“So they dropped the whole custody thing?”
As he nodded, Paige exhaled a breath she hadn’t even realized she’d been holding. “That’s fantastic news.” She knew she had to be grinning like a fool, but she couldn’t help it. “I’m so pleased for you both.” A charged beat passed between them. “How is Maddie?”
“She’s great. Still a chatterbox and still pushing the limits at bedtime.” He chuckled. “Oh, and Sophie got her a pair of hot-pink Converse for her birthday which are now the only shoes she’ll wear.”
“I missed her birthday?” It was a ridiculous question. Of course Paige had missed Maddie’s birthday. She’d left the island knowing she was going to miss everything. Sort of par for the course with their whole “so long, see you never” goodbye. “Did she have a party?” she asked in an effort to steer away from her previous question.
“Oh yeah,” he said. “Five little girls and enough candy to warrant an emergency trip to the dentist.”
“Sounds perfect.” She assumed Sammy was eavesdropping and was more than a bit surprised he didn’t blow his cover with a laugh over that one. A party with five kids hyped up on sugar was not something Paige would have ever considered “perfect,” and yet that’s the first word that had come to mind. “And the puppies?”
“We found homes for all of them, except Leo. He’s staying with us.”
“You kept him?” Leo had been the pup that took to Paige the fastest. Whenever she was nearby, he’d wriggle over until she picked him up and cuddled him. He’d been Maddie’s favorite too.
“Maddie wanted to keep all of them, but we compromised by keeping one and promising to visit the others.”
“Sounds like a good plan.”
“And Sophie adopted their mother,” he added.
“That’s great, really great.” Two greats and a good. Some conversationalist she was turning out to be.
An awkward silence fell over the room. “Why are you really here, Lucas?” Paige finally asked. “Surely you didn’t come all this way just to thank me.”
Lucas shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “Actually, I’m here looking at schools.”
“Schools?” Of all the answers he could have given her, that was one she never saw coming.
He nodded. “One of the Randolphs’ main concerns has always been that the island was too small an environment for raising a child, much less a teenager. And they have a point. It seemed like a good idea when we first moved there, but the schools only go to sixth grade so…”
“So you’d be moving eventually.”
“Exactly. I figure it would be better to make the change now, with her starting kindergarten in the fall, instead of switching schools later.”
“Makes sense.” Actually, none of this made sense. Leaving the island was one thing, but moving over eight hundred miles was another. Surely there were plenty of good schools a hell of a lot closer than Chicago. Unless…
No, she wouldn’t even let herself go there. Not until he came right out and said it. “Why Chicago?” she asked.
“I hear there’s a lot of construction work, especially out in the suburbs. And the schools are rated some of the best in the country.” His gaze softened. “Plus, there’s this woman who lives in Chicago.”
Paige’s pulse hammered in her ears.
“I haven’t known her for very long, so I thought I would be okay just going our separate ways. But the thing is, I realized that I’ve fallen in love with her. And even though on paper we don’t make any sense—and believe me, I’d bet my life she’s made a pro/con list—there’s just something about her, and I can’t live the rest of my life wondering what if.”
Paige blinked, partly to convince herself he was really standing in her office and that she hadn’t cracked her head on the desk and was imagining the whole thing, and partly to hold back the tears that pricked her eyes. What was it about this guy? Twenty years without shedding a single tear and now she was a flipping faucet.
“I love you, Paige,” Lucas said, repeating the words he’d casually slipped into his explanation. “I love that you show up with designer luggage but will ruin a cashmere sweater because a dog that most people would be afraid of has somehow told you that she needs help. I love that you think everything needs not only to be in a box, but with a label, but will hurl yourself into sewage to save a litter of puppies. I love that you are this tough businesswoman but are so warm and caring with my daughter. And I love that you think it’s normal to spend an entire night analyzing the personalities of four puppies so you can match each with the proper Ninja Turtle name. Hell, I love that you even know who the Ninja Turtles are.”
A single tear rolled down her cheek. “I love you too, Lucas.”
They moved at the same time, coming together in a blur of hands and lips and pent-up lust. She didn’t think it was possible to miss something so much when she’d barely had it at all, but in that moment, Paige felt as though she’d been denied not just his touch, but the very air she needed to breathe.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and raked her fingers through his hair, holding him close as they lost themselves in a searing kiss.
“I’ve missed you,” he rasped. His lips moved ever so softly across her cheek, kissing away her tears.
Her knees buckled as his mouth found the sensitive spot just below her ear. Lucas’s arm tightened around her waist, holding her close.
“I thought I was a pain in the ass,” she somehow managed to say.
“You are.” She nearly gave him a shove for that one, but then she felt him smile against her skin. “But you’re also one of the kindest, most amazing people I’ve ever met.” He reared back and smiled. “And I don’t care where I live, as long as it’s close to you.”
“You would really move to Chicago?”
“Of course.” He smiled. “Where is it written that the woman has to be the one to change her life?”
Of all the things he’d blurted out since he’d walked into her office, that one might have meant the most. She didn’t think it was possible to love him more, but she did. “What about the inn?”
“I was thinking about letting Sophie take over. She’s much better at that sort of thing anyway.”
She studied his face, and while what she saw was sincere resolve, she still had to ask. “Wouldn’t you miss it?”
“Owning an inn was a dream Jenny and I had.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I think we should have our own dreams, plan our own future.”