“Good,” I say. “Me too.”
I hear her laugh softly, then she clears her throat, and I wait for what is coming next. Because something is definitely coming. I’m exhausted from practice. I want to just eat something and relax, but I also need this to get hashed out between us.
I want her to move here.
I never wanted anything more than that.
I want my family together—my brand-new family.
“I just don’t know how I can move here. Our lives are in Texas. Not just my dad but also my job and reliable day care. I can’t walk away from all the work that I put into my career.”
Pulling into the hotel parking lot, I shift the pickup intoParkwithout responding to her. I’m trying to organize my thoughts and, at the same time, attempt to keep a cool head. I want nothing more than to demand she stay right here, taking away her choices because, to me, there is no choice.
So, instead of trying to entice her with anything, I decide to be honest. I’ve never had a girlfriend. My life has been on the ice. My world has been there, too. Except right now, my world is right here in the cab of this truck. I’ve never felt so strongly about anything in my entire life.
“Wrenly,” I say in an attempt to gain her attention without forcing her to look at me.
Her chin is dipped as she stares at her fingers wringing in her lap. When I don’t say anything else, she slowly lifts her head, turning it slightly so that her eyes find mine. I hold our connection for a moment. Then I give her a smile.
It’s a small smile because I’m scared shitless, something that I would never confess in a million years. I can’t remember the last time I was scared. Nervous, sure, but scared? Never.
“I want to tell you what to do, but I can’t,” I say. “What I can tell you is that we will never know if we can work if we aren’t together. My life is here. Your life is there. I can’t make a move. I’m contractually obligated to be in Ohio for a few more years.”
It’s almost all on the line. Vulnerable is not something I’ve ever had to be before. But I know that if I’m not, if I’m demanding and proud, she’s going to pack up my son and fly back to Texas with a smile and a goodbye. I’ll pay child support and maybe see him a couple of times a year.
That is not the life I want—for him or for me.
“Eli,” she breathes.
Shaking my head a couple of times, I clear my throat. “You need to make the best choice for you, Wrenly. But you also need to know how I feel.”
Like a giant pussy, is how I feel, but I don’t say that. Instead, I continue, no matter how difficult it is for me to verbalize this shit. Reaching out, I wrap my fingers around her wrist and gently glide my thumb along the back of her hand.
“I want my family,” I say, my eyes never breaking contact with hers.
She sucks in a breath, holding it for a moment as she stares at me, then she shifts her gaze away from mine, and I instantly think that she’s going to tell me she’s going home and never coming back.
Instead, when she shifts her eyes back to meet mine, I see wetness glittering in them. I reach out with my other hand to cup her cheek, not releasing her wrist.
“Sunshine,” I rasp.
“Your family?”
My lips twitch into a smirk. “My woman. My son. My family.”
“Your woman?” she breathes.
I snort, then lean forward, touching my lips to hers, but I don’t deepen the kiss. Instead, I speak against her mouth, unable to hide my smile because I know that she’s going to be moving here. She doesn’t even have to say the words.
“Mine.”
WRENLY
I don’t give Eli an answer, but what I do is pack up my hotel room completely and load it up in his pickup truck before he drives us back to his place. I also text my dad and tell him that I will be staying at Eli’s for the rest of the trip.
My dad doesn’t reply anything to me other than to be careful, which just means that he trusts me and my decisions. I’m not sure he should right now. My decision is leaning toward leaving Texas behind and moving here to be with a man I hardly know.
After we’ve eaten, Eli helps me give Ryan a bath, something he finds fascinating, which I, in turn, find adorable. Now, the two of them are sitting on the couch, much like they were this morning when I woke up, including a bowl of cereal in Eli’s hand.
