Page 19 of Enemy Daddy Next Door

I drop my purse, flick on the light, see the beautiful haven of my bed waiting for me…

But I stop as I pass by my window and notice Hunter down in his yard.

He’s sitting at the edge of his pool, legs dangling in the water. His long hair looks freshly brushed, cascading over his shoulders. And he’s reading. He’s reading a stack of children’s books. I can’t help but stare, watching him as he turns page after page, illuminated by the moonlight.

Suddenly, he turns to look up at me.

Shit, he must have noticed I was watching. Felt my eyes on him or something.

I freeze like a deer in the headlights. It’d be childish to duck away and hide behind the curtains although I wish I could. Pretend this never happened at all.

Hunter’s face cracks with a smile. He raises his hand and waves at me.

I raise mine slightly to wave back. God, I feel so stupid.

Then he pulls his hand toward him a few times. I’m confused at first until I notice it’s a “come hither” sort of wave.

“Come down,” it looks like he mouths.

I swallow. This is a bad idea. I should just shake my head and smile.

However, how can I relax knowing I’ve left this man hanging? Knowing he…wanted to see me?

I take a deep breath. I might regret this.

But it’s time to start living.

6

HUNTER

I don’t know what compelled me to invite Amy to sit down here with me. It was an impulsive, gut feeling. My body said screw it before my mind could catch up, and suddenly, I was waving her down, asking her to come here to sit with me.

I guess I just couldn’t help it. It felt cosmic. Me sitting down here reading her books. Then her appearing at her window. The vision of her illuminated with her long brown curls tumbling over her shoulder and her brown eyes watching me with tender curiosity…

It’s a divine sight.

I’m a grown fucking man, though. Many years her senior. I should be able to rein it in, control myself.

I just can’t keep from thinking about her.

To my delight, Amy nods and holds up her finger, mouthing, “One minute,” and then disappears from the window.

I try to busy myself with reading, but I can’t seem to calm my nerves. The words on the page jumble together and my heart leaps into my mouth. Fuck, this is going to be creepy, isn’t it? A grown man reading her books? She’ll think I’m some kind of freak.

When the handle of the gate jostles, I sit up straight, alert and waiting.

Amy emerges from behind the door with an amused smile. “You don’t lock the gate from your side, do you?”

I laugh; easier than thinking of something to say at the moment. “I didn’t know it locked at all.”

“You’ve got a lot to learn about this place, then,” Amy says teasingly.

I blink. Is she…flirting with me? Where is that girl trembling in my kitchen at the sight of me in a towel just the other day?

“Some light reading, huh?” Amy nods toward the stack of books as she comes to sit down at the pool’s edge.

I watch as she crosses her legs, her airy pants pooling around her like water. “You might recognize them.”

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