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Teddy nodded, hiccupping a breath. “I like ice cream.”
“I know, baby. I know.”
I lifted my head, seeking out my daughter. Savannah stood next to her, an arm around her shoulders. I barely knew this woman, but she was providing my daughter comfort and assurance. I had no clue what to make of that. Sometimes it truly did feel like I was back in Fort Bragg, surrounded by people who always showed up, no matter what they had going on.
When Callie locked eyes with me, I mouthed,he’s okay.
She nodded, and I blew out a breath as Kyle finished up.
An hour later, as we pulled into the driveway, I could barely keep my eyes open. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who was exhausted after today’s events. Both of my kids were out cold in the back seat of Kyle’s truck.
Kyle turned, taking in the scene as well. “I guess all the excitement wore them out.”
“Understatement.” I sighed.
“I can carry Callie in if you can handle Teddy.”
“I’ve never been good at that.”
“At what?”
“Transferring sleeping kids from the car to the house.” I wasn’t sure if it was me or my kids, but they almost always woke up. “But yeah. Let’s try it.”
I prayed we’d succeed. I was far too tired to have to put them back down if they woke up. After the day we’d had, I seriously needed a glass of wine and a long soak in the bath.
Chapter Sixteen
KYLE
Callie stirred slightlybut didn’t wake as I followed Tina down the hallway that led to the bedrooms.
“Just lay her on her bed for now. Her pjs are on her bed, so if she wakes up, she can get herself changed.”
It was only eight thirty, but between swimming, running around at the end of summer bash, and Teddy’s mishap, it was no wonder they were wiped out. We were all exhausted.
I laid Callie on her bed, then pulled the door mostly closed. Then I stood in the hall by Teddy’s open door, listening to Tina as she worked to get him back to sleep.
Her soothing voice was like a balm to my soul. Calming, like the chaos that lived inside me quieted when she wasaround. I closed my eyes and tuned in to only her, wishing that, for just a minute, things were different. That this wasmine.
The peace that she evoked in me was similar to the kind that flowed through me when I was in the kayak out on the quiet lake or when I was hyper-focused on a task, like today with Teddy. A problem I had a solution for. Using what I knew to solve an issue always helped me to tune out the chaos in my head.
I shook myself out of my stupor and made my feet move toward the other side of the house.
The mantel over the fireplace caught my eye like it had the first time I stepped inside this house. Particularly the military portrait of Hughes. It was a reminder of why things couldn’t be different between Tina and me. I stood in front of it and scanned the other pictures. A candid shot of him holding Callie as a baby, a family picture taken at Christmastime, and one of both kids that looked recent. I paused briefly on the one on the end, tracing the beautiful woman looking down at her son.
“He’s asleep.”
I startled at Tina’s voice and let my hand fall to my side.
“Sorry,” she said when I turned to her. “I had to change and soak my dress.”
She’d gotten blood on her dress today. I’d forgotten. Truthfully, I wasn’t even sure she’d noticed. If she had, she hadn’t mentioned it until now. Rhett had an extra shirt in his office, so he’d lent it to me, and Bella had an extra change of clothes Teddy was able to borrow.
Tina had pulled her hair into a messy bun at the top of her head. The tank top she’d changed into hugged her breasts, and her leggings clung to her hips in a way that had all the blood in my body rushing south.
What the hell was she doing to me? I could barely keep my eyes off her in the sundress she’d worn today, but somehow, shelooked hotter now.
I cleared my throat, hoping to clear away the lust swirling through me. Damn. I wanted nothing more than to back her against that wall and devour her mouth. But I had no clue what we were doing. She’d have to lead here. Decide how much and how far things would go between us.
