by Rye Hart
“It’s good. My mother helped me pick it out. She found someone to take Brad’s military gear as well as his truck, and it paid off most of the house.”
“Brad’s life insurance through the military should’ve paid off all of it,” he said.
“I had some student loan debt from my business degree, and I put the rest into a college savings fund for Lily. I wanted it to feel like Brad was still providing for her. When she gets older, she can use that to bypass all the debt I dug myself into, and when she asks where it came from, I can say her father gave it to her.”
“That’s actually a really good idea. I never would’ve thought of that.”
“You’ve always been an immediate gratification kind of man. Bradley was the long-term planner out of the two of you,” I said with a grin.
“We all have our strengths and weaknesses,” he said with a soft chuckle.
“Thanks for stopping by, Paul. I really appreciate it, but I need to get Lily inside and fix her some lunch.”
“That’s fine,” he said. “Just wanted to come by and see how you were doing.”
“I appreciate it. Really. And stop by anytime. Lily loves seeing you.”
“I’m gonna go give her one last hug, and I’ll be out of your way.”
I watched him pick Lily up in his arms and throw her into the air. She giggled, gave him a great big hug, and then hopped back onto her bike as she left. I watched Paul’s car ride down the road as my neighbor’s door opened again, and the sound caught Lily’s attention, distracting her enough that she went crashing into the curb and tumbled onto the pavement.
“Lily!”
I made a mad dash from the porch and tore across the grass. She was crying and sniffling and holding her knee. I scooped her up into my arms as something warm dropped next to me, and I looked over and found my neighbor reaching out for my daughter.
“I have medical training. May I see it, sweet girl?”
The way he cooed at my daughter caught my attention. Tears were leaking from Lily’s eyes as his calloused hands picked up her leg. I held her hand as my eyes danced around her scraped and bloodied knee. He knocked some of the dirt and rocks off her scraped-up skin, his movements intentional and filled with purpose.
“Let me see if you can move it, okay?” he asked.
He slowly moved Lily’s leg, and she whimpered. She was gripping tightly onto my shirt as she sniffled hard. His hand was moving around her kneecap, trying to feel for something as blood continued to rise to the surface.
“It doesn’t seem dislocated or anything, but you need to get it cleaned up before it gets infected.”
His voice was deep. Full. He seemed like the kind of man who could whisper, and a room full of people could still hear him. He looked into my eyes before he slowly placed Lily’s leg back to the ground. Then, he got up and walked back to his house.
“Thank you,” I said.
He stopped and turned his head, and I watched as he nodded slightly.
I knew my gut about him had been right. I knew he wasn’t a cold-hearted man. I scooped Lily up in my arms and carried her back into the house, figuring a bath was probably the best course of action to get her cleaned up.
But I had a hard time looking away from my neighbor as he made his way back to his house.
If he wasn’t so distant, I’d consider him attractive.
CHAPTER 6
GRAHAM
I felt bewitched.
Was there such a thing?
Every time I looked out my fucking window and saw her house, she popped into my mind. Her emerald eyes and her distinct little smile. That woman was a looker, but she was also curious.
It was unsettling, finding another woman attractive. In all the cities I’d bounced around to and all the women who had tried to talk me up, none of them had ever been my type. Their eyes either reminded me of my wife’s or were nothing like my wife’s. Their bodies were either enticing like my wife’s or the exact opposite of my wife’s. Either way, my dear late wife was always on my mind. Her warmth and her laughter. Her inviting curves and her generosity.
Then, I’d see her body as I’d last seen it, and I would be pulled back into that pain.
But there was none of that looking at my neighbor, no comparison to Cary and no reminiscence of that time in my life. It was odd, experiencing that without my memories impeding on the moment.
I couldn’t let it sway me, though. I couldn’t let her get under my skin.
No one could get close.
No one.
And with the way she loved her daughter, I couldn't do that to her. I couldn’t put that vibrant little girl in danger like I had my own son. I was destined to be alone forever, and that was fine with me. I’d had my chance. I’d created my family. Then, I’d squandered it by becoming comfortable, and I paid the price for my comfort. Men like me didn’t lead comfortable lives. I got selfish. Greedy. I let my guard down, and it had cost me my family.
I wasn’t going to let my guard down for anyone else.
A knock at my front door pulled me from my trance. I put my beer down and made my way to the front door. I picked up my gun off the kitchen table and tucked my hand behind the front door. My entire body was alert for whatever was on the other side.
“Is he home?”
“I’m not sure, sweetie.”
“But we made cookies.”
I opened the door and found my neighbor and her little girl standing on my front porch.
“Told you,” the girl said with a grin.
“Told her what?” I asked.
“That you were home. Your truck’s in the garage,” she said.
“Observant,” I said.
“Thanks. I get it from my daddy.”
My eyes whipped over to my neighbor, and I watched a sort of pain rise in her eyes. Her gaze faltered, and she swallowed hard. To most, the moment would’ve passed them by without them acknowledging it. But I saw it, and I knew. It was a pain only those who had experienced it would recognize. I held her gaze as she brought her eyes back to mine and held out the cookies for me to take. My heart thundered in my ears for a few seconds.
