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“Right, sure.” Jeff’s eyes twinkled as he teased her.
Kia narrowed her eyes at him, then wrinkled her nose before turning to Max and making sure he was strapped into his booster seat properly. She leaned in for one last hug and kiss. “Have a great time, sweetie. I’ll see you tomorrow. Love you.”
“Love you too,” Max said absently as he fiddled with the controls on the armrest between the seats.
And just like that, she was forgotten. Ahh, the attention span of little boys. Kia closed the car door.
“He’s safe with me, Kia. I’m not going to let anything happen to him,” Jeff said, cutting through her introspection.
She shook off her thoughts and turned to him. “I know that. I wouldn’t let him stay overnight if I didn’t.”
“Good, just making sure.”
“Sorry, this isn’t about you. It’s just…” She paused. “It’s a big step. He’s only ever stayed with family overnight.”
Jeff’s jaw tightened. “I am family.”
“Shit.” She closed her eyes. “That didn’t come out right. I meant people he’s known forever.”
“Not really my fault that I just met him, Saskia.” Jeff’s jaw clenched like he was keeping his anger in check, and she winced again.
“Sorry. Shoot…just let me take my foot out of my mouth. What I meant was it’s hard for me to let him stay anywhere, including with my family, that’s all.”
Jeff’s tongue clicked against his teeth. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll see you tomorrow.”
Nicely done.As she watched him round the car and slide into the driver’s seat, a wave of sadness rushed through her. Why did it feel like she was being left behind? Shaking off her melancholy, she raised her hand and waved at Max in the backseat as the SUV pulled away from the sidewalk.
With a deep sigh, she strolled back inside. She glanced at the clock. Austin wouldn’t be there for their date for another couple of hours. How sad was it that Max had only been gone five minutes and already she felt lost? Maybe her sister was right, and she needed more alone time when she wasn’t on mommy duty.
Kia picked up her sketchbook and curled up on the couch and set an alarm on her phone. Over the years she’d learned, next to her son, nothing cured her of a bad mood better than drawing.
The buzzing on her phone pulled her attention off her sketch pad. Kia blinked and looked at the time. How could it already be 6:30 pm? She’d really been lost in drawing. Austin was going to be there in half an hour.
Setting her sketch book aside, she stood and stretched her back. She glimpsed her reflection in the mirror over the mantle and winced. Yikes. She was going to need every minute she had to make herself look presentable.
Kia switched on her curling iron as she walked past the bathroom on her way to get dressed. She stood in front of her closet and stared aimlessly inside. What did it say that she really didn’t want to go out with Austin tonight? They were lucky to see each other once a week, and going out on a date was even less frequent. Most of the time, their dates consisted of meeting Austin for coffee during the day while Max was at school because she didn’t like getting a sitter. Maybe that was why their relationship hadn’t progressed much over the past six months.
Reaching into the closet, she pulled out a pair of jeans and slipped into them. She chewed her bottom lip as she looked at her tops. What kind of vibe did she want for tonight? Realistically she should go for sexy, but what she really wanted to do was put her sweatshirt on and watch a movie. Maybe she should just cancel. It had to say something that for the first time in she didn’t know how long they had a night to themselves, and she was having a hard time getting pumped about it.
She pushed her hair off her face and grabbed a soft, long-sleeved shirt. The way it hung off her shoulder gave it a bit of an edge, but the fabric felt like loungewear. Pleased with her compromise, she pulled it over her head as she wandered toward the bathroom to do her hair.
The doorbell rang as she was putting the final touches on her makeup. With one last fluff of her hair, Kia walked to the front door and pulled it open.
Austin’s gaze swept over her body. “You look hot.” He leaned in and placed a kiss against her mouth. “You want to skip dinner and stay here?” His lips brushed against her neck.
Honestly, that was the last thing she wanted to do.
What was her issue? An image of Jeff popped into her mind.Stop that,she told herself. Being around Jeff had rattled her brain. That’s all that was. It didn’t mean anything.
Austin and she just needed some time alone on a date to get her mojo back. She placed her hand against his chest and pushed back. “Nope, I never get to go out, so I’m not missing it.”
“You sure?” He leaned back toward her, and she braced her hand against his chest.
“Yep. I got all dressed up.” She pretended to bat her eyelashes. “I need to be wined and dined.”
The dimple in Austin’s cheek deepened as he smirked at her. He really was a good-looking guy. What was her problem?
“Alright babe.” He glanced around the living room. “But Max is gone for the night, right?”
