“Shit,” Lee hissed, popping off the floor. “Every other Sunday, shesleeps late.”
“Hold on, Ben,” he said, wiping the towel over his body while he reached for his boxers.
“Come in,” he said, slowly pushing the door open. I hid back in the shower, praying she didn’t spot my clothes before Lee ushered her out. We hadn’t talked specifics of anything. What we’d tell Bennie or our families and when, although I guessed friends had a good enough idea not to be shocked.
Guilt and shame hit me hard at traumatizing this sweet little girl who’d never seen her father with a woman before, and I wasn’t sure if it being me would make that better or worse.
Plus, I was naked and wasn’t in a position to explain anything to her, even if I knew what to say.
“Thank you, Daddy.” I smiled at her deep, relieved sigh as I heard a steady stream. “Hi, Stella.”
I wouldn’t ignore her or lie to her, but finding me naked with her father would be one of those core memories I didn’t want to give her.
Wincing, I peeked my head out of the curtain and made sure it covered me.
“Good morning, Ben,” I said as she pulled up her pajama pants and washed her hands.
“Hi.” Her innocent smile, wide and bright like it was every morning, made more guilt coil in my gut. “Does your head hurt? Did Daddy have to stay in here to watch you like he had to watch you sleep last night?” Her cute forehead crinkled with concern as she came up to the curtain.
“Yes. Daddy was worried, but I’m okay.” I tried to smile as wide as I could, my lips already chapped from beard burn.
“Oh,” she said, her brow furrowed as she lookedbetween us. “Can we have pancakes? That won’t hurt Stella’s head, right?”
“Sure,” Lee said, rubbing the back of his head. “Go get dressed, then you can help me.”
“Yes!” She raised her fist in the air and swiveled her head to me. “Don’t worry, Stella. We’ll keep taking care of you.”
Lee met my gaze after she closed the door and folded over, laughing as he held his head.
“This is not funny!” I balled up a washcloth and threw it at him. “We can’t do anything with her in the house.”
“So you’re good holding out for another eleven years?” he asked, pulling the curtain out of my hands. “Not a chance. She’s fine. She’s focused on pancakes and making sure your head doesn’t hurt. We’ll ease her into this.”
He cupped my neck and brushed my lips with a light, yet somehow still dirty, kiss.
“I’ll meet you downstairs. We make pretty good pancakes, even though I had my heart set on eating something else,” he said, swatting my wet hip. “Like my daughter said, we’ll take good care of you.” He pressed his lips to my forehead and left the bathroom.
I stared at the door for a long minute before I stepped out of the tub, swiping the steam off the mirror to get a closer look at my face. The bruises didn’t look too bad, the crimson flush in my cheeks a lot more pronounced.
I looked tense yet happy. Confused but relieved.
I’d run from yet chased Lee for what felt like my whole life. Now that I had him, I had no idea what to do with either of us.
TWENTY-FIVE
LEE
“Does Stella have a combustion like you told Grams and her mom?” Bennie asked me as she stirred the pancake batter with a wooden spoon. I’d put her in charge of stirring and myself in charge of folding in the chocolate chips so she wouldn’t pour the whole bag in.
“Concussion. And I said she may have one, but I don’t think so. The hospital gave her a test that seemed okay, but she has to relax the next couple of days.”
“Oh,” she said, chewing on her lip as she stirred the batter in big, slow circles. “So you had to give her a shower to make sure she didn’t fall.” She squinted up at me, the blue eyes we shared narrowed with curiosity. “Is that why she made that noise?”
“What noise?” I froze, trying to figure out what she could have heard on the other side of the door and how the hell to explain it.
“Like a noise you make when you lean on something and it hurts.Mmmm ouch. Like that, Daddy.”
Jesus Christ.
