Chapter 12 #2
He was silent for a moment, and then, quietly enough that I could barely hear him, he said, “Thanks. For having my back. I don’t need you to—” His mouth twisted like he heard the sharpness in his tone as he said it and didn’t like it, and something close to guilt flashed in his expression. “But thanks.”
And that was when it hit me. He really had thought kicking out Wilder’s father might cost him his job.
But he’d done it anyway, because Wilder was important to him.
It told me more about how protective of his cobbled-together family he was than he probably wanted me—or anyone—to know.
And he really, really thought that, just because he couldn’t spell it out for me, that somehow I wouldn’t get it.
That I still hadn’t figured out how to read him, even a little bit.
And maybe that should have rankled, the way he constantly underestimated me, but it didn’t.
Because Chase was less approachable than a feral cat, I’d thought earlier.
A feral cat who’d been kicked so many times it knew better than to trust anyone.
On impulse I stepped forward and cupped his face, and I kissed him, soft and sweet. He pulled back and gave me a tentative smile.
“I know you don’t need me to,” I said. “But I do anyway, okay?”
He gave me a wary look, like he thought I was lying. I had no idea what had happened to him to put that look on his face—I had a few theories, but I knew Chase would never confirm them—but I wanted to reach into his past and slap the shit out of whoever had done that to him.
I leaned in to kiss him again, but the timer on the oven beeped, the bell over the door rang several times in a row, and Tyler called, “A little help?” in a tone that suggested right fucking now would be great, thanks.
Chase rolled his eyes. “That better not be that fuckstick back to complain.”
“If it is, I’ll deal with it,” I said. “You only get to insult one customer a day.”
His mouth quirked up in a smile. “Is that every day?”
“Don’t push it.”
He laughed and went and helped Tyler with the lunch rush.
When I pulled into Chase’s driveway on Saturday, he was waiting on the porch holding a gift-wrapped box. I barely had time to cut the engine before he was in the passenger’s seat. “Let’s get out of here.”
His enthusiasm made more sense when Gracie came bouncing out of the front door shouting, “Is it time to go?”
Wilder was hot on her heels, holding a headband and a pair of shoes that matched the pink sparkly dress she was wearing. I watched as he wrangled her into sitting down and putting her shoes on.
“She’s been asking if it’s time for the party since she got up this morning,” he said, rolling his eyes. “I’m glad they’re not riding with us. She’ll be bouncing all the way to Emporia.”
I laughed. “Birthday parties are a big deal when you’re five.”
“She’s six next month,” he said. “Wilder said they’ll probably have the party at Avery’s place, thank fuck. Can you imagine trying to deal with a bunch of little kids?”
“I can make her a cake if you want,” I said as I backed out of the driveway.
“For real?” Chase asked.
“Perks of dating a baker,” I said, grinning.
He made a weird noise, and when I glanced over he was staring at me, his expression pinched.
“What’s wrong?”
“Who said anything about dating?”
Shit.
I should have known better than to assume anything when it came to Chase.
I hoped I hadn’t scared him off. “Sorry,” I said.
“I just thought that since we went on a date, and then you sucked my dick on Friday after work, and you’re coming to my sister’s birthday party, that maybe we were more than casual. ”
He sat there in silence for a little while, and I braced myself for him to tell me to fuck off with my assumptions.
But then he shrugged and said, “The dick sucking doesn’t count.
You just have a really nice cock. But yeah, we can date if you want.
” He said it like he didn’t care either way, but his fingers drummed nervously on the top of Sam’s gift.
“Yeah, I wanna date,” I said. “I like you, Chase.”
His mouth curved up into a pleased smile. “I guess you’re not terrible either.”
“Lucky me. My new boyfriend thinks I’m not terrible,” I said with a laugh, but my insides warmed because I knew he did mean it as a compliment.
“What did you get Sam?” I asked.
He wrinkled his nose. “A candle. It smells like fruit.”
“She likes candles,” I said. “I got her one last year for Christmas that smells like dog farts and she loved it.”
Chase let out a snort of laughter. “For real?”
“Yeah, she loves weird shit like that.”
The fuel light on my dash lit up just as we approached Goose Run Gas, and I slowed and turned in.
