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“Probably. I mean, short of a miracle, definitely. But fuck him, Indie. If you feel an ounce of sympathy for that bastard—”
I interject, cutting her off. “I don’t. I’m asking because he’s Nolan’s father.”
There’s a moment of silence before she says, “Yeah.”
Usually, she’s the one who builds me up. Who convinces me I can do the hard things. But this time, I don’t need her to remind me. All I have to do is picture Nolan’s little face, and I know I’ll find a way through this. Though I never planned for my son to grow up without his father, I’m not spending a single second crying about it.
Dean wasn’t a great dad anyway. If I have to learn how to change tires and dribble a basketball so I can teach my son, I will.
“That’s that, then,” I say, pulling my towel down from its spot over the shower door and wrapping it around my body before stepping out of the shower.
“You okay?” Rue asks as she turns to face me, her tone doubtful.
“I’m good,” I say, meaning it. “And as soon as those papers are signed, I’ll be even better.”
“My style?” Pike asks later that afternoon as we chat over the phone. “I don’t think I have a style.”
I take a bunch of pens from the box I bought earlier and put them in the old coffee mug that’s serving as a pen holder on the small desk I set up in my bedroom. It’s my home office, now complete with the laptop Cynthia gave me and the stapler I snagged from Rue’s junk drawer.
“Maybe you just don’t know it yet, in terms of art and furniture,” I tell Pike. “You definitely have a style for yourself.”
He laughs. “What’s my style?”
“I’d say hot biker slash athlete slash bad boy.”
His deep laugh gives me butterflies; it also kind of turns me on at the same time. All these new feelings are amazing, yet also scary.
“So you think I’m hot?”
I smile. “That seems to be the consensus. I did some internet research on you, and you were voted Most Likely to Drop Panties in a poll about pro athletes last year.”
“Wow, so you’re looking me up online, too? I think I’ve got myself a little stalker.”
This time, his flirtatious tone makes me bristle. “I looked you up because you hired me in a professional manner and I need to learn more about your tastes and lifestyle. I hope you actually hired me though because you want some tasteful art for your home, and not because you feel sorry for me.”
There’s a pause on the other end of the line before he says, “Feel sorry for you? What’s to feel sorry for?”
“I just…you actually do want art for your house, right?”
“Yeah, of course I do. It still looks like I just moved in a couple weeks ago, and I’ve been here for almost a year now. Pretty much every room has blank walls.”
“Okay,” I say, relieved. “Can I come by sometime and take a look?”
“Yeah, of course. Would you be able to help me pick out furniture, too?”
I hesitate, then remember that I can always ask Cynthia for help if I need it. “Sure, I can do that.”
“Great. So when I’m not on the road, afternoons are good for me. And my mom, sister, and niece are visiting for a few more days, so you might meet them, too.”
I’m still for a second, warmed by the thought of his family visiting him in his home. I don’t think Pike Morgan is a bad boy at all. He’s actually sweet and grounded. Since I’m nowhere close to ready to have feelings for a man again, I’d better not see him with his niece. If he’s good with children, I’ll be a goner.
“Let’s wait until your family leaves,” I say. “Just spend time with them and I’ll come by after.”
“It’s no problem, really. You could come by for dinner one night; my sister’s a good cook.”
He’s proud of his sister, and it sounds like they’re close. Ugh, I can’t help but think he’s too amazing as I try to push the feelings he makes me feel aside.
“Next week,” I say, settling it. “What day would be good for you?”
“Let’s see…Wednesday? You can come by at noon to look at the house and we can get lunch after?”
“Perfect.”
“Now that we got the business stuff out of the way, how’s your day going?” he asks.
“It’s finally setting in that I don’t have to go back to Just Brew It, so it’s a great day. What about you?”
“I’m tired. Didn’t sleep well on the road trip.”
“You could take a nap.”
“I would, but my niece Jasmine wants to go do something. She loves the Hoover Dam so we might go do the tour again.”
And those feelings I keep trying to push aside burst right through my barriers. There’s something about Pike doing what his niece wants to do, even when he’s tired, that I find very sexy.
