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I wanted him to stay. I wanted to keep talking about my worries and fears and our dreams and desires in front of the fireplace while we sipped wine. It felt great to have someone to talk to, to have their support. And there was something else there, simmering just under the surface, an attraction, a desire for more.
I wanted him. I wanted to lose myself in him, no matter how irresponsible it was.
CHAPTER8
MAC
Every time I walked through the family room at the B&B, I remembered the night I shared a glass of wine with Natalie on the couch. I liked listening to her concerns and fears, but the overriding urge was to kiss her.
That’s why I drained my glass and got out of there. She was a single mom with this renovation on her hands. She didn’t have time for a distraction. Besides, I wasn’t the guy she’d settle down with in the end. It never worked out for me, and it wasn’t likely to now.
At the door, in a moment of weakness, I touched her hair, and it was just as soft as I’d imagined. I’d wanted to pull her into my body and feel her pressed against me. But I didn’t give in to temptation. I didn’t want to take the chance that she wasn’t over her ex.
I didn’t feel great about walking away, but that didn’t stop me from avoiding her. Every time I thought about talking to her, or wanted her company, I reminded myself why women never chose me in the end.
I headed upstairs to the bathroom, desperate to work in solitude so I could escape my thoughts. But at the end of the hall, I drew up short, because Delaney was sitting on the deep windowsill, her knees bent as she hugged them tightly.
I hesitated, unsure what to do. Was she looking for a second to herself, or was she upset? I wasn’t sure whether I should stay or get her mother. Before I could decide, she looked up. Her eyes glimmered with tears.
I sat gingerly on the other edge of the window. “Is everything okay?”
She looked at a paper on the windowsill between us that I hadn’t noticed until now. I picked it up gingerly, unsure what I’d find. What would get a nine-year-old this upset?
It was a school flyer about a daddy-daughter dance. You could bring a dad, a grandfather, or any special person in your life. “Do you want to go?” I asked tentatively, nervous about stepping into an emotional minefield.
She nodded and bit her lip.
“Is your dad—” I couldn’t finish that sentence because I knew the answer. As long as Delaney and Natalie had been living here, he’d never visited. I never heard them talk about him. It was like he didn’t exist.
“I called to ask him, but he said he was too busy to travel.” Her voice was rough from the emotion clogging her throat.
My heart broke for her. “Does your mom know?”
Delaney shook her head slowly. “I haven’t talked to her yet.”
“You should. Moms are good at this stuff.” That was a Band-Aid because I wasn’t sure how to handle this situation, and it was Natalie’s place to say the right things, not me. No one could replace her father, and she’d always feel the sting of that abandonment. I hated that I couldn’t erase that for her.
“And your grandfathers?”
“They live so far away. I couldn’t ask them to travel to see me.”
“That’s sweet of you to consider that.” She was empathetic for such a young child, but then maybe she was getting used to giving others around her excuses.
“It says you can bring any special person.” I read from the paper, trying to think of the right thing to say.
“Would you go with me?” For the first time, her eyes cleared, and her shoulders lowered.
There was only one answer, and it felt right in my soul. “Are you sure you want me to be your special person?”
She nodded as she swiped the tears away.
My heart contracted at her response. “You know, you could take your mother.”
“There’s already an event for mothers and daughters. Besides, everyone’s going to be there with their dads.”
“You know you’re not the only one in this situation,” I said gently.
Her lips quivered.
