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Holly’s heart expanded as she watched Chace with Emme and Wren. How naturally he interacted with them. How he truly seemed to enjoy everything they’d done the past two days. How great a father he would someday be.
Her breath caught on that last thought. Had she not broken their engagement, this could have been their life. Married. With children of their own. Celebrating every milestone and holiday. Sharing each accomplishment and achievement as a couple and a family. And working through the challenges life would inevitably throw in their direction.
Together. As a team. The way committed relationships were supposed to be.
Unless she bailed on him when things got tough like she’d done eight years ago, only to constantly wonderwhat ifabout every damned decision she’d made.
“Can we go finish the tree?” Emme asked.
Blinking, Holly was surprised to find she’d been so lost in thought she hadn’t even noticed the girls clearing the table. Or Chace wrapping the remaining pizza slices in aluminum foil. “Yeah. Sure,” she finally answered, embarrassed to have been so distracted, especially about something she couldn’t change.
“We’ll be right there,” Chace added on his way to put the leftovers in the fridge.
Holly rose from her seat to follow the twins as he crossed back to the island, but the next words out of his mouth stopped her cold. “Where’d you go just now?”
So much for hoping he hadn’t noticed her silence. Rather than divulging the direction her thoughts had taken, Holly simply brushed off his concern with a wave of her hand. “Just in a daze, I guess.”
Chace held her gaze for a few long seconds before nodding. “Okay.”
Holly harbored no illusion that Chace bought her response. Still, it seemed he was willing to let it go.
At least for now.
14
“Rethinking your ‘how much work can having fun be’ comment?” Holly asked as she collapsed on the opposite end of the sofa from where Chace was already sprawled out, his sock feet propped on the coffee table.
He turned his face toward her without lifting his head off the back of the sofa. “Who knew seven-year-olds had that much energy?”
“Right.” Holly nestled herself in one corner of the couch, pulling her legs up on the cushion to rub her aching feet. “I didn’t think they’d ever settle down.”
After they put the last decoration on the tree, Holly shuffled the girls upstairs for a bath and to get dressed for bed. That had been over an hour ago, and for all she knew, they still weren’t asleep. And since they didn’t show any signs of settling down after their bedtime story and Holly could barely keep her eyes open, she tucked them in, kissed them goodnight, and made her escape.
Her first instinct was to continue to the master bedroom and fall into bed herself when she caught a glimpse of Chace on the sofa surrounded by empty containers, ornament boxes, and bubble wrap. Although he’d been the one to insist on venturing out to Morningstar Farm to hunt for a Christmas tree and have another fun-filled, action-packed day, Holly couldn’t bring herself to leave him to clean up the mess by himself.
So, here she was.
“In the future, let’s remember not to cram so much into one weekend.” She stretched her feet and toes, then continued rubbing them.
Chace gave her a thumbs-up. “Deal.”
“Have you heard from Lyss today?” They’d been so busy Holly had forgotten that she was supposed to call Emme and Wren again tonight. Since the girls hadn’t mentioned it, they must not have remembered either.
“Not since this morning when she replied to my text about our plans for the day. She said Sean was on his way to Germany, so I told her I’d wait to hear from her. Figured between the time difference, the stress she’d been under waiting and wondering, combined with seeing Sean, assessing his injuries for herself, interrogating the medical staff about his treatment protocol, and getting him settled to her satisfaction, she’s likely more exhausted than we are right now.”
Holly couldn’t agree more. “Yeah. I feel ashamed for even comparing the exhaustion we’re experiencing to what she and Sean have and continue to go through.”
“Tired is tired. And those girls wore my ass out.”
Commiserating, Holly laughed. “Can you imagine if we could bottle and sell all that energy? We’d be set for life.”
“Amen to that.” Yawning, he lifted his hand to his mouth to cover it. “Sorry,” he murmured. “It’s not the company, I promise.”
“Sure it’s not,” she teased him.
Chace didn’t respond right away. Instead, he studied her in silence, his eyes hooded and locked on hers as if weighing the pros and cons of a decision he needed to make. After several long seconds, he finally blinked, the decision apparently made. “Can I ask you a question?”
Apprehension skirted through Holly. Wouldn’t seeking permission imply a better-than-average chance she might refuse?
