Page 31 of Skin Deep

“Yeah, I remember,” she said with a sigh. “She came apart in the wash.”

“That’s right. It happens with toys sometimes. But it doesn’t mean you love her any less because she’s gone. And you don’t love her any less now that you have Mr. Squish, do you?” I handed her the fluffy toy.

She frowned and studied it. “Yeah, but it’s not the same. I’m not a kid anymore. I just use him like a pillow.”

“Love can look different with people too,” I said. “I still love your mom, Punkin. I don’t know if what I have with this guy will be love or not. It’s too soon to tell. But I want to find out if it can be. That love’s going to look different than what I had with your mamma, but that doesn’t make it somehow lesser. I think there’s room in my heart for loving both in their own way.”

She considered the toy for a minute before setting it aside. “Nadia has two dads. Are me and Charlie going to have two dads now too?”

I chuckled and kissed the top of her head. “It’s a little early for wedding bells yet, Punkin. When you find somebody you like, you got to spend time with that person first to make sure. And sometimes it doesn’t work out. Sometimes people just have fun for a little while and go their separate ways when they’re done.”

She arched an eyebrow. “You mean like friends with benefits.”

“Good grief, Punkin. You’re killin’ me here.”

“I know what sex is,” she insisted, folding her arms. “I watch TV.”

I sighed and stood. “I’m going to pretend you don’t so I can sleep at night,” I said, adjusting my collar. “Anyway, when the time is right, I’ll introduce you to him. I want to make sure him and me are on the same page. That okay with you?”

Even though the girls had already met War a couple times, I wanted to downplay things between us until I was sure he wasn’t going to blow me off. He’d been flighty so far and I wanted things to be more solid with him before I formally introduced him to the girls as a boyfriend.

She shrugged. “I guess. Just make sure he likes Monopoly. I need somebody else to beat. I’m tired of beating you at it.”

There was a knock at the door, and I went to let in Mrs. T, the sitter from downstairs. She was a retired schoolteacher in her sixties with three grown girls of her own, so she always took care of Lettie and Charlie for me, and I walked her chihuahua in the bad weather for her and helped her bring in her groceries. It was an even trade as far as she was concerned.

I checked my watch and hurried down to the parking lot, giving a nod to Flex again on the way past. My old truck didn’t have GPS, so I had to punch War’s address into my phone and hope I didn’t lose signal while driving around.

It was two minutes after eight when I finally found the place, a cute little blue cottage with white shutters. There was a small garden out front, a sidewalk, hedges, and a little lattice arch. It looked like someone had plucked it straight out of a children’s fantasy book, given it the star treatment, and dropped it off in the suburbs. Somehow, it suited him.

I put the truck in park and paused to check myself out in the mirror, making sure I had nothing in my teeth and my hair was arranged nicely. Then I grabbed everything I brought with me and went to ring the doorbell.

My heart jumped when he answered the door. War always looked fine as hell, but he looked extra hot in that smart blue blazer and the gray shirt underneath. “Holy shit, you’re hot,” I blurted. I hadn’t meant for that to come out, but whatever. I’d roll with it. As far as first words on a date went, I could’ve done worse.

He arched an eyebrow, and it struck me that he and Lettie had similar sarcastic expressions sometimes. “You didn’t say where we were going, so I tried to dress middle-of-the road. Is that… Did you seriously bring me flowers on a first date?”

“Sunflowers,” I said, holding them out. “Because of your sunny disposition.”

He tried to hold in his smile, but he failed. There was a swooping feeling in my gut at the sight of it. I’d never seen him smile before. It looked good on him. “I hate most flowers,” he admitted, taking them. “But sunflowers are the exception. You can come in while I put these…somewhere.”

To call the inside of War’s house spartan would be an undersell. The walls were mostly bare, and he only had the most basic of furniture sitting around. It was almost like he wasn’t living there. Just…existing. The main room was a big wide-open space that served as a living room, dining room, and kitchen.

He went into the kitchen and pulled down a drinking glass, filling it partway with water before depositing the flowers and shoving them near a small window. “So, where are we going?”

I flashed him a wide, white grin. “You ever been to an ax throwing bar?”

Paxtonrealizedhismistaketoo late. He probably thought my love of sharp objects would pair naturally with throwing them at wooden targets, and he was right. I loved target throwing, even if I hadn’t done it regularly in years. What he hadn’t counted on was my competitive streak. I think he expected me to let him win, which I had no intention of doing. If he wanted it, he’d have to earn it.

We played every game in the book from blackjack to HORSE to around the world. Those were the only three games he knew, so I taught him a new one called Humans versus Zombies, which had a much more complicated scoring system and had to be played in teams. We wound up teaming up against a couple there on their anniversary who also knew the game. That was a mistake.

Pax and the other couple hit it off immediately. They spent the game laughing and joking while I sank deeper into a quiet rage. I wished he’d quit talking to them. He was supposed to be on a date with me, not chatting with them about their stupid anniversary party.

A loud cheer erupted as Pax finally hit the bullseye and the wife from the other team ran over to clap his shoulder in celebration. I let out an audible growl that stopped her in her tracks.

She bit her lip and threw a nervous glare at me before stepping back. “That was a great throw!”

“I’ve seen better,” I grumbled and crossed my arms.

“Best one you’ve seen me do.” Pax winked at me and came over to put his arm around my waist, pulling me in to plant a claiming kiss on my cheek.

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