Page 45 of Promise Me a Forever Texas Love

She narrowed her eyes at Huck. “That he is.” She looked back at Camden. “Fine, but first you need to thank Huck for building this tree house.”

Camden gave another loud shout of joy before he raced over and wrapped his arms around Huck’s waist and squeezed tightly. “Thank you, Huck. This is the best birthday gift ever!”

The look on Huck’s face was a mixture of surprise and awe. He stood there for a moment as if he didn’t know what to do before his arms came around Camden’s skinny body and hugged him back. When he spoke, his voice was thick and husky.

“You’re welcome, Cam. I’m glad you like it. But I didn’t do it alone. Your mama decorated it with all this cool stuff.”

Camden released Huck and hugged Cadee. “Thanks, Mama. I love it! And now I’m gonna go get Uncle Cal, Uncle Coop, and Nana. They aren’t going to believe that you let me have a tree house.” He pushed his way past them and out the door.

Once he was gone, Huck looked at Cadee.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have butted in again and offered to stay the night. If you don’t want me to, I’ll make up an excuse for why I can’t. I’m not trying to step on your toes, Cadee. It’s just . . .” He swallowed hard. “For the first time in my life, I feel like I’ve achieved something. Cam likes my tree house.”

Love flooded her heart. She had thought her love for Huck was dead, but all it had taken was seeing his love for their son to open the floodgates.

She squeezed the hand she still held. “It’s a great tree house, Huck. Like I’ve been trying to tell you, you’re good at building things.” She glanced at the cot. “And you might want to build yourself a bed because you and Camden aren’t both fitting on that.”

“I don’t mind sleeping on the floor. I did it all the time in the treeboat.”

“When you were a kid.”

His eyes softened. “Not true. The last time I slept in the treeboat, I wasn’t a kid.”

No, he hadn’t been. And neither had she. But talking about that night wasn’t a good idea. Not when her body already felt flushed with heat from just holding his hand.

And why was she still holding his hand?

She released him and took a few steps back. “I think it’s best if we forget that night, Huck.”

His gaze was intense and heart stopping. “Sorry, Cadee, but I’ll never forget that night . . . and not just because of Camden.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“Cadee sure looks pretty with her hair catching the sunlight just right.”

Huck almost jumped out of his skin at Arlene’s voice so close to his ear. He swiveled on his stool to see her standing behind him holding a half-full pot of coffee. She glanced down at the cellphone he still clutched in his hand. The photograph of Cadee he’d taken in Cam’s tree house filled the screen.

Arlene was wrong. Cadee didn’t just look pretty framed in the dappled sunlight coming through the branches surrounding Camden’s tree house. She looked stunningly beautiful. Like a dark-haired, magical woodland fairy.

And it hadn’t just been Cadee who’d been magical.

It had been the entire day.

Helping Cadee with the party and seeing how excited Camden got over the tree house made Huck feel important. Like he was needed.

It was a new experience for him. He had never felt needed by anyone. And with good reason. He wasn’t a strong leader like Jaxon. He wasn’t as tough and smart as Dawson. He wasn’t as confident and talented as Poppy. He was just the charming jokester like his daddy who wasn’t particularly good at anything.

But the party had made him realize that he was good at things. He was good at cooking hot dogs, corralling kids, keeping bullies in line, building tree houses, and sleeping in that same tree house with his son and making him laugh until he cried with funny stories about his childhood.

When Huck had woken up on the floor of the tree house with Camden nestled against him, he’d started to believe that maybe he could be a good daddy.

And not just a good daddy, but also a good husband.

It was a crazy thought. Especially when he’d spent most of his life thinking he wasn’t good enough for Cadee—thinking that with his parents as role models there was no way in hell he knew how to be a good father and husband.

But now he realized that Rosie and Rory hadn’t been his role models. Jaxon and Dawson had been. They were the ones who stepped up to take care of him and Poppy. Even when they were kids themselves. They had protected him and made sure he had warm clothes and food to eat . . . just like Cadee.

Even if they had just been kids, Cadee had been a good role model for him too. She showed him what true love and caring meant.