Page 54 of Hard Hat Hottie

“Oh, yeah. They’re knuckleheads, but they’d never let anything bad happen to the boys.”

“Harry! My turn!” Alec yells.

Taking a few steps back, I lob the ball high in the air. Alec comes running beneath it, his baseball mitt held at an awkward angle. When the ball drops down, it hits him square between the eyes. “Oh shit.”

Harlow and I run to his side. He doesn’t look too worse for wear, shaking his head like Tom after being struck in a Looney Tunes cartoon. All he needs is the little bubble overhead, demonstrating his dizziness, like Tom usually had after Jerry struck him with something heavy.

“Ah man, Alec, I’m sorry, little man. You okay?”

“Yeah.”

“He has a hard head,” Justin interjects. “That’s what Mom always says.”

“I say he’s hardheaded. That’s different,” Harlow says, swiping back Alec’s soft hair, the color closer to mine than hers.

“Why don’t we take a break and put some ice on that? It might leave a mark.”

Harlow looks up at me, and for a moment, I worry she’s angry. But her concern is replaced by a tender smile.

“But you’re the nurse, not me.”

“I think I’d feel better if I got another ice cream sandwich.”

“Oh brother.” Justin smacks his palm to the center of his forehead.

As we make our way to the deck, I find my mother standing at the top of the steps, looking worried. “It’s okay, Mom. He’s going to have a bruise, but he’s fine.” Yet the moment Alec reaches her, she pulls him in for a hug.

“Justin, you want ice cream too?” I ask.

His face breaks out into a grin, and he nods.

As I reach the freezer, my eyes land on the clock. 4:14. My heart sinks, knowing they’ll probably have to head home soon. Is this cavernous hollow pulling at my chest how Harlow feels every time she has to send her boys to their fathers’ place for the weekend? I barely know these two and it’s making me sad to watch them go. I can’t imagine what dropping them off must do to her.

As if she has mental telepathy, Harlow snakes her sexy tattooed arm around my waist, leaning her forehead against my back with an audible sigh. I can practically feel the anguish pouring off of her.

As much as I’d like to ask her about it, that’s for another day. So I attempt to change the subject. “You want some sugar too, sugar?” I laugh.

“I just wanted to thank you again. We haven’t had this much fun in a long time.”

Spinning to face her, I have to fight not laying one on her here in front of Mom, Joyce, and her boys. “I have to confess something.”

Her body tightens beside me.

“I’m not ready for you guys to leave. It’s crazy. I shouldn’t feel this way. Holy shit, I just met your boys, but I feel like I’ve known them forever. It’s almost a littletoocomfortable.”

She snickers. “Well, I know one way to fix that.”

Now I’m the one with my shoulders stiffening. I can’t help but be a little suspicious by her statement. I mean, she showed up for our non-date with two unexpected guests. What else does she have up her sleeve?

“It’s a long story, but this is actually supposed to be their weekend with their dads. But I’d switched some days around. The night we met at The Conch House, actually.”

Images of this gorgeous woman lying on my bed in only those mesh panties come to mind. It’s apparent I’m not hiding my lewd thoughts when she pinches my ass. “Ouch.”

“Anyway. I’m supposed to have them at their place in about forty-five minutes. I don’t have the heart to break it to the boys.”

My brows pinch together. “They don’t like going there?”

“I don’t think they mind, but most of the time they’d rather stay with me. I actually acknowledge they’re in the room.” She turns, looking over at Mom and Alec. She’s carefully placing a bag of frozen corn wrapped in a towel over his injury. Alec appears to be eating up all the attention. “They definitely won’t want to leave all of this.”

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