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“I do, and I can get you his contact info. Any of you.”
All three of them shot questions at me, questions I was able to answer. Eventually conversation turned to other topics, beer changed to water, the food was nearly gone, and it was going on midnight. Luke needed to get home to relieve his father of childcare duty. Max had told his babysitter he’d be home by twelve too. While I had Quincy working tonight, I was ready to get home and check on my daughter and—I only admitted it to myself—I wouldn’t be upset if Quincy found her way into my bed.
Just the thought got my blood pumping.
As the three of us helped Chance with the mess, mostly empty food bowls and boxes, I said, “This was a good night. Thanks for including me.”
“Hey, we’re glad to have you,” Chance said. “We meet just about every Saturday night. I hope you’ll come next time.”
“I will,” I said without hesitation as we headed upstairs.
I might not be an avid football fan, I might suck at pool and be not much better at darts, but none of that mattered. Single fatherhood formed a bond between us the second I’d come in the door.
While my relationships with the Henry family were tentative, on the stressful side, and works in progress, and Quincy tied my thoughts up in goddamn knots, these guys were chill. This was good.
For possibly the first time since I’d come to Dragonfly Lake, these guys made me feel like I might belong here.
CHAPTER25
KNOX
Reality checks were a good thing even when they were painful.
I’d been hesitant when Quincy had suggested we ride to Nashville together and combine her campus orientation with my trip to the baby superstore. Quincy could be persuasive though, especially when we were in bed together sans clothes. I’d given in to her request embarrassingly easy.
The first Thursday in November was a beautiful late-fall day, and the trees along the highway and across the urban campus had slipped on their seasonal coats of amber, scarlet, and lava, with hunter-green and silver-green conifers sprinkled in. The sun shone brightly outside the window of a common area in the student union, where Juniper and I were waiting for Quincy to finish her morning sessions.
Next up was the last thing on her list—the dorm tour—which I’d agreed to accompany her on. Then we were meeting her older brother, Ryan, for lunch. I hadn’t let myself think too hard about that. I’d met her stepmother when I’d taken Juniper to Dr. Julian’s office, but that was because she was the receptionist, not because of my ties to Quincy. I hadn’t been introduced to anyone else in her family. That she’d spent every night in my room lately made the thought of meeting them uncomfortable.
I sat in a low-slung easy chair in a quiet corner. I’d spread a blanket on the carpeted floor for Juniper, who’d been content to sit and play with her toys after her snack. My attention was divided between people watching and watching my daughter at my feet.
One of June’s favorite toys was a plastic cube with shapes cut out from the top and matching blocks that fit through the openings. She’d started to figure out how to fit the pieces in, but half of her time was spent exploring them with her mouth. She had the yellow star, her favorite, in hand now, or rather in mouth. When she lost hold of the star, it rolled a few feet away.
I’d started to reach out and get it for her when she leaned forward and ended up on hands and knees, rocking like she sometimes did, her eyes on the star. I sat back, waiting to see what she would do.
Juniper, eyes still locked on that beloved star, put one hand forward, rocked for a second, then moved her leg, then her other hand, her other leg… Within seconds, my daughter was crawling, closing the three feet to the star. Her squeal of joy when she reached it, sat back on her behind, and picked it up matched the elation and pride in my heart at her milestone.
“Look at you, June Bug,” I said, leaning forward, making eye contact with my gleeful baby. I held my hands out to see if she’d crawl back my way.
She let out a happy shriek, the star tumbling from her hands and mouth again, but this time she didn’t care. Her avid eyes were locked on me as she crept toward me on shaky hands and knees. When she reached my feet, I scooped her up, cuddled her to my chest, and congratulated her with words and kisses, my heart overflowing.
I picked up the star and handed it to her, perched in the crook of my arm. She took it and happily obsessed over it some more.
Two minutes later, the auditorium door opened and several people filtered out, all of them in their twenties or younger. Quincy emerged, seeking us out, and I stood, still psyched about Juniper’s milestone. I held it in, though, looking forward to hearing how her advising and introduction sessions had gone.
“There’s Quincy,” I told Juniper, who broke out into a big smile as soon as she spotted her nanny. “Hey,” I said as Quincy reached us. “How was it?”
Quincy was all grins. “Good. The people seemed to legitimately like their jobs, which says a lot, and I got tons of information. Plus classes. I’m all enrolled.” She dragged in a deep breath. “It’s starting to get real.” Grabbing on to Juniper’s arm, Quincy said, “Hey, sweet pea.” She kissed June’s nose, eliciting a giggle.
“You’re on countdown.” I forced cheer into my voice even though I was dreading when Quincy left—for multiple reasons.
She wrinkled her nose. “Not quite yet. Are you trying to get rid of me?”
“You know better,” I said in a private voice.
Her eyes met mine, then flitted down to my lips as if she wanted to kiss me. She didn’t though, which only made me ache more for a taste of her. I stifled that as Quincy’s attention went back to my daughter.
“How’s my favorite June Bug?” she asked. “Were you a good girl for your daddy?”
