Page 42 of When I Should’ve Stayed (Red Bridge #2)

Clay

“Breezy, remind me to get a restraining order on you after this dinner is through,” Bennett grumbles as he stands in the kitchen, taking in the view that is half of the whole town in his living room. “You’re never allowed in my house again.”

Breezy laughs, her black hair swishing back and forth with each tickled chuckle.

“Get over yourself, Ben. I did this because I knew Summer would love it. Our girl is a social butterfly, and what better way to let her spread her wings than to have a house full of people who love and adore her on Thanksgiving.”

A barely there smile crests my buddy’s lips when he witnesses Summer giggling over funny faces that Pete Peeler and Reverend Bob are making at her.

She waddles toward them, her determined strides only slowed down by the two metal braces keeping her knees and ankles stable.

A peal of giggles leaves her lips when the sheriff and reverend hide their faces from her.

“More silly!” she squeals through her chubby toddler cheeks. “More silly!”

Pete sticks out his tongue. Reverend Bob turns his face into a blowfish. Summer cracks up even more. Charlie, a nurse Bennett recently hired to help out during the day, encourages Summer to sit down in a chair beside the two men.

It’s an intentional move, one born from knowing Summer’s condition and the fact that too much movement puts her at risk for fractures.

But the calm demeanor with which Charlie handles it all makes it clear why Bennett hired her.

It took him months to find the right person.

Lots of grumpy Bennett meltdowns and lots of nurses getting fired for not taking care of his girl the way he wanted.

But the day Charlie came into their life, she was an instant fit, and even I noticed a slight change in my buddy’s mood. He’s still a grouch, still a grumbling pain in the ass, but some weight has been lifted off his shoulders.

It’s known that toddlers are…difficult. But a toddler who wants to move and run and play but has to be told to sit down and rest because her body depends on it? That’s a whole other level of challenging.

“Here, honey,” Charlie says. “Sit down.”

“No sit!” Summer squeals, but it’s not out of anger or frustration. Her tiny voice is only filled with fun and joy. “More silly!” She points at Pete. “More silly!”

Charlie finds a way to get Summer to sit in her lap. A discreet move that avoids a temper tantrum, keeps Summer smiling, and proves Charlie’s worth her weight in gold.

Pete and Reverend Bob keep entertaining Summer, and Ben watches on with nothing but love in his eyes.

I’ve known this guy my whole life, but I’ve never seen him look at another person the way he looks at his daughter.

It’s an unconditional love. A love that turns my asshole buddy into a big-ass teddy bear.

I look across the room to where Josie chats with Camille, a fellow waitress at the diner.

They’re both laughing about something, their eyes fixated on their boss Harold Metcalf.

He’s a goofy fucker and is currently dressed in his Sunday best—suit and tie—but his pants might as well be belted to his neck with how damn high he’s wearing them.

Camille whispers something toward Josie, and my wife’s head whips back in hilarity. I have no idea what she said or what Josie finds so funny, but I know, with every ounce of my being, I have never loved another human being the way I love her.

She’s everything to me.

And fuck, things have been rough since we got married. Since Rose died. The first month and a half, Josie’s grief was palpable. She was a shell of herself. Barely eating. Barely sleeping. Just surviving.

But the last two weeks, something has changed. There’s a light in her eyes. Her smiles come more often. She actually lets herself laugh. She’s still grieving, yes, but it feels like she’s starting to live again.

I’m ready for her to officially move in with me so we can start the rest of our lives, but I have to remind myself to be patient. Life is a cycle of seasons, and soon enough, another will come.

“Everyone!” Breezy calls toward the living room. “Dinner is served! Grab a plate, help yourself to the delicious food that Chef Julian made for us today, and head into the dining room to enjoy!”

Pete and Reverend Bob are the first hungry bastards in line, followed by Harold and his high-waist trousers. Charlie starts to carry a chatty Summer into the dining room to sit her in her high chair, but Josie stops her halfway there.

“Let me take this little cutie,” Josie says and pulls Summer into her arms.

Summer smiles and giggles, and Josie presses soft kisses to her cheek. “You ready to eat, sweet girl?”

“Cookie!” Summer exclaims. “Wanna cookie!”

Josie just grins. “Turkey first, then cookie, okay?”

“No cookie?” Summer asks, her eyes fixated on Josie’s face as she tries to understand why in the hell anyone would refuse her a cookie at any point of the day.

Josie shakes her head. “Turkey first.”

“But cookie? I wanna cookie.” A pout forms on her little pink mouth, and her big blue eyes turn wide and doe-like. It’s a look we’ve all experienced, and it’s a look that I’m not sure anyone can deny when it comes to Summer.

Josie looks around the room, no doubt looking to see if Bennett is paying attention.

He’s too busy grumbling to Breezy about there being too much food and Breezy telling him there’s so much food because there are so many people and then Bennett telling her there are too many fucking people too, to notice Josie’s dilemma.

I, on the other hand, have noticed.

Josie whispers something in Summer’s ear, and Summer nods. She even lifts one tiny finger up to her lips and makes a shushing sound.

And Josie, the little turncoat, discreetly walks behind Bennett and Breezy and sneaks two cookies from a tray that sits on a table by the other desserts Breezy picked up from Melba’s bakery yesterday.

And when the two sneaks head toward the dining room while everyone else is getting their food, I don’t hesitate to follow their lead.

“Whatcha doing?” I ask when I close the distance. Both Josie’s and Summer’s backs are toward me, and a few giggles escape both of their lips.

Eventually, Josie slowly turns them around. “Just looking out the window.”

“You want me to pull the blinds up so you can actually see out the window?” I ask, raising my eyebrows in a challenge.

“Nah.” Josie shakes her head. “We like to use our imaginations about what could be out the window. It’s a whole fun game we do.”

“Oh yeah?” I look at Summer. “And what are you imagining right now, sweetie?”

“Cookie.”

“You want a cookie?” I ask and Josie tries to make a shushing sound toward Summer, but the little sweetheart is too honest for my wife’s own good.

“Ate cookie. Secret. Shooooooosh .”

“Did Josie eat a cookie too?”

“Uh-huh.” Summer nods. “ Shooooooosh. Secret.”

I look at my wife, who is now smiling and rolling her eyes at me. “And what do you have to say about this big revelation?”

“That you should stop being such a killjoy and let us girls have some secret fun.”

I grin at that. And lean forward to press a kiss to Josie’s lips. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Kisses!” Summer squeals. “I wanna kisses!”

Both Josie and I playfully kiss the air over Summer’s cute cherub cheeks, and Summer giggles and snorts the whole time. Now that her bones are breaking more often, we have to be especially careful with our affection.

And when Josie puts Summer in her high chair, the only thing I can think about is how I can’t wait for the day when I get to see Josie be a mother to our babies.

Mine and hers. The thought surprises the hell out of me.

And honestly, it makes me realize that we’ve never actually talked about if we want kids or not.

One step at a time, Clay, I remind myself silently. For now, just enjoy your wife.