“Why didn’t you stay in California?”
He sat back, eyeing her for a few seconds. “You want the truth?”
She lifted her glass to her lips and took a sip of water. “Yes.”
“I’m not really sure.” He lifted his broad shoulders into a shrug. “It’s just where I’m supposed to be.”
His gaze connected with hers and suddenly she felt a little nervous again. She took another drink of water, trying to think of something to say.
Like always, Nick seemed to read her emotions. He flashed a smile and leaned forward. “Okay, enough about me. Tell me more about your family. What are your brothers like?”
Ellie set down her glass, thinking about her brothers and what their reactions would be if they knew she was having dinner with Nick Coulter. It made her smile. “They are extremely overprotective, still tease me, but would do anything for me.” She told him how lucky she was to have brothers who never saw her as a pest and had taken her everywhere with them.
Nick pushed his food around with his fork. “Sounds like you miss them.”
“I do. I wish they would move back to Colorado. Cade needs to have cousins around since he won’t ever have any sibli…” She let her words trail off, realizing what she had just revealed. “Anyway, I just wish they were here.” Nick Coulter didn’t need to know about her shattered dreams, which included not having any more children.
Two lines dented his forehead as he stared at her intently. “You don’t want to have any more children?”
Why were they having this conversation? It’s not like she had a choice. “Uh, I would like to have more children, but I’ve always been under the impression that being unmarried and pregnant was generally not acceptable.”
He started to laugh and leaned in close. “True, but if you married again, would you want more kids?”
How was it they were talking about having kids? She wanted to start fanning herself. “Is it hot in here?” She reached for her glass again and took a long drink of water.
“I’m not hot.”
She cast him a disbelieving look. Oh, he was hot all right. “Maybe it’s the Szechuan chicken.” She took another drink.
“Ellie, you’re avoiding my question.”
Chapter Thirteen
Ellie set the glass back down and closed her eyes. Why on earth was he asking her these questions? “I don’t know if I’ll ever marry again.” This was so embarrassing. “But, if I did…I would love to have more babies.” She opened her eyes to find him smiling at her.
“How many babies?”
“Seven.”
“Seven?” His eyebrows shot up in mild alarm.
Now it was her turn to smile. “Just kidding.” Then her smile turned wistful. “I don’t know, Nick. I guess it would all depend on whether or not I thought my husband would stick around right after I gave birth.”
Okay, so maybe she had a few issues to still work out. Who wouldn’t?
He scowled. “Your ex-husband was an idiot.”
Yes—he was—and the idiot was flying in tomorrow. “Speaking of Thomas.” She sighed. “He called today and said he’s flying into Denver in the morning. He’s going to take Cade after all.”
“He is?” Nick almost sounded regretful.
“Yeah.” She felt the disappointment all over again. “I’m glad I never told Cade about the change of plans…it’s confusing enough for him with his dad continually failing to follow through with things.”
Nick picked up his glass of water and took a sip. “I’m sure he’ll have fun with his dad. It’s beneficial for a child to have a father in their life. I know from all the statistics that kids who have both a mom and a dad do so much better.”
She knew all about the statistics and didn’t need him to repeat them to her. “I know, but I thought that usually meant having both parents in the home.” Her voice was tight with emotion. “Thomas isn’t very reliable, which is why I don’t like the idea of sending Cade with him.”
Nick glanced her way, and she felt guilty for taking her frustration out on him. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to sound demeaning.”
She let out a big breath. “You weren’t, and I didn’t mean to bite your head off.” She looked at him shyly. “I’m just disappointed. I really did want to go with you…for Cade and me to go with you.”
He chuckled softly. “You didn’t bite my head off.” He held out his hand, palm up, in an invitation. Tentatively she placed her hand in his, the touch of his skin warming her entire body. He met her eyes, curling his fingers around her hand. “I promise to take you and Cade. We’ll just postpone the VIP trip until later.”
