Page 28 of Where You Left Me

And not just my mom’s. There’s Gigi’s too. And several other names I recognize.

“But I’m gonna need you to handle this one. I can’t. I just…can’t.”

“That’s one hundred percent okay, I can do it,” she says quickly.

“Good, now that that’s settled.” I push off the railing and hold her phone out to her.

But when she tries to grab it, I don’t let go. She glares at me. “What the hell, Jones?”

“I want to show you something.”

Her brows lift slightly as she tilts her head.

My lips pull at the corner. “Take a ride with me.”

She smiles along with me, and my stupid assumption is she’s gonna say yes. I let go of her phone and she squeezes it in her hand while peering into the distance.

“What about my other ideas?”

I flatten my palms on the picnic table and lean down to get her attention,. “You can tell me in the truck.”

Mia pushes her fingers through her hair. I’m envious of those fingers. I want to have my own fingers tangled in her hair. Just like I used to. But this time, I’d give it a little tug while she’s sucking me off.

“I can’t, Jones.” She stands and climbs off the bench, rubbing her arms and still not looking at me.

Bending down, I stick my face in her line of vision so she has no choice but to make eye contact with me. When she finally does, my heart aches deep in my chest. Deeper than it has in quite a while. “You can’t, or you won’t?”

“Both,” she mumbles, her expression is dejected.

I spin my hat backwards. “I’m not gonna beg, Mia.”

She swallows. “I have to get to work.”

I cross my arms. “No, you don’t.”

She’s caught and she knows it. If she had work, she wouldn’t have been able to meet me now.

“Fine. Suite yourself. But I gotta go.” I turn around to leave and her footsteps sound out behind me.

“Where’re you going?”

I grin but keep walking. “You wanna know, you’re gonna have to come.”

“Wait,” she calls out.

My stride halts and I turn around to face her. She’s chewing on her lip with her arms crossed and gazing every which way but at me.

“Will we be back before nightfall?”

I roll my eyes and shake my head. “Never mind, Peaches. I don’t have time for this. I gotta go.”

“It’s my night to sit with Dad.”

Well, shit.“Yes,” I grunt. “We’ll be back by nightfall.”

She follows me to my truck without speaking another word. My damn heart in my chest is booming louder with each step I take. This will be the longest we’ve been together since she’s been back. I’m both excited and scared shitless at the same time.

After we climb into my truck I glance at her, wordlessly giving her one last chance to change her mind and haul ass out of my truck. But she doesn’t. So I turn over the engine. And the reliable old country station plays out one of my favorite 90’s songs.

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