Page 27 of Alpha Wolf's Arranged Bride
“Don’t get used to it, Jarrod,” Scarlett says. “That’s definitely not an everyday kind of treat.”
“That being said,” Maeve says mischievously, “our doors are always open, and we’re right by the school.”
She gives Jarrod a wink, and he winks right back. I can tell by the smile on Scarlett’s face that she isn’t bothered at all by the idea of him getting free ice cream every day.
“Well, I’ll let you two have your secrets, but I’m going to make sure you have plenty of veggies every night, okay?” Scarlett says to her son.
“Okay,” Jarrod says, attacking his ice cream with both tongue and spoon. Maeve serves up a couple of cones for us, and we go and sit at a nearby table.
“Sorry about my sister,” I say. “I know there were far nicer ways of being introduced to each other.”
“It’s okay,” Scarlett answers. “It might take me a while to get used to her sense of humor.”
“I don’t know,” I reply. “I’ve had forty years, and she still shocks me.”
Scarlett tilts her head, narrowing her eyes. “I didn’t think you were that old.”
Fuck. Another lie. I can’t move without tripping over them.
“Not important,” I mutter, shaking my head.
For a few moments, we focus on our ice cream, and my anxiety settles. The warm sun filters through the leaves above our heads as a cool breeze teases the branches. A sense of peace slowly flows over me.
What if it could be like this all the time?
I look over at Scarlett, and she’s watching me, a little smile on her face. I can’t help it—her expression encourages me a little.
I can make her happy, I know it. I just don’t know what to tell her about my past, and I have to tell her something.
“That was awesome,” Jarrod says, finishing his ice cream and wiping his hands on a napkin. “Can I go play now?”
“I don’t think you should be bouncing on the jumping castle after all that ice cream,” Scarlett says.
“Not the jumping castle,” Jarrod replies. “But the kids are gathered just over there, and I want to see what they’re doing.”
“Okay, then,” Scarlett says. “You can go, but come and find us soon, okay? It will be time to go home in a little while.”
“Thanks, Mom!” Jarrod calls, running off to join the other kids. I watch them all turn at once to greet him, then they all start running through the trees, screaming like maniacs.
“Is that normal kid behavior?” I ask dubiously.
Scarlett shrugs. “Yep. Perfectly normal.”
“Are you sure he isn’t going to throw up his ice cream, bolting around like that?”
Scarlett laughs softly. “He might. That’s the thing with kids—it can go either way, full throttle, at any time.”
“I’ve got so much to learn.”
Scarlett chuckles. “Don’t worry. I’ll let you step in for every single serious mishap.”
“Sounds fair,” I laugh, trying to make a joke out of it.
To my surprise, Scarlett turns away from me, her shoulders tense. I clean up our wrappers and napkins, trying to break the serious mood that has fallen on us seemingly out of nowhere.
“Did you want to check out some more stalls?” I ask, holding out my hand to her.
“Sure,” she answers, taking it. She smiles as we walk back to the stalls, and I start to worry I misinterpreted our awkward moment.
