Page 31 of Open Road (Tattooed Hearts Duet 3)

Noah went on to tell me how he made his robot and the fight they had. When I got off the phone a while later, Slade stood against the wall, watching me.

“You miss them.”

I nodded, wiping away a little tear. “I do, but not like I thought I would. I guess being in Nashville helped. I got used to not being there for every little thing. I still miss not knowing things the instant they happen, but it doesn’t mean I’m not included or important. I’m getting to have my own experiences just as they are.”

Slade walked over, scooping me into his arms and sitting back on the bed with me in his lap. I laid my head on his chest, finding my favorite spot. He kissed my hair, sighing contentedly as we sat there.

“I’m glad that you’re here, Peach. It’s also been good for me to remember how fun it can be to do things.”

“I couldn’t imagine doing any of them without y’all.”

“You could, but I’m glad you aren’t.”

We sat for a few minutes before I broached the topic he’d been avoiding. “You nervous about seeing your dad… or meeting his girlfriend?” I asked, tilting my head slightly so I could see his face.

Slade blew out a breath, dropping his eyes to mine. “Am I that readable?”

The corner of my mouth lifted, and I shrugged a shoulder. “I just know you, remember,Blaze?”

His eyes heated, and he bent to kiss my nose. “Yeah, you do, and I love you for it.” He took a deep breath before meeting my eyes again. “Things with my dad have never been easy. It’s gotten better over the past years, and I’m just worried that meeting this woman will reverse it all. What if she’s a bitch, and he takes her side?”

Turning so I was straddling his lap, I cupped his stubbled face between my hands. “Oh, Tatzilla. I don’t know this woman, but I’ll always be on your side no matter what. So will your brother and Simon. You’re not alone anymore. I think the little boy who wants his dad to choose him is speaking there. You’re scared, but you don’t have to be. Trust your relationship.”

His hands landed on my hips as he stared into my eyes, rolling the words I said around. “Okay.” With that one word, I watched a weight lift off his shoulders, and he sealed his lips to mine in a bruising kiss. The door beeped a moment later, stopping us from taking it further.

“Hey, lovers,” Simon purred. “Check out my goodies. Lenn, I got this for you.”

I moved off Slade’s lap as he groaned, and I couldn’t help but notice the bulge. Smirking, I turned to Si and fawned over the items he’d gotten me. Slade cleared his throat, grabbing all of our attention.

“Do you guys care if we make a detour and stop by our dad’s house?”

Smiling, I shook my head, looking at the other two. Zane had a smile, happy that Slade wasn’t fighting it anymore. He turned to me, mouthing, “thank you.” Once we had everything packed, we checked out of the hotel. Of course, Lee and his minions were in the lobby, but we skirted around them, pretending we didn’t see them. We’d deal with them in the competition, but I wasn’t going to risk anything else by starting a turf war. They weren’t worth our adventure.

Once everything was packed, Zane climbed in the back with me as Slade took the wheel. For the first thirty minutes, Zane showed me some of the pictures he’d taken and what he would put on the new website and social media.

“Wow, these are great.”

His face blushed a little at the praise. “Thanks. It’s just something fun.”

“I couldn’t do that for fun.”

“Yeah, well.” He shrugged, pushing it off, but I could see how much he also liked it.

I dropped it, for now, snuggling under his arm. I glanced out the window as another city was left behind.

“Thanks, Babs,” I whispered before I pulled out my book, and I lost myself in a world of dragons for the next few hours.

* * *

We pulledup to a blue house a few hours later. It was pretty, with various flower beds in front and more in hanging pots. A porch swing with pillows set off to one side and an old rocking chair to the other. Slade turned off the van, and we all sat there, waiting. He looked at the house, and I wondered if he expected it to do something.

Zane glanced at me, giving me a nudge. Leaning forward, I placed my hand on Slade’s forearm. He jumped a little at the contact like he’d been in a daze, unaware we were still in the vehicle.

“Hey, you ready?”

Slade peered down at me, then at Simon, reaching across to grab his hand. “Yeah.” He swallowed, nodding to himself. “Yeah.”

Zane was the first one to open the door, springing the rest of us into action. It was quiet as we made our way up to the front door, nothing but the sounds of the birds and insects to greet us. Slade stopped when we made it up the two stairs onto the porch, staring at the rocking chair. He gulped again and lifted his hand to ring the doorbell. Simon and I were on either side of him, with Zane on my other. We stood firm as our foursome group as we waited.

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