He smiled, eyes on the road. “You’ll see. Just relax, Dani. Tonight’s about you.”
“Me?”
“Yeah,” he said, his voice soft but certain. “You’ve spent the last two weeks caring for Harper. Tonight, I just want you to have a night that’s easy. Good food, good view, no responsibilities.”
I turned toward the window, hiding my smile. “You’re kind of sweet when you want to be. Is that part of your southern charm?”
He chuckled. “Maybe, or maybe it’s just you.”
“Right, I’m the problem,” I teased.
“Nah,” he said, glancing at me briefly, his voice low enough to make my pulse jump. “You’re the reason everything’s starting to feel right again.” The words came out almost as if they were not meant to be said out loud.
And those words hung between us, unguarded and heavy with something that felt like the beginning ofmore.
I looked out at the sunset bleeding gold across the sky and tried to steady my heart.
Chapter 38
Logan
The road stretched ahead of us in a soft amber glow, the sun sinking low, painting the world in gold and rose. Dani sat in the passenger seat, her hair catching the light in a way that made it hard not to look too long. She was quiet, watching the passing fields, her hands folded loosely in her lap, the kind of silence that wasn’t heavy, just comfortable.
Harper was safely tucked away at Cami and Hunter’s, no doubt already building her so-called “midnight snack fort.” The house would be empty tonight for the first time in months, but for once, I didn’t dread the idea of walking back into it.
Because tonight wasn’t about coming home to an empty place.
It was about taking Dani out,reallyout, without distractions, without interruptions, without the shadows of everything we’d been through hanging over us.
“You’re smiling,” she said suddenly, glancing over at me.
I blinked, caught. “Am I?”
She laughed softly. “A little. You’ve got that look. Like you’re planning something.”
“Maybe I am.”
Her brow arched. “Promise me you’re not some psycho killer? I’m feeling like I should be concerned.”
“Not unless you hate good food and better company.”
“I can probably survive that,” she said, lips curving into a grin that nearly made me forget what I’d been saying.
I took the turn off the main road, heading toward Oceanside, a beach town just outside the base. The familiar sound of seagulls mixed with the distant sound of military aircraft, a background symphony I’d grown accustomed to over my years as a Marine.
The restaurant sat right at the water’s edge, a converted boathouse with warm lights and big open windows that overlooked the inlet. It wasn’t fancy, yet the gentle rhythm of hulls softly meeting the dock and the calming murmur of waves added a serene backdrop.
When I parked, Dani’s eyebrows lifted. “You brought me to a dockside restaurant?”
I smiled. “Trust me.”
“I’m trying,” she teased, stepping out of the car. “But my heels and this gravel are not in agreement.”
I laughed, moving to open her door and steady her with a hand on her back. “Okay, Darlin’, I’ll help you out.”
“Oh, please,” she said, rolling her eyes. “You think a lawyer can’t handle gravel?”
“Not that lawyer,” I said, my grin widening.
