“Of course.” She sat back and rubbed her palms over his back in soothing circles.
He couldn’t go back to that place of uncertainty in a relationship, couldn’t repeat the past. Not with Bree. As much as he’d loved Tammy, he was falling harder and faster for the spunky librarian. He just couldn’t stand by and let her mom get a foothold between them. Instead of handing her ammunition, he’d step out of the way. She wouldn’t be able to say that Owen was trying to take her daughter away—another of Tammy’s parents’ favorite weapons to wield. “You should go, then.”
Bree’s hands stilled. “She invited both of us.”
He turned, looking over his shoulder. “It’s you she really wants.” He grinned as wide as he could. “I’m not offended. I’ve been keeping you all to myself. You should spend some time with her. Just the two of you.” Because if Doris really was a nice person, which he still wasn’t sure of, then she should spend some time with her daughter.
Bree’s forehead puckered with worry. “We had plans.”
He patted her thigh. “We can play pool another night.”
“If you’re sure …”
“I’m sure.” But he wasn’t. Not really. He’d reviewed the last few months of his relationship with Tammy in his head a hundred times—like game tape stuck on replay. Analyzing where he’d gone wrong and what he could have done to be a better boyfriend, to be marriageable material, to be good enough. He wouldn’t make those same mistakes again.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Where’s Owen?”
Bree’s chest tightened. She’d come up with a thousand excuses—everything from “there was a football emergency” to “his motorcycle had a flat”—and none of them sounded plausible. So she went with the truth. “He stepped out so we could have a girls’ night.”
“Oh.” That one little word was packed with disbelief as well as suspicion.
Bree presented the bag of microwave caramel popcorn. “Shall we get started?” She was in a rough spot—between the man she daydreamed about when they were apart, and her mom, who’d always been her biggest cheerleader and wise confidant.
She wouldn’t let either of them go. She needed both in her life. There had to be a way to bring the two of them together.
* * *
Owen’s shoulders and back were on fire. He pounded the punching bag over and over again. Bree was with her mom and he was with Kyle. The house was as empty as the Titans’ stadium in February without her smile there to fill it up. Maybe he should have gone with her to the movie night. No. Going had a whole different set of problems.
He grunted and landed a particularly hard hit, making the bag shudder. Kyle, who was stabilizing the bag, stumbled back. He glowered at Owen. “Are youtryingto kill me?”
“Sorry.” Owen grunted and ripped off his gloves. “Why couldn’t I fall for a nice orphan hermit?”
Kyle rubbed his shoulder. “Do you really want an answer to that?”
Owen’s head snapped up. “You have one?” He’d spent hours analyzing the reasons why he wanted Bree, whyshewas the one who called to him.
Kyle lifted his palms. “Dude, you pay for me to fly to Vegas whenever my parents call. Anytime we go out to eat, you watch the parents and kids. I think, deep down, you want a family. So you picked a woman who values what you value.”
The fight melted out of Owen. He had a hard time standing and fell onto Bree’s couch. Kyle was right. He did want a family all his own. One he could hold close, cherish, and unleash all the pent-up love he saved for them and only them. He didn’t give out affection like it grew in the grass. He was saving his love for those who would accept it without question.
He wanted Bree to be one of those people. “I think I’m falling in love with her.” He hung his head in defeat. As much as he’d tried to protect his heart, Bree had seized it in her delicate hands.
Kyle fell onto the couch, angling himself against the armrest. “Man up and tell her.”
“Yeah.” He would. As scared as he was to put himself out there again, he had to do this. Bree was worth the risk. And if she chose not to love him back or her mom got in the way, he’d finally know that he was the problem. That he wasn’t husband material. If that was the case, he’d tuck his dream of a family away and not bring it out again.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Saturday night hadn’t been all that special of a night in Bree’s life until Owen came along.
Owen liked date night to be special. They drove out of town to try new restaurants, they attended a concert or went to a new movie, and they always got dressed up. As much as Bree enjoyed snuggling next to him on the couch and reading a book, she adored the opportunity to turn his head when she wore a new dress.
And she wore a lot of new dresses now that she had a reason to. Her closet was filling up fast. She’d need to curb her impulse shopping on Amazon before she put herself in the poorhouse, but the results were worth it.
Especially tonight. She’d picked a dress that was tight, like a pencil skirt, that stopped four inches above her knee. The top of the dress bloused out and hung precariously on her shoulder. The fabric was stretchy and silky and hugged her skin. She’d debated between the black and the plum and gone with the black. It felt dressy and sexy and daring. She paired it with black lace heels and a delicate gold chain and hoop earrings that caught the lighter color in her eyes.