She squeezed his hand gently. “I guess we’ll see.” But would he want to take them another time? Nick was a hot commodity, no pun intended, and in all probability wouldn’t be available.
The atmosphere felt subdued, making her wish she’d never brought up her ex-husband. Talk about ruining a romantic dinner for two. “Can we just forget about Thomas?”
“Who?” he asked with a wry grin.
She laughed and they finished their dinner, asking each other safe questions about favorite movies and other little things. When Nick brought out the dessert, she held her stomach and groaned. “I ate too much. But I really, really want a slice of that.” The decadent chocolate cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory looked unbelievable. “If I’d known you had that waiting for me, I wouldn’t have had a second helping of orange chicken.”
Laughing, he placed a slice on a plate anyway. “Oh come on. You didn’t eat that much.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I almost ate as much as you did.”
“Not quite, but if you want to take dessert home with you, I can get the plate back later.”
She grinned. “Thank you. I’ll even wash it for you.” She stood up. “And speaking about washing dishes.” She picked up her own plate. “Let me help with these.”
“You don’t have to that. There isn’t much here.”
“It won’t take us long.” She walked past him into the most magnificent kitchen she had ever been in. “Nick, this is beautiful.” Even a girl like her could enjoy cooking in this kitchen.
“Thanks. You’re welcome to use it any time.”
She slanted him a glance. “Not only can I not bake bread, I also hate cooking.”
She thought he’d give her a negative reaction, but instead he took the plates and put them in the sink. “Then I’ll do all the cooking.”
All the air seemed to leave her lungs. What exactly did he mean by that? Nick stepped in front of her and took one of her hands again. She met his gaze and got sucked into those deep blue eyes. Blue eyes that were filled with desire. Desire to kiss her.
Instead of moving in, he waited for her permission. She couldn’t give it to him. His words made the food in her stomach want to make a second appearance. Everything was moving too fast. “I have to go.”
“Now?” He let go of her hand as she took a step backward.
She glanced at the clock. It wasn’t even eight. “Yes.” She swallowed hard. The feelings he evoked in her were both fascinating and terrifying.
Although he looked a little frustrated, he did his best to hide it. “Okay. I’ll walk you home.”
He didn’t hold her hand this time, and as she walked by his side, she lamented her skittish behavior. What was wrong with her? They had both admitted their mutual attraction. Just because he’d made a joke about him doing all the cooking, it hadn’t meant anything.
They reached her door and she knew she’d blown her chance. Nick kept his hands in his pockets, as well as his distance. Now, unless she took him by the front of his shirt and pulled him forward, there wouldn’t be any kisses.
Her hands actually started to reach up just as he took another step backward.
“Good night, Ellie.”
Oh, rats. “Good night. Thank you for dinner and everything.”
He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “You
’re welcome.”
She watched him walk away and enter his house. He didn’t even look back over his shoulder. As he shut the door, she remembered her cheesecake. “Great,” she mumbled under her breath. “No kiss and no dessert.”
To make matters worse, Thomas would be here in the morning. When would she get a chance to make up for her foolishness?
She picked up the phone and called to let Betsy know she was coming to get Cade. Instead of giving her the third degree, Betsy sounded a little frantic. “I was just about to bring Cade over to Nick’s. My son’s wife went into premature labor and Owen is taking me to the airport.”
Ellie immediately left for the Stewarts’ house. “I’ll be right over.”
By the time she got next door, Betsy and Owen were ready to leave. At least with her current worries, Betsy didn’t even ask about Ellie’s dinner date with Nick. The last thing they needed to worry about was Ellie’s problems. Maybe by the time Betsy returned, Ellie would clear things up with Nick.
She just wished her ex-husband wasn’t coming in the morning.
* * *
“Guess what, sweetie?” Ellie asked Cade as she washed his face the next morning. “Daddy’s decided to come and see you early.”
“Where’s Daddy?” Cade bounced up and down, making it impossible to remove the strawberry milk mustache.
