“That’s probably best,” I said, setting down a warm cup of coffee on the counter for him.
Scott, already focused on the newspaper, brought the coffee to his lips without stopping to wonder where it had come from. I smiled, lingering on him. I always did find him sexiest when he was freshly washed by the ocean, sporting tousled hair and sun-crusted skin. Neither one of us was getting any younger, but in his late thirties, Scott was aging ridiculously well. His hair was still on the long side, tapered and pushed back in thick waves, and the light stubble on his jaw hinted at a man who wasn’t rushing through life.
I wasn’t the only one who found him desirable. Scott had unintentionally built himself a loyal fan base in this coastal community. Known on his postal route as Hotmail, he was the daily delivery that the suburban moms in our zip code consistently looked forward to.
Propped against the counter, I leaned in and kissed him. That perked him right up, automatically taking my interest to meanI want to bed you immediately.
“Right on,” he said. “By my estimates, that group hug earned us fifteen minutes before the next fight.”
“Stop,” I laughed, removing the wayward hand that landed on my breast. “I have to put Grace down for a nap. That Barbie wedding did her in.”
“Later, then.”
“If you’re lucky,” I teased, giving him another kiss before I asked, “How were the waves?”
“Un-frickin’-real. Huge swells. You should’ve let me take the boys. They would’ve lost their minds out there.”
I leveled a stare. “I don’t let you take my boys into the ocean when the surf report says ‘life-threatening.’”
He shrugged, grinning. “And yet you let me go. Interesting. Makes a man wonder about his pension.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re a full-grown adult. If you want to paddle into deathly swells with your friends and call it fun, that’s your business. But hands off my children.”
“You do realize they’ll be adults someday, free to make their own terrible decisions.”
“Yes, but by then, their frontal lobes should be fully formed.”
“How do you explain Keith, then? He’ll be eighteen in six days.”
Scott wasn’t wrong to question. Keith’s frontal lobe was more of a suggestion at this point.
“He’s within the margin of error,” I said.
Scott laughed, snagging me by the waist and pulling me onto his lap. “Give me another kiss.”
I took his face in my hands, and the grin dropped right off when I kissed him. His fingers tightened on my hips, pulling me closer.
“Hey, Mom, can we—”
Kyle and Jake halted mid-step, their eyes going straight to me sitting on their father’s thigh, and instant trauma bloomed.
“Oh, my god,” Jake said, throwing an arm over his face. “What is wrong with you people?”
“Great,” Kyle sighed. “Now I’m gonna need new parents.”
I tried to pull away, but Scott held tight. These were the moments he lived for.
“Boys,” he said, his smile returning. “Perfect timing. I’ve been meaning to have this talk with you. As you get older, you’re going to notice some changes in your—”
“Please stop,” Jake groaned. “Why are you like this?”
Scott just kept going, deadpan. “—new urges, new feelings, and it’s important you understand how a man and a woman—”
“I’m leaving,” Kyle said, closing his eyes and walking straight into the cabinet.
“Your bodies are going to start feeling—”
Jake placed his hands over his ears. “Seriously, stop, or I’m calling CPS on both of you.”
