“Dad.” She sighed in that way only a teenager could. “I’m like eight minutes late. Relax. It’s not a big deal.”
Being told to relax by one of his kids always made him smile, reminding him of all the times he’d tried to get them to relax when they were throwing tantrums and being typical rowdy kids. Despite the grief and all the work it had been wrangling two small children and balancing his career and the house, there had been a lot of good times. A lot he wished he had been able to share with Lara.
“Ready to go, Kev?” he called out to his son, who was playing some video game, cars darting around on a track on the television screen.
“One more minute,” Kevin called back.
And this was exactly how eight minutes late turned into thirty in the blink of an eye.
Like clockwork, Lindsay glanced down at her outfit, a furrow forming between her brows. “If Kevin isn’t ready yet, I might just run back upstairs and change my shoes.”
“Lindsay,” he groaned. Why did this happen every day? Getting his kids to coordinate their departure seemed as impossible as building a city on Mars. Lindsay took too long to get ready, so Kevin played video games, so Lindsay decided she had time to go and change something in her outfit, so Kevin started another race, and the cycle went on until he put his foot down and insisted he was leaving, and if they weren't ready they could walk to school.
“Relax, Dad. It won't take long,” Lindsay told him as she hurried back upstairs.
“I’m ready,” Kevin announced, looking over his shoulder. When he didn't see his sister, he turned his attention back to his game. “If Linds isn’t ready yet, I have time for one more race.”
Grant’s groan turned into laughter. As much as his kids had the ability to drive him crazy, he wouldn't change a thing about their lives together.
Except maybe one day, adding a pretty redhead to their busy lives.
Chapter
Three
May 9th
2:31 P.M.
Well, her thirtieth birthday had come and gone, and Ashlyn still hadn't been able to get a certain sexy cop out of her mind.
It had been almost three months since Donovan’s wedding, and she’d thought that all thoughts of Grant Bull would have long since faded.
Yet they hadn't.
If anything, they seemed to grow more vivid the more she replayed their night together. Each brush of his fingertips against her skin seemed seared into her memory. How big he’d felt inside her, how perfect, it wasn't something she could get past. Every time she tried to get herself off with her fingers or a toy, she couldn’t seem to manage it. She’d get so close, but she just couldn’t fall over the ledge.
Seemed Grant had ruined her body for anyone—anything—that wasn't him.
Too bad nothing more could ever come of that one amazing night. If she’d thought there was a chance, she would have lefthim with her number when they finally finished up round six of sex in the shower and reluctantly pulled their clothes back on. Or she would have sucked it up, ignored the embarrassment, and asked Jessica for Grant’s number.
But Grant was a widower who was still in love with his late wife. Plus, he had two kids who were the center of his world. He wasn't looking for a relationship, and since one-night stands aside, she was, they just weren't compatible.
With a sigh, she headed out of Eat Dessert First, the restaurant that her mom owned and ran. While she was the youngest of her mom’s four kids and didn't really remember a lot from before her mom met and fell in love with a billionaire, she still knew they were extremely lucky. They had everything they could ever want or need, nothing was off the table. She’d been lucky enough to be able to pursue her dreams and build her own exclusive custom jewelry line, but the one thing she wanted more than anything else was something money could never buy.
Love.
A relationship like her mom and stepdad had. The real thing. True love. A happy ever after.
That’s what she craved more than anything else.
Of course, there were plenty of guys who wanted to be with her because of her money, but she didn't want that. A loveless marriage would just wind up crushing her poor little romantic heart.
Glancing at the restaurant’s back door, she tried to picture how it must have looked last Christmas when Jessica put Donovan in handcuffs. At the time, her now sister-in-law hadn't realized who Donovan was, and that he was trying to break in because mom had locked her keys inside, so she’d thought she was arresting a burglar.
Now the story was told with laughter, and honestly, Ashlyn just loved it. It was so romantic, and while things hadn't beensmooth sailing for the couple, they were now happy and in love. She was pretty sure it wouldn't be all that long before Freddie became a big brother, and while she loved her brother very much, his new family, too, she was still struggling a little with the whole jealousy thing.
“Which is not nice,” she reprimanded herself as she headed for her car.
