Invisible Strings

Chapter Five

Brantley's POV:

The blush that crept up over Delaney's tanned skin was the only clue I got that her mind had gone in the not-so-innocent direction that mine had upon Chloe's words. I might have lost my wife, I might not have held a woman in my arms since Amber's passing –Hell, I might not have even had the urge to hold a woman– but even I couldn't have kept my mind from going straight to the gutter with the words that were meant to be innocent; probably because the one blushing was the one still the most beautiful woman I had ever laid eyes on. Part of me hated to admit that she was even more beautiful than Amber since it made me feel as if I was almost cheating on her, but I couldn't lie and deny that she was simply stunning –even more so that she had been back in high school.

Snipits of a conversation mama had on the phone a few weeks ago flooded into my mind then, reminding me that Delaney had had a rough go of it lately because of her now ex-husband. Looking at the woman standing in front of me, I wondered how a man could cheat on a woman who was so beautiful, especially if the woman I'd seen him recently photographed with was the one he cheated with. For every lean yet curvy part of Delaney, the girl he was with now was shaped like a board; No curves, no cushion for the pushing.

I didn't know too much about the man she had been married to but I did know who he was because of my connection to his profession. Even before I became a household name, NASCAR had always been a passion of mine. Now that I had the means to attend whatever race I wanted, I made sure to go to more than a few within the season. Because I was so well known these days, I always ended up on pit road, hanging out with different drivers. It was a win-win when I had the kids with me because a few of them had kids so it gave Barrett and Braylen someone to play with. It also gave me a chance to get to know some of them, developing strong friendships with more than a few. In fact, one of my closest friends from the sport was Chase Elliott, a teammate of William Byron, the guy Delaney's slimy, two-timing ex worked for.

"So, about those puppies..." said Nick, breaking into my thoughts.

"Oh yeah. This way." I said, turning towards the barn me and the kids had been in earlier.

"Come on, Chloe. They are so tute." said Braylen, grabbing Chloe by the hand and taking off at a run, Colton and Barrett not far behind.Nick, Delaney, and I followed behind them in silence.

For some reason, I had the urge to reassure Delaney that her husband's indiscretions were on her, that it was him that needed to feel like shit for treating her so badly, but I just couldn't get my mouth to utter the words. Maybe it was the fact that her daddy was with us and I didnt want to give anyone in this town the impression that I was ready to jump back into the dating pool or maybe it was the fact that I was just so far out of practice when it came to women that I didn't know what to say, but I kept my thoughts to myself, choosing to focus on the kids as the slipped into the open barn door.

Oh my gosh!" I heard Chole saying about the same time she and Bray sank down onto the ground. Almost immediately, all eight puppies began climbing all over them making both girls laugh gleefully as they were bombarded with puppy kisses.

"I take it back Mama, I doooo need a puppy." said Choloe, the joy she felt in that moment evident on her little face.

"I found the one I want, Mama." said Colton, holding up one of the two black puppies. I watched as he snuggled the puppy close to his chest, holding the wiggling puppy sternly yet gently.

"But I want this one." Said Chloe, lifting the only chocolate puppy.

"Who said that y'all could only have one?" said Nick. As he said it, I looked over at Delaney, wondering if she was aware that the kids were not only getting one dog but two. The smile on her face as she watched the kids told me that it didn't matter, that as long as her kids were happy, she would gladly take on two puppies at once.

All four kids sat playing with the puppies for a while before taking their picks and going out into the backyard to play with them more. "Yall want something to drink?" I said, remembering my hospitality.

"No thanks," said Delaney.

"I'm okay." replied Nick. "Just need you to tell me what these puppies are going to cost me. Not that it matters because the smile on those kids' faces is worth every damn penny."

"I hadn't really thought about a price." I said, watching as Delaney walked towards the door that the kids had gone out of. I watched as she leaned against the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest. My eyes drifted down to her ass and I couldn't help but stare for longer than was probably appropriate given her daddy was standing next to me. But I couldn't help myself. It was a great ass.

"Eyes up." said Nick, his voice low so that Delaney didn't hear but loud enough that I did. My eyes left her ass and landed on his in an instant, my heart racing at being caught staring There must have been a look or panic or regret etched on my face that he saw because his next words were telling me that I shouldn't be ashamed of looking, that it was only natural and that a man as young as me didn't have to live like a monk because his life had took a drastic turn.

"I'm not looking for a relationship." I said, feeling like I needed to explain what I was feeling.

"Didn't say you were."

"I feel like there is a but in there..."

"There is." he smirked. "You might not be looking for a relationship. Hell, you might think that you will never look for another one ever again. But the truth of the matter is, things happen when and how they are supposed to. We don't know the reasons behind it, we don't even know why some things have to happen in order for other things to. All we know –all that we can put our faith into– is that fact that someone else has our lives planned out for us.

"Take Laney for instance. She has been through hell and back because of a man. She probably thinks that she will never be able to trust another person with her heart ever again because of what that sack of shit she was married to did to her. But the truth is, she won't even realize when she starts to let someone in when the time comes. It will just happen naturally."

"Her situation is a little different than mine, don'tcha think?" I said. I could hear the bitterness in my tone and I knew that Nick did too, but I couldn't help it.

"Yes, it's a different situation but both things led to each of you raising kids as single parents." said Nick, his hand landing on my shoulder. When he urged me further away from where Delaney watched the kids in the doorway, I went willingly. Don't ask me why because the last thing I wanted to do was talk about anything that had to do with the future if it didn't concern my kids. "Look Brantley, i;m not saying that by my Ladybug coming back to Jefferson that you two are going to have this whirlwind romance and live happily ever after. I know that shit only happens in the books that Gwen likes to read and in the movies she likes to watch. All I'm saying is that both of you need someone to lean on, someone that isn't family. If something comes out of it, all fine and dandy. But if nothing comes out of it, that's quite fine too. Who knows, that crush that both of you had all those years ago on one another and thought yall were hiding might turn into a beautiful friendship... or maybe even more."

"Nick... I..."

"Look son, I know you have changed so much for the kid you were years ago. Give her the chance to know the you that you are now. Chloe and Colt are new here, Barrett and Bray need some friends. So why can't you have a friend too?"

With that, Nick turned and walked away, leaving me to stew on what he'd said.