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Lexi had developed a ferocious crush on Jake, as he’d told her to call him, anticipating his daily visits the way she used to look forward to dates with Max. He was always so sweet and kind to her, answering her questions and brightening her days with his wittiness.
And then he came in one day and told her he was getting married.
The devastation of that news had reminded her of Max saying they should see other people while in college.
Somehow, she’d managed to keep it together while Jake cheerfully told her about his fiancée, Devon, and how they’d met in medical school and stayed together through residencies in separate states. After the wedding, Devon was moving to live with him in Houston and would work at MD Anderson. Jake said he was looking forward to introducing his new wife to Lexi, whom he referred to as his favorite patient.
She’d had the two weeks he’d been gone for his wedding and honeymoon to pull herself together before he returned to introduce his new wife to her as promised.
Devon had been a symbol of everything Lexi no longer was and might never be again. She was beautiful, accomplished and madly in love with her handsome husband.
Their marriage had triggered a dark period for her, one that had taken multiple therapists and new medication to pull her out of months later. And when she’d resurfaced, the one thing that had remained was Max. Even though she hadn’t seen him in years by then, he was still there, as much a part of her as her fingers and toes.
Memories of him had once again saved her, and now he was dangling the possibility of forever in front of her.
She turned off the water in the shower and wrapped her wet hair in one of the two towels he’d left for her. As she wrapped the other around her body, she couldn’t contain the swell of joy that came with the idea of spending the rest of her life in Butler with Max and Caden.
As wonderful as that would be, she still felt it was the right thing to slow him down and make sure they were doing what was right for all of them. And who knew if the nostalgic feelings invoked this weekend would still be there in a few months?
What if they dove all in and then realized they’d made a mistake?
Lexi simply couldn’t bear to go through losing him again, and she’d rather proceed with caution than risk that kind of heartbreak. Her heart had been through enough, and thus her plan to proceed with utmost caution when it came to Max and Caden even as she celebrated the giddy pleasure of being with Max again.
“I don’t suppose you have a hair dryer, do you?” she asked him.
“There might be one from my grandmother’s era in the back of the closet in the hallway.”
Lexi found the hair dryer behind a stack of towels and hoped it still worked. She took it to the bathroom and found that not only did it still work, it worked better than her newer one ever had. The metaphor wasn’t lost on her as she picked up right where she left off with her old boyfriend, as if no time had passed, as if they hadn’t both been through a lot in the years they’d spent apart.
Her emotions were all over the place, but one thing was certain. She hadn’t felt this good in a long time, and even as she urged caution, she couldn’t wait to spend this day with Max and have the chance to get to know Caden better.
When they were both showered and dressed, they left for the barn. Max had talked to his mother, and she’d told him to bring Lexi over for breakfast and party prep. Lucas and Dani were already there with their birthday girl and were starting to set up for the party, information that Max shared with her when they were on the way with Daisy in the back seat. Lexi couldn’t wait to see Caden’s reaction to his dad’s gift.
“It’s cute that you celebrate them both together.”
“They were born on the exact same day, and they love being birthday buddies.” He glanced at her. “I hope you’re ready for the massiveness of my family these days.”
“I’m looking forward to seeing everyone and meeting all the kids.”
“That’s Lucas and Dani’s storefront,” Max said, pointing to the left. “They added on to the barn and now they sell his furniture and her restored pieces. It’s done well for them.”
“It’s cool that their two hobbies were so well suited.”
“I know. They’re great together. We honestly thought he and Landon would never find anyone who could stand them long term, and they’re both happily married to women who are saints.”
“They were always so funny,” Lexi said, laughing.
“They still are. They love to try to confuse Dani and Amanda by acting like the other one. It’s never worked, but they keep trying.”
“So you and Lucas had babies on the same day. That must’ve been something.”
“He met Dani after she had Savvy with her late fiancé. He was killed in an ATV accident before Savvy was born.”
“Oh wow. That must’ve been so rough for her.”
“It was.”
“It’s a reminder that everyone goes through hard times,” Lexi said.
