Page 42 of Waiting for Forever
She was no longer the lone wolf, the one looking in from the outside. Nowadays, she attended family events with the man she loved, the man she planned to marry, the future father of her children. She was so happy, she was certain she could fly.
Hudson had returned to his granddad’s house earlier this morning, claiming he had a couple of projects there he needed to work on. He planned to come back a little bit before the party began—with his grandfather—to help her with any last-minute tasks.
“Hello?”
Paige left the living room, walking to the foyer at the sound of her mom’s voice through the open front door. “Mom, Dad, you’re early.”
Mom opened the screen door and walked in, Dad trailing in her wake, a large lidded bowl in his hands. Mom made the best potato salad ever, and she’d promised to bring it today.
“We were both ready at home, so we thought we’d come over and see if you needed help with anything,” Mom replied.
Paige grinned. Mom had probably been ready for the party since getting up this morning. Her mother loved social events, which was funny, because Dad’s preferred state of being was sitting on his recliner in a completely quiet house.
“Let’s put the potato salad in the kitchen, and I’ll give you the first-floor tour before everyone else gets here.”
Her parents had seen a few of the finished rooms, but they hadn’t been by since she and Hudson had completed the rest. The upstairs—with the exception of her bedroom and bathroom—was still a nineteen-seventies disaster
Hudson constantly reminded her that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but those words didn’t calm her down as much as he might have hoped—especially now that the downstairs looked so amazing. She was even more impatient to make the upstairs match.
Dad had just put the bowl in the fridge when they heard Hudson’s voice from the front porch.
“Paige? You got a minute?” he called.
She, Mom, and Dad all walked back to the front door.
“Oh, Judge Sparks, Stella, I didn’t know you were already here,” Hudson said. Mom had insisted he call her by her first name.
He and Paige had accepted many dinner invitations over the past few months, joining her parents either at home or at Sparks Restaurant every few weeks.
Dad was slow to warm up, but Paige could see a definite thawing. Hudson was a hard guy not to like these days. He was funny, an entertaining storyteller, and generous with his time. Almost to a fault. He’d done several handyman repairs in her parents’ house, at Mom’s request. Plus, he and Dad crossed paths fairly regularly at the courthouse, though that job was now winding down.
Just in time, she thought.
Renovations on Sparks Barbeque were set to begin before Memorial Day. The restaurant would be closed for a couple weeks while Ryan Construction knocked down the wall between them and what was formerly a flower shop.
“Hudson, dear,” Mom said. “So good to see you again.”
“Mr. Ryan,” Dad said, nodding his head once.
Paige was amused by the formal way Hudson and her dad kept addressing each other. Mainly because she was starting to get the idea they both meant for it to be funny, and neither of them wanted to give up the gag.
“Carl,” Dad said, stretching his hand out to shake that of Hudson’s grandfather. “Glad you’re joining us today.”
“Happy to be included. Always a good time and good food at Sparks’ parties.” Mr. Ryan—nope, Paige mentally corrected herself, because the man continually insisted that she call him Carl—had joined them for a few family celebrations since January.
“I’ve got a surprise for you,” Hudson said, walking back to his truck and pulling something out of the back.
Paige’s eyes widened. “A swing! You got me a porch swing?”
“Not got,” Carl corrected. “Made.”
Paige had to blink back tears, touched to discover Hudson had built her a swing. It took her back to the day they’d reconnected in this front yard. He’d had a vision for her front porch, and he was helping her realize it.
Hudson climbed the three steps to the porch as Paige reached out, running her hand over the smooth, glossy wood. “I love it.”
He nodded toward the empty spot on the porch where she’d planned to hang a swing eventually. “Yesterday, while you were at work, I found the studs and marked where to put the eyehole screws.
Paige looked up and noticed the small X’s for the first time.
