Page 53 of Better Watch Out
“What is it?”
Frannie’s shoulders rose with her inhale. “Ryan.” She exhaled. “After graduating I received an offer to intern for a small travel magazine in Atlanta but Ryan came in clutch with the crime statistics.” Her voice lowered into a gravelly interpretation, he guessed, of Ryan. “For a single girl in the city.” Frannie rolled her eyes. “It would’ve been an amazing opportunity but once again my brother’s concern had me freaking out and second-guessing that maybe he was right.”
Andrew led her around an icy patch on the ground. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Frannie released a humorless laugh. “Ryan means well but sometimes I feel like my life is in a holding pattern that I can’t get out of until it’s been approved by my safety-marshal brother.” She released his arm and took a sip of her hot cocoa, her blue gaze turning glassy. “It feels like I can’t escape this misconception that I can’t take care of myself or have a life outside of what everyone expects.”
The tips of Andrew’s ears were ice cold a second ago but listening to Frannie had caused them to warm with a sense of irritation on her behalf. He understood protecting his loved ones, but at the expense of missed dreams and opportunities?
Frannie in her vintage dress and grandmother’s wool coat, her cheeks rosy, looked every part the leading lady but she lacked their ever-present moxie. Did Ryan understand that his overprotectiveness was partly to blame?
“What kind of life do you want, Frannie?”
She blinked up at him for a long second before answering. “I want a life where I can make choices for myself without fearing the consequences of failure. I don’t think anyone needs to know they can fail, they need to know that if they do fail, if things don’t go the way they hoped or expected, that they have the support of the ones who love them most and will be there to help them find their way again.” She pinched her lips together so that her nose wrinkled. “Was that too much?”
“Not at all.” His voice was husky. “I think you deserve that kind of life.”
Frannie did a half turn on the crowded sidewalk, her eyes sparkling under the Christmas lights. “Sometimes the risk of unexpected disappointments can lead to …” Her blue eyes landed on him. “Unexpected surprises.”
Even though it was freezing, the space between them sizzled. Warmth spread through him.Do not look at her lips. Do not look at her lips.
“I know the church wasn’t St. Patrick’s and”—he held up the Styrofoam cup of cocoa—“this isn’t Serendipity’s famous frozen hot chocolate but—”
“It’s perfect.” She stepped closer. “Today, tonight was—” A gust of cold air froze the words in a white puff of breath between them. Her chin tipped up and the anticipation he’d seen flicker in her blue eyes when she was waiting to see Santa simmered there and made him want to wrap his arms around her and pull her into his chest. “How long did it take?”
Her question jarred him from where his thoughts shouldn’t be going. “For what?”
She looked up at him with wide blue eyes and it was far too easy to slip into them. “For you to figure out that you had a whole future outside of the one you’d planned for?”
Her question ignited a spark inside him that he didn’t want to smother. A spark that made him believe—hope—that maybe she was already beginning to see a future without her ex. Was that too much to hope for?
Behind her, his eyes landed on a scrolled sign in red that simply read:Believe.
Andrew considered his answer, not wanting to push Frannie. “It took some time. My whole life from the time I was eight revolved around hockey. When I was told it was over, I felt like I was disappointing everyone who worked so hard; my coaches, parents, teammates, all of them sacrificed so much just so I could live my dream.” Frannie’s chin dipped and he saw uncertainty settle in her eyes. “But, all of my fears were for nothing. My family, teammates, coaches, they didn’t stop loving me and supporting me. Turns out the only person who believed I had no life off the ice—was me. Never them.”
With his hand at the small of her back, he guided her to the edge of the sidewalk so a family with a wide stroller could pass by. Another group of families walked by, crowding the sidewalk, and Andrew had to step off and into the street to give them room to pass.
A soft laugh slipped through Frannie’s lips. “A few days ago, I was convinced my life had been flipped upside down, that everything I thought I wanted slipped away with Calvin, but he was right.” She pulled back, her eyes moving back and forth, searching his. “We were in different places and I have no idea how long that had been true, but just like you said, I didn’t want to consider what my life might look like without him.”
“And now?”
A wave of marvel passed over Frannie’s face but before she could answer they were moved along with the growing crowd. People filled in the spaces around them, chatting and laughing loudly as they pointed out the numerous and sometimes gaudy décor that made Dyker Heights memorable.
Andrew couldn’t stop cutting glances in her direction. What was she going to say? And what was that look?
When they got to the corner, the vehicle traffic was heavy as cars maneuvered the intersection, being careful of the number of pedestrians darting into the street for photos. Andrew hesitated sending a message to the driver, hoping an extra minute or two might give him the answer to why his unanswered question had his pulse racing. But when he caught Frannie’s lower lip quivering, he pulled out his cell phone and let the driver know they were ready.
Andrew took a fortifying breath and decided to take a chance he wasn’t sure he should, but like Frannie said, sometimes the risk was worth it. Man, he hoped so. “For what it’s worth, and I realize I’ve only known you for a few days, but, Frannie, I’ve never witnessed anyone who radiates as much joy as you. Being around you has—”No stopping now, Bishop—except he needed to stop. This wasn’t about him or his feelings but about her. “I just wanted to tell you that being around you has shown me that your brother really has nothing to worry about when it comes to what you’re capable of. I don’t think you should let him, or anyone else, make you feel like you’re stuck living the life someone else wants for you.” He swallowed. “I hope you believe that you are strong enough and brave enough to chase whatever dream you set your heart on.”
She tilted her chin, looking up into his eyes. “Even if that means losing all of your toes to show me the prettiest lights in New York City?”
Her humor came out breathless and it sent a tingle of warmth coursing through him. The corner of his lips tipped up. “I’ve heard toes are overrated.”
Frannie inched closer, her gaze locked on his, and he couldn’t stop the way his body reacted to her nearness.
“Hey, watch it!”
The jarring shout pulled Andrew’s attention away from Frannie’s face and over her shoulder to where a thick crowd had converged next to them in front of a house with a thousand toy soldiers.
