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She did her best to ignore the passing minutes while filling a small cooler with snacks and drinks before carrying it out to the truck. She took her time loading a couple of folding chairs in the back, reminded Ian not to get too close to the road, then went inside to use the bathroom one last time.
On her way back out, her gaze automatically shifted to the clock on the stove.
7:34.
Her chest tightened as she locked up and headed out to the garage. Ian was still dribbling his soccer ball back and forth across the driveway, the early morning sunshine making his blond hair look almost white. She squinted upward. They were calling for thunderstorms later, but right now there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.
She waited one last extra minute, playing with the zipper on her light-weight, navy hoodie before unclenching her jaw to call it. “Scoob, we gotta go.”
He checked the street one more time. When she saw his shoulders slump before he leaned down to swipe up his ball, the resentment simmering in her gut bubbled up. She was mad at Merit and herself. She shouldn’t have let her foolish, lonely heart get her hopes up.
Her disappointed little boy turned to walk toward their truck at the same moment a familiar red SUV turned the corner. Mae’s pulse jerked, and the frantic beat of her heart shortened her breath. After sucking in some oxygen to calm her nerves, she called out, “Hey, look, here he comes now.”
Ian whipped around with a huge grin. “I knew he’d come!”
Mae held back her own smile as Merit turned into her driveway. He grinned at her son jumping up and down while waving like a lunatic, and rolled down his window.
“Ian, my man. You look like you’re ready to score a goal.”
“I am.”
“Awesome. Nice jersey.”
Her little boy puffed out his chest in the red and white jersey with Lockhart Construction printed on the top left. “Mom sponsored our team this year.”
“That’s pretty cool.”
Merit’s comment gave her a little thrill of pride. It was where her lawnmower fund had gone when their usual sponsor unexpectedly backed out. She hated fixing the mower, but she’d keep doing it for the kids.
He then shifted his gaze to her, and his smile dimmed slightly. “Sorry I’m late. The line at the coffee shop took longer than I expected.”
And just like that, her pleasure at seeing him fled.
Long line, or did you get caught up flirting with Lyssa?
She bit back the sarcastic question and turned Ian toward the truck. “Go get buckled in.”
“I can drive,” Merit offered.
“Our stuff is already loaded in the truck.”
She watched him watch Ian. The bright sunlight glinted off his dark hair that appeared to have only been finger-combed. He hadn’t bothered to shave either, and the dark layer of scruff gave him a rugged, sexy air and set off butterflies in her stomach.
There was a smear of orange just below his left earlobe, but before she could figure out what it was, he shifted his gaze back to her. The angle of the sunlight turned his eyes luminescent, and the hypnotizing effect of his dark lashes and brows with the warm, caramelly brown of his irises almost made her forget she was annoyed.
“Thanks for waiting for me,” he said.
“I waited for Ian, not you.”
His gaze narrowed, flicking toward her truck, and then back to her. “Okay, then. You lead. I’ll follow.”
It was stupid to take two vehicles. However, knowing he stopped for coffee from his booty call before coming to see her and Ian, she didn’t feel inclined to correct him.
“By the way, I got you a cup.” He reached toward his console and then held it out the window to her. “I don’t know how you take it, so I got cream and sugar on the side.”
“Pregnant women aren’t supposed to…” Her voice faltered when her brain registered the black and red Java Hut logo on the cup. Not Brew For You. “Have caffeine,” she finished.
“Oh. Shit. I didn’t know that.” He pulled it back.
