Page 25 of Twisted Fate

I looked from my daughter’s smiling face to the woman in front of her, and I swallowed hard. Delilah stood in a bikini the color of the ocean. I tried to make myself look away, but I couldn’t. The cups that held her breasts had little ruffles that moved with each bounce as she splashed and played with Charlie. My eyes roamed down her waist, to the flare of her hips, and on further to her thighs. Damn, how had I never noticed her decadent curves before?

It was like a switch had been flipped in my brain. As though someone had snapped their fingers and I’d woken from a sleepy haze. I was wide awake now and seeing the world in technicolor from Delilah’s brilliant blue bikini to the deep, rich brown of her hair. In the sunlight, there was just a hint of mahogany glinting through the strands.

I watched, entranced as she ran around the yard, chasing Charlie. She was so full of energy and life. It was a harsh reminder that I was still living. I needed to start acting like it.

Fighting the urge to gawk, I turned away and took a long gulp of my drink before placing it on the island. I shouldn’t have been watching her like that. She was Charlie’s nanny. Not to mention, she was twelve years younger than me. I couldn’t look at her like I was dying to peel the bikini off her body and—

The back door opened, and Delilah’s voice filtered into the kitchen. “I’ll be right back. I’m just gonna grab us some popsicles.”

I froze and turned to the sound of her voice. She came around the corner looking down at her feet, a soft smile on her lips, with a towel wrapped around her midsection.

She looked up and let out a yelp of surprise. Her damp feet slipped on the floor, and her arms flailed as she lost her balance. Instinctively, I reached out to catch her, and when my hands met her bare skin, a current of need traveled up my arms and hit me right in the gut.

“Shit,” she barked as she attempted to regain her balance. I yearned to pull her against me. It didn’t matter that she was wet. All the better.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.” Why wasn’t I letting go? She was steady on her feet. She didn’t need me holding onto her anymore. But I desperately needed to hold on tosomething.

“S’okay,” she assured me, her chest heaving. I imagined her heart racing after me startling her, and my eyes dropped to the pulse point on her neck. “Charlie and I are playing outside. Since it’s so nice out, I thought we could take a break,” she explained. My gaze lifted to hers again. She looked nervous, as though she worried I’d be mad, and I realized I'd been too gruff with her. I hadn’t given her a warm welcome when she’d shown up at my home months ago to help me out of a bind. Not only that, I’d questioned her intentions and dissected her every move under a microscope. She didn’t deserve that. She deserved to get to know the old me, the laid-back, fun-loving guy Sarah had fallen in love with.

Pain twisted in my stomach at that thought. I’d managed to somehow push my wife to the back of my mind. I still thought about her every day, but it wasn’t all consuming like it had been for the past six months. Guilt washed over me, settling on my shoulders like a heavy weight. Maybe it was irrational, but it felt like I was tarnishing her memory by wanting to enjoy life. She no longer had that option, and it was so damn unfair that I wanted to scream.

“Vance.” Delilah’s soft voice snapped me back to the present, and I realized I was still holding onto her. I immediately released my grip on her and stepped back, clearing my throat in an attempt to chase away the awkwardness. Sensing my inner turmoil, she placed a gentle hand on my forearm and my attention snapped to her face.

“Do you want to join us?” she asked. Her bright blue eyes filled with sincerity and maybe a little pleading. “I think Charlie would really love it if you came outside to play with her.”She needs you.She left those words unspoken, but I felt them like a punch to the gut.

“Okay,” I agreed, and the corner of her lips tipped up. “Let me go change.” I turned on my heel, not allowing myself a chance to give in to temptation and peruse her exposed skin. I already felt like a creep for watching her through the window and imagining what those soft curves would feel like against my hands.

Shaking away those thoughts, I headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time. I dug out a pair of board shorts and slipped on some sandals before heading outside.

“Daddy!” Charlie bounced on her toes in excitement when she spotted me coming out the door. Her face was already stained red from her popsicle as she ran toward me, the half-eaten treat clutched in her hand. I scooped her up and held her close to me. “I so happy you’re here,” she cooed in the sweet, lyrical voice that melted my heart.

“Me too, munchkin. Me too.”

25

Delilah

I sat backand watched as Vance and Charlie played in the backyard. They chased each other around like she and I had been when he came home. I had no idea how long he’d stood there and watched before I came inside, but I knew from his reaction that was what he'd been doing. I told myself he was only watching his daughter, that he was taking an opportunity to observe his child interact with her nanny. But the heat in his gaze as it slid down my body proved otherwise. My skin had warmed under his perusal, and everywhere he touched felt like it was on fire. Even now, without his hands on me, I still felt the lingering warmth.

When I slipped, I hadn’t expected him to reach out and wrap one arm around my waist while the other curled around my bicep. Even more startling, he’d held on longer than was necessary after I regained my balance, and I didn’t hate it. Not at all. His palm splayed against my lower back, the soft pads of his fingers brushing the sensitive skin there. Desire had pooled low in my belly, and had he not released me when he did, I might have done something I’d regret. Even as I sat in the shade with a cool drink pressed to my forehead, my body was like a live wire. One spark and I might explode.

I should keep my distance. Vance was my cousin’s husband.My dead cousin. It didn’t matter that she was gone. His heart still belonged to her. She was his, and he was hers. I wouldn’t tarnish her memory by doing the unthinkable.

We remained outside for another hour. Charlie giggled as she and Vance played a game of tag. My heart fluttered in my chest as laughter bubbled up from Vance’s throat. He was smiling. The man was actuallysmiling. It was a sight I had never seen before, not even when he and Sarah adopted Charlie. He’d been serious then, his brow pinched with unease as though he thought I might change my mind at the last minute. But now, with his soft pink lips spread wide, perfectly white teeth gleaming in the sunlight, he was breathtaking.

Charlie soon became cranky and started rubbing her eyes, so Vance wrapped her in a towel and held her to his chest as he rocked in the swing. Within minutes, she was asleep.

“I’m going to put her to bed,” Vance said, his voice low so he didn’t wake the sleeping child in his arms.

“I’ll grab the door,” I offered, and went to hold the back door open for him. Once they were inside, I began to straighten up the yard and patio. I pulled the plug on the pool so it could start to drain and replaced the cushions on the chairs. The toys were put away and all the trash was disposed of. Lastly, I went to the elephant pool and squatted next to it as I tilted it enough to see where the hose was attached. I grabbed it and twisted, but it wouldn’t budge. Adjusting my grip, I tried again. It wasn’t going anywhere. I’d have to tilt it on its side to get better access to it.

The yard was getting soggy from the draining pool, so I dragged it several feet away and lifted one side. The remaining water rushed out as I turned it completely on its side. With a clearer view of the underside, I attempted to loosen the hose again, but it was stuck.

“Need some help?” I startled at the sound of Vance’s deep voice. Before I could turn to look at him and confirm I did in fact need help, his hand came up to brace against the edge of the pool. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and my skin erupted in goosebumps as a tingling crept up my spine. His warm breath met the back of my neck when he spoke. “Try it now,” he instructed as his other hand came up to grip the other side of the pool.

I was caged in by his big, strong arms, and I had to fight the urge to lean into him. To relax against the broad chest I’d tried to ignore the whole time he played with Charlie.

Hands shaking, I twisted the hose again, and when it still didn’t budge, Vance changed tactics.

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