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But tonight, Presley had requested that we just stay here, the three of us. She loved my daughter, and it meant the fucking world to me. Presley used the suds to gather all of Gracie’s hair and make a big cone on top of her head, which had them both laughing hysterically.
“We get to spend all day tomorrow together, too. Right, Presley?” Gracie asked.
“Of course. We’re going to take the horses out one last time and paint, and you said you wanted to play in the garden, too. That sounds like a dreamy day.”
“And then you and Daddy are going to have a big people’s night tomorrow before you leave, and I’ll be with Grammie and Poppy.” Gracie’s eyes watered as she looked between us.
“You love going to Grammie and Poppy’s,” I reminded her.
“I know. I just don’t want to say goodbye to Presley.”
It was interesting to me how honest kids could be. They didn’t think about how their words affected others; they just said what they felt. And it was like a shot to the fucking heart because I felt the same way.
When it all came down to it, I didn’t want to say goodbye to her either.
“Goodbye doesn’t mean forever. It just means I won’t be here every day. But you can FaceTime me whenever you want. And I’ll be back for the opening in a few months.” Presley’s eyes were watering now, too.
This was too much.
Too heavy.
“You’ll be okay, I promise,” I said abruptly, and they both looked at me like I had three heads. “Come on. Let’s get you dried off. It’s time for bed.”
“Can Presley stay and tuck me in?”
I reached for the towel, turning my back to both of them and squeezing my eyes closed. How the fuck was I going to get her through these next few days when I was miserable myself?
Before I could answer, Presley spoke.
“Of course, I’ll stay. I’d love to tuck you in and get some sweet snuggle time.”
“Yay!” Gracie cheered, and I rolled my eyes because we were just getting in deeper and deeper the closer we got to her leaving.
My daughter insisted on having Presley dry her off and help her into her nightgown. Once her teeth were clean and her hair was brushed, they both climbed into Gracie’s little bed, where Presley read her a few books, and then my daughter wanted to talk about the books because she was dragging shit out. I left to clean up the dishes from dinner, and when I came back, they were both sound asleep.
Presley was lying on her side with Gracie pressed to her chest and her head tucked beneath her chin.
I flipped the light off but stood in the doorway, staring at them. The light from the moon was shining through the opening between the curtain panels, providing just enough light to make out their silhouettes.
Bob Picklepants moseyed right past me, moving at a snail’s pace but finding the energy to jump up onto the bed and curl up at their feet.
As if he wanted to be as close to all that goodness as I did.
Maybe the lazy bastard was smarter than I’d given him credit for.
I made my way out to the kitchen and took Maxine out back, and when I stepped back inside, Presley was standing there smiling as I put the pig back into her playpen for the night. It was the only time she didn’t try to escape.
“Hey,” she whispered. “Sorry that I fell asleep for a little bit. Her bed is so cozy.”
“You don’t need to apologize. Bob’s probably devastated that you left,” I teased, as I pressed her back up against the counter. My hand spread across the side of her neck, and I kissed her hard.
Her hands were in my hair, and our kiss was feverish and out of control. Hell, I just needed to savor every last minute with this woman. I could feel the walls closing in around me, and I just wanted more.
I gripped her ass and lifted her up onto the counter before pulling my mouth from hers. Her hands were on each side of my face.
“I should head home. I’ll be back early, though. I promised my parents I’d have breakfast with them and then do a quick walk with my dad. And then I’m all yours for the rest of the day and night.” She waggled her brows.
We were cautious not to have sleepovers when Gracie was home, although, at this point, there were a ton of other things I’d let go too far, so I didn’t know why we’d stuck with that rule.
