Page 60 of Don't Leave Me

“What else does she want?”

“Well, her and Charlie always dreamed of living on Mulberry Lane with houses next to each other, so I made it happen. She’s always dreamed of finding the perfect man for her and raising a family here.”

“I guess you haven’t made that happen yet.” I chuckle.

“Nah, but I think she’s working her way towards it.”

“She wants a bakery,” I whisper, watching my girl glide from one space to another.

“She does. I don’t think she’ll be happy until she has one. She’s stubborn enough to make it the most popular bakery around too.” Wes nods.

“She’s amazing.”

“At what?”

“Everything.”

Wes chuckles and shakes his head. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a man this in love. It’s nice to know it’s directed at my daughter.”

“I can't keep her away from here, Wes. She can't live in Maple Springs. She won't be happy.”

“Not long term, but she’s happy right now. What’s going through your head?”

“I'm trying to figure it all out. I'm not against moving. I didn’t live in Maple Springs a year ago, I moved there to help Sydney after her husband left her. But how do I leave my sister when she still needs help?”

“I don’t know… Can you let Soph go though?”

“Not a chance in hell.”

“Then you talk to her and figure it out. Discuss it with your sister and have a game plan. How much longer she’ll need youclose by? There’s always an answer, but sometimes it takes time to find it.”

“Yeah, but how much time is she going to give me before she moves onto someone else?”

“You obviously don’t know my daughter well enough.” Wes chuckles like I just told him a funny joke. “You have a while, Peck. You don’t need to worry about that for a single second.”

“How many bedrooms, Daddy?” Sophia comes back over to us.

“Five. Do you need more than that?” He arches a brow.

“No. Is it the same setup as our house?”

“Yes. I need you to pick out paint colors while you’re here, and flooring. I think we should have the place finished in the next month or two.”

“Perfect. So, I can go back to Maple Springs for a while.” She grins at me.

“Yeah, I’ll let you know if it’s going to take longer. There are two books on the counter. One with paint options and one with flooring. You can take them to the house and take your time picking them. I'm not reflooring anything so make sure you like it.” He points a finger in her direction and her cheeks pinken.

“I won't do it again,” she groans. “But what if I don’t like the paint? Can we repaint?” There’s so much hope in her voice and I know Wes won't tell her no.

“You’re allowed two rooms to be repainted. That’s it. But I'm serious, Soph. If I put down floors and you decide a week later that it doesn’t match your furniture, I'm not redoing it.”

“How many times has she done that?”

“Only once!” Sophia hurries to answer me before Wes can.

“Twice.”

“You didn’t even have the floors finished the second time. It doesn’t count.” She rolls her eyes like he’s being dramatic.

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