Page 121 of Songbird: Black Kite
“But you don’t need to worry about that. Hawk and I don’t need to be together for him to be in your life.” Even as I said the words, they hurt. I didn’t know how I would manage that; being around him all the time, but not being with him.
It would be worse torture than looking at his magazine covers in the checkout line, that was for sure.
“I know,” she said, then looked at me with a smile. “But wouldn’t it be great if you were?”
Chapter seventy
Hawk
Present
Thistime,whenIknocked on the door, it flew open so fast, I thought it might come right off the hinges.
Cooper stared up at me, her eyes bright and her cheeks flushed, grinning like mad.
“Come in!” she shouted, grabbing me by the wrist and dragging me into the house. “Come meet my friend, Jillian. She’s sleeping over tonight. We’re gonna watch movies and eat the junk she doesn’t get at home, right, Jill?”
My attention moved to the other girl, sitting on the couch, her posture rigid and her eyes wide as she nodded. She looked like a little doll, with her head full of blond curls and big blue eyes that blinked at me in shock. She was almost the exact opposite to Cooper in every way, from her coloring to her demeanor. Where Cooper was in a pair of cutoff shorts and a threadbare t-shirt, Jillian wore a floral dress that looked like it was intended for a woman in her sixties.
Poor kid.
“Nice to meet you, Jillian.”
“You too, sir,” Jillian responded, her face heating and her eyes darting away from me.
“Jill’s shy, but Mom says that I do enough talking for us both, so it all works out.”
I had no doubt that was true.
“Are those flowers for my mom?” Cooper asked, leaping to another topic as she jerked her chin at the large bundle of blooms in my hand. “They’re real nice.”
“They are for your mom, but I got some for you girls, too.” Holding up the flowers, I separated them, pulling the two smaller bouquets apart from the larger one and holding them out. “My mom said to always bring a lady flowers when you show up.”
In fact, my mother had had quite a lot to say when I told her I was taking Wren out on a date. She’d run through a long list of dos and don’ts, things like pulling out her chair and opening doors. She seemed more invested in this date than Wren probably was, and that worried me a bit. With Wren being skittish and my mom diving in with both feet, I was feeling the pressure, that was fucking for sure.
“Holy shit,” Cooper breathed, then cringed. “I mean, holy smokes. For me? Really?”
“Of course,” I said, holding out the small bundle of brightly colored daisies which she took and then cradled like a baby. My heart clenched at the way she smiled down at them, like they were the best thing she’d ever seen.
Made me feel ten fuckin’ feet tall.
“And these are for you, Jillian, if you’d like them.”
Darting a look at Cooper before she stood, Jillian slowly made her way over to me, stopping just close enough to be able to reach the flowers before she scurried back to the couch like a little mouse.
“Thank you, sir,” she offered, her voice so soft I could barely hear her.
“Jillian, let’s put these in water.” Cooper darted to the kitchen, opening cupboards and pulling out several vases of all shapes and colors. “Mom will be out in a minute,” she added, looking at me over her shoulder with a conspiratorial smile. “She’s just finishing getting ready.”
Taking the seat on the couch that Jillian had just vacated, I pulled out my phone while I waited, idly thumbing through the band group chat and listening to Cooper talk endlessly, with only the occasional quiet response from Jillian. The sound was so new, so different from anything I had ever experienced, that I couldn’t help but smile. It was something so simple, but the pure joy it sparked in my chest was extraordinary, and I never wanted it to end.
I was still sitting there, listening to the girls and watching Alex and Mick annoying each other over text message, when Wren entered the room and I forgot how to fucking breathe.
She was stunning.
There was simply no other word to describe her. Honey blonde hair hanging down her back in soft waves, Wren looked like an angel brought to earth. She absolutely shone, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her.
“Hi,” she said, her mouth curving up on one side in a hesitant smile. “Sorry I’m late. You wouldn’t tell me where we were going, so I wasn’t sure what to wear.” She gestured down her body to her dress, a flowing number in a deep red wine color that hung just above her knees. It had wide straps that looked like they wrapped around the back of her neck, and when she moved, the fabric shimmered in the light. “I hope this is alright.”