I’d meant to fill my tank earlier but I’d forgotten.
Chase came with me when I went inside and as I paid he let out a bark of laughter and pointed to the ugliest ornament I’d seen in my life.
It was a running goose, its wings extended and its beak open.
The left wing was bigger than the right, and for some reason the eyes had been painted staring in different directions.
“Is Bobby still trying to sell those?” Chase asked, picking one up. I fought the urge to warn him not to touch it in case it was cursed.
The guy serving—his name tag said Wade—shrugged. “He said to put them on display. Reckons they’re a conversation piece.”
“They’re something,” I said.
“Want one? Bobby’s offering a prize for whoever sells the most,” Wade said.
“Yeah? Who’s winning?” Chase asked.
Wade shrugged. “Scoreboard’s still at zero.”
Chase hefted the goose in his palm and his eyes lit up. “I’m gonna buy one for Sam.”
“It’s hideous. She’ll love it,” I said.
Chase paid, grinning from ear to ear, and when we got back to the car he managed to wedge it inside the gift box next to the candle. “If she doesn’t like it, I’m telling her it was your idea,” he said. I got the feeling he was only half joking.
When we got home to Emporia, we had to park across from the house because the driveway was full of cars. Chase hesitated before getting out of the truck, fiddling with the ribbon on Sam’s present.
“Hey,” I said. “Don’t be nervous.”
He glared at me. “Who says I’m nervous?”
He was definitely nervous.
“Okay,” I said, “but I wouldn’t blame you if you were. Like, my lola is for sure going to pinch your cheek and say you’re too skinny and tell me I need to fatten my boyfriend up. And then she’ll feed you cake until you wanna puke.”
I thought he’d laugh, but instead he bit his lip. “You’re going to tell them I’m your boyfriend?”
My chest tightened. “I mean, yeah,” I said, “unless you don’t want me to.”
And I got it. I did. But I couldn’t help wondering if there was always going to be this push-and-pull, back-and-forth between us every time we tried to take a single step forward.
Chase tapped at the top of the box in a staccato rhythm while I waited, and he finally said, “Yeah. You can tell people we’re boyfriends.”
I leaned across the console and kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”
Chase blinked, startled, and then he reached across and grabbed the front of my shirt.
Our mouths clashed as he hauled me in for a deeper, hotter kiss, one that took my breath away and made my heart race.
When he pulled back he looked as wrecked as I felt, but he must have poured all of his nervous energy into the kiss because he’d stopped fidgeting with the gift box.
“Okay,” I said. “Come and meet the rest of my family.”
There was a gaggle of excited teenage girls in the living room, half of them enthralled by Gracie, who was showing Sam how to unwrap her birthday present, and the other half by Wilder, who was standing there looking like he did.
He looked profoundly relieved to see us and immediately joined us as we headed for the kitchen.
Mom and Lola were working in there. Well, Lola was working. Mom was the support person keeping her wine glass topped up, but that was an important part of the process too.
“Lee!” Lola exclaimed when she saw me and hugged me. These days the top of her head barely came up to my chin. “Musta?”
“Mabuti naman,” I said.
“Are you working too hard?” She peered up at me. “You have bags under your eyes.”
“I’m fine, Lola.” I peeled her off me. “Where’s Lolo?”
“He’s in the basement checking the water heater,” Mom said with a grin. “I’m sure he’ll be up as soon as the food’s ready.”
Lola snorted at the accurate assessment.
My grandfather was an incredibly gentle and loving man, but he wasn’t very sociable.
He would have arrived with a list of odd jobs to do that would give him an excuse not to be in a room of chattering teenage girls, but he’d peek out from under his shell for sure when it was time to eat.
And later, when Sam’s friends had gone home and everything was more low-key, he’d join us again.
I reached for Chase’s hand. “Lola, this is Chase, my boyfriend. Chase, this is my grandmother, Maria.”
“You call me Lola too,” Lola said decisively and hugged him.
Chase’s cheeks were pink by the time she released him. “Uh, hi.”
“Very handsome,” she told me approvingly and then clapped her hands together. “Kain tayo!”
“Let’s eat,” I translated for Chase and squeezed his hand.
He squeezed mine back, hard. “Sounds good.”