He sucked in a deep breath when she finally leaned away and focused back on the game. It had been a long time since he’d been so aware of a woman. It’s not like he planned to be single for the rest of his life, but he wasn’t ready to think about remarrying yet.
He sprang to his feet when the final whistle blew. He needed to get his boys home, give them their baths, and get them to bed. And he definitely needed to put some distance between him and Debbie. The more time he spent with her, the more he longed for the domestic scene that surrounded him. One where he wasn’t a single father struggling to make ends meet. Wishing every day he could give his kids more.
Despite his urgency to get away, he helped Debbie carry the camp chairs back to her SUV while she wrangled Noah. As soon as the little boy was secured in his car seat, Austin pointed his boys toward his truck.
“Let’s go, boys. It’s bath time and bedtime.”
“Ah, but Miss Debbie promised us ice cream after the game,” Cody whined.
Austin’s eyebrows rose as he turned to Debbie, all feelings of admiration gone. Disbelief shot through him.
She’d promised his kids what?
Debbie’s cheeks colored. “I saidmaybewe could get ice cream. B-but your father said it’s bath time, so we’ll have to get ice cream another time.”
His frustration settled into a scowl. She hadn’t argued with him but she’d still made him out to be the bad guy.
“Another time, guys. It’s too close to bedtime for ice cream tonight.” The boys tended to have nightmares when they ate too much sugar right before bed.
“Ahhh.”
Amid the protests, he herded his boys to his truck. He was about ready to climb in himself when Debbie called his name. He turned to see her hurrying toward him.
She handed over the boys’ backpacks with one hand and a foil covered plate with the other. “Here’s your dinner.”
And the admiration flooded right back, coupled with appreciation. He couldn’t believe the pendulum of emotions she triggered in him.
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.” He was glad she had though, since he wasn’t sure what he would have scrounged up to eat at home.
She waved away his thanks. “It’s just the scrambled lasagna from last night. It turned out pretty good despite everything.”
Austin smiled at the memory of last night’s fiasco. He dipped his head. “I appreciate it. I’ll follow you home so I can pick up Savvy.”
“No, don’t bother. I’ll drive her home so you can get your boys into the bath. Wouldn’t want to delay their bedtime. Especially on a school night.” She winked.
He hadn’t fooled Debbie. He’d refused to take his boys for ice cream simply because she’d made the promise without consulting him first. It was a matter of principle now.
As he started his truck, Cody said, “Did you know Miss Debbie has a swimming pool, Daddy?”
“No, I didn’t bud.” But it didn’t surprise him.
That was another thing. Debbie didn’t even consider asking him if it was okay to let his boys swim. What if they didn’t know how to swim? She had willfully endangered his boys.
“She made usallwear floaties because she said she couldn’t keep an eye on both of us and Noah.” The disapproval was clear in Dallas’s voice. He hated being treated like a baby.
Okay, so maybe Debbie hadn’t endangered his kids, but it still rubbed Austin wrong. The fact that she had a pool at all put her in an entirely different league from him. A league he wasn’t comfortable with.
Austin’s grip on the wheel tightened during the short drive home as the boys told him about their afternoon. He heard so many variations of “Miss Debbie this” and “Miss Debbie that” the widow should qualify for sainthood.
Thirty minutes later, he’d finished the amazing lasagna—along with the cookies Debbie had tucked into a baggie under the foil—and sent the boys to brush their teeth when Savannah walked through the door.
She stood in front of Austin with her hand on her hip, scowling. “Why did Debbie insist on searching my backpack before dropping me off?”
He felt the color drain from his face. Would Debbie have searched Savvy’s backpack anyway or had she done it because he’d cast doubt on his own daughter? How did he tell Savvy it was his fault?
“Listen honey—“
Savannah burst into laughter. “You should see your face, Dad. That was priceless. Debbie dared me to say that. She even joked about giving me twenty bucks if I recorded your reaction.”
