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She didn’t owe him the opportunity to explain or apologize.
The service started right at eleven, and though Amelia hadn’t attended church before, Blake wasn’t worried about her not being able to sit still. She’d never had a problem sitting quietly.
She watched everything going on with big eyes, glancing over at Layla and Peyton whenever they stood up or sat down, then followed suit.
“As we stand for this song, the children can make their way downstairs for their time of worship.”
Blake stood along with everyone else, then as children scooted out of the surrounding rows, he stepped into the aisle. He stayed out of the way of the other kids as he waited for Layla, Peyton, and Amelia to leave their row. Amelia glanced up at him, worry on her face.
Bending down, Blake said, “You’ll be with Layla and Peyton. Everything will be okay. But if you need me, you just quietly come back here. Okay?”
She nodded, then gave him a quick hug. He turned to watch the trio, grateful to see that Layla had taken Amelia’s hand.
Once they’d disappeared from view, Blake stepped back into the row. He tried to ignore the large gap that existed between him and Charli, now that the kids had left the pew. While a part of him wanted to step closer to her, he remained firmly in his place.
For the rest of the service, Blake tried his best to focus on what the pastor was saying, but he found his thoughts bouncing between Amelia and if she was doing okay, and Charli. His mind was making up for lost time, mulling over all the things he could have done differently and all the things he’d missed with Charli.
He didn’t normally have an issue paying attention during sermons, but even twelve years ago, Charli had been a distraction for him at church. If it continued to be an issue, he’d have to make sure he sat in a row in front of Charli so he couldn’t see her. He was too old to be having this struggle, but Charli had always been his weakness.
When the service ended, Blake got to his feet and joined the other worshippers as they moved toward the foyer. His plan was to grab lunch for him and Amelia from somewhere, then head home and spend the afternoon watching kids’ movies. Not his idea of an ideal way to spend an afternoon, but he’d do it for Amelia.
Maybe they’d take a walk since the weather was so nice. They’d gone to a nearby park one afternoon not long after they’d moved there, but Amelia hadn’t wanted to join the other kids on the playground equipment. Walks seemed to be the thing she enjoyed the most.
“Hey, Blake.”
Blake turned at the sound of his name to see Jay headed his way, with Misha, Janessa, and Will trailing behind him.
“What’s up?” he asked.
“We’re all going to the park after the service for a picnic lunch, and we usually play some volleyball. You should join us.”
Though it sounded a lot better than watching kids’ movies, he wasn’t sure if he should go, given it would probably bring him into close proximity to Charli. She wouldn’t like that, he was sure.
However, Amelia would probably love it.
“I don’t really have anything to contribute to a picnic,” he said, because that was also a concern.
Jay waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about that. We always have more than enough food.”
“Let me see how Amelia feels about it.”
Blake wished he could ask Charli how she might feel about him joining them, but he wasn’t sure how to do that without raising questions about why he was talking to her. It was clear she’d never shared anything about their secret relationship with her siblings. If she had, he wasn’t sure that they’d be all that welcoming to him.
Before they could converse further, the kids came running up to them. Amelia’s smile was a little bigger than it had been earlier.
He went down on one knee, so he was at her level. “Did you have fun, Berry?”
Nodding, her smile grew. “We sang songs, and then they acted out some stuff. I liked it.”
“That’s great.” He leaned forward to press a quick kiss to her forehead. “Do you want to go to the park? Or would you rather go home and watch some movies?”
Her little brow furrowed. “Go to the park by ourselves?”
“You could come with us,” Layla said. “We’re going to the park.”
“Can we?” Amelia asked, her expression pleading.
He could hardly fight against that. “Sure.”
