The Promise (36 page)

We st
and here for another minute, watching Maverick and Matt bullshitting around for a second before I glance back to Sophie. “Come for a walk with me.”

She
smiles and takes a hold of my hand as we begin to walk down the steps of the porch. We walk over to an old swing that’s in the front yard and I pull her onto my lap as we sit down, “How are you feeling?” I ask, noticing her hesitation for a brief moment before she shakes her head.

“I don’t know,” she
begins, as though she’s thinking hard about whether to tell me what’s really on her mind. I wait for a few minutes before I finally break the silence.

“What
are you holding back from me, Sophie?” I ask. She lifts her gaze up to meet with mine.

“I’m sorry,” she
answers. Those two little words make me immediately look at her with confusion now spreading widely across my features.

“What are you sorry for?”

“I know this must be awkward for you, Chase. I mean, there are pictures all over the place in there of me and Jack. We’re going to be spending all day tomorrow around his family and friends. How can this
not
be awkward for you? I’m so glad you’re here, don’t get me wrong, but I’m now feeling incredibly selfish for not telling you to go home,” she admits with a sigh.

“Do you still want me here, Sophie?” I ask and she nods
her answer. “Is my being here helping you to get through this?” She nods up at me again while biting down on her lip. “Then that’s all I care about. Is it a little awkward? Sure. Will that stop me from doing what you need me to do in order for me to help you get through this?” I shake my head and whisper, “Never.”

She leans her head against my chest
, hugging me tightly against her.

“Thank you
,” I hear her sniffling. Tilting her head up so I can see her better, I wipe the tear away from her eye before placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. “I really don’t deserve you.”

She’s said th
ose words to me before but I still don’t fully understand why she feels this way. Sophie is the most gorgeous, sweet, funny, sexy, strong and intelligent woman I’ve ever met. If anything, it’s me who doesn’t deserve her.

“You’ve got it wrong, Sophie. I’
m the lucky one here.” I tell her. We sit together, swinging in silence for a few minutes before she speaks again.

“Ana and Lucy want me to sing tomorrow
…” she says quietly, her voice trailing off but I don’t miss the anxiety I hear within her voice.

“You know you don’t have to
do it if you don’t want to, right?”

“I know,” she
answers. “I mean, it was kind of our thing so I get why they want me to, but I’m still feeling a little nervous about doing it.”

“
Have you decided to do it?” I ask. Another few moments pass by before she answers my question.

“I think I probably will,” she
says before going quiet again. “After Jack had died, a few of us received letters from him. The one sent to Mat said inside that he didn’t want us to spend his whole funeral crying our eyes out. He said that he didn’t want to be remembered for his death. He wanted us to remember him for his life. We couldn’t really do the whole ‘no crying’ thing, it was impossible, but that’s what we’re going to try and do tomorrow.” 

“Do you need me to give you some space tomorrow?”

“If it’s not too weird for you, I’d really love it if you could stay with me,” she whispers.

“Then that’s where I’ll be,” I
tell her before we sit in silence again. We stay on the swing for a long time like this, although I really have no idea how long exactly, but after a while, I feel Sophie falling asleep in my arms.

Sophie

“Aunt Sophie!” JT whispers into my ear. “Psst! Aunt Sophie! Are you awake?”

Slowly
opening my eyes, I’m met with his big blue ones staring straight back at me. I immediately smile at him. “Hi Baby,” I say sleepily, stifling a yawn as his grin widens.

“Why are you sweeping
on him?” he asks me accusingly while pointing to Chase. I guess that when he brought me inside last night he’d fallen asleep with me on the couch.

“That’s all you,”
Chase says sleepily as I narrow my eyes and shake my head at him.

“Coward,” I whisper playfully
before turning my attention back to JT, who is still waiting for my answer. “I’m lying on the couch with Chase because we were tired and fell asleep before we could make it to bed. He’s my friend, so it’s okay to do that.”

“Oh, okay. Can you make me
some pancakes?” he asks.

“Sure
, Baby. Where’s your momma?” I ask him but he just shrugs.

“I don’t know
… sweeping I guess.”

I laugh at the way he mispronounce
s ‘sleeping’ and then get up and walk towards the kitchen, with JT’s hand in mine.

A few minutes
pass by and then Chase appears in the kitchen, slipping a t-shirt on as he walks behind me, giving me a tender kiss on the back of the head.

“Good morning
, Baby,” he whispers. I smile and continue to listen to JT, who is now telling me about his trip to the zoo with Lucy this past week.

“Did they have giraffes?” I ask and
see him nodding enthusiastically. I laugh as he tells me about how it tickled when he and Lucy had fed them.

“They stuck their tongues out like this, Aunt Sophie
,” he says, making a goofy face in an attempt to imitate them, making me laugh loudly, “and … it tickled us and made me and momma laugh so hard!” He’s giggling so hard at the memory that he’s clutching onto his stomach.

