Page 67 of Love on the Brain
“Nope. It’s just for guests.”
Noah rubbed his head. “If you were my daddy, you could sleep with my mommy instead of on the couch, right?”
Ryan grinned. “If that was all right with her, yes.”
“Hmm.” Ryan waited while Noah seemed to be working something out. Less than four days out from surgery, and his processing speed was just about back to normal for his age.
“What about me?” Noah asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Do you have to be my daddy to sleep with me?” He scooted over. “There’s a lot of room here. And then if I waked up scared, I wouldn’t be alone.”
Ryan’s heart swelled in his chest, pushing up a lump that increased in size until it was hard to breathe. “You wake up scared? Do you call for your mom?”
Noah shook his head. “No. I just try to think about happy things and go back to sleep. Sometimes I cry, but I don’t know it, and Mommy comes.”
There was so much Ryan wanted to say, but he held his tongue. “That’s very brave of you. It’s okay to be scared, though. No one is brave all the time.”
“You are. And I want to be like you, Uncle Ryan. I want to play baseball like you and my dad and fix kids so they don’t die. Can you make videos for me like my daddy did so I can play you on the screen when I leave?”
Ryan couldn’t sit still any longer. He shifted into the space Noah cleared and pulled the boy into his arms. “Of course, buddy. Always ask me for stuff. I love you and will always help you.”
“I love you, too, Uncle Ryan.” Noah patted his back as if Ryan needed comforting and not the other way around.
Maybe he did.
Life had dealt this tiny human a hand that most grownups couldn’t play, and he’d won.
CHAPTER19
Despite the unrelenting humidity that Damon assured her was unusual for the end of April in Savannah, Jane was enjoying her time in the historic city. As they’d driven south from Maine last weekend—her dad’s Explorer led the caravan, packed to the gills and towing a tiny U-Haul trailer of all things wedding that hadn’t fit in the other cars—the weather and her heart became warmer and warmer.
Damon’s sister Rachel had organized tours of the city, nearby plantations, and the waterfront. She and Molly had taken Noah and Jamie exploring and were often joined by her dad and Molly’s mother-in-law, Beverly. It was plain to see they’d become good friends, and Jane hoped a romance was blossoming. Neither had remarried after they’d been widowed. Now that she was finding happiness with Ryan, she wanted to also see her father find a life partner again.
Tonight was the wedding rehearsal, and Jane eagerly anticipated Ryan’s arrival. He’d texted his flight was running late, so he’d meet her at Daisy Mae’s. Jane and Noah were staying in Damon’s old room on the fourth floor of the boardinghouse-turned-restaurant, next to Shelby and Rachel. The restaurant had closed for a few hours to accommodate the rehearsal, and the wedding was to take place in the courtyard the next morning between the house and the ballroom, converted from a carriage house when the home was built by Damon’s grandmother’s family over a century ago.
As she waited with the others for her cue in the bridal room on the first floor, Jane teared up watching her best friend give her sister a pep talk. Molly was like another big sister to Shelby, and after having lived with her in the big pink house for most of the last year, they’d grown even closer. On the sofa, Kat and Caroline were swapping funny stories about the Crane brothers. The only one missing was Macy, who was already in the courtyard doing her sound check. Like Molly, she was pulling double duty as a bridesmaid, only she was singing a processional song, which she’d written just last week and performed in her new home recording studio that Kevin and his brothers just finished building.
“All right, ladies, your escorts are waiting on the porch.” Hollie Saunders, Damon’s mother, was the on-site planner. “Damon and Matt are in place. Shelby, your dad is right outside the door. When Macy’s song starts, my husband and I will lead y’all.”
Meemaw was right behind her, holding the leash of Damon’s blond spaniel, Fenway, who reminded Jane of Goldie, the Porter family dog that had died with their mother. After the initial shock, she and Shelby had grown to love the silly pup whom Easton had rescued and pushed on Damon to adopt. Less than a year old, he still acted like a puppy, getting into everything and loving on everyone.
“Girls, a little glitch in the plan. The dog-sitter canceled, and this sweet boy here won’t stop whinin’ in his crate. Can’t blame him! It’s his daddy’s wedding weekend! So Noah and I have decided that he—Noah, not the pup—is going to take over my flower-Meemaw duties. I’ve tied the rings to the back of Fenway’s collar, and I will escort this fine canine down the aisle to Matt, and then he can sit with me front and just off-center.”
There was a pause, and then everyone burst out laughing. Meemaw smiled and smoothed her white pouf of curls.
Jane stood back with Shelby as the other women and Noah went ahead of her. The notes from Macy’s brothers’ guitars filled the air, and soon it was almost her turn. Jane turned to hug Shelby and was surprised to see her eyes pooling with tears. Since their mother died, Shelby had kept her emotions mostly hidden.
“This song is beautiful, Shel. Have you not heard it?”
Shelby shook her head. “No. But I read the lyrics, and they’re perfect.” She swiped at her eyes and brushed her side bang off her face. “Damon will never let me hear the end of this if I lose it at the rehearsal.”
“Hey.” Jane pulled her sister to her. “It’s okay to have emotions and to show them. You don’t have to be perfect all the time. So what if he teases you? He loves you. And who cares about anybody else, really? We can’t worry about what other people think.” As she spoke the words, Jane knew she needed to hear them, too. “And I’d bet you a hundred buckshe’salready crying.”
Shelby laughed. “I won’t take that bet.”
“C’mon, Jane,” Meemaw called from the door. “We’re moving!”
