Lamont
Happy Turkey Day!
Tuck
Happy Thanksgiving, fellas!
Chris
Happy Thanksgiving, guys. Tell the ladies the same.
Lamont
Will do. Maybe one year we’ll get together for the holiday.
Chris
That would be great.
Maybe by then he wouldn’t be alone. He glanced at Erykah, who was kneeling next to Cheyenne and playing with some dolls. Wouldn’t it be amazing if this was his life? If Erykah and the girls were a permanent fixture he wouldn’t have to say good-bye to? People he’d see every single day until the girls graduated from high school and went off to college, Erykah still by his side?
Thinking of the future didn’t help him keep his present self in control. Chris bit back a sigh and glanced back at the text thread.
Tuck
We need to get that planned, then.
Lamont
Next year?
Chris
Let’s make that happen.
Tuck
Hey, Piper wanted to know if you passed on her number to Erykah.
Uh-oh.It had totally slipped his mind.
Lamont
This is Nevaeh. Pass mine along, too, please.
Chris
I forgot. I’ll tell her right now.
Heslipped his phone into his back pocket, then sat on the couch. “Hey, Erykah...”
“Yes?” She turned and stared into his face. But her closed-off expression gave him a hint of her feelings.
His neck heated. “Um, Piper wanted me to give you her number in case you ever wanted a woman to talk to.”
“Really?” Her eyes widened.
“Yes. And Lamont’s girlfriend offered the same.” He rubbed his neck. “I know you’ve never met Nevaeh, but the offer stands. I meant to tell you when I got back from the wedding, but...” He didn’t know what else to say. The awkwardness from earlier weighed on him.
