I wince. “He’ll fight for joint custody of Poppy.”
“So give it to him.”
“I can’t. I’ll have nothing. Living on my own and trying to raise Poppy? It’s not easy, and working at the diner wouldn’t make ends meet.”
Kade shakes his head, squeezing my hand. “I’m sorry, Presley. I really am.”
I pull my hands back, not wanting his pity, and rest them in my lap. “And that’s my sad story.”
“Go out with me.”
“What?” My gaze snaps to Kade’s.
There’s no pity there. What emotion is there, I can’t quite pinpoint, but it’s something that has my insides swirling.
“You heard me, Pres. Go out with me.”
“You really want to go out with me?”
Every single reason I shouldn’t go out with him flashes through my mind.
I’m not divorced yet.
My life is in flux.
I have Poppy to think about.
But no never crosses my lips.
“Yes. But Kade?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re really good at leaving, Kade. Think you could try staying for a while?”
Leaning across the table, he gives me the smile that won me over at fourteen. “For you? Yeah, I can try, Pres.”
Pres.
I love how my name rolls off his tongue. Sweet, like he’s savoring it. Like he didn’t get to say it for so long, so he wants to enjoy it while he can.
“You really want to go out with me?” I ask again.
“Are you trying to talk me out of this, Pres?” He grins at me.
I shake my head. “No. I just…haven’t been on a first date in a long time.”
“I promise, I’ll make it worth your while.”
I want to swoon. This is the Kade that I fell in love with. The one that could look at me and make me feel loved, safe, and happy with a single glance.
I couldn’t resist him then and I don’t want to resist him now. Not after everything we’ve been through. I want to capture that feeling of joy again.
“Well, with that kind of promise, who can say no?”
Chapter Seventeen
PRESLEY
