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“Yes. I know.” And her stomach hurt every time she thought about it. Underneath all of her fears, she had to hope that he would choose to stay. And if he’d already committed to this one mission, maybe he’d agree it would be his last. She slumped on her stool next to her brother. “Like I said, I wasn’t planning for this to happen.”
“Happen? What do you meanhappen? Has somethinghappened?” There he went, lurching to his feet again. “Please tell me nothing hashappenedbetween you two.”
Forget this.Tess stood and calmly pushed the stool back under the workbench. “I don’t know why I came to talk to you in the first place.”
“Don’t be like that.” Aiden followed her outside. “It’s a bad idea, that’s all. You and Silas… what would that be like for the girls? Having you be with one of their father’s best friends?”
“I don’t know.” She threw up her hands. “I don’t know what any of it would look like or where these feelings might go. I don’t know how Morgan and Willow would feel or how they would handle him becoming a bigger part of our lives.” She only knew that her heart seemed to grow about three times bigger when she laid eyes on the man. She knew that Silas was the one she thought about in the lonely late night hours. She knew that she wondered about him all of the time and she wanted to make his life better.
And maybe that was all she needed to know.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Tess cut the brownies she’d made earlier and neatly arranged them on a platter.
Next to her, Kyra was setting out the plates and silverware on the kitchen island while Lyric made a pitcher of iced tea. Everything was just about set. Nearly twenty people milled around her living room, catching up on all the latest news in town. But one very important person remained missing.
Tess looked for him again. It felt like a year since Silas had walked away from her front porch. She hadn’t heard from him, and now he was late to the meeting.
Sighing, she dumped some popcorn into a bowl. “How’s my brother doing?” she asked Kyra. Tess hadn’t talked to Aiden since she’d dropped the Silas bombshell last night. Currently, her brother stood across the room in front of the fireplace, deeply engrossed in a conversation with Louie and Thatch. But he hadn’t said a word to her when he’d come in.
“He’ll be fine.” Kyra rearranged the napkins into a fancy flower-like formation. “He needs some time to process the thought of you and Silas, that’s all. He was surprised.”
“He wasn’t the only one,” she muttered, glancing out the window for the fifteenth time. Where was Silas anyway?
“I’m sure he’s on his way.” Lyric poured them each a glass of iced tea and handed them around. “Silas wouldn’t miss the meeting. He knows how important this is to you.”
“I have a lot to discuss with him. After everyone leaves.” She wasn’t as concerned with him missing the meeting as she was with him sticking around to talk to her after the meeting. Silas would support the cause of the wild horses. He’d already made that clear. He’d gone on a wild chase when he’d thought she and Morgan were in danger, risking his own safety to bring the shooters to justice.
So why wasn’t he here?
On the other side of the living room, her front door creaked open, lifting her hopes. But it was only Brad.
“Hey.” He greeted a few people on his way into the kitchen. “Sorry I’m a little late. I was making sure the girls were all set.”
“Are they having fun?” Tess gasped. Oh shoot! She’d forgotten all about the buffalo chicken dip she put in the oven a half hour ago. She shoved on her oven mitts and spun.
“They’re having a blast.” Brad closed the oven door for her after she extracted her slightly overdone dip. “Mom was teaching them to paint with watercolors when I left. She’s really enjoying entertaining them.”
“I’m sure they’re enjoying being there.” Tess sprinkled on the green onions she’d cut up. “Thanks for including Willow too. She was so excited to have a sleepover with the big girls.”
“The three of them get along great.” The man started talking about some other things Callie had planned for the evening, but Tess felt something over her shoulder. She turned in that direction and her heart dove for the floor.
Silas. At some point he had come into her house and was standing only a few feet away, watching her talk with Brad. How long had he been there?
Tess refocused on Brad, realizing he was waiting for her to say something. “Uh, that’s great. They’re going to have a blast. Thanks again for letting them come over.”
“Anytime. I have a feeling this will be the first of many sleepovers.”
Tess tried to smile at him, but she kept glancing at Silas, who had now moved to the other side of the kitchen island. He was scrolling through his phone, but he was clearly within earshot of their conversation. From the outside looking in, it probably seemed like she and Brad were awfully close. Especially standing there alone together talking about the girls. While Tess had been occupied with managing the dip, Lyric and Kyra had moved over to join Thatch, Louie, and Aiden by the fireplace.
Once again, Brad was waiting for her to say something.
“Yes, we’ll have to have Callie over here for the sleepover next time. In fact, I’m having a little gathering for Willow’s birthday on Wednesday night. It’ll be really simple. Dinner with a few friends and family.” That’s all her younger daughter wanted—to have her favorite people in one room together. This might not be the best time to ask him, but she’d promised Willow before she’d dropped her off at the Klines’ house. Since Callie had invited her to spend the night, Willow wanted to invite Callie to her birthday. Tess set a basket of crackers next to the dip. “You and Callie would be more than welcome.”
“That sounds great. Callie will love it.”
“Wonderful. We’ll get together after school. About four o’clock.” She sidestepped him. “Um, I should get ready to start the meeting.” After she had a chance to talk to Silas, that was. “But I’ve put out some snacks and drinks. Help yourself.”
