by Ava Miles
“Sadie, I might not know you well, but I still see you. It’s the artist in me. When I look at something, I can’t help but see. You’re radiant when you talk about quilting, and when you showed up on Paige’s doorstep, you were brave and sweet and kind and so beautiful you took my breath away.”
Her chest rose with a deep breath, and he pressed on, “I want to know you if you’re willing to share more of yourself with me. I promise to be honest with you about who I am too, although it might take me some time to share some of the tougher stories, ones about Jess’ mom. I don’t just want to have fun with you, Sadie McGuiness. I want to know you. All of you. Okay?”
“Okay,” she whispered. “Then I guess The Farm House sounds great.”
He fought a smile, wanting to be sensitive. “Hopefully it won’t have floated away in this storm. I mean, I won’t eat soggy beignets or pop tarts. I have my standards.”
Her mouth curved. “I’m glad you have such exacting standards. We should get a move on then.”
And so they did. The meal was excellent, and they both relaxed with each other this time. Riley was delighted to learn that besides their different taste in music and his stance on church-going, they had a lot in common. She loved Andy Warhol, which surprised him, but the more she talked about it, the better he understood her. Sadie admired artists who depicted essential truths about their subjects in their work.
Her love of family was like a hot toddy to him. She told him stories about growing up with the best brother in the world looking out for her and the adventures she’d had with her sister Shelby, who’d always urged her to spread her wings—and sometimes talked her into trouble.
She thought everyone was too busy, running around like chickens with their heads cut off, which was why she didn’t spend much time on social media and didn’t pick up her phone during dinnertime. When he’d explained he felt the same, but had to check his phone now and then to make sure everything was okay with Jess, she waved a hand and said, “That’s as it should be.”
He ordered coffee and dessert even though he was crazy full just to spend more time with her. The gold in her brown eyes was shining brighter than ever, and her laugh caught him in the heart every time. When he coaxed her into trying the white chocolate bread pudding, the humming sound she made had him shifting in his chair.
“I think we need to go soon,” she said, eyeing the empty restaurant. “We’ve closed the place down.”
And yet he didn’t want to leave. He wanted time to slow like it had earlier so they could stay there forever. “Yes, but I’m not ready for tonight to end. Would you like to take a walk with me?”
She blinked. “In this storm?”
Rain wasn’t going to send him home tonight. “You have a pretty big umbrella. Besides, it doesn’t look like it’s raining hard anymore.”
“I’d love to,” she said softly.
After taking care of the bill, they left the restaurant to discover the storm had faded.
“There’s something special about the world after the rain,” he commented as they walked to the car.
“It’s like everything has been washed clean,” she said, putting words to his thought.
Looking at her under the streetlight, he gave in to the temptation he’d been fighting all night and touched her cheek. “You’re so beautiful.”
Her body was close to his under the umbrella, something they really didn’t need anymore. But it kept her close, and he liked that. Wanted that.
“Come on, I have the perfect place in mind.”
He drove her to the riverfront and then navigated them down to the spot that had come to mind during dinner. “There’s a lot of art to love in Nashville,” he told her, “but The Ghost Ballet sculpture is one of my favorites.”
The giant curving metal seemed to reach for the sky without ever quite reaching it.
Sadie studied it next to him. “From the name, I expect it’s supposed to have something to do with ballet and movement, but to me it’s like a dream.”
He turned toward her. “Tell me more.”
“Sometimes the parts of a dream never quite meet, and that’s how I see those metal staircases. It’s like they can’t connect.”
“Maybe they’re already connected,” he said, pointing to the base of the sculpture and the metal pins anchored into the two pieces. “It’s like each part needs to be free to move in its own way even though they’re together.”
He wondered if that might be how they were if they continued to see each other.
“I like that,” Sadie said, craning her neck to look up at the piece.
Her hand brushed his, and he took that as a sign to take it. “Sadie, I’d…”
She angled her body to face him. “Yes?”
She was going to make him ask. “I’d like to kiss you.”
“Go ahead,” she said, her voice the definition of invitation.
When his lips finally settled over hers, her mouth opened slightly, and he felt the world tilt like the sculpture before them. He closed his eyes, awash in the sensation of his mouth moving over hers. There was no sound but their commingled breath, and somehow that drove him wild. When he kissed the side of her mouth and leaned back to look into her eyes, she followed him. He gave her another slow kiss before breaking away again.
“Wow,” he said softly. “You give new meaning to one of my favorite songs, ‘Lips Like Sugar.’ I’m going to want to do that again.”
“I’m going to want you to do that again too,” she confessed.
Oh, her voice…so lush and inviting in the dark night.
“Glad to know we’re on the same page finally.”
And with that, he kissed her for what seemed like an eternity in the new time they seemed to create together.
Chapter 9
Staying out with Riley until almost four in the morning on their second date hadn’t seemed so late until she’d looked at an actual clock. And over the course of the next couple weeks, they continued to close down restaurants and stay out late.
