AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Not really. A little sad for Colin, I guess.”
“Then tell me. It’ll kill some time,” she said, swirling her bare feet in the water.
“It was a one-night stand. I was young. She was younger. I didn’t find out about Colin until he was nearly a year old and in foster care.”
Katie made a displeased sound in the back of her throat. “That is sad,” she murmured.
I laughed. “Well, Colin doesn’t remember it and I barely remember his mother, so we’re doing okay. What about you? No boyfriend?”
She stared at me. “Do you think I’d be here with you at this wedding if I had a boyfriend?”
“I don’t know. Stranger things have happened.”
“No boyfriend,” she muttered. “Not since Toby.”
“He really did a number on you, didn’t he?” I said softly, and Katie looked away, down at her feet in the water.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” she said flatly.
Colin dog-paddled his way over to us and started to tickle Katie’s feet in the water and she squealed, jumping in after him and pretending to be a shark.
I smiled at them, a warmth spreading in my chest. It felt like some kind of weight was lifted seeing how good she was with Colin. I wasn’t surprised, knowing she was a teacher, but I didn’t often meet women who were good with kids, for whatever reason.
Maybe I was going after the wrong women.
I’d never thought much about Colin needing a mom. I shook my head, trying to escape the notion. That would cause a big change in both our lives, and we didn’t need that. We were doing quite well on our own, and Colin had Alice and his other nannies providing a motherly presence.
After a while I looked down at my watch and saw that it was almost time for Colin’s nap as he and Katie continued to play in the water.
“Almost time to get out,” I yelled, and Colin screeched something back at me, giggling as Katie splashed him.
“Nap time, buddy,” Katie said helpfully, and I smiled at her, grateful.
“No naps! No naps! No naps!” Colin chanted as Katie chuckled and grabbed him up out of the water, throwing him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
He giggled, letting Katie carry him out of the pool and I took my soaking wet son from her, loving how well they were getting along already.
The three of us walked back to our room and I got Colin showered and into bed.
“You’re coming to the dinner party with me,” I told Katie. She responded at first with a blank look then said, “Of course. I go where you go, remember?”
I grinned at her, noting the apathetic expression she had on her face. She hadn’t cracked a smile all day, except for when she was playing with Colin.
“Listen, I want to thank you for your help with Colin earlier. He can be a real handful, so when people are kind to him it really means a lot to me,” I said, and I wasn’t just saying it trying to get her to smile. I was being honest. I had been told by other women before that Colin was a brat.
Katie smiled softly, a real smile, and it made my heart do a backflip in my chest. That time, it wasn’t a feeling of triumph for having something Toby wanted, but a genuine warm feeling.
Uh-oh. I might be in trouble.
A few hours later, I was once again, waiting for Katie. I hummed and tapped my foot, looking at my watch. We were going to be late, and I was starting to get slightly annoyed. Alice was feeling better and she came by and collected Colin, so we had the night to ourselves.
I couldn’t wait to see the look on Toby’s face when I brought in Katie once again on my arm.
After another fifteen minutes, I knocked on her door.
“We’re going to be late,” I called. Katie opened the door, and my breath caught in my throat.
She was wearing a little black backless dress that showed off the freckles on her toned shoulders and the long lines of her curvy back. Her big brown eyes were lined with dark blue liner, making them pop, and the nude lipstick on her lips accentuated her full mouth making her lookverykissable.
