Total pages in book: 122
Estimated words: 115288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 576(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 576(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
I put my hand on Gavin’s arm. “Let’s take her to the bench so we can have a look.”
He carries her to the bench and sits, setting her in his lap. Gavin wipes her tears away and kisses her forehead, then gently takes her hands in his so he can have a look at the damage. Her palms are scraped, beads of blood welling, but nothing serious. Her knees are in worse shape, but it’s all surface wounds.
He kisses the back of her hand. “Oh sweetie, I bet that hurts, doesn’t it? This is why I want you to stay off the climber.”
“It just looks so fun.” She sucks in a tremulous breath.
“I know, but that one is a little higher than normal, and it’s probably slippery from the rain we had earlier,” he explains.
I pass a tissue to Gavin. “Give me a second. I have an emergency first aid kit in here somewhere.” I set my purse on the ground next to me—it’s huge and can basically carry my entire life in it without much trouble—and rummage around until I find the first aid kit.
I pull out the iodine wipes, so I can clean the dirt out of her wounds, starting on her hands and then moving to her knees. “It’s going to sting a little, but we want to get the dirt out of the cuts, okay, sweetie? You hug your daddy and it’ll be over in a minute,” I tell her.
“Okay.” She sniffles and wraps her arms around Gavin’s neck.
He kisses her cheek and turns his head toward me, murmuring, “Thank you.”
I smile reassuringly. “No problem.”
“I shouldn’t be surprised that you have a first aid kit in your purse, should I?” He gives me an impish grin.
I shrug. “You can never be too prepared.” It was a habit I got into when I was a nanny, and I never stopped.
I wipe down her right knee first, blowing on the wound to help with the sting before I cover it with a bandage, then do the same with the left one.
“All done,” I announce.
Peyton releases her iron grip from around her father’s neck and looks down at her knees, decorated in Tinker Bell Band-Aids. She bites her lip and sniffs. “Tinker Bell is my favorite.”
“Mine too.” I wink.
“Should we head home?” Gavin asks.
Peyton nods, and he picks her up, carrying her across the parking lot and back to the car. He buckles her in and walks me over to my vehicle, which is a few rows over.
He tucks a hand in his pocket. “Sorry about the abrupt end to the evening.”
I chuckle. “These things happen.”
“I’m very glad you were prepared with the Band-Aids, so thank you for that.”
“Kids and scrapes go hand in hand.”
“That they do. And the boo-boos get bigger the older they are.”
“This is definitely true.” I adjust my purse. “No, is the answer to the question you asked earlier.” Gavin’s expression starts to fall until I rush on. “It isn’t too soon to ask me on a date.”
A grin spreads across his full lips. “Not too soon?”
I shake my head.
“So I can take you out for dinner? Just you and me?” His tongue peeks out to drag across his bottom lip.
“I’d like that.”
“Me too. Do you have a weekend free soon?”
“I actually have this weekend off.” I don’t know what to do with my hands, so I grip the strap of my purse.
“I’ll check with my parents and see if they can take Peyton for an overnight. Would Saturday work for you?”
“Saturday would be perfect.” I bite my lip and blurt, “I still want to know why.”
He grins and tips his head to the side. “Why I want to take you on a date?”
“I thought maybe you … I don’t know what I thought.” Great, and now I’ve made this super awkward.
“Well, Harley.” He slips his finger under the strap of my purse, freeing the hair that was trapped underneath. “I have a lot of fun with you, and as much as I love having my daughter around, and how much she enjoys you too, I feel like we have a connection and I’d like to explore in a setting that doesn’t include screaming children.”
I laugh and duck my head.
“I actually realized more than a month ago that I wanted to ask you out. But then there was Chad, and he created some challenges. Which I think have proven to work in my benefit, since it’s given me time to get to know you even better. But patience is key, as I’ve learned.” He gives me a lopsided smile. “Does that answer your question?”
I’m almost afraid to answer, for fear the butterflies in my stomach decide to come out of my mouth instead of words. I swallow down my nerves. “Yes, that definitely answers my question.”