Page 80 of Crossed Lines

“I don’t want to crash your party…” she says hesitantly.

“You’re not. We want you here, right, Dad?” Jade answers.

“Right. You’re not going anywhere.” I pull her toward me and give her another kiss. “Let’s get your stuff inside.”

We all walk up the steps, and I grab her two suitcases and carry them into the house before rolling them back to my room. I know she’s not here permanently, but for the time she is, I’m keeping her close.

Willow helps me get the tree off the truck, and then she makes hot chocolate with Jade. I get the tree set up in the stand and grab the boxes of Christmas decor from the attic. I don’t have as much as most people probably do, but I’ve acquired quite a bit over the years. Especially with Jade getting older. She wants my house to be just as decorated as her mom’s house, which means buying more decorations every season.

“Ok, what should we start with?” Willow asks, handing me a mug.

“The tree! Daddy needs to put the lights on first,” Jade answers. She digs through one of the boxes, pulling out a strand of multi colored lights. Let’s hope they still work.

We spend the rest of the afternoon decorating the tree and getting what limited other decorations I have set up. It feels like Willow never left. She moves so comfortably around the house. She and Jade talk about school and Italy and Jade’s new friends and the soccer team she was on this fall.

I love it so much. It’s the best day I’ve had since Willow left in August. But it scares the hell out of me because I know she’s leaving again. She’s not done with school, and our deal was that we wouldn’t make any decisions about us until she was graduated. It’s the right thing to do, even if I hate it. I manage to push the thought of her leaving again out of my mind until Jade decides to bring up the topic at dinner.

“Willow, are you my daddy’s girlfriend now?” she asks.

Willow’s eyes go wide. “I-um…”

Jade looks at me. “Daddy, have you not asked her to be your girlfriend yet?”

I chuckle at her side eye. “It’s a little more complicated than that, kiddo.”

“Why? You guys kissed. On the lips. I saw it. That means you like each other.”

“Yes, I do like Willow. A lot. But she’s not done with college yet, and we don’t want to rush anything until she knows what she wants to do after she graduates. She might not live in Blue Haven, which would make it hard for us.”

Jade looks back at Willow, concern written all over her face. “You’ll come back, won’t you, Willow?”

“Of course I will.” Willow doesn’t even hesitate. She’s told me time and time again that she wants us to be together. I want nothing more than that, too, but I also want to make sure she does what’s best for her. “But I think your dad wants to make sure I finish college first, and I respect that. Only a few more months.”

Jade sighs. “Alright. I guess we can wait a few more months.”

“It’ll go by quicker than you think,” Willow assures her. I hope she’s right.

We finish up our dinner and then start Jade’s bedtime routine, which ends with all of us squished in Jade’s bed while Willow reads a story.

Jade falls asleep quickly, exhausted from the excitement of the day.

Once Jade’s bedroom door is shut, I grab Willow’s hand.

“Please tell me you’re staying here.”

“Sawyer doesn’t know I’m home yet, so I was hoping…”

“Thank god.”

Sawyer is a conversation we can have another time. He and I haven’t spoken since the night at Roadside. The only updates I get on him are from Willow, who will occasionally bring him up during our phone calls. I know their relationship is strained right now, but I’m glad he didn’t completely cut her off like he did to me.

Tonight though…? Tonight is all about me and Willow making up for lost time.

CHAPTER 29

Willow

Being back in Beck’s bedroom fills me with so many memories. I haven’t been able to forget the way his hands felt on me, the way our bodies worked together, the way he felt inside me. I’ve been dreaming of this since the day I walked out of here.