Watching them, Sara wished Brand would listen to her as well. Janna already had her seatbelt undone, and Sara held out her hand to her daughter to help her down the high step.
“Iwanthim for my daddy,” Janna hissed.
“I need to figure this out first.” Sara kissed her on the cheek.
“Well, I’d vote yes.” Her daughter didn’t wait but ran ahead to take Ezreal’s other hand.
Bemused, Sara followed them, appreciating it when Ezreal had Brand hold the door open for her.
“Thank you, kind sir,” she said, giving her son a curtsy.
“Bow to her,” Ezreal whispered and demonstrated.
Scowling, Brand shook his head and ran ahead to the display case.
“Someday,” Ezreal said with a grin.
They had to wait in line since the place was full of university students. All the tables were taken when they had their treats, so they headed back out to the car.
“They’ll get sticky all over everything,” Sara protested.
“The park’s not far,” he said, opening the door for Brand. “Here, let me hold that for you while you buckle up. Oh, but lick it first so it doesn’t drip.”
“All right.” Sara did the same for Janna. Finally, they were seated in the car again. It only took a few minutes to reach a park, one that she hadn’t visited yet. She had put some wipes in her purse before leaving the house and needed to use them on Brand and the car seat before letting the children run to the playground.
Ezreal took her hand and they walked to a shady spot nearby and sat on a bench that had just been vacated. An energy that she wasn’t used to was emanating from him. The only time she’d seen it before was when he was creating music, especially those times when he seemed distracted and compelled to get it down before he could do anything else. Was he thinking about music? Or her?
“I’m in love with you,” he said softly, answering her question.
Her breath caught, and her palms started to sweat where their hands joined. A panicky feeling hovered at the back of her mind, urging her to grab her children and run. But another, calmer voice, spoke to her heart and told her she was where she belonged, that she loved him too. That, like Janna, Sara wanted him permanently in her life.
Ezreal shifted uncomfortably beside her, and she wondered if her hesitation had hurt him. More than anything in the world, she didn’t want to hurt him.
“I love you too,” she said, the words barely a whisper.
He shifted toward her, their knees touching.
“I want to marry you,” he said, his words rushed as though he were afraid they wouldn’t come out right. “Janna said she wanted me for her daddy, and I want that more than anything too.”
“I . . . I, uh.” Her conflicting mind was getting in the way of the words she wanted to say.
“I know you’ve been hurt. I understand that it’s hard for you to trust.” Ezreal cupped her cheek with his hand. “I know you may need time, so I won’t rush you. I want this, Sara, so I want to do it right.”
He kissed her, his lips soft and sweet. It was easy to lose herself in his touch, to quiet the combative voices in her head.
“Thank you for being patient with me.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “I know I’m broken, and I can’t believe you’re willing to look at me twice.”
“Sara, you arenotbroken.” He rested his head against hers. “There’s a Japanese pottery called Kintsugi. They take broken pottery and fill the cracks with gold. It gives emphasis to the fractures and breaks to show their uniqueness. It draws on the philosophy of wabi-sabi and calls for us to see the beauty in the flawed or imperfect.”
“What a beautiful thought.” She wondered if the gold made the pottery stronger. Could the trials she’d overcome have done that for her?
They sat and watched the children play, and Sara’s eyelids grew heavy. She closed her eyes and was nearly asleep when suddenly Ezreal shifted. She sat up abruptly, alert. He jumped up from the bench and darted over to where Brand was surrounded by three older boys. They were leaning in on him ominously.
Her heart leapt into her throat and she ran toward her son.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Ezreal asked, his voice loud and stern as he used his height to tower over the tweens. “You think you’re clever playing the bully? Well, someone needs to teach you some manners.”
The corners of Sara’s vision turned red as Landon’s words echoed in her mind.
