I left him alone with his thoughts and his remorse.
Tessa wasn’t there when I went back inside and neither she nor Elle came back during the remaining hours of the reception. When everyone had left, I had to force Becky to stop cleaning up, gesturing to a nearly passed out Aiden.
“Take him home,” I told her. “I’ll finish up here.”
Becky glanced at her son, biting her bottom lip guiltily. I knew she felt bad that Braden had taken off without a word to either one of us. He hadn’t bothered to come back in for the rest of it. I wasn’t exactly surprised, but I knew Becky was worrying herself sick.
“Thanks, Brock.” She sighed, giving me a tight smile that didn’t reach her eyes. She grabbed her purse and picked up Aiden in her arms. His head lolled against her shoulder, his eyes barely opening at the disruption.
I finished packing away all the food and folded up all the linens. I carried everything out to my truck, including all of the table arrangements and walked back into the bar for one last check. Everything seemed to be back to normal; Mick was behind the bar, preparing for another dart competition night.
I stepped up to the bar, pressing my palms against the smooth wood. “Thanks, Mick. For letting us have the reception here.”
“No problem.” Mick waved away my words with a rough smile. “It was my pleasure. See you around, kid.”
I nodded, tapping my hands against the bar once before I pushed off. I headed to my trailer, feeling a little guilty for the number of times I’d had to leave Hunter over the last week.
I pulled up into the driveway, seeing the old Ford parked in front of the cabin, an easy smile lifting the corners of my lips at the sight of her. She was sitting on the picnic table, throwing a tennis ball for Hunter as I drove up.
Catching sight of me, Hunter forgot all about the ball. He bolted over to me, almost knocking me over when I climbed out of the cab. I gave him some overdue attention, rubbing his sides and scratching his belly when he finally rolled over onto his back.
“We’ve been entertaining ourselves,” Tessa told me, suppressing a smile.
“I see that.” I grinned, straightening up. I stepped around Hunter and made my way over to her, intent on kissing her like I hadn’t kissed her in days. I had kissed her, but not the way I’d wanted to. I’d had to be careful, reserved and respectful. Tessa stood up, walking toward me with a heated look in those amber eyes.
I grabbed her ass, pulling her tight against me as I kissed her in a way that would have made Pastor Bruce pass out. I just wanted to dive into her and disappear. She kissed me back, nipping at my bottom lip and sighing against my mouth. She pulled away, giving me a playful look. “Just so you know, I came here because I wanted to invite you over for dinner on Sunday.”
“Dinner?” I repeated, frowning. I knew her brothers had eased up about us seeing each other, but I didn’t think her dad had done the same.
“Yeah, my dad and I had a nice little chat this afternoon and he’s willing to give you a chance.”
“How’d you manage that one?” I asked skeptically, figuring it was some kind of trap.
“I think his main issue has always been me getting hurt by you. I told him he can’t protect me from every bad thing that may come my way and there are things I’m just going to have to experience myself. I also think he was worried I’d bail on my college plans and stay home, but I told him that wasn’t going to happen and he eased up a lot.” She shrugged, biting her lip.
I brought my hand up, gently freeing her bottom lip from her teeth. “I’m not going to hurt you,” I told her.
“I know that,” she whispered, looking up at me with her eyes wide with vulnerability. “I’m not sure how I know that, but I do.”
I smiled, framing her face with both my hands. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all that you’ve done this past week,” I told her, swallowing hard. “You’ve made this whole process a thousand times more bearable than I ever thought it could be. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she whispered as my lips descended upon hers.
The End
J.C. Hannigan lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband, their two sons and their dog.
She writes contemporary new adult romance and suspense. Her novels focus on relationships, mental health, social issues, and other life challenges.
Facebook: http://facebook.com/jcahannigan
Twitter: www.twiter.com/jcahannigan
Website: www.jchannigan.com
Collide Series
Collide
Consumed
Collateral
Damaged Series
Damaged Goods
Reckless Abandon
Rebel Soul: (Rebel Series Book 1) ((Rebel Series)) Page 25
