*****
Heather—
After filling up on amusement park food, Tucker is exhausted, and Cody carries him over his shoulder as we step off the hotel elevator with Cody’s mother and father.
“You’re sure you want to take him for the night?” I ask Layla.
“Of course. He’ll be fine. Besides, you said he sleeps like a log. Tomorrow, we’ll meet you in the restaurant, then maybe take him out on the beach to play with the other kids.”
“Okay, then. If you’re sure. If he needs me, just call.”
“He’ll be fine,” Jake says.
Cody carries him into their room and lies him on the second bed. I bend and tuck my son in, then kiss his forehead.
“Sleep well, my angel.”
“Thanks, Mom,” Cody says to Layla, then takes my hand and tugs me out of the room.
Our room is three doors down.
When we walk in, I go straight to the balcony and watch the glittering lights on the pier.
“Look, how pretty it is,” I whisper, and Cody moves in behind me, cuddling my back with his chest, his body heat surrounding me.
“It is,” he murmurs, nuzzling my ear. “Got something I want to ask you.”
I turn in his arms and look at him. “What is it?”
“You said something earlier about Ryan, and it got me thinking.”
“Yes?”
He tucks a lock of my hair behind my ear, and the breeze immediately blows it away again. “Every time you look at me, do you see Ryan? Is he always going to be between us?”
I shake my head. “No, Cody. I don’t see Ryan when I look at you. He’ll always be a part of me, and he’ll always be in my heart, but you’re right, he’s gone now, and I have to go on living.”
“You have a lot of years of living left, Heather. An entire lifetime.”
“I do, and I don’t want to spend it alone grieving for a man I can’t have anymore. I loved Ryan. With all my heart, but you’re right, I have to let him go.”
“You can’t feel guilty for being happy again, or for finding love again.”
I nod. “I know that.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think Tucker is ready to share his mom with a man you’ve let into your life?”
“I do. He’s seemed happier since you came into his life. He loves spending time with you. He was so happy when you gave him that baseball mitt and taught him to throw the ball.”
“I like spending time with him. He’s a good kid, and my mom sure has taken to him. As a matter of fact, if this thing between you and me doesn’t work out, I think it’s going to break her heart.”
“I don’t want to think about it not working, Cody.”
“Good. That’s what I want to hear. I don’t want there to be any roadblocks for us.”
