Page 46 of Finding Home

“I think you have it backwards. I’m the one who should be on his knees thanking whatever God will listen that I get to be with you, that I get to love you out loud, and hold you in my arms. The way you brought this group together, making sure everyone had somewhere to be today is just one of the many things I love about you.” Ready for his lips on mine again, I make to close the distance between us, but someone clears their throat. I ricochet apart from Jace, spotting his sister in the doorway.

“As always, squirt, you have impeccable timing.” Jace rolls his eyes.

“One of my many, many, charms, big brother.” She winks at me, sauntering into the kitchen.

“I’m gonna go mingle,” I mumble as I attempt to dart out of the kitchen, but Jace snags me and kisses me hard before sending me off blushing, laughing as I slap his chest for his antics. Almost everyone has moved from the table to various seats around the house. Anita and Chris are on the floor playing memory match with Lizzie. Wren and Bree are in the corner with a bottle of wine beside them while they laugh at something on their phones. Jace’s crew are in the sunroom. I scan the space, not finding Blake in the mix, but movement on the porch catches my eye. Grabbing my jacket and slipping out of the door, I find him on the porch swing, gliding slowly and looking out over the yard.

“Room for one more out here?” I ask. He shifts over, making room for me, but not saying anything. His easy smile is in place, but for once, it doesn’t reach his eyes. Settling in beside him, I wait a few seconds, working through what I want to say before speaking. Leaning over, I bump my shoulder into his. “You okay, Blake?”

“Of course, nothing but sunshine and rainbows over here, Harper. You know that.” Again, a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. I hate it.

“It’s not my place to share Wren's story.” The swing stops as Blake's feet are planted on the porch, and his back goes a little stiff. “But I can say that she has seen a lot of hurt. Has seen the damage men or relationships can do to a person. The carefree, bouncing from one man to the next is her way of protecting herself.” His breath leaves in a long blown out exhale.

“I kinda figured, but I don’t know how to make her see that I won’t hurt her. I’m not jonesing to get married today, but I also don’t know if I can reconcile being with a woman where that is never an option." His voice is low, and the frustration and pain are evident in each syllable he speaks.

“Truthfully, Blake, I don’t know if Wren can ever let herself get married. To be legally tied to another human in that way, I just don’t know if she will get there. What I do know, is that if you want a life with her, she’s worth taking a chance on, and she’s different with you.” His head whips toward me so fast I startle.

“What does that mean?”

“Just that I have watched Wren over the last year interact and flirt, and just be Wren a lot, but with you, I don’t know how to explain it. You aren’t just another conquest. You have a way of making cracks in the walls she has built around herself, and it scares the shit out of her. I see the way you two gravitate toward each other, and the way she relaxes when you are near. It’s just different, as lame as it sounds.”

“Any tips?” His sincerity touches me, and if I could pick anyone for Wren, it would be Blake.

“Just keep doing what you’re doing. Be there for her, no strings attached, show her that she can depend on you, even without a commitment.” He nods, not speaking. “With that said. If marriage and the typical family is what you want, Blake, then when the opportunity comes along, if another woman comes along, don’t feel bad for finding your own happiness. You deserve it.”

His shoulder bumps into me like I did to him earlier. “Thanks, Harper, you’re pretty okay yourself.”

“Careful there, you might make me swoon.” I fan my face and tip over toward him.

“Jace did good, you two really work, and he’s happier than I have ever seen him. Plus, if y’all ever get married, I already know what I will share in my toast—how I got to be there when Jace heard what you really thought of him.”

Heat rushes to my face recalling how he was there when I proclaimed that I, for lack of a better word, wanted Jace to “service” my horny pussy. Covering my face with my hands, I want to die all over again. The swing jiggles from his laughter. As much as I hate the reason why, I laugh, too, relieved that his smile finally reached his eyes. The front door opens to Lizzie and Wren.

“There he is.” Wren smiles, pointing to Blake. “You’ve been summoned for a tea party,” she declares, smiling brightly at him. Blake's face instantly transforms upon seeing both girls. His eyes brighten and crinkle at the sides as he smiles. His face softens ever so slightly when he makes eye contact with Wren. It tugs at my heart seeing the way he looks at her, like the world begins and ends with her. He pats my thigh as he stands.

“Thanks for the talk,” he says in a hushed voice, then follows my daughter into the house. I spotted Pretty Pretty Princess out earlier and hope he realizes that tea parties usually entail jewelry for all.

Wren watches them through the window, half shadowed by the frame. A soft smile plays at her lips as she watches the pair. Her silhouette is softened by the warm golden light spilling from inside. “He’s really good with her,” she murmurs almost to herself before she turns to me, like she just remembered I was still here. “Lizzie is going to have a little army of protective men watching over her.” She laughs softly, obviously deep in thought. “You know, most of the crew have been sneaking her sweets today. She has them wrapped around her little finger.” She wiggles her pinky at me and smiles, before her gaze is pulled back to the scene inside. “Have fun getting her to bed tonight with all that sugar coursing through her.”

Wren gives her head a shake then spins to me, rubbing her arms against the chill that has settled over the house as the sun sets.

“Aside from the dead bird as a center piece,” she eyes me smiling, “today was pretty perfect. It really felt like a little family in there, or at least, I think it did.” Settling beside me on the swing, she works the inside of her cheek. My pulse quickens slightly, wondering if she’s going to talk about Blake. Maybe I’ll be a little matchmaker for the two of them and help them see how good they are together.

“I want to hire Maia for the position at the spa,” she blurts out in such an un-Wren-like manner.

It takes me a second to switch gears from matchmaking to work. “Maia? Is she the one that has experience working in Washington?” My nose scrunches in thought, making me smile. I had never noticed I did that until Jace’s comment last night.

Wren hesitates before answering, “No, she was the walk-in at the end of the day.”

“Oh, Wren,” I sigh, hating to burst her bubble. “She seemed nice, and I’m sure she would work hard, but she has no experience and isn’t a licensed masseur.”

“I know,” she breaks in, laying her hand on mine.

“The whole point of taking on another person is to ease the workload for both of us and give you the chance to step back to do more healing and yoga classes.” Shaking my head sadly, I prepare to pull the boss card and say no.

“Harper, I know you don’t necessarily subscribe to the reiki healing and auras aspects of things, and most people just scoff and laugh when I discuss it. ‘There goes Wren being a flower child hippie again,’ but Maia’s aura was pulsing red. There was just so much pain and fear surrounding her. She needs us. Everything in me is pulling me to her, and I’m asking you to trust me. Trust my intuition and beliefs.”

I open my mouth to speak, but she rushes on, “I’m willing to work extra hours without overtime pay and put a pause on the other ventures until she’s licensed.” She pulls a folded piece of paper from her pocket, with a long list on it. “In the meantime, she can still be a valuable asset. Doing admin and desk work, running errands, we can move linen washing in-house instead of contracting it out. We also have talked about adding a red-light therapy room. She can run that, which would add another stream of revenue. She doesn’t have much experience, so we can pay less, which might leave enough in the budget to hire Jane, who is looking for part-time massage hours while her kid is in preschool for the next year.”