‘I don’t think my legs will hold me up after that.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got you. Now and always.” He kisses me breathless before we head to the shower.
“Are you sure I look all right?” I ask for the umpteenth time tugging on my purple top.
“You look beautiful,” he murmurs as he squeezes my ass., one hand pushing the stroller Colby occupies. Thank god no one can see us yet.
“Once we’re back there, you keep your hands to yourself. I don’t want them thinking I’m some nympho.”
“But you are,” he chuckles. “I’ll do my best to keep my hands off that luscious body. No promises.”
“Oh boy,” I mutter as we walk around the house to the pool area. Immediately I see Kristen and Mallory sitting on chairs with drinks on the table. The black smoker is rolling out smoke as the scent of barbequed meat fills the air.
“Hello, you three,” Vi calls out from behind us. “Skylar, it’s wonderful to see you again.” She pulls me into a hug before turning to Brett and giving him one. “Give me the baby,” she orders with a smile. Brett laughs as he unbuckles the belts holding Colby in.
“He’s gotten heavier, Vi,” he warns before handing him over.
“Wigglier too,” she laughs out as Colby tries to get down. “We put the fence up around the pool, so we don’t have to worry about him falling in. I know that the cover is supposed to hold the weight of an elephant or something silly like that, but I didn’t want to take any chances.”
“We appreciate that,” I smile. “Do I need to take these in the house?” I motion to the pies I’m carrying.
“You didn’t have to bring anything but I’m glad you did. It looks delicious. Brett can take them in the house while you come sit with me.” She turns away expecting me to follow. I look up at Brett helpless.
“It’ll be okay. Vi is a wonderful woman.” Swallowing down my insecurities I trail behind her to sit in a chair under the oak tree.
“How is work going, Skylar? Are you settling in?” she asks, bouncing Colby on her knee.
“Yes, ma’am. I love my job but it’s even better when I have great co-workers.” Colby looks at me when he hears my voice, his four teeth shining when he grins.
“Babada,” he gurgles leaning toward me. Vi does a leg drop making him laugh and refocus on her.
“I’m going to be straight with you, Skylar,” Vi begins and my stomach drops. “Brett is like a son to me and I keep his best interests at heart.”
“He’s told me you took him in and raised him after his parents died. He speaks highly of you.
“Thank you for that. I was very worried about Brett for a long time after he and Kristen broke up. Add that she ended up falling for my other son and I wasn’t sure what would happen. He was on a downward spiral which frankly scared the hell out of me. He wised up and quit drinking so much. Colby is a blessing and made him grow up but you, my dear, may be the best thing that ever happened to him. And I thank God every day you came into his life. I'm proud to add you to this family as another daughter."
My breath hitches in my chest as tears spill over my lashes.
“Thank you,” I whisper. “You have no idea how much that means to me. When I moved here, someone broke me much like Brett but we're putting our pieces back to together.”
“Have you told him you love him yet? Because he’s sure in love with you,” she remarks with a smirk.
I feel my jaw drop at her admission before glancing in Brett's direction. He's standing with his friends talking but his eyes are focused on us.
“I haven't told him yet. it's a big step and I'm not sure I'm ready.” My words shake with my admission.
“Being the first one to admit it takes courage and neither one of you are cowards. I bet my diamond ring that he hasn't said anything because he doesn't want to scare you off.”
"Fat chance," I chuckle. "And this little guy squirmed his way into my heart to."
"Babies will do that for you."
A commotion grabs our attention as Camryn and Isaac join the rest of the group. My heart does a little pitter-patter when I see the man clutching his daughter close like she's the most precious thing in the world. To him she is. The smile Camryn bestows upon them is the epitome of true love.
"Can I have your attention?" Isaac's voice booms across the yard. "Since y'all are family, we wanted you to be the first to know. I've asked this wonderful woman to become my wife, and she said yes." A cheer rises from the crowd. Camryn lifts her hand in front of her showing the massive diamond ring now placed on her finger. Mallory and Kristen jump up and down and clap their hands in glee.
