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A few hours later,I’m waiting in the booth of Lucy’s Diner for Oakley when my phone rings. I glance at the name on the screen before answering right away.
“Hey, Braxton.”
“Why hello, Cooperoni. I’m glad to hear you’re still alive. Papa Bear must not be there yet,” says one of my best friends and Maddox’s wife.
“I am. But you knew he wasn’t here yet, or you wouldn’t have called.”
“Glad to know that college-educated brain is still working at tip-top capacity after my husband gave it a rattle. I’m sorry about that, by the way. I’ve since properly punished him.”
I blow out a laugh. “Thank you, but that wasn’t necessary. I deserved it. And he held back, or I would have had to make a trip to the ER.”
“Men.” She scoffs. “You did not deserve it. He’s just protective of those he loves.”
“You don’t have to explain his behaviour to me. I’m not upset with him.”
“Fine. But for what it’s worth, I so saw this coming.”
“Saw what coming? Me getting punches or a drunk marriage?”
“Don’t play coy. You know exactly what I’m talking about.”
“Feel free to elaborate, because I don’t think we’re on the same page.”
“Oh, come on. You and my darling sister-in-law? After she caught the bouquet at my wedding, I just knew something was going to happen. She has alwayslovedto pick on you, and I just thought, how funny would it be if they somehow ended up together someday? God, it’s so adorable that you two managed to wind up married only a few years later.”
“It’s not a real marriage,” I remind her, but the clarification is beginning to sound pointless, even to me.
“Oh, don’t be such a stick in the mud. I only have a few more minutes to myself before Liam wakes up from his nap, and I don’t want to spend them listening to you try to convince yourself of something we both know isn’t true. I might not have been at the family meeting yesterday, but I heard all about what you said.”
I smile appreciatively at the waitress when she sets another iced tea on the table and takes my empty one. She leaves a second later.
“I like her. I want a relationship with her. But things were different when we were travelling, spending every moment awake with one another. Everything was so free, and we were always happy. There was no real life to get in the way of anything. Things could change now that we’re back.”
And that terrifies me. I’ve let her into my life so quickly that having her leave now will undoubtedly hurt. My feelings are already so strong. In my heart, there’s no chance we wouldn’t work out. But in my head, there are a million reasons why we wouldn’t.
Our careers are so different. She’s a social presence, and I’m a homebody. Then there’s our ages, our friends, and our families. The cards are stacked against us.
“They could,” she agrees. “I don’t think anyone wouldn’t worry about those things before jumping headfirst into a new relationship. That’s normal. Especially when you did grow feelings under such close proximity.”
“We need this time to learn more about each other without being in those circumstances.”
“I’m proud of you for going after what you want, Coop. Do right by her, okay? She might be the toughest woman I know, but something tells me you could hurt her worse than most could.”
“I will. Promise.” The diner bell rings, and I look up as Oakley steps inside. I gulp when his hard stare finds me instantly, pinning me in place. “Oakley’s here. Any quick words of advice for me?”
“Be honest. Brutally so. He appreciates that. Don’t beat around the bush,” she says.
“Got it.”
“Text me after you leave so I know you haven’t gotten yourself killed. Love you.”
“Okay. Love you too. Bye.”
Hanging up, I set my phone face down on the table and smile at Oakley. He doesn’t return the smile, but he does wave while darting around a quick-moving waitress. Even if he weren’t an absolute brute of a man—never seeming to have lost his hockey player physique over the years—I’m positive I would still be on the brink of throwing up.
The idea of asking a father’s permission to marry his daughter seems a bit prehistoric to me, especially when Adalyn wouldn’t care less if he gave it or not, but he still didn’t deserve to be blindsided.
“Hey,” he says, sliding into the empty booth across from me. “Thanks for meeting me.”
