Oh, my God. I hope they like me.
19
RHETT
The expressionon Paige’s face when she sees my boys is adorable. “Hi, guys, I’m Paige. It’s so nice to meet you.”
I bounce the big one on my knee. “This is Gabriel. He’s six. He loves fishing and Hot Wheels.” Then I bounce my little one. “And this tough guy is Austin. And he loves food. Of any kind.”
Austin buries his head in my chest while Gabriel looks away. Damn, I was hoping they’d love her.
I squeeze my boys a little. “What do we say, fellas?”
Gabriel mumbles hi, and Austin shakes his head no.
My brothers give me a sympathetic smile, and Beau points toward the barn. “We’re gonna give y’all some space.”
Let’s try this again. “Do y’all remember those incredible cheerleaders at Uncle Mav’s games? Paige is one of them.”
My sons love the cheerleaders. I admit I always look for Paige when we’re watching Mav’s games.
When the boys don’t say anything, Paige’s smile slowly falls.
But then Gabriel lets out a huff. “Are you our new mom? Because we have one already.”
Shit.
I jiggle my leg again. “Buddy, I know this is a lot, but let’s try to be welcoming.”
I hate the rejection in Paige’s eyes, but she pastes on that fake smile and leans forward. “I know y’all have a great mom. I’m not trying to take her place. I just want to be your friend.”
Amber, a great mom? That’s a stretch, but Paige is just trying to be nice.
When Gabriel doesn’t say anything, she tries again. “Would that be okay? Can we be friends?”
It takes effort to bite my tongue. I wanna be encouraging without pushing the boys too hard.
Finally, my older son nods. “Yeah. I guess.”
Austin finally looks at Paige. “You’re pretty.”
She gives him a glorious smile that makes him bury his head in my chest again. “Thanks, handsome. I’m kind of a mess today, but I appreciate the compliment.”
Her red hair is in one of those haphazard buns that looks sexy as hell. And I fucking love that she grabbed one of my flannels. It makes me wonder what she would look like in just that shirt and nothing else.
I squeeze my kids. “Boys, I was thinking we should go fishing this weekend like we talked about. Would it be okay if we asked Paige to tag along?”
“Aww, Dad,” Gabriel grouses. “I thought it would just be us. Girls are no fun.”
I sigh. This is gonna be tougher than I thought, but Paige rolls with it.
“It’s totally okay if y’all go without me. I don’t want to scare your fish. Would it be okay if I made you some sandwiches and cookies for your trip?”
Gabriel looks at his brother, then Paige. “Can you make some chocolate chip?”
“Sure can. Any other requests?”
“I like grilled cheese and pickle sandwiches.”
