“How often do you work remotely?” Asking that question made him realize just how much he still didn’t know about her routines.
“Not often. Maybe once or twice a month. Since you stayed the night, I thought it would be nice to spend more time with you.”
“I like the way you think. Though it’s early as hell, I can think of a few things we can do before you clock in to work.”
Cree chuckled. “I’m sure you can, but you’re going to have to wait until I finish at least one cup of coffee.”
“I really enjoyed hanging out with your family yesterday.”
Shortly before they’d left, her sister Dorian and her fiancé, as well as Zion’s wife and twins arrived. The cottage wasn’t very big. They all were practically on top of each other. Still, he had a good time. Her father had mentioned that they needed to find a bigger place, but he was having a hard time convincing Mrs. Priestly. She thought it more convenient to live behind the B & B, and since they both worked there daily, Mr. Priestly hadn’t pushed.
Tristan immediately thought that, if he and Cree got a place together, they could get one big enough to have both families over at the same time. He could already envision him having a man-cave for him and the guys to watch football on Sundays.
“I saw you with your niece and nephew yesterday,” he said. “You’re a natural with the babies, and it’s clear they adore you.”
“Aren’t they the cutest?” Cree gushed. “They are the happiest, easy-going babies I’ve ever met. Rarely do they cry, and they’ll let anyone hold them. But I’m curious to see if they’re going to turn into little terrors when they start walking. That’s how Zion was when he was little.”
Tristan smiled at how animated Cree was as she told him more about the babies and how they reminded her of her brother when he was little. Though she didn’t spend as much time with the twins as she’d like, it was clear she enjoyed them whenever they did get together. She explained how excited everyone was to have little ones around again because there hadn’t been any babies since her nephew, Tray, was little, and now he was in college.
“You used to want children,” Tristan said. “Is that still the case?”
Tristan felt her stiffen beside him, and he glanced at her. Her gaze was on the windows across the room, where the blinds were still closed, and she folded her lower lip between her teeth.
When she didn’t respond, Tristan bumped her shoulder with his. “Cree? What’s up?”
She stared down at the half-full mug in her hand and breathed in deeply, then released the breath slowly. Unease clawed through Tristan. What was on her mind? Did she not want children anymore? And how would he feel if she said no? It wouldn’t be a deal breaker, but he would definitely be disappointed. He wanted kids, and he wanted them with her.
“Yes, I’d love to have a couple of children,” she finally said, her voice low and raspy before she cleared her throat.
Why did he feel a but coming? She still wouldn’t look at him and that unease he had felt a few minutes ago was back but stronger.
“Talk to me,” he said and set his coffee down, then removed her mug from her hands again and set it on the side table. He turned to better look at her. “What’s wrong? Clearly something is bothering you. If you’re wondering if I want kids, I do, but only if I have them with you.”
“God, Tristan,” she said, the words sounding as if they were ripped from her. “I hate when you say sweet things like that.”
He could hear the tears in her voice, and now he was really concerned.
Wrapping his arm around her, he pulled her against him. “What is it? If you can’t have children, that’s okay, we’ll figure something out. Just tell me what’s wrong.”
“I don’t know how to tell you,” she said barely above a whisper and then pulled out of his hold.
“Oh no you don’t.” He grabbed hold of her hand when she started to climb off the bed. “No more running, Cree. Remember, we’re in this together. You and me. So whatever is going on, we’ll deal with it together, but you need to talk to me. I can’t fix it if I don’t know what I’m dealing with.”
“Even if you know, there’s nothing you can do to fix it!” she snapped, her chest heaving as if she had just finished running a few blocks.
Still, Tristan didn’t let go of her, but that unease from before was turning into fear.
Whatever was wrong was bad. Really bad if her watery eyes were any indication. Cree shedding tears twice in twenty-four hours wasn’t good. Except for the day they’d gone their separate ways, he had never seen her cry until yesterday.
When she tugged her hand, trying to get out of his hold, this time Tristan let her go. She didn’t go far. She sat on the edge of the bed quietly with her back to him.
One thing Tristan had learned early on when dealing with Cree was that she didn’t share her feelings until she was ready to. While she sat there, he got up and slipped into his underwear. Grabbing his duffel bag from the chair, he went into the bathroom to shower.
He’d give her time to decide whether she planned to talk to him. While also bracing himself for whatever she might share. He just hoped that, whatever it was, they could get past it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The moment Tristan disappeared into the bathroom, Cree released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She shouldn’t have opened her big mouth. It wasn’t necessary for her to share a secret she had planned to take to her grave, but there was a part of her that couldn’t lie to Tristan. Not even by omission.
