“I’m glad you had fun with your friends tonight,” I said as we walked out to my car. “What were the exciting topics of the night?”
“Yeah, it was a good time,” he answered, opening my door for me and then walking around to his passenger door before picking up the conversation again once he sat down. “Frank’s trying to get a guys’ fishing trip together for next summer out west somewhere, and we also talked about me potentially moving.”
Well, that got my attention.
“Where?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
He gave a small shrug. “Not sure exactly.”
“Don’t move north or you might freeze to death,” I teased.
He rolled his eyes and tried to send a death glare my way, but clearly my body was impenetrable when it came to those.
“Frank’s been doing the heavy sell on Georgia,” he said, and I felt my heartbeat tick up ever so slightly.
“Georgia?” I echoed, trying to come across as low-key interested. “That could be fun. Frank would definitely like that.”
He stared at me, eyeing me thoughtfully. “Is Frank the only one who would like it?”
I knew he was asking to gauge my opinion, and I tried to think of what the best answer was. Did I hedge my bets and play it casual? Or did I tell him how I really felt and that I wanted to give this thing between us a go?
Did I think he liked me? Absolutely, but he didn’t need me. And there was a difference.
“Your friends are all back in Texas,” I pointed out, though he already knew that.
“Yes, but Frank and his family are here,” he countered. “And most of my friends—as proven by Chase—can travel to come see me if they want to, especially since most of their kids are grown up now. Chase actually seems to be on Frank’s side.”
All his points were valid, and I was glad he had friends who were supportive of what he wanted to do. And yes, I was excited as well, knowing that this could give Ray and me the opportunity to see where this thing between us could go.
SIXTEEN
TAMMY
Ray had taken Chase to the airport this morning with Frank, which gave me the alone time that I desperately needed.
Since Chase had only been in town for a short while, he and Ray had maximized that time, spending the bulk of it together going over the pub’s break-in and second attempt.
This morning, however, just as Ray was leaving to meet Chase and Frank, he’d told me since I was off tonight, we were going out—as ina date.
“Let’s do dinner tonight,” he said, grabbing his keys from the entry room table—where we had to keep them so Jasper wouldn’t catnap them.
“Sure,” I replied simply, thinking nothing of it. “What place do you want takeout from? What are you in the mood for?”
He shook his head slowly. “No takeout. I’m taking you to dinner. Frank recommended the steakhouse over on Peach Commons Road.”
I’d been to that place once before. It was nice, but you didn’t have to dress up too much.
Since I hadn’t expected it, I just nodded in reply, which I found was becoming a common theme with this man, and I didn’t like it one bit.
Even though he was busy with Chase, we’d still spent every morning this week on my patio drinking coffee. It had become our thing.
It was enjoyable, but it also made me a bit upset. Why couldn’t I have met a man like Ray decades ago instead of my ex-husband?
When I was younger and first married, I had teetered on the idea of kids. It was what society said I should want, but I hadn’t been one hundred percent sure. I knew if I was going to, I’d wanted to wait until after I was out of the military since that would make it easier, and I was glad for that, now knowing what an asshole my ex-husband had been. In the years since, I’d realized the idea of motherhood no longer appealed to me, and I was content being a pet mom. I’d made peace with it and was very happy being an aunt.Plus, Jasper was a handful sometimes, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
My sister Lori had wanted a family—the whole shebang. The kind we never had. She married Donovan, the “safe guy”—the one who worked the safe job, wanted kids, and would never leave her. Lori had confided in me long ago that she didn’t love him in the traditional sense, but he would never cheat on her and never leave her with the kids like our dad had done, so she was content with that.
I didn’t want that. I’d been divorced and had the battle wounds to prove it. If I married again, it would be for love. Someone I wanted in my life for more than just to care for my kids and help pay the bills.
