Page 16 of For the Love of the Broken Man

“She’s subtle,” Jase joked.

“Just like me, I guess.”

Jase opened the door and smiled at the little sweetheart. “Terry’s home and wants to meet Jase. Can you come down or should I go get him? When Mr. Jon and Meggie get home, Mickey said we can swim before supper. He said I could use one of Meggie’s swimsuits and you guys could wear shorts. Can we?” Kayley had her hands clasped in front of her as if she were praying.

Dan turned to Jase and smiled at the expression on the younger man’s face. The guy was as much in love with Kayley as Danny, and at that moment, things didn’t seem so horrible. They could get to know each other through phone calls and emails—after Dan got Tim to set him up with a computer of his own.

He’d work on Matt to get over himself, and he’d damn well set the other hands straight at the Circle C or he’d—oh, he had some ideas about what he’d do. Things might work the way he hoped after all.

Pulling Megan and Kayley in the pool on a two-person raft shaped like a turtle, Danny found himself happier than he’d been in a long time. Jase was in the house with Mickey and Terry, and Jon was on a late conference call with a client.

In Dan’s mind, Jon Wells was extremely intelligent and a good judge of character, especially since he was smart enough to fall in love with Mickey Warren. The two of them had a beautiful life and seemed to be as happy as Dan had ever seen two people—even Matt and Tim.

When Mickey first started working at the Katydid, Dan had thought the guy was too young for him at the time. The idea made him chuckle because he was presently lusting after an eighteen-year-old guy with a dimpled smile and blue eyes. The nine year’s difference in ages was eating him alive, though.

“Can we get out of the water? My fingers are prumey, Mr. Dan.” Megan pushed up her purple glasses and held up her little fingers to prove it. Dan laughed. She was such a sweet, sweet child, much like his own… daughter.

Jase was right. She was his daughter now, and he’d have to get used to it. He needed to talk to Jon regarding how to make it formal and binding.

“Yeah, girls, let’s get out and dry off before dinner,” Dan suggested as he pulled the turtle over to the stairs, helping each of them out and placing them on the steps before he heaved the floating beast on the other side of the patio to get it out of the pool.

As he looked at the pool, Dan remembered Jase repeating Mickey’s comment. “Mickey said if the pool lights aren’t on, don’t come down because he and Jon like to skinny dip. He also showed me where the switch is, in case I have company and want to do the same.”

Dan hoped to hell Jase didn’t have a reason to turn off the pool lights, but he had no right to ask it of the guy. Jase was eighteen and likely a virgin if his shyness was any indication. Jase had not one aggressive bone in his body. Dan needed to step back and give the younger man some breathing room. Jase Langston was too young to settle down, and Dan needed to get it straight in his mind.

Just then, the back door opened, and Jase walked out with plates, flatware, and glasses, setting the table on the upper patio off the pool deck. He turned his eyes toward Dan and winked before he returned inside.

Dan got out of the pool and wrapped a large rainbow-striped towel around his waist as he walked over to where Kayley and Meggie were sitting on a chair with towels around them, chattering happily.

“We’ll be eatin’ in a little bit. You cold? Do we need to go inside and change into dry clothes?” Dan sat across from them.

“Oh, no, Mr. Dan,” Megan gasped. “After we eat, Poppy sets the timer for us and we wait thirty minutes, then we get back in the pool and play games. It’s not cold, and Poppy and Daddy like to play games in the pool with me. Terry does too, so we have to stay in our suits. We’ll go to the bathroom and wash our hands, though.” Megan took Kayley’s hand and led her inside the house.

The sweet little girl never ceased to amaze Dan. She was beautiful, and if one discounted her intelligence, they’d be easily and quickly embarrassed by a wrong assessment. She was sharp as a tack, and she made Dan see the world through her eyes. It was beautiful.

“I’m not saying we have to fire him, Jonny. I know Ally likes him, but I’m tellin’ ya he’s wrong about Josie’s shoes. Matt knew what she needed, and we never had one problem with her feet when she lived at the Katydid or the Circle C. He’s shoeing her wrong.” Mickey walked out the back door with a tray in his hands.

Jase was behind him with another tray, and Jon was carrying two plates. It appeared they were having a feast.

Dan walked over to the table and saw it was going to be a picnic-style spread, which was a relief. Mickey and Jon lived a different life than Dan was used to, and he never knew how to handle it graciously. If it was some fancy-type blowout, Dan didn’t want to appear to be too picky.

Danny wasn’t fond of seafood, other than crab cakes or fried shrimp, and he wasn’t a fan of different ethnic foods, which he knew Jon and Mickey enjoyed. He was a steak and potato kind of guy, which made him sound as if he was a pain in the ass, but he hadn’t ever been exposed to some of the things Jon and Mickey ate. He didn’t want to appear ungrateful if it was something he didn’t recognize.

Jon walked over to a large grill and opened the lid, laying out burgers and hot dogs as Mickey and Jase spread out potato salad, coleslaw, sliced tomatoes and lettuce leaves, along with a platter of cheese and condiments galore. There was a basket of buns on the table, and everything looked delicious.

“You want a beer, Danny?” Mickey was the ultimate host.

“Yeah, please.” Dan watched Jase spreading out the plates and utensils, along with cloth napkins. He seemed to belong at Wonderland.

When Mickey returned with four beers, Dan was a bit puzzled. Who’s that…” he pointed.

Jon laughed. “Seems the man I love is determined to commit a few misdemeanors with our new employee. I might be an officer of the court, but I’m not gonna turn myself in for aiding and abetting.”

“Oh. Yeah, I guess if you’re old enough to die for your country, you should be able to have a beer or two.” Dan remembered some Army buddies who bought him beers before shit went south in his career.

Terrence came rushing out of the house and up to Jon with his phone in hand. “It’s three-two, Chelsea over Manchester. You wanna up the bet?” The boy was wearing a smirk on his happy face as Jon nodded.

Dan glanced to see Jase’s smile. He was happy there wouldn’t be trouble regarding the people living at Wonderland.

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