Then there was the texting… She’d never imagined texting a man could be so fun. Or so hot. Not that it was sexting or anything even close. That wasn’t her. This was classic flirting, and it was magnetic and fun and it fired her up. The texting would start after he put Jess to bed at around eight. She was usually quilting around that time, but she’d set her materials down as soon as her text alert went off. They’d carry on texting back and forth for the next hour or so.
She liked the way he expressed himself, everything from the words and colloquial phrases he used to the emoticons he chose. He’d texted her a camel—a symbol of endurance, or so he said—to make her laugh after a particularly strenuous day at work, and once he’d insisted they carry on a whole conversation in emoticons to see which of them would crack first. Some experts said the biggest sex organ was the brain, and for Sadie, that certainly seemed to fit the bill. Riley made her think about things differently, see them differently, and she liked that.
One night, after warning her that he was about to say something corny, he told her that she seemed to stop time for him. She’d immediately understood. He did the same for her.
And he didn’t just take her to the typical dinner and a movie type dates. He took her to see sculptures and art galleries and street art like the Wings mural in the Gulch, which had inspired her to add angel wings to her baby quilts, while she showed him a few magical coffee shops she’d discovered who featured local artists. Their taste in music might be different, but there were so many new places for them to explore together, even in a place called Music City.
When he arrived to pick her up for their date on a Friday evening, a month and worlds away from their first date, she noted his new sport coat with a smile. He’d confessed Jess insisted on dressing him for their dates, and she thought that was adorable. Having grown up without a father, she treasured the way he loved his daughter and she looked forward to the stories he told her about their adventures together.
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br /> “I like the green,” she said, fingering the sport coat. “It’s a good color on you.”
“I like the gold dress,” he said. “Honestly, it’s like I’ve hit a wall and I just can’t go on until I’ve kissed you. Like right now.”
She laughed as he closed her front door and fitted her body against his. “Aren’t you impetuous?”
“Starved is more like it,” he murmured against her lips. “God, Sadie, you drive me wild, what with the browns and golds and… You’re a goddess made flesh, and I want to devour you sometimes.”
She knew that and was trying to balance things physical between them. They’d done some serious kissing and caressing, but nothing more, and while she was itchy, she was struggling with the “more” parts. She might want him, but she didn’t feel ready for the next step. He seemed to know that.
She felt his chest rise. “Then kiss me,” she fired back.
He pressed his mouth to hers without any more discussion. The kiss was hot and luscious, and she felt as swept away as driftwood down a river.
“Oh, Riley,” she whispered, breaking their connection. Maybe he was starving, but her body heat had surely topped out the Fahrenheit scale.
“I can’t get enough of you,” he said, running his hands down her curves, ones she’d never truly celebrated before meeting him. “I’ve been thinking about this all day.”
“I know,” she said, “but this is really fast for me.” She looked straight into his eyes. Maybe it was time to stop dancing around it.
Those cerulean blue eyes were feverish, like she imagined hers were, but also a little tight at the corners.
“I did the fast thing with Jess’ mom, and it was a disaster. We’re in no hurry.”
He still hadn’t told her the full story about Mandy, his ex, but she knew he would when he was ready.
“I don’t want to make the same mistake with you,” he said. He stepped back from her, but took her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing it softly. “Apparently, some of Jess’s movie-watching habits are rubbing off on me.”
“I like old romance,” she said, touching his cheek.
“I know,” he said, kissing her hand again. “Why do you think I do it?”
Her whole body seemed to sigh, and as he went to release her hand, she moved in and wrapped her arms around him. The embrace was more of a thank-you, and he stroked her back in response like he understood.
“Riley, I’ve dated off and on over the years, but I’ve only been with one other guy, and that was after two years of serious dating. We both thought we’d end up getting married.”
Now she wondered how she ever could have thought of marrying Kevin. They’d both been so young and so eager. All she’d focused on was him being a “good Christian man.” For her, that had meant he went to church, prayed with her, helped old ladies across the street, and didn’t kick dogs. Okay, the last part was a joke, but it was also kind of true. Their connection hadn’t gone much deeper than companionship, mutual kindness, and a connection to the church. They had never pushed each other. He’d thought her quilting was a hobby and hadn’t really understood the driving passion behind it, one that had led her to happily spend hours alone—without him.
“Keep talking,” he said, stroking her hair.
“It’s just…I don’t think I could be intimate with someone I wasn’t involved with…ah…long term.” She looked up at him. “But you tempt me to test that theory.”
“I understand,” he said instead. “I’m not a player, Sadie, but I can’t hide that I want you like crazy. We’ll just take it slow. Okay?”
A smile tugged at her mouth. Some men might try and make her feel guilty. She’d known he wasn’t one of those.
“I want you to feel comfortable with me, Sadie. Safe.”
“You really are one of the good guys,” she said. “I knew that the first time I met you. In spite of your interest in iguanas.”
“I can’t believe you told me to stop texting you the lizard emoji,” he said. “That seemed like a violation of my First Amendment rights.”
She snorted. “Call a lawyer.”
