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“Okay.” Mom looks at me, her head tilted contemplatively. “Are you and Scarlett—?”
“No.” I hold up a hand, stopping her and this conversation from going any further. “We’re not copulating, or anyth—”
“What’s copulating?” Chloe asks, stepping outside. The screen door slams shut behind her. I’ve asked her a million times to close the door so it doesn’t slam. Clearly, my words have gone in one ear and out the other.
“Christ.” I look up at the sky and pray for patience to deal with my family. “Nothing you need to worry about.”
“I’m gonna go check on the potatoes and tell your dad and aunt and uncle that the food is almost ready.” Mom gives me a good-luck-with-Chloe look before slipping through the back door.
“Fine, don’t tell me, I’ll just look it up later on the iPad,” Chloe says, causing Scooter’s eyes to widen, and Dean to choke on his beer.
I level her with my best firm-dad look. “Chloe.”
She holds up her hands. “I’m kidding. Hey, Uncle Dean. Hi, Scooter,” she says, giving Dean a hug.
Dean was a big help when Chloe was little and has always been like a second dad to her. I’m grateful that she’s stayed close to him as she’s gotten older, and I know he appreciates it, too.
“How’s it going, kiddo?” Dean kisses the side of her head.
“Good.”
“You’re getting so big.”
“Dad says I look just like my mom.”
My heart stutters inside my chest. I always try to answer Chloe’s questions about her mom as best as I can because Valerie is a sore subject with me. She left our little girl without a mother, and that’s something I can’t get past.
Dean looks at me before dragging his eyes back to Chloe. “Your mom was beautiful,” he says, tucking Chloe’s hair behind her ear. “Won’t be long, and your dad will be fighting the boys away with a stick.”
“You don’t have a boyfriend, yet, do you?” Scooter asks.
Chloe blushes and shakes her head. “No, but I have my first dance on Friday.”
Shit, I forgot about that.
“Wow. Your first dance.” Scooter grabs his beer and sits back in the lounge chair. He takes a pull from his bottle and stares off at the sky. “Next thing we know, you’ll be off to college and getting married.”
“Whoa,” I say, shaking my head. “One thing at a time. I’m not ready for her to grow up quite that fast. And speaking of your dance, what’re you going to wear?”
“You promised you’d take me shopping. We’re running out of time, Dad.”
“You have a ton of dresses in your closet. Can’t you wear one of them?”
Chloe looks at me like I’ve grown a second head. “No. I need a new one. And matching shoes. Everyone has seen those dresses, Dad. And most of them are for little girls anyway.”
“You are a little girl,” I remind her, only to be given the preteen scowl I’ve come to know and hate.
“This is why I refuse to ever have a daughter,” Scooter announces. “Too high-maintenance.”
“Oh, come on, I’m good for all sorts of stuff.”
“Like what?”
“Well, I’m perceptive.” Chloe taps her finger to her lips, thinking it over.
“Do you even know what that means?” Scooter asks.
“Yes, but the real question is, do you?”
Dean and I bust up laughing. I love my girl. She’s smart as a whip. She gets her good looks from her mom, but every other thing about Chloe is all me.
“Good one.” Scooter finishes off his beer and sets it on the ground beside his chair. “But I’m going to need you to back it up. Tell me something about your dad that I can use against him later.”
Chloe grins. “Dad likes Scarlett.”
“We all like Scarlett. Tell me something I don’t know.”
“He likes her, likes her. He almost kissed her last night.”
“What?” Scooter flies up in his seat, and Dean’s jaw drops.
“Chloe.” When did my daughter turn on me? And why was I so careless when she was close by last night? I’ve always kept other women out of Chloe’s life, and I sure as hell haven’t brought one home. She’s never even seen me hold a woman’s hand. “I didn’t almost kiss her.”
Chloe shrugs. “That’s what it looked like to me. You don’t have to be embarrassed, Dad. I like her. If you want to kiss her, you can. I approve.”
Scooter pats the chair next to him. “Tell me everything.”
“Well, when I ran outside, Dad was holding Scarlett’s cheek, and their faces were really close together. Like, super close. He was totally gonna kiss her.”
“Chloe, go inside and tell your grandma and Aunt Laura that I’m pulling the burgers off the grill.”
“Fine.” She huffs but knows better than to argue with me.
“Chloe, be a dear and grab me another beer before you go back inside.”
I kick Scooter’s chair. “Get it yourself. My daughter isn’t your maid.”
