“I’m not at liberty to say.”
That’s a yes. I groan softly. “You don’t talk about cases with Celeste by any chance, do you?”
“No. Not unless she needs my advice but won’t mention names. Why? She asked how you were doing the other day, by the way.”
“I’m just splendid,” I deadpan.
“I’m sure you are.” My mother sounds amused. “Bye, sweetie.”
“Bye.”
Kneeling down to look at the oven, I see the light is off to indicate it’s warm and ready to insert my tray bake. My mind repeats my new rule that I will be nice to Spencer when it relates to Hadley, but for everything else, all bets are off.
* * *
I found him.
After avoiding him all day, I arrive at the last destination where I can think to look for Spencer, and coincidentally, it's where I was going to head for the evening anyhow.
He's swimming his laps in the warm indoor pool, and the lighting is dim yet perfectly outlines his chiseled form. The light in the water causes a blue glow in the center of the room, and a wall of glass overlooks the lake.
Since this morning’s demand, I've stayed out of Spencer and Hadley’s way. I didn’t want my anger to boil over in front of the little one, and I also thought maybe they needed some alone time since it’s the weekend and tomorrow she is back to school. I went to the grocery store, walked Pickles, cooked, and left food for both of them while I went to check on Piper next door. As soon as I knew Hadley would be asleep, I began my quest to find the man.
Now I’m staring at Spencer, oblivious to me, as he creates waves in the pool from his long, deep strokes.
I whip my robe off and walk down the steps into the pool, wearing my deep purple triangle bikini that barely covers my globes, but cleavage is a girl’s best friend.
Spencer must notice that he is no longer alone, as he suddenly stops and stands in the pool, shaking his head and wiping the water from his face.
“Ah, the mermaid appears, actually swimming in a pool this time.”
“Well, I mean, this will do,” I say as I submerge myself into the warm as bath water.
“I could have sworn you’ve been keeping to yourself all day on purpose, yet here you are in my pool.” He walks closer to me, and now I have a full view of his bare chest and the tattoo.
“The number. It’s her birthday, isn’t it?” I comment. The anchor I know is a logo from the first team he played baseball on, but the number…
He looks down at his chest. “Could be. Days and months do have numbers.”
Fuck, something just tugged on my heartstrings.
“I’m sorry,” I blurt out.
“For what?” He looks at me, intrigued, and slowly moves closer.
“I was maybe a little judgmental of you in regard to Hadley.”
His eyes nearly bug out. “No shit. Is this an apology, April?”
“Yes.” I do my best to avoid looking into his eyes. “I know you try with her. And it can’t be easy.”
He takes in a breath, his nostrils flaring slightly. “Apology accepted.”
I do a double take. Why is he being so agreeable? I thought he would make me grovel. We look at one another in amazement that we both just made it easy for each other. But then I remember that it was only part of the reason that I wanted to find him.
Immediately, I push against his hard pecs, causing water to swoosh around us. “You’re unbelievable.”
“Way to ruin a moment of peace. What the hell now?”
