23. Better

23

Better

Deacon

At ten past six, the doorbell rings, and I hurry to open it. But Lola beats me to it. Looks like I'm not the only one who's eager to see Alice.

She steps into the kitchen, and I try to go for a soft kiss on the lips. But she was going for a hug, so our foreheads bump. She chuckles, then plants a single kiss on my lips.

I guess we have to discuss how we'll act in front of Lola, because that probably looked a lot like two awkward teenagers about to head to prom, their parents watching .

Thankfully, we all start to relax, and Lola monopolizes most of the conversation with school and book talk.

I whip up a simple mac and cheese with a side of romaine salad, and we dig in.

"Oh," Alice says, swallowing her bite. "We got an email from SilverScreen Studios in Hollywood. They want to rent the bookstore for a movie. How crazy is that?"

"That's so cool!" Lola exclaims.

"Wow," I say, truly impressed. "When is that happening?"

"This summer. But we haven't accepted the deal yet. We have a few concerns and questions before we commit, so we're going to try and set up a call."

I nod, eating a bite of my mac and cheese.

After that, Lola and Alice start talking books again. Or so I thought, because the word "boyfriend" is thrown around, and it isn't preceded by the usual "book."

"What's that?" I ask, not sure I heard properly.

Alice grins. "Lola found her first real life boyfriend."

"Absolutely not," I say, putting my glass down a little too strongly, spilling water all over.

"Relax!" Alice says, rubbing my back. Then, she whispers in my ear. "It's just for fun. Remember what it was like to have a teenage crush? Let her be happy. She's a good kid. "

I growl in response, focusing on my food again. Fine. I know what it's like to have an adult crush, so maybe I can understand.

"Well, it doesn't matter. I'm not dating him, since he doesn't really seem interested. But it's fine. I don't need a guy."

"You definitely don't." Alice nods, and I relax a little.

"Agreed," I say, trying to hide the relief in my voice.

"Friends would be nice, though. But how can I make real connections if I can never go to any p—"

"Lola," I warn, slamming my glass down again.

She rolls her eyes and brings her attention back to her plate. "Fine."

After dinner, Alice helps me do the dishes, which transports me back to Sycamore Springs. As we wash and dry together, the sense of normality hits me again. Lola went to her room, so as soon as Alice puts down the last plate, I snake my arms around her waist and kiss her neck.

"Deacon," she says through fits of giggles, but she leans into me.

I haul her into my arms and sit her on the counter. She laughs harder as I nip at her neck before capturing her mouth in a hungry kiss. Her legs lock around my waist, closing the small gap between us.

"Ew, that's so gross," Lola says.

Alice slips off the counter, and I take a large step back, hitting my calf on the chair behind me.

"I thought you were in your room?" I stammer.

"I have a question for Alice about my French homework."

"Oh," Alice says with a grin, catching her breath. "Absolutely."

Lola shows Alice her notebook, and Alice explains a few things. Since I never took French, I have no idea what they're talking about.

"Thanks," Lola says before giving Alice a quick hug. "I'll go lock myself in my room now, so you guys can be as gross as you want. Just remember the walls are kinda thin."

My eyes widen, and Alice puffs in laughter.

"Bye!" she peeps before skipping back to her bedroom.

Alice is still laughing, and I force myself to chuckle along. Tonight has been great, but raising a teenager also means no intimate time with my date. And even if Lola jumped ten bases from where we are, I'm starting to wonder how we'll ever get there.

"Sorry about that," I say, shaking my head. "Still figuring out this teenage parenting thing."

"Don't worry about it," she says, waving a hand in dismissal. "You know, I may not have any experience with parenting, but I was a teenage girl once, and I think you should consider letting her go out more."

My body tenses, and she places a hand on my shoulder, probably sensing it.

"I know how you feel about parties, but it's probably not what you think. Friendships are a huge part of a teenager's life. Maybe you could let her go to a sleepover at a friend's house or something. Ask to meet her friend's parents first. Just a thought."

I release a sigh. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I'm absolutely not ready yet. I don't think that's what Lola needs right now." My tone is firm, and I hope she doesn't take it the wrong way.

She nods, offering a small smile. "Of course. I understand, and you should do what feels right."

I nod. "Should we watch some TV?"

"Sure."

We settle on the couch, and I put on a show neither of us is interested in watching. Instead, I immediately turn and place a soft kiss on her lips. She giggles, kissing me back, but before we can go any further, her phone rings in her pocket.

A frown clouds her features as she picks up. " Papa? Tout va bien? " She wanders toward the kitchen, pacing as she talks to him in French .

After a while, she hangs up and circles back to the couch. "Sorry," she says, sitting back down next to me. "It was my dad."

"Yeah, I got that much. But isn't it the middle of the night in France?"

"Yup." She chuckles. "It's four a.m., but he just learned I was dating an older guy, so it couldn't wait."

"Oh." My body tenses. The fact that Maxime might not be over the moon about me dating his sister did cross my mind, but I hadn't even thought about her dad. We don't have that big of an age gap, but still. If Lola were dating—who am I kidding? I'd kill any guy who even approached her. That's not the best comparison. Either way, I might be a dead man.

