So generous. Perhaps Sofia didn’t realise what a sacrifice the offer was for Lara. “No. I’m fine. I need to speak to your dad.”
Darcy stiffened and then nodded at Lara. “Go on, pumpkin. It looks like fun.” Josh was throwing his boys in the water.
She grinned. “OK.”
Darcy waited until she was in the water before he asked Sofia, “What’s up?”
“There’s a movie playing in town tomorrow night and we’d like to take Lara with us.”
He shook his head. “She’s already got plans. She’s going to the movies with her friend and then sleeping over.”
Sofia flung her hair over her shoulder. “Surely she can cancel. It’s not every day I’m in town.”
Darcy raised his eyebrows. “No, it’s not, but you can’t expect Lara or me to jump to your bidding because you graced us with your presence.”
“I’m only here a week.”
“Yeah, and if you’d given me some notice, I would have made sure Lara was available. But she’s made a commitment to her friend and breaking a commitment because something else comes along is not a behaviour I want to encourage.” When Sofia pouted, he added, “She’s had a rough time since her grandparents died. This is the first sleepover she’s had, and it’s important for her confidence that she do this.”
Sofia placed a hand on his arm. “I was sorry to hear about your parents. They were always so kind to me.”
He nodded, not wanting to bring up those emotions now.
“Maybe Lara can come out to Turquoise Bay with us on Saturday.” Sofia continued.
“I usually pick her up from her friend’s mid-morning.”
“We wanted to get out there before the crowds.”
No consideration for what was best for Lara. “She’ll be tired from the sleepover anyway.” In the water Josh was still throwing his boys around and Lara hovered nearby as if waiting for her turn. “How about you bring Josh and the boys out to the station on Sunday? The kids can go for a ride, pet the animals and go swimming in the bay. I’m sure Lara would love to show you her barrel racing skills.”
Sofia’s mouth dropped open. “Is that dangerous?”
He chuckled. “You’ve been away too long, Sofia. She learnt to ride almost before she could walk and now she takes lessons from Faith.” He glanced over his shoulder to where Faith sat under the umbrella waiting. It felt so good for her to have his back.
“I’ll talk to Josh about it.”
Josh still hadn’t included Lara in the game he played with his boys. She glanced towards the shore at him. Hell. He wouldn’t let her feel left out. He should have brought some bathers, but he hadn’t wanted to intrude. “Is there a reason your husband is ignoring Lara?”
“He’s got a bad back. Lara’s too big for him to throw.”
“There are other ways to include her.” Would that be Lara’s life if she spent time with her mother? He stripped off his hat and T-shirt and pried off his boots and socks.
“What are you doing?” Sofia asked.
“You might want to waste this time with Lara, but I don’t.” Without another word, he jogged towards the ocean. Lara’s huge grin was all he needed as he waded in up to his knees.
“Dad! You’re in jeans.”
He shrugged. “They’ll dry.”
She swam over to him and he met her halfway, the water up to his waist. Swimming in jeans was not pleasant. Josh frowned at him. “Think you can throw the boys further than I can throw Lara?” He cupped his hands and Lara placed her foot in it. “One, two, three.” On three he pushed, and Lara backflipped into the water. She came up laughing.
“That was awesome.”
Darcy glanced at Josh, whose boys were demanding he flip them like that.
That would teach him to ignore Darcy’s girl.
