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“You mean to tell me he goes through all this trouble for shits and giggles?” Her huff of disbelief was enough to make me laugh again. She knew all about the questions and the binder, she knew he had shown up at the store to spend time with me, and she knew he had gotten under my skin.

“I don’t know what this is,” I said honestly. “But I think it’s foolish to assume it’s anything more than the town’s most eligible bachelor finding the new girl to be somewhat of a novelty.”

“Oh please,” Ms. Ellison waved me off. “I don’t disagree that Easton may be the most eligible bachelor in town, but it also means he doesn’t have to try so hard to get the attention of a woman.”

Before I could refute, she waved again and walked toward her car, assuring me we’d chat later. “And put that box back on my porch! This pigeon has more messages to deliver!”

Ms. Ellison’s words sunk in as I got inside and laid the box on the table. She was right about Easton not having to try very hard to get a woman’s attention. Rory had said as much when I met her, and even if I didn’t like the way she spoke to me, I didn’t think she was wrong about Easton.

“Maybe I’m a challenge,” I grumbled to myself. But I didn’t really believe he’d go as far as he had if that was all it was.

Carefully, I started pulling the ribbon from the box. It felt important to save the bow, even though it was getting flimsier and flimsier as we passed it back and forth.

Inside was the same binder he had sent me before, with the same handwritten marker across the front. He had tabbed a page and I opened it to see what he had added.

Question 6: Can I take you on a real date this weekend?

Question 7: Please?

Damn him. He was going to make it impossible to say no. Except, I had to say no, because he forgot about one major thing—Max.

A date would involve leaving my son, and there was no one I wanted to leave him with. Ms. Ellison had offered a few times, and I trusted her, but I wasn’t ready.

As I began to write my answer, I realized he had typed up something else, asking me to turn the page before responding. There was another question type at the top of the page. 12-point, Times New Roman.

Question 8: Can I take you and Max on a date? (My man looks like a dancer.)

Max had never danced a day in his life, nor did I think he would, but Easton officially had my attention and I wondered what in the world a date would look like that included a three year old.

“Damn you,” I laughed as I wrote my answer in the spot under question eight. Then I closed the binder and boxed it back up, making the dilapidated ribbon look as good as I could before walking itoverto Ms. Ellison’s porch.

The rest of the day, I tried working, and I got a little bit done, but not as much as I had hoped. Instead, I spent half the day thinking about the sexy firefighter that had somehow made me quickly forget about how much I didn’t need him distracting me. And about how much I didn’t seem to care anymore.

Chapter Nineteen

EASTON

Ok.

That was all she had sent back, and that was all I needed.

When I had written the question, I knew she wouldn’t want to leave Max so I had already planned something I thought he would like. In fact, I didn’t want to leave Max either. He and I had bonded the other night and it didn’t feel right for him to not be with Jesse and me.

Through a few short texts, I told her I’d be at her house Friday around five. She insisted we take her car with the car seat, which was fine, but I planned on driving. She didn’t know where we were going, and I wanted to keep it a surprise.

As I pulled up to the curb outside her house, Ms. Ellison waved from across the street as she got in her own car to leave. She had been a saint, helping me with the binder, and even though I knew she was having fun with it, I still owed her big time.

With a quick wave back, I turned my attention to the house that was looking more and more like a home. Jesse had added some flowers on the porch, and I could see toys spread out under the big oak tree where she and Max probably played.

The main door was closed so they hadn’t realized I was there and it gave me a minute to wipe my hands down my jeans and shake off that spineless feeling I got when I was near Jesse.

Not that the feeling was as terrible as it sounded. It made me bend, though. Bend in a way I never had, nor thought I would. So enamored by a woman I had barely touched. Never tasted.

No matter what became of the feelings I seemed to have for her, though, I knew I could no longer be scared of them. I could no longer allow myself to be so submissive. If Jesse was what I wanted, I had to stop worrying about how long and how deep we were going to be.

With that resolve, I walked up to her front door and knocked lightly. She answered quickly, as if she had been peeking through the peephole, witnessing my final moments as a man unsure of himself.

“Hey,” I smiled at her, as she looked at me quietly through the screen door. “You two about ready?”

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