Page 137 of When the Stars Fall
“Still are,” I reminded him.
“Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say,UncleJude. You stupid shit.”
Typical Brody. He just had to get that in there, didn’t he? He’d be in for a rude awakening when I became Noah’s stepdad. Now all I had to do was convince Lila.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Lila
Two MonthsLater
“We’re going on a bear hunt!”Noah spun around and around until he got so dizzy he fell into a heap on the front lawn.
“You’re so silly,” I teased, tickling his ribs until he was giggling so hard he couldn’t breathe. We weren’t really going on a bear hunt. We were going on a Fourth of July picnic. Jude’s idea. He was full of ideas these days.
We loaded the food and picnic blanket in the back of the truck and away we went.
“Where are we going for this picnic?”
“No idea. Thought we’d drive around until we found a good spot.”
I snorted. Like I’d fall for that one. Jude left very little to chance. But after fifteen minutes of driving aimlessly, like we had all the time in the world, I started to wonder if maybe he’d been telling the truth. When he turned the truck around and headed in the opposite direction, I started to get concerned. Ten minutes later, we were still driving.
Maybe he wasn’t okay. Maybe he was having a flashback. I didn’t know what to think. I glanced at him. He looked okay. Chilled. Relaxed. His hand tapping out the beat of the music on the doorframe.
“There’re picnic tables at the lake,” I suggested.
“Too crowded.”
“How about the state park? The one by the quarry? Or the swimming hole…”
“They’ll all be too crowded,” he said, dismissing my suggestions. “Don’t worry.” He squeezed my thigh. “I’ve got this.”
Five minutes later, he turned off the highway and took the back roads.
“Make sure there’re plenty of trees so we can sit in the shade,” I said, not entirely convinced that he had any idea where we were going. He didn’t even respond to my request. We were in the middle of nowhere and as far as I knew there were no picnic spots around here. Although I knew this place. It was the road we’d driven on a million years ago after Brody had tricked us into getting tacos.
It was one of my favorite Hill Country drives. Winding roads and rugged hills, green meadows and limestone cliffs. Today the sun was shining and the big sky was glaringly blue.
“Are we there yet?” Noah piped up from the back seat.
“Almost,” Jude replied.
I side-eyed him. “Do you have any idea where we’re going?”
“Just enjoy the ride.”
No sooner were the words out of his mouth when he swung a right onto a narrow gravel road shaded by trees. Now I was sure he was lost. The truck went up a hill and at the top of it a stone and timber farmhouse with a wraparound porch came into view.
“This is someone’s driveway,” I said. “Turn around and go back.”
Instead of turning around, he pulled up in front of the house and cut the engine. “This looks like a good spot for a picnic.”
“Are you insane?”
He grinned. “Insanely in love with Lila Turner.”
I rolled my eyes. “Come on, Jude. Let’s go.”
