Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
SUTTON
“ I ’m glad you guys were free tonight. It seems like it’s been ages since we’ve gotten together,” Gunnar tells everyone at the table.
“It’s hard when I want you all to myself.” Jameson drops a kiss on his cheek.
“Well, I’m glad we could pull you away from one another long enough to get together.” Derek laughs. “Hopefully we can make this work once spring football starts.”
Jameson looks confused from his spot across the table in the restaurant we’re in. Golden Edison bulbs hang above each table. Hard metal chairs sit around colorful wooden tables that have small succulents in terra-cotta pots.
“Football? Isn’t football a fall sport?” Jameson sips his drink.
Derek laughs. “It’s year-round for coaches. We’ll start training with the kids soon so they’ll be ready for tryouts in the summer.”
“And you’ll have to defend your state title,” I point out.
Derek beams at me. “Well, that too. But one thing at a time. ”
“Just tell me if I need to be at the ready for balloon hats again.”
“At least for the kids. Lydia was so sad when hers deflated,” I tell him. “She misses her balloon animals.”
Jameson’s face lights up. “Maybe we can watch the kids one night for you two. Let you have a night together.”
Derek grabs my knee under the table and squeezes it. “That’d be really nice of you guys.”
“I will need some guidance. I’m not as good as this guy.” Gunnar throws a thumb to Jameson. “They love him.”
That has Derek pulling out his phone.
“Everything okay?” I ask, leaning into his side.
He shrugs a shoulder. “I guess no news is good news.”
“Everything okay?” Gunnar asks.
“Sorry,” Derek tells him. “You mentioning babysitting has me worried.”
Jameson laughs. “Gunnar won’t be a bad babysitter. I promise.”
“It’s not you. It’s Missy,” I say.
“Troy’s mom?” Jameson asks.
The moment her name is mentioned, Derek stiffens beside me. It’s like a freeze has gone over him. He hates any mention of her. Mainly because everything about the situation is unknown.
All I know is that she’s with the babysitter tonight. I’m praying things go well for everyone.
“Yes,” Derek tells him. “She’s with him tonight.”
“We need to get you a shot or something,” Jameson says. “I can’t imagine it was easy to leave him.”
Derek shakes his head. “I’m okay. My nanny is there with them. I figured this might have been the easiest way to have them get to know each other. If I were there, Troy would hide behind me and it’d defeat the purpose of the whole thing.”
“That can’t be easy,” Gunnar tells me.
“Tell me about it,” Derek says. “At least I have Sutton. ”
My cheeks flush at his words. I love hearing him say things like this. It makes me think this thing between us will last.
It’s been a long time since I’ve had that feeling of wanting something to last. It’s only been a few months, but it’s like Derek is the missing piece. He and Troy. The two of them complete my little family.
“Where’d you wander off to?” Derek whispers in my ear. Heat licks up my spine. Gunnar and Jameson are no longer at the table. Turning my attention toward Derek, his brown eyes are unraveling me.
I want to throw caution to the wind and attack his mouth with mine. But we can’t. Not in the middle of a restaurant.
Instead, I settle for wrapping an arm around his shoulders and pulling him close. “Thinking of you.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Mmm, yeah.” I press my lips to his cheek. “Thinking of how much I love you.”
Derek’s hand moves to my waist. Our legs touch under the table. “It can’t be as much as I love you, Sutton.”
I smile against the scruff on his jaw. “That’s debatable.”
“If I had the time, I would take you home tonight and debate this all night with you.”
“You’re mean,” I groan.
Warm lips find the pulsing vein in my neck. I wish we weren’t out at dinner with friends, because all I want right now is to be under Derek.
Under, over, it doesn’t matter. I want to be with this man in every way possible.
“I could say the same about you for wearing this dress tonight.”
Derek’s hand slides under the skirt of the short dress I’m wearing. It’s nothing over-the-top. A chambray dress that hits mid-thigh, but clings to my curves. Paired with short, brown booties, I knew it’d be perfect for tonight.
And drive Derek wild .
“What, this old thing?”
“Do we have to separate you two?” Jameson’s voice interrupts us, but I don’t move far. Resting my head on Derek’s shoulder, I wrap my arm around his to hold him in place. The comforting scent of his cologne envelops me as the two men retake their seats in front of us.
“And where did you two run off to?” I ask.
Jameson drops a kiss on Gunnar’s cheek. “We took care of the bill.”
“I told you I wanted to pay tonight,” Derek tells them.
“Maybe if you weren’t so loved up, you would’ve been able to do it then.”
Jameson sends a wink in my direction.
“That’s funny coming from you.” Reaching over, I grab my water and drink the rest of it down. “If it weren’t for work, I don’t think I’d see you at all.”
He now blows a kiss in my direction. “I can’t help it if everyone wants a piece of Jameson.”
“Down, boy.” Gunnar pats his arm. “There’s enough of you to go around.”
“And on that note, I need to head out,” Derek tells everyone. “I want to get home and see how everything went with Missy.”
“I’m guessing it went fine, otherwise you probably would have left by now,” Jameson points out.
Derek waggles his head back and forth. “You’re probably right. But I want to hear it from them.”
“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, Jameson.”
Everyone stands, and hugs are given as I walk out with Derek.
Night has settled upon us. It’s a warmer, winter night. One I don’t mind as I drape my jacket over my arm, not needing it.
“Call me when you get home?” I ask Derek. “I want to know how it went.”
He nods, wrapping me into a hug. “I will. ”
“It will have gone fine.” I try to instill more confidence in my voice than I feel.
“Jameson was probably right. I would’ve gotten a call by now if it didn’t.”
“See?” I pull back, cupping his cheek. “Fine.”
“I love you.” Derek gives me a quick kiss before helping me into my car. I give him a wave before I head out of the parking lot.
Derek fades into a small speck in my rearview mirror before disappearing entirely. The second he does, a lead weight settles in my gut.
I hate that Missy is back in his life. Everything I know about her is from what Derek has told me, and none of it has been good. I don’t know what I would be doing if it were me and my ex. At least he still shows up for Lydia.
Cracking the windows, I let the breeze flow over me to try and settle my worrisome thoughts.
I hope Missy doesn’t disappoint them. My bigger worry?
What if Missy worms her way into their life and there’s no longer a place for me in it?
I swallow the bile rising in my throat. Because it’s a thought I can’t even entertain. Because all I want is Derek, Troy, Lydia and me to be a family.
I only hope it’s still in our future.