Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 54817 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 274(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 183(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54817 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 274(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 183(@300wpm)
I shake my head. I’m worrying about crap that I shouldn’t. If anything, by the time tonight is through, Ford will see that I’m not the kind of woman he’s looking for—or even used to. I walk over to the pantry, and down on the bottom shelf beside my crock-pot is the rolled blue blanket that Andrew bought me when we first started dating. We did a lot of picnic dates. I loved them. I’m not exactly the fancy restaurant kind of girl. Andrew understood that about me—or at least I thought he did. Then again, the man I thought he was would have never just cut me out of his life without a word. I think maybe I fooled myself the entire time we dated that it was more serious than it was. How many times did my grandmother tell me men will say and do anything to get into your pants?
I should have freaking listened.
I can’t explain why I kept the blanket. Benny hated the thing. Benny was never the picnic type. He was a snake that enjoyed crawling around in the grass, though. I think I mostly held onto the silly thing as proof to never trust a man again. I grab the blanket from the shelf and then the paper plates. I walk into the living room and Ford and Asher are still on the sofa, but this time Asher is in Ford’s lap. It takes effort not to let my jaw drop to the floor. My son is never this free with anyone. I am having trouble processing the fact that he crawled into a man’s lap—especially one that he had never met before tonight.
“Mom! Are we going to have a picnic?”
I shake my head to clear my thoughts. I’ll deal with them later. “I thought we would. That is your favorite way to eat pizza, right?”
“Yes!” Asher cries sliding out onto the floor and fist pumping the air. He comes charging toward me, his grin huge. “Me and Ford will spread it out, Mommy.”
“I think I can still manage to do that, Asher.”
“Nope! Me and my friend Ford are going to do it!”
“Friend?” I ask, my eyebrow arching up as I look at the man in question.
“I have a way with kids,” he says with a careless shrug.
“I can see that,” I mutter, not bothering to hide the fact that it doesn’t exactly make me happy. I hand Ford the paper plates and blanket. “Spread it in front of the television and I’ll go back and get the drinks and napkins,” I tell my son, bending down to ruffle his hair.
“Okay, Mom! We got this. Spreading big blankets is men’s work, right, Ford?”
“Sure is, kiddo,” he says. My son is filled with joy. It might be the happiest I’ve ever seen him. Ford looks completely at ease. I refuse to make these facts allow my knees to go weak.
It can’t happen.
I go back into the kitchen and make Asher’s strawberry milk, my brain refusing to function. I can hear Asher laughing from here. Ford is laughing too, his tone deeper, but still sounding heart-stoppingly beautiful. What am I supposed to do with all of this?
I take a deep breath and walk back into the living room, trying to push the feeling of panic away.
It’s just pizza with a man I’m attracted to and hardly know. What’s the worst that could happen? I ask myself. Disregarding that small voice in the back of my mind that says he’s probably a serial killer and I’ll die tonight. I mean, that’s probably not likely.
Yet, with my luck, it wouldn’t surprise me. My grandmother was right all those years ago. I’m just cursed.
10
FORD
I look down at Grace’s son, Asher. His head is on her lap, facing the television. She’s gently rubbing her fingers through his hair, a faint smile on her full lips. I don’t know what I expected from tonight, but this deep feeling of peace inside of me wasn’t it. This is easily the best night I’ve ever had with a woman. Hell, it’s probably the best night I’ve ever had with anyone—the exception being my daughter. She brings me peace, too. The fact that this feeling is happening with a woman I want in my bed is fucking shocking.
I truly enjoyed every single thing about my evening with these two, including the silly kid’s movie about the fish. Asher is a joy, and it’s clear that Grace is a fantastic mother who dotes on her son. She’s the kind of mother that I always wanted for Lyla. My girl got shortchanged all the way around. She got a shit piece of pussy for a mother thanks to me, and she didn’t exactly win the lottery getting me as her old man. Still, I wouldn’t change the fact that I had my daughter. She’s my world. I do wish that I could go back and give her a mother like Grace, though. It couldn’t have been Grace. I’d wager a bet that Grace isn’t much older than my daughter. I wonder how she’ll feel about that. I probably don’t have the right to claim her as my old lady but fuck it. Nothing is going to stop me from doing exactly that. It's clear she's going to fight it tooth and nail. Grace is building wall after wall to keep me out. I can see it in her eyes. What she doesn’t know about me is that I’m going to knock every damn one of them down. I have my work cut out for me. I also must have to Virginia soon. Before I go, though, I’m going to make sure her walls are gone. I’m not sure how I’m going to manage that, but I will. It’s going to be hard enough to convince her to move back to a state that she probably hates. I’ll do it. I just need to convince her I can take care of her. She’s never going to worry about anything again. I know the hell that she’s gone through, thanks to Detective Garcia. I’ll handle her as carefully as I need to, but I’m not letting her go. Ever.