Page 104 of Small Town, Big Storm

Then her face clears, the fear that had been clinging to it disappearing in a flash before she nods sagely.

“Custody agreements,” she says and looks over at me.“I can stay at your and Rain’s house sometimes, but I really like my own room.”

Poppy jerks, her eyes widening.

But this time I step in beforeshecan speak.

“Hey, peanut.Who’s not a peanut,” I add before she can tell me she’s not a legume.“There’s no need for you to give up your room.You’ll stay with your mom and we’ll get to know each other, okay?”

She presses her lips together.

Nods.

Poppy exhales softly.

“And anyway, Rain and I are remodeling our house.It’s not a fun place to sleep at right now.It’s loud and dusty and bathtubs fall through ceilings.”

Poppy jerks again, her eyes widening further.

“Does that mean you’re going to sleep at our apartment till it gets better?”

Poppy opens her mouth.

But the bit of devil that always lives inside me, the bit of devil that wants to tease Poppy, wants to make her crazy and then kiss her until her outraged expression becomes something softer rules this moment.

“Yeah, peanut-who’s-not-a-peanut,” I say.“I’ll sleep at your apartment until bathtubs no longer fall through ceilings.”

“’Kay,” Holly says and goes back to skipping.

Poppy stays crouched beside me for a moment longer.Then shakes her head, exhaling heavily before she mutters, “How many bathtubs do you have in that house?”

“One,” I admit.“But that’s beside the point.”

Her eyes flare and her gasp of outrage is loud.

And kissing that indignation off her lips is just as good as I imagine.

“Higher!”Shep demands and I sigh.

But it’s only because Poppy giggles and obliges my annoying ass teammate’s order that I don’t shove his ass off the swing.

Why he’s here is obvious—he found out about Holly last night at the bar…and after being put to work at the house today by Rain (and giving me no little amount of shit about “missing awholechild”), he decided he needed to meet my daughter.

And—of fucking course—she loves him.

Christ.

“I want to go higher too!”Holly says, doing some demanding of her own.

I chuckle and oblige, same as Poppy obliges Shep.Though I do it muttering, “When did we become the servants around here?”

“Around the same time a certainprincess”—I snort when she indicates Shep—“demanded we get ice cream even though we already had it once today.”

“Not bubblegum,” Holly, Shep, and I all say together.

Poppy throws up her hands.“What the heck is it with everyone and freaking bubblegum ice cream!”

“It’s the best,” Shep says matter-of-factly.