“Brady follows a structured lesson with an instructor,” he said. “And he has parental permission.”
“I want to do a structured stuntman lesson,” Oliver said proudly.
Molly pursed her lips, but she wasn’t glaring at Gavin like she usually did, so that was a plus. “They don’t have those, baby.”
“They do,” Brady said, again the words coming faster than fast. “A whole school for stuntmen. They even have a summer camp. I looked it up.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
Oliver’s eyes lit up like he’d just discovered chocolate ice cream for the first time. “I wanna go.”
Gavin looked to his dripping clothes. He needed to get changed. Oliver needed to get dry clothes as well. They’d
be cutting the cake soon, and when that happened, their absence would have a definite exclamation point.
“You.” Gavin pointed to Brady. “And you.” He pointed to Kellan. “Back to the reception and don’t leave until I am there to escort you to the house. Clear?”
The boys must’ve gotten the notice that he wasn’t messing around about this because they nodded. This time they headed in the direction of the reception.
He turned back to Molly and her son. Skates removed, Oliver was dripping lake water right along with Gavin.
“We can go dry off.” Gavin jerked his chin toward the kiddo. Bonus, he’d take his time returning to the reception and hopefully shake off the latest woman his mother stood ready to introduce him to. He had no interest in meeting a woman at his ex-wife’s wedding. Call him old-fashioned like that.
“You’ll probably want to head back for cake,” he said to Molly.
“Gavin…” she said, a kinder—gentler—note to her voice. The kind of note he’d never had pointed in his direction. Not from her.
“Do it for Rachel,” he said quietly. “She doesn’t need to worry about what just happened here, not yet. Not until tomorrow. Let’s make sure she has today.”
Molly’s gaze softened at that. Her eyes were a pretty silver and blue most of the time, but when they softened, they sparkled and wrapped him with rich warmth. He’d never had them soften towards him. He liked it entirely too much.
“I’ll go back.” She gave a brief nod. “For Rachel.
You’ll…uh…”
“We’ll get dried off, changed, and be right there.”
Molly stood, and other than a few residual Oliver damp spots on her dress, she looked no different from when they’d left the reception.
“For Rachel.” Her chest heaved with a breath.
Gavin’s relationship with his ex-wife was oddly uncomplicated. They were never meant to be a couple, and she didn’t love him either. They’d hooked up once when she was a co-ed. One night was enough to get pregnant with their boys and tether themselves together for a lifetime.
He’d married her because it seemed like the right thing to do. Seemed like what was expected.
Turned out, for both of them, marriage was not bliss. More like a constant chore and tiptoeing around each other.
So they divorced and co-parented.
Then he’d screwed that up by misreading what she wanted out of a co-parent.
Now, he was working hard to make up for lost time.
And that meant ensuring nothing like this happened at her wedding to his brother. A brother who loved her deeply in a way Gavin never had. Gavin had sworn he could give her this day with no complications—because Rachel deserved a solid dose of happy.
He held his hand out to Oliver, who took it, and they headed back toward the house. “We’ll be there shortly.”
“I don’t think I like weddings,” Oliver said under his breath.
