“Really?” Trinity appeared surprised at this bit of information. “I thought you loved it.”
“Nope.” The young girl popped a green grape into her mouth. “I don’t.” She aimed a look right at her mother. “Just like you don’t like horses.”
“Oh.” Trinity gave a nod. “I see where this is going.”
“I don’t know how you can’t like such a beautiful and sweet animal, Mommy.” The poor girl looked almost pained to say the words. “It’s so mean.”
“Sweetheart, like I said earlier, it’s not that I don’t like them.” Then, lowering her tone to just shy of disciplinary measure, she said, “But I don’t want to discuss this subject any more tonight, okay? We’re here to help Spencer select his paint colors.”
“In the dark?” Mia retorted with unnecessary snark.
“Mia, I suggest you take a moment to adjust your attitude. Do you need to step outside to do so?”
Mia’s gaze fell to the blanket. “No.”
“Good.”
Spencer felt like an outsider in this intimate family moment, unsure of his role, if any. Trinity seemed to be handling the situation without any need for his help. But the labored sigh she exhaled, and the third apologetic look she shot his way, made a twinge of guilt sweep through his stomach. She’d suggested leaving the kids with her parents, and he’d told her to bring them along. At the time, he’d wanted to appear flexible and accommodating. But it hadn’t occurred to him that maybe Trinity had wanted a night off from parental duties, a chance to unwind as a single mother. If that was what she’d hoped for, he’d unwittingly taken away that opportunity.
The four of them ate their snacks quietly after that, simple conversation carrying things along. Spencer asked both Mia and Liam about their respective days, and was informed that it was pajama day at Liam’s preschool while Mia recounted her kindergarten’s dress-up theme. He remembered being so excited for days like that when he was a kid. Even all the way into high school, spirit days were his favorite. It was fun to dress up as someone you weren’t, to put on another persona just for one day.
And in this particular moment, he wasn’t ignorant to the fact that he was doing the same thing in a way. He’d tried to create some semblance of family with this dinner, something he had absolutely no right to do. But he figured that was only if he was attempting to pursue things romantically with Trinity. That’s where it would be an inappropriate overstep, right?
He let out a quick breath, unsure of his true intentions. Prior to their arrival, he would have said it was simply a picnic among new friends. But the glances he and Trinity would periodically exchange felt different, more familiar in a way. There was a warmth in her eye when their gazes would meet, and a subtle flutter of her lashes when she would blink away to direct her attention back to her children.
Was Spencer reading into this? He honestly couldn’t tell.
By the time both Mia and Liam had declared they were so stuffed they would pop if they ate another thing, it was much too dark in the house to even attempt to sort through paint samples. Even with the generator and flood light left behind by the construction crew, the true tones would never come through. Just when he was about to suggest they try again tomorrow, two bright white beams pierced through the front windows, moving along the wall as a vehicle crept closer to the house before shutting off the engine.
“Who’s that?” Mia asked, popping to her feet.
“My grandmother.” Spencer stood, then offered his hand to help Trinity to her feet. He’d recognized the thready hum of Nana Jo’s all-terrain vehicle, and figured she was out on her nightly rounds making sure the farm was buttoned up for the evening.
“Knock, knock.” Josephine Major rapped her knuckles on the open front door. “Anybody home?”
“Hey, Nana,” Spencer called out. “We’re in the family room.”
He could hear his grandmother’s work boots clomp along the subflooring, growing louder with each step until she appeared in the mouth of the big hallway.
“Well, would you look at this nice little picnic?” she praised as she took in the scene.
“We just finished up, otherwise I’d invite you to join us.”
“I had dinner down at the house with our new guests,” she said with a dismissive flap of her hand. “But I was just about to feed the horsestheirdinner when I saw the light on up here. Thought maybe the workers had left it on. Didn’t want the generator to burn through all its gas. Glad to see it’s just you guys.”
“You were going to feed thehorses?” Mia squealed.
“I was. Want to help?” Nana asked before looking toward Trinity for approval. “Is that okay, Mom?”
“It’s okay.” Trinity gave a nod, and then both Liam and Mia were off like a shot, each taking a hand as Nana Jo led them out of the house toward her ATV parked out front. Thankfully, she always kept an extra helmet or two in the back, so she was prepared for her additional helpers this evening.
“I was going to tell them to be safe but they’re out of earshot now.” Trinity angled her head, speaking to Spencer over her shoulder.
“They’ll be safe,” he assured, stepping closer as they watched the trio fit the helmets on their heads and buckle up. “Nana might push herself harder than a woman her age should, but she’s a stickler about safety when it comes to everyone else.”
“She’s an incredible woman.” There was a note of respect in Trinity’s voice. “I really admire her so much.”
Spencer was certain the same could be said about Trinity, and in that moment, he wanted to speak those words. But he held them in because that wasn’t what this was about. They were new friends, after all. Just friends.
