Page 50 of Love Song, Take Two

“And dessert?”

You, he thought to himself and smiled. “Whatever you’re in the mood for.”

With a lingering glance, she nodded and then walked off, leaving him alone with the cart. He chuckled as he walked to the meat section, grateful that he’d called ahead so they would have the cut he wanted ready for him. A quick conversation with the butcher later, Fletcher grabbed the potatoes and pushed the cart through the aisles until he found Micah staring into the display window of the bakery section.

“I feel like we deserve pie, but I can’t decide which one we should get.”

He came up behind her and peered into the selection. “Apple pie and ice cream is always a safe bet.”

“They’ve also got rhubarb and strawberry,” she said, leaning back against him.

“What about we go for something both of us like with the chocolate pie.”

“Isn’t that a little boring?”

He kissed the side of her head and smiled. “Nothing is boring when it’s with you, love bug.”

Micah huffed, but he caught the slight smile, before she told the lady behind the counter what they wanted. With everything paid for, they hopped into his truck and headed back to his place. Even though it was the first time she’d come to his house, Micah made herself comfortable by kicking off her shoes and wandering through the space.

“You know, a long time ago, Emery and I visited Hank here. I don’t remember it looking this nice.”

He followed her through the house, smiling as she touched bookshelves, fingers brushing over the photographs on the wall. To think that she’d been in the same place he’d spent so much time blew his mind. How was it that in the last sixteen years, Fletcher and Micah had never once crossed paths when she knew such a big part of his life?

“First order of business when I moved in was to fix up this place.”

“Drummer of the year, incredible chef and talented handyman,” she said, spinning around to smile at him as they stepped into the kitchen. “Is there anything you can’t do?”

“Nope. I’m an all round awesome person.”

Micah laughed and closed the gap between them, her hands cupping his face as she pulled his mouth to hers. “I’m honored to know this awesome person.”

“Honored to be known by you, Mick,” he whispered against her mouth and kissed her again, free arm sliding around her waist to hold her close.

She hummed and pulled back, stepping out of his way as he unloaded their grocery purchases. Micah moved around him, taking a bowl to fill it up with water before dunking the potatoes in there. She pulled out all the drawers until she found the peeler and stole kisses along the way. Fletcher focused on slicing up the meat, his eyes following Micah every so often. There was something so fucking special about sharing this space with her and Fletcher wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

“What’s your least favorite food item?” he asked, glancing at Micah briefly.

She pursed her lips and dunked her hands in the potatoes. “I hate…and I mean despise oranges. And I have a teenager who is obsessed with everything citrus.”

Fletcher snorted, nudging her gently. “So that’s Christmas and oranges that you don’t like, but endure for your kid.”

“It’s what parents do, right? Sacrifice shit for their kids.”

“That’s what I’ve been told, yeah,” he said it softly, because it wasn’t like he had good experience with positive parenting and good life choices. When he looked up, he found her watching him with a slight frown. “What’s wrong?”

“Did you ever want kids?”

For years, the answer had always been a resounding no. But of late? Maybe. When he was young and starting out, the idea of a family sounded crazy. During his marriage to Alice, both of them knew it was a bad idea. Because he’d be on tour and in the studio a lot, which meant that Alice would have to stay home and raise the kids on her own. And she would resent him for it. Then there was the whole being raised by an average dad who didn’t really love or care for them much that made Fletcher think he’d turn out the same way. While Emery was a fully-grown teenager with a sparkling personality, the thought of being a father to her didn’t scare him as much as he thought it would.

“I like kids, not sure I’d make a good dad.”

“I said that about myself when I found out I was pregnant. I turned out pretty okay.”

He smiled as she dusted off her shoulders. He could say it a million times, but Micah really was a great mother. Besides keeping her kid alive for fourteen years, Emery was a damn great kid too. He could feel Micah watching him, but he focused on slicing the meat and getting it prepped. When the weight of her gaze left him, Fletcher let his shoulders droop. He never wanted to bring his family drama into their relationship. That was a past life, one he no longer had anything to do with.

This…this life with Micah, it was the only one he wanted to focus on.

Micah

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