Chapter 18 #2
Sadie shook her head. “Remi said she had a T-shirt I can borrow, and I can raid Nora’s CVS closet for a toothbrush.”
“Great.” Boone ruffled his daughter’s hair, as she tried to swat his hand away. “You sure you’re good with everything?” he asked, because as many times as he’d played out what he would say to Sadie about Mila, he hadn’t anticipated the conversation going so well or being so…easy.
“I’m great with everything.” There was no question that Sadie was completely sincere…and that was when Boone realized what true happiness really felt like.
Mila was slightly stunned by everything that had just happened. In one night, she’d gotten her dream job, the love of her life, and a family. She had to fight back tears when Sadie stepped over to her, hugging her tightly.
“I’m glad he picked you to fall in love with,” Sadie whispered.
“Me too,” Mila said, aware her voice was thick, clogged with emotion.
“I’m going to walk to the farmhouse. Y’all don’t have to come,” Sadie said, stepping on the opposite path. “Have fun doing your puzzle.” This time, there was no question that Sadie got the code, as she gave them an all-too-knowing grin.
“I’m going to kill Remi,” Mila murmured.
Sadie giggled. “She didn’t say anything. Just said you wanted to do a puzzle. I believed her until you two just started acting all sketchy.”
Mila shook her head, trying not to laugh.
“Shouldn’t have taught her how to think, either,” Boone said, reusing the earlier joke.
“I’m not a kid, Dad. I know you and Mila are gonna kiss and stuff.” Sadie waved and walked on to the farmhouse. “See you tomorrow.”
“So…” Mila started, once Sadie was out of hearing distance.
“What the hell just happened?” Boone asked, shaking his head, his disbelieving expression matching her emotions perfectly.
Mila was wondering the same thing. “I think we got Sadie’s blessing?”
“Yeah, we did.”
“And I think she knows we’re having sex, if that’s what she meant by kissing and stuff.”
Boone barked out a loud laugh. “I had ‘the talk,’” he finger-quoted, “with her last summer.”
“You did? Not Lena?”
Boone snorted. “I suggested Lena have it with Sadie when she was down in Florida, because I knew they were going to teach sex ed in seventh grade. Lena claims she forgot, but I’m sure that was intentional when she said I’d handle it better than her anyway.”
Mila wasn’t sure why anything Lena did or said still surprised her. After all, she’d met the woman, and it didn’t take long to figure out Boone’s ex would always choose the path that best suited her…and only her.
Then Mila grinned, trying to picture Boone having the sex talk with Sadie. “How did it go?”
Boone rubbed the back of his neck as the two of them started heading toward his cabin. “I did some research online and bought a book I saw suggested. It had cartoon pictures, and the two of us sat down one night on the couch and went through it. Longest twenty-seven minutes of my life.”
Mila giggled.
“She asked a couple questions,” Boone said. “Nothing too tough. Then I told her if she thought of anything else she was curious about, she could ask me or her teacher when it came up in class.”
“No follow-ups?”
Boone shook his head. “Not so far. How much would it piss you off if I said I’m kind of hoping she comes to you if she needs further clarification?”
Mila rolled her eyes. “I wouldn’t mind. As long as it’s not specific to you and me kissing and stuff.”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” Boone took her hand, and they walked together peacefully, neither of them talking as they let the dust settle on their Sadie chat.
Once they entered the cabin, Mila headed to the bedroom, oh so ready to get down to the “stuff” part of their evening.
Boone clearly had other plans, because he tugged on her hand, pulling her over to the couch instead. “Not so fast, darlin’.”
“Boone,” she started, but his chuckle cut her off.
“Cool your jets for a minute. Now that we’ve got Sadie’s blessing, I’d like to hash out a few more things.”
“Listen,” Mila said, hoping to head him off at the pass and set his mind at ease. “Sadie was kidding about me moving in here tomorrow. Or at least, I’m pretty sure she was.”
“She wasn’t,” Boone countered. “And neither was I.”
“I didn’t think you wanted to rush things.”
Boone sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.
“I’ve been working under the assumption for the past decade that my instincts when it comes to relationships are bad.
I kept looking at all the mistakes I made with Lena—jumping in too fast, falling in instalove, moving things to the next level at the speed of light without really getting to know her as well as I should—as reasons to hold back with you, even though… ”
“Even though?” she prompted.