“Good grief, Camryn. What did you to do that for?” Jason razzes.
“Hey,” Isaac retorts. “I'm a great catch.”
Everyone laughs as they congratulate the couple. The celebrating commences with food, drink, and laughter. A little later the girls and I are sitting around the table looking over wedding ideas on phones and tablets. Mallory becomes absorbed in the wedding dresses while Kristen and I are looking at venues.
"Are you wanting a big wedding or a little one?” I ask when I recall that one girl I went to high school with opened a wedding venue in Whiskey Bend Oklahoma.
“Small, definitely. I don't want to turn this into a media circus.”
I search for the town on the internet and her website pops up. I click on the link with the photos marveling at the beauty of the place. The luxurious log cabins surrounded by a forest. The lake with an island as a backdrop.
“How about something like this? “I ask turning the tablet around to show her the pictures of the gorgeous log building.
“That is amazing,” she gushes. “Where is this?”
“It's a small town it’s south of Oklahoma. Not too far of a drive from here I don't think.” I scroll through the pictures and add, "There are a bunch of cabins to stay in.”
“Kristen, mark that down so we can look at it again later, but it looks perfect,” she squeals.
Day has waned into night as everyone heads home. I cuddle Colby close as his eyes drift closed, a yawn stretching his face.
“You ready to head home, babe?” Brett asks coming up behind me and laying his hand on Colby's head.
I glance up at him and all I can see is the love shining in his eyes. How the hell have I missed that?
“Yeah it's time to go home,” I reply knowing home is anywhere with him.
“You okay?”
“I couldn't be better. I think I finally figured out what home is.” I grab a handful of his shirt and pull him toward me pressing my lips to his.
His thumb traces my cheekbone. “I love you, Skylar.” My heart stops when he whispers the words. Until that moment I didn't know how much I needed to hear them.
“I love you too,” I murmur back.
16
Brett
Still high off Skylar telling me she loves me, I’m whistling in the kitchen as I flip over the pancakes. The higher I toss a cake in the air, the more Colby laughs. How did I not notice he wasn’t talking before when his laugh is contagious? When I try a spin move, the cake lands on the counter with a plop before sliding off the side to the tile floor.
“Let’s keep that one to ourselves, okay Colby?” I ask, cleaning up the mess.
“What are you two up to this morning?” Skylar asks, walking into the kitchen while wrapping her hair in a knot on her head. As usual, she’s wearing my t-shirt and damn if it’s not the sexiest damn thing.
“We’re making you breakfast, aren’t we, little man?” When Colby bangs the whisk against his highchair and screams out “baba DaDa” I freeze in my tracks.
“Did he say what I think he did?” I whisper and look to Sky, her hand covering her mouth, tears spilling over her lower lashes while she nods.
“Dada, dada, dada,” I glance over my shoulder to see his arms outstretched towards me as he repeats the words. I can’t get him out of the chair fast enough and hug him. I guess it's not enough
attention as he wraps his little hands in my short goatee and tugs.
“Love you, Colby,” my voice shakes with emotions.
“Dada,” he says before burrowing his head under my chin.
“I’ll finish these up. Why don’t you two go play for a little while?” Sky suggests.
Just as we’re getting into a good game of block stacking, my cell phone rings, too early on a Sunday morning for my friends to call.
“Hello.”
“Good morning, may I speak with Brett Ingles please?” An emotionless voice carries through the speaker.
“Speaking.”
“Mr. Ingles, my name is James Glass. I’m Mrs. Lexington’s attorney. Mrs. Lexington instructed me to let you know when she passed. I regret to inform you she expired in her sleep last night.” I swallow hard when he speaks the words I knew it was coming but I'm not prepared for it to be this soon. Colby and I have talked to her every day since she left to go back to Connecticut last month as her physician suggested.
“I’m sorry to hear that. When will the funeral be?”
