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“How do you think? Our moms were going on and on about it at dinner tonight. How the three of you are like a happy family now and all their dreams are coming true. I came out here to make sure this is still fake because it seems awfully real now.”
I look over at Langston, and he meets my gaze. Langston turns back to Ronnie. “You’re right. It is real. I don’t want to lose my friendship with you, Ronnie, but I can’t stay away from Jenni either. Not when I feel this strongly about her.”
Take my breath away already, Langston. Hearing him stick up for us like that makes me want him all the more.
“What?” Ronnie’s voice is menacing and seems a little shocked that his hunch was correct. “You promised this was going to be fake, Langston. I told you not to mess with my sister, and you did exactly the opposite.”
“Hey, I’m not messing with her. I’m treating her with the respect she deserves.”
“The same respect you gave me when you stole Amanda away from me?”
“I can’t change the past, Ronnie,” Langston says. “And keep your voice down. Hayden is right in that tent. I don’t want you yelling stuff about his mom in front of him.”
“Ronnie, there’s nothing wrong with Langston. And if you like him so much, then why shouldn’t I be allowed to date him?” I don’t intend to let things go too far with Langston, but that should be my choice, not Ronnie’s. It has nothing to do with him.
“Langston took Amanda from me. What’s to say he won’t betray you in the end too?”
“That was a long time ago, Ronnie. Why can’t you just forgive and forget?” I ask.
Ronnie crosses his arms and glares at Langston stubbornly. “If you don’t stay away from my sister, we’re through.” He gets up, clicks on his flashlight, and heads down the path toward home.
Once he’s out of earshot, Langston says in a lowered voice, “If Ronnie wants to alienate himself from us, then so be it. I’m not going to let him come between us.” Langston takes my hand. “We just need to keep working on him. He’ll come around when he realizes he can’t change our minds.”
“I agree. He’s just being hardheaded right now.”
Langston’s eyes soften. “You’re worth fighting for.”
My chest grows warm at his words. “I don’t deserve a guy as great as you. I don’t care about what happened between you and Ronnie. It was almost a decade ago. Who cares?”
Langston gives a little laugh. “Ronnie apparently.”
I grin. “Ronnie just needs a girl of his own. He won’t care nearly as much if he has a wife bossing him around. The guy has too much time on his hands.”
“You’re getting to be as bad as my mom,” Langston says.
“I think she’s been a bad influence on me,” I joke.
He takes my hands in his and rubs his thumbs over the backs of my hands. “She convinced you I was worth dating—or whatever this is between us.”
“No, you convinced me of that all on your own.”
He lets go of my hands and brushes my hair back from my face before kissing me. It’s short and sweet, and he pulls back, keeping his gaze on mine.
“I like whatever this is between us,” I whisper.
“I have to admit, it’s a lot stronger than I thought it might be. I thought we’d just be having this silly fake dating thing, but I’m falling for you hard, Jenni.”
My pulse speeds up as I take in the tender look in his eyes. I can see the love and adoration shining through them.Love?Is that what I’m seeing?
It certainly feels like what I’m experiencing. I’ve known Langston for so long, always secretly admired his outward appearance and laughed with him over the years. He’s almost been like family. But never quite. I’ve always been acutely aware of how attractive he is. How could I not be? But now? It’s only been just over a week that we’ve been fake dating, and it already feels so real. Maybe it’s been there, under the surface all this time. But I can’t hide it any longer, and I don’t want to.
“I’ve already fallen, Langston. I’ve never felt like this before, and it’s scary and exciting all at the same time.”
“I want to build a life with you,” he says. “The whole nine yards, marriage, a whole houseful of kids. You’re so good with Hayden. You’ll make such a great mom one day.”
A whole houseful of kids? That could be a possibility if we have foster children, but I don’t think that’s what Langston has in mind. I’ve come to accept my fate and am excited about my little dream of being a foster mom, but will that be enough for Langston? With Hayden, he missed out on those first eight years. Amanda took that away from him, but I can’t take it from him too.
I shake my head. “I don’t think I can.”