Page 18 of XOXO, Summer
I look at his dad, who’s not wearing any orange whatsoever, but I’m not going to argue with the kid. Daniel says, “It’s the jersey.”
“Oh.” I roll my neck, loosening a knot and remembering all the times I’ve been stuck on weekends watching football game after football game instead of out having fun. “Guys love sports.”
“You don’t?”
With a shrug, I reply, “Some.”
“Which ones?”
Why does it suddenly feel like an interrogation? This is the most interest he’s shown, and as usual, it’s centered around sports.Men . . .“I don’t?—”
“Aswing!” Roman starts running toward the tire hanging from the large oak at the front of the house.
“Are the ropes reinforced?”
My heart skips a beat at the concern in his voice. He starts jogging after Roman, and I run after him. “There’s never been an issue.” I slow on approach. Daniel is running his fingers along the rope even though his son has already climbed on. “It’s the same ropes they use at the marina. Should last almost as long as this oak tree.”
The tension eases from his tightened jaw, and he releases a heavy breath. “You ready?” he asks, pulling the tire back, ready to send him flying.
Roman giggles. “Ready, Daddy.”
Daniel releases him, but is right there to catch the tire when it comes barreling back to him. “Hold on tight, Roman.” He spins the black rubber and stands back, his watchful gaze full of both joy and caution. I’m so stuck on staring at this man, amazed to see how he shifted into daddy-mode with such ease from the flirtatious playboy he’s been with me.
Daddy-mode. Daddy . . .Good Lord, do me in right now, why don’t ya?I didn’t know I had a kink until I met this man and watched those broad shoulders flex under the thin material of the T-shirt, his biceps pop out when catching the tire, and lengthen when pushing it into the air. He is fit, more in shape than most businessmen who rent the cottage for their families. They sit around on laptops pretending to participate in the family activities. Daniel is digging in right now and being present. There wasn’t a laptop in sight earlier on the deck or inside the house when I come to think about it.
I stand back, watching them. Listening to the laughter issweeter than birds singing the first of spring after a long winter.
When he steps back, he crosses his arms over his chest with attentive eyes on Roman. “Pink is a bold choice. Unique like your names.”
“It is. It had needed to be painted for years. We all chose pink and painted it ourselves. It was therapeutic, something we had together that kept our minds off . . .” My heart beats hard in my chest as the pain returns, still so eagerly it feels fresh all over again. I take a steadying breath before I add, “It was what we needed at the time. It felt like ours, like a new beginning.”
I glance over at Daniel to find his eyes already on me. His eyebrows are knitted, and brown eyes hold questions that aren’t asked. I’ve already shared more than I should have with a practical stranger, so I’m glad. I’m good leaving the past out of the present.
His gaze pivots over my shoulder, and he says, “Convenient.”
The word tumbles around my brain as I try to figure out what he’s referring to but comes up empty. Ah, we’re back to the games again. I’m grateful for the change in subject. “Convenient for you?”
A laugh launches out of him as he moves in to catch the tire. “I meant it was convenient for managing the other house. You know, with it being so close to your own.”
“Right.” I don’t have it in me to even feign I caught that. Thinking about the past always weighs me down, and it takes time to shake it off again. “I thought you were implying something else.”
“What would that be?”
“I’m not falling for it this time, Sutton.”
He laughs again. “Close proximity is good,too,” he concedes. Daniel Sutton is too handsome for his own good. He drops innuendos like bombs at my feet and seems to know just how to rile me up and make me smile. The last time someone was able to do even half of those, I got my heart broken. I need to be careful with him. He’s dangerous in more ways than just my willpower. “For emergencies, of course.”
My smile returns so easily that it’s there before I realize my mood has shifted again. “Of course.”
Holding the ropes, he helps Roman jump off into the grass. His son iscute with the same hair and eye color as his dad. But freckles sprinkle across his nose, and his smile must favor his mom more. It’s not smirky like his dad’s. I sneak a peek at Daniel to confirm.
Yep, the smirkiest of the smirky.
It’s even worse when he busts me looking. “You okay?”
“Fine,” I reply as nonchalantly as I can, which sounds suspiciously chalant to my ears. “You?” I squeak, wishing I would have kept my mouth shut.
His grin splits his smile wide open for me. It’s the most genuine I’ve seen out of him. And does quite a doozy of a job of weakening my knees. I don’t fall for him—literally and figuratively. Though it’s darn tempting, almost like he was put in my path by Aphrodite herself.
