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I flipped the pot over in the drying rack and nodded. Maybe she was right. “Maybe I am overthinking things. But Lily’s involved, and if this doesn’t go well, she could get hurt. I can’t just act on a whim when her happiness is at stake.”
“There you go, overthinking again,” Aunt Sarah pointed out. “What does your heart say?”
I groaned as I dropped the pretense that I was still cleaning and leaned against the counter. What did my heart say? That was easy. My heart wanted to be with them. My heart had said mine the moment I saw them in the parking lot. I’d never felt anything close to the connection I felt with them and I knew I never would.
They might be Bridgewater men, but I was also born and raised in the Bridgewater way and there was no doubt in my mind that those two were mine, just like I was theirs. “My heart says that we should give this a shot,” I started. “But what if it doesn’t work out? What if Lily gets hurt? And how would this even work? I have a home here in Seattle and they’ve started a life for themselves in Bridgewater.”
“One thing at a time, dear,” Aunt Sarah said. Her eyes were lit up with laughter as she studied me. She’d never married, but I didn’t doubt her sage advice. “What did those fine young men say? What do they want?”
My chest tightened at the memory of Rory’s words. All that matters is that we’re in your lives. However you’ll have us.
“They said they’d move to Seattle, if that’s what I wanted,” I replied. I picked up the dishtowel, folded it, then put it on the counter. “Or they invited us to Bridgewater.” I shrugged. “All that matters to them is that they’re in Lily’s life.”
“And yours, I imagine,” Aunt Sarah said.
And in my bed.
“Don’t think I didn’t see the way they were watching you.” She let out a low whistle. “My goodness, girl. I nearly melted on the spot with those looks they were giving.”
I struggled to hold back a laugh. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Her laugh was downright wicked. “Take it from an old lady—that kind of passion doesn’t last forever. If you ask me, you should take full advantage.”
My face was burning as I grabbed up the folded dishtowel and made a show of wiping down the table so I wouldn
’t have to face her. Aunt Sarah had never been what anyone would call traditional, but there was no way in hell I could talk to her about my current sex life with Rory and Cooper. Especially the way we’d heated up the sheets the night before. I was just glad Lily was a heavy sleeper and Aunt Lily hadn’t been home when they’d taken me together. Cooper’s kisses had barely stifled my sounds of pleasure as I came.
Aunt Sarah seemed to get the hint and she steered the topic away from those hot looks…and more. “I think you should go to Bridgewater.”
I shot up straight and turned to face her. “You do? But Seattle is our home. It’s the only home Lily has ever known, she—”
She held up a hand to stop me. “I’m not saying you’ve got to move there right away. I just think you owe it to yourself to go back to your home town.” She took a step closer to me and gently took the rag from my hand. “Honey, you haven’t been back since your grandma died and, while I understand why, you have no reason to stay away anymore. It’s summer vacation. Go. Have some fun.”
The truth of her statement struck me dumb. It was true, the main reason I never returned was to avoid running into Cooper and Rory or any of their family. I’d always known that if I saw them, I would never have the strength to stay away and there was no way I could have kept Lily a secret. If I’d shown up with a baby in tow, word would have spread so quickly I would’ve gotten whiplash. So I’d stayed away. But now…now there were no more secrets. No reason to avoid Rory and Cooper or anyone else.
Which meant I could go to Bridgewater again. A bittersweet joy filled me at the thought of seeing Grandma’s house—the house I’d grown up in. Was the tire swing still there or had the new owners taken it down? And my friends…I wondered if any of them were still in town. I was sure one or two still were.
Apparently my feelings were clearly etched across my face because Aunt Sarah patted my arm. “I’m glad we got that settled.”
***
COOPER
Once Ivy told us she was open to the idea of visiting Bridgewater again and showing Lily where she came from, Rory and I acted quickly. We booked tickets for all four of us a little later that week, giving Ivy just enough time to make the arrangements on her end and not too much time where she might change her mind. Since school was out for her and Lily, this just meant calling Lily’s summer camp and telling them she’d be taking a vacation. Ivy had a job in Seattle and we knew this was just a visit, but it was a step in the right direction.
We showed up the morning of our flights and found a visibly excited Ivy with a giddy Lily waiting on the porch alongside their luggage. Aunt Sarah had been happy to wave us off on our adventure; I knew she was our secret champion as she wanted to see her niece happy and I was glad to know she thought that was with us.
Our daughter’s eagerness for her first plane flight was infectious and Rory and I took turns sitting beside her on the plane and pointed out the window how small everything was below us. After the short flight to Bozeman and the drive to Bridgewater in the pickup truck we had left in the long-term lot, we took them to the house we’d bought in town and got them settled in. Even after a morning of travel, they were too excited to stay inside and Rory and I were more than happy to play tour guide. I was acting like a whipped man who was in love with the mother of his child…and said child.
For the first time in fuck knew, I felt good. Damn good. Hopeful.
I slept better, didn’t think of my scars in the same way anymore. Lily had done that. With one quick share of her own “booboo,” I’d been…better.
First stop, the western clothing store for a pair of pink cowgirl boots for Lily. She wore them out of the store, her little sneakers tucked into Ivy’s purse. The way she was strutting about in the new boots, I wasn’t so sure we’d get them off her when she went to sleep.
As we walked down Main Street, Ivy couldn’t seem to go more than a block in any direction without someone stopping her, greeting her with a hug and friendly questions about what she’d been up to these past seven years. No doubt news of her return—and of Lily’s existence—would spread across town faster than a wildfire in high wind.
That was why, the next morning when we had breakfast at Jessie’s diner, Ivy was more popular than ever. Jessie nearly dropped her tray when we walked in the door, and when she spotted Lily snuggled up against Ivy’s side, I seriously thought she might faint.
