Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 115683 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 578(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115683 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 578(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Aw, hell yeah, Mom’s made lasagna.
I’m also excited. About the lasagna, obviously. But Dean and I ran into Lainey this morning at the Caffeinated Cowgirl, where she was working on her laptop. She said she’d be here tonight.
I was already thinking about coming to Sunday supper, but not gonna lie, knowing Lainey’d be here too was what tipped the scales for me.
“Mimi!” Dean shouts. “Pawpaw! Are you here?”
“We’re here,” Mom replies. “Oh, sweet boy, I’m so glad you were able to come. I’ve missed you!”
“I miss you too. Miss Lainey, you’re here for dinner?” Dean asks.
My stomach flips.
I hear the smile in her voice when she replies, “Your grandmama invited me. Isn’t that so kind?”
“Can we play UNO after we’re done?”
“As long as you eat your vegetables and mind your manners,” Lainey replies easily.
“That a deal?” Dean asks.
“That’s a deal. Such a good handshake,” Lainey says.
“Thanks. My dad taught me.”
“I’m sure he did.”
I round the corner and stop, my feet catching on the rug, when I see my entire family gathered around my parents’ enormous dining room table. There’s a twist in my chest when I see two empty places set with plates and silverware, just waiting for my son and me.
Dean is all smiles as he stands beside Lainey, who sits so that she’s facing me.
Our eyes lock. A funny kind of pressure builds inside my chest. I feel a smile tugging at the edges of my own mouth, even though I’m vaguely aware that my sister and Ryder are also at the table.
Lainey’s in that black dress again. Red lips. Green eyes.
Beautiful.
“Lainey,” I manage, then glance around the table. “Why y’all so quiet?”
Mack shoots me a pointed look. “Because you’ve been giving us the silent treatment for, like, a year now, and suddenly you decide to show up for supper like it’s no big thing. Care to explain yourself?”
Ugh, this fucking guy. I know he’s just pushing my buttons. Pushing me to mend fences with my sister and Ryder. They’re the only ones I haven’t spoken to.
I lean down to kiss Mom’s cheek. “Me and Dean were hungry.”
“Right,” Beck says, narrowing his eyes at me.
Setting the flowers down on the sideboard, I help Dean into his chair, then put his napkin on his lap. “This looks amazing, Mom.”
She’s giving me a look too. My face burns.
“Ryder helped too, you know. He’s an excellent kitchen assistant,” she says.
I glance at Billie. I have to admit she looks happier. Lit up even as she reaches for Ryder’s hand.
“That so?” I ask.
“My mom always used to say many hands make light work,” Ryder says, gulping his beer.
Lainey and I meet eyes. Hers are full of feeling. She used that exact same expression with me, only in a wildly different context. My blood thumps at the memory.
“You’re kind of the living embodiment of that, Ry,” Billie says.
Lainey is chewing thoughtfully on some garlic bread. “All y’all are. Watching you work together day in and day out is really something else.”
Can’t help it. Gotta tease this girl. Gotta get a rise out of her, ease the tension in here, because I kinda want to die right now. I didn’t come to address the proverbial elephant in the room, but I do want to thaw out this silence between me and Ryder and Billie a little bit.
I also wanna keep that smile on Lainey’s face.
“That’s ’cause we’re doin’ real work. The kind you do with your hands,” I reply with a tight smile and take my seat.
Lainey’s eyes gleam. “You really gonna start with this right now?”
Almost like she wants to play this game with me.
Damn it, she gets it. Gets me. Once upon a time, that woulda pissed me off. Now it turns me on.
I can’t stop thinking about our date. Best I’ve been on in forever. I can’t wait to do it again.
“Daddy, Miss Lainey does real work too,” Dean says, watching with glee as Tate scoops a massive piece of lasagna onto his plate. “Matter of fact, we worked together today.”
I raise my brows. “I thought you were showing Miss Lainey how to ride a horse.”
“We were riding horses, Daddy. We were also talking strategy.”
Mack hides his laughter by wiping his face with his napkin. “I like the sound of this.”
“Can we tell them?” Dean asks around a mouthful of lasagna. “Please please please? Your ideas are the neatest.”
Now we’re all laughing.
“Sure,” Lainey says with a nod. “Why don’t you tell everyone the idea we were kicking around today while you were being such an excellent teacher?”
Dean looks like he’s about to burst when he smiles and says, “Double U Ranch! Get it, Mimi? Instead of the Wallace Ranch, our new name would be—wait, what did you call it, Miss Lainey?”
Watching her laugh, I feel short of breath. Somehow I know she’s going to nail her delivery, and my family’s all gonna love whatever idea she presents.