I met her gaze. “Gracie?”
She nodded.
“Getting to know Sunny has made it easier. Most of my thoughts of Gracie now are for Sunny’s sake. Wishing she’d have had the chance to know her mom.”
“Does being here make you think of her?”
It occurred to me that being at the river might feel awkward for Jules. I weighed my words. “It does. But I don’t long for her the way I used to.”
She pulled her coat tighter around her and changed the subject. “You said Pleasant Gap is growing a lot. What do you think will happen to this place as the years go by?”
“Nothing.”
“Well, surely someone will buy it and want to develop—”
“I bought it.”
She whipped her head around. “Seriously?”
It was one of the four things I wanted to show her. One down, three to go. “Yep. The elderly lady who owned it finally died. She was like ninety. Her kids live in the city so they divided the land into parcels. I bought this one. It’s this little section of river and backs all the way up to Mama’s garden.”
“Wow.”
“I couldn’t resist.”
“Of course.”
“I want Sunny to be able to enjoy this place like I did.”
She shook her head, like she couldn’t believe something.
“What?”
“Nothing,” she said.
“That look is not nothing.”
“You’re just going to be an amazing dad, Pat.”
I leaned closer to her and grabbed her hand. “I’m glad you think so.” The next words rushed out of my mouth before I could stop them. “And you are going to be a great mom one day, Jules.”
Her eyes came to mine, searching for my meaning. I hadn’t meant to say it. I was hurrying into thing number four. One at a time.
Just like you practiced, Moore.
I cleared my throat, tapped my thighs. “My woman is hungry. Let me show you what we’re doing for dinner.”
She huffed a laugh and allowed me to drag her back up the hill.
Soon we climbed the stairs to the roomy deck overlooking the backyard. I’d re-stained it the week before. “Close your eyes,” I demanded.
“What? Why?” She giggled.
“Because I got something you are going to love.”
She obliged, closed her eyes, trusting me to lead her. The boards creaked under our feet.
“Okay, stay right there.” I removed the weather-proof cover. “Open up.”