"He's fine with it," she says, shrugging it off. "A little disappointed you're not a hockey player, but you scored some points with the hockey bar."

I chuckle. "Well, that's something."

"Don't worry. My family is cool. Plus, they live far away."

"Yeah," I mumble as my own family seeps into my thoughts. Only the usual feeling of guilt doesn't come along with it.

"Sorry." She winces. "I was just—"

"Don't apologize," I say, wrapping an arm around her. "You can talk about your family all you want. I think I'm handling things better now. I open up more in therapy, and it helps."

"Good," she says softly. "I've been wondering about your dad. Where is he now?" she asks, then quickly adds, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

I squeeze her against me. "It's fine." Clearing my throat, I say, "He's in prison. He already had a record before the accident, including a few DUI charges, so they locked him up for a long time."

"You've had no contact with him since then?"

"No . . . Well, I guess that's not technically true," I say, running a hand through my hair. "He called from prison. It wasn't the first time he rang me up at the bar. I never picked up his collect calls, but this time, I figured he was probably calling because he'd heard the news about Amelia. Thing is, he had no clue. He was only calling because his parole hearing was coming up, and he wanted me to speak in his favor." As if I would ever say a decent thing about him when the man pretty much destroyed my life.

"Oh. I'm sorry," she murmurs, twisting her mouth.

"Thanks. But I'm fine now. Better. "

"I'm here for you if you need me," she says, her expression serious.

I tighten my arm around her and kiss her temple. "I know you are."

Alice

Deacon and I have been officially dating for almost two weeks, but it feels like forever. We already have a routine. We text in the morning, steal a kiss when he returns from dropping Lola off, and have lunch together. I spend most of my nights with him at the bar, helping him out.

Today, I'm working at the bookstore with Hayley while Emma meets with our lawyer about the contract the production company sent over. We talked with SilverScreen on the phone last week, and it's a very real offer with very real compensation. We just want to understand all the fine print before signing anything, but we're thrilled by this new opportunity. At least, Hayley and I are. Emma is just being her grumpy self, insisting that they'll probably screw us over in some way.

I bid a happy customer goodbye, and my chest fills with warmth the way it always does when someone leaves the store with a smile on their face and books in their arms, eager to dive into their To Be Read pile.

Just when the door closes, it opens again. This time, it's my giant of a brother crossing the threshold.

"Hey, sis," he says, sauntering over to give me a hug. "What's up?"

"Hey, you. Ready for playoffs?"

He smirks. "You bet."

Hayley, who's talking with a customer near the YA section, waves at him and signals that she'll be right over.

He waves back, then leans against the counter. "So, I heard you're dating Deacon."

I roll my eyes. "That news is two weeks old, Maxime. You're the one who told Dad, remember?"

"Sorry, it's been a busy couple of weeks. And I just did what any good brother would." He shrugs. "I didn't say anything bad about him, though. I like Deacon; he's a good dude. But I thought you hated him."

"And Hayley didn't want to give you the time of day," I say with a forced smile, remembering how many times Hayley turned my brother down before they finally started dating. "Things change."

He raises his hands. "Wow, okay. I was just asking. Take it how you want, but I'm happy for you. At least he supports our team. "

"Ha ha, very funny."

"No, but seriously, sis." He places a hand on my shoulder. "He seems like a good one. I hope it works out."

I swallow the lump that's rising in my throat. "Thank you."

Frankly, I can't imagine things not working out with Deacon. He's everything I want in a man, and once you get past his grumpy shell, he's the ultimate cinnamon roll. I know we'll work out. I can just feel it.

As the customer Hayley was helping exits the store, Maxime walks up to her, kissing her all over the face in the grossest possible way and forcing me to avert my eyes.

Eventually, he tears himself from Hayley and heads out. Lola enters at the same time.

"Hey." I smile, stepping over to her. "How was school?"

"Good," she says with a bright smile. "I finished my last book, so I need a new one."

"Already?" Hayley blurts, clearly impressed. "You're a fast reader."

"Yeah. You just got that book yesterday," I add with a chuckle.

"It was amazing." She sighs. "I don't think I'll ever find another one that hits me the same way."

Hayley and I both chuckle. That's a feeling we know all too well. Fortunately, it's never true .

"I have a rec for you," Hayley says, hopping over to the Contemporary Romance section. She climbs the ladder and picks a book from the top shelf.

"Have you read this one?" she asks, showing the cover to Lola.

Lola shakes her head, and I nod in approval. Lola will definitely like it.

"It's got a friends-to-lovers situation, a little bit of grumpy and sunshine, and the girl does the grand gesture in this one. It's a terrific read."

"Wait, girls can do grand gestures too?" Lola asks, her eyebrows scrunched.

"Of course." Hayley nods. "It really depends on the story."

"Okay. Well, I'll take it and let you know if I liked it." She smiles, accepting the book from Hayley.

"Sure. See you tomorrow." Hayley winks, and Lola and I laugh.

"Probably. Reading is pretty much all I'm allowed to do since I can't go out with my friends, so . . ."

"Well, it sounds like the perfect evening, if you ask me." Hayley offers a warm smile.

I nod. "Nothing better than a good romance novel and a cup of cocoa."

Except maybe kissing Deacon, but I keep that to myself.