“We made these for you,” she said. “I’m Cindy, by the way.”
“What for?” I asked.
“The cookies?” she asked. “For helping my daughter with her knee.”
“See? It’s all better now thanks to you,” the little girl said.
“I didn’t do much. Your mother took care of you,” I said.
“Well, you helped,” the little girl said.
“Hardly.”
“Just take the cookies,” she said, looking annoyed like only a five-year-old could.
It was hard not to laugh.
“You’re a feisty one, aren’t you?” I asked.
“Yep. I get that from Mommy.”
I watched a grin spread across Cindy’s cheeks as a pang of hurt pinched my gut. She really was a beautiful woman and filled with a hurt I understood.
In any other lifetime, I might’ve even cared to introduce myself to her.
“What’s your name?” the little girl asked.
“What’s yours?” I asked.
“Lillian. But everyone calls me Lily.”
“Graham,” I said.
I held a brief staring contest with the little girl until a smile broke across her face.
“Take the cookies,” she said.
“They’re for you, after all,” Cindy said.
“You didn’t have to make them,” I said.
“And you didn’t have to help my daughter,” Cindy said.
“I guess she does get her feistiness from you.”
Another moment passed between us before I reached my hand out to take the plate of cookies.
“How’s your knee?” I asked.
“It’s fine. Mommy put me in a bath, and it really hurt, but I was brave,” Lily said.
“It’s good to be brave. Sometimes we have to be, even when we don’t wanna be,” I said.
I watched the small girl light up with pride, and it reminded me of my son. That same kind of pride and that same strong stance. Whoever Cindy was, she was raising her girl well, raising her to be strong and independent like I’d tried to do with my son. Memories of him came crashing back. Us working on the truck together and running around in the yard. I remembered his first skinned knee and how much he wanted to cry as I cleaned it up.
But no matter how much he wanted to cry, he didn’t.
He had been so brave.
Just like Lily.
I pushed the thoughts of my son away before they threatened to take over and set the cookies on the counter. I was still concealing the gun in my hand behind the door as I stood in the cracked doorway. The three of us were awkwardly standing there, not knowing what to do.
“I hate to cut the pow-wow short, but I got somewhere to be,” I said finally.
“We didn’t mean to keep you,” Cindy said.
I wanted to slam the door and lock them on the porch, but the look on Lily’s face stopped me from being a complete asshole. “Thanks for the cookies,” I managed.
“You’re welcome,” Cindy said. “Come on, booger. Let’s give Graham some privacy.”
“But I wanna stay and play,” Lily said.
“No. We need to go. He’s got places to be,” Cindy said.
The two of them walked away, and I watched until they were safely inside their house. I shut my front door and disengaged my firearm, sliding it across the counter toward the cookies. I locked the door and shut off the lights, doing whatever I could to ward off any other visitors.
Taking out my phone, I called Daniel. I needed a distraction, someone to talk to so I could get my mind off things.
The phone rang.
“Graham. My man. What’s up?” Daniel asked.
“Not much,” I said. “You?”
“Something must be up. You never call just to talk.”
“Wanted to let you know I got a job in town,” I said.
“No shit! Whatcha doing?”
“Working at a mechanic shop. They prefer people pay in cash, so there isn’t a lot of formal paperwork to get hired there. Means my name won’t pop up on anything in the employment records.”
“Sounds like the best deal for now,” he said. “They legit? Not secretly running drugs or anything like that?”
“Nah, nothing like that. The owner’s old and doesn’t like fooling around with shit. You’d like him. Nothing’s sugar-coated, and I get to accept tips. Got the best prices in town too. He’s always busy from morning until the time they close.”
“Great, you have a job. Now you need to make a friend or two.”
“I’m not making friends.”
“The owner of the shop sounds like a start,” he said.
“I’m not his friend. The man’s halfway to the grave.”
“The place got a manager? Or some guy you work alongside? That’s your next mission.”
“I’m not a fucking operative any longer.”
“If you wanna wrap all this shit up, you are,” he said.
I sighed as I walked into the bathroom. I put him on speakerphone and started cleaning myself up. I needed to leave for work soon.
“I’ll find someone to talk to every now and then,” I said.
“That’s a start,” Daniel said.
“It’ll have to be good enough,” I said.
“We’ll work on it. Don’t worry. In the meantime, keep your head down. Don’t do your job too well or too shitty.”
“Do it enough to blend in with the rest of the crowd. I know. Fuck,” I said.
“When’s your first day?”
“Already been working a couple of days, but my first full-time shift is in a few minutes.”
“Better get to work then. Being late doesn't look good.”
“Believe it or not, I’ve held a job before,” I said.
“I’m gonna get off here before your sarcasm comes back to slap you in the face. Have a good first shift. Let me know how it goes.”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Later, shnookums.”