He slapped his forehead and released her. “That’s brilliant. That’s exactly what I need. Wait. I need to write this down. My female superhero still isn’t right, but this…”
She only smiled. She was used to this by now—him pulling out his phone in a fit of excitement, writing down notes for his comic strip. He was inspiring her as much as she was inspiring him.
“Yes, that works,” he muttered, totally focused on his phone.
She loved to watch him when he was awash in the grip of a creative vision. Time seemed to slow again, and she suddenly wanted him to be by her side for…
Well, forever, she realized. She could see it. Her hand settled over her heart. Too fast, Sadie? Yeah, now you know why. She could see him as a lifelong partner.
“Thank you for that,” he said, pocketing his phone and kissing the corner of her mouth. “You inspire me like none other.”
“I feel the same way.” She wrapped her arms around him. “It makes me a little scared,” she admitted.
“Of what?” he asked.
“Of how much I already feel for you.” She paused, looking into his eyes. “You make me feel like my life is so much bigger than I ever realized. Like there are more textures and colors than I ever imagined possible.”
He took a breath before saying, “I feel the same way. Jess made me feel that way too…when she was born. With you, it’s a little different, but in some ways it’s the same. You know?”
She thought she did. “Yes.”
“To exploring more textures and colors,” Riley said.
And as he leaned in to kiss Sadie, she knew there would come a time very soon when she would want them to explore each other in a new way.
Chapter 10
Sunday mornings were usually quiet around the Thomson house. Riley and Mark didn’t go for a run. Sometimes the Bradshaws were at church, leaving Jess a little rambunctious without her usual partner in crime.
This morning was a bit too quiet though as he set aside his new sketches for his superhero on the kitchen table next to his steaming cup of coffee. Sadie had sparked another idea for him the other night, and he’d decided his superhero’s love interest would be a male lawyer. He liked the idea of the two of them helping people find justice, working together but separately like the stairways in the sculpture he’d brought Sadie to see. He’d shared his early thoughts with his brother, his brainstorming partner since childhood, and Tyler had been excited about it too.
Sadie had unlocked something else for him. He couldn’t stop thinking about the whole “time stopping” thing he felt whenever they were together. He wanted his superhero’s special skills to be related to time, but he wasn’t sure what form that would take yet. Well, he’d figure it out. Of course, he couldn’t ignore that his superhero was starting to resemble Sadie. The same brown-gold eyes, the same angle to her chin… Man, he was falling for her. Like off-the-tallest-building falling. It was probably a good thing they were taking things slow. If and when they made love, he was sure it was going to be powerful.
As Riley wandered through the house, he wondered where in the heck his daughter had gone. He called her name again, but it went unanswered. Not normal.
They’d just finished breakfast and laughed over his superhero-shaped buttermilk pancakes. Then he’d gotten to drawing and lost track of time. Time again, he thought. What a powerful concept.
When he reached the doorway of his office, a hurried scraping sounded before everything went still. He cocked his ear.
“Jess?”
He walked into the room and paused. He strained to hear, and that’s when he caught the faint sound of breathing. What in the hell?
Rounding his desk, he stopped short. His daughter was pressed against his desk on the floor in her nightgown.
“Why are you hiding, young lady?” And in my office, he wanted to add.
“I’m…not hiding,” she said, arranging her nightgown so Rapunzel from Tangled wasn’t marred by wrinkles. His kid hated wrinkles.
“Then what are you doing in here? Jess, I called your name a couple of times and you didn’t answer.”
“I was…ah…trying to help you with your new superhero,” she finished, putting a finger to her face like she was making this up on the spot.
He crouched down onto one knee. “Funny, I was just working on this downstairs. Tell me more.” She’d already told him how much she loved the gold he was using in the superhero’s outfit. Thank you, Sadie.
Her lips moved back and forth, her mind clearly preparing to serve up the biggest fib on the planet. Jess was often imaginative, but this felt different somehow.
“Well, Dad, your super woman is going to need a few more powers if she’s going to…break into houses and find evidence, right?”
“Keep going.”
“I thought one of her powers might be that she could muffle sound,” she said, her green eyes brightening like a light bulb had turned on behind them. “That way no one can hear her.”
He stroked his chin. It wasn’t a bad idea. “How would she do that?”
“Well…she could put a force field around herself,” Jess said, smoothing her nightgown out over her little legs. “That way the sound is contained. Like she’s in her own bubble and nothing can get in or out.”
For a moment he simply stared at his daughter. Is that what you do, baby? Sometimes it seemed like she was always on, but there were other times when she was downright contained. She’d sit in the corner of the couch with her legs tucked under her, a couple of comic books or coloring books at her side, and just stay that way for hours. It made him nervous when she got quiet like that.
“That’s a great idea, Jess,” he said, reaching to pluck her up.
She scooted back and stood her ground in front of him. “I’m going to get dressed.”
He watched as she ran out of the room. Something was wrong. She never stepped away from him. Scanning the space where she’d been hiding, he looked for clues. When he noticed the bottom drawer of his desk wasn’t completely flush against the main desk, his heart clutched in his chest.
