NICK
“Bye,Squirt. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I kissed Bella on the head and shut the door to Maddox’s SUV. Hannah, Lexi, and Bella were all spending the night at Maddox and Peyton’s house after Callie’s birthday party.
“Thanks for coming.” I pulled Maddox into a one-armed man hug. “I’ll pick her up tomorrow.”
“Sounds good.” Maddox patted my back. “I’ll let you know what I find out.”
“Thanks.”
After talking to Naomi this morning, I’d asked Maddox to find out everything he could about my father. I’d also enlisted the services of the P.I. who found Bella’s mom. For so long, I’d lived my life just looking forward. It was time I faced the past and where I came from. Who I came from. I wanted to know everything. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
Peyton leaned out of the passenger’s side window. “It was a great party!”
Maddox climbed into the driver’s side. “Yeah, it’s nice seeing you so domesticated, grill master.”
The SUV pulled out of my driveway, and as I watched them leave, I smiled ear to ear. I’d never seen my friend happier. He’d always been content, but after reuniting with Peyton, he was truly happy.
I was the lone wolf who wasn’t in a relationship. For years, all three of us had been single, but now Alex’s wedding was in a couple weeks, and I was sure that Maddox and Peyton’s wouldn’t be far behind. They’d been holding off on getting married so that they wouldn’t upstage Alex and Sadie. But soon I would be the only single dad in the Sexy Single Dad’s CEO Club.
As I walked back into the house, I thought about Maddox’s parting remark.
Domesticated. That wasn’t a word I’d ever aspired to. Even becoming a single father hadn’t slowed down my social life. I was a bachelor in every sense of the word. That status had never bothered me before. If anything, I’d embraced the title.
But now, it just seemed…lonely. Empty. Unfulfilling.
I walked into the kitchen and found Skye at the sink doing dishes. The sleeves on the oversized sweatshirt she’d put on over her jeans and tank top when it got dark were rolled up to her mid forearm. Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun on top of her head, and her feet were bare. She was the perfect combination of cute and sexy.
In that moment, everything in my world felt right.
If this was what being domesticated meant, I was all in.
“Where’s the birthday girl?” I asked.
Five of Callie’s friends had stayed after the party for a sleepover. As appreciative as I was that she’d included Bella so much today, I was happy Callie was going to get some teenage time. She was a really good kid. Seeing her and Bella together reminded me of the brotherly bond that Alex, Maddox, and I had formed. Sometimes family has nothing to do with blood.
“All the girls are in the media room watching The Purge.”
“Horror, huh?”
“I hate horror movies.” Skye shook her head. “I have no clue why people think it’s fun to be scared.”
“Yeah, me either,” I agreed. I’d spent most of my early childhood terrified. I never knew where I was going to live or how long I was going to live there. I went through one hundred and thirteen foster homes before finally ending up in the group home where I met Alex and Maddox. I never had any security or family, which as a kid was terrifying. I had no interest in watching something that reminded me of how I’d felt then.
Even though Skye’s mother had raised her, her upbringing wasn’t exactly stable. From what I’d gleaned, Lola had been more interested in men than in being a parent.
“I think the party went well.” I leaned my lower back on the edge of the counter. “Everyone seemed to have a good time.”
“They did. Thank you so much, Nick. You have no idea how much today, and just everything, means to me.”
“It’s my pleasure.” I could hear my voice drop as I looked at Skye’s mouth.
I didn’t mean to stare, but I’d been dying to kiss her all day. Actually, I’d been dying to kiss her every day. I had done my best to respect her wishes and keep my distance from her, keeping things purely professional. But since the night we’d spent together when the girls were at camp, I hadn’t been able to rein it in quite as well as I had before that night. It took every shred of self-restraint I possessed not to act on how I felt when I was around her. It was so difficult being so close to her and not being able to touch her, to hug her, to kiss her, to tell her how fucking beautiful she was, and sometimes I slipped up.
This was one of those times.
“Are Naomi and Lola watching their shows?”
Skye nodded.
