Page 91 of Play With Me

“Well…” She pressed her palm to the window and swept it in a circular motion, looking outside. “I must say I’m intrigued to see where you live. And I do need to pee.”

I turned off the ignition, hopped out of the car, and this time managed to be at her door before she had a chance to put on her jacket.

“Let me help you.” I took the jacket from her hand before she had a chance to object and held it by the collar, and helped her maneuver the arms. She sat on the seat side, her legs dangling right between mine. I zipped up her jacket, tapped her nose, and stepped out of the way so that she could hop out, but she stayed in place. Her cheerful face suddenly turned serious.

“Brook, we need to talk about—”

“Sophie? I know. We will, I promise.” I took her hand, helped her down without giving her a chance to reply, and guided her uncertain body to the house. The tension in her hand finally eased when we stepped inside. She stopped and stared. To be honest, I was surprised at the beige and off-white tones that complemented the room with natural decorations. There was a wooden bench, crafted from a single tree trunk. A matching table stood in dining room to my left. That was new as well. Evie had done a great job decorating this place. The modern elegance had warmth and a positive vibe. Stepping inside this home felt like you were stepping inside a personalized oasis.

“Brook, this is…”

“Not what you expected?”

“It’s beautiful.”

“Thank you. I’ve been anxious for you to see it.”

As anxious as I’d been to see how Evie encompassed our family needs into the space.

“Why?”

She kept her grip on her coat and I felt her backing away. I pinched the zipper between my fingers and pulled it down, then removed her jacket before she decided not to stay here. My fingers grazed across her hand, and she flinched.

“Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.” She grabbed her jacket from my hand, and so I flicked the switch on the wall. Water cascaded down between the column of rocks in the center of the spiral staircase, which stretched upward to the second floor.

“But I do need to pee.”

I grinned with satisfaction as soon as she turned around, followed my pointing finger, and pushed the jacket she was holding into my other hand. She rushed toward the bathroom, shuffling along like a kid, and I couldn’t help but gloat as I eyed the trickling waterfall. Like I said, I would do anything to keep her.

She didn’t take long, but I managed to hang her jacket in the closet and turn on some more lights. Hopefully her curiosity would lead her further inside. She stepped back out into the hallway with more determination, and I was afraid we were about to go on to round two.

“Maybe—”

The perfectly timed doorbell cut her off.

“Food’s here.”

Lola looked hopefully at the front door, her stomach grumbled, and hunger won over. Once again, I had her where I wanted her – for now.

When she opened her mouth, I stepped in front and looked down at her. “Lola, for once, just shut up and let me do this for you. I won’t touch you, I promise. You need to rest. I didn’t want to say this until we ate, but we have a job to do in the morning. Kate needs us.”

Keeping Lola here meant keeping her interested.

“What do you mean?”

The doorbell rang again.

“Stay.” I hoped that giving her a more direct order would work. She didn’t move while I received the food. Lola stood in the middle of the hallway, still looking around, perhaps even smirking at the waterfall as we passed it on our way to the kitchen.

“I like it here.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

“That doesn’t mean that I’m not mad.”

“I know. Just please don’t start acting like a kid because I’m obviously all out of parenting capabilities,” I said.

She sat down at the kitchen island and mumbled under her breath, “I guess you would know something about kids, wouldn’t you?”

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