Page 25 of Chasing I Do
Interesting.
“No one is going to come in and shake things up, Pink,” he assured her. And in case she was worried about what was happening between the two of them, of his intentions, he added, “You have my word. I don’t want to make things any harder on either of us, I just want to move forward with my life.”
“Me too,” she said, a hint of naked vulnerability in her voice that kicked every one of his protective instincts into overdrive. “You have no idea how much I’ve wanted to do that since the wedding. And hearing you say that, knowing you want to move past it all too, makes talking about Kylie easier.”
He wanted to tell her everything would be okay, that together they’d get through this, but he’d said that before. And he was done making promises he couldn’t keep. Especially to Darcy.
It was clear she felt alone in all of this. A place Gage could connect with. He’d felt alone ever since Kyle passed. Standing in the middle of downtown, hanging with his friends at Stout, even surrounded by his family, there were times Gage felt the loneliness so deep it was a physical ache.
“There isn’t anything you can’t tell me,” he said.
With a wistful smile, she linked their fingers enough to give a gentle squeeze.
Just like old times,he thought.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “I’ve thought about this a lot, nonstop actually, and I want to do what is best for everyone involved.”
“Are you saying you’re open to us being a part of Kylie’s life?” He couldn’t help but sound hopeful.
“I’m open to you two getting to know each other.”
“What does that mean?”
“Honestly, I don’t even know,” she said, and the look of genuine distress twisted his gut into knots. “I never really got past the part in my head where I tell you that you have a niece. I know there are things I want for her and things I won’t stand to have her go through. Which is why I was thinking we’d start out slow, maybe meet at the park, see how it goes and take it from there.”
“That’s fair,” he said, trying to curb all of the questions that were demanding to be answered. He knew how Darcy’s mind worked. It started with worst case scenario and worked backwards. It was a leftover reaction to her unpredictable childhood.
Gage could attribute every successful negotiation he’d had to his ability to cut through the BS and zero in on what was important. And right then, the only thing that mattered was Kylie’s future.
And his family’s role in it.
He’d do whatever it took to secure that. Even if it meant using his history with Darcy to his benefit. Darcy was logical and functioned by making lists and charts, and eliminating potential problems.
Gage snagged a composition book that was on the windowsill behind him and opened to the first blank page. “Why don’t we start with what you’re comfortable with.”
“You.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
He wrote down his name, then looked up for more direction. But she remained silent, her big brown eyes wide and almost lost. He couldn’t fathom the Queen of Lists only having one item on it. “Anything else to add?”
“Dogs.” She bit her lip and slowly shrugged, as if saying, that’s all she’s got.
“Okay. Me and dogs.” He flipped the page. “How about we move to things you’re uncomfortable with and we can circle back to this when you’re warmed up?”
“Good idea.” She sat up straight. “Kylie being unsupervised. Kylie getting hurt. Kylie becoming confused over the situation.” She looked down at his hand, which was not moving, and frowned. “Shouldn’t you write that down?”
“Unsupervised, hurt, confused.” He jotted them down. “Anything else?”
“Yes.” She held up a finger. “Someone bad mouthing me or her father to Kylie. Someone lying to me about Kylie or lying to Kylie about me.” Two more fingers ticked off the items. “Sleepovers, which I guess goes under unsupervised, but put it down anyway. Riding in the front seat, anything less than SPF 100 or with red dye number five in it, riding a bike—”
“Like a motorcycle?” he asked, wanting to hug her when her forehead puckered with intense concentration.
“I was thinking a pedal bike, but it would be wise to put down both,” she said. “Those fruit chewies that all the kids want but keep choking on, hot dogs, and rules that defy my rules.”
Gage waited for her to stop, wisely hiding his chuckle as she listed her concerns. “So no riding bikes through the park while eating licorice or fruit chewies. Anything else you’re uncomfortable having around Kylie?”
