I was sure there was some hidden meaning in his words. And by the look swirling in his eyes, there was something more going on. He needed this for whatever reason.
So I pushed aside the voice inside that wanted to scream that I couldn’t be bought and gave him a nod.
That was the wrong thing to do.
Because once he had the go-ahead, he didn’t let me say no. Especially if he knew that I’d seen something I’d really liked.
Hours later we were finally back in the car with a trunk full of new shit. Most of which was for me.
Alright, I didn’t really hate it. I’d had a good time and no, it wasn’t because I was shopping without a limit. It was because I was with him, spending time with him like there was not a care in the world. He didn’t rush me and he didn’t even seem a little bit irritated that I kept trying on different things. In fact, he was usually the one pushing me toward the fitting rooms.
I was even wearing one of the new sundresses that Silas had urged me to try on. He might have done that because I was seriously eyeing the thing while wondering if I could pull something like that off.
I could, apparently. It hung to my curves just right without feeling like I was showing off every single one of my assets.
And it felt really good on too.
“Where are we?” I asked him as he pulled up in front of a house that had a bunch of balloons tied to the front porch.
My heart dropped down into my stomach.
I had a good feeling where we were though I definitely didn’t know this house. I’d never seen it before in my life. But there was this feeling in my gut, and it was loudly telling me that I knew where I was.
And I wasn’t sure if I was prepared for this.
Without a word, he slid out of the car. The movement was smooth but also a little too quick. This was the reason he’d seemed nervous to me before. I hadn’t read him wrong.
My door popped open and I just sat there staring at my hands.
In my peripheral, I saw him crouch down beside me.
“Come on,” he whispered softly and then his hand was hanging mid-air, palm up like he was waiting for me to take it. Just waiting. No rush, clearly, because it hung there a good long minute before I even took in a deep breath of courage. “I’ll be right by your side the whole time.”
“But…”
“Nope. No buts today. It’s my nephew’s third birthday and I can’t miss it. Besides, they’ve been waiting forever to see you again.”
My shaky hand reached out and landed on top of his. He gently helped me out and then wrapped his arms around me. We stayed locked in that embrace for a few beats and I could say I wasn’t ready for him to leave me.
I pulled away, wiped under my eyes, and then told him I was ready. He took my hand in his and it was then that I noticed he was carrying a gift bag in the other hand. When had he done that?
“Wait!” I said as my heels dug into the ground. “It’s your nephew’s birthday.”
“Yeah, I know. I just said that.” His head tilted to the side a little like he wasn’t sure what he was missing.
“We can’t go in there. I can’t go in there. It’s his special day, I don’t want to ruin it.”
“Jessica,” he said my name softly. “You won’t. And he’s three, it’s not like he’s going to remember this birthday all that well anyway.”
Well, I certainly couldn’t argue with that.
Silas opened the door without knocking. Something about that one simple thing made me relax even if I still continued to use his body as a shield.
I could hear the commotion of many voices. And the happy little squeals of children rose above them all.
“Who just came in?” a voice asked from somewhere deeper in the house.
The smile spread on my face the instant I heard it. Elaine’s voice still sounded exactly as I remembered it.
