Their birthday was important to her, but if Gavin was willing to try, she could use a break from the puppies. It might mean a lot to the boys also to be with their dad.
Bonus, if they were at their dad’s house, then she could sleep.
Sleep sounded wonderful. Maybe it’d even be uninterrupted, and she’d turn off her cell phone and forward client calls to her answering service. It’d practically be a momcation.
“I think the boys would really like that,” she said.
That got her a Gavin grin. The good kind. The full kind. The kind that had the power to make a woman change her mind about (nearly) anything.
“We good?” he asked.
“You’re going to take the dogs frequently.” It was both a question and a confirmation. Mostly a confirmation.
“I’ll even come by and walk them.” He made an X with his finger over his heart, just like she often did.
She held out her hand. “It’s been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Frank.”
“Likewise, Ms. Gibson.” He took her hand and gave it a shake, studying her. His expression reminded her of something that had made sense once upon a time, but now it didn’t quite click.
That expression was not the stuff of happily ever afters, and the realization smacked her in the chest like a full-grown golden retriever chasing its ball.
“How many people do you think are at the door listening?” she asked, hopefully distracting him from whatever he was thinking that made his eyes warm like that.
She released his hand and gestured to the closed doorway.
“All of them, if I had to guess,” he said, seriously.
She smiled. “Should we give them a minute to scurry away?”
“You’re too nice, Rach.” He gave her a smile that made her glad he was the father of her children because, maybe, they’d inherit an ounce of his magnetism.
Without further comment, he pulled open the door.
Evelyn was wiping down the picture frames in the hallway, a bottle of Windex in one hand and a microfiber cloth in the other.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Things are great.” Gavin showcased his charisma-soaked smile. The one that somehow made Rachel experience a solid bout of nostalgia. Not in the romantic way. More like reminiscent of the girl she’d been before kids, before the mortgage, before clients, before responsibility ran smack over the top of her.
“You convinced Rachel to come to the lake?” Evelyn asked, hope clear in her tone.
“Don’t push it, Mom.” Gavin patted her arm as he started to move past, but with an ease of obvious practice, he herded his mother along beside him.
That was nice. Really nice.
The smile. The nice. Together they nearly had Rachel wondering why on earth she and Gavin hadn’t worked.
Then her toe was wet. She glanced at her foot. Her big toe was being munched on by Pete as though the red nail polish were super delish.
Right. That right there was why they hadn’t worked.
Gavin never really understood who Rachel was. How an offhand comment about puppies didn’t mean she wanted them delivered seven years later.
She picked up the culprit currently licking her feet. Apparently, not wanting to be left out, Re-Pete quickly bounded toward her. She picked him up, too.
“I guess you boys are staying,” she said, stroking their fur while keeping her focus on Evelyn and Gavin as they moved to the kitchen.
The dogs were staying and she was…well, whatever this was, she wasn’t sure she liked it.