“You’re a funny goose,” I sa
y, kissing him on the head. I flip the pancakes and grab two coffee cups from the cupboard for Chase and I. Once I’ve poured us each a cup, I walk his over to him and am greeted with one of his winks as he thanks me when I place it down in front of him. “What do you want to drink, buddy?”

“Coke,” JT
answers with a smug smile.

“No way, kid
but nice try! Milk or juice?” I ask, shaking my head at him. He bites on his lip, glancing over at Chase for a moment before bringing his eyes back over to me.

“Can I have coffee?” he asks
, his question making me laugh again.

“You were closer with the coke. Milk or juice?” I ask again a
s JT begins to pout.

“But Chase gets to have coffee!” he whines
. Walking over to him, I bend down onto my knees in front of him.

“JT, Chase is an adult and you are a child. You know better than to talk back, don’t you?” I ask. “Now what do you say?”

“I’m sorry,” he says quietly. I point to my cheek and so he gives me a kiss, doing the same on the other side before I plant a quick peck on his nose.

“I love you,” I
tell him.

“I l
ove you too, Aunt Sophie,” he says, which makes me smile as I go to tickle his belly.

“Do you want milk or juice?” I ask him
for the final time before walking over and placing our pancakes on a plate.

“Milk, pwease,” he says
. I cut up his food, setting it in front of him at the same time that I hand Chase his food.

“Thank you
, Aunt Sophie,” JT says while digging in. Chase makes his way through to the kitchen to wash his hands and smiles at me.

“Yes thank you
, Aunt Sophie,” he winks and I laugh at the flirtatious smile he’s throwing my way.

We all
eat breakfast and listen as JT continues to tell us about his trip to the zoo. Pushing my plate away from me on the table, Lucy walks in and smiles at the three You should’ve woken me up,” she says, kissing JT on the head as she ruffles his hair. “Good morning, my crazy little monkey.”

“Hey mom,” he says without
taking his eyes away from his pancakes. Chase grabs our plates and walks back through to the kitchen before washing them.

“There’s coffee in there, Luce,” I say
, noticing the look of relief that has begun to spread across her face. It’s comical.

“Oh, I’ve missed you, Soph!” She says.

Chase walks up behind my seat and places his hands on my shoulders. He begins to massage them slowly. I glance over at the clock on the microwave and see that it’s still only seven thirty.

The ceremony in town honoring Jack will start at two
, so we still have a few hours before we’ll need to leave. I’ve been thinking a lot about everything that will be happening today and need to spend a few minutes alone with Chase before it all starts.

I
turn to look up at him behind me, offering him a small smile, “Can you come with me for a few minutes please?”

“Sure,” he smiles
as he answers.

Telling
Lucy we’ll be back soon, we walk outside and I’m grateful that Matt had brought my things over with him yesterday.

“Can we sit on the tailgate of your truck?” I ask. “Okay,” I say
, reaching inside the front door and grabbing Jack’s guitar before I follow him out. I don’t miss the look of confusion that’s crossing over his face, even though he seems to be trying his hardest to hide it.

We walk
over to his truck, before he puts the tailgate down. Climbing up, I set Jack’s guitar down next to me as we both settle, with our backs against opposite ends so that we face each other.

“First of all, I want to say thanks again for staying
… it really means a lot to me,” I begin, his eyes staying fixed onto mine. “Second, I know that you’ve been very supportive and think that I should sing again … I had this big plan for when I got back to Rockport … I was going to sing for you, but now I don’t want to wait to do that.” He looks surprised but allows for me to continue, without any interruption from him. “I don’t want the first time you hear me sing to be for another man, Chase. I don’t think that’s fair to you or our relationship. So although it’s not what I’d originally planned, I’d like to sing for you now if that’s okay?”

“Of course. I can’t wait to hear you sing but I hope you know
that you don’t have to if you’re not ready.”

“I know
, but like I said, I’d planned on doing it anyway,” I say, shaking slightly as I pick up Jack’s guitar and the pick. He settles and waits for me to start. I close my eyes and take a deep breath so I can try and calm my nerves.

As
I open them and meet Chase’s aqua eyes, I feel immediately at ease. Slowly, I begin strumming the guitar strings.

***

Chase

As I watch
Sophie closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, I catch myself doing the same. I’ve been waiting for her to open up to me for months and now that she’s finally about to in a huge way, my mind is reeling. I know this is a huge step for her. She reopens her eyes and holds my gaze. I find myself lost again in those sparkling emerald globes of hers. She gives me a small smile as she lazily begins to strum the guitar strings.

“I chose this song because it reminds me of one of my favorite days,” she
tells me with a smile. To be honest, I’m nervous and stumped as to what she’ll play. Maybe she’s picked something that represents a part of her childhood. I doubt that she’ll play something to do with Jack, although we are outside his house on the anniversary of his death, so I guess it isn’t completely outside the realms of possibility.

