Page 27 of I Found You (Wilder #1)

I chided his language choice and told him to get back to work. Whatever issue was happening in the Wilder world, Wyatt would solve it. And then he would come to my house and do even more to help out. He deserved someone to do something nice for him for a change.

An idea to plan a casual date night that didn’t feel too much like a date night popped into my head.

He said he wasn’t interested in me when we were at his dad’s house.

It wasn’t like I had forgotten that. It was burned into my memory.

But he had done so much to help me, Jackson, and especially Jane.

It was just going to be dinner. Something small to show my appreciation.

My first thought was to make lasagna because I knew he liked it, but I didn’t have the right noodles, and taking Jane out of the house was a nonstarter.

She still needed all the rest she could get.

Improvising with the ingredients I did have, I decided to make a pasta carbonara with bacon for dinner.

For dessert, we could have a full ice cream bar with all different toppings.

I had a bunch of stuff in stock from an ice cream social I did with my students on the last full day of school.

As for the ice cream itself, my freezer was never in short supply.

Afterward, we could lie on my back porch and look up at the stars, or we could watch a movie.

Typically, Wyatt would get to my house somewhere between six and six thirty. I texted him to see what time he thought he would be today so that I could prepare dinner just in time.

Jane’s temperature remained elevated, and she was doing that heartbreaking moan/cry.

I gave her a bath and changed her out of her sweaty clothes.

She wasn’t going through as many diapers as usual, so I knew I had to keep my eye on her hydration.

Getting her to eat was still a struggle, but she was eating, which was the most important thing.

I kept checking my phone, but Wyatt hadn’t responded to my message. He was at work though. I couldn’t expect him to drop everything just to text me back. And besides, he probably didn’t even know what time he would be over.

The next time Jane was sleeping, I took the opportunity to jump in the shower.

I must have picked up and tried on six different dresses as I was getting ready, settling on an aqua-colored, body-hugging dress that accentuated my curves.

My nerves were sky-high, even though Wyatt came by my house almost every night.

He knew what I looked like, for better or worse.

He knew my cooking skills. There was nothing about tonight that would be any different for him.

But I was building this up so much in my head my hands were clammy, and my belly felt like it was trying to take flight.

By five thirty, there was still no response from Wyatt, so I decided to just start making the meal. That way, it would be ready for six if he showed up on the earlier side. If I had to rewarm it, I could.

Once dinner was prepared and there was still no sign of Wyatt after another thirty minutes, I decided to text him. The last thing I wanted to do was come across as clingy, but it wasn’t like him to not return my texts all day.

Me: Hey, just checking in. Are you still planning on coming by today?

I was too restless to sit around waiting, so I set the dining room table, taking time to find a candle for the center that didn’t look too over-the-top.

At least, I hoped not. When that was done, I put the ice cream bar together, setting up the toppings in little dishes across the breakfast bar counter, adding a few different syrup choices as well.

After, I arranged the blankets outside on the back porch, along with some pillows and a bottle of wine.

Time was passing far too slowly and far too fast simultaneously. Every time I looked at the clock and another ten or fifteen minutes had passed, it seemed like an eternity, but I also wanted to stop time in its place until Wyatt got here.

I fed and changed Jane again, getting her ready for her long sleep, and more time passed without word from Wyatt. Jane had been sleeping so much throughout the day I was afraid she would be difficult to put down to bed, but she knocked right out, her body working overtime to fight this virus.

Taking the baby monitor with me, I went to the back porch for some fresh air.

There was a misty drizzle coming down, but the temperature was warm.

The bottle of wine was calling to me, and seeing as it was past nine o’clock at this point, I figured I might as well pour a glass.

I took it inside with me, seeing as I would need to clean up the kitchen shortly, but I didn’t have it in me to do it right now.

It was probably for the best that he didn’t show.

This had been a colossally bad idea anyway.

What was he going to think walking in here to a prepared meal, full dessert bar, candle on the dining room table?

He would probably want to run from the crazy lady who was clearly becoming obsessed with him.