Total pages in book: 178
Estimated words: 170884 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 170884 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
I’ll admit, it was nice to have backup, and, not surprisingly, after Twitch said that, A.J. started to pick at his food.
Before long, it was time for A.J.’s bath, and Twitch said goodnight to the tiny version of him, and after he was gone, I had to think real hard about why the house felt so empty without him.
Chapter Fifteen
Lexi
“Hey.” Twitch came jogging from across the street. “Am I picking him up today?”
The other night felt too familiar, too natural, and I spent half the time pondering why I was so upset at that. Truth was, it was everything I dreamed about. A home with my son and his father, a domestic setting. It was something that made my soul ache.
It wasn’t a good idea for me to fall into a fantasy headfirst. It did nothing to dwell on the past. I needed to think about the now. And this was moving rather quickly. I needed to slow it down.
No. I needed it to come to a complete stop.
Shaking my head, I took a step closer to him, and said, “Baby steps.”
His face changed, and although he didn’t look angry, he was certainly irritated and peered at me a long while through drawn brows, before he muttered, “It’s Thursday.”
Yes. I also went to kindergarten. I too knew the days of the week. “I know.”
“If it’s okay with you, I’d like to come to his swimming lesson.”
I hesitated. It was one thing to have Twitch in my home where I could control the setting. I didn’t like the thought of being out and about with him as a family. “Look, I don’t know.” But Twitch just stared at me, and I caught on swiftly with a light roll of my eyes. “You’ve already decided you’re coming, haven’t you?”
He peered down at me, his eyes full of amusement. “My asking was more a courtesy.”
A light sigh left me.
Of course it was.
As I loaded up my things into the car, I uttered, “I guess we’ll see you later then.”
But he didn’t walk away. Instead, he took one step closer then another, and when he was in my personal space, he looked down at my dress. “The other day, the dress you wore, the one with all the frilly shit on it.” He paused, watching me closely. “Liked it. Looked good on you.”
I didn’t wear it for you.
He always did like when I “dressed nice.”
As far as compliments went, that was top shelf for Twitch. I avoided his gaze, and replied clinically, “Thank you.”
“We gonna talk tonight?” His side brushed mine, and my entire body burned. When I made no move to respond, he clicked his tongue. “We need to talk, Alexa.”
Uh oh.
He only ever called me Alexa before I got a spanking.
Ah, crap.
I loved being spanked.
Nuh uh.
No. I loved when Twitch spanked me.
Ugh. Shit.
Sudden flashes of images past flooded my mind, and as I struggled to breathe, my fingers loosened and I dropped my keys. When Twitch squatted down to pick them up, those images intensified. Wide-eyed, I peered down at him, unblinking, as he looked up at me knowingly. With other things on his mind, he glanced at my crotch, and my core clenched under his watchful eye. He ran his tongue over his bottom lip, my knees weakened, and I had to lock them together to hold myself up, mortified that he was evidently thinking the same thing I was.
When he spoke quietly, the air left me in a whoosh.
“I feel like we’ve been here before.”
I snatched my keys out of his hand, and the only sounds that could be heard in the street was the clip-clopping of my heels as I all but ran to the driver side of my car.
Goddamn it.
The sexual tension was building. He was making sure of that. And I was falling into his sticky web.
“Yeah! C’mon, A.J!” Twitch stood and called out before sitting back down, looking at me through wide eyes. “Look at him go.”
“He’s good.” And he was so excited, so proud, that I couldn’t help but smile. “He’s been swimming since he was two.”
“He’s not just good, Lex.” Twitch shook his head. “He’s a fuckin’ child prodigy. I mean—” He waved an arm out. “—none of the other kids are that fast.” He caught the eye of a mother glaring at him. “No offense, lady.”
Oh my God. I tilted my head toward him and whispered, “Will you stop?” Sure, he wasn’t wrong. A.J. was a great swimmer. It was as if I were seeing my son with fresh eyes. “But you’re right.” When I felt his eyes on me, I kept my own trained on our son. “He’s amazing.”
We were quiet a while before he spoke. “You did that.” I looked at him. “That’s all on you, baby.” His gaze held me captive. I couldn’t look away. “You’re a great fuckin’ mom.” When he turned back to watch our son, he uttered, “Knew you would be.”