tanya had insisted the baby wear. Even then, strangers had sometimes mistaken her for a boy. No chance of that now—pink was Annie’s favorite color, and she never met a ruffle she didn’t like.

“All you people lingering on the outside of the booth, come in here and see what you’re missing.” A woman’s voice on the PA startled them. Tanya looked over and saw a petite woman with a cap of platinum hair waving at them.

“Casey, are you trying to embarrass us into adopting a pet?” Angela called.

“Hey, whatever works.” Casey Overbridge held up a ball of brown fluff. “These guys need homes.”

“Ohh! Let me hold it!” Annie ran forward, and by the time Tanya and the others had followed her into the booth, she had two puppies snuggled under her chin.

Tanya watched in dismay, anticipating the meltdown that was almost guaranteed when she tried to separate the pups from her daughter. Just then, something wet and icy cold touched her hand. She flinched, and looked to see a large, shaggy white dog grinning up at her.

“That’s Marshmallow,” Casey said. “The pups’ mom. She’s up for adoption, too.”

“Oh, Bryan!” Angela dropped to her knees beside the white mutt. “Isn’t she sweet?”

“She’s certainly big.” Bryan patted the dog’s side. “What kind is she?”

“Maybe part sheepdog or Great Pyrenees?” Casey shrugged. “All mutt. But very sweet. She’s only two and very healthy.”

“Marshmallow would be a good name for a candy-shop dog,” Angela said.

“I thought you wanted something small.” Bryan eyed the animal skeptically.

“But you wanted something big. You could take her hiking.”

“She’s white. And all that curly hair…”

“White dogs clean up great. And I’ll bet she loves the snow…”

Tanya drifted away from the debate to the other side of the pen, where Annie now sat with four puppies squirming around her. Tanya thought of her mother’s prized Persian rug, and of the dark green ultrasuede sofa. How would they look with a nice coating of dog hair—or worse? Her parents’ old dog, Misty, spent most of her days lying in the sun on a dog bed at the foot of the stairs. The old girl wouldn’t appreciate an annoying young interloper interrupting her naps.

“I didn’t know you were thinking of adopting a dog.” Austin Davies, a member of the Mountain Theatre Group, joined Tanya at the edge of the booth.

“Hello, Austin. I’m not.”

“Are you sure? I’d say your little girl definitely has her heart set on a dog.”

One of the puppies was enthusiastically licking Annie’s cheek with a little pink tongue while the girl giggled with glee. Tanya watched the exchange with a sinking feeling. Once more she’d get to play the heavy, with no partner to back her up. Then again, if she had a nickel for every time she’d cursed Stuart for his neglect of her and his daughter, she’d be able to afford a pricey home and all the dogs Annie wanted.

Tanya sighed and stepped over the low barrier into the pen with the puppies and Annie. “It’s time to go, Annie,” she said.

“Mommy, can’t we take him home, please?” Annie clutched a brown-and-white ball of fluff to her chest and gave her mother a beseeching look.

Annie knelt until she was eye level with her daughter. “It’s a beautiful puppy,” she said. “In fact, it’s so cute I know someone will adopt him and give him a wonderful home. But we can’t do that. It wouldn’t be fair to Misty or to Grandma and Grandpa.”

Tears welled in Annie’s blue eyes. “I don’t want someone else to adopt it,” she said. “It loves me!” The last word rose in a wail. Heads turned and Tanya felt her cheeks heat, even as she struggled to remain calm.

“Sweetheart, I promise as soon as we move to our own place—somewhere that allows dogs—we’ll adopt a puppy.”

“But I want this puppy—now!”

Feeling lower than a snake, Tanya managed to pry the squirming dog from her daughter’s death grip and deposit it back with its brothers and sisters. Annie’s protest rose above the noise of the rock band warming up next door and silenced all conversation around them. “Mommy, why do you always have to be so mean!” the little girl wailed.

“Annie, that is enough. I told you we couldn’t have a dog and that’s all there is to it.”

