I had nothing against skimpy designer dresses. In fact, I used to love them. Sundress season used to be my favorite time of year in the city. But apparently, that had changed.
Adi’s face popped up behind April, and she gave me an excited wave. “Hi, Chris. We’re ready. I just need to put on my shoes.”
She disappeared again, but seeing her had reminded me that standing there staring would just be awkward if I let it carry on. “I found your address in your file. It seemed silly to text you for it when you gave it to us just last week.”
“I gave it to you to have on file for medical reasons, though. Not dates. But I forgive you.” Her teeth sank into her lower lip and she seemed to be struggling as much to keep her eyes on mine as I was having with not letting my own gaze stray again.
“So,” I said, trying to remind myself that there was a nine-year-old in the vicinity. “Was it too short notice to get someone to watch Adi?”
“No.” She lifted her chin into the air and her expression grew serious. “I don’t like to play games. If you really want something out of this, she’s part of the package. If you’d rather not take us to dinner now that you know, that’s fine. I would’ve told you earlier, but you didn’t exactly give me the chance.”
“I didn’t give you the chance because you would’ve turned me down again out of some misplaced determination to protect me from you and your baggage.” I didn’t have to give the Adi part of her statement a second thought. “It’s perfect if she comes with us. I was kind of hoping she would.”
It wasn’t even a lie. After speaking to Hunter, I’d given some serious thought to what he’d said, as well as my arguments against asking April out.
Maybe April’s guard was up, and maybe we were both busy, but there was something here, and I wanted to explore it. Sometimes, waiting for the right time meant missing that gap, and I didn’t want to take that chance with her.
I’d also known that if I went for it, it wouldn’t be a one-night fling. I didn’t know where this would lead, but she didn’t strike me as the type who messed around. Because of that, I’d considered the fact that she was a mother and that Adi wasn’t going anywhere.
Despite it all, I’d decided to go for it. A few years ago, her coming right out and saying she didn’t like to play games might’ve scared me off.
But now, it did the opposite. It even kind of turned me on.
“I’m not here to play games, either,” I said, holding her gaze so she would see how serious I was before taking a peek over her shoulder. “Now, where’s Adi? I wanted to get her opinion about pineapple on pizza.”
“I love it,” she yelled from somewhere inside, then came hobbling toward us while still in the process of sliding one foot into her shoe. “Please don’t tell me you’re one of the haters. Mom is, but I’ve forgiven her for it.”
“There’s nothing better than a Hawaiian pizza.” I grinned, stepping back and holding out a hand to each of them. As I did, I realized why Adi had been taking so long to get her shoes on.
They were sneakers, and from the mess happening with her laces, I took an educated guess they were giving her some trouble. “Do you mind if I tie those for you? It’s really good for dexterity, and I’m always on the lookout for an opportunity to improve mine.”
April glanced down at her daughter’s feet as I motioned to them, a storm suddenly brewing in her eyes when she looked back at me. I knew she was blaming herself for not noticing immediately, and she was probably nervous about how Adi was going to react, but the little girl only gave a surprised chuckle.
“Oh, sure,” she said. “I was going to ask Mom to help. It was taking too long.”
April’s mouth turned down. Without thinking about it, I took her hand when I moved past her and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
“I was facing you two,” I murmured under my breath. “It’s much easier to notice these things when you’re looking at someone rather than standing next to them.”
The slight narrowing of her eyes told me she’d heard me. I heard a soft sigh coming from her as I released her hand to help Adi.
“If you like pineapple on pizza, I’d like to ask you a very important question,” I said, while tying her laces. “How do you feel about mint chocolate-chip ice cream?”
The girl lit up like a Christmas tree. “It’s my favorite.”
“Mine too.” I grinned and tightened the last knot before straightening up. “Ready to go?”
“Yes!” Adi bounced on her feet and ran past me.
April smiled softly as she watched her, then turned her gaze on me and nodded. “We’re ready. I just hope you are.”
“Kids, baggage, and working together doesn’t scare me,” I said.
She tilted her head and looked up as she fell in step beside me. “What does scare you then? Something has to.”
“Clowns, candy canes, and a few other things I’d rather not talk about on a first date.” We walked to their elevator but Adi was already there, jabbing the call button repeatedly.
She turned toward us with a gigantic smile on her face. “Can I have my own pizza?”
“Of course,” I replied and motioned for them to precede me into the elevator when the doors slid open. “I was thinking we get takeout and go have a picnic in the park. Sound good? We can get the ice cream from this great food truck I know near the park.”
“Two questions,” April said, leaning with her hip against the handrail and her arms folded. “How did you get into our building and do you know of a park that will definitely be safe after sunset?”
“The gate outside was propped open, and yes, I do.”
I hadn’t invented my therapy machine with the aim of making factories full of cash, but having the money was certainly useful at times.
April let out a string of inventive curses without using an actual bad word and leaned her head back against the paneled wood. “I can’t believe those fluffing, worm-brained dweebs left the gate open again.”
“Fluffing worm-brained dweebs?” My brows rose.
