Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 71198 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71198 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Without waiting for him, I open my door and get out, then open the back door of the truck and get in to retrieve Sam from his seat. When I have him in my arms, I turn to get out but stop when I find Blake standing just inside the open door.
“You’re right,” he tells me quietly, taking Sam when he reaches for him. “Margret deserves to be happy, even if that’s with one of my friends.”
I want to tell him how proud of him I am, because I know how big him admitting that is, but I don’t. Instead, I take his hand and let him help me down out of his truck.
“Oh my goodness, aren’t you just the cutest?” Janet gushes over Sampson, and he starts to babble and laugh as she leans up to kiss Blake’s cheek; then her eyes come to me. “Hi, sweetheart.” She looks over her shoulder at her husband. “Dave, honey, this is Everly. Everly, this is my Dave,” she tells me, and my nose starts to sting.
Okay, maybe me being here isn’t such a good idea, because hearing her call her husband my Dave is almost too much to take when I know the secret he’s forcing his son to keep.
Blake’s hand lands warm against my lower back, then slides to curve around my hip like he knows I might lose it.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I tell Dave, and his eyes drop to his son’s hand before meeting mine and warming.
“Nice to meet you, too, Everly. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Oh no.” I make a face, and he laughs.
“All good things, I promise,” he says as Sam lunges for him, and he takes him easily.
“That’s good.”
“I’d say so.” He then turns back to the house and looks down at Sam. “Do you like trains? Taylor is already inside playing with the train I set up,” he says, and Sam babbles what sounds like the word train and kicks his tiny feet in excitement.
“I hope you’re hungry.” Janet links her arm with mine, and as Blake’s hand drops away, I instantly miss his touch. “I might have gone a little overboard with dinner tonight.”
“When don’t you go overboard?” Blake asks, and she looks around me just so she can glare at him. “Never mind.”
“I thought so,” she mutters, and I laugh as we head into the house, which is just as warm and welcoming as the outside. Art and photos of friends and family line the walls, and rugs cover the wood floor all the way down the hall. When we enter the main room, with the kitchen on one side and the living room on the other, I find Dave has already settled Sam on the floor with Taylor. They’re between the couch and fireplace in the middle of a large oval train track that has a LEGO train going around it, pulling cars with different animals behind it.
“Hey, Everly.” Margret gets off the couch to greet me with a hug, then whispers against my ear, “I’m sorry about today.”
“It’s okay.” I hug her tighter. “Are you okay?”
“Absolutely,” she whispers, then lets me go and plasters a smile on her face. “How are you and the grump doing?”
“We’re friends, so we’re good,” I tell her; then we both look at Sam when he starts shouting “Da, da, da, da.” Of course Blake takes that as his cue, and the minute he picks him up, Sam rests his tiny head against Blake’s shoulder, and Dave smiles at his son.
“Friends,” Margret repeats as we both watch her brother hold Sam. “Keep telling yourself that, girl.” Since I have no comeback, I go into the kitchen and ask if Janet needs help, and when she says no, I go hang in the living room with Dave, who is soft spoken, witty, and undeniably charming.
As the evening carries on, I realize that Blake is the man he is because of his family, and being around them, I understand him a little more than I did before. I also see he is the kind of guy who wants everyone around him to be happy, even if that happiness comes at his own expense.
Chapter 10
EVERLY
Holding my breath, I wait for my mom to respond to what I’ve just told her about Lex, his mom, and everything that happened while she and Dad were gone.
“I cannot believe you didn’t call me,” my mom whispers, and I chew my bottom lip. “You should have told me that you had plans to meet with Lex’s mom and dad, and you really should have told me what happened after you met with them.”
Hating the disappointment I hear in her voice, I avoid eye contact and focus on getting Sampson to eat his breakfast. “I didn’t want you and Dad to cancel your plans. I knew you two had been looking forward to going to see Jayson, Meg, and the kids. I didn’t want you to cancel that because of me.”