Page 39 of Summer Fling
He stepped back, his fingers intertwined with mine. "We should head back."
We walked in silence, but this time, I tried to focus on the sifting sand at my feet, the occasional scratch from a shell, and the wind that was whipping up from the incoming storm. On the back patio, Dalton paused and said, "Thank you for letting me take you out."
I swallowed down any hope that this was a real date and forced myself to say, "I hope it got the word out that we're together now. I want this to work for you."
Something flashed across his face that I couldn't discern. "I do too."
I pulled my hand from his and went inside. It was the perfect night. If we hadn't already established that it was fake, I'd be thinking about the what-ifs. What if this guy was the one? But I wasn't supposed to feel that way about a fake date.
Chapter Eleven
Dalton
On Sunday morning, I sent a text to Oakley reminding her that I would pick up Lilliana at seven, which was after dinnertime but before her nighttime routine. It felt weird to make a demand like this, because I hadn't before.
Oakley never responded. I wasn't sure what I'd do if she wasn't there. I almost expected her to disappear and keep Lilliana from me at this point.
When I arrived, the lights were on in her townhouse, and when I knocked, her father came to the door.
He was a burly man but shorter than me by several inches. His hair was unruly, as if he didn't bother to groom himself. "Oakley said you want to see Lilliana."
"Is she here?" I wasn't about to have a custody discussion with her father.
"She is." But he didn't make a move to let me in.
"Can you bring Lilliana out then? I told Oakley I'd be here at seven to pick her up."
"You don't have a custody agreement. Oakley doesn't have to do anything." Her father sneered.
I rocked back on my heels. "Well, sir, that works both ways. I didn't have to give Lilliana to Oakley this week. I had Lilliana in my custody and was within my rights to keep her."
He blanched at that.
"I don't want to play these games though. I want Lilliana to see both of us, and I think we can all agree that a fifty-fifty visitation schedule is fair."
His nose wrinkled. "You have a nanny. You're not even watching her during the day."
"Oakley works too, and I don't question who she's using for childcare during that time. We both need to work," I said reasonably, wondering if they were just testing this situation out.
"The difference is that my wife watches Lilliana."
I was fairly sure that Oakley was working as a bartender, so she was home during the day and worked at night when Lilliana was mainly sleeping. But again, what she did in her spare time didn't concern me unless Lilliana was in danger. "And my girlfriend, soon-to-be fiancée, is watching Lilliana when I'm working."
He frowned. "You're marrying this girl?"
"Yes, sir, just as soon as she says yes."
Oakley's screech came from somewhere behind her father. "You're marrying that woman?"
I sighed. "Can you keep it down? I don't want to upset Lilliana."
Oakley stood at the door, and her father moved back. "You know I don't have to give her to you."
"Do you want me to tell my attorney that you're refusing to allow me to see Lilliana? He can file an emergency motion for custody tomorrow. I don't think you'll look good in front of the judge." I didn't want it to come to that.
Her shoulders dropped. "Why are you doing this?"
This was the pleading Oakley that I remembered. She yelled and ranted, but when she sensed I was pulling away, she resorted to sweet manipulation. But I wouldn't fall for it. "We can participate in mediation to work out any issues or concerns you might have."
