Page 54 of Jay Bird

Then she had made dinner. It was nothing fancy, just spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread and a small salad that, apparently, she was the only one truly interested in eating.

Lily had made it through approximately half a meatball before exhaustion finally won.

The poor kid had literally fallen asleep at the table. One second she was still chewing, and the next her eyes had drifted shut as her little body started to tip forward.

If Jay Bird hadn’t caught her forehead with his palm, Lily would’ve nose-dived straight into her spaghetti.

Both Willow and Jay Bird had laughed.

After a bath, which had been less amusing because an overtired two-year-old apparently considered shampoo a personal attack, Lily had been dressed, tucked into bed with Ellie, and asleep before Willow finished pulling the blanket over her.

Jay Bird had cleaned the kitchen despite Willow insisting she could do it, then disappeared into his office.

And Willow had escaped out here because she needed quiet—needed a few moments alone to let her mind catch up and convince itself that everything she’d learned today was actually real.

Her gaze moved over Jay Bird’s backyard. And because she couldn’t help herself, she started mentally landscaping it, already picturing how a pool would look, with a patio space around it, and some flowers and foliage to give more character.

The sound of the patio door opening had her looking over her shoulder.

“So this is where you disappeared to,” Jay Bird said, stepping outside.

She smiled as he walked toward the empty chair beside her and sat down.

“You’re judging it again,” he said with a slightly amused tone.

Willow laughed. “I’m just admiring the view.”

“Uh-huh.”

“I am.”

“You’re mentally planting flowers.”

She nearly choked on her tea. “How did you know?”

He gave her a sarcastic look. “I’ve seen that look several times, and you’ve only been here two days.”

Willow laughed again. “Okay, fine. But seriously.” She gestured toward the property. “Look at this yard.”

“I’m looking.”

“No, really look at it. What could you see out there?”

His eyebrows pulled together, and Willow bit back a smile. He looked kind of cute when he did that, though she would never, ever admit it to him.

His gaze moved slowly over the property. “I wouldn’t mind a pool. But I don’t really entertain, though.”

Jay Bird shrugged, his gaze drifting toward the right side of the yard. “A playset would look good over there.”

Willow’s head snapped towards him. “A playset? For who?”

He looked at her as though the answer were obvious. “Who else would benefit from a playset in this house? I mean, you could probably play on it, but I’m a little big for one.”

She smiled faintly, but something about the casual comment lodged itself somewhere near her heart.

A playset didn’t feel temporary. At least not the way it sounded when he said it.

“What do you see?” he asked her.