Page 64 of Designs on You

Eugene laughed. “If you need a long break, I can take the kids on rides after lunch.”

Natalie shot him a surprised look. “You’d do that?”

“Sure. I like the rides. The kids like the rides. What’s not to love about that?”

• • •

Natalie wasn’t about to let Eugene run amok with her children doing God knows what. She’d get them back in an exhausted sugar high and then she’d be up all night with them. But the fact that he offered to let her rest while he took care of her kids meant everything.

She had no idea what had happened to her on that ride. Some kind of flashback from earlier times? No clue. She wasn’t about to delve too deeply into the whys of it.

But as she sat there and ate with Eugene by her side while her sister and Linc kept the kids occupied, she realized how he had instinctively seemed to know exactly what she had needed, howhe’d held her, comforted her while she totally lost her shit. He hadn’t once made fun of her or tried to force her to shake off whatever fear had taken hold of her.

“You’re staring at me,” Eugene said, taking her out of her thoughts of admiration for him. “Is there something on my face?”

She smiled at him. “Just your face. Which is quite handsome, by the way.”

After a quick glance down the table at the kids, who were laughing at something Linc had just said, he picked up her hand and pressed a quick kiss to it. “Keep complimenting me like that and I might think you like me.”

“Oh, don’t think that.” But she couldn’t pull her gaze away from his beautiful face. The way he smiled at her—so hot, so filled with intent—made her wish they were anywhere but here.

Just then, there was a tug on her shirt. Cammie whispered in her ear that she needed to go to the bathroom, so she got up, and Hazel went with them.

After, while they were washing their hands, Hazel looked over at her. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine. Why do you ask?”

“Because you seemed terrified on that ride earlier.”

Natalie looked over at Cammie, who was busy applying a more-than-necessary amount of soap to her hands, all the while singing a Taylor Swift song to herself.

“Oh yeah, I was. No idea what happened. But it’s all good now.”

“Thanks to Eugene coming to the rescue.”

She laughed. “I don’t think that had anything to do with it. More like a cold drink and some sunlight.”

Hazel gave her a knowing look. “Sure.”

“Look, Momma. My hands are all clean.”

“So very clean,” Natalie said.

Cammie dashed out the door and ran toward the table, sitting in the chair next to Eugene. Christopher came over and climbed onto Eugene’s lap. They got up and walked down the steps to get closer to the ducks. Natalie and Hazel took a seat at the table to watch them.

“Your kids like him.”

She nodded at Hazel’s observation. “Yeah, they do.”

“That worries you.”

Natalie turned to face her sister. “Of course it does. We’re not exactly a couple. We’re just—”

“Just what?”

“I don’t know what. But I don’t want to mess with the kids’ heads. Or their hearts. What if they get attached? Look at them, Hazel. They’re already attached. Eugene intends to move on once he finishes his project.” She blew out a frustrated breath. “I should end things with him now.”

“Or, you could just continue the way it’s going and see what happens.”

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