I stare at Paisley without comprehending what she’s talking about long enough that she wrinkles her nose. “Your ex-wife?”
Huh.
Once again, no hurt there. “I forgot she existed.”
Addie peers at me.
We haven’t talked much about Lena.
Basicallyat all.
I know Addie knows I’m divorced, but that’s about it.
“She left me to pursue a career in modeling, and it wrecked me, and then I moved on.” I shrug. “That was…twelve years ago? Fifteen? What year is it again?”
“It was twelve years ago,” Paisley says. “I remember because he hit on my Grade 1 teacher right after it happened, and Mom kept sayingyour uncle’s heart is hurting and he’s trying to make it better with Ms. Allen’s Band-Aids.”
Addie coughs. “That must’ve been an interesting thing to experience at five.”
“I repeated it in fourth grade when our teacher went through a divorce, and someone explained it to me in middle school terms.”
“Did you really forget your ex-wife exists?” Addie asks me.
“No, but it quit hurting.”
“Just like that?”
“No. I owe my therapist flowers.”
“Therapy only works as hard as you do.” Paisley slides off her stool. “I have to get to class.”
Addie glances at her phone. “Ballpark time for me too.” She switches her attention to me. “What are you doing today?”
“As little as possible.”
She smiles. “Let me know if you want a ticket to the game. Should be gorgeous today.”
I walk both of them out to their cars. Paisley gets a hug and an order to study good.
Addie gets a kiss after Paisley’s left. And I’m well aware that my niece left early to give me a chance to kiss my girlfriend without witnesses. Or so she wouldn’t have to see it.
Addie lingers outside her car, something clearly on her mind.
“What’s up?” I ask her.
“Would you…forget me if this doesn’t work out?” she asks.
“If this doesn’t work out, I’m never dating again.”
She rolls her eyes, a half smile teasing her lips. “Mm-hmm.”
I loop my arms around her waist and settle my hands on her ass. “I spent years looking for someone to replace Lena, and I found plenty of options. And then I met you, and I fucked up, and I spent four more years looking for someone, but this time, I was looking for someone who could measure up to you. Not someone to replace you. And no one measures up to you.”
She blinks, then sucks in a shaky breath. Her pulse flutters in the hollow of her neck.
“Oh,” she whispers softly.
“You excite me. You challenge me. You comfort me. You get me. And you make me want to do bigger and better things, while helping me see that sometimes the bigger and the better things are the little things.” I nuzzle her ear. “And you’re sexy as hell.”
