Page 14 of Don't Look Back

“Don’t you dare ‘what’ me! You did this! Riley used to be sweet and loving towards her Uncle Colton. Now, she’s sassy and impatient. I blame it all on you.”

Tucker chuckles at the head of the table, but he doesn’t care. He’s always loved the sassy women. I swear the sassier the better when it comes to him.

I don’t want that. I want someone sweet and loving. She can bust my balls, but I don’t want someone who I'm going to constantly butt heads with.

“Aunt Leslie, will you come to Christmas too?” Riley blinks up at her.

Leslie’s gaze snaps to Tucker. She opens and closes her mouth, but nothing comes out. Tucker nods his head with a smile, telling her he’s fine with Riley calling her aunt.

“Oh, uh, I'm not sure. When is Christmas?”

“Next Sunday,” I say slowly.

“Wow, I didn’t realize it was so close. I normally don’t celebrate it.”

“What? You don’t decorate a Christmas tree, or open presents, or hang your stockings?” Riley stares at her like she’s crazy. “What about dinner with your family?”

“Well, my family doesn’t live around here and I don’t travel home.” She shrugs her shoulders. “I never have anywhere to go, so I just stay home and pretend it’s a normal day.”

“I’ll pick you up at two on Christmas,” I say before I can stop myself.

I can't let her be alone. That’s unacceptable.

My family and Tucker’s have gotten together for holidays for as long as I can remember. Willow always says it’s because Tucker and I would sneak off to find Sky anyway. By having our family together, she just had to convince the Barren’s to let Skylar come over.

This year, Paster Barren and Marie are joining us. They’ve put forth a lot of effort recently in being therefor Skylar and making up for the past. My heart breaks for them. I can't imagine losing a kid the way they lost Skylar.

“You don’t have to do that,” Leslie says softly.

“You’re right, I don’t.” I sit a little straighter and keep my entire focus on her. When her gaze meets mine, I lean forward, making sure she understands what I'm saying. “I don’t have to pick you up. I don’t have to see you at all if I don’t want to. And let’s be honest here, I don’t do things I don’t want to do.”

She swallows hard and her eyes glisten just a little bit more. Good, I'm upsetting her. I want her to realize I'm not talking to her because of some crazy sense of duty. I'm doing it because the vulnerable woman behind this mask she wears might be the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. And now that I’ve caught a glimpse of it, I want more.

“I want to pick you up, Les. I want to spend time with you, so stop fighting it. I won't give up.”

She takes a deep breath and as she blows it out she nods her head. A slow smile spreads across my face. I feel like I’ve somehow gotten my way, even though I'm not sure I have. I guess only time will tell.

“Aren't you just the cutest thing ever,” Leslie coos to Duke who’s sitting happily in her arms. She’s adorable with the kids.

She’s going to be an amazing mom. I could see her with a whole slew of kids running around. She’d be calm and sweet no matter what’s going on. I can see it so clearly. And I kind of want to be a part of it.

The thought hits me out of nowhere and makes me pause. I’ve never been drawn to anyone enough to picture forever with them. Whenever Tucker talked about Skylar like that, I’d roll my eyes. I always believed they belonged together – everyone did really – but I never had that sort of experience myself. Now, I get it. I want to spend time with her. I want to get to know her better.

She could be my future.

“Ok, let’s go back to Mommy because I think it’s time for me to get home. I'm exhausted. Yes, those kids at school are exhausting.” The way she baby talks to Duke is cute. She’s getting the biggest smiles out of him.

Leslie hands over the baby and says something to Skylar I can't quite hear.

“Is my shirt done, Tuck?” I ask without glancing away from Leslie.

“Nope. You have another ten minutes.”

“Cool, I’ll get it from you tomorrow.” I wave him off and stand to my full height.

“You can't wait ten minutes?” He asks with amusement lacing his words.

“Not tonight.”

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