by Elle James
“Now, you’re pulling my leg.”
“I am,” she admitted. “Although, I do make a damned good tuna casserole. I was thinking more along the lines of lasagna and garlic toast. Those are comfort foods to me.”
“That would be steak and potatoes for me.”
“I could do that, but it would break my budget for the rest of the week.”
“No, don’t do that. I haven’t had a good lasagna in forever. I look forward to going Italian with you.”
She gave him a quick nod. “When?”
“Want to go for Saturday?”
“I’d love to.”
“And be ready to stay out late. I want to take you dancing.”
“I haven’t been dancing in long time. I’m not sure I remember how.” Her heart beat faster at the thought of rubbing bellies on a dance floor with the handsome SEAL. “What should I wear?”
“Jeans and cowboy boots, if you have them.” He grinned. “We’re going to the Ugly Stick Saloon to kick up our heels.”
“The Ugly Stick Saloon?” Ava asked, curious.
“Yup. It’s a little out in the boonies, but worth the drive.”
“Lasagna and dancing.” She grinned. “Not sure the two go together, but if you’re willing…you’re on.”
He laughed and pulled her close, his hands sliding low on her back.
She nodded, her smile slipping, her pulse picking up.
Would he kiss her again? She held her breath, praying he would.
He lowered his head, his lips hovering over hers. “Until Friday.”
Ava closed her eyes, her entire body anticipating his lips touching hers.
Then he was gone, leaving her standing there in the parking lot, swaying slightly, her knees no sturdier than Jell-O.
“Psst!” Leslie’s voice called out to her softly, cutting through Ava’s stupor.
“Ava!” Leslie’s call finally pulled Ava back to earth. “Let’s go before the school calls the cops on us for loitering.”
Ava slipped into the passenger seat of Leslie’s car and leaned back in her seat.
Leslie laughed and started the engine, pulling out of the parking lot onto the main road in front of the school. “Girl, you’ve got it bad. And he played you so well.”
Ava frowned and tipped her head toward Leslie. “Played me? What do you mean?”
“The law of scarcity. He had you practically begging to be kissed, and then left you hanging.”
Heat flooded Ava’s cheeks. “Did I look like I was begging?” She pressed her palms to her face.
“Honey, you were practically standing on your toes to get that kiss he didn’t give you.” Again, she laughed. “What a charmer. He had you in the palm of his hand. Now, you’ll be a basket case until you see him again.”
Leslie was absolutely right. Ava’s body was hot with desire. And it was only Monday.
“When do you see him again?” Leslie asked.
“Saturday,” Ava wailed.
With a smile, Leslie switched lanes and drove toward downtown Austin and her office complex where BODS was located. “We need to make sure you’re ready for your next date. I believe we have some shopping in order.”
“I don’t have a lot of money for a new wardrobe,” Ava warned.
“You’d be surprised at what you can find at the resale shops. Where’s he taking you this time?”
“I’m going to cook dinner for him and then he’s taking me dancing.” Ave’s brow puckered. “To some place called the Ugly Stick Saloon.
Leslie hooted. “He’s taking you to a favorite haunt. That’s big. He’s never brought a date to the Ugly Stick.” Leslie wrinkled her nose. “He’s picked up women there, but never brought one from outside. I know Sean and his friends. It’s likely they’ll all be there. That’s big when a man introduces you to his friends.”
“He didn’t mention any friends.”
“No, but I guarantee, they will be there.” She shot a grin toward Ava. “I’ll make sure.”
Ava shook her head. “Don’t put him on the spot. He might not want to introduce me to his friends.”
“Honey, if he’s taking you to the Ugly Stick, he’s sharing you with his friends.” Leslie stared through the windshield. “These friends of his are as close as blood brothers. He’d do anything for them, and they’d do anything for him. If they like you, it’s all good.”
Her excitement over meeting Sean’s friends waned. “What if they don’t like me?”
Leslie touched her arm. “Honey, if they don’t like you, it’s their own damned fault. You’re amazing, and they’ll see that.”
