Hailey burst out laughing at the man’s shocked expression, then his mouth parted in his own laughter, and he shook out his hair, sending a flurry of white drops into the air.
The two were having so much fun she couldn’t help wanting to join in.
Making a quick pit stop to put on her winter coat and boots, Hailey opened the back door. It was a really nice day—warm for the time of year. That was probably why Chase had decided it was the perfect time to make a snowman with Riley. That he even wanted to practically had her ovaries singing with joy.
“Merry Christmas,” she said, smiling as she noticed the water droplets clinging to Chase’s face. Gods, did the man have to be both sexy and adorable? This didn’t bode well for her newfound resolve…
Riley waved his mitt-covered hands at her, his lips parting into a wide smile. Hailey swooped down and planted a kiss on the boy’s forehead.
She looked over at the boys’ progress. It seemed as though they’d just gotten started, though it was admittedly less lopsided than it had appeared from inside.
“Merry Christmas,” Chase grinned back. His expression slipped a little as he searched her face. “Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said, pushing away the last traces of her panic. “I just, um, well, when I couldn’t find Riley when I woke…”
His face turned ashen. “Hailey, I’m so sorry. I should have told you we were coming outside. You just looked so peaceful I wanted to let you sleep, and Riley was hungry, so I made pancakes. There are more in the kitchen if you want some, by the way, and… You’re not saying anything. Why aren’t you saying anything?”
“You…made pancakes,” she eventually managed. He’d taken care of Riley so she could sleep, and now her ovaries were practically weeping with joy and demanding she jump him right there and then, snow be damned. She buried that thought and hoped Chase would put the new flush in her cheeks down to the cold.
“I sure did. But Riley helped put the dishes away after, didn’t you, bud?”
Riley nodded in the affirmative, looking inordinately proud as he crushed powered snow in his tiny hands, and Hailey knew she was doomed. In desperate need of a distraction from her raging hormones, she gestured to the snowman.
“Do you guys need any help?”
“Are you suggesting that my manly snowman building skills are subpar?” He feigned a frown, and Hailey smothered a laugh.
“No, clearly, they’re impeccable. Assuming that you’re trying to make a capsizing snowman.”
Chase canted his head and pursed his lips in a way that set Hailey’s heart racing and made her want to press her own lips to them.
“He’s a little…off balance, I’ll grant you,” he conceded. “But capsizing? That’s a little harsh. He’s equilibrium-challenged, at worse.”
She laughed out loud this time, and Riley patted another handful of snow onto the uneven figure.
“I suppose it’s not a bad attempt for Riley’s first snowman building experience.”
Chase’s expression turned a bit guilty. “Oh jeez, I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I hope you don’t mind, he just seemed so excited when he saw all the fresh snow.”
She shook her head. “Don’t be, I’m grateful. The truth is, we’re so busy staying on the road that we never seem to get much time for things like this.”
Her own guilt surged through her. How much of his childhood would Riley have to miss because of her own past mistakes?
Chase nodded; his beautiful brown eyes were soft as they stared down at her son. “Yeah…kids should be kids while they still can. And for what it’s worth, I think you’re doing an incredible job with him.”
Hailey cleared her throat, distracting herself from the fact that her face was once again turning hot enough to melt the snow. “Umm, so I see you were in the middle of making the torso. Do you already have all the decorations prepared?”
“I have everything we’ll need in my pockets,” Chase replied, gesturing towards his lumpy coat pockets and patting them. “The only thing we’re still missing is the sticks, but I was going to wait until the body was done before we started decorating.”
“Good idea.”
The three of them spent the next half hour constructing the rest of the body. The torso went easily enough, though she’d ended up needing Chase’s help to lift the giant snowball off the ground and onto the body. The heavy, melting snow had been hard on her back, especially since she’d still been the tiniest bit sore from the night’s activities. It really had been too long.
To her surprise, Riley had eventually managed to construct the head on his own, despite needing a few tries. Chase had looked almost…paternally proud at the boy’s success, and the sight had melted her heart. This was how it always should have been.
But as sweet as the sight was, it had also filled her with terror. If things continued like this, Riley would wind up getting too attached. That would be a disaster. As good as things were going, Hailey had just met Chase; she didn’t know him well enough to know if they had a future together. If Riley got too attached…
No, she had to stop that from happening. Riley had already been through far too much in his short little life. It would kill her to see him get his heart broken as well. Plus, Michael could still show up at any time. Perhaps he’d even followed them here last night.
