“And if it doesn’t come back?” Lily asked. “If he’s one of the people who just never recover their memories from the missing time?”
Mae ran her hands down her shirt, forcing herself not to linger on her bloated belly under the loose fabric.
“Well, then I guess I’ll work on finding a way to forgive him. That’s the healthy thing to do. Maybe it’s a blessing that he doesn’t remember us breaking up. That he doesn’t remember the reason why. We get to start over.”
“Mae…” Sloane’s eyes gave away exactly how she was feeling.
“He’s the old Stone. The one who looked at me like I was his reason for breathing. The one who wanted to protect me from the rest of the world, not protect me from himself. I won’t apologize for wanting to hold onto that.”
“And you don’t have to. As long as you’re happy, then that’s what matters. I just don’t want to see you push aside your needs because you are trying to take care of Stone and following someone’s desires other than your own.”
“He danced with me, Sloane. The night we finally came home from the hospital. I could feel his heart beating in his chest and he just held me as we rocked back and forth in each other’s arms. I used to be a dancer… and he knows it’s one of my favorite things in the world.”
“How did I not know that?” Lacy asked.
“I hurt my knee in high school. Ended my dreams of dancing professionally. Still makes me emotional.”
“I keep trying to get her to teach! Addie would be over themoon if you started teaching at her ballet school.” Emma smiled.
“Yeah, but it’s been years since I even went through a warm up routine. Kitchen dances are my happy place now. And he knew that. It’s been months since we danced together. And it was the first thing he did when we walked in the door. There’s just this warm, budding hope in my heart and I don’t want to snuff it out because I’m scared. I want to give it a chance to grow.”
“I don’t blame you one bit,” Sloane smiled. “Hope is a beautiful thing.”
Heightened emotions were something Dr. Anderson had warned him about. That things could and would sometimes feel out of control. This must be one of those times. Because Stone could feel it in his bones. Something was being shared between his friends, and he was out of the loop.
It didn’t just feel like concern. It was something more. And he wanted to know. His elbows rested on the banister of the balcony, and his head moved down to fall into his hands. Shit. He needed to get a grip. They wouldn’t be leaving him out of something if it was important that they do it that way. He’d always trusted them before.Just take a deep breath and get a grip.
The door opened behind him, and over his shoulder, he saw Hawk step out next to the grill. He didn’t acknowledge Stone. Instead, he lifted the lid of the grill and moved some of the meat around, before shutting the lid and sliding down onto one of the Adirondack chairs Stone and Mae normally occupied.
“You ready to talk?” Stone asked.
“You ready to listen?” Hawk shot back.
“Yeah. Shoot.”
“That’s probably in poor taste,” he grimaced at Stone’s choice of words.
“Nah. I survived it. Better to laugh than be afraid of it.”
“Yeah. Just don’t let my sister catch you saying that shit. She won’t think it’s funny, and she’ll have you by the balls until you agree with her.”
“That’s what I love about her,” Stone admitted.
“So, you love her, huh?”
“Oh. We’re going to have this talk now. I better sit down for it.”
“Look man, when I found out… I was pissed.”
“I bet.”
“But not because of what you’re thinking.” Hawk turned to face him. “Why would you hide it from me? We’re best fucking friends. I love you. And I love my sister. She’s a grown ass woman, and she can decide who she wants to be with. She picked you. And that’s pretty awesome. Because I don’t have to worry that you’re some douche bag who’s going to take advantage of her. Right? You’re not going to break her heart?”
“Of course not.”
“And you’re not going to make me regret being excited about you two shacking up together?”
“No. Mae is it for me, Hawk. Endgame. Forever. I look at the future and she is right there, by my side through it all.”