“Tuesday. The wake will be tomorrow night,” he intones.
“Thank you, we will be there.”
“We also will have the reading of the will. Will Tuesday evening be convenient for you or would you prefer another time?”
“Tuesday will work just fine. That way we can fly back Wednesday morning.”
“Very good. I will send you the contact information for my office. Good day.” He hangs up and I can almost imagine him sneering when he does.
“Who was that?” Skylar asks, wiping her hands on a towel as she walks into the room. “Breakfast is ready.”
“Ready to eat, Colby?” I pick him up off the floor heading for the kitchen.
“You know he will need a bath after this right?”
“Huh?”
“Syrup, Brett. He’ll be sticky from head to toe.” She laughs at my confused expression.
Putting him in his high chair, his eyes light up when Skylar places the cut-up pancakes in front of him, hands digging in before he stuffs it in his mouth.
“I see what you mean,” I mumble.
“So, who called?” she asks, cutting up the golden-brown cake, before spearing a piece with her fork.
“It was Mrs. Lexington’s attorney.” Sky pauses with the fork halfway to her mouth and looks at me. “She passed away in the night.”
“Oh Brett, I’m sorry. I know that you were fond of her.”
“Yeah,” I clear my throat. “I wasn’t expecting her to pass this soon.”
“When is the funeral?” she asks before taking a bite.
“Tuesday, the visitation is tomorrow night.”
“I’ll call my boss, but it shouldn’t be a problem with work. Will we come back Tuesday?”
“Wednesday. You want to come?” I ask, flabbergasted knowing she had never met the woman.
“Of course. That what you do when you love someone.” The look she shoots me might as well call me an idiot.
“Thank you. I’ll get the flight booked,” I glance over at Colby as he steadily shovels food onto his face. “What about him? Does he need a ticket?”
“There should be a policy on the website or you can call the airline and ask. I would say yes because he would need his car seat to sit in.”
“That makes sense,” I reply before shoveling the pancakes into my mouth.
Once her plate is empty, she cleans up and grabs Colby out of his chair.
“I’ll get him cleaned up while you call,” she states settling him on her hip. His sticky hand pats her on the chest and she grimace.
“I may need one too,” she groans pulling his hand away.
“I’ll hurry so you can shower,” I laugh at her when she sticks her tongue out at me. “Don’t stick it out if you don’t intend to use it,” I warn.
“Who says I’m not?” she smirks before carrying Colby out of the kitchen.
I ended up buying three first-class tickets for our flight to LaGuardia Airport. Since we’re only staying two nights, Skylar and I packed light. Traveling with a toddler is a whole different story. Thank God he gets his own carry-on bag. Skylar scoured the internet for tips on traveling with a toddler to keep him from having a meltdown mid-flight. Getting through security was hell but finally, we made it inside the plane. Take off was an interesting experience when our ears popped with the altitude change and I could see Colby gearing up for a good cry. But Skylar saved the day. I’m not sure what she did but within a few minutes of takeoff, Colby was sitting in her lap, paging through his book as she read to him.
Now he’s asleep in my arms as we begin our descent into New York. Hopefully, the car I reserved will be here and waiting. The wheels touch down with a thump as we taxi to the terminal.
"Mr. Ingles,” the flight attendant appears beside me. “We will let you get off first if that’s all right with you. And can I say your little boy has been one of the most well-behaved children I’ve ever had the experience to fly with.”
“Thank you, but it was all her doing,” I say motioning to Skylar. “I hope our flight home is as easy as this one.”
The seatbelt sign turns off and Skylar takes Colby from me, the boy never twitches a muscle. Opening the upper compartment, I take down all of our bags after I unlatch the car seat from the other chair. An older gentleman grumbles behind me but shuts up quickly when I stare at him. Skylar relieves me of one bag as I make my way down the aisle trying not to clock anyone in the back of the head with Colby’s seat. Once we make it outside of baggage claim, a dark-suited gentleman is standing there with my name on a placard.
