Page 41 of The Haunting Plot

“What are you doing?” asks Lucy.

“I’ve been doing some reading for ideas,” I admit.

Summer leans forward in her seat. “Romance novels?”

“Yeah, the one I’m reading is really good.”

“We can suggest more,” Lucy says.

“Actually, I don’t think Raven would go for that. She didn’t seem to like our good girl stories, remember?” Bella says.

“I think she doesn’t want us to know how much she secretly likes them,” Summer says.

“So I should keep reading them?”

Summer’s eyes light up. “Get her to talk about kissing.”

“What?”

“She once told me this whole thing about how kissing is subjective due to all these different factors. Get her talking about that. If you keep poking at her enough, I bet she’ll tell you exactly how she likes to be kissed.”

“How would that possibly come up in conversation?”

“Stare at her lips until she takes the hint. The men in those books always stare at the heroine’s lips. That’s how you know they want to kiss you,” Bella says, slurping the last of her iced coffee.

“She’s gonna think I’m having a stroke if I do that.”

Lucy laughs. “He’s not wrong.”

Fuck, this is humiliating. “Look, I told you I’m not good at dating. Women are like a foreign language I’ve never mastered.”

“Raven’s spent her whole life taking care of everyone. She lost her parents young and practically raised RJ. Then she lost her husband. And she’s raising two children on her own, one of which has special needs. It’s a lot. Don’t think of her like she’s women. Think of her as one woman. Men always think women are so complicated to understand, but we’re really not. Your mistake is assuming we all want the same thing. Men have different needs and desires. So do women. You need to focus on her. Get her talking, and then listen,” Summer says.

Lucy takes a sip of her coffee, then adds, “And when you listen, you have to take action. Mike said a lot of really nice things to me when we first started talking, but what sealed it for me was how he followed through. He saw how exhausted I was dealing with the boys, so he cleaned up my kitchen and living room while I put the boys to bed. Not because I told him to, but because he listened to my words and took action. And then he kept doing that on repeat. That’s how I knew I could trust him.”

“Yeah, but he’s always been like that. He’s the most dependable guy on my crew. I’ve never heard anyone say a bad word about him.”

Summer looks around the table. “And we’ve never heard any of our guys complain about you. So whoever put these ideas in your head that you’re not good enough can touch grass.”

Bella holds up a hand. “Also, you’re an excellent parent. Lucy and I’ve had both of your kids, and you’re a teacher’s dream parent. You show up for every event, you’re supportive of your kids, and you reply to emails quickly.”

Lucy nods. “Agreed. I’ve seen the way you advocate for your kids. That’s what Raven needs, someone who’ll advocate for her and her needs.”

I stare at my coffee. There are a handful of things I know to be true about myself: I’m an excellent father, I’m a damn good fire chief, and I’m decent with my hands. But for the last fifteen years of my life, all I heard was that I was a terrible person from the woman I vowed to make a life with. I tried my best, but sometimes when there are too many balls in the air, I can’t juggle them all, and then I freeze, overanalyzing which one to prioritize. And I never seemed to get it right with her.

“My follow-through is terrible. I’m constantly forgetting things, even when I want to remember them. I feel so scattered sometimes, like I give my everything all day at work, and when I come home, my well is empty, so I go into survival mode.”

Bella looks at my coffee, furrowing her brow. “Do you drink those every day?”

“Not usually. Caffeine doesn’t really do much for me. I just like the way this tastes.” I take a sip.

“You should bring Raven coffee,” Summer suggests. “We know what she likes.”

“I don’t think one coffee will be enough to crack her shell.”

“It’ll show her that you took the time to find out what she likes,” Summer says. “She needs to see what value you add to her life. She doesn’t need a white knight to come rescue her.”

I release a heavy sigh. “I’m willing to put in the work, but I’m worried she won’t see my worth.”