Isaiah clears his throat. “You were great last night,” he says, pulling up next to me.
“Thanks, man. Glad you could come.”
“I remember you fiddling with your guitar when you were little, but I never imagined what I saw last night. Blew me away.”
“I’ve been at it a while.” Which he’d know if he’d been home. Our father was a dick to him, but he could’ve come back after Gus died a few years ago.
A familiar anger bubbles up inside me, and I drag in a few steady breaths to stay calm. Paige once talked about how people project their old wounds onto someone else. I think that’s what I’ve been doing with Isaiah. When he took off, it dug up all the bitter memories of our mother abandoning us, and I’ve had a hell of a time separating the two. But it ain’t fair to saddle him with her sins.
I don’t wanna spend the day airing old grievances, so I scramble to think of something safe we can talk about. “Maybeyou two could help me with something. I wanna do something special for Rory. We’ve been cooped up on that bus for weeks, and I’d like to take her on a nice date.”
We’re due for some alone time.
When we get back to the house, I grin when I see my two favorite people. Layla’s napping on Rory as she relaxes in an Adirondack chair in the backyard. I lean over to kiss my girls. “Hey. Sorry I’ve been gone so long.”
Rory gives me a sweet smile. “It’s fine. I figured you’d want to spend some time with your brothers.”
I crouch down next to her. “I was wondering if you’d like to grab dinner with me tonight. Just the two of us. Rhett and Paige offered to babysit.”
Her eyes brighten. “I’d love that. I mean, if you don’t need to write.”
Ignoring the anxiety that curls in my stomach, I grab her hand and kiss the back of it. “That can wait until tomorrow. I thought it might be nice to hang out and not be in work mode or on baby duty for one night.” I stroke the back of Layla’s head.
“I’m game.”
“So am I, darlin’.” So am I.
32
RORY
I’m trying notto get my hopes up in case my idea of a date night and Jace’s aren’t the same. We’ve had dates. Usually, they consist of us grabbing a quiet dinner after we do our laundry, or popping into a bookstore or novelty shop. It’s what we can squeeze into our hectic schedule.
But now that we’re going on a real date, just the two of us, I’m nervous for some reason.
“What do you think of this?” I emerge from Paige’s bathroom and pat down my skirt. It’s Honey’s, but she brought over some outfits I could wear. They don’t fit since her baby bump started showing. I’m wearing her pink, flouncy skirt with a white tank top, a blue jean jacket because I always get cold in restaurants, and sandals.
“You look great.” Paige grins.
“Thanks.” I check myself in the mirror over the dresser one last time. “Do you know what we’re doing tonight?”
“Maybe.”
I turn to look at her. “Are you going to tell me?”
“That would ruin the surprise.”
I’m not good with surprises. Okay, maybe I love them, but the tension is killing me.
In the living room, I find Jace looking sexy as hell in a button-down shirt that’s tucked in, jeans, a belt, and boots. He kisses me and pulls a bouquet of white roses from behind his back. “Note that these are not dead roses.”
Laughing, I take them and sniff the pretty petals. “I love them. Thank you.” Paige helps me put them in a vase, and then Jace and I kiss Layla, who’s playing blocks with her uncle Rhett.
As we head outside, I do a double take at Bluebell, my mom’s Volkswagen, because her faded blue paint gleams. “Did you polish my car?”
He gives me a lopsided grin. “Maybe.”
God, this man is sweet.
