Page 20 of Reckless Single Daddy

I laugh. “Noted.” I sigh and stretch once more. “How about I meet you downstairs, and we’ll make some pancakes?” I suggest.

Liam jumps up happily and runs off. I smile softly as I watch him go, wondering if Sloane was as delighted by him as I am.

But then it hits me: Sloane met Liam. She knows I have a son. A son I never told her about.

“Shit,” I curse under my breath. If I thought I could openly lay out my feelings for her, guess again. She’s probably pissed at me for keeping Liam from her. And besides, what if she doesn’t want kids? If she doesn’t, then it was nice while it lasted, which wasn’t long. I’m a package deal, so if you want me, you’ll have to want Liam, too.

I need to talk to her.

But maybe not right away.

Later in the evening, I drop off Liam at Mike’s to have a sleepover with Mike’s son, Landon. They’re only a few years apart in age, but they’re a lot like Mike and I when we were kids—inseparable. Since neither Mike nor I have any other kids, our sons are basically the closest thing they have to brothers.

On my way back, I stop by the rental property to look over the finishing touches the contractor made. The house was a fixer-upper. What stood out was the spiraling landscape that the home was nestled on, but it needed a lot of refurbishing. My hope is to get a family to rent the property for a little less than market value, so they never have to worry about struggling.

That’s always been my mission when I developed my company. If I have the means, I want to help wherever possible. I believe no man should have all this money and sit on it for himself. Greed isn’t in my vocabulary when I describe myself, and I refuse to be associated with it.

I pull up to the property and look over at the Bennett house. Sloane’s bedroom light illuminates the second-story window, and for a moment, I stop what I’m doing, hoping I’ll see her pass by.

What are you thinking, Cade? If she sees you, she’ll probably come out to give you a piece of her mind.

Before I can even finish the thought, I see her shadow walk by her window, causing me to duck behind my car.

Real smooth, Cade.She won’t find you behind my Porsche.

Yes, it’s the exact Porsche she saw me driving during the bridal shower. The one she rode in.

When I look back up, she’s gone, allowing me to breathe a sigh of relief. As I stand up straighter, though, I notice movement across the way. A dark figure slowly makes their way through the front bushes, looking up at Sloane’s window.

Who the hell is this person?

Anger swirls inside me as I forget all about hiding from Sloane. The most important thing is getting this guy as far away from the house as possible.

“Hey!” I yell to the figure.

They whip around, but I can’t make out their face. Instead, they scramble up from their spot and quickly collect their belongings.

“Get back here!” I yell once more, knowing they won’t turn around and willingly let me make a citizen’s arrest on them. I hop over the fence and start chasing them across the Bennett’s property. In the distance, I hear the front door open and close, but my mind is too focused on getting them.

Unfortunately, when we reach the wheat field, he dips inside it, leaving me with no line of sight in the darkness. I take a deep breath and continue to watch the field until I finally head back and face the music with Sloane.

When I walk back, I see her standing on the front porch in shorts and a tank top, looking like she was getting ready to go to bed. Her arms are folded, and I sigh deeply as I slowly walk up the steps.

“What the hell was that?” she demands.

I point to where the mysterious figure ran off. “Somebody was parked outside your house, looking through your window,” I tell her, and Sloane’s eyes widen in shock. “I scared him off, but something tells me it isn’t the last time they will come around.”

Something unnerving settles in Sloane’s eyes: fear, doubt, confusion. All of it seems to be pointing to the same thing.

Sloane needs protection.

She meets my eyes again, and suddenly, the fear is washed away and filled with hurt and anger. “When were you planning on telling me about Liam?” she asks.

I look away guiltily. I should have told her, even if nothing ever happened between us. Everyone else in her family knew about him, so why should she be any different? I try to reason to myself that it’s a matter of safety and security, but really, I only focused on telling people who actively saw me more than in ten-year increments.

“I wanted to, but things became complicated between us,” I begin. She looks at me, confused, and I shake my head. “Sloane, you don’t know what it’s like to date someone who has a child. My son means everything to me, and if I’m ever going to bring another woman into his life, I have to know she is in it not just with me, but Liam, too.”

She looks down, and I think she understands why I didn’t tell her. She meets my eyes again. “So you are thinking of bringing me into your life as something other than a friend?”

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