Page 52 of Fear of Love
“Quite possibly. Or I’m having a stroke.”
“Need mouth to mouth? I’m certified.” I shot her a wink. My playful side was coming out more and more whenever I was around her. I didn’t tease, let alone wink, at people, yet with Lydia, I did.
“I’m sure you are,” Lydia said dryly, but I didn’t miss the way her lips twitched.
“Any special reason you came by?” I leaned against the boards.
“That woman really liked you,” was her response.
“What woman?”
“The mom to the little girl.” She gestured toward the spot Rosie and her mom were at moments ago.
“She’s just a mom.” I waved it off.
“Do you get a lot of moms here?”
Was that jealousy I heard?I didn’t know why but I found myself smiling at that. “Quite a bit.” I kept it vague on purpose to see where she went with it.
“Bet they love you,” she muttered.
“Are you jealous, Blondie?” I leaned forward with a smirk.
“I don’t get jealous.”
“Uh huh.” I’d let her believe that for now. “Did you come by to see my gorgeous face?” Lydia rolled her eyes, which just made my smirk grow.
“I was going to see if you wanted to get dinner.”
One thing I liked about Lydia was how she didn’t mince words. If she wanted something, she’d say it. At least that’s how she was with me. It was something I appreciated more than she’d ever know.
“I want to, don’t get me wrong, but I need to clean this place up, and I have a pile of paperwork to get through.” I inwardly winced at how that came out.
“I don’t mind waiting. I can help if you want,” Lydia offered.
“It’s a lot of paperwork.” I wasn’t trying to convince her to leave, but I also didn’t want her to feel obligated to stay.
“I’m fine with that,” she repeated with a shrug. “Put me to work.”
15
LYDIA
Watching Landon teach a little girl how to play hockey was the most attractive thing I ever saw in my entire life, and I’ve been around for twenty-nine years. He was so patient and kind as he taught her to hold the hockey stick and hit a puck.
I hadn’t told him I was dropping by, and I was glad I didn’t give him a heads-up. I liked sitting there, watching him interact with the kids. Observing him while he did something he enjoyed. It was a different side to Landon, and I liked it. He came off as an asshole, which he could be, but with these kids, he was far from it.
I thought seeing him with them a few weeks ago was sweet, but this was next-level. I hadn’t thought too much about having children myself, too focused on building my company, but watching Landon with them had my ovaries wanting to explode. Especially when the little girl looked at him like he was the coolest thing on the planet.
All the kids seemed to love it here, as well as the moms. I didn’t fail to notice the lingering glances they shot Landon’s way. The not so subtle whispers and eye fucking.
I didn’t necessarily blame them for coming to gawk at Landon. He looked good out there on the ice, wearing joggersthat clung to his muscular legs and a tight pullover sweatshirt that made his arms look fantastic. He was drool-worthy. So, of course, the hockey moms showed up every time there was practice.
Was I jealous sitting there watching them bat their eyelashes at him? I couldn’t say I enjoyed it, but at the same time, they weren’t the ones he was sleeping with. I didn’t see them being bent over the couch and coming over and over again. It made me a bit smug knowing that.
“Want to help me out here?” Landon asked as he skated a few feet away.
“You want me to willingly come out on the ice?” I raised an eyebrow at him.
