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A few rapid knocks distracted me from racing into the laundry room and I sprinted to the door, excitement and anxiety fueling every one of my movements.
“Hi, hey,” I said to Charlotte as she walked inside. Her golden eyes swept every corner of the room and found the windows, exits, and weapons before focusing on me. “God, that was hot.”
Startled wonder splashed over her features. “I did something… hot?”
“No, I just—”Way to fucking go, dude. Now you’re being weird.“Uh…”
“Charlotte!” Henry yelled from the kitchen. “Did you bring the knives? I found a huge stump out back. Come look at the garden. It’s so nice outside!”
He yanked Charlotte out of the living room, giving me a moment to collect myself. Thank the gods that kid was crazy about her. If he had picked up on whatever I said, he probably hadn’t understood it, and I hoped that he wouldn’t think too much about it. Or ask about it. Or reference it in any manner.
Kill me now.
If my kid ever found out I had a crush on a woman, I wouldn’t hear the end of it. Mostly because he would have too many questions about what liking a person meant.
And I already had so much to handle with researching the wars.
The humid air relaxed me slightly as I stepped into the yard behind Charlotte and Henry. In true kid fashion, he was talking her ear off about one of his special interests—grasshoppers and their chirping patterns—while helping her set up the stump. Though most adults might patronize Henry, Charlotte did quite the opposite, asking pertinent questions about everything he’s discovered and even posing theories for him to chew on.
He seemed to be falling in love with her.
My eyes went wide as I turned away.Nope, can’t let that happen. But when I looked back, I regretted the thought.
Because my son lookedhappy.
After watching him spend so many nights crying over the mother he never knew, I couldn’t deny him this moment. Not when it brought that beaming grin to his face.
“Hold the knife like this,” Charlotte instructed while positioning his fingers around the hilt. “That’s great, Henry! Nice and loose. Let it flow from you when you throw it. Give it a whirl…”
The resultingthwackof the dagger digging into the flesh of the stump inspired me. “Geeze, what a great shot, dude.”
I lingered behind them, giving them enough space to work. The air thickened with tension when Charlotte peered at me over her shoulder, affection pouring from her expression as she said, “Seems like he’s a natural. Like his father.”
“Nah, I was an awful shot.”
“You’re choosing now to be humble about it?” She chortled while returning her attention to Henry. After a few more instructions, she stepped back and let him freely throw the daggers. She crossed her arms over her chest and kept her eyes ahead as she whispered, “You’re so full of it.”
“I can change my mind, you know.”
She huffed. “You were so cocky about it at the inn. What changed?”
“You.”
It fell right from my lips as naturally as anything, yet its detonation would surely bring us all to our knees. Couldn’t I have just stuck to my guns about being the best?
“Is that so…” She hid her smile—but not so much that I couldn’t spot it. “Interesting.”
“You’re a good teacher,” I reasoned. “I mean, you’re a great instructor. I mean, I like the way you…” I coughed. “I might like how you do things.”
She wrinkled her nose at me. “Really?”
“I said, Imight, Lottie.”
“And I might like hearing you call me that.”
My face heated up as I retorted, “Yeah, you already said that.”
“Are you mad about it?”
