The sun beats down as I plant my apple tree. The section I cut will hopefully take, and now all I need is the wildflowers. I stand to stretch out my back, just as I hear Sutton’s truck drive slowly up to the cottage.
“Hey, you.” He jumps out, walking straight to me with purpose, his lips eagerly hitting mine in greeting.
Smiling, I speak against his lips. “Hey. What a nice greeting.” I lean in for another kiss, pulling back when my brother walks out from inside. “James has the deck of cards ready.”
“Well… Kevin won baseball today, so Sawyer told him he could have some friends over tonight. He was hoping that James wanted to sleep over. Sawyer said he’s happy to return the babysitting duties after we watched them the other week.” Sutton searches my face as I take in what he’s saying.
My heart stalls. It’s not that I don’t trust Sawyer with my brother. I mean, the house is secure, and he’s a lawyer. But I’m not sure I’m ready to be apart from him. Especially when we did so much to ensure his safety.
“Oh yes! Please? Please, please, please?” My brother never begs.
“I… ah…” I feel a little lost in this decision. I know my brother wants to go, and deep down, I know he’ll be safe and it’ll be good for him. But my heart feels like it’s going to sink down to my toes.
“I thought we might drop him off now, leave him for a few hours, and if you don’t want him to sleep over, then we can go pick him back up before it gets too late.”
It’s late afternoon, dusk fast approaching, but I take a deep breath. I need to trust him; he just gave me the perfect compromise.
“I guess he could go for dinner and a movie and see how it goes.” I’m happy with that. I mentally note to thank Sutton for helping ease me into it.
“I’m packing my bag, just in case. I want to sleep over. Kevin’s dad does these cool pancakes for breakfast that are amazing…”
James is giddy, already running back into the house to pack an overnight bag, and I breathe out any remaining fear, rolling my head on my shoulders. How in the world do moms let go of their kids when they’re old enough?
“He’ll be fine, you know that, right? Sawyer has gates, security, and both he and Annabelle will be home with the boys. I don’t know what you’re hiding from, but I’ve hidden with Sawyer for months, and no one has found me.” Sutton’s hands land on my waist as he looks down at me, concern etched into his brow.
“I know. It’s just…” I can’t even explain it.
“It’s hard. I get it. When you love someone so deeply that you’ll do anything to protect them. I understand. And I’m proud of you for letting him go, at least for a little while.” He kisses my forehead, then whispers against my ear, “Sooooo, while James is with the boys, I have somewhere I thought we could go.”
My eyebrows rise. “Like a date?” We haven’t really been on a date.
“Mm-hmm, like a date. But one where no one will ever find us.” He grins down at me, speaking in riddles, and I’m already intrigued.
I chuckle, feeling a little giddy.
“You want to grab a change of clothes?” Sutton asks, which has me tilting my head in question.
“What will I need?”
“Well, we’ll be outside, so some warm clothes for later might be good.”
“Okay…” It’s been a long time since someone surprised me, so I’m not asking any more questions.
“Hop to it, woman.” He slaps my ass, and I squeal as I run inside, packing a small bag with a sweater and jeans, having no idea where we’re going.
Once we drop James off at Sawyer’s, we’re back on the road, but not for long. His truck pulls up to Marie’s place a few minutes later. No lights are on, so I’m assuming no one’s here. Marie’s place is next door to the distillery on Distillery Drive. A small accommodation place that Tanner and Victoria own.
“What are we doing here? Are we allowed here?” I whisper like we’re robbers, and Sutton laughs.
“Don’t worry. Tanner knows we’re here. Come on.” He grabs our bags from the back of the truck, then comes to my door to take my hand and help me out, leading me into the fields.
“Do you know where you’re going?” I look around, the sun hanging low. The afternoon glow spreads across the fields, giving an array of yellow and orange and a touch of pink to the sky. It’s beautiful.
“Not a clue, but Tanner gave directions.” Sutton’s deep in concentration as he leads me down a dirt path.
“To where?” I stop short behind him when he stalls. As I look up, my breath catches.
“Wow…” I’m immediately mesmerized.
