Page 51 of Silver Sanctuary
“Oh, baby. I know this is one promise you’re going to be so happy I keep.”
Fifteen
“Move your feet, Archer! Fast feet, fast feet!”
“Damn. Beau really isn’t letting the kids get away with anything, is he?” Mae sighed as she sat down on the blanket Lacy had spread out to watch Embrie’s soccer practice on.
“Nash is trying his best to balance out the… uh… passion?”
“That’s good. Because a bunch of the kids out there look like they might cry.”
“What are you doing over here? I thought you were at the hydration station.”
“Birdie seems to have that covered. Besides, I can’t take the tension between her and Beau. They’ve got some intense best-friends-who-need-to-bang vibes and the way he keeps looking over at her is gettingmeall hot and bothered.”
“Oh, god. The tension and frustration can be really tough sometimes.”
“Don’t tell me?—”
Lacy’s eyes drifted over to the older man standing alone at the corner of the field. She’d noticed him at a few ofEmbrie’s practices. Nothing consistent, but his presence sent a tingle up her spine.
“Sorry, Mae, I don’t mean to interrupt you, but do you know that man?”
“Which one?” she asked, looking over her shoulder to follow Lacy’s line of sight.
“The one over at the far corner of the field. I’ve seen him here before, but only once or twice. I don’t think he has a child here who knows him.”
“Ew. That’s creepy. You want me to tell him to get lost?”
“No! No, I’m probably wrong. My safety radar is just on high alert lately. I need to take a break.”
“Okay. But we’ll keep an eye on him together. If you keep getting creepy vibes, I’ll scream so loud right in his face he’ll run away crying.”
Lacy laughed. “I appreciate that. So, did you ever end up having your talk with Stone?”
Her friend’s shoulders fell as she started plucking blades of grass from the edge of the blanket.
“Yeah. But it was the same talk we always have—things are good the way they are. He wants the best for me, and that means not tying myself down to him.” She sighed. “He wants to go back to school for medical stuff. I think he’s had a harder time feeling like he’s fulfilling his purpose since he left the SEALs than the other guys. But I’m not sure why he thinks I wouldn’t want to go on that journey with him.”
“I’m sorry. That’s really tough.”
Lacy watched as Mae smiled, looking off in the distance at Nash who was kneeling down, talking to one of Embrie’s teammates. “Couldn’t have fallen in love with one of the guys who proposes marriage after the first date. Hell, I couldn't even fall for one of the guys who wanted to date me publicly.”
“Mae…”
“No. It’s fine. I’m fine—I’llbefine.”
“That was a lot offines.”
Mae rolled her eyes, but Lacy saw the hurt in them too. “I wish we were allowed to bring wine to these things.”
Just then, Embrie’s teammate passed her the ball. Lacy jumped up, her eyes tracking her daughter and the ball heading down the field. Embrie lined up the shot and… in it went! While she was busy jumping up and down, Lacy watched as Embrie ran right for Nash and jumped into his arms. Something that felt a lot like perfect happiness exploded inside her chest.
“Oh, she ran right for him. That is so cute!” Mae’s hand landed on her arm and squeezed as if she completely understood why Lacy’s eyes were flooding with tears.
“Is it weird that I’m totally weepy over their relationship? There’s just something that clicked into place in my heart and it just feels like he was always meant to be her dad. I’m honestly terrified of messing this up for her. She’s never had a safe male role model in her life before. Nash… and honestly all the guys… I just see her blossoming under their safety.”
“It’s a wonderful thing, my friend. And you’re not going to mess it up. Nash looks at you like you hung the moon and then gave him the greatest blow job of his life.”