“He just called and should be here any minute.”
Ellie hated seeing Thomas, but since he was the father of her child, it couldn’t be helped. At least he wasn’t around all the time. She couldn’t handle seeing him on a regular basis.
Cade raced through the house to the front door. “Is he here yet?”
He tried opening the door, but the extra security lock up high was engaged. “Let’s look out the window to see.” She reached for his hand. When she looked out the window, she noted Nick’s SUV was not parked in his driveway. He’d mentioned he would be in Denver most of the day. She was so afraid he would never call her again.
The dinner date had been so wonderful that it had been difficult falling asleep last night. If she could do it all over again, things would’ve ended differently. If she kept pushing Nick away, he might get tired of waiting for her and move on to greener pastures and more willing dates.
She sighed, knowing that wasn’t fair of her to think like that. He wasn’t all about the physical stuff. He didn’t push things when she knew other guys would have. Still, if he’d been a little bit more assertive, she wouldn’t have fought him too hard.
A flashy sports car pulled up in front of her house. Leave it to Thomas to rent such a non-family vehicle. Cade saw the car and started jumping up and down again. “Daddy! He’s here.” He raced for the front door.
Ellie watched Thomas climb out of the car and noted how drastic his appearance had changed from their wedding pictures she had tucked away. His naturally bleached blond hair was shaggy and artistically messy as if he was trying to look younger. His face was tan, and even though it was childish, she couldn’t wait for the day when he was wrinkled from all the sun. She really needed to work on her evil thoughts when it came to Thomas.
Watching him look around, she wondered how she could have ever been attracted to him. Compared to Nick Coulter, Thomas was like—
She stopped, remembering she was working on her evil thoughts.
“Mom,” Cade cried out. “Open the door.”
Bracing herself, she unlatched the lock, allowing Cade to escape. “Daddy!” He ran pell-mell for Thomas.
To his credit, Thomas picked up their son and hugged him tightly. She hated how much Cade looked like his dad. Slowly, she made her way outside. Thomas held Cade, but his eyes were on Ellie. He looked her over slowly and gave her an approving smile. Ick! When he finished, she felt like she needed to take another shower. His obvious approval confused her. Thomas usually made it clear how glad he was to be rid of her.
“Ellie, you look good.” His eyes roved freely again.
“Cade, do you want to show Daddy your new transformer?” She didn’t want to be one of those adults who used her kids to talk to the ex-spouse, but it was going to be so hard to have to talk to the man.
“Come on, Daddy.” Cade took his father’s hand.
Thomas crouched down and smiled at Cade. “Why don’t you go and get it ready and then Mommy and I will come in and see it, okay?’
“Okay.” Cade took off for the house.
Thomas sauntered over toward Ellie, and she had to make herself stand right where she was. The instinct was to turn around and run away very quickly. He still looked her over, giving her chills, but not the good kind.
“I like your hair. It makes you look sexy.”
Did she just throw up in her mouth? What was his problem?
“Have you been drinking?”
Thomas laughed. “No. Come on, El, can’t a guy give his wife a compliment.”
Okay, he had a head injury. “Ex-wife, Thomas. Remember the divorce papers you filed?” Need she remind him of the affair he’d been carrying on with another woman while she was carrying their child?
He didn’t comment and looked at Nick’s house. “Looks like someone finally bought the place.” During the last visit, he had teased Ellie about buying the house across the street.
“Yeah, my new neighbor moved in a couple of weeks ago.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Your new neighbor?”
Ellie rolled her eyes. “He just moved in, so that would make him my new neighbor.”
“He? Is he single?”
Was that jealousy she detected? If he actually knew who the neighbor was, he wouldn’t act jealous. Thomas had made it clear that if he didn’t find her desirable, no other man would either.
Ellie blushed. “Yes.”
“Have you met him?”
Do I need to answer that? “Thomas, we attend the same church, so yes, I’ve met him.”
Thomas seemed to consider this. “Hmm, rich and a church goer. I’ll bet you like him.”
