“I wanted it to be a surprise.”
“How long can you stay?”
“I guess that’s up to your mom,” he said, glancing at Gianna. “You wouldn’t mind putting me up for a bit, would you, sweetheart?”
She opened and closed her mouth. “There’s an inn in town. Why don’t I call and see if they have any rooms available?”
“Come on, now,” he said, taking his backwards ball cap off to smooth back his dark hair. “You know I hate hotels. Besides, I came here to relax. How can I do that if people are mobbing me for autographs?”
Gianna rolled her eyes. “You’re so full of yourself. What makes you think anyone would care that you’re here?”
“Well, I care,” Ramsey said, slipping her arm through his. “And Keegan will too. So can he stay, Mom? Please. Pretty please?”
“Yeah, come on, Mom,” Gunnar teased. “Let me stay and spend some quality time with my favorite girls.” His eyes travelled up and down her petite frame, letting both Gianna and her date know he still consideredherone of his favorite girls.
“Ramsey,” Gianna said, with a tight smile. “Will you please take these flowers inside and put them in water for me? I’d like to have a word with your dad.”
“I’ll wait for you in the car,” Billy said, backing down the steps. “Nice meeting you, Gunnar. Hope you enjoy your stay here.”
Gunnar ignored him, waiting until they were alone for Gi to unleash on him. He raised his hands, wiggling his fingers. “Okay, baby. Come on. Let me have it. I’m a son of a bitch, right? A dirt bag who’s trying to ruin your life?”
“You’re my past,” she said, solemnly, slaying him with those three little words. “Why can’t you just accept that? Why did you have to come here when I’m on the verge of building a new life for myself?”
“With that loser?” he sneered, gesturing to the late model Ford parked in her driveway. “You can’t be serious.”
“Maybe he’s more my type than you ever were. Ever think of that?”
He hated hearing that, mainly because it echoed with a ring of truth. “Keep telling yourself that if it helps you sleep at night.”
“You can’t believe you and I were right for each other.”
She looked him over, taking in the torn jeans and T-shirt, with the colourful ink decorating his arms. He didn’t stand out in a crowd, nor did he want to. He wanted to blend in. Hell, more often than not now, he wanted to be invisible.
“I’m small town. You’re big city. I’m country. You’re rock and roll. I’m a wife material. Mom material. You’re—”
“A good dad,” he said, daring her dispute his claim. “I may not have been there as often as I should have been, but I’d lay down my life for either of those girls and you know it.”
“I know you would,” she said, softly. “It’s not about them, Gunnar. This is about us.”
“Why’d you leave me?”
She shook her head, looking over her shoulder at Billy, who sat in the car waiting for her. “You know why.”
“Because I couldn’t marry you? That’s a stupid reason and you know it. Plenty of people choose to live together.”
“But that’s just it. They choose it. That wasn’t my choice. I made it clear from the start that I wanted a husband and a family.”
“And I made it clear I couldn’t be that guy.”
“Yet you cried when I told you I was pregnant with Keegan. I’d never seen you so happy.”
He grew up a ward of the state. He’d never had a family and didn’t think he wanted or needed one until Gi and his girls came into his life and shook the foundation of his world, making him question everything he’d ever believed about himself.
“Being a dad made me happier than anything ever has. Including my music. You knew that. Yet you took them away from me anyway.” He muttered a curse. “Why? To punish me for not marrying you?”
She shook her head, looking so sad it broke his heart. “I didn’t do it to punish you. Or them. I would never do that. I always put them first. But I got tired of being alone. And lonely.”
“I know I wasn’t home a lot, but—”
“It wasn’t just that and you know it.” She looked at the car parked in her drive. “I can’t talk about this now. I have to go.”
“So I can stay?”
She looked through the living room window. The lights were on and the blinds were up, giving her a clear view inside. Their daughters were curled up on the sofa, but they cast anxious glances at them, obviously trying to gauge the situation.
“I guess I don’t have a choice.”
