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Though she tried to split the bill with him, he paid for everything, leaving a generous tip, and then they walked out of the restaurant with Minnie shaking her head sadly on the sidelines.
Tess thanked him for a nice evening and made plans to drop Morgan and Willow off at his house an hour before the meeting. When she climbed into her truck, her soul felt lighter somehow. Maybe acknowledging her true feelings would get easier each time she did it.
Starting the engine, she briefly thought about driving to Jackson to try and track Silas down, but the logistics seemed overwhelming. And after their exchange last night, he likely didn’t want to see her. So she would wait and talk to him tomorrow. After the meeting. Right now she needed to speak to her brother.
Minutes later, Tess knocked on Aiden and Kyra’s front door.
Her friend answered and quickly glanced at her watch. “Hey. What’re you doing back here so early?”
Morgan appeared behind Kyra. “Aw, Mom. We’re not even done with the movie yet.”
“You can keep watching until it’s over.” She focused on her soon-to-be sister-in-law. “I need to talk to Aiden anyway. Is he around?”
Kyra nodded, a knowing smile in place. “He’s cleaning the garage.”
“For some reason he didn’t want to watchThe Princess Diarieswith us,” Morgan called, already making her way back into the house.
“I don’t blame him,” Tess whispered.
Her friend laughed. “For some reason that movie never gets old to me. Lyric and I watched it together all the time when we were kids.”
Tess always marveled at how Lyric and Kyra had been best friends as young girls and then were reunited less than a year ago when Kyra’s dad passed away. “Well, I’m gladyouenjoy that movie.” She was going to enjoy not having to watch it a fourth time this month. “I’ll come back and hang out with you once Aiden and I have had a little chat.”
Kyra nodded. “I’ll be anxious to hear how it goes. He might be surprised but he does want you to be happy, Tess. That’s the most important thing to Aiden.”
“I know.” But telling him that she was falling in love with Jace’s best friend wasn’t going to be easy. Tess jogged down the porch steps and crossed the driveway to let herself into the property’s main outbuilding. For two years, Aiden had made it his job to protect her, to counsel her, to help her, to make her life easier. And he had in many ways. But now she needed to stand on her own and tell him the truth.
She found her brother standing among piles of horse supplies and feed and snow removal equipment. “Hey,” he said, setting down a crate of tools. “I thought you had a date with Brad tonight.”
“Itwasn’ta date.” Tess let out an exasperated sigh. She should’ve worn a sign. Instead, she pulled out a stool from his workbench and took a seat. “This conversation cut our dinner short though.”
Aiden pulled a handkerchief out of his back pocket and wiped his face. “You didn’t have fun?”
“It was fine.” She picked up a rope scrap and started to unravel the edge, needing something to keep her hands busy. “He’s a nice guy. Only he’s not the guy I’m interested in right now.”
Aiden came to stand in front of her, looking at her intently as if for the first time. “But youareinterested in someone?”
“Kind of.” She focused on the rope, her fingers fraying all of those little strands at the end. “Er, I mean, yes.Yes. I think I may be interested in someone.” The erratic beating of her heart only proved how interested she was in Silas. Onward. She must press onward. “I know this might come as a surprise. Or maybe it won’t. I don’t know. I mean, I knowIwas pretty surprised—”
“What’re you talking about?” Her brother shoved another crate of junk out of the way so he could pull out the stool next to hers. “I’ve already told you I’ll be fully supportive when you decide to date again. We all know you loved Jace, Sis. Dating again won’t take away from that.”
“Thanks.” Tess lifted her head and dropped the rope on the workbench. “It’s Silas.”
“SilasSilas?” Aiden shot off the stool. “As inmyfriend Silas?” His voice rose three octaves higher. “As inJace’sfriend Silas?”
“Is that so surprising?” Tess stood too, facing off with him. “I’ve spent a lot of time with the man in the last two years. He’s become a big part of my life.”
Her brother turned away from her and exhaled loudly. “He’s nothing like Jace, Tess.Nothing.”
“You really think I would only be attracted to someone like Jace?” She nudged Aiden’s shoulder to turn him around. “Jace is dead. I know he’s dead. I know he’s not coming back. I’m not trying to replace Jace.” She never could. What they’d had was different than what she would have with someone else. She didn’t expect a new relationship to be the same as her marriage. “Hell, I don’t even want to have feelings for anyone. But you don’t always get to decide what your heart wants, now, do you?”
“Okay.” Aiden leaned against his workbench and kneaded his temples. “Okay… Silas isn’t a good idea. I love him like a brother, but he’s taking off on a mission, Tess. He’s not permanent. He was the only one out of all of us who actually enjoyed being on the move all the time. Can you really see him settling in to be Morgan and Willow’sfathersomeday?”
Aiden didn’t know. He didn’t get why Silas had never put down roots anywhere. He didn’t understand what Silas had run from. And she wouldn’t tell him. It wasn’t her place. “I didn’t say I wanted tomarrySilas.” She let her irritation burn through the words. “I said I havefeelingsfor him.”
She wasn’t about to share that she’d acted on those feelings a few times. Her brother didn’t need to know anything about her sex life, thank you very much. “I’m not asking for your permission, by the way. I just thought you should know.” She went to make a dramatic exit, but Aiden caught her arm.
“Wait. I don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all. Not after what you’ve been through.” He sat back down on the stool. “Jesus, Tess. You know what could happen to him over there.”
