Page 25 of Mine to Keep

Chapter5

Jamison set all the food out on the kitchen table in the breakfast nook. He thought about eating outside, but he wasn’t sure how Bryn would feel about that with the baby. It wasn’t that hot out, but still, he remembered Nancy being weird about stuff like that, and he certainly didn’t want to be too presumptuous, considering that he’d already overstepped his bounds.

More than once.

He twisted the cap off a beer that had been left over from the twelve pack he and Chip had brought over last night and leaned back in the chair, sipping his beverage and ignoring the smell of his sizzling burger calling to his tastebuds. He could wait a few more minutes for Bryn to finish feeding Zadie. Hopefully, the precious little angel would go right to sleep.

Though he’d been around enough infants to know that didn’t happen all that often, and even if she did go back to sleep, it likely wouldn’t last very long.

He tapped his finger on the center of his chest in tune with his pulse. His heart broke for Bryn. It was one thing to get divorced. Even when it wasn’t necessarily what you wanted but was what was needed. But it was another thing to lose the love of your life to death.

While pregnant.

And to be estranged from family during that time and have that tragedy not bring you and your family closer together had to suck even more.

He let out a long breath. It almost made him want to mend fences across the board.

Almost.

The sound of feet shuffling across the hardwood floor created butterflies in his gut. He mentally kicked himself in the ass. It was one thing to be attracted to her and quite another to want to pursue it.

He shouldn’t be entertaining the latter at all.

And yet, she was all he could think about.

“All she does is eat, sleep, and make a nasty mess in her diaper.” Bryn sat at the table, smoothing a napkin over her lap. “The nurses warned me not to get used to her sleeping. That her being this sweet little resting angel is an illusion.”

He lifted a fry and dunked it in the hot sauce ranch mix he’d created. “They are correct. My brother’s one kid had a horrible case of colic from age two weeks to three months.”

“Don’t you dare jinx me.” She waved a fork in his direction before diving into her coleslaw. “Zadie is going to be perfect.”

“She’s your daughter. Therefore, she already is.”

Bryn’s jaw dropped. She blinked. Then she burst out laughing. Hard.

His first thought was that he had no idea what he’d said that was so funny. He’d paid her a compliment—and her baby.

That was until he replayed his words in his head.

“I guess that was kind of cheesy.”

“In a sweet way,” she said. “I didn’t mean to make fun of what you said. I’m sorry.”

“I’d pick on me.” He dove into his cheeseburger topped with a fried egg and a few onion rings. He only allowed himself this kind of guilty pleasure once a week, at most, especially if he got all the fixings like he had this afternoon since he knew it would probably be his last meal.

However, he had eaten like this two days in a row now. Next week, he’d be working more and maybe skip the ritual since he’d already indulged.

He wouldn’t feel guilty about it now. Besides, all he had in his fridge was a leftover quesadilla. Other than that, he needed to do a major grocery shopping trip, and that wasn’t happening. At least, not today. He had a couple of other errands he needed to run, and he suspected that he would end up taking some measurements for above Bryn’s desk and start on those built-in cabinets and shelves for her bedroom. He thought it might be a good idea for her to also have a way to display her work for pictures, and right by window would bring in enough natural light for some quality images.

“It was just the way you said it.”

Regardless of how it’d tumbled from his lips, he’d meant it. However, he wouldn’t repeat it. He wasn’t sure if he could get rid of the cheese factor. For now, he’d keep the overwhelming flattery to himself.

“I’ll work on my delivery.” He continued chowing down on his food and sipped his beer. It had been a long time since he’d found the company of a woman so entertaining and comfortable. He didn’t want to ruin it by being nosy, but he couldn’t help himself. “Can I ask you a personal question?”

“I might not answer.”

“Fair enough.” He nodded. “Why Lighthouse Cove, Florida out of all the places in the country you could have started your life over?” What he really wanted to know was why she hadn’t stayed close to where family was to try to work things out, and where home was previously. But he’d get to those questions eventually.

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