Page 82 of Meet Me in Ivy Falls

‘Of course.’ Pete smiled. ‘Bogie loves a good belly rub.’

Once the girls were done fawning over the dog, Tessa stepped close to give the little mutt a small pat on the head.

‘Pete, this is my younger sister, Tessa, and these are her two girls, Iris and Rose.’ I pointed to Manny. ‘That guy, and the beauty on his shoulders, are my partner, Manny, and his daughter, Lou.’

He nodded in Tessa’s and Manny’s direction and then bent his long legs so he was eye to eye with Iris and Rose. He reached out a hand to each girl and gave them a firm shake.

‘It’s nice to meet you both.’ For the first time I could remember, both girls stayed perfectly quiet as they stared at him. ‘If I had to guess, I’d say both of you have had cotton candy today. Am I right?’

The girls swapped a surprised look.

‘How could you tell?’ Rose squinted her little eyes like she was trying to figure him out.

‘Bright pink rings along the corners of your mouths,’ Pete teased.

‘That’s cheating,’ Iris said, finding her own voice.

Pete stood and his stare moved over the grass, to the gazebo, and then to the massive American flag hanging along the side of town hall. ‘Beck, you weren’t kidding about this place. Teddy Ray is going to love the vibe.’ He turned to me. ‘When do you think we can bring him here?’

‘We’ve got a lot going on right now with Beck’s house. Maybe in a few weeks when we’re done,’ I said.

‘Yeah, Beck finally told me about it and the show too. Congratulations.’

‘We’re not done yet,’ Manny grumbled, tucking his arms across his chest.

‘I see a Frisbee on the corner of that blanket,’ Pete said. ‘Would you girls like to play?’

They squealed in delight. ‘Can we, Mommy?’ they asked.

‘Yes, but stay close.’

Pete gave Tess a friendly smile and Manny glared at him like he was an uninvited guest. Manny wanted to give Tess her space but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to stare down any good-looking guy who walked within ten feet of her.

The girls grabbed the Frisbee and yanked Pete and Beck toward an open patch of grass.

‘Manny, why don’t you and Lou go too?’ I said.

‘Fine,’ he grumbled. He took a step forward and then stopped. ‘Tor, did you tell the drywall guys to lock up last night?’

‘Yes, their boss has a key. Why? Is there a problem?’

‘Lou reminded me that I left my favorite hat at the house. When I went to grab it this morning, there were some windows open and the deadbolt on the back door wasn’t latched.’

‘It’s been hot lately and those guys worked late. I’m sure they just forgot.’

‘Yeah, guess you’re right. I made sure everything was locked before I left.’ His gaze wavered back to where Lou stood with the girls.

‘Go play with them.’ I shooed him in their direction and he mumbled something about ‘unwanted visitors’.

After a half an hour, Beck wandered back to the blanket and sank down beside me. He pulled me in close and nuzzled his face into my hair. ‘Sitting here with you feels like a dream I never want to end,’ he whispered.

‘A few months back it would have taken an army to force me to be in the center of town with practically every member of Ivy Falls. Or to sit here with you,’ I confessed. ‘But that’s the crazy thing about life, you never know what’s around the next corner. My mom always said if you had a bad day it was okay because when the sun rose again you got another chance.’

He pressed a kiss to my forehead. ‘That’s what this feels like – a second chance.’

The tenderness in his eyes made my heart ache. I’d never expected for this beautiful man to return to my world. To flip all my plans upside down.

Beck leaned in and pressed a kiss to my lips. I couldn’t get over the way his touch blasted heat through my veins. How the feel of his mouth caused every inch of my skin to hum. I tangled my fingers through the back of his hair and his kiss turned into a smile.