“I had no doubt she would.”
The thought of Hayden getting to know Keisha stirs something inside me. Keisha and Keegan’s story isn’t pretty. I’ve been able to crack Keegan open, but Keisha is a girl, and there are boundaries I can’t cross with her. Hayden must have gotten her to open up quickly. She was an orphan herself, so maybe she relied on her past experiences to relate to Keisha in a way most people couldn’t.
For the first time I wonder what Hayden went through as an orphan. Was it anything like some of these kids’ stories? If so, Hayden must carry burdens I can’t imagine. And she carries it all with a smile while illuminating every room she walks into.
Whereas I carry my trauma like an ostrich with its head stuck in the sand.
Respect for Hayden swells, and I find myself thankful she’s the woman by my side. That she’s here with me today.
It’s nice to share this, even if I was originally upset by Ren’s blindside attack of bringing her here without telling me.
We arrive at the paintball arena I’d previously booked for the afternoon, and the kids immediately gather into their teams to start planning tactics. Ren is already showing his team the best hiding spots.
“Can I be on your team?” Keisha asks. I glance at Hayden who is standing behind her, and she nods her head. The soft smile she wears says everything I need to know: Keisha really did confide in her.
“Of course.” I smile at Keisha, and she punches my arm.
“Great. I want to nail Keegan with a paintball.”
“I’m off to keep Ren in check,” Hayden shouts with a wave as she turns to join the other team. Another wave of respect hits me, and then guilt. I’ve been so cold and standoffish to her. Forcing her to take inititive with me in the public eye out of fear I’ll make the wrong move when it comes to physical contact. When I do attempt something, it usually goes awry and makes pop culture headlines. And really, it’s not on purpose. I just don’t know how I’m supposed to act with human beings on a personal level. I prefer the business-level.
Hayden is always cheerful to those around her, attracting everyone into her orbit, and I’m always so… awkward. Tense. Unsure. Maybe I’m a little jealous of her joy and her ability to befriend a fly? Of the confident way she carries herself?
How can I be charismatic and confident when it comes to my business or running for office, but when it comes to personal relationships outside of Ren and my mother, I’m a bag of nerves and what-if questions?
“Mr. Marshall! Ren is making battle plans with them. Help us!” One of the younger kids tugs on my shirt. Putting a pin in my thoughts, I gather my—Cynthia’s—team and help coordinate strategy.
After the tactics have been drawn and we have all sat through the safety lesson and rules, we find our previously scouted spots within the arena and wait for the start signal.
I’m tucked in an alcove with my rifle at the ready through a small opening when someone taps me on the shoulder from behind. I turn my head to find Hayden smirking with her rifle pointed at me. She’s in all-black gear with her hair tied in a bun, and I’d be lying if I said she didn’t look like she belonged as the leading woman in a superhero film.
“You ready to be taken down the moment the start signal blares?”
Slowly drawing my rifle from the window opening, I say, “You’d really take the fun away from the kids? I’m sure they want to be the ones to bring me down.”
“Oh, but that’s where you’re wrong, Darcy. Part of our strategy is for me to take you down in the beginning.” Hayden winks. I point my rifle at her.
“Game point.”
“Only if your finger is faster than mine.” She cocks her head. “I can’t believe I’m playing paintball with you right now. Who is this version of you? Where have you kept him hidden? Also, you should wear jeans more often. You look good in casual clothes. And in all-black tactical gear. Swooooon.”
Did she just compliment my appearance? She compliments my work all the time, but my physical appearance? Heat creeps up my neck.Who am I, indeed?
She doesn’t let up. “I mean, really, Darcy. You look dangerous right now. You could be the morally gray hero in a romance novel. The type of man who is grumpy and cold and ruthless.” She crouches, the tip of her rifle at my chest. “The kind of man who would bring a city to ruins to save the woman he loves. Who would—” she pauses, leaning in closer from her crouched position so that our noses are inches from touching, “get on his knees in front of his woman.”
I’m fully aware of the dirt beneath my knees as I kneel in front her. Hayden’s words spin around in my head, and the look she’s giving me? It’s as if she wants to be the woman I’d destroy a city for. Her gaze unabashedly falls from my eyes to my chest, where the barrel of the paintball gun rests, down to my knees, and back to my eyes, a smirk playing on her lips.
My body is aflame, and…
I don’t want it put out.
Be bold, Darcy. Take a risk. She’s your wife.
I lean in.
A blaring horn goes off, and Hayden grins before pulling the trigger.
Click.
