Tangle (Dogwood Lane 2)

“Hey,” I object. “Maybe I did say nice things about you.”

“Yeah. Maybe,” she says, teasing me.

Jake chokes on his drink and excuses himself, knocking me in the back as he goes. “You’ve finally met your match. I cannot wait to see this play out.”

My dad’s chest rumbles, his eyes twinkling with mirth. “You must meet my wife.” He looks around the room. “Meredith, sweetheart. Come here, please.”

Meredith looks beautiful, as usual, and just as devoted to my dad as she joins us. Her hand slips under his elbow as she takes in Haley and me.

I hold my breath, my fingers flexing against Haley. “Meredith, this is Haley Raynor. Haley, this is my father’s wife, Meredith.”

“It’s so nice to meet you,” Meredith says. Her attention focuses solely on Haley. “Have you been here long? Did anyone offer you a drink?”

“I’m fine. Thank you,” Haley says. “Your home is so beautiful. Both of them, actually.”

Meredith’s face lights up. “Have you seen our home in Dogwood Lane?”

“Yes. I live there. My cousins, Dane and Matt, are building it, actually.”

Meredith releases my father and stands next to Haley. “They are so wonderful. I talk to Dane quite a bit with little tweaks to things. He’s so sweet.”

“He is,” Haley agrees.

“He thinks I’m a little weird with the requests for my dogs, but they’re my babies,” Meredith says. “He’s a darling for just going with the flow, though.”

“If he says anything to you, ask him about his cat when he was a little boy. He’ll shut right up,” Haley says.

Everyone laughs.

I scan the little circle around us and stand a little taller. I’ve brought women to gatherings with my family before. Lots of times, actually. But standing here in my dad’s house and watching Haley fit right in makes me relax.

There’s no worry about what she’ll say or that she’ll complain about something later. She just laughs at my dad’s stupid jokes and humors Meredith’s questions and does it with a smile.

Dear sweet Jesus.

“Tell me about you, Haley,” Meredith inquires. “You live in Dogwood Lane, so what do I need to know about the town? My grandfather had a home there, and I used to visit it as a child and just fell in love with the town.”

“Me too. I’ve lived there almost eight years now, and I can’t imagine living anywhere else.”

My dad’s eyes snap to mine. There are so many questions lingering between us, questions I don’t have answers for, that I look away.

“You’ll have to come see me when you’re in town,” Haley tells her. “I’ll be starting at Buds and Branches this week.”

“A flower shop? Is that what that is?” Meredith asks as Haley nods. “I love flowers. I could sit in a flower shop all day and just play.”

Haley grins. “Really? Because that’s how I feel. Flowers make me so, so happy.”

“My dad was a landscape architect,” Meredith says. “The last project he designed was a botanical garden. Plants, flowers, shrubs, trees—he loved it all and passed that down to me.”

I look at my dad. I have no idea what’s happening right now. How is Meredith, the extra of all extras, best-friending Haley, the simplest, most un-extra girl I know?

Dad shrugs. “Let’s get a drink and find your brother.” He leans down toward Meredith, and they share a tiny, intimate moment that surprises me. He kisses her briefly on the lips, and I’m surprised by the love I see reflected in her eyes for him.

I’m not sure what to make of all this, but I’m jerked back to reality by Haley’s hand on my chest. “It’s fine,” she says.

Meredith looks at me. “Don’t worry about Haley. I want to tell her all about my greenhouse.”

I look at Haley, a quizzical look on my face. “You want to go with me? I hate leaving you here alone.”

“Go,” she says with a laugh. “Meredith said ‘greenhouse’ and I’m all ears.”

“Okay.”

Looking into her eyes, all I want to do is kiss her like Dad did his wife. But I don’t want her to think I’d only be kissing her as a part of an act, a facade for God knows who right now. I won’t do that to her. When I kiss her, I’ll take my time. But I need to touch her, so I stroke the backs of my knuckles down her soft cheek and then head across the room.

“Thank you for this tonight. Not necessary, son, but thank you. The presents were overkill, though,” Dad says in between sips of whiskey.

“Yeah,” I say, my eyes not leaving Haley. “We told them on the invite to donate to the Children’s Hospital. Apparently, your friends don’t take instructions well.”

He chuckles. “There’s a big one in red paper. I’m curious what it is.”

“That’s from Meredith. I could tell you what it is, but she kind of scares me.”