Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 75916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 380(@200wpm)___ 304(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 380(@200wpm)___ 304(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
As Hailey continued pumping her legs and begging to go higher, I thought about my work schedule. The weekend was coming, which meant better tips, so maybe I could finally get a new set of tires on my car; a front one, especially, was already bald. Maybe I should even start looking at trading it in for something more reliable. I also considered looking for an apartment of my own, but I knew Bree needed me. In fact, last night I’d heard her arguing with Mark about him delaying his arrival home by a day, and immediately felt bad that she was stressed out about Hailey being sick again.
“I always used to want to go higher too,” a familiar voice said from behind me, but I couldn’t quite place it…
Startled, I turned to see Jesse standing there, like he’d appeared out of nowhere, and the juxtaposition with Work Jesse was striking. He was wearing jeans and a plain T-shirt, not a stitch of makeup on his face, which one might’ve thought would make him look plain, but his piercings and diamond earrings definitely made up for that, so instead he looked…real. And naturally striking with those sharp cheekbones, pink, full lips, and short blond hair. I gaped at him for a long moment, trying to fit all the pieces together in my brain.
“Where…?” I looked toward the street. “What…?”
“Oh. I walked from—” He shook his head, clearly changing his mind about sharing whatever it was he was going to say. “And then I saw you. I hope it’s okay I stopped to say hi.”
“Yeah, sure,” I replied, reminding myself of my vow to be nicer. Besides, Jesse seemed a bit more reserved, almost shy, and we didn’t have an audience he could play up to like at work.
“Is this your little girl?” he asked, his eyes wide with awe. No wonder he looked nearly as shell-shocked as me.
“Oh, um, no, this is my niece.” I almost chuckled at the idea of him thinking I was some sort of family man. But I supposed I kind of was, at least when it came to my sister and niece. “I help my sister out sometimes, which is really no hardship.”
“Oooh, okay. So you’re the cool uncle,” he replied with a smirk. “What’s your niece’s name?”
“This is Hailey.” I motioned to my niece, who was still enjoying her time on the swing. “Hailey, meet Jesse.”
“Desse?” Hailey asked, then quickly lost interest as she concentrated on her legs, her face red from exertion. “Push me, Unca Dame.”
Jesse’s hand rose to his mouth as if he were holding back laughter.
For some reason, I suddenly felt a bit defensive. “She mixes up consonants sometimes.”
“It’s the cutest,” he replied as he walked toward an empty seat. “Can I swing next to you?”
Hailey nodded her head vigorously, a sweet smile splitting her face, making her cheeks plump up. I swallowed past the lump in my throat because I was such a sap when it came to Hailey. I loved seeing her happy.
“Can you teach me what to do?” Jesse asked once he got situated on the seat. “Because it’s been years.”
“You pump your legs,” Hailey replied, pushing her feet out and then back down. “And Unca Dame will push you.”
I barked out a laugh. “I’m pretty sure Jesse won’t need my help.”
“I don’t know about that. I can’t seem to get any momentum going,” he replied, and for a split moment, as his cheeks pinked in concentration, he looked innocent and a bit adorable.
As adorable as a pain in the ass.
“Here, I’ll help you.” I stepped behind him and half-heartedly pushed on the seat of his swing while he laughed and pumped his legs like Hailey showed him. Christ, it was like babysitting two kids as he got momentum and whooped in celebration. Hailey giggled as they pretended to race each other. I stood back and marveled at the two of them and the fact that Jesse has inserted himself in my private space, all by happenstance. And that I’d let him.
What in the world?
After swinging for a bit longer, Hailey decided she wanted to go on the slide, so I helped her jump down and walked her over to a large plastic structure with four slides of varying heights. She chose one that was more her size. “C’mon, Desse.”
I glanced over my shoulder, noticing that Jesse seemed to be hesitating near the swings. “No, honey, he doesn’t—”
“Of course I need to go on the slide,” he said and then scrambled to follow her up the ladder in front of a pair of twin boys with red curls. I smirked and shook my head.
Jesse followed her to each of the slides, helping Hailey with her balance like an old pro. As I stood and watched, I let down my guard just a little, somehow instinctually knowing he would watch over her and make sure she didn’t get hurt. His nurturing apparently came naturally.