Page 80 of About Time

“Six months is a decent amount of time to wait to propose, right?” I say without thinking.

He never reacts the way I expect. Rather than lecture me, he just shrugs. “It’s longer than I was with Wren before I knew she was the one.”

“A baby on the way didn’t hurt,” I tease him.

“When are you going to propose?” he asks.

“Do you think Liam will mind sharing the spotlight?” I ask.

“Fu…fudge, no,” I hear from behind me.

I turn around to see Liam holding his daughter, Natalie. That explains the really pathetic job of cursing. “Are you sure? I don’t want to be one of those assholes that turn someone else’s big moment on themselves.”

“Turn away. I don’t like the spotlight. I really don’t feel like celebrating that I’m not as big of a fuck-up anymore.”

Liam’s sponsor, Frank, comes over. “I think this is a good time.”

He groans. “I really don’t feel like giving a speech.”

“Don’t think of it like that. Everyone is here to support you. It would be good for you to acknowledge them and thank them for how much they’ve helped you get to this point,” Frank says.

I reach my arms out for Natalie. “Hey, pumpkin. Want to come with Uncle Charlie?”

Liam reluctantly goes to the head of the tent to address the dozen or so guests gathered around. My nerves swell up inside of me, pulsing like the beat of my heart in my ears. I know I should be listening to his words of contrition and gratitude, but all I can focus on is Hattie.

Over a year ago, she moved back to Harriston. On our first date, she asked me to prove to her how I feel. Like everythingelse, it took me far too long to figure out how to do it. Even now, the words I need don’t come to me. That’s not who I am. If she wanted me to build her something, I could do it without a problem.

I’ve always lived behind a wall. On the outside, people see a happy guy, simple probably, and the life of the party. When you are abandoned by your mother into the care of an alcoholic father, you learn how to deflect attention. Sometimes, the best way to hide something is in plain sight.

So when Hattie asked me to prove to her that I wanted her in my life, I bungled my first few attempts. I’m comfortable in the shadows. Before Hattie, I was happy to show people the image I wanted them to see. Griffin knows me the best, but even he buys the bullshit about me being a carefree manwhore. She’s the only one who has ever managed to get behind the wall. The only one I want to see me as I am.

It isn’t just the words she wants from me. She needs the grand gesture. God knows I’ve put her through enough shit that she deserves one. Putting on a display is so contrary to who I am that it’s been a hard thing to come to terms with. But, time after time, she’s gone out on a limb for me, she needs to see that I’m willing to do the same for her.

My problem has been trying to figure out what to say to her to prove to her how I feel. I hope what I’ve come up with will work. The words aren’t mine, but I mean every one of them. When Liam rejoins us, I know it’s time to be brave. I haven’t taken a lot of chances in my life, and all of the ones I have taken have been in pursuit of one woman.

For my plan to work, I need to get her on her own, but she’s talking to the new teacher I heard some people talking about earlier. I wasn’t seeking out the information, but Griffin sent me to the grocery store for ice. That’s all it took for me to learnthat there’s a new, single, kindergarten teacher renting the guest house Wren used to rent after she left Liam.

That gives me an idea of how to get Hattie alone while not making her feel bad for abandoning the new girl. All I need is one baby to help me break the ice. Just so happens I know where to find one.

Dolores, an octogenarian most of the townsfolk view as their adopted grandmother, stops me before I take a step toward Hattie. “Did you ever try to pick up girls while holding a baby? Makes them weak in the knees. Might help you win over that pretty blonde you’ve been checking out.”

Very little shocks me, but Dolores does manage to surprise me every once in a while. “Mrs. Howell, I don’t think Liam would appreciate me using his daughter to charm women,” I say as she hands me Natalie, the daughter born as a result of the affair Liam had while married to Wren.

She bats away my concern. “Bah, he won’t complain much if he gets to meet the cute little tenant of mine, Claudia. Besides, you’re going to bring him his daughter and take Griffin and Wren’s little one. Griffin thinks he’s being subtle, but I think he’d like some time alone with his wife. Why don’t you trust an old woman and take Parker for a little while?”

I’ve lived in this town long enough to know not to argue with Dolores. I look down at Natalie. “You’re pretty cute kid, but I don’t actually need your help getting the girl.”

I look back over my shoulder and think about what Dolores said. Natalie could help me get Hattie by herself by occupying Claudia. “What do you think, want to help your dad find you a mommy?”

It’s pretty easy to bait Liam when I get over to where he’s having a very awkward conversation with Griffin and Wren. “This little one is a chick magnet. She’s even better than you were, Liam.”

“Stop using my daughter to pick up chicks,” he says, but it sounds more like he just thinks he has to protest.

I take Parker and drag Liam away. “C’mon, Liam. Let me introduce you to the new Kindergarten teacher. She loves babies—“ I hope— “and she’s got kind of a naughty librarian vibe.”Wren’s best friend, Bess, comes up to me when Liam and Claudia start to hit it off. She holds out her arms, and Parker practically jumps into her arms.

“I saw Griffin leading Wren out into the woods, so this is my chance to monopolize this little cutie for a while.”

With my excuse gone, I know it’s time for me to put it all on the line. There’s one last thing that even Hattie doesn’t know about me. I want to change that. I want her to know all of me. I want her to be the only one who does.

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