Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Lena
“ C an we go see Uncle Gavin?” Jayla asks the following morning.
I cock my head as I look back at her suspiciously. “Why?”
“I was rude and would like to apologize. I also want to ask him to come to my game tonight.”
I smile back at her. It’s not easy to admit when you were wrong and apologize, so this is a big step.
“I’m sure he’d love that. We can head over there now since you’re done with your chores.”
“Thanks, Mom.” She grins widely. “I was thinking, too.”
“Oh yeah?” I giggle as I grab my purse, keys, and cell phone before starting out the door. “About what?”
“I know Uncle Gavin didn’t have a good relationship with Grandpa and even really with Dad. I understand why he stayed away. I’ve been holding that against him, and that’s not very fair. If you can forgive me, then we should do the same for Uncle G.”
I cock an eyebrow and try to hide the surprise on my face.
Damn, she’s more mature than me.
“That’s really grown-up of you, Jayla. I’m…I should take a page out of your book, I guess.”
“He’s been really great to us since he got here. I think that’s what we should focus on.”
“When did you get so wise?”
“I think I heard it on TikTok or something.” She shrugs nonchalantly as we climb into the Bronco.
I giggle as I start the car and pull out of the driveway and steer toward my farm.
“Well, that’s way better than the crazy dances you normally find.”
She laughs and nods. “You know, me not having access to my phone is good because I’m actually looking around at the scenery on the way to Grandpa’s. I forgot how pretty it is out here.”
“We get so caught up in screens that we forget to look around sometimes.”
We’re pulling into the driveway a few minutes later, but Gavin’s car isn’t there.
“Oh dang, I guess we should have called first,” Jayla says.
Just as I’m about to pull out my phone, Gavin comes out the front door and waves from the front porch. Jayla is out the door before I even get the car shut off. I’m close behind her.
“Where’s the Masi?” Jayla asks.
“It was a rental. They picked it up this morning. It’s not really useful on these backroads. I figured I’d drive Dad’s truck from now on.”
“Oh, Gramps would have loved that,” Jayla gushes. “I’m glad it will get put to use. I didn’t know what would happen to it.”
“To what do I owe the pleasure of you two beauties?”
Jayla takes a deep breath and looks back at her uncle.
“I wanted to apologize for being rude to you the other night. I was scared and didn’t know how to handle it.”
He opens his arms, and she rushes to him in a hug.
“I’m just glad you’re okay, Jay. Thank you.”
“I have a basketball game tonight. Will you come?”
“I wouldn’t miss it.”
“Really?”
“Really. Hey, Dayton said there’s a new foal in the stable if you want to go check it out.”
She doesn’t even reply before she sprints toward the barn. I laugh and then look back at Gavin with a grin. He’s smiling, watching me carefully before he reaches out and takes my hand in his.
“That was nice,” he says.
“Gavin,” I breathe. “I…I have to know what we’re doing. I can’t…I can’t be going into this thinking that it’s a relationship and you’re just having fun. It’s—”
He puts his finger up to my lips to shush me, and my knees go weak. His eyes gaze right into mine, and I feel the wetness between my thighs. My heart is fluttering ridiculously.
“This is a relationship. We will go as slow as you need to go, though. I don’t want anyone but you. It’s always been you.”
“Gavin,” I sigh.
“I know I told you before that we were just fuck buddies. It was an asshole move, but I panicked. I was ready to propose to you back then, and I know that probably sounds insane, but it’s true. Dad and I got into a huge fight when I told him. I knew that if we went public back home so soon after that, it wouldn’t go well.”
“Why didn’t you…”
“Because I told myself that maybe it was better. If my dad was against us, then your parents would be, too. I was young and dumb. Then you got back with Aaron, and I thought I had just been a placeholder.”
“You weren’t. I wish you would have told me.”
“We can’t change the past. We can only make sure the future isn’t the same.”
“I like that.”
I lean forward and put my forehead against his.
“Is Jayla okay with it?”
“We talked, and I think so.”
“Good.” He pulls back and kisses my forehead.
I immediately feel like I turn into girl goo at the gesture. It’s so nice to feel giddy for once.
