When It's Right(57)

Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t know his mother rose from the sofa to come and stand beside him until her hand touched his arm. He stared out the front door, watching Gillian with Justin and his father, standing by her truck. She opened the driver’s door to show his dad the inside, then went and popped the hood. The whole time, she kept a discreet three-­foot distance, even when Justin wrapped his arms around her leg as he always did when he sensed her guard up.

“You’re very good with her,” his mother praised. “She’s beautiful and tragic all at the same time. She’s smart and strong, nothing like I expected and so much more.”

“Yes. She is.” He didn’t take his eyes off her.

“So, it’s like that.” His mother guessed all that he didn’t say. “You really like her.”

“I like you, Mom.”

“What? You don’t love me?” she teased.

“You know I love you. But her . . .” He shook his head, unable to put everything he felt into words. “I feel so much for her. I want to protect her. I want to rush her and give her all the time she needs. I want to kill every man who looks at her. I’d really like to kill her father all over again. Slowly. I want to wrap my arms around her and hold her and hope it’s enough to make her feel safe. I want to make her happy and laugh and smile.

“It’s strange, but everything she is, I am. If she’s frightened, I feel it. If she’s quiet and introspective, I calm and go inside, wondering how I can coax her back out. On the rare occasion she laughs with Justin, I feel so much joy inside for her because I know it’s a triumph to allow herself to be happy and free to enjoy herself for even that small moment.”

“Blake, she’s getting better,” Dee said. “It’s only been a week.”

“I know. I meant what I said. Anything she needs, it’s hers. She deserves it and so much more. I want to give her everything, but sometimes it’s hard to hold back when she needs me to.”

“It’s like that when you find someone special. You want to spend all your time with them,” his mother said. “She may want to spend time with you, but her situation holds her back, when you want to leap.”

“I want to hold on, but she won’t let me close enough to even touch her most of the time. And I don’t just mean in a physical way.”

“I don’t know about that,” his mother said, watching Gillian, too. “You watch her. She watches you. Before she walked out, she hesitated for a second. I think she wanted to reach for you, but with me and Dee here, she didn’t. If you’d been alone, she might have taken that step. She might not be like other women you’ve dated, Blake, but if what you two have is real and true, the time and effort you put into building your relationship will be stronger than anything others might have because she’s got so much to overcome. For her to trust you, be close to you, you’ll know it’s real and true, because she wouldn’t fight for it otherwise. The fact she’s trying, despite the setbacks, both small and large, tells you she’s not only interested in you but that she wants this to work as much as you do. Maybe more, because she needs to believe that some men can be good and kind. She believes that about you, so she tries. I bet she’s scared to death that if she pushes you too hard, you’ll give up on her. But she pushes, because she needs to know you won’t give up. Remember that when things get tough, because they will. That’s life.

“Look at all Gabe and Ella went through to be together. A relationship is work, Blake. It’s never easy, but it’s worth it if you love each other.”

“She’s worth it,” he said to himself more than to his mother. She was right. For the first time in his life, he was building a relationship to last, not just seeing someone to have a good time.

“So, in addition to bringing Justin’s quilt, I have something else for you. Gabe and Ella set a date. They’re getting married in May at Wolf Ranch. It’ll be an intimate affair, just family and a few of Ella’s close friends from New York before she and Gabe go off to Bora Bora.”

“The trip she planned to take with her sister before her uncle murdered Lela,” he said.

His mother frowned. “Yes. She’s still healing, too, from all the loss and betrayal that man put her through. Gabe wants to give his bride the closure she needs by taking the trip.” His mother handed him the engraved invitation. “Dane told Gabe about Gillian after you talked to him the other day. He’s put a plus one on the invitation if you’d like to bring her.”