Page 35 of Falling Back to You

Juliet would absolutely have something to say about it. Noelle’s leaving crushed her, too.

My sister tilted her head. “You don’t want to tell me?”

“Smart man,” Myles muttered.

A gleam lit Juliet’s eyes, and she wiggled, trying to tickle Myles’s ribs, but his reflexes were faster. He banded his arms around her waist, trapping her against him, baby bump and all.

“Use your words, Peach,” he said huskily, leaning towards her.

She melted into him with a big ol’ smile and giggled. Giggled! “Which one?”

They were four seconds away from making out, and I didn’t need that visual. I’d been scarred enough in that department. Not even Mario Kart was a sacred no-kissing space anymore. Couldn’t this elevator go any faster? “Uh, still here, guys. Go be mushy in thirty-seven seconds once I’m not in your general vicinity.”

Because my little sister was who she was and delighted in torturing my life, she did kiss Myles. But she kept it short . . . ish. Hallelujah. She flashed me a smirk, and Myles, ignoring my frown, kept his arms around her. No doubt to prevent further tickling attempts—he was ridiculously ticklish for such a big dude.

“If you don’t have someone in mind, I do,” Juliet said.

“A blind date?” I croaked. Was this what I wanted? Juliet’s help, yes. Juliet’s help without my direct supervision? Might be risky.

Look at what agreeing to a blind photo shoot with Ruby got me.

The headache of a lifetime.

Juliet pursed her lips. “Yes.”

Half of me regretted opening my mouth. That was the downfall of being a verbal processor. I liked to talk about my decisions before making them, which was hard to do as a solo parent. Khia was young, and Mrs. Pickles wasn’t a great communicator on the best of days. Rosie Cotton was moderately more understanding, but she was still just a dog.

Though given her eloquent side-eye glances, I swore she understood me. And she always agreed it was time for ice cream. Couldn’t get a better test of intelligence than that.

The other half of me held on to a twinge of hope that maybe this new endeavour was okay. Baby steps, right?

“And this woman will understand that I’m a single dad and—”

“Do you really think I’d set you up with someone who wasn’t okay with kids?” Juliet scowled. “Trust me, this girl will be the perfect practice date for you.”

“You sound like my mother trying to put me on a playdate,” I grumbled.

Myles snorted, covering it with a dry cough.

“Thanks a lot, man.” I stepped off the elevator. “Two things, squirt.” Juliet’s nostrils flared, but I forged ahead. “You have to run this woman past Myles.” I fixed him with a look, pointing at him for good measure. “Don’t let me down.”

He chuckled, and Juliet sighed. “Fine. And what’s the second thing?”

“It can’t be in Serenity Springs or with a local woman. I don’t want this all over the news.”

Juliet snapped her fingers. “Consider it done. You can trust me.”

Ha, the last time I’d done that she’d stolen my secret ice cream stash from under my nose because of pregnancy cravings. Oh well. The baby had good taste at least, and trusting her was a risk I’d have to take.

Famous last words.

Chapter twelve

Cal

Day eleven of no promising nanny prospects, and now I had to leave town.

No, I wasn’t running away from my ex. The Chargers had back-to-back games in Nashville. But I’d be lying if I wasn’t glad of the opportunity to clear my head. It also put me in a completely different time zone from Ruby and her schemes.