“You shush. I raised you all, I can steal a cookie here and there.” She swats at my chest. “Besides, it’s not my fault she made snickerdoodles for tomorrow. She knows that’s my favorite.”
I watch as she grabs three more, and I reach in to grab two. “Want a glass of milk to go with them?”
“A cookie date with my recluse boy? I one hundred percent want a glass of milk.” Her grin makes me feel bad for holing up the last couple of months in my cabin with the blog.
“You got it.” Grabbing a glass and filling it, I drop it in front of her before grabbing my own and joining her.
“Where were you so late tonight?” she asks.
“Lily May invited me over for dinner.” She raises a brow in my direction so I add, “Yes, Aubrey was okay with me coming over. She made pancakes while I helped Lily clean up.”
“Now I know that child’s bedtime, so again, where were you so late tonight?” She dunks her cookie into her glass of milk.
“Aubrey and I watched an episode of her show before she fell asleep on me. And then I left her when the snores got a little louder. Nothing nefarious, I promise.”
A slow smile spreads on her face. “I see.”
“Ma, don’t you go getting any ideas. We’re friends and planning the Easter event together. Tommy has passed that off to her and I. He wants to focus on planting.”
“Me? I never get ideas. I don’t know why you’re accusing me of such things.” She gets up walking our glasses to the sink. “She could use a good friend. She’s got some demons in that closet of hers from Jack that won’t let her go. So you just be careful with her heart, okay?”
“Promise. Can I walk you home?”
“Oh well, I would just love that.” I hold my arm out for her to take and we leave the kitchen as if we didn’t just raid the cookie jar.
I cannot contain the laughter, seeing Wyatt in a bunny costume. The man is a house, taking his role as a cover model in a police uniform seriously, so to see him trying to fit in this bunny costume is something that forces the laughter to bubble up.
Cooper is having just as hard a time as me watching him. Lily, however, is enamored. Although she has no idea who is inside the costume, she fully believes the Easter Bunny made a special trip to our farm.
Walking over to Cooper I let my arm brush against his when I lean in to whisper. “How pissed is Wyatt?”
“Pissed? No way. He’s loving this. I guarantee it. Plus, he’s already gotten at least four numbers from single moms who live nearby but not in town. His favorite type of woman.” He continues clicking away with the next family that steps up. “But that doesn’t mean you,” he adds.
Cooper has been taking it slow with me, letting me call the shots with what I’m ready for, and so far that’s just been hanging out for dinner and planning sessions. But every time I watch him with Lily, my ovaries could just explode and I’d be willing to have five more of his babies. Talking myself off the ledge of just jumping him has been difficult, but a necessary task.
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” I wink at him and move away to find Lily.
Walking the trail has me in my head. Whenever I’m around Cooper I want to throw caution to the wind and let myself fall into him. But that’s how Jack and I started… and Lily. Look where that got me, a widow with a four year old. And a lady hard-on for the guy next door.
“Mommy!” Lily’s little voice carries as she runs down the trail to me.
“Hey baby girl! What are you doing?”
“Hewping Aunty Aggie! She’s wetting me put the eggs!” I see her little basket full of pink eggs for the Three Little Pigs area.
“Lily May, I need my helper!” Aggie calls after her.
Her little hand slips into mine as we walk back to the area where she is hiding the pink eggs.
“How’s it going out on the trail today?” I ask.
“Great! We’ve been running around restocking all the eggs and someone should sleep real good tonight.” She nods at Lily who’s dropping eggs carefully set apart.
“Good, because I think someone else—” I point to myself “—will also sleep real good tonight.”
We both laugh because if something is able to wear Lily out, then an army of adults would be worn out too.
“Why don’t you let her have a little sleepover tonight? Then Mommy could get some well deserved sleep… and maybe a little private time with a certain photographer?”
