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Of course, the sight of Kayla walking out in her black one-piece was a reminder that the man he wanted to be remained bedeviled by hormones.
* * *
AT FIVE O’CLOCK Jackson headed into the house. Flora had gone to dinner and a movie with her sister, but she’d left fajita makings in the refrigerator. He started the gas barbecue on the patio and put two griddles over the grill. Soon the scent of seasoned meat and vegetables wafted through the air and he grinned when the kids appeared as if drawn by a magnet.
“That smells fantabulous,” DeeDee breathed.
Fantabulous was one of her favorite words, being a relatively recent addition to the English language. She’d proudly showed him it wasn’t in his older dictionary, but had been included in a newer one used by Morgan. Her dream was to have the same thing happen with some of her own words.
“Can we help?” Sandy Keller asked, prodding Alex with an elbow so he stepped forward, as well.
“Sure, you can get the sour cream and other toppings in the fridge,” Jackson replied.
He tossed a mixture of soy chicken and veggies on the second grill, impressed with his son’s taste in best friends. Sandy Keller was smart, lively and unafraid to voice her opinions. It was also clear that the two friends were on the verge of becoming something more.
“How can you resist this?” Sandy asked twenty minutes later, waving a plate piled with steak, peppers and onions under Alex’s nose. “Don’t be too stubborn to admit you want some.”
Alex made a face. “Okay,” he grumbled, “I’ll have a little.”
Jackson swallowed a laugh. Curious, he scooped some of the grilled protein substitute and vegetables onto a tortilla and ate a bite. The taste was pleasant and the texture wasn’t bad.
“What do you think?” Alex asked.
“It’s all right. I wouldn’t mind eating it part of the time.”
“Yeah, but DeeDee is right about pepperoni pizza. No pepperoni is the worst,” Alex said vehemently.
“Don’t they make a soy substitute?”
“Mom hasn’t found one I like. You know, she’s been pretty cool about the vegetarian thing.”
“That must have helped,” Jackson said, secretly thrilled. It was the closest thing to a normal conversation he’d ever shared with Alex.
* * *
KAYLA TRIED NOT to watch Morgan interacting with Alex and DeeDee and their friends, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. It must have been awful for her, worrying about whether Jackson was really her dad, and if he’d still love her if he wasn’t.
Sometimes Kayla wondered how anyone survived adolescence.
The fajitas were delicious, but Jackson shrugged off her compliments, saying Flora had left everything ready for the grill. Apparently despite his decided chauvinistic tendencies, he didn’t have a problem with cooking himself...as long as it was over a fire.
You’re buying into the stereotypes you hate, Kayla scolded herself, though she’d only seen him with barbecue utensils in hand. Of course, since he had the money to hire a housekeeper, being able to cook wasn’t a big deal.
“Can we go for a ride tomorrow?” Keri asked. “I know how.”
“Sandy rides, too,” Alex added. “Is that okay, Jackson?”
Jackson glanced at Kayla and she nodded. “Their parents told me it was fine.”
“Okay,” he said. “We have more than enough horses.”
The next morning Kayla saw how carefully Jackson evaluated how comfortable the two newcomers were on the mounts he’d selected for them. He finally seemed satisfied and waved them out.
Being alone with Jackson again made her uneasy considering what they’d done the last time, so she walked to a chaise under a tree in the front yard and settled down with a book.
“Trying to avoid me?” Jackson asked as he dragged a chair next to her.
“Trying to avoid repeating mistakes,” she told him bluntly.
“Oh, well, I wanted to ask you something. That is, Sandy isn’t quite what I expected.”
Kayla raised her eyebrows at him. “What did you expect?”
“I don’t know. You talked about them being best friends and Sandy being forthright on feminist issues, so I figured she’d be more of a tomboy.”
“You mean a kid with no chest, wearing jeans and a striped T-shirt?” Yet instead of being annoyed that Jackson had pigeonholed Sandy based on a few innocent comments, Kayla thought it was funny. A whole lot of things were getting turned upside down for him.
“Yeah, I suppose. It’s just that Sandy is smart and pretty and I...uh...it looks as if she and Alex could become more than buddies.”
“That’s no secret, except maybe to them.”
