LITMIR.BIZ

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seen Garrett and secured her new job. Still, she was feeling the aftereffects of having been in his company.

      And now she needed to go home and decompress. These days, she lived in a guesthouse on Tanner’s property, a far cry—thank goodness—from the correctional institution.

      She climbed into her car and pulled out of the parking lot. Once she got on the main road, the traffic was heavy, the sights and sounds quick and noisy. Meagan had grown up in LA, but, since she’d gotten out of prison, she felt like a tourist, gawking at the city that surrounded her. Being free was a strange and wondrous feeling. But it was confusing, too. Everything felt different, somehow.

      When she arrived at her destination, she parked in front of the main house, a bungalow built in the 1930s, where her brother and Candy resided. With its stucco exterior, brick chimney and stone walkway, it had tons of curb appeal.

      Meagan’s place, a guesthouse in the back, was just as charming. She even had her own little courtyard that included a patch of grass, a smattering of flowers and a fountain with a naked putto, a Cupid of sorts, who appeared to be peeing in the water. Most people would call it a cherub, but she knew the difference. Cherubs were angels, hailing from heaven, and putti were mythical beings who misbehaved. In that respect, Meagan could relate.

      She noticed that Candy’s car was missing from the driveway, which meant she was still out and about. She’d taken Ivy grocery shopping with her this afternoon. Tanner was at work and wouldn’t be home until later.

      For now, Meagan was all alone. She took the side entrance to her house and opened the gate.

      She unlocked the front door, went inside and placed her purse on the kitchen table. Next she wandered into Ivy’s room. It was fully furnished and decorated in a fairy-tale theme, but Ivy wasn’t occupying it yet. Although Ivy had gotten to know Meagan from the prison visits, she’d thrown a panicked fit when they’d tried to move her in with Meagan. Bedtime was the worst. Her daughter absolutely refused to sleep there. So, for the time being, Ivy was still living with Tanner and Candy.

      It made Meagan feel like a failure as a mother. But she needed to be patient and give her child time to adjust. It had only been a week.

      Meagan went into her own room and heaved a sigh. She sat on the edge of the bed and pulled off her boots.

      Barefoot, she returned to the kitchen and checked the microwave clock. To keep herself busy, she brewed a cup of herbal tea and sat in the courtyard. The water from the fountain flowed from tier to tier, making rain-like sounds.

      After a short while, she heard a car pull into the driveway. Meagan hopped up and headed over to it.

      Candy was just getting out of the driver’s side, looking as gorgeous as ever. She was a long, leggy brunette, a former beauty queen and model who’d become a yoga teacher. She and Tanner used to date when they were teenagers. At the time Meagan was only eight, but she’d adored Candy, impressed that her brother was seeing someone so sweet and pretty.

      Then, after their baby sister died and their parents started going through the divorce, Tanner couldn’t handle having a girlfriend anymore, so he’d broken up with Candy.

      Now all these years later, they were back together and engaged to be married. Who knew it would turn out this way? Meagan certainly hadn’t seen it coming, especially the part where she ended up in prison while the couple helped raise her child.

      Candy walked around to the passenger’s side of the vehicle and removed Ivy from the safety seat. Meagan had one in the backseat of her car, too. Tanner had bought two of them, so they didn’t have to switch the same one out all the time.

      Ivy was dressed in a bright red romper with her silky brown hair fastened into fancy pigtails sitting high atop her head, twisted and parted in clever ways. Meagan didn’t have a clue how to fix her baby’s hair like that. It was all Candy’s doing.

      Ivy glanced over and grinned, waving at Meagan. She wanted to melt on the spot. She waved back, excited by the acknowledgment. Her daughter was the most precious person on earth.

      Candy turned and saw Meagan, and they exchanged a smile. Then Candy asked, “How’d the job meeting go?”

      “Good. I’ll fill you in later, when we’re able to sit and talk.” Meagan came forward and reached for Ivy. “I can take her now.”

      “Sure.” Candy passed the toddler off. “I’ll get the groceries.”

      “I can help with those, too.” Meagan balanced her daughter on her hip, took one of the bags and headed for the back door of the main house.

      Once they were inside, she set Ivy down and Candy’s dog, a yellow Labrador named Yogi, came into the room.

      “Yoey!” Ivy raced toward her canine friend. “See, Mommy? Yoey?”

      “Yes, sweetheart, I see her.” She loved hearing her daughter mispronounce the dog’s name, but she loved hearing her say “Mommy” even more. Ivy had been taught from the beginning who Meagan was. She was too young to grasp it completely, but she liked looking at pictures of animals with their offspring. She knew there were all types of mommies. And daddies, too. That much, she understood.

      “Where Tanny?” Ivy asked, using the name she’d learned for Tanner. For Candy, she used Canny.

      “Your uncle is at work,” Meagan replied.

      “Horsey,” the child confirmed.

      Meagan nodded. “Yes, he works with horses.” Tanner owned a riding academy and stables near Griffith Park. He also leased horses to the movie industry. He rode Western and English styles, and Ivy was fascinated with his job.

      “I work with horses now, too,” Meagan said.

      Ivy cocked her head. “Mommy horsey?”

      “I’ll be taking care of them.” At the resort owned by one of the men she’d embezzled from, she thought. But that wasn’t something she could tell her daughter. Ivy didn’t know that the place where she used to visit Meagan was a prison, and even if she did, it wouldn’t have meant anything to her. Someday it would, though. Once Ivy got older, it would be a discussion they were destined to have.

      After the groceries were put away, Candy gave Ivy a sippy cup with milk in it, and the child sat on the floor with Yogi, drinking her beverage and pretending to do yoga. Or maybe she was actually doing it for real, to the best of her ability. The dog got into some poses with her.

      Besides regular yoga, Candy also taught doga, yoga for dogs, where the animals exercised with their owners, and Yogi knew her stuff.

      Meagan watched her daughter, smiling as Ivy concentrated on her task. She was proud of her little girl but intimidated by how strong Candy’s influence was on her. Ivy mirrored the other woman’s mannerisms, not Meagan’s.

      Then again, did she really want Ivy to emulate her? Meagan was still working on becoming the kind of person who would make her daughter proud, and Candy was already an elegant role model. Even as casually as she was dressed, in leggings and an oversized T-shirt, she exhibited grace and style. As a child, Meagan had wanted to grow up to be just like her. Boy, had she missed the mark on that one.

      Candy removed a pitcher of lemonade from the fridge. “Want some?”

      Meagan nodded. “Sure. Thanks.” There was a lemon tree on the property, so it was fresh-squeezed juice.

      Candy poured two frosty glasses. Meagan accepted hers, and they sat in the living room, where Ivy and Yogi played.

      “You can fill me in now,” Candy said.

      “Yes, of course. It turned out fine, but I was super nervous seeing Garrett again. He admitted that it wasn’t his idea to hire me. His mother convinced him to give me a chance.”

      “Really?” Candy angled her head. “She must be a nice lady.”

      “I’ve never met her. I got a glimpse of her at the sentencing, though. He said that

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