“Even though I was doing all those things with you.”
“The Sadie concern is a legitimate one, Boone.”
“Was a legitimate one,” he stressed. “And my daughter just took it off the table. She’s as crazy about you as I am.
I know Sadie, darlin’, and I can see that.
She wouldn’t have said any of those things she just said if she didn’t mean them.
The fact she knew about us for a month and still reached out to you for things, still grew the relationship, speaks volumes to me.
She didn’t pull away or try to create distance because she was upset about this thing between us. She loves you.”
Those words were as welcome as a fleece blanket on a winter’s day. “I’m crazy about her too.”
“And she knows that. Kids are astute, Mila. They know when adults are faking it with them. You’ve never offered her anything less than genuine friendship.”
“So what are you saying, Boone?”
“When things started heating up between us—fast and furious—I freaked out, assumed I was doing it again. Making the same mistakes as before.”
She tilted her head, trying not to get too excited, because while it didn’t sound like he believed that anymore, she was terrified she was reading this wrong. “Are you?”
“I was young and stupid when I met Lena. I wanted to keep up with my buddies, wanted to be married with a family, and I tried to shoehorn her into that place with me. Even though it should have been obvious she wasn’t ready or interested in the same things I wanted.”
“The things you want, Boone…I want them, too,” she tried to reassure him. “I’ve always wanted them.”
He grinned, lifting her hand from her lap to kiss her palm.
“I know we said we’d take things slow, but, well, I’m older and wiser now, and it turns out, I’m one hell of a judge of character these days.
Because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, you were meant for me, Mila.
And if you’ll give me the chance, I’ll prove I was meant for you, too. For the rest of our lives.”
Mila’s eyes widened because even she hadn’t let her thoughts go that far. She’d been sitting here hoping he’d invite her to move in with them. But this sounded like…
Like a proposal.
“The rest of our lives?” she whispered.
Boone gave her a crooked smile. “I’m not getting any younger. I’d like to have kids with you while I’m still able to pick them up.”
Mila could barely catch her breath. Because while she loved Boone with her whole heart, a large part of her had been petrified he’d say he didn’t want children.
And she’d known if—when—that conversation came up, she would be forced to make a very difficult decision.
“You want kids?” she asked, blinking away the happy tears threatening to fall. “Because you said—”
Boone cut her off. “Everything I said that first night was a big pile of bullshit. The ravings of a lunatic. I want everything with you, Mila. A home, marriage, family. What do you think? A couple kids? Sadie would be over the moon with siblings, the world’s most doting sister.”
“That sounds amazing,” she said, her voice husky from emotion.
“I want to grow old with you on this farm, where we’ll grow grapes and make wine. Where we’ll dance in the kitchen every night to your cooking music, watching my waistline expand.”
Mila giggled.
“I’ll have to take up running,” he added, though she wasn’t worried about that. Boone’s job was very physical, and he prided himself on staying in shape.
Regardless, she couldn’t help teasing him. “There will just be more of you to love.”
He ruffled her hair. “I want to sit out there on that front porch, watching our grandkids run around the yard, playing. We’ll spoil them rotten.”
She nodded, swiping away a tear. “We will.” Boone had just drawn a picture of her dream life, and Mila was struggling to believe it was all real. It simply sounded too wonderful to be true.
“So, while I’d like you to move in tomorrow, I’m willing to wait until next weekend because I figure you’ll need time to pack.”
Mila laughed. “Oh, wow. You’re giving me five whole days?”
Boone wrapped his arm around her shoulders, tugging her toward him and placing a kiss on the side of her head. “You’re right. That’s more time than you’ll need. Especially since I suspect Sadie and your sisters are sitting in that farmhouse right now, making plans for your move.”
Mila couldn’t argue with that. “Nora’s probably dragged empty boxes from the basement and is currently labeling them, so everything is packed appropriately in a well-organized manner.”
“I sincerely hope she is.” Boone gave her a quick kiss, resting his forehead against hers. “Sadie was right. I am happy. Shit, I didn’t know it was possible to feel this happy.”
“Neither did I,” she confessed. “Boone?”
“Yeah?”
“Can I heat my jets back up?”
He barked out a loud laugh, hopping up from the couch. The second Mila rose, he bent down, picking her up and carrying her to his bedroom, bridal-style.