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Taylor and Macy nodded in agreement.
Unable to defend herself when she was outnumbered, Gia threw up her hands. “Fine! I love him. What am I supposed to do about it?”
“Go out there and tell him!” Taylor whisper-shouted. “We’re tired of you guys skirting each other. Just lay it out there. Let ’er rip.”
“How much sangria have you had?” Gia asked.
“A lot,” Taylor said, “but that doesn’t mean I’m wrong.”
“I have so much to lose,” Gia announced miserably. She could be shot down. And then her carefully constructed façade that she’d erected—the one where she pretended not to miss him and that she’d moved on with her life—would come tumbling down. Only this time she had a feeling she’d be buried beneath the rubble.
“Hell yeah you do,” Taylor agreed. “But he might surprise you. We’re going to leave soon. You should talk to him once we’re gone.”
“So are we. Quinn needs a nap and so does her mom.” Addison smiled warmly. “Go for it, Gia. If the worst happens, we’ll be there for you.”
“I’ll corral your father out of here, too,” Macy promised.
A second later, Gia was enveloped into a hug from all three women. Feeling excited, nervous and...yeah, mostly nervous, she wondered what Jayson would say. She wondered what she wanted him to say.
She wasn’t expecting a proposal, but was it too much to hope for a reunion? Even one where they continued on the path they were on would be better than nothing. Though she was risking nothing as well, wasn’t she?
Admitting to him that she loved him could push him away completely. He seemed so done the other morning when he’d pragmatically explained she didn’t need to worry about him being in her space. And when Bran had asked if he’d be at the pool party, Jayson had been quick to tell her she could disinvite him.
He could revert to form and tell her how she should feel. But she held out hope that he’d listen to her this time around. That he’d be the man she continued to want and need.
The what-ifs were killing her. There was no way to know for sure which outcome to expect... She’d just have to confess, and hope for the best.
The next hour passed easily. Her family made no more mention of love or whether or not Gia talked to Jayson yet. As promised, Taylor and Royce filtered out, Addi and Bran right behind them.
Macy still hadn’t managed to corral Gia’s dad, but everyone knew that Jack Knox was almost as hard to corral as his daughter.
“I’m not leaving until I have ice cream cake,” he declared with a white-toothed smile.
“I’ll get it,” Jayson offered but Macy pushed him back onto the lounger.
“You keep Jack company. Gia and I will get it.”
Gia found herself back in the kitchen at the same countertop, facing a similar firing squad as before, only now there was only one gunner.
“How are you? Are you losing your nerve?” Macy asked as she pulled the cake from the freezer and opened the box.
“There’s a lot at stake, Mom.”
“Marriage isn’t easy. Whether you’ve tried it once or four times.”
“How would you know if you’re in the once club?” Gia pulled a knife from the drawer and began cutting the cake.
“Because husbands and wives change each decade so it feels like multiple marriages,” her mom joked. “Everyone makes mistakes. Jayson has made his, you’ve made yours. The trick is being able to admit them and forgive each other.”
“He’s different,” Gia said, thinking of how Jayson had behaved lately. “He talks differently. I know it’s dangerous to think people change, but—”
“But they do. That means you’ve changed, too. Have you been honest with yourself about that? Have you showed him you’re different?”
Gia felt the sting of tears in her nose. “Of course not. It’s all his fault, remember?”
“Don’t be glib with me, Gia Knox-Cooper. You have been gracious and poised about this divorce. You’ve also been an insufferable smart-ass.”
“Mom.”
