Page 91 of The Offer

Kevin must have noticed where she was looking, his hands rubbing up and down her arms.

“I think—I think I need to go to this family thing tomorrow,” she answered timidly. “Not sure how long it will go, so…maybe.”

Zach asked Melanie if he should bring anything and the group launched into bonfire details, but Jess’s chest was too tight to pay any attention, her gaze still hyperfocused on that piece of paper.

Kevin dipped his head down to her level, placing his chin on her shoulder. “You okay?”

She took a deep inhale, then let out a slow breath. “Will you go with me tomorrow?”

“To the shower?”

She nodded.

His voice wavered at her request, but she was patient. She knew asking him to hop into her family drama with her was a lot, to say the least. She tried telling herself she would be fine without him, that she could face it alone. But she was sick of being fine. She didn’t want to be afraid of asking for what she wanted, and right now, she wanted him. And she really didn’t want to be alone.

“Are you sure?” he finally whispered in her ear.

“I’m sure.”

He sighed, then kissed her cheek. “Okay, my dear Jessica. I’m in. Let’s finish this list of yours together.”

She grinned, not caring if the Scoopers were watching as she turned to face her golden boy and folded her arms around him in a fierce hug.

Jess sat in the passenger seat of her car the following afternoon, her legs bouncing as Kevin drove them closer to the house she hadn’t seen in five years. She wrung her hands and tried to do her breathing technique, but nothing calmed her. Her nerves had her sweating through her sundress, the fabric sticking to her skin and the bottoms of her chunky sandals sliding against her feet.

A warm hand glided against her thigh, then squeezed.

Kevin was awfully quiet after they left Port Wheels earlier, wearing his collared short-sleeve and khakis. She expected him to make jokes or say something to make her feel better. But he remained silent as he drove to her childhood home.

He turned onto her street and inched forward. Cars were parked along the road leading up to the house. Jess peered through the windshield and saw an arch of green and yellow balloons fastened to the porch, a glittery Oh Baby! sign above it.

Kevin parked the car at the end of the line and killed the ignition. He leaned back and sighed, closing his eyes.

Jess crossed her arms. “What’s going on, Kevin? I’m shocked you saw that sign and didn’t immediately scream oh baby!”

He sighed. She watched as he rubbed his neck, which was a dark shade of red.

Is he embarrassed? Nervous? she thought. Was it wrong of her to ask him to come?

“If this is too much, I understand,” she whispered. “I can go in there by myself…I can do this alone.”

“I know you can, sweetheart,” he muttered back. “But I want to be here for you.”

“So then what is it?”

He rubbed his face, then finally looked at her, his hazel eyes dim. “Jess…there’s something I need to tell you.”

Chapter Twenty

“You’re making me nervous, Kev.”

She attempted to reach for his hands, but he pulled back.

“Please,” he said. “Let me get this out first.”

She huffed and crossed her arms. “Spill it already.”

He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes trained on the fabric of her dress at her knees. “Earlier this year, during the offseason, a man came into the shop and asked me to fix his bike. So I did, and we got talking.”