When I recog
nize the familiar notes though, I release the breath I hasn’t realized I was holding, blushing as I feel a lunatic smile spreading across my face.

Although the style
is different from the original version, I know this song. It’s a Beatles cover that I’ve heard many times before. ‘I Wanna Hold Your Hand’ but slower, feminine acoustic and maybe a little more intimate. She’s referring to the weekend we spent at my house together, when I bought her the album and we made love on the couch.

I’m one of her favorite days.

As her lips part and she begins to sing, tingles shoot up and down my spine. The sound of her voice is breathtaking, absolutely stunning and unlike anything else I’ve ever heard before. It’s smooth and decadent, like melted caramel. Her voice immediately captivates me. It consumes me.

Her eyes alternate betwee
n mine and the guitar she’s playing. This little gesture pulls me in even further. Gazing at her through hooded eyes, I watch how her hair sweeps against her shoulders as her arms move gracefully over the strings. I watch her smile as she changes the words, making it more personal …
melting me
. When her eyes lock onto mine and she sings the lyrics I know she wants me to hear the most, I almost collapse from the emotion and sensuality that’s lacing her velvety voice.

The song continues for a few more seconds and I
find myself to be lost, watching her transform. I’ve always thought Sophie was sexy, but something about seeing her like this makes my attraction and love for her increase to a point that I can’t even comprehend. What she’s doing right now, this is all for me.

She
continues to weave the last notes from the typically upbeat love song into a ballad that is so gorgeous, I feel my heart skipping a beat.  Watching her fingers resting on the strings, she gives me a shy look from beneath her thick lashes and offers a small, anxious smile.

She’s so perfect in th
is moment, I have to blink to make sure I’m really here and that she’s real. It isn’t until this moment that I realize my eyes are beginning to tear up. I know she can sing, but there’s no way I could have prepared myself for a voice like this.

“Sophie, I
… you …” I’m at a loss for words. I see her beginning to bite her bottom lip nervously. All I want right now is to have those lips on mine. I’ve refrained myself from being as affectionate as I normally would be to give her some space.

It
has been making me crazy not touching her and calling her all the things I’ve grown so used to being able to do, but I can’t help myself this time. I have to kiss her just once.

Reaching over
to her, I place my hands on either side of her face and pull her closer to me. I know she’s vulnerable right now and the last thing I want to do is overdo it, but she’s like a magnet pulling me in and I can’t stay away any longer.

I gently press my lips to hers and
as I take her bottom lip in-between mine, she releases a soft whimper that makes my groin ache for her. Now isn’t the time, I know this, but I’m still a man and she’s so fucking gorgeous. Surprising me, she deepens the kiss and pulls me closer by gripping on to my shirt, pulling me so close that the only thing keeping us apart is the guitar.

Another breathless minute
passes by and I finally manage to pull away from her, resting my forehead against hers. We’re both panting as hard as each other, “That was perfect,” I whisper, watching as a smile creeps over her lips.

“The song
? Or the kiss?” she jokes.

“Both,” I admit
, reaching beneath her chin with my finger and raising her gaze back up to meet mine. I give her another soft peck on the lips. “Thank you.”

Sophie doesn’t say anything back to th
is, she simply nods while holding my eyes captive. She reaches up and brushes the hair off of my face, while running her hand over my scruffy chin. She places a chaste kiss on my mouth and pats my cheek softly before letting out a deep breath, “I need to get out of here for a couple of minutes before everything begins. Would you be able to take me into town?”

“Of course,” I
answer as I help her down from the tailgate. “Where would you like to go?”

“I don’t care. I just want to clear my head for a minute,” she
says.

I watch her
as she runs inside with the guitar. While waiting for her to return, I reach into the bag that I keep in my truck and grab out a clean shirt, pulling my old one off and throwing it into the back before pulling the fresh t-shirt over my head. As I do this, I hear a whistle traveling over from the porch.

“Well, good morning to you too
, handsome,” Lucy calls from the porch. I glance over, feeling a little uneasy as I give her a small smile.

“Sorry, I didn’t know anyone else was out here,” I
call back as she begins to walk down the steps towards me.

“Oh
, there’s really no need to say you’re sorry, Honey. A body like yours is nothing to apologize for!” she laughs, still eyeing my chest which only continues to be bare because of my sheer shock. What the hell is wrong with this woman? I know I haven’t been as affectionate as normal towards Sophie, but I think it’s pretty obvious we’re together. Quickly pulling the shirt over my head, I smooth it over in an attempt to try and deter her, although this action doesn’t appear to be working at all. She walks over and places her hand on my abs, causing for me to back away quickly. “What’s the matter, sugar?” she asks, her eyes filling with confusion as I look at her as though she’s nuts.