Leslie’s assurances only slightly reassured her.
One thing stood out over all others.
She was having a second date with the handsome Navy SEAL. This time, she’d be careful to make sure Mica wasn’t involved.
Now that her daughter had had a man at Daddy Day, she’d be even more insistent to see Sean. That couldn’t happen. When Sean left, he’d leave a gaping hole in Mica’s heart and life. The exact reason Ava didn’t want her to meet or interact with the dates she went on. If she was a really good mother, she’d give up the dates and stay home in the evening with her little girl.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, Leslie had been correct. Ava had needed stimulating, adult male conversation to remind her that she was an individual with needs that didn’t involve her small daughter.
Now that she’d unleashed her inner beast, she wasn’t sure she could turn it off and sink back into her dull, boring existence. Nor did she want to.
* * *
“Ava…yoo-hoo.”
Ava glanced up. “Sorry, did you say something?”
Leslie grinned. “Several times. Don’t forget, you and Mica are going with me and Emma to the county fair this Friday night, and she’s staying the night with Auntie Leslie afterward. So, be sure to hype her up with all the sweets before you let me have her.”
“Thanks, Leslie,” Ava said. “Mica is looking forward to it.” She was blessed to have such good friends from the Get a Grip Grief Group. She wasn’t sure how she’d have survived without them.
Now, Friday would pass quickly at the fair, bringing her closer to the next day and her date with Sean. A shiver of excitement rippled through her.
Saturday couldn’t get there soon enough.
Chapter 6
Sean spent the week taking care of his many business and financial responsibilities. On more than one occasion, he’d gone by Leslie’s office building. He’d almost stopped to ask if Ava would like to go for coffee or lunch.
Given that she’d been very specific about not starting a relationship that would last more than a couple of dates, he’d driven by without stopping. He told himself he’d see her Saturday night. That was plenty soon enough.
Then why did the time drag until Friday rolled around? One week after his first date with Ava had seemed like a lifetime.
He was driving past Leslie’s office building in downtown Austin again, when his cellphone rang in his truck. Caller ID indicated Frank Cooper Johnson was calling.
Sean pressed the phone button on his steering wheel and pulled to a stop at a traffic light. “Hey, Coop.”
“Decker,” he said in his usual abrupt manner. “Got plans for the night?”
“I had big plans to call out for pizza and watch reruns of the A&M game here in my Austin pad.”
“Not headed out to the ranch?”
“Not tonight. I’ll probably go on Sunday and spend the week.” He couldn’t stand the idea of another week trolling downtown Austin, foolishly hoping to catch a glimpse of Ava coming out of Leslie’s office building. “Why? Got anything better going than pizza and reruns?”
“Maybe,” Coop said. “The gang is headed to the Travis County Fair. Want to meet us there?”
The thought of being in a crush of people made Sean cringe. Yet the idea of staying in his penthouse apartment…alone…was far worse. “I’m in. What time?”
Coop set the time and the meeting location and rang off.
He wasn’t thrilled about being out in the heat or the crowds. However, being with his friends would help pass the time better than lounging on his couch, fast-forwarding through a dismal game the Aggies had lost by one point.
With less than an hour to get to the fairgrounds, find parking and meet up with his friends, Sean figured he’d better get moving.
He swung by his apartment and changed out of his business suit. Once he was comfortable in jeans, a short-sleeve blue denim shirt and cowboy boots, he hurried back out to his truck and drove to the fairgrounds.
True to his word, Coop was waiting near the funhouse with Gage, Tag and Moose.
When Sean showed up, they headed for the beer tent.
As they were waiting in line for their first round of beer, Sean looked around at the families with small children and thought of Mica. She would love coming to the fair. The raucous music and colorful booths would have her rushing from one event or ride to another.
“Are you still on for the Ugly Stick Saloon tomorrow night?” Gage asked him.
“I am.”
“Tag tells us you have a date.” Moose turned with the first of the beers and handed it to Sean.
