I shrugged and sat on the edge of his bed.“I dunno if I’m any good at it.I’ll let you be the judge of that, but yeah, I like tellin’ stories.”
Bax and Bea took turns kissing Stu’s forehead, and then they left the room quietly, and I relaxed back against Stu’s headboard.He lay down and turned toward me, waiting patiently with his hands tucked up beneath his cheek.
“Is it okay if I call you Deedee?”he asked.
“Deedee?”
“Yeah, D.D.for Daddy Dixon.”
“Sure, kid,” I said, trying not to die right there on the spot from too much happiness.“You can call me whatever you like.”
“Okay.Good.Now, tell me a story, Deedee.”
“Alright, bossy.”I cleared my throat and hiked his blanket a little higher so he wouldn’t get cold.“Once upon a time, there was a prince…”
ChapterThirty
Avery Jane
“You want to have a picnic?”Mrs.Ellison asked, exasperated with me and my late-night request.“On my front lawn.At nine o’clock at night?”
“Yes, ma’am.Well, it’s not a picnic really, just snacks and tea.But Dixon has somethin’ to celebrate.”
I’d never known him to be more excited about anything than he was earlier today when he told me about getting to spend the evening hanging out with Stu.I wanted to mark the occasion somehow, so he’d never forget how he felt tonight.And if I was honest, our date tomorrow felt like years too long to see him again, so when he texted to tell me he was on his way home and would call me soon, I threw some stuff together and rushed to meet him.
“He has to work early tomorrow mornin’,” I told Mrs.Ellison, “so I wanted to meet him here and tell him congrats.We won’t be long, and we’ll be quiet, promise.”
With her hands planted firmly on her hips, she stared me down.“No shenanigans?”
“No, ma’am.No shenanigans.”
“Very well then.”She turned and walked back into her house, and I breathed a sigh of relief and got busy setting up beneath the oak tree in her yard.
The picnic set I’d won at a white elephant Christmas party two years ago, thrown by José and Daisy from the local diner, was perfect for the occasion, with plates, silverware, and a water-repellent blanket.I arranged everything on top of the blanket, opened the tote bag I’d lugged from my house, and pulled out cut up veggies, salami, and a Thermos filled with iced black-currant tea I’d ordered for Dixon.I tried it earlier in the day.It was delicious, even without caffeine and sugar, so I hoped he’d like it too.
He pulled up five minutes later and parked by the curb, but it took him a minute to see me.His door creaked and the metal groaned as he closed it.When he finally spotted me cross-legged on the blanket, he paused, his jingling keys dangling from his hand.
The moonlight highlighted his brilliant smile, and his boots pounded the grass as he rushed to me and swept me up into his arms.He hugged me tight and whispered, “He knows.My son knows who I am, and he loves me.”
I gasped and hugged him back as tightly as I could.“What?You told him?I’m so proud of you!”
He shook his head, and his lips rasped against my neck and made me shiver.
“No.I didn’t tell him, but he already knew.He heard it at school.Some nosy moms were talkin’ about me, but when he asked tonight, I told him the truth.Bax was pissed, but Stu explained, and my brother actually hugged me.He told me he was glad I’d come home and that he was workin’ on tryin’ to forgive and trust me.”
I wasn’t about to tell Dixon all the gossip I’d heard around town.At least the gossip Stu overheard had created a positive outcome.
Dixon set me on my feet and held me at arm’s length, his crystal eyes alight with happiness.“What is all this?”
“It’s a picnic.I couldn’t wait till tomorrow night to celebrate.But now we have even more reason.I know you work in the mornin’.I do too, so it’s just some snacks and tea.”
He lifted me again, wrapped my legs around his waist, and I hung on to his shoulders as he brushed my hair away from my face, held it between his hands, and kissed me.
“Thank you.”He sat on my blanket with me still attached to his body and kissed me deeper.
It didn’t take long until I was panting and gasping for air.Reluctantly, I pulled away.“Let’s eat.I promised Mrs.Ellison no shenanigans, and if you keep kissin’ me like that, I will break my promise, and your sister will probably have to arrest us for indecent exposure.”
He smirked.“Oh, I got some shenanigans for you, baby girl, right here in my jeans.”
