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“Are you really asking a moose for his opinion?”
“His free advice is almost as good as my grandfather’s.”
Lexi began to laugh and couldn’t stop. This was the most ridiculous ten minutes of her life.
Fred let out a noise that was between a moo and a groan.
“Do you hear what he’s saying?”
“I don’t speak moose.”
“You’re in luck. Hannah has taught me a few things.” Max listened intently as Fred continued to speak. “He’s saying that you fought really hard to overcome a very serious illness, and now that you’ve regained your health, you ought to enjoy every second of your life, starting right now by coming home with me and spending the night. He says he remembers how much we used to wish we could sleep together all night, and now we can.”
“Are you in cahoots with a moose? Did you plan this?”
“Not at all, but Fred knows a good thing when he sees it, and so do I.” He reached for her hand and brought it to his lips, running them over her knuckles.
She drew in a sharp deep breath.
“What do you say? Do you want to come home with me?”
“I, um, well…”
“It’s just tonight, Lex. We’ll let tomorrow take care of itself.”
With him, it had never been that simple, but he and Fred were right. She’d fought long and hard to regain her health, and she was determined to live every minute to the fullest in this second chance she’d been given. “Okay,” she said softly.
“She said yes, Fred,” Max said out the window.
Fred mooed loudly and ambled off into the brush by the side of the road.
“Is he for real?” Lexi asked, incredulous.
Max shifted the truck into Drive and continued toward his house. “As real as it gets. Fred has been interfering in our lives for as long as I can remember.”
“I’ve tried to tell people about Butler, but I could never do justice to what goes on here. How do you explain about a moose that everyone calls by name who’s as much a part of the town as any of the people are?”
“You can’t. You have to experience Butler to believe it.”
“I’ve missed it here so much. I’ve missed everything about it, especially you.”
“I missed you, too. I can admit that now that I know where you’ve been.” He paused before he added, “People wondered about you, and I’d have to say I wasn’t sure where you were.”
“It never occurred to me that you’d be forced to answer questions about me.”
“It was rough for a while. I won’t lie to you about that. I was angry and confused and sad not to have you in my life. With hindsight that has come with being back with you again, I can see that things didn’t work out with Chloe or anyone else I dated because there was so much unfinished business with you.”
“That’s a good way to describe it. For me, it was like this giant question mark. ‘If I see Max again, will it be like it was back then, or will it be strange and awkward?’”
“We’ve answered that question rather definitively. It’s the same as it always was.”
No, it isn’t,Lexi thought.It’s even better.She wished she could get fully on board with picking up where they left off, but now that the moment was upon them, she was worried about whether it was fair to saddle him—and his precious son—with the anxiety she and her family lived with every day.
Max helped her out of the truck, something he’d done when they were dating that she’d never forgotten, and led the way inside.
Daisy let out a happy squeak, her tail wagging so hard, it banged against the wire frame of her crate.
Max let her out and scooped her up. “No! Not on me! Outside! Damn it, she peed on me.”
