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I smile and pull my mama’s keys from my pocket to hand them over. I then pull her into a hug and kiss her forehead. Looking at her and Mrs. Galveston, I give them a huge smile.
“Thank you,” I say.
“We have your back, son. That bigheaded son of mine can’t hold on to her forever. No one can get in the way of true love, no one,” Mrs. Galveston says with conviction.
I take the bag of candles and watch as they all leave. I turn to head toward the lamps. My breath catches as my eyes land on Lynn, looking at the lamps with knit brows and her lips pursed.
I walk over to her wordlessly, smiling. I brush my pinkie against the back of her hand as I walk by. A gasp leaves her lips and she looks up over her shoulder at me.
“Hello, darlin’,” I murmur.
“Trev,” she breathes and throws her arms around my waist.
I cup her face and kiss her repeatedly, not wanting to let her go. I haven’t been eating or sleeping. Right now, as I have her in my grasp, I can’t help but wonder if I’ve even been breathing.
“Hey, baby girl. I’ve missed you so much,” I say against her lips.
Suddenly, she stiffens and tears away from me, looking around wildly. My heart sinks. This isn’t the reaction I was expecting.
“I’m sorry. I have to be careful. If someone tells Daddy we were together, he’s going to take New York and Nashville away. I still don’t know if I want to give that up,” she whispers.
I think through her words but don’t ask what she means. She’ll never have to give anything up for me. I hope she hasn’t been worrying herself about this.
However, she has a point. We can’t be seen together. I think fast, not willing to miss out on this time.
“Your nanna just left with my family. She left you with the car. I’ll head out and meet you behind the bowling alley. Come pick me up from there.”
“Where will we go from there?” she asks, her soft brown eyes searching mine.
I hold up Nanna’s house keys. “The old house. I’ll explain in the car.”
I tug her in for one more quick kiss. With a smile, she takes off, only looking back once as if to ensure I’m real. I give her a smile and wink. She returns the smile with a wobbly one but turns and rushes out of the store.
I wait a few moments then leave out of the store and make a beeline for the bowling alley down the road. When I get there, I circle the building and come up behind it.
Lynn is already there, waiting in Nanna’s little silver car. I go to the driver’s side to take over since she has that cast. She climbs over into the passenger seat. I slip inside and buckle up. Lynn looks around cautiously. I pull out and headed down the back roads to get to her nanna’s old house.
“What’s going on?” she asks as we drive.
“I think your nanna and my mama are working together, so we can have some time together.”
“Oh my God, I think my mama is in on it too. I’ve been dying in that house.”
“You’re not alone. I’ve been sick to my stomach, not getting to talk to you at all. I’m sorry, Lynn.”
“This isn’t your fault. If anyone is to blame, it’s me this time. I piled onto our lies and made things worse.”
“Let’s talk about something else. I don’t want to spend our night rehashing who’s to blame. We’re here. I’ll find a solution, but for now, I just really want to spend time with you.”
“Okay,” she says.
I glance at her out of the corner of my eye. She’s biting her lip nervously. Quickly, I lean over and kiss her cheek. I can’t wait until I can get my hands on her and really kiss her. I’ve missed her soft lips so much.
“You’re really here,” she squeals.
“That I am, darlin’. That I am.”
CHAPTER 36