He took it and drank a long swallow of the cool liquid. “Yes, I’ll be bringing a date.”
Moose passed the next beer down the line of friends.
Tag took his cup and grinned. “He met her through BODS.”
Moose handed a beer to Coop and retrieved the last two, giving one to Gage. “I thought you didn’t believe in Leslie’s matchmaking system,” Moose said.
Sean shrugged. “Tag and Leslie convinced me it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try.”
“Isn’t this your second date with the same woman?” Coop asked.
Sean cringed, hoping they wouldn’t continue to grill him on his foray into online dating. “Yes, it will be our second date. And no, I’m not marrying her. She and I aren’t interested in long-term relationships. It stops at dating.”
“Uh-huh,” Moose said and tipped back his cup for a long drink before adding, “That’s what we all said. Just a date. Now three of us are engaged. Sorry to inform you, old man, but your single days are numbered.”
Sean frowned. “I’m not like the rest of you. I didn’t go into BODS to find a wife. I only want a date with someone who isn’t after me for my money or for a ring on her finger. BODS found me just that kind of woman. You’ll get to meet her tomorrow night.” He glared at them. “If you promise to act nice around her.”
“You mean we can’t burp and fart in her presence?” Moose asked.
“Do what you want,” Sean said. “I’m bringing her to the Ugly Stick Saloon to get in a little two-stepping.”
“She dances?”
“I’ll let you know tomorrow night,” Sean said.
“Can’t wait to meet the woman who has you all wound up like a top.” Gage lifted his cup full of beer. “To falling in love.”
“To love!” Coop, Tag and Moose said in unison, as they lifted their cups into the air.
Sean frowned. “It’s not love. We’re only dating. Nothing more.”
“He sure is protesting a lot,” Coop said.
“And it is his second date with this woman,” Moose pointed out. “That has to be a record.” He winked.
“Hey…” Tag interrupted their tormenting of Sean to point toward the fairgrounds entrance. “Isn’t that Emma, Fiona, Jane and Leslie?”
“Yeah,” Coop said. “Who’s the blonde with the kid?”
Sean’s heartrate jumped up. He spun toward the front gate, his gaze going immediately to the petite blonde in the center of the group of women. Her hand rested on Mica’s shoulder. They were laughing and smiling as they walked through the gate.
“That’s Ava and Mica,” Tag said, elbowing Sean in the ribs. “Ava is Decker’s match from BODS.”
“You don’t say,” Gage murmured. “I can see why you haven’t said much about her. You don’t want anyone else getting a jump on you. Good thing I’ve found the love of my life.” He winked and strode forward to take Fiona into his arms, kissing her soundly.
“Me, too,” Coop said and joined Emma, wrapping his arms around her in a fierce hug.
“I like my woman tall enough I can look her in the eye,” Moose, an NFL football champ, said and smiled at his lady love, former model Jane “Angel” Gentry. He held out his hand. She took it and let him bring her in for a long, sexy kiss.
“Leslie,” Tag held out his hand. Leslie placed hers in his. “I didn’t know you ladies would be here tonight.”
She frowned. “I told you we would be.”
Tag gave her a stern glance and shook his head. “Shh. I didn’t tell the others I knew. I’d like to keep it our little secret.”
She laughed and swatted at his arm. “You’re impossible.”
He hugged her and kissed the top of her head. “Good thing you love me.”
Sean tried to see around the others to where Ava and Mica stood. When they finally moved to the side, his gaze met Ava’s and he smiled. She smiled back.
Mica spotted him, grinned and ran toward him, her arms flung wide. “Daddy!”
“What?” Tag asked.
Sean ignored his buddies as they all turned to see what Mica was talking about.
The little girl wrapped her arms around Sean’s neck and held on.
Sean lifted her off the ground and held her close. He’d never felt so loved as he did at that moment. “Hey, Mica, good to see you.”
“I missed you,” she whispered in his ear. “I prayed you would come to see me and read another book to me. When you didn’t, I was afraid I’d made you mad or something.”
