Page 41 of What We Keep
Mom: I know I can, sweetie, and I probably will. But not just yet.
After a few days, I walked back over to our property, studying the old foundation and remembering my dad. He meant well, but he might still be here if he hadn’t been so committed to being independent and eschewing any help.
“We’ll help you build.” Haven’s voice reached me, carried on the gusts of the wind that blew toward me.
I turned and cast a smile over my shoulder. “I know you will. I’ll figure it out. First, I have to start work.”
It was a chilly late summer afternoon. When I shivered a little with another gust of wind, Haven stepped closer and reached for my hands, tucking them into his pockets with his.
The gesture was so sweet, my heart flipped in my chest. “If anybody catches you doing that, they’ll think you’re sweet on me.”
His smile was slow and devastating for my heart, and like gas on a fire for my hormones. “I am sweet on you.”
I swear, I blushed from head to toe. He dipped his head and gave me a lingering kiss, and it washed over me. I couldn’t help but just feel good.
“Mom said you walked out here, so I came to find you. She was hoping you could check in with her before the interview,” Haven said when he lifted his head.
“Oh, that’s right. I should go.”
“You’re not late,” he said as I started to move. “Half an hour.”
Then he kissed me again, and I forgot everything else. I didn’t know how long it lasted, but I realized I could stand outside in the fresh air, with the fireweed ablaze in the background and the wind blowing, with my hands tucked into Haven’s pockets and him kissing me, for all the days of my life.
No matter what happened, I knew this was a memory I would keep.
That was something my mom talked about a lot after my dad died—what we kept in our hearts.
I was also starting to worry that I wasn’t cut out for casual. Not that Haven promised this would be casual. But a tiny corner of my mind and heart was more than a little worried.
Chapter Twenty-One
Haven
“Where’s Elsa?” Jude asked as he approached me, where I was eyeing the finish trim I was putting on the desk in one of the offices.
“Today’s her first day at work,” I replied.
Jude tapped his fingers to the side of his head. “That’s right. Totally spaced it.” He plunked down in the chair across from me. “We’re almost there.”
“I know,” I replied with a glance up.
“Really glad Elsa’s here.”
“Yeah.” I kept my tone vague. I was more than glad she was here, but I didn’t think Jude shared my specific reasons.
“Yeah, she knocked out the painting quick, and that sign out on the barn looks amazing. I think we’re ready to roll. You think Lincoln will come back soon?” he asked next.
Lincoln. Our missing brother.
I tapped the last nail on the trim and straightened as I set down the hammer. “I don’t know. He’s with a hotshot crew up in Fairbanks. We all rotate out.”
“He doesn’t rotate out. He’s gone most of the time,” Jude pointed out.
“I know.” I bit back the sigh rattling in my chest.
Lincoln had taken Bree’s death a little harder than the rest of us. It seemed to have been a body blow for him, where he pulled away instead of turning toward us. We were all worried, but most of our worry was left unspoken because I guess we all figured he just needed time.
“Mom thinks you’re in love with Elsa,” Jude said next.
