“Yup. Biggest TV I ever seen.”
“Me too. Let’s see what’s on.” She settled Will beside her on the couch and they surfed channels. He made her stop several times. Cooking shows, he loved them. She finally found a cartoon channel showing something he recognized. He snuggled in close to her side and sat quietly watching. She should help Dylan with dinner, but if he wanted to make it, let him. How often did she have someone around to cook for her? Hardly ever, and never often enough, in her estimation.
She loved having Will close, but warned herself not to get attached, not to start thinking he was hers. She tamped down thoughts of Hope and missing her. Wishing for her didn’t do anything but make her sad, and she didn’t want to be sad anymore.
She wanted to sit with this little boy and watch TV and let the warmth of the moment soothe her aching heart.
Dylan watched the two of them from the kitchen.
He surveyed the house again and smiled. He liked it here. It felt right. He and Will could be comfortable living with her. He’d thought he’d get her to marry him and she’d move out to his place near his cousins. On second thought, this place was perfect. Even more so because she’d designed and built it herself. He figured she’d never want to give it up. Add to the fact it she built it on the land they’d made their daughter.
He got chills driving up her driveway thinking about it. He wondered how she managed to make the drive every day and not remember their night together. Then again, she probably didn’t try to forget. She’d picked this spot for the house for the very reason it was where they’d spent the night together. It gave him hope knowing she cared that deeply about their past. Now, he just needed her to love him in the present and for the next fifty-plus years.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
* * *
JESSIE DIDN’T REALIZE how much she’d missed having someone to share a meal with. Will was comical when it came to eating spaghetti. He got more on his face than in his mouth, but it didn’t matter. He had fun doing it. Dylan kept the conversation moving, talking about his time in the military, serving in the wars overseas, facing life and death, finishing his degree during his police training, and living in Atlanta. She opened up about starting her own company, and how she’d worked while attending school. He understood how hard it must have been on her to accomplish it, and finish it.
They didn’t discuss Hope or his mother. She wondered if he had more questions. She had a few of her own about Will. Did Dylan have someone special in his life? Did he really want to start over with her? Was it all just wishful thinking they could start over? Did he love her?
Afraid to ask, even more afraid he did, she didn’t want to try again only to have it all fall apart. But what if it didn’t this time?
They weren’t impulsive teenagers anymore. This time, they had no secrets. They’d done their growing up and found their place in the world. This time, they could take the time, build their friendship and attraction into a sturdy foundation for a lasting future.
Looking at him across the table with the wine making her a little numb, she dreamed this was her life. Way too easy to think this was how she spent every evening. Dylan and Will had become a part of her home, seamlessly blending in without a ripple. Will played with the rocking horse and flopped on the couch like he owned the place. Dylan whipped up dinner without once asking her where she stored something. He’d simply made himself at home, rummaging through her refrigerator and cupboards. She regretted the late hour and found she already missed them, even though they hadn’t yet left.
From the couch, Will said, “I’m not supposed to say so, but I want you to be the mommy. I get to choose. You said so,” he reminded his father.
The blooming dream of a future with Dylan faded to gray. What if Will chose another mother? What if she couldn’t be the mother he needed? Being with Dylan again meant being with Will. Surprisingly, that thought made her happy. She liked the little boy. Despite feeling as if she’d closed off her heart when Hope died, she found it open to Will, even if she still had her reservations about Dylan. Loving a little boy was so much easier than loving a man.
“I know what I said. I also remember telling you we have to give Jessie time. She and I have some things to work out, and we’re sad because we lost Hope.”
“She died.” Will pouted and frowned at Jessie. “My goldfish died. It was sad. I cried.”
“That is sad, honey. Hope was just a baby when she died. I miss her very much.”
“Daddy is sad too. He misses her. She can’t come back from heaven.”