Page 90 of Next Thing You Know
Killian:You look like you might have gotten a little sun, Mav. Your skin isn’t so ghostly white.
Blake:You look happy,
Maverick:I am happy. And yes, Kill, I have gotten tons of sun. It’s so beautiful here.
Dean:I love seeing you like this.
I glanced up as the front door opened and Cole walked in. He stared at me for a second as if he wasn’t sure I was real and then he dropped his bag on the floor, rushed toward me, and engulfed me in a hug, lifting me off my feet.
“I can’t believe you’re here!” Cole exclaimed. He pulled back to look at me again before we were hugging and laughing. “Does this mean what I think it means?”
I chuckled softly. “What do you think it means?”
“That you and Dad are back together? Are you moving in? Does that mean you’ll come to my games and stuff, too?” Cole released me. “I mean, it’s cool if you don’t want to, but if you’re going to be my stepfather, and Dad does go on the road a lot, that means my other dad should be here. Not that I don’t like spending time with my grandparents.”
Beau wrapped an arm around him. “Take a deep breath, kiddo. We’re not married yet, but yes, that means he’s moving in. And that we’re back together.”
“This is the best day ever!” Cole shouted. “I’m going to put my stuff away, but don’t go anywhere. We have to catch up. I have so much to tell you.”
We both watched as he picked his bag up and headed to his room. When I looked up at Beau, he winked. “Welcome home, Pink baby.” He opened his arms for me, and I happily stepped into them. We stood there for a few minutes, just wrapped up in one another. This, this was what had been missing from my life, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
“So, while I was at camp, I kissed... Oh. I should probably let you two have some alone time,” Cole suggested.
Beau squeezed me tightly before letting me go. “Of course not. We missed you and want to hear all about camp.”
“Who did you kiss?” I spun around to face him.
Cole blushed up to the roots of his hair. “Um, a boy.” He ducked his head and gave me a shy smile. “It wasn’t like a big thing, but it was nice.Hewas nice.”
“Do you have plans to keep in touch with this boy, or is it just a onetime thing? You know what?” I reached for his hand. “Tell me everything.”
Cole blushed even darker, his face now a shade of cherry, and I squeezed his fingers tighter. “Could we go into my room?” His gaze moved behind me, and I knew he didn’t want Beau to hear whatever he was going to tell me. “No offense, Dad.”
“None taken.” Beau grinned.
I let Cole lead me down the hall to his room, and when the door was closed behind us, he chewed nervously on his bottom lip.
“You don’t have to say anything,” I told him. “How about you tell me how camp was? Did you have fun? What’s it like? Do you do hockey drills all day? I gotta tell you, that sounds horrible.”
“His name is Bryant,” Cole blurted out. “He’s seventeen, has blond hair, dark eyes, and he’s a goalie. We exchanged phone numbers, but I don’t know. What if it was just a summer thing for him? What if he doesn’t really care about the kisses we shared? I feel so dumb.” He dropped on this bed face first.
I stepped closer. Maybe I wasn’t cut out for this dad thing. What if I said the wrong thing? “If Bryant doesn’t want you, then he’s the dumb one. You’re amazing, Cole.”
He mumbled something I couldn’t understand into the mattress before he turned to look at me. “You’re just saying that.”
“Maybe,” I teased, and when his brows shot up, I shook my head. “Show me a picture. I want to see what all the fuss is about this Bryant guy.”
Cole twisted onto his back and unlocked his phone. He sighed softly before he held it out to me.
“He’s hot,” he said quietly.
The picture he showed me was of him and I assumed Bryant; their heads pressed together with big, goofy smiles on their faces. He had big brown eyes, curly blond hair, and looked several inches taller than Cole, who was nearly as big as his father. And much larger than I was at five-foot-eight. But Bryant looked just as happy as Cole did in the picture.
“He’s okay,” I said nonchalantly.
Coel huffed. “Okay? He’s better than okay. Bryant was the hottest boy there. He towered over all of us, and he’s so nice. Like super nice. Funny and friendly. Everyone wanted to hang out with him, but he picked me.” His eyes went round when he realized what he had told me. “I really like him.”
“I bet Bryant feels the same way about you.”
