Page 61 of Wild Hearts

"I'd love that too, but Dakota specifically requested that you join us," I said lightly as she tugged on her jacket and closed her door.

In the cab of the truck, Dakota pulled her headphones down long enough to say hello to Addison and request holiday music on the radio. Then she covered her ears again, presumably giving us a few minutes to talk.

I lowered my voice and threw a thumb over my shoulder in Dakota's direction. "Was the holiday music for her or for us?"

"I think it was for us. Is she trying to set a mood or something?" Addison asked.

I sighed. "She might be."

Addison groaned. "She shouldn't be involved in whatever this is."

"I enjoy talking to her about us, and she seems to be havingfun. Can we go along with it? Make her think it's working?" I looked over at her and winked.

Addison laughed. "Why do I have a feeling this is as much for you as it is her?"

"I'm not afraid to do whatever it takes to convince you to give me another chance."

"About that," Addison began, and the nerves kicked into high gear again. "I want to give us a shot."

"Yeah?" I looked over at her, not quite trusting her words.

"I'm still nervous about getting hurt, but I like being around you. I always have."

I was hoping it was more than like, but it was too soon to name other emotions, and I was okay with that. For now.

"Thank you for giving me another chance. I won't let you down."

Addison sighed heavily. "Let's not make promises we can't keep. We'll see how this goes, and if one of us wants out, we agree to be upfront about it."

I wanted to argue with her and say that wouldn't happen, but I understood she didn't trust me. Not yet. "I can do that."

"Good."

It was the opening I'd been waiting for. She wasn't just pretending to go along with this as my friend. She was going to give us another chance. I just hoped I didn't screw it up this time.

I drove to a nearby Christmas tree farm, following the line of cars to the gate where I got a saw and a map. "Which field should we go to?"

Addison took the offered map and studied it. "There's a couple of fields near the pond that are open."

I parked on the side of the road next to the field she pointed to. "Are you ready to find a Christmas tree?"

I was pleased to see that Dakota took her headphones off and left them on the seat. We got out and walked through therows of trees looking for the perfect one. Dakota and Addison were excited to find one, never having done this before, and I was content to follow behind them. We'd need two trees: one for our cabin and one for Addison.

When they decided on the perfect trees, we took turns taking photos in front of them, and then I cut each one down with their help.

I dragged the trees to the truck and threw them into the bed. Then we drove them to the machine that bonded the trees in netting for the ride home.

We needed to move the truck to the lot by the barn to pay for our trees. I held the tickets for both, having no intention of letting Addison pay for hers.

Thankfully, the girls meandered around the shop, so I was able to slip away and pay for both without an issue. When I found them again, they were standing near tables of small potted trees. "This is something my office is helping with. Giving the trees to kids in foster care who might not have one."

"Would you like to help us decorate the pots and put together the bags that go with it?" a volunteer asked.

"Can we?" Dakota asked, and I couldn't say no to her. "Of course. We don't have any plans today."

Dakota wanted to paint a pot, so Addison and I worked on packing the bags that would go with each tree.

"Your office will distribute these?" I asked Addison.

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