They might change their mind when they find out she’s pregnant, but that’s a conversation Adley and I should have with them together.
“What would you have done if we’d been mad?” Coop asks.
“Honestly? Nothing. As much as I want your family’s blessing, I don’t need it. I love your sister, and I wouldn’t let a damn thing come between us.”
“Good answer.” Coop reaches across the table and shakes my hand. “Welcome to the family.”
“Don’t say that just yet…”
I finish my beer and tell them everything that happened at the hospital the other night. When I’m done, Rhett blows out a slow whistle.
“Damn. What’s your plan?” Coop asks.
“That’s where you guys come in. I’ve got some ideas, but I’m going to need help, because whatever I do, it has to be big.”
“Anything,” Coop says.
I turn to Rhett. His eyes are intense. “You love her?”
I nod. “More than I’ve loved anyone.”
“You’ll treat her right?”
“Like a queen.”
He nods, accepting my answers. “She’s going to make you work for it.”
“I don’t mind a little work.”
“How far are you willing to go?”
“Whatever it takes.”
He drains his beer and sets it on the table. “Good, because I’ve got an idea.”
30
Adley
“Sweetheart, could you take these sandwiches out to your dad and the guys for me?”
I finish drying the dishes and stack them in the cabinet above the sink. Flinging the dishrag over my shoulder, I lean a hip against the counter and look at Mom.
“They’re not coming in to eat?”
She shakes her head. “They’ve been working on a new project, and you know your father… Once he gets going on something, he doesn’t let up.”
“What kind of new project?” I ask, helping her wrap the sandwiches in wax paper.
Shrugging her shoulders, Mom grabs a bag of chips from the cupboard and puts it in a bag, along with the sandwiches.
“I don’t keep up with all of your dad’s ventures. He’s always doing something different. You’ll have to ask him.”
She hands me the bag and follows me out the back door, and that’s when I see him.
My heart stutters at the sight of Lincoln. His jeans hang low on his narrow hips, and his snug-fitting black T-shirt stretches tight across his chest as he walks across the field toward the barn.
God, I miss him.