I move to follow them, but Nash links his fingers through mine, keeping time with me. We step out into the heat of the night. Dallas, Amalie’s husband, is parked at the curb, the two of them leaning in the back, checking on the twins.
So many babies…I’m distracted, fighting the nausea that makes bile creep up my throat when Nash’s words pull me out of it. “Can I take you somewhere?”
“Why?” My brow scrunches in confusion.
He tucks a piece of hair behind my ear, running his thumb over my cheek. “Because I have to prove to you I meant what I said.”
Dammit,if my heart didn’t just skip a beat.
Chapter 19
Betty
My palms sweat as I stare up into Nash’s blue eyes. I know I should say no. I should walk away because this only ends one way. This ends with me in tears and heartbroken all over again.
How many times will I let the same cycle repeat itself?
Yet, there’s an emotion I’ve never seen before alive in those swirls of blue. They seem to open like the depths of the ocean, allowing me to peer into the depths of his soul. It’s unnerving, but draws me in.
Nash has been in my life since I was a kid. He’s steady, quiet most times, but has always been kind. He has always been respectful and would go out of his way to help another person. That’s the version I’m in love with—the man I knew growing up. Sure, I’m aware of the life he started in Montana. He found love once, the way I thought I had. It’s the surface-level parts of him I know in the present, but with the way he’s looking at me now, it’sas if I can see all the nitty-gritty pieces that linger beneath. The things he reserves for the people he loves most.
It’s that look that leaves my fingers trembling as I place my hand in his waiting palm.
The moment our skin touches, his smile lights up the night. The one he used to wear as we laughed around the table for Sunday night dinners. Every tooth is on display as the corners of his eyes crinkle.
“Where’s your truck?” He pointedly checks up and down the sidewalk as if it will miraculously appear.
“The lot down there.” His eyes track where I point before linking our fingers and leading the way.
We don’t say a word. Still, the silence between us is comfortable. I wonder what he’s thinking. Is he as nervous as I am about whatever we’re going to do? His focus seems to shift between the street on his left and somewhere past me on the right.
The liquor warms my belly, contributing to the electrical sparks with every brush of Nash’s thumb over my knuckles. It provides comfort I easily melt into, as if he only wants to remind me he’s here. We’re connected.
“Keys?”
Digging in my purse, I hear them jingle but can’t seem to find them amongst all the crap I carry around with me.
“One sec,” I huff out a breath.
“Baby, you need to have your keys out before you get to your truck. You’ll be safer that way.” I want to roll my eyes at his overprotective nonsense. I’ve worked in a bar for years, and I can handle myself. Cole County isn’t some crime-ridden place where it’s not safe for a woman to be out at night alone.
Releasing his hand, I keep digging, only to pause. “Did you call me, baby?” My gaze shifts up to meet his, that grin once again stretching wide.
“I did. Problem?”
It’s as if my brain short-circuits. Heat creeps up my cheeks, and I have no idea how to respond to the pet name. Andromeda is one thing. That dates back to my childhood, but baby. That’s… My heart flutters in my chest as butterflies swarm my belly. It’s finally happening. Nash is for real this time.
“Um…” I’m still searching for words when my finger finally slips through the key ring, the solar system chain attached to it making Nash laugh.
“You still have this?”
“Of course,” I snap, offended he’s laughing about it. “Beckett gave that to me for my twelfth birthday.”
His fingers tuck that same chunk of loose hair behind my ear, grazing my cheek. I melt into his touch. This is all I’ve ever wanted: his kindness, his touch, his heart. “I remember. I was there. It was a Sunday dinner, and you insisted on keeping it on the table, flashing it no less than fifty times.”
“You remember that?” I breathe, semi-stunned that he would recall such a meaningless event for himself as he ushers me into my passenger seat. Warm breath fans over my face as Nash leans in close, his mouth hovering over mine. The scent of his cologne wafts up my nostrils as his eyes shift down to my mouth and back up to meet my stare. Just a fraction of an inch, and his mouth would be on mine.
Every breath is labored as I wait and wait and wait. “Betty, it may have taken me a minute to notice the woman in front of me, but you were my family growing up. Nothing means more to me than family. Never forget that.”
