“Okay.” She shrugs as she digs into her food.
“Did you have fun with your chalk?” I ask her.
“Yeah. I really like the glitter ones,” she tells me.
It’s just another tidbit that I file away for later. The girl doesn’t know it yet, but I’ll try like hell to make sure she never runs out of the shit.
I look over at Tanner. “Did you know that we have a hockey and baseball team here in town?”
He perks up. “Really?”
“Yeah. Both teams are pretty good. Maybe we could go sometime? If it’s okay with your mom,” I tell him.
His mouth opens and then shuts.
Jane taps her shoulder against his.
“That sounds exciting, right? You’ve never been to a hockey game before,” she says.
I make a mental note that she said hockey, not baseball. Then it hits me that she said he had never been. I had assumed that his father would have taken him to sporting events, but I need to remember his father is a piece of shit.
The idea of taking him to his first game, though, does shit to me. It would be a first of his that would be mine. Something that, no matter what happens between the four of us, he would remember.
“I’ll get us tickets,” I tell him.
He looks up at me with hope in his eyes, but doesn’t say a word.
The rest of dinner goes by in the blink of an eye, and all too soon Jane and I start to clean up as the kids play.
“You don’t have to help me. I can deal with this all later,” I tell her as I set some shit down on the counter.
“Let me. It’s the least I can do. Besides, you cleaned up at my place.”
Neither of us is paying attention, and we bump into each other as I shut the fridge.
“Oh.” She gasps as she stumbles back.
I reach out and steady her, making her suck in a breath. It doesn’t escape my notice that she doesn’t flinch at my touch.
My eyes drop to her lips, and all I can think about is kissing her. Her hands come to my chest as she stares up at me.
“Are you going to kiss me again?” she whispers.
“Do you want me to?” I ask.
She licks her lips, and it’s all the invitation I need. I lean in and press my lips to hers. This time, we don’t go slow. She slides her tongue into my mouth without hesitation, almost as if she wants to pick up where we left off. Fuck if I don’t want to do that, but the kids are right outside.
I kiss her for a moment longer before I pull away from her.
Reluctantly, I step back and clear my throat.
“So I have to go out of town for a few days.” I blurt out the first thing I can think of.
Jane’s face falls for just a second, but she quickly covers it.
“Okay.”
“I just thought you should know…” I look out the window at the kids. “In case you need anything and I’m not here.”
