“Anytime, Sprout,” he says, grinning at her.
I smile. “It’s not over yet. How would you feel if Blake came home for dinner?”
Her eyes lift to him. “You’ll come to our house?”
“Only if that’s okay?”
She nods without hesitation. “It’s okay.”
I open the back door, and she climbs into her booster seat, buckling herself in while Blake meets me at the back of the car and presses his lips to my forehead.
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” I ask, biting my lip.
“More than ready, pixie. I’m all in with you.”
Chapter 25
Blake
Surprising Tinsley and Juliet with a visit to the aquarium turned out to be one of the best days of my life, despite the loss on the pitch.
Tori and I never got to do any of the normal family outings when we were kids.
For as far back as I can remember, Dad was always a raging alcoholic arsehole, and all our money not spent on bills went straight to the local bar. Tori would take me to the park, and I had my soccer trainings and games, but other than that, we just hid in each other’s rooms to avoid being Dad’s punching bags.
Seeing the happiness radiating from Tinsley as she bounced from exhibit to exhibit gave me this strange feeling of longing for something I never had, but suddenly realised I wanted. I never considered having my own kids one day, thinking it wouldn’t be on the cards, that I was too damaged to be good enough for someone. But now, with Juliet and Tinsley, Idowant it. I want to be deserving of them.
Because it’s late on Sunday night, and Tinsley has school tomorrow, we stop to pick up sushi on the way back to their place.
“Can we do this every weekend?” Tinsley asks, stuffing another piece of salmon sashimi into her mouth.
Juliet and I share a look, and my heart beats wildly in my chest as I realise this is our opening.
Juliet wipes her hands on a napkin. “Would you like that?”
“Uh-huh,” Tinsley says. “It was fun.”
Releasing a breath, Juliet reaches for my hand, and I give it a reassuring squeeze. “How would you feel if Blake came over more?”
Tinsley frowns. “With Rett, too?”
“Maybe, sometimes,” I say, looking to Juliet for guidance, continuing when she smiles and nods. “But I really like your mum, and I’d like to spend more time with just the two of you. Would that be okay?”
She thinks about it, her eyes falling on our joined hands before she looks up at us. “You like Mama?”
Unable to hide my grin, I nod. “Yeah, I do.”
“Are you her boyfriend?”
My eyes widen. I didn’t realise five-year-olds were that worldly. “Uh, I’d like to be. But only if it’s okay with you.”
“Will you live with us?”
Juliet shakes her head. “No, but he might stay over sometimes?”
“Like a sleepover?”
The back of my neck heats, and I bite my lip to hide my smirk.
