Total pages in book: 54
Estimated words: 51792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 259(@200wpm)___ 207(@250wpm)___ 173(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 259(@200wpm)___ 207(@250wpm)___ 173(@300wpm)
“Thanks. And maybe you’ll stop avoiding me.”
She pointed at herself. “Me? I haven’t avoided you.”
“Haven’t you?”
She sighed. “Okay. Maybe a little. It’s just—”
“I’m your boss,” I finished for her.
She aimed her finger at me. “Exactly.”
“And we are both adults. We can handle being around each other. Unless you think I can’t control myself,” I said with a smirk.
“It’s not that. This job means the world to me, and I don’t want anything to jeopardize that.”
“Me either. I think I made that quite clear.”
“Speaking of which, I need my first night off this weekend. Which day works better for you?”
I was left with my mouth hanging open. Did she have a date? Not that it was my business. “Yeah. No problem. I have nothing to do.” My social life had all but evaporated once I set foot back in the Creek.
“Okay, then.”
Zoe came back into the room. “Does anyone want to play dolls with me?”
Sunshine flashed her a bright smile. “Sorry, honey. I have to start dinner.”
Then they were both looking at me.
“Sure.” I could talk to my father later. This conversation had waited years without me knowing it needed to happen. I could wait a little longer to make my daughter happy.
Later that night, after tucking in Zoe, I went downstairs to find Dad sleeping, if his snoring was to be believed. I sighed and told myself it hadn’t been a week yet. I needed some air and walked outside. That was where I found Sunshine. She’d disappeared after dinner. There she was on the porch swing, fast asleep with a tablet in her hand.
The woman was gorgeous awake, but she looked like Sleeping Beauty as she lay there with her blonde hair fanned out around her head. I stood for a second, enjoying the view before I decided what to do next.
Nights were chilly, especially this time of year. Even if I got her a blanket, I couldn't leave her out here. I also couldn’t bring myself to wake her up. I bent down and scooped her up. I thought after being jostled, she’d wake. She didn’t. It wasn’t until I got all the way to her room and laid her on her bed that her eyes opened.
I held up my hands. “You fell asleep outside,” I raced to say.
“I did. Thank you.”
I tipped my head and put her tablet on the bedside table. “Night.”
“Good night,” she said.
It was going to be a long night. My dreams were plagued with a golden beauty I had to keep my hands off of.
TWELVE
Sunshine
Mitchell and I had formed a sort of truce. We weren’t dancing around each other. That didn’t mean it hadn’t felt like I was on cloud nine when he carried me to bed the other night—the visceral reaction I’d gotten from being in his arms had been just as intense as every other time the man was near. But in that short time, we’d formed an unspoken routine.
I got Zoe up in the morning and ready for the day and Mitchell had taken to putting Zoe to bed. I’d even heard him reading her bedtime stories.
When Mitchell came down that morning, he said, “Ready for your first day at Mason Creek Grade School?”
I almost opened my mouth to ask how he’d pulled that off so fast, but Zoe was there and didn’t need those types of details. I’d find out later.
Zoe beamed. “Yes. Do you think they’ll like me?” she asked with big doe eyes.
He rubbed the top of her head. “How could they not?”
She giggled, but quickly sobered. “Have you found my mom?”
“We’re still looking,” he said. She glanced down. He tipped her chin up. “We are going to find her.”
I prayed he was right. Having lost my mom, I didn’t wish that pain on anyone, especially a child.
After breakfast, when the work was done, I went outside and found James sitting out on the porch.
“Can I join you?” I asked.
I hadn’t seen him a lot lately. In fact, it surprised me he was still here. It was likely Mitchell would be back soon and the conversation he’d been avoiding was due to happen.
“Yeah,” he said. He didn’t sound like his jovial self.
“Is everything okay?”
“I’m ready to have that talk with my son. He deserves answers I’m not sure he’ll like.”
I stared off, mesmerized by the skyline. “Better to have those answers.”
“Maybe.” After a long pause, he said, “It is a gorgeous view. My wife loved it. I’m pretty sure that was the only reason she married me.”
“I bet there was more to it.”
He leaned back. “I guess so. I have to say the world stopped the first day I met her. It wasn’t that she was pretty. I’d had my fair share of pretty women before. There was just this connection I couldn’t deny that was there the first time we met. We just clicked in a way that made sense.”