Page 32 of Falling for the Single Daddy

“Yes,” I tell her.

“Okey-dokey,” she says. She’s clearly trying to be more upbeat. I tell myself it’s a good thing, but I’m still concerned about what will happen if she gets too attached and then Sloane disappears, which she undoubtedly will.

Or what if she doesn’t? What if Sloane sticks around, actually parents Emery, and makes Emery more similar to her every single day? I’m not sure which would be worse.

Callie approaches, tying her hair in a bun. I don’t let myself notice the sun bouncing off her cheeks. I don’t let my hungry gaze move over the gradations of her voluptuous body. Or I try not to, anyway, which is better than yesterday.

“Are you sure you still want me to join you?”

“Sloane doesn’t want me third wheeling,” I say. “And she’s determined to bring a date.” I watch as Emery returns to the trampoline, moving out of earshot. “She might be up to something. She often is. I wish I could tell her to back off. But I have to put Emery first. If we can get through this dinner, she’ll get bored. Move on. It’s always how she’s been. Get involved—back off. Then repeat. It’s her specialty.”

“Well, I’ll just be the nanny,” she says, looking down at the ground, not at me.

There’s something almost offensive to me about that. I spoke to Wes earlier. When I told him what happened, he sighed and said,“Dammit, man. You need to be careful. She’s given you a taste now. She knows you’re going to want more.” I almost felt the crazy urge to punch my best friend’s teeth in. There was a moment when I seriously considered it. I wanted to grab him and bellow in his face,“She’s not manipulating me, you ass. It’s only your sister who does that.”

“That’s all I am, anyway,” Callie continues, jolting me from the moment, looking up at me. “Right?”

No. She’s so much more. I know she can feel it, too. But we have a deal. And tonight, I need that deal to hold tight. I can’t letanything slip. I can’t let my guard down, for my daughter’s sake. “Right.”

“What should I wear?” Callie asks. “Something conservative? Something that won’t trigger her? She seemed pretty annoyed when Emery hid behind me in the park. I don’t want to give her any reason to pick at me.”

“You can wear whatever you want,” I snap. “Sloane’s coming tomyhouse. You’re my…” I force myself to say it. “Employee. She’s got no right to dictate what you wear. Or even to have an opinion about it.”

Callie nods. “I’ll keep it simple, anyway. Jeans and a T-shirt. There’s no point going for style points against her.”

“What do you mean?”

“Even in the park, she looked glamorous.”

“You’re far more beautiful and stylish than her,” I say reflexively.

Callie gives me a look. Yeah, that’s right. We’re just employer and employee. I mime zipping my mouth shut. Callie smiles, and it warms me up.

***

“Daddy, look how pretty Callie looks!” Emery leads Callie into the living room, where I’ve laid out some appetizers before dinner. I almost hired a chef for the meal before realizing that brittle Sloane would probably take offense at the gesture.

Emery is wearing a polka-dot dress… and so is Callie. They’re matching. Callie smiles at me tightly, concern in her eyes. I know what she’s thinking—Sloane’s going to take this badly. “Do you like it, Daddy?” Emery goes on, bubbling with excitement. “Isaid to Callie, let me look at your closet. And I saw this dress and then said, ‘Callie, I have thesamedress.’ Isn’t that so cute?”

I swallow. There’s no denying that Callie looks smokingly beautiful in the dress. It perfectly shapes her figure. It gives her a kind of vintage look as if I can imagine returning from a long-ago war and sweeping her into my arms for a Hollywood-style kiss.

“You both look great,” I tell Emery.

“But,” Callie adds. “Remember what I said, little lady? We were going to show your daddy, and then I was going to put on my original outfit.”

Emery frowns. “But, but, webothlookgreat.” She mimics my voice.

Callie’s smile gets tighter. She glances at me and at the window as if expecting Sloane any second. Her thoughtfulness is just another reason I find her so alluring. All the time, she’s calculating how her actions will affect others.

“You definitely do,” Callie says. “But I’m so clumsy, I’m going to get food all over this pretty dress. Wait here. I’ll go get changed.”

When Callie walks toward the door, Emery does something out of character. She lets out a petulant scream and runs in front of Callie, folding her arms.

“No!”she snaps. “We’re wearing thesamedress.”

Callie kneels, putting her hand on Emery’s shoulder. “I know you want us to wear the same thing. I know it feels like it makes things more special. But you don’t get what you want by raising your voice and behaving this way, Emery. I’m going to get changed, so you can either be okay with that or throw a tantrum. It won’t change the outcome.”

Emery’s lip curls. For a terrifying second, she looks like Sloane. But then her usual bubbliness replaces it. She sighs. “O-kay.”

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