Teacup Novellas 02 - Strike the Match by Diane Moody Page B

sparked through her. Images of her father on a gurney. A monitor beeping in a hospital room. Friends gathered in a cemetery. She swallowed hard, fighting off the unbidden fears.
    “Don’t tease. It’s nothing to joke about.” She took hold of his hand, leaning her cheek into his open palm. “You’re my only dad. I don’t want to lose you.”
    He stroked her hair. “I’m not going anywhere, pumpkin. I’ll always be here for you.”
    A tear broke free, rolling down her cheek and into his hand. He tipped her chin, turning her face toward him. “That’s a promise, okay? So no tears.”
    She sniffed, then lunged into his arms. “I love you, Dad.”
    “Love you too, sweetheart.”
    She clung to him for several moments. She leaned back when he began to talk.
    “I’ve tried really hard, but I know I haven’t been the best father.”
    “Stop. I won’t listen to that kind of talk.”
    He pushed a curl from her face. “You’re so much like your mother in so many ways. Always looking out for everyone but yourself. Taking everyone else’s problems to heart.” He sighed. “I miss her so much, Keri. And I grieve every day of my life that you never had the chance to know her.”
    “I know her, Dad. From the pictures. From all the memories you’ve shared with me through the years. Things Uncle Rave used to tell me. And Aunt Nita. It’s not the same, but it’s all I’ve known. You’ve been the best father a girl could ever ask for. So lose the guilt. It doesn’t suit you.”
    “Is that so?” He squeezed her hand, his countenance growing serious again. “If we lose the business, how will we get you back to that fancy school of yours?”
    She pressed her palm against his cheek. “Stop. Don’t even think about that now. That will all work out. Eventually. There’s no law that says I have to graduate before I’m thirty. Forty, ye. But not thirty.”
    “Maybe not, but I don’t want to ruin your dreams any longer than I have to.”
    “You’re not ruining my dreams! So knock it off. It’s a delay. That’s all. Enough about school, okay?”
    He took a sip of his tea. “I’m just glad Grant could find some work for you. He’s a fine young man. You do a good job for him, okay?”
    “Yeah, yeah.”
    He tilted his head. “You could do worse, you know.”
    “What do you mean? A worse job?”
    “No, that’s not what I meant.”
    She pegged him with a scrutinized stare. “Don’t go there. One matchmaker in the family is enough. Don’t you dare give me double trouble. And for the record, it ain’t happening.”
    He didn’t answer, just smiled. A tired smile, but a smile nonetheless.
    Keri wiped the remaining tears from her face. “We’ll get through this, Dad. Don’t you worry about me. We’ll be okay.”
    “That’s my girl.”
    His cell phone rang as he mussed her hair. He checked the caller I.D. “I have no idea who this is.” He clicked to receive the call anyway. “This is Tyler McMillan.”
    He must have pressed speaker-phone. She could hear the anxious voice through the line. “Tyler, this is Grant Dawson. I tried to call Keri but it keeps going to voice mail.”
    She reached for her cell phone. Dead. She must have forgotten to charge it.
    “She’s right here—”
    “No, I don’t have time. Tyler, you and Keri need to get to the hospital. My dad’s been injured. There’s been another fire.”

 
     
    Chapter 9
     
    Keri and her father rushed through the emergency room doors. They stopped at the desk, asking where they could find Grant. The receptionist said she’d let him know they were here.
    “Tyler! Keri! I came as soon as I heard!” Nita rushed to their side, unwrapping the knitted scarf from her neck. “Is it true? Was Shep blown out of the building?”
    “What?” Keri gasped. “Where did you hear that? He was blown from a building?”
    “There you are,” Grant called out, approaching them. “Thanks for coming.”
    Nita grabbed him in a bear hug. “Oh honey,