A small movement in his hand startled him. When he looked down on blond curls and bright gray eyes, he realized what he’d felt was a small, familiar hand sliding into his.
“Hi, Gage.” Daisy looked up at him shyly.
Emotions rushed up from his gut, jamming his throat. He dropped to a knee and yanked off his sunglasses so he could look into her luminous eyes.
His voice came out in a cracking warble. “Hey, kiddo. How’ve you been?”
Her body twisted from side to side. “Good.”
“Is it okay if I give you a hug?”
Her answer was to throw her arms around his neck and cling tightly. It took every bit of restraint to keep him from picking her up and crushing her to him. Instead, he breathed in her sun-kissed hair.
When he finally unwound her arms from his neck, he peered at her. “You’ve grown. And you lost another tooth! What are you doing here?”
“Uncle Derek’s band is playing.” She turned and pointed to the stage.
He squinted, finally recognizing Derek’s form. “Is, ah,” he cleared his sticky throat, “is your mom here?” His heart started jackhammering at the thought.
“She’s—”
“Right here.”
He turned at the sound of Lily’s voice and looked up from where he knelt. The sun shone from behind, outlining her shape and lighting sleek blond hair. As he rose, a tentative smile began curving her lips. His heart was now throwing itself against his ribcage in a bid to escape.
“What happened to your hair?” he blurted. Oh, smooth!
Her hand immediately reached up to run over it. “I used a flat iron.” She let out a nervous laugh. His confusion must have shown because she added, “It’s not permanent.”
“I like,” he said dumbly. His eyes traveled up her body and stopped at her neck. “Where’s your necklace?”
Her eyes shimmered with something he didn’t recognize but bored straight into his soul. “It was time to put it away.”
A moment passed before the full weight of her statement registered. A puck-sized lump formed in his chest. His hopes wanted to climb, they really did, but he tethered them.
Eyes still trapped in her gaze, he swallowed hard. Neither of them moved, blinked, breathed.
“Mom?” Daisy piped up, shattering the spell.
Lily gasped a laugh, her palm pressing against her chest. “Yes, sweetie?”
“Your song is coming up.”
To Gage, she shrugged an apology. “I’m singing a few songs. Will you be here for a while?”
A little voice told him he might be dreaming, so he drank her in. She wore a sundress with bright blue flowers, its hem just above her knees. On her feet, white sandals with straps that wound around her shapely calves. Simple. Beautiful. Heart-stopping.
Heart-aching.
He twirled his sunglasses. “What was the question?”
Another lilting laugh. “Are you sticking around?”
“Yeah. Yes. Sure.” His sunglass-spinning was so vigorous that they flew from his grasp.
Daisy giggled and ran to pick them up.
“You look great,” he whispered reverently.
“So do you, Professor.” Lily’s gaze swept from his face, over his T-shirt and board shorts, to his flip-flopped feet. He suddenly wished he’d worn something nicer.
“I owe you an apology.” He shook his head. “For my mom. For being a selfish, possessive jerk. For … lots of stuff.”
Her smile grew wide, dazzling him. “It can wait. I have a few things to say to you too.”
The air between them was charged, and his body felt like a high-voltage wire coursing with electricity. He needed to keep himself in check. After all, he had no idea if she’d removed the necklace for a new guy. Christ, he hoped like hell she hadn’t. And if there wasn’t a new guy, it didn’t mean he had a place in her heart. She’d never told him she loved him—he’d been the doofus who’d put it all out there.
Daisy gave him his glasses, then tugged her mom’s hand. “Come on, Mom.”
Gage came to his senses and crouched down. “Hey, kiddo. Dance with me, and we’ll watch your mom together, okay?”
Daisy beamed at him. Soon he was barefoot in the grass, swinging her arms as they swayed among a handful of people gathered in front of the stage. The band wrapped up their song, and Lily stepped up to the mic.
A crowd had filled in around them, including Sarah, T.J., Natalie, and the Millers rocking their daughters.
Mere feet away, Lily looked right at him, sending his pulse into overdrive, and in that sultry, torch-singer voice of hers, said, “This one’s for the Professor.” His mouth went dry.
She launched into “Love Sneakin’ Up On You,” sending chills dancing along his spine, raising the hair on his arms, his neck. Unlike her usual singing style, she didn’t close her eyes. She kept them fixed on him.
His chest ballooned with possibility, but he quickly reminded himself she was performing. This wasn’t real. He’d go with the flow, enjoy the moment, and wear the biggest damn smile he’d had in months.
When the song ended, the audience applauded and Lily breathed thank-yous into the mic. Then she looked at Miller. “May I?”
Smiling, he nodded back at her. “Go for it.”
“I want to thank Beckett and Paige Miller for having us here today to celebrate not only Arizona’s Stanley Cup win—” Hoots, whistles, and cheers interrupted her. “Not only the win,” she resumed with a grin, “but Beckett’s retirement and the birth of their beautiful daughter Audrey. Congratulations!” Lots of clapping now, along with ear-piercing whistles and various barky chants for the Colorado Blizzard.
Miller surveyed the crowd with a fake glare. “The beer’s for Arizona fans only.”
Lily laughed, and the crowd quieted. “I’d also like to thank them for allowing me to hijack the stage for a few minutes. As some of you may know, this band has been a Denver fixture for some time. I was fortunate enough to have been a full-time member back in the day, singing alongside my brother-in-law, Derek,”
