Page 88 of Single Dad Dilemma
Instead of fidgeting underneath the weight of that stare, I hooked my wrist on the top of the steering wheel and simply let her look.
For a while, at least.
At a red light, I glanced sideways with a raised eyebrow. “Got any incoming questions, or are we just going to have a staring contest every time I stop?”
“I’m not sure I’m ready to ask you any questions,” she said, tucking her leg up against her chest and wrapping an arm around it. She’d toed off her boots before I got into the truck. “You never answer them anyway.”
I hummed. “Seems to be the theme of our relationship, doesn’t it?”
“I answer some.”
“Not all.”
“Well, no, what fun is that? Once the mystery is gone, you’ll stop acting as my personal chauffeur for traumatic moments, and then where would I be?”
If bantering with me made Lily feel better, I’d do it all fucking night.
“I’d imagine you’d be driving yourself,” I answered evenly. “You didn’t need me to come with you. You’d have handled it.”
For a moment, she was quiet; then, finally, she shifted her gaze to the front windshield as we got closer to our neighborhood. “Yeah,but I would’ve been mean to the staff,” she said quietly. “You were nice, I think.”
“No, you wouldn’t.”
Her head snapped toward me. “How do you know?”
The light in front of me turned yellow, and even though I could’ve made it, I eased the truck to a stop, then turned and caught her eye. “You’re not as mean as you proclaim to be. And if I hadn’t been there, you would’ve been polite. Kind, even. And I have a feeling if I hadn’t been waiting for you, you would’ve finally let yourself shed a tear over that grumpy little beast, who you don’t actually hate.”
Lily rolled her lips between her teeth and stared down at her lap, where her fingers turned white at the knuckles from how tightly she held her hands. “You don’t know me,” she whispered.
“Yeah, but I wouldn’t mind changing that,” I said easily.
Her jaw went slack, and she let out a shocked laugh. “So this is, what? An elaborate seduction technique? You say no to kissing me under the plant of doom, but you think a first date at the emergency vet will really seal the deal?”
I leaned in slightly, my elbow easing onto the console between us. Another inch and our arms would’ve touched. “Is that what you think I’m doing, Lily?” I held her gaze. “Truly?”
Her eyes darted between mine, and eventually she shook her head.
After a beat, I moved back into my seat, pressing my foot on the gas when the light turned green. “Sometimes people don’t have ulterior motives. They help because they want to help. They get to know someone because that sounds better than not knowing them at all.”
“And that’s you?”
I sucked in a breath through my nose and gave her a quick look as I exhaled. “Yeah. It is.”
“Hmm.”
The disbelief in her tone had me fighting a smile. Nothing about this—aboutus—made much sense. And I just couldn’t find it in me to care.
As I took the last turn onto our street, I saw the kids waiting on the front porch of Scott and Patty’s place, and I glanced at Lily to gauge her reaction.
The lightness that had briefly shifted our exchange was long gone, likely because it was a flimsy sort of defense mechanism over what was really happening inside her.
“How’d they know we were almost home?” she asked quietly.
“Oh, uh, Maggie knows how to track my phone.” Her lips curved in a smile, but it disappeared quickly. I cleared my throat, slowing down before I turned into her driveway. “Do you want me to ask them to go?”
Immediately, she shook her head. “It’s okay.” She gave me a quick look. “You gonna open my door on this shitty date, or am I allowed to do it myself?”
Affection swelled under my sternum so fast, it almost took my breath away. “You can do it yourself.” I paused as I turned off the truck. “This time.”
