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“I know you will.” His blue eyes shimmered brightly. “Thanks.”
“I just want you to be okay. I don’t know everything you went through over there. I’m not sure I want to know. You know what I mean.” He looked at me with hooded eyes. “But if it’s on your mind or weighing you down . . . if you want to talk, I’m here for you. I willalwaysbe here for you. I don’t want you walking on eggshells or trying to dance around telling me that everything’s fine if it’s not. I know you’ve seen things and done things. Things that you might be scared to talk to me about. But nothing will make me feel any different about you. I fell in love with you the moment we met. And I know what’s in your heart. You are the best man in the whole entire world.”
A smile pulled at his mouth. “Who got lucky enough to marry the best woman in the whole entire world.”
“Oh, baby.” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I wish there was more that I could do to help.”
“You do help,” he whispered. “Every time I get like this, you’re the one person who pulls me out of the depths of my despair.”
As we hugged one another on the garage floor, surrounded by sawdust and tools, Vince relaxed, completely at ease.
“I’m gonna get us some lemonade,” I said. Vince picked up his sander, and I went inside to get us drinks and peek in on Hudson. He was still dreaming away. “You know, this is totally unnecessary,” I said when I returned. “Maybe we should just get a new one.”
“Uh-uh.” He shook his head. “No way. This is the one you picked out. This is the one I hung. And even if my hands get covered in blisters and calluses, I’m fixing the fucker.”
I laughed and held his glass out for him. He slapped his hands on his legs, dusting the sawdust off. He swallowed the entire glass of lemonade in one gulp. “Glad I brought the pitcher.” I refilled his glass and handed it over.
“I left you with all of this to deal with. The least I can do is fix your porch swing.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to just buy a new one?”
He huffed. “Hailey, please.”
I held up my hands. “Okay, okay.”
“We could buy a new one, yes. But it won’t be as special as this one.”
“Aw.” Vince’s sentimentality melted my heart. “I can help.” He raised a brow. “I’m serious, Vince. Show me what to do. Something easy, though.”
He chuckled and handed me a piece of sandpaper. “There are several different grades of sandpaper. This one here is designed for smoothing the wood. Can’t have you getting splinters on your ass.” I giggled as he squeezed my side. “Feel,” he said, taking my hand under his. He guided our hands over the wood he had scraped and sanded already. “It’s still a little rough, but your sandpaper is a finer grit and will smooth out all that roughness.”
“Hmm,” I murmured. With his hand on mine and his body so close I could breathe in his manly scent mixed with the smell of wood and sawdust, I was getting turned on. “Vince?” I said.
“Yeah?”
“I think it’slaternow.”
“Huh?”
“Later, as in I told youlaterwhen I was out here earlier.”
“Hailey, I’m a mess,” he said, looking at his shirt and jeans covered in dust.
“That’s what the shower’s for, Vince.” I took his hand, and we ran into the house.
Chapter 22
Hailey
Vince and I sat on our newly refurbished porch swing with Hudson.
“Isn’t this fun?” I asked as we swayed.
“It is,” Vince said.
“I was asking Hudson,” I teased.
“And since he doesn’t know that word yet, I was answering for him.”
