She looks up at me with a grin that is hiding something, I can tell. “Sure am. I will take her for lunch to celebrate her day, and then Autumn is coming for dinner and cake with the boys too. Then I’ve decided the boys can have a sleepover here with me, and she can just stay at your place when you get home from the bar.” The twinkle in her eye tells me she sees what’s been going on around here, and she is trying to do her own bit of matchmaking. For her age, Mrs. B is not an old-fashioned, stuffy lady like some of the other neighbors.
She continues, “She’ll be drunk, and I don’t want her waking the boys up. Plus, it will give me a chance to spoil them as a treat. It will make it easier when Poppy heads home if they get used to sleepovers at my house, then I can help you out on the weekends.”
I just grin down at her, tucked under my arm as she is so short. “I can’t impose on your life like that. You already help so much with the boys, and I’m not delusional, I know they are a handful on a good day.”
“Nonsense, I want to spend time with them. When Poppy arrived in my life that day, I was blessed they chose me to be her mom. My husband had not long died in a work accident, so like you, I was just struggling to survive those first few years of her life while she was growing up, and I feel like I missed so much. Having the boys around brings back so many memories of happy times with my girl that you would be doing me a favor. With herso far away, I worry a lot, especially after this last breakup, so keeping busy helps stop me from worrying so much. I know she’s all grown up and, good grief, about to turn thirty, but to me she is still like those two little faces there are to you. She is my whole world.” She lifts the hem of her apron and dabs the corner of her eye, and I know exactly what she means.
“Oh, silly me, enough of the melancholy.” She straightens up and pulls herself together.
“Anyway, what makes you think she will get drunk in my bar?” I very gently elbow her in the side to get her smiling again.
“Because I’m giving you permission to keep serving her enough drinks so she has the best time possible, singing, dancing, and making memories. That’s what birthdays are about, going out and havingfun.” Her emphasis on the word fun as she walks away has me worried. How much does this woman know about her daughter and me?
As she joins in the goofy photos with the others, it dawns on me what she said about Poppy and her being chosen to have her. And that her husband had died before Poppy was born.
Is Poppy adopted?
Not that it matters, she just never mentioned it. But I suppose it’s because we are trying to keep some distance for when this is over.
It’s not like this thing between us is going to be more than a holiday fling. Because it’s not like Santa will be leaving her under my tree as a present to keep.
“Don’t even go there,”I tell myself as the visions of her lying under my tree, naked in those candy-cane socks, start dancing in my head.
What have they done to me? These twelve days of Christmas are like a spell that turns even the hardened grump into someone who can’t wait for more cheer.
Suddenly it hits me.
Wednesday, I get a whole night with Poppy all to myself.
No kids, no responsibilities, just her and me, naked and fucking until we can’t fuck anymore.
Happy dirty thirty, my little temptress.
Chapter Seven
POPPY
“Ican’t get drunk!” I insist to Autumn as we take out coats off and hand them over to the cloak room.
“Mhmm.” She giggles, taking my arm as we walk into the bar area.
“No, I mean it. I’m not going home with Landon to spend the night with him holding my hair up while I’m hugging the toilet bowel,” I say loudly enough that she will hear me.
She stops and freezes in the middle of the room, spinning around and grabbing me by the shoulders. “Back the truck back up. What do you mean you are staying the night with Landon? Have you been holding out on me?” Autumn’s death stare tells me she’s about to go ballistic.
I didn’t mean to tell her, for this exact reason.
“You knew the boys were having a sleepover at Mom’s house, they told you at least ten times over dinner,” I say, trying to deflect from me.
“Yes, but in no part of that conversation was it mentioned that you were also having a sexy sleepover with L—” Her voice isgetting louder, and just as she is about to say Landon’s name, I slap my hand over her mouth.
“Don’t you dare say his name. This man has been fending off the women in this bar for the last few years with success. We don’t want to give them any ideas that he is now on the market.” Although technically he is, just not until I leave. If I only get one shot of being with him, then he is off limits for anyone else tonight.
I can feel her lips moving into a smile under my hand. Removing it, I look at her with this huge grin.
“Protective much? Are you sure this isn’t more than a bit of fun?” Autumn knows she’s pushing my buttons, but she doesn’t care. “It’s okay to admit that you have a thing for that man on the other side of the bar who hasn’t taken his eyes off you since you stepped into the room.”
“Even if I did, there is no point to it. We both know that. Now, it’s my birthday, and you were the one who insisted we come out and celebrate, so let’s get on with doing that.” Giving her a quick hug, we head to the bar and stand in line to be served. As soon as a gap appears in front of the bar and we step into it, one of the young bartenders is about to take our order, when a gruff voice yells to him.
