Ollie comes to stand next to us. “I want to dance, Daddy.”
I let go of Ford, but he shakes his head. “Oh no, you’re not getting out of it that easily.”
He puts Ollie, himself, and me in a little circle, and we all dance together. Ollie’s laughter is infectious, and we’re all laughing and having a good time. We’re completely ignoring the speed of the music, dancing too fast for the slow beat, but none of us seem to care.
I look over at G smiling at all of us, and I can’t help but point out to her, “Well, you’ve succeeded in getting out of your exercise, I see.”
G’s eyes twinkle at me.
Ollie releases his hold on his dad and me and runs to his great-grandmother. “I’ll dance with you, Granny.”
She grabs on to his hand, and he dances in front of her while she sits, tapping her feet back and forth. It’s obvious she’s worn out today.
With Ollie and G occupied, Ford pulls me back into his arms. I grin up at him, taking in his smiling face with the gray-streaked beard. He really is a handsome guy. All the Blaze brothers are. He looks at his grandmother and back at me. “She doing okay?”
I nod. “Yes, but she’s getting tired more easily. We’ll probably have to cut back on the dancing.”
He nods and looks at me curiously. “What about you? You holding up okay?”
I force a smile to my face. “Yes, I’m great. I got this, Ford. I promise I will take the best care of your grand–”
He cuts me off. “I wasn’t asking because I thought you weren’t qualified. I was asking because I know how you feel about her. I know it’s hard for you to see her deteriorate like this. It’s hard on all of us, but we get a break from it. You don’t. I’m just worried about you, that’s all.”
I tuck my chin onto his shoulder because I can’t look into his eyes. I know it’s his granny, and I should be the one comforting him, but honestly, I don’t know what I’ll do when she leaves us. It’s not something I want to even think about.
Ford pulls back and looks into my face. “Hey.”
I reluctantly lift my head to look him in the eyes. “I know. I appreciate it. We’ll get through it. We just need to enjoy every second we have left.”
A small smile slowly forms on his face. “You’re right. You’re absolutely right.”
I nod and let him twirl me out and back in. “So do I need to talk to you about my little brother?”
I groan and lean my forehead against his chest. Gee whiz. First Granny and now Ford. “Let’s not talk about him.”
“You know that when we asked you to do this, we had no idea how you felt about Lucas?”
I want to bang my head against something. “Does everyone in this family know how I feel about Lucas? It’s reaching a point where it’s embarrassing.”
He shakes his head. “Embarrassing? It shouldn’t be embarrassing for you at all. If Lucas was any other man, he’d be thanking his lucky stars right now and trying to figure out how to keep you.”
I don’t miss the meaning. “If he was any other man? Meaning that since he’s Lucas...”
He sighs. “Meaning that of all of us, Lucas probably has the most scars from our mom leaving us. She literally walked away the day he was born. Left him in the hospital while my dad went to get a cup of coffee.”
I gasp as I feel tears forming in my eyes. “Oh my God. I had no idea.”
He nods. “Yeah, so see, don’t take it personally. I don’t know if Lucas will ever get his head out of his ass and believe in love and forever. I mean, he doesn’t have the best examples to look up to.”
I know he’s talking about himself and his own failed divorce too. It still blows my mind that the woman walked away from Ford and Ollie. Who leaves their own son? I guess Ollie and Lucas are a lot alike in that regard, and no doubt he’s worried about how all this is going to affect Ollie when he grows up.
Lost in thought, Ford nudges me. “So I guess what I’m saying is, don’t get your heart broken. My brother is one of the best... but he can’t give you what you want.”
I nod and squeeze his shoulder. “So this is what this is like, huh?”
His forehead creases. “What what’s like?”
I try to hide my smile, but I swat him in the chest. “Having a big brother that butts into your business. Man, I’m starting to appreciate this whole only child thing.”
He laughs a big, deep belly laugh, and thankfully, his smile returns. We continue dancing as Ollie and G are in deep conversation. But even as I sway back and forth in Ford’s arms, all I can think about is Lucas. I never knew the full story about his mother, and now that I do, I see him in a different light. I know Ford was trying to warn me against falling for him, but all he’s succeeded in doing is giving me a new understanding of why he is the way he is. I know it’s farfetched, but if I ever have a chance with Lucas, I’ll take it. And I’ll hold on to it for dear life.