Just like the cloth napkins and fried chicken.
“Something with my parents and I just…I think I just need everyone.” Softer, I add, “I need to see everyone.”
I need to see everyone in one place with smiles and jokes and love for each other not just because they have to but because they want to.
Because they want to be there for me.
“I’ll take care of it, darlin’. I promise.” With a huff, she adds, “Vincent told me I’m not allowed to ask for your parents’ number to give them a piece of my mind, but if itjust happenedto wind up in my inbox, he’d be none the wiser.”
Chuckling, I rub at the tightness in my chest and sigh, this time with a small sense of peace that I’m not alone and I haven’t been since I moved here.
“Thank you and I’ll think about it.”
“You do that and make sure you warn Deacon what he’s walking into. Everyone’s been waiting patiently to officially meet him.”
“I have no doubt.”
Now I just need to break the news to him that our next quiet dinner with Vincent and Flora will now be more aligned with a small-scale circus.
No problem, no problem at all.
35
DEACON
“So, how was your day?” Tanner asks casually as we sit out on his back deck, his hands giving him away as they clench the glass in his hand.
“It was busy. The countertops are gonna be a week late so I had to rearrange my schedule and hope I can get everything done before Thanksgiving.” Crossing one ankle over the other, I try to project a calmness I don’t quite feel. Not because I don’t like small talk but because of whatever Tanner’s not telling me.
“Thanksgiving? I completely forgot that was coming up.” He rubs at his forehead, his weariness like a second skin. “That makes this more complicated.”
“What does?”
“I asked Flora to include everyone at a dinner to introduce you. That probably means it’ll be the holiday.” He meets my gaze, his eyes filled with panic and the smallest amount of hope, like he thinks I’m going to lose my mind over this new development.
I’m not.
“Alright.” I lay my southern drawl on thick as I hold his stare, watching him shift in his seat and waiting for more.
“That’s it?”
“I’m going to have to meet them eventually. Hell, I know almost everyone as it is.” Reaching over, I take his hand in mine, threading our fingers together as I continue, “It’s just bein’ introduced as yours that’s different.”
Raising our joined hands to his lips, he kisses my knuckles, and his breath is hot against my skin. “I have no idea what I did to deserve you.”
“What brought this on, Sweetheart? I’d bet my life savings it wasn’t just because you wanted to mix things up a bit.”
Leaning back in his seat, Tanner lets his head fall back against the wood, his exhale weary as he focuses on something out in the yard. “My mother had emergency surgery today and she wanted my father to call and let me know.”
I do my best to keep my face carefully neutral as dread seeps into my veins. I’m not the smartest man in the world, but there’s no way Tanner would still be here unless…
“When I told him I could be there tonight, he said I shouldn’t come.”
“Tanner, I’m so sorry.” Rage replaces the dread like a tidal wave, my free hand fisting and my knuckles white as I run through all the ways I’d like to tear his father apart.
Moving from my seat, I kneel in front of him, one hand still holding his while the other rests on his thigh.
“What do you need me to do? How can I make this better?” The way I’d move mountains to restore the light in his eyes right now is more than a desire—it’s a need. I’m about to tell him as much when something goes whizzing between us, a small projectile that lands quietly in the grass beside me.
