“Anyway, I’m sure this whole writing thing has come as a shock to you, but I just wondered what you thought of…me.”
Those exact words come out without my realizing what I’m saying, and once they’re out there, I can’t take them back. I remember once when Logan and I were watching fireworks, and I burped, and the people in the pick-up next to us heard me. Logan thought it was hilarious, and I wanted to crawl under the dashboard forever. That’s about how I feel right now.
“Of you?” Daddy stares at me and takes a sip of his sweet tea.
“Uh-huh. But never mind.” I wave at him crazily and stand up to leave.
“I love you, baby doll. I’m so proud of you. I’ll just miss you is all. But I’ll read your book.”
I turn back, surprised. He’s sitting there awkwardly, but he has tears in his eyes. I smile and throw my arms around him.
He gives me a quick kiss. “Now, don’t tell your mama what I said or else she’ll have me reading it with her. I want to do it by myself. You understand?”
“Of course.”
I stand up and head over to Mama. Ben, Riley, and Free join us, and Free begs me to email her a copy of my novel.
“Us, too,” Riley adds.
“I’ll send all of y’all a copy,” I promise.
Mama tucks her draft away in her purse. “I love it already, Macey. I can hardly wait to get home and finish it. You know, Ghost Love is clearly a romantic tale. But I want you to have romance in your life, not just in your writing.” She trails off, and I brace myself as she fixes her gaze on Logan and Gigi. “Maybe you need to seduce Logan,” she whispers loudly.
“Please Mama,” Free says. “Leave her alone. Let’s sit down and pretend like we’re actually a normal family.”
Everyone takes seats at the table where Daddy is, but before I can slide in next to Ginny, Ben pulls me aside. “Have you talked to Logan?”
“No. It’s his night with Gigi. Not mine.”
“Could have been yours.”
“Nope. I always swore I’d never marry, which is why Vegas was such a colossal mistake. You can ask him yourself.”
“You told him that?” Ben says.
“Yes, I told him. And I meant it. It’s called self-preservation. He felt the same way. But if he’s changed his mind and wants to remarry, I want him to be happy.”
“I don’t get it,” he says.
“I’m never marrying. Again. Besides, you can’t marry your first crush. That ruins everything.”
“Like Mama,” Ben says slowly like he’s figuring it out. “But you’re not her.”
“Sometimes, you need to make sure of that. Genetics can be tricky.”
“I don’t know who’s more stubborn—him or you.”
“Probably a toss-up.”
We sit down with the others and order briskets and collards and black-eyed peas and more sweet tea. We’re the only table in the place with no alcohol, and when I look at my father’s clear eyes as he smiles at Mama, relief rushes through me. We eat until we’re so full we don’t even want to drink.
But I keep catching glimpses of Logan across the way. He’s at the end of his table, and he keeps tapping his cowboy boot on the sawdust-covered floor. Clearly, he’s tense about something.
I power on my phone and check my voicemail.
Six reporters called wanting interviews to corroborate Skip’s story. Five messages are from Logan, and four are from Ginny.
My phone buzzes with a new text.
