Page 76 of Small Town Frenzy
I nod and shift more to the edge of the living room. “I think it’s a great idea.”
As if drawn by some imaginary rope pulling him closer, he gets up and comes to me. He rubs Jacob’s back and then my arm. His eyes dip to my lips, and I can only assume he wants to kiss me as much as I want to feel his lips against mine. “Thanks for being so supportive. Of . . .” His gaze shifts to the mop of curls on Jacob’s head, which he scrubs his hand over playfully. “This and of me.”
Jacob turns to cling to Griffin, who happily takes him without hesitation.
I say, “You make it easy to support you.” No decisions have been made about when we’ll tell Jacob about Griffin’s role in his life. But it doesn’t seem as earth-shattering as I once believed. I’m not losing my son. He’s gaining a part of who he is—an entire history and an amazing family. I smile, seeing them together, but Griffin has made it clear that it’s not only about the two of them. It’s the three of us, together. There’s power in that, strength to help me maneuver through any confusion, and to stand up for what I want for the first time in my life. I’ve never felt so confident in the direction I’m heading. With him, we’re on firm ground as we begin this journey.
I couldn’t ask for more.
Although I’m not naive.The real battle still lies ahead.
CHAPTER 31
Griffin
One week later. . .
“My dad knowshow to do everything.” Beckett’s voice carries up the ladder where I’m holding a nail to a board.
I look down. “Your dad learned by just doing what needed to get done. Hands-on experience is the best teacher.” He only has a hand holding onto the ladder, and if we’re being honest, he’s using it to rest against more than to secure my safety against falling. It’s a good confidence builder to think you are trusted to save a life. My dad used to do the same for me when I was young. I’m not sure Beck needs a confidence boost, but since he’s here, I’m putting him to work. I hammer the new board into place, adding nail gun to my list of things to purchase, and start down the ladder. Landing on my feet, I ask, “Did your friend Macon get picked up?”
“Yeah, his mom got him.”
“That was nice of you guys to offer to help.” And by help, they went out in the boat, hiked a good fifteen acres up the river, explored a cave they claim had something with glowing eyes living in it, and panned for gold in a ground full of granite. I remember those days from when I was younger. Baylor and I used to have so much fun on random adventures and getting into trouble.
He shrugs. “We got nothing better to do.”
I drop my hammer into the tool belt hanging around my hips as we walk out from the house, stop, and look back at the progress made today. Crossing my arms over my chest, I stare at the two new siding boards I put in place. You’d think I built the home from scratch by the pride I feel inside. “What do you think?”
With his arms crossed over his chest, Beck mimics me as he studies the house. “I think you have a long way to go, Uncle Griffin.”
Ruffling his hair, I reply, “I agree.” We head back to the porch to take a water break. After digging out two bottles from the cooler, I sit on the landing of the porch, settling my feet three steps below.
He comes to sit but scoots to lean against a post.
“Got your eye on any girls at school?”
Beckett laughs, but I see his cheeks redden a little too. “Nah. I’m too young for dating. That’s what my dad says.”
“Your dad is right. Just have fun with your friends and leave those troubles for after high school.”
“Is that what you did?” He rolls the bottle over his forehead. He’s a funny kid, out here looking like he’s been sweating out at a construction site.
“I made mistakes and dated girls I probably should have steered clear of like my mom warned me. Trust your parents. They have good instincts.” I rest my palms on thefloorboards, scanning the property all the way to the river’s edge.
Weeks ago, I had no direction. Now, I’m rebuilding a house for a life I never imagined I’d be lucky enough to have. Some would call Jacob an accident or a mistake. I call him the anchor I need to ride out the rough seas of my life. The sails that have given me direction on sunny days. Cricket, that’s easy. She’s the captain steering this ship. I glance over at the daybed, grinning just thinking how sexy she’d look in a captain’s cap and nothing else.
The role of a ship’s engineer is the one I gravitate most toward. None of us works without the other to get to our destination. We’re a team now.
“Hey, Beck, see the Cypress at the water’s edge? The biggest trees other than the oaks?”
“Yeah.”
“When I was traveling, it didn’t matter where I was, I could close my eyes, and I’d be flying off a rope swing into the river or climbing up the trunks and perching up on the branches for hours.” I glance at him. “I once fell asleep cradled in the legs of the roots. My parents couldn’t find me. Scared the living daylights out of them.”
“What happened?”
“The police were at the house when I showed up. I totally missed all the commotion. Those trees are home to me.”
