Chapter 22

Whitney

"Are you nervous?"

Ryan's quiet as he sits in the driver seat, navigating us along the back roads to my parents' house. They've lived in the split-level ranch home since I was ten years old and mom was pregnant with Trevor. Back when I was younger, mom had her own roadside vegetable stand, but she's given it up in the last few years. Now she caters for my company on occasion when I need her to. Nearing sixty, I hope dad's looking to retire, and I know mom's ready to buy a beach house along the gulf.

"You think I should be?" His tone is one of nonchalance, a man completely at ease with the choices he's made.

I scoot closer, grabbing his free hand with my own, and hold it in my lap. There's just something I love when a truck has a bench seat. "Maybe. I mean, you did get me pregnant. Even if I am thirty-five, I'll always be his little girl. Isn't that what dads always say?"

He looks my way, taking his gaze off the road for a split second, but I can't see his eyes behind