Page 31 of Bless My Heart

“He seem’s like a good one, Haze,” Mom says as she sets out the food for lunch.

I look back at Wes again. He sees me and smiles. “Yeah, he is.”

“Alright guys, food’s ready,” Mom calls out, startling me. Everyone crowds around the kitchen island and piles food onto their paper plates. “Wes, honey. You boys can go eat around the TV to finish the game. We’ll sit down together as a family at dinnertime.”

“Yes, ma’am. This all looks delicious.” He walks past me with his plate of food and gives me a quick peck on the cheek. It’s unexpected but very boyfriend-like. He’s playing his part extremely well.

I sit in the kitchen with Mom, Anna, Nana, and Chance. Anna fills me in on the latest with Chance and how he is doing in pre-K. Mom gossips about the neighbors. I mostly listen, but I’m not really sure what to talk about when my stomach is in knots thinking about sleeping in the same bed as Wes.

After lunch, Wes comes in and helps Mom clean up. She repeatedly tells him he doesn’t have to help, but he insists. I think she likes the attention from him. Jordan was admittedly closer with my Dad, so Wes actually making an effort to help her is a big deal.

Later on, Wes takes Chance out to the backyard to toss a football around. He shows Chance how to throw it and catch it. They even do a little tackle practice where Wes picks Chance up and spins him around. Chance’s laughter echoes through the yard.

Anna comes up behind me while I watch the scene play out. “He’s going to be a great dad.”

My hand automatically goes to my stomach. “He is, isn’t he?”

We all sit down together for dinner at the dining room table. Dad grilled burgers and corn on the cob.

“So, Wes, what do you do?” Dad asks. My body tenses. Wes must feel it because rubs my jean covered thigh. I hope he doesn’t say he’s my student.

“I’m actually training to work with my father. He owns a financial management company, so the goal is to have me grow within the company and eventually take it over when he retires.” That’s pretty big time, and I wonder why I never knew that about him.

“Wow. That sounds pretty involved,” Dad says, but I’m still in shock.

“Yeah. That’s the plan. I’ve always looked up to my dad and always wanted to follow in his footsteps. Maybe not be as uptight as him, though.” Everyone laughs at his last comment.

“You never told me that,” I whisper to him.

He shrugs. “You never asked.” His answer isn’t meant to be mean, but it cuts me all the same. I’ve been so worried about me and how everything will affect me and my job that I haven’t stopped to think about Wes and what’s going on in his life. I’ve been so selfish.

“Does your Mom work, Wes?” Mom asks him.

“No, ma’am. She had breast cancer a few years ago, which took a lot of energy out of her. Dad didn’t want her to over-exert herself.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Oh, thank you. She’s cancer-free now. Stronger than ever. But I think she’s getting bored staying at home all the time now. I’m sure she’ll try to find something to do here pretty soon. Especially now that my little sister Stella is out of the house too.”

I suddenly can’t get close enough to Wes. I don’t want my family to be asking him these personal questions. I want to be asking him these questions. I should know these things about him already. I hate myself for not paying attention, but I think I was trying to distance myself from him to avoid getting too attached.

Now, I just want this night to end so I can get next to him in bed. Before, I was worried about it. I was scared of what I might do being so close to him and what I might let him do to me. But tonight, it’s like a switch has gone off inside me, and I can’t get enough of him.

I want him all to myself.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

WES

“Good night Karla, thank you so much for a wonderful evening,” I say to Hazel’s mom as we’re wrapping up for the night. After dinner, we watched Chance open gifts. Thankfully, Hazel signed the card from both of us. The one thing I hadn’t thought about was bringing gifts. Honestly, I hadn’t had time to think about it. My mom would be so mad.

After gifts, we all sat around the screened-in porch. Hazel, Blake, Anna, and I played Cards Against Humanity while Karla got Chance all bathed up and ready for bed. Then, we ended the night watching a movie on the couch in the living room.

It was nice. Hazel even snuggled up to me on the couch and let me hold her hand. I know she’s nervous about sharing a bed with me, and I can tell she’s trying to delay us from going upstairs for as long as possible. But when I look over and see Anna falling asleep on the other side of the couch, I know it’s time to call it a night.

“Good night, you two. See you in the morning. I’m making a big pancake breakfast,” Karla tells us.

“I look forward to it.” I put my hand on Hazel’s lower back and escort her up the stairs.