“You never let me have anything I want!” With surprising strength for such a petite child, Annie jerked from Tanya’s arms and vaulted over the low barrier that separated the pen from the crowds.

“Annie, wait!” Tanya cried. “Come back here.”

But the little girl had already disappeared into the milling crowd.

SATURDAY MORNING, Jack dropped Nugget off at the office, then headed into downtown Crested Butte and the Humane Society Festival. The young dog was still skittish in crowds, but Jack felt he needed to make an appearance at the fund-raiser before he set to work on the bid for the condo project. He’d make sure his crew had done a good job on the Humane Society booth, and later he’d point out to his dad that he hadn’t spent the entire weekend working.

The festival activities filled the parking lot of the Chamber of Commerce and continued down the streets on either side. Tourists mingled with locals among booths sponsored by local businesses, individual craftspeople and community groups. A stage had been set up for the entertainment that was scheduled throughout the day.

Jack maneuvered around a clown on stilts, a face painter and a woman leading a llama, working his way toward the large booth Crenshaw Construction had built to house the Humane Society volunteers and some of the animals available for adoption.

“Jack, my man, you’re just the dude I’m looking for.”

A lanky figure with blond dreadlocks brought Jack up short. A glittering electric guitar hung from a strap around the man’s neck. “Zephyr!” Jack shook the hand of the local rocker, talk-show host and all-around Crested Butte character. “Are you performing for the benefit?”

“We’re supposed to go on in fifteen minutes, but whoever put together the stage didn’t leave enough room for all our equipment.” Zephyr frowned at Jack. “Dude, tell me you weren’t responsible.”

“I didn’t build the stage,” Jack said. “What can I do to help?”

“Bryan and I borrowed a flatbed trailer from Max and maneuvered it up next to the stage,” Zephyr said. “We found some old boards to form a bridge to connect the two areas, but we need someone who’s better at construction than we are to put the thing together.”

“Do you have any tools?” Jack asked.

“Yeah. I’ve been enclosing part of my girlfriend’s back porch, so I hauled everything over from there.”

Jack followed Zephyr through the crowd where he found Bryan Perry and Max Overbridge, who owned a snowboard and bicycle shop, wrestling with a collection of plywood and two-by-fours. “I brought an expert to help us out,” Zephyr said.

Jack surveyed the mess in front of him. “Do you have a saw?” he asked.

“Sure.” Zephyr produced a rusting handsaw.

“What about a drill?” Jack asked.

“I’ve got that.” Max held up a small cordless one.

“What do you need us to do?” Bryan asked.

“Hold on, guys,” Jack said. “I’ve got some better tools in my truck. I’ll be right back.”

So much for taking the morning off. He started toward the lot where he’d left his truck, but hadn’t gone far before a blur of pink and yellow shot from the crowd and collided with his legs.

“Whoa there. Are you okay?” He looked down at the little girl who sat in a heap at his feet. She wore her bright blond hair in pigtails, and her pink short overalls had a row of dancing kittens across the chest.

She turned tear-filled eyes up to him. “My mommy won’t let me have a puppy and it’s not fair!” she wailed.

Jack looked around for some sign of a wayward mom, but saw nothing but a few strangers who looked at the girl with sympathy—and at Jack as if he was responsible for her tears. He dropped to one knee and awkwardly patted her shoulder. “Don’t cry,” he said. “Who is your mommy?”

“She’s the meanest mommy in the whole world!”

“I don’t believe it,” Jack said. The little girl had obviously been dressed with care, and she looked clean and healthy.

She snuffled and glared at him. “She is, too, the meanest,” she said. “She knows how much I want a puppy and she won’t let me have one.”

“Maybe she has a good reason,” Jack said. “Maybe where you live doesn’t allow dogs.”

“We live with my grandma and grandpa and they already have a dog.” The little girl stuck out her lower lip. “But Misty’s old. I want a puppy.”