Adi giggled when she glanced up at me. “My aunt Luna doesn’t swear and Mom tries to keep it clean in front of me,” she said helpfully. “Aunt Luna said it sets a bad example. I know which words only adults are allowed to use but Mom’s trying to be good about it.”
“I think your mom and this aunt Luna are both right. You should be at least eighteen before you start hearing bad words.” I winked at April, who rolled her eyes in response. “Twenty-one, maybe?”
“Please.” She lifted her head again. “With the amount of TV and humanity kids are exposed to nowadays, they start hearing bad words before they’re even discharged from the hospital after birth. All I’m doing is trying not to use so many of them that Adi starts thinking they’re the only words in existence.”
“Luna doesn’t swear at all?” I asked when the elevator pinged our arrival in their lobby.
We piled out, but Adi twisted around to answer me, eyes bright as she nodded. “Nope. People tease her about it, but she doesn’t care. She doesn’t like swearing, so she doesn’t.”
“It’s good to have principles you believe in,” I said, darting past them to get the door.
The gate was still open. April kicked the brick holding it out of the way before glancing up and down the street. Her gaze came to a rest on my car. “I’m assuming that’s yours?”
“How’d you know?” I dug the key fob out of my pocket and unlocked the doors.
“No one who lives around here has a car that nice,” she said, taking Adi’s hand before we crossed the street.
I followed the same path her eyes had taken earlier. “It’s not that nice. Hunter keeps trying to convince me to get one of those fancy sports cars, but I don’t need that.”
“You mean you don’t need an extension of your d—” She cut herself off as she glanced down at her daughter, shaking her head at herself. “Never mind. You know what I mean.”
“I do.” I laughed as I opened the back door
of my sedan for Adi. “For the record, there are other cars on this street worth a lot more than mine.”
She gave me a lopsided grin and rounded the car, opening the passenger door before I could get to it. “True, but I know all of those. I just wanted to see what you would say to having the nicest car around here.”
“It might have worked if it’d been the truth.” I waited for her to get in, then closed her door before she could reach for it.
Her answering laughter filtered out of the car. Hearing it made me smile as I climbed in behind the steering wheel. “Why did you want to know how I would react?”
She shrugged. “Because I’m still trying to figure you out, Doctor Matthews.”
I gave her a meaningful look before turning over the engine. “Well, maybe tonight will help with that.”
“Here’s hoping.” The response was so soft that I almost didn’t hear it. It was more like she had said it to herself and I just happened to overhear her.
It hit me, not for the first time, that the baggage she had mentioned was weighing her down more than I’d have thought possible. Every time I got a glimmer of insight into who she really was, it became more and more clear.
I gripped the wheel tighter as I backed out of my space. Getting this woman to trust me enough to lower her guard and actually let me in wasn’t going to be easy. It’s a good thing I like a challenge.
Determined to make her relax at least a little, I made small talk with her and Adi on the way to the takeout place I had chosen for our pizzas. She was laughing along with us by the time we got there.
We ordered our food and decided to walk to the park. It was a private space that required a key, but I had a handful of friends in high places, and one of them had been able to hook me up.
He’d also arranged for the twinkling lights in the trees to be lit before we arrived, and I’d come by earlier to set out a blanket with some drinks.
Adi spun in a circle with her good arm out to the side. “This is awesome!”
April bumped her hip into mine, smiling as she looked at me. “Well played, sir.”
“Thanks.” I grinned and walked over to the blanket, setting our food down before having a seat. “You guys coming?”
“It’s like a fairy garden,” Adi said as she came to join me. I handed over her pizza and earned myself a wide smile when she opened the box. “It smells great. Thank you.”
“You’re absolutely welcome.”
April sashayed her way closer to us, sitting down with her legs crossed before taking her pepperoni. “This is pretty impressive, but pray tell, do you often flex your bank account’s muscles on dates?”
“Nope.” I picked up my first slice and bit into the cheesy goodness. The combination of sweet and savory hit my tongue, and I chewed happily while she watched me like I was a puzzle with a few pieces missing.
Once I’d swallowed, I cracked open a bottle of water and took a long sip before arching a brow at her. “What?”
“I’m just confused. You claim you’re not this nice to everybody, but you do all this for us. Why?”
“I don’t know,” I said honestly. “I like you guys. I wanted to take you out for dinner. How about you stop questioning my motives and tell me about you instead?”
“What do you want to know?” she asked. “You already know the highlights.”
“I don’t know your favorite kind of music.” It was a mundane question, just personal enough to tell me something real about her but not personal enough to set off any of her alarms.
She dipped her head back as she thought. “I think it has to be country. Yours?”
“Rock.”
“Go figure.” She laughed.
“Why’s that? I can’t like rock?”
“It’s just…” She trailed off, the corners of eyes crinkling on a smile. “It’s exactly what I would’ve expected from a guy like you. It’s nice that one thing I expected about you turned out to be right.”
“What about you?” I asked Adi. “What kind of music do you like?”
She looked up in the middle of devouring her pizza. “I like country, too. But I also like some boy bands and other pop.”
