Page 76 of It's Always Us

He folds his paper. “I can’t have her on the floor, and she’s going to be pissed.”

“You selling the shop?” I ask straight up, needing to know what we’re dealing with.

He sits back in his chair and wraps his older and more wrinkle-worn hands around his mug. “That shop would be her whole life. It would consume her and . . . ” He inhales as if debating if he wants to say more.

I cut to the chase. “If you need a buyer, I’ll buy you out.”

He leans forward, resting his arms on the table. “She’s been hiding in that shop since the day you left. She thinks this is all there is for her, andI’ve let her believe that.” He rubs his forehead. “She’s worked hard and fought to be able to do the most basic things you and I take for granted. I should have gotten her more help or shown her how smart and capable she is. Shit, she works circles around every one of my guys. Fixes things no one else can figure out.”

He exhales long and slow. “If I handed it over to her, there wouldn’t be more capable hands, but she’s meant for more than this. She’s meant to have a life, a partner, a family, and to do a hell of a lot more than change oil and rotate tires. I’ve failed her, but I won’t fail her in letting her think that her only worth is wrapped up inside that brick building.”

I let it all sink in. “Cal, running your shop is her dream.”

His eyes meet mine dead on. “It’s the only dream she’s allowed herself to have. It’s the only dream she had left.”

It’s a jab to the throat. “She’s scared, and I won’t—”

“Then you show her she doesn’t have anything to be afraid of.”

Right. “I don’t know how to do that.”

He rests back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “Son, I don’t know anything about love. I was never enough for the woman I married, and she hightailed it out of here to sniff out greener pastures.” He pauses, rotating his mug. “Alex has been grasping onto worn-through memories for years. She sacrificed her own heart to save yours.”

His eyes meet mine again. “I’d guess there aren’t many people who can say they’ve ever had someone love them quite like that. Hell, she’d still be sitting here suffering if it meant you were out there living, but she’s had enough of that. If she has you, she’ll be all right.”

His words hit me square in the chest, and my lungs falter.

Cal gets up, places his mug in the sink, and moves to the door, turning back to me. “I don’t care what you two decide. You don’t leave her.” His head drops a second, but when his gaze returns to mine, tears crease his eyes. “Those months after you left, she had to force herself to keep going. Figure out how to live without you. She had good reasons, but not anymore. You take care of my girl and that baby.”

“I will,” I promise with everything I am.

“I know you will, or I’ll fucking kill you.” His eyes tell me he means every word. He nods, closing the door behind him.

I sit for a moment, everything he said floating around in my head. I’m not sure what to do with it all. Thoughts of her suffering for me ignite a flame of anger that I have to dampen right back down.

I stand, running a hand through my hair, and move to the living room to start my shoulder exercises.

I don’t know how to show Lex she can come with me and still do what she loves. Cal’s garage isn’t the only place she can do that. Shit, I’ll buy her a building, and she can set up her own shop. I won’t let her hide here, thinking she’s not good enough or this is all she’s capable of.

After two reps, I rest, and a pair of fantastic legs appear beside me. I wrap my hand around her ankle and slide it up her calf, tugging her to the floor.

She settles beside me in an oversized sweatshirt, looking sleepy. “Did Grandpa leave already?”

“Yeah, a little bit ago.”

She yawns. “I should’ve known you’d get up early.”

“I can’t afford to slack off, especially not right now. Teams are watching, and I want to have a say.”

She tucks her hair behind her ear. “When will all that begin . . . teams getting in contact?”

“I need to touch base with Rob. He’s got his ear to the ground and listening for rumblings, but my guess is a few weeks. After this season officially ends, organizations will hit the ground running toward next year. They’ll finalize their budgets, know where they stand in draft picks, and how they want to spend their money.”

She pulls her hands inside her sleeves and tucks them in her lap. “Did you mean what you said about me going to the awards and the game with you?” Her shyness in asking if I meant it has me thinking about everything Cal said.

“Lex, yes. I didn’t want to pressure you, but I really want you there.” I lift her chin. “There’ll be cameras and reporters, but I want to hold your hand and have you by my side. And when the season starts, no matter where I’m playing, I want you and our baby on the sidelines before the game and waiting for me after. I want you with me always. Everywhere.”

She rests her head on my shoulder and inhales. “It’s a big day. I need to go to the shop, and then we’ll see the baby for the first time.” I brushmy lips against her forehead and leave them there. “Then we’re having dinner at my mom’s.”

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