Braden threw up his hands in defeat.“Really?That’s what you got from what I said?”
“That’s the only part that mattered.”Miles shrugged.“When are you going to see her again?”
“Saturday—” He broke off.Dammit.What had he just done?Screwed up, big time, that’s what.He stared at the ground, silently cursing himself for slipping up so monumentally.There was no way they were going to let that go.No way.
“Oh, ho, Saturday?”Hayes chuckled now.“You don’t say.”
“Maybe you’ll have time to develop an opinion about her?”Miles clapped a hand on his shoulder.“I hope it goes well, Braden.I mean it.I do.”His gaze was surprisingly intent.“The last couple of years haven’t been easy on any of us.But things are better for Hayes, Rylee and me.We’ve slogged through the dark and BS and come out on top.Somewhere along the way, we’ve found the person that—damn, this sounds cheesy—completes us.Understands and accepts us.It’d be nice for you to have that, too.”
Braden’s throat was too tight to speak.Hadn’t been easy?That was the understatement of the decade.The last couple of years, he’d bounced around working odd jobs—hoping to avoid the stress and drama here at home.Then the last six months, he’d been in Florida taking care of Delilah while Phoebe lost her battle with cancer.While he’d been there, his siblings and parents had been struggling with their own tribulations.And, yes, they’d all pulled through—and found their other half.He didn’t know much about statistics, but he was pretty sure the odds for them all to have a happy ending were pretty slim.Since his siblings had all found their person, he sort of expected he’d be the odd man out.
But he had something none of them had.He had Delilah.
“You done?Got it all out?Cuz this work isn’t going to do itself.”Braden shot them both a look.
“Okay, Dad.”Miles’s emphasis on the word dad was hard to miss.It was enough to have them laughing as they got back to work.
But his brothers’ comments stuck with him, giving him pause.What would that be like?To have a partner?Howwould it feel to have a person that was always in his corner, cheering on his successes and comforting him through rough patches?
Pretty damn good, probably.
He wondered what sort of partner Maggie Cooper would be?Then stopped short.
There is nothing going on between me and Maggie—and nothing is going to happen between us.
Friends.Friends was good.It was what was best for everyone involved.
Chapter Five
It’s a playdate.Not a date-date.Maggie slid a hanger aside and held out the sleeve of the blue and gray sweater.It was comfy and warm, but it was stretched out and shapeless…
So what?She wasn’t dressing to impress anyone.So why was she spending so long trying to pick out her outfit?And why was her stomach inside out and upside down?
She took a deep breath.They were going hiking, for crying out loud.Jeans.Boots.A sweater.It was a no-brainer, really.A shapeless, comfy sweater was 100 percent suitable.She pulled it off the hanger.
“Not that one, Ma.It’s old,” Cody said as he came running into her room.He hopped up onto the side of her bed.“Wear the green one.”
“Which green one?”She had several green sweaters.Her mother said the color made her eyes huge and bright and had gifted her with many green tops for birthdays or holidays.
“That green one—with the flowers.”He pointed.
“This one?”She pulled the dressier sweater from the closet.It was a mossy green with tiny pink and red flowers stitched around the collar and cuffs.It was not the sort of thing one would wear for hiking.“But it’s—”
“Nice.”Cody kept pointing at it.“And you look nice in it.I like it.You should wear it.”
“Okay.”This was the first time Cody had ever taken an interest in her attire.If he really wanted her to wear it, she would.“But I’ll be wearing my coat, too.”After being in a tropical climate last fall and winter, she was having a hard time with colder temperatures.“You probably won’t even see what I’m wearing underneath.”
“It’s not real cold out, Ma.”Cody shrugged.“Might not need a coat.”
“Maybe not.”She smiled at her son, pleasantly surprised by his attitude.He seemed fine with today’s hike—even a bit eager.She’d expected him to push back or argue.And, in a way, she’d have understood if he had done either of those things.He was nine, Delilah was five—and a girl.Probably not Cody’s first choice of companions.“I really appreciate you going today.”
“It’s cool.”Cody shrugged again.
“You’re the cool one.”She winked at him, then pulled some jeans from her dresser and tossed them on the bed beside him.She was not going to agonize over which pair of jeans to wear—she wasn’t.Jeans were jeans and this wasonlya hike.And yet, the jitters in her stomach said otherwise.
No.Absolutely not.There would be no more jitters or flutters or nerves.None.She was a grown, practical woman who was not going to entertain such childish things.“I’m taking way too long to get ready,” she murmured.
“You gotta look good, Ma.”Cody slipped off the bed.“Uncle Mike put some snacks in your backpack.”