“I’m Brett.”
“Good afternoon, sir. I’m Bernard and I’ll be your driver for the next two days. Let me relieve you of those bags and we will be on our way.” Once inside the Suburban, I buckle Colby into his seat, the side of his face red from where he’s been laying on Skylar’s shoulder, dark hair sticking up in disarray.
“It’ll take us about an hour to get to the hotel, Mr. Ingles,” Bernard informs us from the front seat, his eyes connecting with mine in the rearview mirror.
“Thank you, Bernard,” I reply watching the people walking in and out of the airport as we pull away from the curb. Colby pats me on the hand to get my attention and I’m glad he woke up or he’ll never sleep tonight. I glance at Skylar to see her staring out the side window in awe. I hate that her first time in New York will be too quick to see the sites.
“We’ll come back another time and see Times Square and the Statue of Liberty,” I state, squeezing her hand.
“We’re not here for a pleasure trip, Brett, I know that. But I’d love to come back with you sometime to see it all.”
A short while later, Bernard pulls the SUV into the drive of the Hyatt hotel. The bellman takes all of our bags and the car seat making it much easier for us to get inside. Within minutes, we’re checked in and on our way to the suite. I had asked that all the breakable things be removed from the room before our arrival, so Colby could roam freely without us have to hover over him constantly. As soon as we enter, Colby is wiggling his little body to get down and explore. Skylar carries him further into the room, placing him on the floor before sitting down on the couch. He pulls himself up and takes off on wobbly legs toward the other room.
“Your turn,” Skylar murmurs sleepily from the couch. With a grin, I take off after my son.
The funeral is a solemn affair as Skylar and I sit in the back row. The lady sitting in the pew across from us stares before sneering at Colby as if his presence offends her. Too damn bad, lady, I want to tell her. That’s his great-grandmother lying in that casket.
“Quit giving her that look,” Skylar squeezes my arm as she whispers. “The old shrew may try to get us thrown out.”
“I’d like to see her try.”
The priest begins the service, his monotone voice putting me near to sleep. He exalts Mrs. Lexington’s deeds and accomplishments, and her philanthropic contr
ibutions to several charities. No one in the building is shedding a tear as far as I can see, but Colby is her last living relative and he’s too young to understand. I bet everyone in the audience is a business acquaintance or a member of the same charities she was on. No one cares that this wonderful woman has passed except they may financially benefit from the loss.
The drive to the graveyard service is made in silence, even Colby doesn’t make a peep. Skylar sits down with Colby in her lap as I stand guard behind them as the priest prays for her soul, the casket slowly lowering into the ground. A flash of red catches my attention and I look across the sea of faces until I stop on one I never wanted to see again. Candy. She’s staring right at me with a predatory smile on her cruel face. My body tenses, hands tightening on the chair until it squeaks with the pressure.
“What is it?” Skylar asks, looking up at me. She follows my gaze then hers darts back. “Who is that? Do you know her?”
“You could say that,” I bite out not letting the evil woman out of my sight. Candy’s eyes fall to Skylar and Colby. They widen in shock before her red lips draw up in a sneer.
“Oh God, is that her?” Skylar asks, hugging Colby closer to her as if she needs to protect him.
“Yeah, it’s her.”
“What do we do?”
“Nothing just ignore her. I won’t let her hurt you or Colby. I promise. We should finish soon, and we’ll head back to the hotel. It’s a couple of hours before I have to meet with the lawyer,” I whisper.
As soon as he recites the last prayer, we rise quickly and move to the waiting SUV, Bernard standing at the ready as if he’s sensed the urgency we have to get the hell out of there.
“What do you think she was doing here?” Skylar asks, looking out the window before turning. “From what I read in the diary, Amanda’s grandmother wasn’t fond of her.”
“Maybe she was expected to be there, I don’t know. We’ll get this taken care of today and head home tomorrow and she’ll be out of our lives for good.” I lean over and kiss her head, Colby reaching for my tie to get his.
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