Page 115 of Almost Maybes

Chapter Thirty-Eight

It had been a week since the party where he spoke and apologized to Oleander. He didn’twantthe time away from Oleander, butsheneeded it. And that meant he would give it to her. All he wanted was for Oleander to step back into his life and never leave. In order to make it happen, he needed to trust her process and take the time to appreciate what he had with her. Even if she loved him, there was no guarantee she would come back.

According to Frankie and Lachlan there was a thing calledgrand gesturesand it was Jackson’s only hope of winning Oleander back. As someone who had watched romantic comedies most of his life, Jackson was ashamed he didn’t know that’s what they were called.

And since the conversation with her friends, Oleander had started texting him. A few messages here and there, sending him pictures that reminded her of his two weeks of wooing. That told him he hadhope. Jackson had been thinking about making the first move, but she clearly beat him to it.

At least she was talking to him and Jackson was going to take the win.

On the first day he was free, Frankie dragged him out of bed. She put him on speaker phone as Lachlan lectured him about the infamous grand gesture. The two of them asked him questions and jotted down answers. Given that he was completely confused by everything, he asked Frankie for help. As someone who got off on planning every celebration, she was more than happy to help. And spent the following week putting everything together.

Frankie enlisted Milo and Gavin to help and insisted on bringing his parents in as well. Jackson hadn’t spoken to his parents since the family meeting with Beth. Mindy seemed impressed; his father was still upset with Beth, but showed up for moral support.

Phone calls were made, credit cards were swiped and Jackson crossed things off his list. While Frankie was organizing everything, Jackson was planning it. And he knew exactly what he needed to do in order to win his girl back.

Summer had shiftedinto fall and it was getting cold enough to make Ollie hate everything about winter. The additional whining was because Frankie made her leave her apartment on her one day off. That included wearing jeans and sneakers and her long coat, because it was nippy. Ollie had intended to stay wrapped up in her onesie. Instead she was on her way to meet her best friend at the park. Apparently there was a mini food truck festival and since she didn’t take Frankie to the last one, she had to make the trip now.

Ollie parked her car in the unusually empty lot and walked towards the park entrance. When she got there and didn’t see a single food truck, she pulled out her phone to call Frankie. She was sent directly to voicemail. Ollie tried Lachlan and got the same response. Growling, she started to write a text in their group chat when music began to play. It was faint at first, but it started coming into focus.

Looking around in confusion, Ollie tried to figure out where it was coming from and saw four human shaped balloons. Unable to see them clearly, Ollie shielded her eyes with one hand as they got closer and gasped when she recognized the Ninja Turtles. The music got louder and she recognized the Ninja Turtles theme song immediately. Before she could even try to understand what was happening, a food truck was headed her way.

Ollie’s eyes widened as she took in the line of food trucks coming towards her, the Ninja Turtles balloons moving with them. The song changed and Ollie tilted her head till she recognized the song from the bar the night she and Jackson went out. She smiled as the trucks formed a large circle around her.

“Hello there, lovely lady.”

Ollie laughed when Niles hopped out of his truck with a drink in his hand. “Niles.”

“I find myself willing to go to the ends of the earth for both of you and something tells me this is just the beginning.”

“I honestly hope so,” Ollie told him, taking a sip of the drink. It was exactly what she had the first time they visited Niles’ truck. Niles stepped back as a pile of tulle and pink shoved their way through the gaps between the trucks. Her tiny dancers!

They lined up perfectly and grinned at her as the song changed. They executed their dance routine without a single mistake. Ollie was in shock, staring at them as they moved in synchronization and finished with a flourish.

“What!”

“We’ve been practicing, Miss Bowen.”

Ollie shook her head. “You guys have been lying to me every day in class?”

Claire huffed, like it was obvious. “It was a secret, and we didn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

“Who told you to keep it a secret?”

Claire grinned proudly and turned to point upwards. Ollie lifted her head to find Jackson standing on top of a food truck dressed up like Master Splinter. Ollie covered her mouth with one hand and stared at him, shaking her head at how ridiculous he looked. He’d put so much effort into his costume and she had to admit it was blowing her mind.

“Oleander.”

“What are you doing, Jackson?”

“This,” he said with a sweep of his arms, “is a public declaration of my love for you.”

Ollie shook her head and watched as he vanished from sight. Frowning, she looked over her shoulder and found Frankie, Lachlan, Milo, Gavin, Everleigh, and Jackson’s family standing there. Mindy looked so excited and Ollie couldn’t help but laugh at the happiness. They all started pointing behind her and Ollie turned back in time to see Jackson walk towards her.

Seeing this Master Splinter costume up close and personal was a treat. His strong arms were bare and his tattoo was clearly visible, and the soft hair on his chest peeked out through the V in his top, making her want to run her fingers through it.

Instead, she smiled, “Hi.”

He smiled. “Did you know grand gestures are a thing that exist?”

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