in the empty seat next to him. His fingers draw slow circles on my back.
I like the comfort. I like the safety. I know Arissa is right. There’s no one better for me.
No one.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
Jason picks me up the next morning and takes me to his house.
“Sara,” Alana greets, coming out of the kitchen with her arms wide open.
I meet her embrace. “Hi, Alana. Do you need any help?”
“Oh, no, honey. Enjoy yourselves for a while. I’ll let you know when I’m ready for some extra hands.”
“Okay. Is Mike awake?”
“He fell asleep after breakfast. Must be storing up energy for later. Would you two like some lemonade?”
“Sure, Mom.”
He gestures to the living room. An assortment of board games covers the coffee table.
“What? No video games?” I jest.
“We can play video games later.”
We sit on the floor on opposite sides of the table. Alana quietly brings us our lemonades and we thank her before she returns to the kitchen.
“So, what will it be? Monopoly? Scrabble? Trivial Pursuit? Pictionary?” he asks.
“Scrabble.”
We’re tied at two games each when Alana comes in. “Time to get everything ready, kids.”
“Okay, Mom. I’ll start the grill.”
We put the game away and he heads outside. I join Alana, who is mixing a pasta salad, in the kitchen.
“What would like me to do?” I ask.
“How about chopping the veggies for the salad? Everything is there on the counter.” She points to the pile of vegetables from her garden, already washed, next to the large, wooden cutting board.
I tear the lettuce into the big serving bowl.
“Are you ready for Monday?” Alana asks, keeping her eyes on the pasta salad.
“As ready as I can be.” I grab a knife and a cucumber.
“Mike wants to go.”
I twist at my waist to face her. “The stress won’t be good for him.”
“I know, but once he gets an idea in his head, that’s it.”
“I’ll talk to him later. Maybe I can change his mind.”
She snorts. “Not likely. Haven’t you noticed how stubborn Jason is?”
“Yeah.”
“He gets that from his dad.”
“Figures.” We laugh together and I resume chopping.
“What can I help with, Mom?” Jason joins us, hugging me from behind.
I can’t stop the smile from spreading across my face.
“You can get out the plates, silverware, and cloth napkins for the table. Then the glasses for the counter where the drinks will go.”
“Got it,” he says, bustling around us. “So, what kind of girl talk are my favorite ladies engaging in?”
“Your dad wanting to go to the trial on Monday,” I say.
“Ah. The touchy subject of the house. We’ve tried to talk him out of it. He insists.”
“Just like you,” Alana pipes up.
“Mom, stop giving away all my secrets,” he says jokingly.
“It’s not a secret if I already know,” I point out.
He raises his brows. My heart skips a beat and I sigh in fake exasperation.
“What’s next, Mom?”
“Get out the ice bucket and fill it up.”
“Salad is done, Alana,” I inform her.
“Thanks, honey. Would you slice up that baguette, please?”
I clean off the cutting board and grab the bread knife. Halfway through cutting the loaf, a shock of freezing cold and wet slides down my back.
“AH!” I scream, jumping, trying to grab the frosty object. The ice cube falls to the floor and Jason grips his knees, doubled over in laughter hard enough to shake his body. “Jason Nicholas Waters!” I drop the knife on the cutting board and punch him as hard as I can on his arm.
“Ow!” He massages his arm where I hit him. “That hurt.”
“That’ll teach you.”
Alana snickers behind me.
“I had to lighten the mood. You two were being so serious.” He tugs me into his embrace and plants a swift kiss on my nose.
“Payback’s a bitch, you know,” I warn.
“Bring it on, Parker.” He cocks the left side of his mouth into a half grin.
I love that half-cocked grin. Sometimes I think he does it just for me.
“I’ll bring it when you least expect it.” I return to slicing the bread.
“Honey,” Alana says, “you’ve met your match.”
“Why do you think I chased her all those years, Mom?”
I smile to myself.
We play charades outside after eating. Adults versus kids with screaming and uproarious laughter. Mike smiles bright with color in his cheeks, and although his movements are slow, he’s sharp as a whip, shouting guesses faster than any of us.
I’ve come to love him and Alana as much as I love Andrew and Rose. I know he wants to be in court with us, but I don’t want to be the cause of