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"I just don't want to offend them."
Taking her coat, he hung his and hers on the hooks by the door. "You didn't offend them."
She hoped not. The last thing Hope wanted was to appear ungrateful. Especially after the wonderful day she'd had with Drew and his family. Unsure of what to do or say next, she unnecessarily straightened the afghan on the back of one of the recliners as Drew picked up the remote. "Are you planning to finish watching the game?"
"I figured I'd turn it on. Unless there's something you'd rather watch."
Hope shook her head. "No. I was just wondering." She turned to the fridge. "I'm gonna get some milk. You want anything?"
"Milk's good."
Great job with the scintillating conversation, Hope berated herself as she grabbed two tumblers and poured their drinks. When she joined him, Drew had removed his boots and was sprawled on one end of the sofa, his socked feet crossed at the ankle on the glass-topped coffee table. Hope handed him the milk and sat in the opposite corner, one leg curled beneath her. "Your family's a lot of fun."
“Yeah, they're quite a crew." Fondness laced his words. "But they mean well."
"I think they're great." Hope flicked a piece of lint from the khakis she'd changed into after helping Anna prep for dinner. "With Sam, people were always around, but it was different than with your family. I envy the affection and closeness you all share even when you're yanking each other's chain."
Drew smiled, and Hope's heart did a little thumpity-thump. "It's been that way my whole life."
She took a sip of her milk. "You were right, you know."
He raised a brow. "About what?"
"It did help to spend Thanksgiving here with your family instead of in Kentucky with all the memories of my dad. And missing him like crazy." Hope swallowed past the lump in her throat. "I still missed him, but it wasn't as brutal as it would have been if I were back home."
Shifting to face her, Drew smiled again, and the warmth in his beautiful eyes felt like it reached right in and touched her soul. "You and my mom seemed to hit it off pretty well."
"You were right about that too. There was no awkwardness between us at all. We worked together as if we'd been doing so our whole lives. Your grandma too." Hope took another sip of milk. "Your mother is a remarkable woman."
"Yeah, she's pretty tough to beat."
No question about that, Hope decided. To have raised four boys while also helping her husband establish a law career and run a successful horse and cattle farm, there was no doubt Anna Blackwood was one tough cookie. But Hope had seen a softer, gentler side of her today. Like when she tended to the needs of her grandsons. Or smiled proudly, if not a bit emotionally, when her eyes settled on each of her sons, all seated around the dinner table together for the first time in Hope had no idea how long.
"Can I ask you a question?"
Drew nodded. "Sure."
"Would you have come to Lone Oaks if I hadn't agreed to come with you?"
By the look on his handsome face, Hope could tell it wasn't the question he’d expected. As if he needed to formulate his response carefully, Drew didn't answer right away. After a few moments, his broad shoulders lifted and fell in a shrug. "I don't know." He met her gaze. "Why?"
Since there was no need to reveal the conversation she'd had with his mother, Hope could have chalked it up to plain old curiosity. But for some reason, she didn't. "Your mother thanked me today. When I asked her for what, she said for you coming home. I told her you'd asked me to come with you, and she said if I'd refused, she was pretty sure you'd still be in Kentucky."
Hope ran her finger around the rim of her glass and kicked herself for even starting this conversation. "It doesn't really matter," she inserted quickly. They'd entered uncharted territory here, and Hope didn't think she was ready to navigate the full depth of these waters just yet.
"It must have mattered, or you wouldn't have asked." Leaning toward her, Drew reached out and twirled a loose piece of her hair around his finger, his eyes locking with hers. "I knew the holidays would be hard for you without Sam. That's the reason I gave myself for asking you to come home with me. But when you initially refused my offer, my disappointment was more about us being apart.”
Her breath caught and her heart pounded like a jackhammer against her ribs. Hope wondered if Drew could hear it. Feel it, even.
"Guess that makes me a selfish son-of-a-bitch, doesn't it?"
"Your intentions were good."
"You know what they say. The road to hell is paved with good intentions."
Smiling, Hope held his gaze. "Is that what you think you've done by bringing me to Lone Oaks? Paved a road to hell?"
Drew shook his head. "No," he answered, his voice thick. "I'm glad you said yes because I really don't know what I would have done if you hadn't agreed to come." He tucked the strand of hair he'd been toying with behind her ear, the back of his knuckles grazing her cheek. "But I do know it would have been hell leaving you in Kentucky.”
