Cade shot him a look. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. I know exactly what I need to do.” The plan had leaped into his mind, fully formed, while he still stood on the sidewalk. “I’ve got it all figured out.”
“You know…” Cade made a right turn onto the highway. “I don’t know if I believe you. Where do you need to stop?”
“The hardware store.” Tucker rubbed his hands together. “We need to stop there as soon as we can, keeping in mind the speed limit.”
Cade snorted. “The speed limit? When have you ever cared about that?”
“Excuse me, but it’s Liam who considers those signs suggestions. I just need the hardware store. Fast.”
“You got it.”
Cade dropped him off. This wasn’t the quickest stop at the hardware store, because Tucker needed a very specific cut of wood. He explained his plan to the guy at the cutting station, and that guy called over a woman to tell her the story, and soon they had four people at the station, all of them giving Tucker tips on how best to create the most important project of his life. They cheered him on when he took the big, round piece of wood with him, and pressed chain and hooks into his hands.
Tucker loaded it all into the bed of Cade’s truck and got back inside.
“Could you do me a favor?”
Cade laughed. “I think I’ve done you a favor or two, but I’ve got one more in me.”
“I need you to have Avery and Shanna over. Keep them entertained for a few hours, and then text me before you bring them home.”
Cade narrowed his eyes. “Are you sure about this? Given how things went before—”
“This is different.” It had to be.
His brother dropped him at home, and Tucker ran back and forth between the cabin and the truck, unloading his things as quickly as possible. He got two sawhorses from the shed out back, and by the time Cade pulled away, he’d already gotten started on his project.
Fifteen minutes later, he got the text.
Avery and Shanna are over. Shanna’s hanging with Joey and Becca’s having wine in the kitchen with Avery and Mina. Liam says not to screw this up.
Tucker fired off a quick I won’t, thanks! and got back to work.
The design came quickly, but he took his time with the paint. This had to last. Thankfully, the people at the hardware store had pointed him in the right direction. Ninety minutes later, it was finished. Tucker sprayed it with a weather-proof sealant and loaded it into the back of his truck. It was hasty, yes. But it could dry out for a bit at Avery’s place while he got the hooks in place.
Over at the clinic, he set himself up on the porch. The sign itself would hang on the clinic portion of the building, right in front. People would be able to see it from the road. He was careful about where he put the hooks—it would have to stand up to all kinds of weather, and he didn’t want it banging against the siding. Forty minutes later, he had it exactly as he wanted it. It looked great. Tucker threw a canvas sheet over it, hooking it on the top of the sign, and clapped his hands together just as a truck pulled up in the driveway. His phone vibrated with a text message at the same time. Wow—thanks for the warning, Cade.
Avery got out of the truck first, a wary look in her eyes. He didn’t blame her for that. She had every right to be cautious, after what he’d done. Shanna was next, and Joey piled out after her. Cade and Becca got out, too.
“Well, thanks for coming over for dinner and drinks,” Becca said, an awkward half-grin on her face. “It was great to have you.” She pulled Avery in for a quick embrace. Cade reached over Becca to shake Avery’s hand. Tucker shot him a meaningful look.
“Becca, we should be going. Hop in the truck, Joey.”
Joey looked like she was about to protest, but then she took in the scene. “Hey, Uncle Tucker,” she called, giving him a wave. “Good luck.”
Heat washed over his face. Good. This was off to a good start. The three of them got back into the truck, and it rumbled away down the driveway.
Shanna stuck tight to her mother’s side, watching him with hesitation in her blue eyes. It broke his heart.
“Hey, Avery. Hey, Shanna.”
“Hi, Tucker.” Avery put an arm around Shanna’s shoulders. “You’re back.”
“I am, and I remember everything.” Better to get it all out before words failed him. Tucker reached onto the porch and got an envelope that he’d stowed there. He handed it to Avery. “First, I owe you both an apology. I never should have left the way I did, and I swear I’ll never do it again. You can open that.”
Avery slipped a finger under the flap of the envelope and tugged it open. One of the prints spilled into her hand, and she gasped. It was a photo of the two of them, taken a few months before they’d broken up. Avery had her arm slung around Tucker’s neck in the photo, their faces pressed close together, both of them beaming at the camera. They could not have been happier. Avery—the Avery of here and now—looked at him, eyes shining with tears.
“I had some twisted, eighteen-year-old logic.” Tucker stepped closer. He wanted to hold them both in his arms, but he knew it wasn’t the time. Not yet. “It took me this long to realize that I was making decisions about the both of us without talking to you first. I did it again with the X-ray machine, and I was wrong to do it. I was wrong about a lot of things, and I hope you forgive me. I figure I started being wrong about the time I decided that your dreams were for me to decide on.”
Avery shook her head. “What?”
“I wanted you to live your
