“You look beautiful. Sorry I was gone so long.” His brows knitted. “What is going through your mind right now, darlin’?”
Embarrassed, she looked away, but he took her chin between his finger and thumb, drawing her eyes back to his. She imagined his question pinging off the sparks between them and managed, “You look nice, too.”
A husky laugh fell from his lips, and he lowered his mouth to her ear, whispering, “I’ll thank you for that later when little eyes aren’t watching.”
“Ohmygod, the girls. Your parents!” she whispered urgently as her brain slammed into gear, and she realized his parents were watching them. They’d seen her ogling their son like a groupie. “I’m so sorry!”
Conroy laughed. “Don’t be. Please continue. We’re fine over here.”
Mortified, Leah covered her face, and Tank pulled her into his arms, laughing. She looked up at him, but there was no stopping her laughter, which made his parents laugh, too. Rosie and Junie barreled into their legs, giggling.
Leah looked teasingly at Conroy and Ginger. “This is y’all’s fault for having such a peach of a son.” They chuckled, and she said, “What’s going on, anyway? Did I forget we had plans?”
“No. I needed them to help me bring the car over.” Tank motioned to a blue sedan. “You are now the proud owner of that sweet ride.”
“What do you mean?” Leah looked from Tank to his parents.
He put a set of keys in her hand. “I have to go back to work tomorrow, Lee. I don’t want you to be without a car, and my grandfather no longer uses his. He wants you to have it. We all do.”
Her jaw dropped. “I can’t take your grandfather’s car. I’m calling the insurance company today. I’m sure they’ll give me something for my car.” She tried to give him back the keys, but he closed his hand around hers.
“They will, but it won’t be enough. This car is ten years old, but my grandfather rarely drove, and we’ve maintained it well. It’s only got thirty-eight thousand miles on it, and more importantly, it’s safe. Lee, I need to know you’re okay when you and the girls are on the road.”
“But, Tank—”
“Listen to me, please.” He said it so seriously, it felt like a command. “You’ve always had your brother to watch the girls. When you go back to work, you’ll need a car and childcare, and at some point you’ll want to put the girls in preschool. You’ll need the insurance money for those expenses. If it were up to me, I’d take care of all of that so you never had to work again if you didn’t want to. But I respect your independence, and I know better than to rush in and take over for a woman who has ruled her kingdom for so long. You need this car, Lee. Please accept it.”
She stole a glance at his parents, unable to believe what he’d just said, but they were nodding in agreement.
“He’s right, Leah.” Conroy stepped closer. “We’ll help out as much as we can watching the girls and with whatever else you need, but we all work. You need a safe, reliable car.”
“But y’all have done so much already. A car is too much.” Her emotions got the best of her, and her voice cracked.
“Honey, I understand how you feel. I truly do,” Ginger said compassionately. “But we’re giving you a Honda, not a Maserati, and it would mean a lot to us, and to Mike, to know you and the girls are taken care of.”
Leah’s eyes teared up. She looked at the blue sedan, her mind reeling.
Conroy held up both hands. “And I do not want to have to tell my father that you refused his gift.”
Leah looked at her girls. Rosie smiled up at her. Junie’s brows were knitted, her tiny lips pursed. If she accepted the car, what message was she sending them? That life was about getting expensive gifts?
“Lee,” Tank said softly, and took her hand. “Cheeky, Twitch, stay with Ginger and Con for a second, okay? I want to talk to your mama.”
“About the car?” Junie asked.
“Yeah.” He ruffled her hair. “We’ll be right back.” He led Leah away, speaking quietly. “I didn’t mean to blindside you with this. Let’s talk about it. Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“I’m thinking that you’ve done way too much for us already. What if you regret it tomorrow or next month? What if the girls think this is how life works, that people will just give them things?”
“Lee, there are no strings attached to this gift, and if you tell me next week that you never want to see me again, I will still feel good about giving you the car. My parents and grandfather will still feel good about this decision.” He gazed into her eyes and placed his hand on her cheek, caressing it with his thumb. “Baby, you and the girls just lost the most important man in your lives. The girls have learned that people can be taken away from them in an instant. Accepting this car, or anything else, won’t undo that harsh lesson or tell them that life will be handed to them on a silver platter. It will show them that we help the people we care about and that when we’re down, it’s okay to accept that help. You’ll be teaching them that paying it forward is the best way to live, and hopefully they’ll carry that with them and do the same for others.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “How can I say no to that?”
“You can’t.” He gathered her in his arms. “It’s the right choice, Lee.” He gazed down at her and glanced over her shoulder. He whispered, “The kids aren’t looking,” and kissed her slow and sweet, righting all the disheveled pieces her worries had caused.
“Thank you,” she said as they went to join the others, earning a single nod and a contented smile.
“What do you think?” Ginger asked.
“I think your family is too good to be true.” Leah hugged Ginger. “Thank you for everything.”
“Our pleasure, sweetheart.”
“Are we taking the car?” Junie asked.
“You sure are.” Tank picked her up and spun her around.
Junie giggled, and Rosie yelled, “Spin me!”
“I’ll spin you, munchkin.” Tank put Junie down and lifted Rosie over his head, spinning her around, earning squeals of delight.
“Get in here.” Conroy pulled Leah into his arms. “We love you, darlin’. You made the right choice.”
“Thank you. I’d like to thank Mike, too. In person, if possible.”
Tank put Rosie down. “Absolutely. We can do that today. Grandpa Mike would love to see you.”
“Can I see Gwampa Mike?” Junie asked.
Rosie jumped up and down. “I see Gwampa!”
Ginger put her hand over her heart with a warm expression that mirrored the warm, fuzzy feelings Leah felt, but on the heels of those good feelings, Leah wondered if she should correct her girls from calling him Grandpa. The trouble was, she knew the window of opportunity to protect their hearts from falling for Tank and his family had already closed, and asking them to call him Mr. Mike would only hurt their feelings.
Tank put a hand on each girl’s head. “You bet, chickadees.”
“I have to find my driver’s license. It was cracked. I’m sure it’s ruined.” She still hadn’t gone through the bag with her purse in it that Tank had retrieved for her.