“My daddy is a doctor,” Gracie said as she came around the corner and held her arms out for me to scoop her up. “That’s why we’re getting to babysit Maxine. Because she has ‘ziety, right, Daddy?”
We all turned to gape at Cage.
Brinkley sauntered over, moving next to Lincoln with a wicked smile on her face. “I heard. Your daddy is now offering babysitting services to local pigs with anxiety. Who knew you were such a tender-hearted guy?”
He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest before glancing at his daughter. “Martha Langley asked me to watch Maxine while I was standing at Cottonwood Café with Gracie. She knew I’d have to say yes. And now she’s claiming that the pig can’t be with anyone aside from her, Joe, or me. So now, every time they travel, I have to house this beast.”
The room erupted in laughter as we all took our seats.
“I think it’s nice that you’re helping them out. They’re a nice couple, and they love Maxine, so you’re giving them peace of mind when they travel,” our mother said as she winked at Gracie.
“That thing has mounted my leg twice. It’s not normal. I think it’s fixated on me.” He scooped some fruit onto Gracie’s plate and then his own.
“I’m definitely coming over to visit when she’s at your house. I think it’s sweet of you to watch her,” Georgia said.
The rest of the conversation was about Lincoln and the fact that everyone but me would be traveling to the Super Bowl to see him play, because I’d be gone to Tokyo by then. They were the underdogs for this game, but I’d learned a long time ago to never underestimate Lincoln Hendrix.
Everyone was talking at the same time about everything under the sun, and then Brinkley turned to me and asked the million-dollar question, which made everyone stop talking and turn their attention to us.
“So, what happens when you leave, Finny? Have you two figured that out yet?”
“Well, are you finally admitting that this isn’t a fake relationship?” My mother raised a brow, and my father barked out a laugh.
“It’s not fake,” I said with a shrug. “I don’t think it ever was.”
Reese’s eyes doubled in size, and a slow smile spread across her face. “It never did feel fake, did it?”
“I don’t think you could have given me a better Christmas gift than that,” my mother said as she beamed at us.
“So, what happens next?” Cage asked. The douchedick was putting us on the spot.
Reese waved her hands around, acting like this was no big deal, but I knew she was nervous about it. “We’re just taking it one day at a time. Finn’s whole life is about to take off. He’s leaving for Tokyo to film a major motion picture. And I’ll be here, building my business.”
Everyone was quiet again, and I cleared my throat. “None of that makes a difference. You’ll see.”
My mom’s gaze locked with mine, and she tilted her head to the side.
“I don’t know, Reese. I’m putting my money on Finn. That right there is a man determined.” Mom pointed her fork at me and smiled before popping a piece of French toast into her mouth.
And like the saying goes… Mama knows best.
twenty-six
Reese
New Year’s Eve would go down as the most romantic night of my entire life. Finn and I bundled up and took the horses for a ride. He’d claimed he wanted to just go down to the beach before sunset like we always did, but when we’d gotten down there, he’d had a fire going with a teepee and food and hot chocolate and champagne.
I’d had to work downtown, as I’d been hired to decorate for the Cottonwood Cove New Year’s Eve party. Finn and I were planning to go there later, but clearly, he had other plans that I hadn’t known about.
We climbed off the horses, and I took it all in. The roaring fire crackled a few feet from us, and we tied the horses to a tree behind the teepee.
“When did you do all this?” I asked, shaking my head with surprise.
“While you were working. The guys all came down and helped me. Hugh and Lila ran by and started the fire right before we got here.”
“Well, aren’t you just full of surprises?” He’d always been a spontaneous, fun guy, but he was also thoughtful and romantic, and I’d loved every minute of it. But I was also a realist. Things were going to change drastically for us. We’d been playing house these last few months, and I knew we were happy in our bubble.
But our bubble was not going to be contained any longer. I needed to be prepared for whatever happened. Protect our friendship and my heart at all costs.