Page 54 of Accidental Baby Daddy

There it was. The silence after he said that was awkward and uncomfortable. The thing was, everything always came back to Mom whenever I hung out with Dad. No matter what it was we were talking about.

And it wasn’t like I could easily change the subject. What was I going to tell him? That despite how he’d warned me that she was unfaithful years ago, I was sleeping with Lexie again?

That wouldn’t go over well.

And maybe Dad was right. Maybe I was being stupid about this whole thing.

“What do you have for dessert?”

He grinned. “Ice cream.”

“Vanilla?” I asked, wrinkling my nose.

“Chocolate for you,” he pointed out. “I keep it just in case you come over.”

I was a certified chocoholic. I hurried to the freezer, making my dad a bowl of vanilla and a bowl of chocolate for myself.

We chatted idly about my dad’s retirement, fishing, golfing, and my new ownership of the Pig. It was nice being able to just chat with him without him asking a million questions about Mom.

She didn’t wear her heart on her sleeve like Dad did. She often kept to herself, even when she might need someone to lean on.

After helping clean up, I hugged my father goodbye, promising to be in touch again soon, then headed to my mother’s house to pick up Trent. When she came to the door, she looked a little flustered.

“Oh no, has he been a hellion?” I asked with a chuckle.

She frowned. “Of course not. He’s always an angel.”

“You look tired, that’s all.”

“That’s not a nice thing to say to a lady,” she huffed.

I reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. “Mom, if you need to talk?—”

“I’m fine,” she replied quickly, gathering Trent’s things and placing them into his bag before pushing it into my hands.

“All right,” I said as I turned to put his bag in the car.When I returned, she was holding Trent, who was fast asleep.

Disappointment rushed over me. I was hoping he’d be awake so we could watch a movie or something. With the hours I’d been working lately, I hadn’t been able to spend as much time as I’d like to with him.

Maybe after tourist season, things would calm down.

I took Trent from Mom before kissing her on the cheek and whispering a thank you and a goodbye. I placed him gently into his car seat, made sure he was secured, then headed home.

As I pulled into my driveway, I noticed that Lexie’s light was on, even though it was nearly eleven. My first thought wasn’t that she had company, but that maybe she couldn’t sleep. I supposed she was getting used to bar hours, too.

I ached to go to her.

I was getting in too deep.

The problem was, I didn’t know how to stop it.

Chapter 17

Lexie

Iwoke up early the next morning for my shift at the grocery store, knowing I was going to have a long day. This was a day where I worked a double shift—eight to four at the store, then six to close at the bar.

I made sure to pack granola bars and some electrolyte water, not wanting my sugar to drop in the middle of work. I also ate a good breakfast—whole wheat toast with eggs and a side of sausage I found in the freezer. It was a bit freezer burnt but it would do the trick.

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