Rose arched an eyebrow.“So—tired from work and practice and mildly skeptical about the playoffs?”
Declan laughed, offering his arm.“Comeon,Coach.Letme feed you something fried and delicious.”
She let him lead her to a table by the window, where the light glinted off the water and the cicadas outside hummed their steadySouthernchorus.
“I wishIcould have come and watched y’all practice today, but the animals were booked solid at my office, andIbarely got out in time to clean up myself.”Hiseyes smiled into hers.
“No worries.”Sheanswered.‘You’dmost likely be a bit bored watching practice.Lot’sof yelling and do-overs on plays.Nothinglike a real game.”
He chucked, and she felt herself relaxing.
“So, you really grew up inCharleston?”she asked, her voice curious but easy.
He nodded, lips quirking up in a half-smile.“Suredid.Bigol’ porch, live oaks with moss hanging like laundry lines, humidity so thick you could slice it with a butter knife.Ofcourse, that part isn’t much different here.Mamaalways had sweet tea in the fridge andMotownplaying on the radio.Thatwas her favorite.Askme to sing the words to any of those songs.Ican do without even thinking about it.”
She laughed.“Thatsounds nice.Wedidn’t have all that here, butPickwickBend’salways had its own rhythm.Slowermaybe.Butsure, and steady.Daddysaid it was the kind of town where everybody knew your name and all your business.Likeall the other small towns.”
He chuckled.“Soundslike home to me.”
She smiled.“Youchose to come here, remember?Nobodymade you.”
He looked out over the river a moment before answering.“Yeah,Idid.Aftervet school,Ihad offers in bigger places—Nashville,Birmingham… even somewhere out inTexas.Butnone of them felt right.IguessIwanted roots.Notto say there aren’t roots inCharleston.Thoseare someverydeep roots there.Butit’s more formal.Youknow?Iwanted a place where folks still wave when they pass you on the road and care if your dog goes missing.PickwickBendhad that.”
“You really came here for the dogs and the wave-smilin’?”
“Not just that,” he said with a grin.“There’ssomething about small towns.Theway they hold onto their stories.Theway people show up for each other.Ifigured ifIwas gonna put down stakes, it should be somewhere that still remembers how to sit on a porch and talk.Plus, on the more practical side, there’s the lake.Andlower taxes and property costs.AndI’mthe only vet in town here.”
She smiled at that.“Well, you picked right.”
He tilted his head.“Whatabout you?Everthink about leaving?”
“Lord, no,” she said, shaking her head.“Imean, sure,I’vewondered what it’d be like to live in a place where you’re not always running into your third-grade teacher or the boy who broke your heart in high school at thePigglyWiggly.ButPickwickBend’sin my bones.Ihave my own house.Andthe coffee shop.Andmy team.Thosegirls?Theydrive me half-crazy, forget their gloves, argue over the lineup—but they’ve got more heart than sense, andIwouldn’t trade them for anything.AndfriendsI’veknown since birth…or at least school.Andas much asIcomplain about everybody knowing everybody’s business, there’s comfort in that.Inknowing there are multiple people who will go out of their way to help me ifIneed it.Justbecause we’re an extended family.Youcan’t get that in the city.”
She paused for breath.“Goodgrief.Listento me going on and on about all this.Youmust be regretting asking me to dinner about now.”
He leaned in, eyes intent on her face, listening.
Not nodding politely or glancing at his phone like most folks did these days—but really listening.Likeher words mattered.Likehe was collecting each one and tucking it away somewhere safe.
It made her pause.Madeher feel seen.
“You’re not just waiting for your turn to talk, are you?”she asked, almost teasing, almost amazed.
“No, ma’am,” he said.“I’mhearing you.”
AndLordhelp her, that might’ve been the rarest thing of all.
Then their catfish arrived, golden and steaming, and giving her the excuse to break eye contact with him.Thiswas getting a little more intense than she’d expected.Sheforked up a mouthful of succulent, tender catfish and almost moaned.Itwas that good.
Declan leaned in and asked, “Whatmade you say yes?”
Rose blinked, coming back to reality at the table.“Todinner?”
He nodded.
She thought about it, and decided honesty was the best policy.“Youasked nicely.AndIfiguredIcould use a distraction.”
He didn’t press.Justsmiled.“Well,IhopeI’ma good one.”