I shook my head and splashed some water on my face for the last time. I looked at myself in the mirror and took myself in. The close-cropped beard that hid my dimples, the brown hair on my head I’d allowed to grow out a bit longer than I used to, the dead stare in my blue eyes. I used to see the reflection of my eyes in Cary’s, every time I looked down at her and cradled her in my grasp. I planted my hands on the side of the sink and watched my muscles flex. She had always loved my arms. I’d kept them up just for her, kept them more chiseled than the rest of my body.
I pushed myself away from the sink and buried her memory as I grabbed my phone.
I locked up my house and hopped into my truck. It was time to go to work and try to do this assimilation bullshit. I cranked up my truck, pulled out of my garage, and backed out onto the road. I whipped my car into drive and pressed down the gas, trying to get away from the house as quickly as possible. Every time I remembered my family, I remembered that night when everything was taken away from me.
And sometimes, I couldn’t deal with the reality of it all.
End of Sneak Peek. Would you like to know how this continues?
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SINGLE DAD’S SPRING BREAK
PROLOGUE
Everything about this moment feels so right.
I felt his hands parting me as I clung to him, grabbing onto his hair and bracing myself for what was to come.
He sank to his knees in front of me and breathed over my clothed pussy as I sat there, my legs spread wide on the edge of his balcony. His hands grabbed my lower back, supporting me as my fingers curled into the tendrils of his hair. I ground into his face, no longer self-conscious about the sweat dripping down my back. His hot breath shook me. Chilled me to the bone despite the sweltering heat engulfing our bodies.
His nose nuzzled my flimsy panties to the side and his tongue dove in. I bit back my moans, clinging to him as I teetered off the balcony. The synapses in my brain were firing rapidly and my inner voice was warring with itself. I didn’t want him to stop what he was doing, but I was afraid that if he continued, I’d fall for him all over again.
Then his tongue teased my clit and all rational thought left my head. My legs were shaking, and my hips were rolling as he moaned into me. I was dripping for him. My body was buzzing with ecstasy. I raked my nails against his scalp as he held me with the strength of his hands.
I swallowed every moan, every urge to say his name as stars shot behind my eyes.
My body shook against his face as his lips wrapped around my clit. His tongue flicked at lightning speed as he pressed deeper into my body, drinking me down the way he used to all those years ago.
“Oh, fuck.”
My body burst, erupting in a pool of pleasure that seeped out onto his lips. My body fell limp and his face rose from between my thighs, and he caught me before I fell over the edge of his balcony.
He carried my trembling body back into the house, not bothering to shut the door as we made our way to his bedroom.
He laid me down onto his bed and ripped my panties from my body. I could hear the fabric tearing and it was music to my ears. He pulled his own clothes off, the stitches popping in my ears before he fell against me. My hands rushed around his body as his cock pulsed against my damp folds.
I pressed my lips against his, tasting myself on him. Sweat covered our bodies, adding to the scent of the sex swirling around our heads. I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him toward me.
“I’ve waited years for this. I can’t wait any longer.”
CHAPTER 1
KEVIN
“Daddy! Daddy! Look! The ocean is so blue!”
“Just like those pretty blue eyes of yours, Sydney,” I said.
“I have blue eyes like you, Daddy,” Sydney said.
“No way, your eyes are way prettier than mine,” I said.
/> “Can we go swimming?” Daniel asked.
“All you want,” I said.
“How long can we stay, Daddy?” Sydney asked.
“The entire week. How does that sound?”
“Swimming for a whole week! Yeah!” Daniel said.
As my four-year old twins peered out the windows of my private jet, I smiled at their excitement. This was what made my business worth it. This was what made all the mistakes I’d made up until this point worth it. The woman I had loved and lost. The heartache I’d gone through with my children’s biological mother. Seeing the joy in their eyes when I could treat them to things I knew I’d never experience as a child made every minute of work and every second of dealing with investors worth it.
They were hitting that age where everything was wondrous and cool and awesome. And I loved that I could be there for them as a father. Growing up without my father made me appreciate time with my kids that much more. I knew he was successful, but that was about it. That was all that mattered to my father and it compromised the family he had created. I didn’t want to be that kind of father to my kids. I wanted to be successful, sure. But I also wanted to be present.
My father dropped the ball, but I sure as hell wouldn’t, at least not intentionally.
Unfortunately, there are still moments when I struggle to play the part of single dad and businessman. I did my best to be 100% focused on them when we had our time together, but I often wondered if I was doing a well enough job, or if I let work get in the way too often.
They were like miniature spiritual teachers. My children were at the stage where they gasped at everything from Christmas lights to big bodies of water. Hell, sometimes they would sit in a chair out back and squeal at the squirrels hopping from limb to limb. Their childish wonder was always a reminder to me to stop and appreciate the little things.
Especially since my life moved at such a fast pace.
Especially since I chased my success in a fruitless attempt to prove myself to my father.
“Come on, guys. We need to strap in. We’re about to descend. That means we’re about to land,” I said.
My kids scrambled to buckle their seatbelts as the plane started its descent.