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He tightened his hold and rested his chin on the top of her head, and she wondered at the emotion he was clearly trying to hide from her notice. “Sometimes, I wonder why you keep me around at all,” he told her. “That said, we didn’t ask for this situation, but I’m not giving up on what we’re creating. The men in my family aren’t built for lasting relationships. I was determined to be different and change the story after Steph got pregnant. The consequences of that were worse than anything I could have imagined. There’s no need for lingerie, Es. You’re perfect the way you are. I’m not like you. I’m broken on the inside, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
Their love could fix it, Esme thought. It was time to admit, at least to herself, that she’d fallen in love with Ryder. She had a feeling he loved her, too, but the heartache of his past made him scared to acknowledge it.
She wanted to tell him what was written on her heart—to stop pretending. What if they skipped dinner and headed directly to the intimates department at GreatStore? That would be a promising way to spend Valentine’s Day.
“Maybe together we can learn to trust again,” she suggested softly. They could be the people they yearned to be—for their sons and each other.
She took a step back and looked around, suddenly aware of their surroundings.
“Why are we in front of the bookstore? Remi’s Reads isn’t open at night.”
Ryder’s flashed a satisfied smile. “I’ve become friends with Linc Fortune Maloney, Remi’s husband.”
“Another one of my cousins,” she murmured. “He’s Wendell’s oldest grandson. Since moving to town last summer, Asa has been close to the Maloneys.”
Ryder nodded. “As much as Freya is helping your branch of the family, Wendell outright gifted a large part of his fortune to each of his grandchildren. Linc joined the LC Club, which is how I met him.”
“The inheritance is also how he and Remi opened the bookstore.” Esme smiled at the cheery facade. “It was a gift to her.”
“I can’t gift you a bookstore,” Ryder said with a soft laugh. “But I’ve arranged an evening in one. Remi and Linc left the keys under the flower pot next to the front door. We’ve got the whole place to ourselves.”
She gasped, and he quickly added, “I know it’s not a traditional Valentine’s Day date, but I couldn’t think of anything better than spending a quiet evening alone with you.”
“Talk about fantasies coming true.” She grinned. “As a kid, I dreamed of living in a bookstore.”
“Hopefully, the next best thing is having dinner in one.”
He led her forward and unlocked the door. Esme’s breath caught in her throat as she took in the way the interior of the store had been transformed.
Remi had already put up several cute decorations for Valentine’s Day, with paper hearts and red and pink garlands framing several of the tall shelves.
Now a narrow table with a red-and-white checked tablecloth had been positioned in the open area in front of the counter, where tea light candles flickered and the store’s overhead lights had been dimmed, lending a truly romantic atmosphere to the space.
She looked at Ryder in wonder. “How did you arrange all this when you were home with me?”
“I had a little help from your sister,” he admitted. “Bea also provided the food for the night. I was going to order another picnic from the LC Club, but she offered to make us a lasagna to share.”
“My favorite,” Esme murmured. “Everything about this night is my favorite. Thank you, Ryder.”
He kissed her again. “My pleasure. I don’t know if I mentioned my long-standing library fantasy, but...”
She laughed. “I think we can work with that one.”
As they sat down at the table, Esme offered him an apologetic smile. “Before we get started, would you mind texting Brandon? I know we’ve only been gone a short time, but it would put my mind at ease after Chase’s fussy day.”
Ryder pulled his cell phone from the pocket of his canvas jacket and frowned as he looked at the screen.
“What’s wrong?” Esme’s heart stuttered in her chest.
“Nothing. It’s just strange that I only have one bar of service here, and my phone won’t connect to the shop’s Wi-Fi. Maybe Remi turns it off at night.”
She watched as he typed in a message, then nodded as he glanced up at her. “Looks like it went through.”
The phone dinged almost a second later.
“Relax, bro.” Ryder read Brandon’s incoming text out loud.
Esme blew out a breath. “Good advice from your brother,” she agreed. “I’m going to do just that and enjoy this night with you.”
