Page 93 of Hauling Ashe

“No apology needed. I understand why you did it, but Mae, you can’t leave me like that again.” He cups my face, forcing me to look directly at him. “You took my heart when you left.”

He pauses while my heart hammers. Then he continues. “We aren’t leaving us behind. This is our time. Mine and yours. And we’re living it together, sunshine. We’re loving it together because I love you. I want to be with you. Today, tomorrow, forever. The future is our highway, Mae. You are the road I want to travel. Take the ride with me.”

“Absolutely, Mr. Ashford.” I laugh swiping at my liquid-filled eyes. Slowly, deliberately, I smile, and his crooked grin matches mine. He pulls something from his back pocket and holds it up between us.

“It’s a sign.” He twirls a blackbird feather between his fingers. “A sign to set the past free and only look toward the future.”

I nod, agreeing with him.

“You know what else is a sign? You have a flatbed Ford out there, Mae. Do you know what that means?”

I shake my head this time.

“I’m going to marry you someday.” I recall him saying such a thing on the corner in Winslow. Assuming he was only teasing me, I didn’t have the heart to admit then I did own a flatbed truck.

“But first, I’d like to take you on a date. I found fried chicken. How about a picnic?”

I burst out in both laughter and another sob. “Think it’s okay to eat a fried bird?” I don’t wait for his answer, cupping his face in my hands, I bring him to me, mashing our lips together. Through the salty liquid on my lips and his eager kiss, my heart calms and the sobs subside.

When we pull apart, resting our foreheads together, Tucker speaks. “How about that picnic? I have Louie outside.”

“What?” I press back from him.

“Yeah, this annoyingly beautiful woman left him in California. I mean, who could forget a bright blue Prius sedan? I had to drive him all by myself and it took me fucking forever without my navigator.” Tucker slowly stands, holding out at hand for me. “She left Gemma behind, too.”

My geranium. I couldn’t bring a live plant on the plane. “I left her to brighten your day. And so maybe you wouldn’t forget me.”

“Mae.” He sighs when I stand before him. His arms circle around my back, tugging me to him. “Only you brighten my day, sunshine. And I’d buy you a whole field of geraniums, but I see you already own quite a few. How about a tour of Mae’s Flowers? Then that chicken dinner and a tour of your bedroom?”

I like his way of thinking, but… “I have two teenage boys at home.”

“Then it’s time for me to meet them,” he says. “I noticed a local motel. I could book a room.”

“Oh, you don’t want to stay in a motel…” My voice drifts as I see he’s teasing me once more. He doesn’t like motels. He’s a resort kind of man.

“You’re right. I don’t want a motel. I want to be with you, but I respect that your boys are home.”

“I can still make room for you,” I say.

“That’s exactly what I want to hear.” He tugs me to him, slipping his hand around my neck and kissing me once more.

“Let’s skip the tour of the garden center. I know the perfect spot for that picnic dinner. We can even take the flatbed,” I offer.

“I have a blanket in the car,” he suggests. The same blanket we spread on the hood in Arizona and I’m hoping it will get more use than just for picnicking. We both have the same thought and the corner of his mouth tips up as it does when he’s grinning at me. Then we kiss again as reunited lovers do because lovers we are.

Epilogue

3 MONTHS LATER

Playlist: “Bless the Broken Road” – Rascal Flats

[Mae]

Tucker stayed with me for a week after coming all the way to Michigan. He’d been the one to purchase Louie, and I tried to return the money. Instead, Tucker traded in the car and got Wyatt a used truck. I paid off the difference with some of the money from the original sale. Of course, Tucker met my boys and helped out quite a bit with Wyatt in that first week adjusting to home and bedrest. His bigger body was too much for me to maneuver and Tucker took the lead, which was more than I ever expected. As he stepped up, I saw the man who made the decision to leave a band and dedicate his life to a family instead.

We talked a lot about Rochelle and Adam, and all the things we didn’t want to happen to us in this new relationship. For now, we agreed to let the future take the wheel and see where the journey would lead.

We both owned businesses, but Tucker admitted his job was easier to work remotely from. Eventually, he spent more of his time at my place. He used Garrett, my brother, and his relationship with Dolores as his guide.