Chapter Thirty-One
We ate lunch together, chatting about the things that were going on in my hometown and what Keith and Mom were working on at their jobs at the moment.
Sammy was taken with Leo, and Leo had no problem chatting with him about school and his hobbies. I couldn’t help but watch them with a smile on my face.
“Oh, you have a little girl?” My mom beamed with excitement when I mentioned Macy.
Leo nodded. “Yeah, she’s three—”
“And the cutest, she has the most beautiful bouncing curls,” I interrupted, grinning.
“Her mother around?” Mom inquired.
“She passed away after giving birth. Hemorrhaged.”
Mom raised her hand to her mouth as she gasped. “Oh gosh, I’m so sorry. That must have been so hard.”
“It was. Suddenly a single father didn’t know much about kids,” Leo said, his voice tight. “Luckily I had the support of my club. They pulled me through, Macy too. Realized I wasn’t the only one who’d lost someone, she had too, and she only had me. So I had to step up.”
Keith nodded as though he understood and Mom’s eyes shone with respect and admiration for the man at my side.
“You’re a good man,” she whispered.
Leo just nodded in thanks. He didn’t see it that way. Macy was his daughter, and there was no way he would have backed away from his responsibilities despite it taking him some time to grieve to get his head straight.
After lunch, we hung around for another hour or so before we decided it was time to get on our way. Mom, Keith, and Sammy stood at the curb. I hugged them all before climbing into the truck.
“Next time you bring that little girl with you,” my mom ordered, hugging Leo.
He smiled. “I’m sure she’d love that.”
They waved as we drove off down the street, my body slumping into my seat as we turned the corner and they disappeared from sight.
“How you feeling?” Leo asked, his eyes on the road.
“Emotionally exhausted,” I told him honestly.
He smiled. “They’re good people.”
“The best.”
We drove for four hours, no particular destination in mind, but when we pulled into Jacksonville Florida, we decided it was a good place to spend the night and make a plan for tomorrow. Leo pulled into the first motel we spotted. Nothing fancy. It was old but well maintained.
We got the keys to our room and headed up the staircase, walking along the outside balcony. The room was nice, simple. A bed, a bathroom, a television and a little kitchen area with a microwave and sink.
“I’m gonna have a shower,” I told Leo as I headed for the bathroom.
He nodded. “I’m just going to call Op, and let him know where we are.”
I headed into the small bathroom. Surprisingly, it had a bath with the shower over it. I turned it on and stepped back, stripping my clothes off and dropping them onto the floor, stretching my body, glad to be out of the truck.
I stepped into the shower and pulled the curtain around, basking in the hot water as it prickled at my skin. I sighed, the water soothing my aching body.
I heard the bathroom door open, and Leo pulled back the curtain. His eyes raked over my naked body as he braced one hand against the wall.
“Everything good?” I asked.
“Yeah, Macy is back, and Oz and Bright Eyes are going to hang around for a few days at the club.” His eyes continued to examine my body even as he spoke. I felt a tingle of excitement, bending down to pick up the bar of soap off the small ledge and bringing it to my chest.