Details clicked in his mind at the name. Eric Thornton was one of the local police officers he’d met when he was here on protection duty. He’d only met the man once. Well, maybe more than that if you counted the times he’d come by while Peter was in the hospital, but his memories of the days immediately following his accident were hazy. He’d also never seen the officer out of uniform. No wonder he hadn’t been able to place him.
“I’m honored. I will have to check my schedule though.”
“There’s no pressure. It’ll be a very simple ceremony and casual reception, but we chose an outdoor venue with plenty of room.”
“Considering you’ve practically invited the whole town, that’s kind of a necessity,” Bryce said, his tone making it obvious he was teasing.
Allye shrugged. “Some brides want an expensive dress or the perfect setup. I just want the people I care about there.”
“Which is everyone,” Eric noted dryly.
The whole group chuckled, and Peter felt himself relax as they moved to join Hailey and the younger members of their party in the kitchen. He was going to enjoy this afternoon.
A COUPLE OFHOURS LATER, Hailey pulled away from Peter’s bungalow and pointed her SUV toward home. She could have askedsomeone who lived in town to drop him off on their way home, but she’d seen his exhaustion beginning to set in. Between his recent concussion and night-shift schedule, the man had to be running on fumes. Corina and Allye had readily agreed to keep an eye on Jenna for the fifteen or so minutes it would take to get to Peter’s house and back.
Now she had a few moments to herself to breathe before reentering the chaos that was her house at the moment. She loved her family. And the chaos. And the kids. In fact, she’d once hoped she and Wesley would have several. But that didn’t mean the noise on get-together weeks wasn’t a bit overwhelming when most of the time it was just her, Jenna, and Maggie at home.
Back at the house, she pulled her SUV behind the other two cars. They’d left her enough space to get into the garage, but she wanted to give the paint a bit more time to cure before she raised the door. She could still see the faint shadow of the spray-painted words beneath it, but no one else had mentioned it, so hopefully that meant they hadn’t noticed.
When she reentered the house, it was much quieter than when she’d left. She looked around. Only Corina, Allye, and the little ones were in sight. She joined them in the living room and dropped into a chair. “Where are the guys?”
“We sent them out back to play,” Allye said with a wink. She was seated on the couch, knitting while Jenna napped with her head on Allye’s lap.
Hailey laughed. “The men too?”
Corina shifted her hold on Colton to retrieve the pacifier he’d just tossed on the floor. “We needed a rest, and Jenna was starting to look pretty tired. Since Bryce had his ultimate frisbee gear in the car, I suggested they take the boys outside to burn off some energy. None of them complained.”
“Smart.”
“So,” Allye started, a twinkle in her eye. “You and Peter?”
“No.” Hailey was quick to set her cousin straight. “We’re just friends and barely that.”
“Harsh,” Corina murmured.
“I didn’t mean it that way. We’ve literally only known each other for three days. He got a concussion at work the other night, and it just worked out for me to give him a ride to church this morning. Asking him to join us for lunch was a spur-of-the-moment decision.”
Allye shrugged, careful not to disturb Jenna. “That’s fair, I guess. But he’s a nice guy from what I’ve seen. And he seems to be really good with kids. He even won Lucky over.”
She had noticed that. Lucky and Dion had lost their mom to a drug overdose last fall, and the six-year-old had taken several months to begin emerging from his shell. Both boys had done well under Eric’s care, but Lucky was still edgy around strangers, especially men. But somehow, by the time dessert was served, the little boy had been laughing at Peter’s jokes and asking questions about growing up in the UK.
Allye’s voice turned sly. “And you can’t deny you two would look darling together.”
“Really, Allye?”
Her cousin looked at Corina for confirmation. “Wouldn’t they?”
This was ridiculous. Before Corina could do more than nod, Hailey blew out a frustrated breath. “It’s a moot point. I’m far from ready to date again. Wesley hasn’t even been gone a year, and I still haven’t figured out how to process the mess he caused.” The recent vandalisms weren’t helping. Though she had doubts about whether they were connected with Wesley’s sins, the fact that theycouldbe dredged up way too much baggage.
The other women immediately sobered. Allye reached across the space between them and patted her arm. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine, just ... too soon.” She knew they didn’t mean any harm by their teasing. And the image Allye’s words had elicitedwasn’t distasteful. Not that she had to imagine it. Passing through the church foyer with Peter earlier, she’d caught a glimpse of their reflection in a decorative mirror. Walking hand in hand with Jenna, they could easily have passed for a young family.
That had been one of the many things she’d missed in recent months. When she and Wesley were dating, she’d assumed he was a Christian, though she realized later that he’d never claimed to be. Still, after they were married, he had faithfully accompanied her to church. She’d hoped and prayed that one day the truth would sink in and he’d realize his need for Jesus. He finally had, but not until he was on his deathbed. That knowledge brought a small amount of sweetness to her bitter loss.
Realizing she was staring off into space, she gave herself a mental shake and pulled her focus back to the present. Both her cousins were looking at her with concern. She summoned a weak smile. “Sorry, I zoned out for a minute there.”
“Are you doing okay, Hailey?” Corina asked softly.