He leaned back and stared into the pretty little girl’s eyes. “No way. It’s just that you have your house, and I have mine. I can’t be at your house all the time.”
“Not even some of the time?”
“Sweetheart, I’m not your daddy,” he said. “I’d be one very lucky man if I were. You’re pretty amazing.”
“But you could be,” Mica said. “Layla got a new dad just the other day. She said all her mama had to do was marry him.” Mica looked over Sean’s shoulder. “Mama, can’t you marry Mr. Decker so I can have a daddy, too?”
Ava’s eyes rounded, and her face paled. “Oh, baby, it’s not that easy.”
“Layla said it was,” Mica said, her brow dipping. “And now she has a new daddy. I want a daddy. Please.”
Sean stared across at Ava, his stomach tightening into a hard knot at the stricken look on her face.
She held out her arms to her daughter. “Oh, baby, it really isn’t that easy. The mommy and the man have to be in love and want to get married.”
“Can’t you love Mr. Decker?” Mica begged, her big blue eyes filling with tears. “He’s very nice, and he doesn’t mind sitting on the floor in my classroom.”
Sean looked around, noticing that his friends had all deserted him, leaving him and Ava alone to deal with Mica’s demands. Before the little girl had a total meltdown, he had to do something. “Mica, let’s talk about this later. We’re at the county fair. We’re supposed to play and have fun.”
“Will you play with us?” Mica’s bottom lip trembled, tugging at Sean’s heart.
He glanced at Ava.
Mica’s mother shrugged. “If you don’t mind.”
“I’d be honored,” Sean said.
Mica frowned in confusion.
Sean laughed. “Yes. I’d love to.” He tossed her up in the air and caught her.
Mica giggled and clung to him with a fierce hug. “Thank you, Mr. Decker,” she said loud enough for her mother to hear. Then she whispered in his ear. “You’ll always be Daddy to me.”
Warmth spread through Sean. He tried not to let the little girl get to him, but it was too late. She had him wrapped completely around her little finger.
He set her on her feet and held onto one of her hands.
She reached her free hand out to Ava, who took it with a smile.
“What shall we do first?” her mother asked.
“The Ferris wheel!” Mica cried.
Sean and Ava walked to the ride with Mica swinging between them, laughing and talking the entire time.
This was how a family was supposed to be. Not how his father had raised him and his younger brother. There hadn’t been fun trips to the fairgrounds or walks in the park holding hands with his father and mother.
His mother had run off when Sean had just turned seven, leaving her sons to be raised by a cranky man who hadn’t even liked kids. He’d dealt with the stress of raising two rambunctious boys by drowning himself in alcohol and yelling whenever Sean and his brother Patrick passed by his lounge chair. Sometimes, he’d taken swings at one of them, knocking a kid across the room.
Sean vowed never to have children for fear of turning into a man like his father. No child deserved a parent like that.
With little Mica looking up at him like he’d actually hung the moon, Sean had no choice but to show the girl a good time.
The more she laughed and smiled, the more relaxed and happier Sean was. And the happier Mica was, the more Ava smiled.
It might not have been her idea to share the county fair experience with the man she’d only ever wanted to date, but she was having a good time, if the smile on her face was any indication.
On the Ferris wheel, Mica clung to Sean and Ava’s hands and stared out at the fair below with all the colorful lights and sounds. The smell of popcorn and funnel cakes filled the air.
Sean glanced over the top of Mica’s head at Ava and smiled. For such a busy man, he couldn’t think of anywhere else he’d rather be at that moment. Something felt good and right about sitting on the bench, swinging in the air with two of the prettiest girls he’d ever met.
The moment wouldn’t last, but the memory would. He closed his eyes and committed it to that special place in his brain where all the happiest thoughts resided.
When they got off the ride, Mica dragged them to a shooting game where Sean, Mica and Ava tried to shoot water at duck targets.
Though Ava and Mica tried, they couldn’t knock the ducks over.