Page 77 of Forty and Fighting Dirty
Under the table, Piper’s hand slid over to my knee. She squeezed me gently, then met my gaze. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“For what?”
“All this. It’s the first time in a long, long time that I feel like I’m not one step away from ruin.”
“Mom!” Nate called out, making Piper turn her head before I gave in to the urge to steal a kiss in front of everyone. “Can we stay here forever?”
I saw the impact of her son’s words in the slight flinch that went through Piper, and the tension around the edge of her smile. “We’re staying here for now,” she said. “We’ll see about forever.”
The boys ducked their heads closer, whispering excitedly to each other.
I had the power to give them forever. All I had to do was give up my claim on the house. As we finished our meal, I wondered how it would feel to give Piper and her boys a real home. I did good things for people in town all the time. I was seen as a generous man who donated his time and money to the community. I cared about this town.
But that was different. Every time I donated, it was good PR. It was one more layer between me and my past, insulation against the reputation my family name could easily have given me. Every time I paid for someone’s surgery or donated to the food bank or helped clean up one of the parks, I was erasing the fact that on the inside, I suspected I was exactly what my mother and my ex had said: worthless, selfish, and destined to ruin everything I touched.
Giving Piper my half of the house wouldn’t be PR. It would be true generosity, and generosity made me vulnerable. Generosity felt a lot like desperation.Love me back, the gesture begged. How badly would it hurt when Piper decided I wasn’t worth the effort?
As the evening wound down, I couldn’t make heads or tails of my emotions. I wondered if I was falling back into the patterns that had led to my last heartbreak. Still, when Piper walked me to my truck and pressed a quick kiss to my lips, I couldn’t help the fact that the tightness eased in my chest.
“Thank you, Rhett.”
“It’s nothing,” I said, shrugging off her appreciation.
“It’s not nothing. You’ve given me hope.”She wrapped her cardigan around her body to ward off the cold, and I found myself rubbing her arms to warm her.
“Get inside before you catch something,” I chided.
“Yes, sir.” She smiled softly. “What are you doing tomorrow?”
I nodded to her car. “Getting winter tires put on that thing before you kill yourself on these roads,” I answered, voice gruff.
Instead of being offended, Piper gave me a soft smile. “It’s been a long time since I had someone take care of me. If you keep doing it, I’m afraid I’ll lose my edge.”
“We’ll grab coffee. I’ll cut in line in front of you and you can make a stink about it. That’ll keep you sharp.”
She laughed, and I couldn’t resist the urge to kiss her again. We pulled away, and Piper glanced toward the house. “I should go in. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow,” I said, and got in the truck. She stood on the path watching me, and I pointed at the front door. Piper rolled her eyes, waved at me, and headed inside. Stubborn woman. I waited until the door closed behind her before putting the truck in gear.
When I got home, the cat came to greet me with a needy yowl. I knew his food would be dispensed soon, but I must have been a sucker, because I reached for the cat treats before even turning the lights on. My house felt big and empty after the laughter and light of the little cottage on Lovers Lane.
Maybe, despite the flaws I hid from the world, Piper would think I was worth loving. Maybe all I had to do was ask her to stay in the house and say she was mine.
THIRTY-ONE
PIPER
As December wore on,my appreciation of Lovers Peak only grew. The town glittered with lights and decorations, and the already friendly residents became even cheerier. Holiday spirit twinkled from shop windows and crackled from every fireplace.
Work at the lodge was frenzied, with the staircase coming together two days after I received the last of the upholstered banquettes from Eric Nash. We’d actually pulled it off—the lodge would be able to open before the end of the year. As I inspected my vision come to life, I couldn’t quite resist the urge to reach over and squeeze Rhett’s hand.
“We’ll be able to open next week, once the final inspections are done,” he said. “People will be able to spend their Christmas holidays here.” He met my gaze as we stood in front of the giant windows showing people zigzagging down the ski hill. “You did it, Piper.”
It was hard to resist the urge to throw my arms around Rhett’s neck. I curled my hands into fists and settled for a wide smile. “Wedid it,” I said.
Rhett tilted his head toward the plaid-upholstered armchair that we now referred to as Grandpa’s chair. “That thing’s growing on me,” he admitted. “I get the vision now.”
I laughed, heart light, and scurried away to head back to the office before I did something silly like kiss him in front of all our coworkers or tell him I was in love with him.
