Katie was more than a little surprised.
Her mother pulled Hawk inside the house and immediately wrapped her arms around him.With Hawk not able to see her, she mouthed words at her mother.What the hell.She glared at her mother, without making a single sound.
Ana rolled her eyes.Trust me.
Her own parents were attempting to set her up.Rather than be angry at them, she kept a smile on her lips as Hawk turned toward her.
“These are for your parents,” Hawk said, pushing the flowers away from his body.
“They’re beautiful,” Ana said, taking them.“Let me go and put these in some water.”
“Hawk, my boy, you want to come and watch the game with me?”
Katie had never gotten into sports with her father, but he loved it all.
“Uh, yeah, sure.”Hawk looked toward her.
“Katie will show you to the sitting room in a moment.I’ll let you get caught up.”
And just like that, she and Hawk were alone.“You never told me you were invited,” she said.
“It happened last night.There was no time to talk to you, and I don’t have your cell phone number, and it seemed really rude to ignore, you know?”
Her parents had cornered him.
“It’s okay that I’m here, right?If you would like me to come up with some excuse, I can do that, and you won’t have to see me.”
“No, no, it’s fine.”She smiled at him.“It’s good to see you.”
“It’s good to see you too.”
“I better take you to my dad,” she said, making her way toward the sitting room.She didn’t have to worry about her dad and Hawk, since the moment the two of them were in a room, it was like they hit it off right away.
She stayed for a moment to watch, then she made her way into the kitchen.
“I know you’re upset, but hear me out,” Ana said.“You’ve gotten into a rut.You stopped dating.”
“Mom, please.”
“There is no rule to say you can’t date a guy you like.Hawk is available, as are you.”Ana moved toward her.“I know at times you feel guilty.Adam was a big part of your life, but trust me on this, he asked us to take care of you.”
Katie looked to her mother.“He did?”
“Yes, Adam told us you would be stubborn and would probably try not to date, or you’d hold another person at arm’s length because you felt guilty.That man loved and adored you, and he knew you better than you knew yourself.He asked us to help you move on.I’ve never seen you so happy as I have in the past few weeks, with Hawk stopping by and working with you at the shop.That means something.”Her mother kissed her cheek.“Give it time.”
Hawk was sending her body into a whirlwind.From the kiss she couldn’t stop obsessing about, to being able to talk to him about anything.She couldn’t help but glance across the room at the small table out in the hallway, which had her and Adam’s wedding photo.Adam looked back at her with a smile.
“You’re going to have to meet someone.”
“Adam, stop it.”
“You’re too damn young to not.I refuse to let you ...not fall in love.Katie, there is another man out there who needs to know how great you are.A man who will fall madly in love with that damn smile.Who will just ...they will want you, and you are going to want them, and that is exactly what I want you to do.Fall in love with someone else.Not forget about me, because I’m unforgettable.But love, have kids.Be with someone who has no fear like I do.I didn’t want to leave you alone.I love you, Katie.”
She pulled out of the memory and took a deep breath.
Katie never for a second thought she could ever feel anything for anyone else.All her life, it had all been Adam.He’d made her heart race, got the butterflies dancing in her stomach, and now she was feeling that way about Hawk, it was crazy.
But she couldn’t deny that she liked those feelings.