Thankfully, Cade came running out of the house with his transformer. “Dad, look at my new Optimus Prime.”
Thomas crouched down to look at the new toy. “Cool. Did you see the movie yet?”
Cade turned his mouth into a pout. “No. Mommy won’t let me see it.”
Thomas slid a glance at Ellie. “He can’t watch Transformers?”
She didn’t have to justify to him. “It’s violent, and he’s four.”
“Mommy says when I’m thirteen I can watch it.” Cade didn’t actually know how far off that was, and Thomas better not tell him.
“Well, maybe I can talk to Mommy and we can figure something out so we can watch it.” He tousled the little boy’s hair and stood up.
Cade grinned. “Can we ask Nick to come and watch it with us?”
Ellie felt the blood drain from her head, making her dizzy. She wished Cade wouldn’t have mentioned Nick’s name, especially in the familiar way he said it. She prayed he wouldn’t mention the fact that they had already watched a movie with Nick.
Thomas stood up, a questioning look on his face. “Nick?”
“He…” Ellie started to explain, but Cade broke in.
“Nick lives over there.” Cade pointed at the stone house across the street. “He played football with me.”
“Oh really?” Thomas’s eyes lit up. “Nick Coulter is your new neighbor? I heard he had moved to Colorado.” He glanced back at the house. “Seriously? He really moved in across the street?”
Ellie swallowed hard. “Yes.”
Thomas eyed her curiously. “You’ve played football with him?” His tone was laced with envy. “What else have you done with him?”
Um, fallen in love with him?
She drew in a deep breath. “I didn’t play football. Betsy and Owen had the neighbors over for dinner to help make him feel welcome.” She glanced over at Cade. “He played catch with Cade while I visited with Betsy.” Thomas didn’t need to know she and Cade were the only other neighbors th
ere.
He looked at her skeptically, then back to Nick’s house. “I’d like to meet him.”
“Thomas, I don’t want to impose on him.”
He looked at her intensely. She could see his wheels spinning. “Hmm, well maybe while I’m staying here I’ll get the chance.”
Staying here, as-in-here? Or did he mean Pleasant Wood? “What hotel are you going to be in?” She wanted to clarify that her parents’ house was not an option.
He raised an eyebrow. “Ellie, I came out early to spend all of my time with Cade.” He moved a little closer. “Technically, I do have joint custody and could take Cade with me to the hotel, but I know you don’t like to be away from him.”
Ellie glanced over to see Cade playing with his toy, not paying attention to his parents. “Thomas, you can’t stay here.” When it came down to it, Thomas wouldn’t want to take Cade to a hotel with him. He was single for a reason—having his son with him would hamper his animal instincts.
Thomas tipped his head to the side, like he was trying to be cute or something. “Why not?”
Because I might possibly kill you in your sleep? “It’s not appropriate.”
He laughed. “Nothing’s gonna happen. Unless—” He moved close to her, a smirk still plastered on his face. “—You don’t think you can keep your hands off me.”
Her eyes widened in disbelief. It was more like keeping her hands from clamping around his neck and squeezing. “What is wrong with you?”
Thomas threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, Ellie, I think I’ve missed you.”
What the heck? “Thomas. You can’t stay here.”
Still smiling, he studied her for a few seconds. “Fine. I’ll get a hotel room. But I’m staying late and I’ll be back early the next morning.” He grinned, his tanned face crinkling at the corners. “I want to spend as much time as I can with Cade.”
Thanks for the warning. “Okay.”
Cade saved her from further conversation by grabbing his dad’s hand and pulling him into the house to see his toys.
Ellie’s fingers gripped the door as she looked longingly across the street. If Thomas had stayed away, she would’ve probably invited Nick over again for smoothies and another movie night. She could only hope that once Thomas was gone, she and Nick could pick up where they had left off. If they shared another dinner date, she would make sure she got her dessert and a kiss goodnight.
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