“Of course.” I smiled at her as I picked up another slice. “Do you want to know a secret?”
She nodded enthusiastically, but her attempt at an answer was muffled by the food in her mouth. April reminded her not to speak with her mouth full, then turned to me. “What was the secret?”
“I like some boy bands, too. But don’t tell anyone. I have a reputation to protect.”
They exchanged a look before they burst out laughing. The rest of our dinner went on in much the same vein. We didn’t talk about anything serious, but I learned a lot about them. I made sure to include Adi in the conversation and realized that they laughed a lot when they were together.
When we eventually left, Adi’s eyelids were drooping, and since it was a Monday, I figured we’d better not push things too late. I wasn’t really ready for the night to be over, but it obviously was.
Adi even fell asleep in the car but did her best to pretend like she hadn’t when April woke her up at their apartment. I walked them up, stopping when we reached the door.
“Thank you for dinner,” I said, making eye contact with each of them.
Adi glanced up at me. Then her gaze darted to April before coming back to mine. “Are you going to kiss my mother?”
“That choice isn’t mine to make, kiddo.” God knew I wanted to, but given how hesitant she was about dating, I doubted just going in for the kiss was a great idea.
My suspicion turned out to be right when she pulled Adi inside. The door closed until I could only see a sliver of her face. “Thank you for dinner. I’ll see you at work.”
“Good night, April,” I said. “Good night, Adi.”
“Good night, Chris,” the little girl called from inside before I heard her footsteps shuffling away.
April gave me another smile. “Good night. Thanks for taking us out.”
She closed the door in my face, but I still thought the night could’ve gone a lot worse.
In fact, I’m ninety percent sure I might have a shot at another date.
Chapter 14
APRIL
“Have you brushed your teeth, baby?” I walked into Adi’s room to find her climbing into her bed.
One of these days, she wasn’t going to want the pale pink comforter she’d had since I moved her into her own big-girl bed. But for now, she pulled it up to her chin with a relaxed smile on her face.
She nodded as she rolled onto her side to face me, her hand beneath her cheek. “My teeth are brushed. My hands are washed. I put on clean pajamas and I went to the bathroom.”
“I don’t even know why I ask anymore. You never forget anything.” She was getting too big too fast for my tastes. “What would you like to read tonight?”
Walking to the small bookshelf against her wall, I ran my fingers along the well-loved spines and hoped she chose something with princesses. After the night we’d just had with Chris, I was definitely feeling me some happily-ever-afters.
The me from a few weeks ago would also bitch-slap now me if she knew how warm and fuzzy I was feeling. Adi lifted her head a fraction of an inch and caught my eye.
“We don’t have to read tonight. Can we talk?”
Those three words extinguished the warmth in my stomach and the fuzzies turned to stone so fast, it was like they’d gazed directly into Medusa’s eyes.
“Sure. What do you want to talk about?” I went to sit at the foot of her bed, resting my hand on her blanket-covered ankle.
She sat up and brushed the hair out of her eyes. “Why didn’t you kiss Chris? I think he wanted to kiss you.”
My eyes became as round as they’d ever been. I’d expected Adi would have questions about the dinner. I just hadn’t expected that to be the first one.
Inhaling a deep breath through my nostrils, I rolled my lips into my mouth and did my best to
come up with an honest answer. “I didn’t kiss him because I’m not dating him. He’s just my friend. Nothing more.”
Her head dropped to the side as she studied me. The thing about my daughter was that she was a lot smarter than even I gave her credit for most days.
Leaning forward, she took my hand and gave me a look that said today was one of those days. “Why aren’t you dating him? You deserve someone good, Mommy. Chris is good.”
My heart melted into a puddle of goo that cracked and broke as it dried. “It’s not that simple, honey. Adult relationships are more complicated than they look in the movies. Dating someone doesn’t just happen, and it doesn’t always end well.”
She frowned. “But I like him.”
“I like him, too.” I stroked my thumb over her knuckles and gave her a soft smile. “That’s why he’s becoming my friend. Dating someone is a bit different from friendship. The other person has to like you back and in a different way than how we like our friends.”
“I don’t understand.” She sighed, withdrawing her hand and lying back down in bed. “I know you have to like someone in a different way. You have to want to kiss them. Don’t you want to kiss him?”
If only you knew how much. But I couldn’t tell her that. If I did, I’d be getting her hopes up. Regardless of how good a guy Chris was or how badly I’d wanted to kiss him, my track record with dating was abysmal.
Craig had just been the rotten cherry on top of a cake made out of layers of disaster. Getting involved with Chris when I had the history I did was just plain unfair to him. I had so many issues that my issues had mated and had a whole bunch of little issues of their own.
“It’s not only about wanting to kiss someone. I know you don’t understand, baby. I wish I could explain it better, but let’s just be happy that Chris is our friend for now, okay?”
“Okay.” She released another deep breath and snuggled into her mattress. “Good night, Mommy.”
“Good night, honey.” I stood up and pressed a kiss against her forehead, knowing full well she wasn’t about to just go to sleep.
She’s Mine Now Page 9