AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ma laughed softly, her eyes twinkling. “Oh, stop. All this fuss. It’s silly.”
Instinctively Nash wanted to shut this down before it even started. His mother belonged to his father. She was a Blackshaw. But that certain twinkle in her eye had been gone since their father passed. Something deep in his chest split wide open, warming cold spots. Something that had him walking forward. “It’s not silly,” he said before kissing her cheek. “You look really pretty, Ma.”
When he moved away, she gave him a sweet smile. “Thank you. Now can we stop all the fussing and go?”
Shep gave a firm nod and cupped Nash’s uninjured shoulder as he strode by. Obviously, Shep was proud that Nash had kept his mouth shut about their father, letting Ma be happy. Damn. There Nash went, being all soft again.
Megan. Yeah, she did this to him. But this was a change he didn’t mind. She was good for him. He’d always known she would be.
Twenty minutes later, Nash leaned against one of the shade trees in the park, taking in the festival. Straight ahead was the Kinky Spurs band playing a Tim McGraw cover. The crowd was positioned around the stage, either dancing on the dance floor or sitting on the grass or the picnic tables spread throughout the grounds. The food trucks were off to the right, and a small area of vendors set up selling their homemade items. To the left were the breweries, all serving up the best beer. Three Chicks Brewery always drew a big crowd, not only for the beers but because the three Carter sisters who owned the brewery were easy on the eyes. Chase had dated the middle sister, Amelia, for a short time in high school.
Nash was huddled next to his family. Shep and Chase were sitting on top of the picnic table, while Harper and Emma sat on the bench. They had been chatting for the last half hour about Emma’s ideas for her and Shep’s honeymoon in a couple of months once work settled down. A trip to Maui was at the top of that list.
Ahead of Nash was a view that he’d been trying not to pay much attention to, but failing miserably. His mother stood close to the doctor. She held a glass of wine in one hand and her other hand kept reaching out and touching the dear doctor every time Clay made her laugh. Which was a lot.
“She seems happy.”
Nash’s chest warmed, and he smiled, reaching for Megan and pulling her in close. Her flowery perfume infused the air and he drank it in. She wore black stretchy pants and a long purple blouse with black flat shoes. She was a jeans-and-tank-top type of girl, so the look lifted his eyebrow.
“Yeah, I know,” she said with a heavy sigh. “I can’t wear jeans anymore. They’re uncomfortable.”
“Ah.” He gave her a quick kiss, loving how she reached for more. “Blackshaws are strong. My boy is getting bigger every day.”
She gave him a cute, easy smile. “And how do you know it’s a boy?”
He didn’t, of course. Still . . . “Call it a gut feeling.”
She laughed softly and shook her head, then rose up on her tiptoes, bringing her mouth closer. Yeah, he wanted more too. Her hands spread out on his chest while he dropped his head and kissed her again. He kept the kiss short and sweet, knowing the whole town was likely watching them.
He leaned away to kiss her forehead. Yup, people were watching. The gossipers in town, for sure. Not like he gave a shit. He wanted everyone to know they were together now and she carried his child. And that they were a strong, solid front. Christ, he liked that a lot more than he anticipated. Damn. He was becoming sappy, for fuck’s sake.
“You’re really okay with this?”
He looked down into Megan’s pretty eyes that were all for him, sliding his knuckles across her cheek. “Okay with what?”
She gestured straight ahead with a knowing look. “With your mom dating again?”
At that, he arched an eyebrow. “You think I wouldn’t be okay with her dating again?”
“Oh, hell, yes, I know you would normally hate this.” She nodded firmly. “You’re not the most flexible when it comes to your family.”
That was true. Keeping his arms tight around Megan, he looked at his mother again. At her smile. “My dad would want this for her.” He leaned back down to Megan again and gave her a knowing smile right back. “There are times I know when to keep my mouth shut. And this so happens to be one of those times.”
“Sometimes, Nash Blackshaw, you surprise the hell out of me.” She went up on her tiptoes again and warmed him with her kiss. A little too warm for a crowd. When she broke away, they were both breathless. “You’re a good man.”
She momentarily stunned him with those words, and he felt like the world suddenly stopped turning. It’d been a long time since someone had told him he was a good man. Truth be told, after the accident, he’d half-assed life, and he knew why. To avoid the misery sitting even now in the center of his chest. That pain was there, squeezing and pulsing, threatening to drown him. Though over the last few weeks, something had changed.
He could see past that pain.
And that felt good.
Real good.
The music suddenly shifted to a slow song, and Nash took Megan’s hand.
She dug in her heels. “Um, no.”
“Oh, yeah, baby, we’re doing this.” He grinned back and tugged her forward until they were in front of the band. Alone. The entire town watched them. Megan’s cheeks were bright red when he pulled her in close, taking her hand and tucking his head into her neck. She smelled like flowers and sugar and his. He pressed a kiss to her pulse, finding her heart rate hammering. That made him smile.
