Page 36 of Cougar

“Because I promised her she would have freedom, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have eyes on her at all times.”

* * *

“Poss, watch me!” Willow commands from the edge of the pool before she leaps into the water. Max and my nephew Aiden are standing in the water just a few feet away, cheering her on.

“I can’t believe she’s two already,” I say to my sister-in-law, Jessica, shaking my head.

“Two going on twenty-five,” she quips. “They grow up so fast.”

“Tell me about it.” My mother rolls her eyes, and my father hums in agreement.

The back door slides open and Jay steps out wearing a crochet cover-up that barely hits the middle of her thigh.Talk about growing up fast.Her skin is sun-kissed, and she looks a little worn from the day, but she immediately perks up when she spots Willow in the pool.

“Boo, I didn’t know you could swim,” Jay coos from the side of the pool.

“Why does she call her Boo?” my father asks.

I open my mouth to answer but realize I have no idea.

“Boo is a character from Willow’s favorite movie,” Jessica tells him. “Jay says Willow looks like her.”

“Ah. Got it.” He nods and returns his attention to Jay.

“Come wimmin wif me,” Willow commands.

“Okay, I’ll come swimming with you,” Jay says as she kicks off her sandals and pulls her cover-up over her head, tossing it on the empty lounge chair.

My father turns to me and narrows his eyes. “You let her leave the house wearing that? I hope you’re planning to hire more bodyguards.”

I bite down on the inside of my cheek and give a slight shake of my head in warning. I know my father doesn’t mean anything by it, but I won’t allow anyone to make my girl feel self-conscious. Jay has a beautiful body. She’s worked hard to gain back her weight, and she’s happy in her skin. And as long as she respects herself and conducts herself like a lady, then she can wear whatever the hell she wants.

Bass drops down on the edge of my lounge chair with his brows raised over the rims of his glasses, silently telling me to let it go.

“How’d it go today?” I ask, poking him in the ribs with my big toe. He hates when I do that.

Bass grabs my foot and tugs on my big toe. I yank my foot back. I hate when he does that. “She said she had a good time, but she’s acting a little off.”

“She’s probably tired. What did Brice say?” After Jay left for the party, my mother got in touch with the Mannings. Brice, Cece’s middle child, was more than happy to look out for Jay.

“He said she hung out with him and a girl named Lexi the entire time, and they seemed to really hit it off.”

“Where’s Cole?” Jessica asks.

Bass shrugs. “Still at the party, I guess.”

Standing from the lounger, I move to sit on the side of the pool. “How was the party, Jay?” I ask.

“It was fun.” She flashes me a tired smile. “One of Cole’s friends recognized me.”

My brows pinch. “How?”

She jerks a shoulder. “She just did. Her name is Lexi. Her boyfriend is Evan. He plays on the football team with Cole.”

“Evan Martinez.” Max nods and gives me a pointed look. “His dad is Jason Martinez,” he explains, and I relax. Jason owns the company that handles all the security on the island. The same company I just recently hired two additional guards from. “Lexi’s a trip,” Max says with a chuckle.

“She’s hot,” Aiden adds, and Jay splashes him before returning her attention to me.

“You’ll never believe who Lexi’s mom is.”

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