Mulberry Park by JUDY DUARTE

“I brought lunch. As you can see, there’s plenty. Would you like to join us?”
    A smile sparked her green eyes and dimpled her cheeks. “Thanks for the offer, but I have some errands to run—clothes to pick up at the dry cleaner, some weekly grocery shopping to do.”
    “Have you eaten?” he asked.
    “No.”
    Maybe he ought to insist she at least take something with her. She was thinner than she’d been during the civil trial, but he doubted that was because she’d gone on a diet. Instead he imagined that she’d thrown herself into her work and had skipped meals because there was no one around to encourage her to eat.
    The weight loss hadn’t looked bad on her, though. She was still an attractive woman.
    Sam glanced down at the sandwiches wrapped in white butcher paper, at the brightly colored bags of different chips, at the plastic containers of fresh fruit. Then he shrugged a single shoulder and tossed her a playful grin. “I was hungry when I placed the order, and I forgot Analisa couldn’t eat as much as some of the attorneys in the firm. There’s going to be a ton left over. You’d be helping me out by joining us. Most of it will probably go to waste.”
    She seemed to ponder the offer, but just for a moment. “All right. Thanks.”
    With her sable brown hair swept into a neat twist and a calm demeanor, she appeared to be a woman in control, although he suspected that wasn’t the case. Something told him that the pain still lingered and that her life hadn’t returned to normal.
    He wondered whether it ever would.
    It was too bad that her husband had divorced her, leaving her to grieve alone. Couldn’t Ron Harper see what Sam could? The loss of her son, first, and then her husband had obviously taken a toll on her.
    Her scent was soft and feminine, and he felt compelled to compliment her on it, to mention that he liked the way the sun highlighted strands of gold in her hair. To tell her she looked especially nice today.
    Instead, he kept quiet.
    If he’d met Claire Harper in a bar, he’d know just what to do, what to say. But this woman who was also a client had him feeling like a freshman geek with a crush on the prom queen.
    And Sam, who’d actually kissed the high school prom queen when he’d been in the ninth grade, had never been the least bit self-conscious around women or clients in his entire life.
    So now what?
    Sam the Geek was in uncharted water.

Chapter 7
    I t had been ages since Claire had taken part in a family picnic. Ages since she’d wanted to.
    As she stood awkwardly beside the fiberglass table, Sam removed the sandwiches, chips, and fruit from his box. In a way, she wished she’d declined his invitation for lunch. In another, it seemed as though it might be time to venture into the world again.
    Hilda, who’d gone to retrieve Analisa and take her to the restroom to wash up, returned with the child, whose pastel-colored butterfly barrettes held back the sides of her blond hair.
    Yet it was more than Analisa’s outward appearance that gripped Claire’s heart, it was her sweet spirit, her innocent faith.
    “Analisa,” Sam said, “I’m not sure if you know Mrs. Harper or not. She’s a friend and a client of mine.”
    Claire smiled, thinking the word “friend” was pushing it a bit, yet the idea touched her in an unexpected way. “I’ve seen you playing, Analisa. It’s nice to finally meet you.”
    The child, who held a dark-haired doll in her arm, wore a pair of pink shorts, a white eyelet blouse, and a sweet smile. “I saw you before. You were sitting by Mr. Klinefelter. Are you his friend, too?”
    During the past three years, Claire had burrowed into an emotional fetal position, letting several friendships wither from neglect. She’d known it was wrong, but at the time, she hadn’t had the energy to do anything about it.
    Perhaps she still didn’t.
    Vickie had called again yesterday, leaving a message on Claire’s answering machine. “Just checking in,”