“Then maybe your grandma and grandpa don’t want another dog. Sometimes we have to take other people’s feelings into consideration.”

“My grandma and grandpa love me. They let me have anything I want. If they knew I wanted a puppy they’d let me have one.”

Jack felt a stab of sympathy for the unknown mother who had to deal with this kind of childhood logic. “I’m sure your mother loves you, too,” he said. Though where was her mother now? “What’s your name?” he added.

“Annie. What’s your name?”

“I’m Jack. Jack Crenshaw.” Should he insist she call him Mr. Crenshaw? The idea made him feel old. He stood and offered Annie his hand. “Why don’t we go find your mother now?”

“Will you ask her if I can have a puppy?”

“I think you need to listen to your mother. If she tells you you can’t have a puppy, maybe you need to wait.”

Annie stuck out her lower lip, and Jack sensed tears threatening. “I tell you what,” he said. “I have a young dog. Maybe your mom would let you visit and play with it.” He crossed his fingers that this would be all right with Mom. He could always ask his secretary to supervise a brief playdate in the meadow behind his office. Nugget would love it.

“Anne Marie Olney! What do you think you’re doing?”

Jack looked up and caught his breath at the sight of Tanya striding toward him. Her long hair billowing around her, her cheeks flushed and eyes sparkling with anger, she resembled a painting he’d once seen of one of the Furies, or some other avenging goddess. With a jolt he realized the girl he’d always thought of as pretty had grown into a very beautiful woman.

“Hello, Tanya,” he said, keeping his expression even, revealing none of the inner turmoil the sight of her caused.

“What are you doing with my little girl?” Her voice was even, but her eyes were fixed on his hand holding Annie’s.

He let go of the child, guilt heating his face, though he knew he’d done nothing wrong. “I found her wandering in the crowd.” He looked down at Annie. Her tears had dried, but if looks could kill, Tanya would be seriously wounded right now. “She seems upset.”

The guilt card was in Tanya’s hand now. “She wants a p-u-p-p-y,” she said. “That’s really not possible right now.”

“Mom, you’re spelling!” Annie protested. “I’m not a baby. I know you’re talking about the puppy.”

Tanya knelt in front of her daughter. She smoothed back Annie’s hair, then took a tissue from her purse and began cleaning her face. She moved with all the efficiency of an experienced mother, but also with great tenderness. That gentleness, combined with the way her jeans stretched across her shapely thighs and the wavy fall of her hair across her shoulders, made Jack feel a little unsteady. The stuck-up city woman he’d written off last night had morphed into this embodiment of everything feminine—sensuous and nurturing and amazingly alluring.

“It’s really not fair that you can’t have a puppy.” Tanya spoke to her daughter in a low, reassuring tone. “It’s not fair that you had to leave California and move here and live with your grandparents, either, but that’s how things are right now.”

Annie sniffed. “I don’t mind living here with Grandma and Granddaddy. I like it here.”

“They love having you live with them. They love you very much. We all do. And one day, I promise you we’ll have a dog. But not right now.” She turned to Jack.

“Thanks for finding her. I didn’t mean to snap at you just now—I was a little upset when she ran away and I lost sight of her in the crowd.”

“I understand.” He admired the way she’d handled a tough situation, but hesitated to say so. He didn’t want her to think he was trying to flatter his way back into her life. Not that she’d welcome him anyway. After all, he’d had the audacity to make something of himself by building the condos she so despised.

A voice over the loudspeaker saved him from having to say anything. “Ladies and gentlemen, let’s have a big round of applause for local favorites, Moose Juice.”

Zephyr, who’d donned a rhinestone-studded leather jacket over his ripped jeans and T-shirt, strode to center stage and strummed a rapid-fire series of loud guitar chords. “Here’s a new song I wrote in honor of the Humane Society fund-raiser—‘I’m stayin’ home with my dog because he thinks I’m a better person than you do.’”

Bryan spotted Jack standing with Tanya and joined them. “I thought you were going to get some tools to help us,” he said.