Page 28 of Just A Kiss

“Yep, and I can’t wait to see how excited Paisley is when she gets to the concert.”

“I can’t believe she’s finally old enough to go to a concert,” I muse. My best friend has been a single dad for six years now and has done a hell of a job co-parenting with Paisley’s mom. She was a surprise to both of them, but they turned that surprise into the best gift two people could get.

“Uncle Lee, Uncle Lee!” the little angel calls out as soon as the front door opens.

“There's the princess!” I hold my arms out for her to run and jump into.

“Look at my new boots Daddy and Lindsay got me,” she says, pointing to the pink cowgirl boots she’s got on.

“Wow! Those are pretty cool! Lots of sparkles.”

“They were my favorite ones,” she tells me as she wiggles to be let down.

“I can only imagine why.” I chuckle at her excitement. “Are you excited for today?” I ask her just as I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket.

“Yes! I get to see Reese sing! Do you think she’ll let me sing with her?” she asks me.

“Maybe if you ask really, really,reallynicely.”

“Okay.” She accepts my answer.

Lindsay has Allison occupied, so I slip my phone from my pocket, checking the screen for my notifications.

Reese:Everything is a go! When you guys arrive, just come to the backstage gate, and you’re all on the list to get through. I’ll introduce you to my tour manager, who will take care of the rest. Hillary and the guys are really excited to be in on everything, as well.

Lee:Thank you so much! We should be headed that way shortly.

I slide my phone in my pocket, a little weight lifted off my shoulders, knowing that my plan is in the works. By the end of tonight, I’ll hopefully have a fiancée and not just a girlfriend.

“You ready, man?” Tucker asks, the girls still occupied.

“As ready as I’ll ever be. You’ve got the ring box, right?” I question him.

“It’s safe with me,” he says, tapping his pocket. Allison would never suspect a box to be in Tucker's pocket, but in mine, it would stick out like a sore thumb.

“Reese just texted that she’s got me covered for tonight,” I tell him. Lindsay was the one that suggested this idea to me a month or so out when I started talking to her about helping me plan something, as well as picking out the ring. I would never have thought to reach out to her cousin to see if I could propose on stage at a country concert, but she was all for it. Thought that Allison would love it. “Lady A is willing to help out, as well.”

“That’s awesome, man. I’m happy for you. You couldn't have picked a better woman.”

“Thanks, man. I don’t think I would have won her back if it wasn’t for your wife, so I’ve got her and you to thank for making me pull my head out of my ass and see everything that was good right in front of me.”

“Are you two ready to go, or are you going to sit around gabbing like we do?” Lindsay asks, smiling over at us.

“We’re just waiting on you, ladies,” Tucker drawls at his wife. She walks over to where he’s standing and pulls him into a kiss. They keep it somewhat pg13, seeing as his daughter is in the room.

“Okay, love birds, let's get out of here,” Allison says, coming to stand at my side. I slide my hand into hers, linking our fingers and squeezing them quickly three times in what's become our thing. A quick three squeezes are our way of telling one anotherI love you.It took me a little while to realize that is what I was feeling for Allison, and even longer to admit that I didn’t need to be afraid of that feeling. When I finally embraced it, life got a whole lot better for me.

We pile into Tucker’s truck, mainly because it has Paisley’s booster seat installed in it. The drive over to the fairgrounds isn’t far, just on the outskirts of town.

“Do you know if Jackson and Holly are coming out today?” Allison asks.

“I believe so; Jackson was talking about it before we got off shift yesterday. He said Holly was pretty excited about it.”

“Oh, yay! I haven’t seen her in a while. I’m excited we’ll get to hang out together,” Allison says. Jackson is one of the newest guys on our shift. He moved back to town when a spot opened up in the department and met Holly on his first day on shift when he joined Tucker and me at Holly’s school for a program we did for her class. They were pretty smitten from that first meeting.

“When do we get to see Reese?” Paisley pipes up.

“We can go see her as soon as we get there,” Lindsay tells her. “She texted me that she was ready for her Paisley girl.”

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