“Hey,” he continues. “I’ll have to go into the city this week for a few days. I have some loose ends to tie up and a meeting I have to be in person for. Collin is a football star, but he plays basketball, too, and asked me to be at his game.”
I nod slowly, a pang of jealousy hitting me. It’s an irrational thought, wondering why he’s not asking me to go with him. Just a little bit of insecurity left over from Aaron.
I take a deep breath and blow it out. “Will you be able to talk and text when you’re there?”
“Of course, there’s no way I’m going a day without talking to you.” He smiles as he pulls me into a hug.
I smile, melting into him as I do. He’s giving me reassurances that I need without even knowing he’s doing so. This is nice.
Walking into the high school gym with Tatum and Mike beside me, I feel excitement and nervousness build. Jayla is starting on varsity today, and I couldn’t be prouder of her.
“I’m just saying,” Tatum says as we walk toward the bleachers, “if Jayla plays anything like her mom did, these kids better be ready.”
I snort, giving her a playful nudge. “She’s way better than I ever was.”
“You’re being modest,” Mike chimes in, grinning. “You were a beast out there. I was scared to play against you in a pickup game.”
“Don’t inflate her ego more than it already is,” Tatum teases, nudging Mike with her elbow.
I am about to fire back when I catch sight of Gavin standing near the door, surrounded by a few of the basketball moms. Something about the way they hover around him, smiling a little too brightly and talking a little too close, makes me roll my eyes.
Of course, they are all over him.
Tatum notices him, too, elbowing me as we get closer. “Oh look, there’s your man, being swarmed by the PTA.”
I laugh, shaking my head. “He’s a grown man. He can handle it.”
As soon as Gavin’s eyes lock with mine from across the gym, he turns his full attention on me. My heart does that familiar flutter it always does when he looks at me like that.
Oh look, my vajayjay has to jump in on the party too.
“You’re the brightest shade of red right now.” Tatum giggles.
Gavin excuses himself from the group of moms and starts walking toward me. I can feel the heat creeping up my neck.
“Shut up,” I mutter, but I can’t help the smile tugging at my lips as Gavin reaches me.
Before I can say anything, his arms are around me, and he’s pulling me into a tight hug. I breathe him in, the familiar scent of his cologne and the warmth of his embrace calming my nerves.
“Hey, beautiful,” he murmurs against my ear.
I pull back slightly, grinning up at him. “Hey, yourself.”
Gavin’s hands linger briefly at my waist, his thumb brushing against my hip as he looks me over, like he hasn’t seen me in days even though it was only a few hours ago. He pulls away so as not to make it super noticeable between us. His eyes darken slightly, that familiar heat sparking between us.
“You look incredible,” he says, his voice dropping lower as his gaze sweeps over me.
“I’m wearing jeans and a T-shirt. Calm down.”
He grins, leaning in a little closer, his lips just a breath away from mine. “Doesn’t matter. You always look incredible.”
My stomach flips, and I bite my bottom lip, feeling that magnetic pull between us grow stronger. His hand slides to the small of my back, pulling me even closer, and my breath catches in my throat.
God, how does he always manage to make me feel like a teenager with a crush?
“Can I kiss you in public?” he asks.
I hesitate for a moment, thinking of all the gossip that will be swarming through town, but I don’t care.
“Yes.”
He leans in and presses a soft kiss to my neck, just below my ear, sending shivers down my spine. He gently brushes his lips against mine. My pulse quickens, and I can barely focus on anything other than how his lips feel against my skin.
Someone clears their throat, which makes both of us freeze. Gavin reluctantly pulls back, his hands still resting on my waist as I turn to see Tatum standing there with her arms crossed.
“Jayla is glaring at the two of you right now.”
I immediately snap my head toward the basketball court, my eyes scanning for my daughter. Sure enough, she’s standing with her teammates, her arms crossed and a very unimpressed look on her face as she watches Gavin and me. I can practically hear her voice in my head: “Mom, really?”
“Oh God.” I step away from Gavin completely. “She’s going to kill me.”
“She’ll get over it. She’s just embarrassed.”
Tatum shakes her head, still grinning. “You two really are something. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were high schoolers sneaking kisses under the bleachers.”
“Okay, okay, message received.”
What was I thinking by allowing Gavin to kiss me in front of the entire town? What will people think?