Page 18 of Luke

“I’m on my way home now. We can talk then and you can just tell me whatever you think is relevant and go from there. My only goal is to protect you both,” he stressed to her again, willing her to understand.

“Oh. Okay.” It was just above a whisper.

“Paisley, you can’t say anything to make me think differently of you.”

“I’ll see you in a bit,” she said, not acknowledging what he’d said.

“Okay. Do you need anything on my way home?”

“No, thank you.”

“I’ll see you then.”

The call ended and he felt like he should have said more. They hadn’t really talked on the phone ever. Texted, sure, back before she got pregnant, but since then, not really. He’d been with her since he came back around. Just “see you later” felt cheap for some reason.

As he got in his car, he wondered what she could possibly have to tell him. There really wasn’t anything he could think of that would change his opinion of her. She could tell him anything and he wanted her to believe that.

Chapter Eight

Paisley

“Knock, knock,” Catherine said as she let herself in the back door.

Paisley had been expecting her and had told her to let herself in. Luke would probably be upset that she had left the door unlocked, but it was the back one, so she felt fine about it.

“Hey,” Paisley greeted her.

“I brought some things for Garrett.” She held up two shopping bags.

Paisley shook her head. “He will never be able to even wear all the clothes you’ve bought him before he outgrows them.”

“Meh, you’ll just need to change his clothes a few times,” Catherine teased. “But this time I bought the next size up. He’s my nephew after all.”

She laughed with her new friend.

“So what’s going on with you and Luke?” Catherine asked as she started spreading out the new clothes on the sofa.

Paisley struggled for an answer. “Umm.”

“Are you guys together? Like, are you going to be my sister-in-law?” Catherine pressed.

“I don’t know,” Paisley answered honestly.

“Fair enough. Ryker and I danced around the inevitable for years. Seduce him, you already know he likes you at least.” Catherine laid the last outfit out and studied her handiwork. “I think I like this one best.”

“I’m not seducing him.” Paisley ignored the clothes. “It’s not like that. We are just relearning each other.”

“Sorry. I tend to be a bit much for most people. It’s not on purpose.”

“It’s okay,” Paisley muttered.

“No. It’s not. If you don’t like it, you have to let me know. Speak up for yourself,” Catherine urged.

Paisley’s eyes widened. “It’s not a big deal.”

“If it makes you uncomfortable, then it is. You won’t offend me. Just know that if you ever need to girl chat, you can talk to me,” Catherine told her.

“Thanks.” She might end up taking her up on it. Most of her friends had abandoned her when she found out she was pregnant. Showed how good she was at picking friends. “Actually, Luke is on his way back from the office. He wants to talk about my past.”