“I’m one of those hovering dads.” Dakota started walking back toward the slide and the neighbor fell in line beside him.
She was friendly and personable, chatting about the April temps. He glanced over, but kept his attention on his child. He was the first to admit he was overprotective, but he didn’t give a fuck what others thought of him.
“Maybe we could take a break from our kids and have dinner together sometime.” He glanced over. Her cheeks flushed a little. “I’m divorced. I’ve seen you here with your daughter, but I’ve never seen her mom. Are you divorced, too?”
“I’m a widower.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I had no idea.”
“It’s okay.”
“No!” Sammy yelled before shoving Noah back. “Daddy!” She raced over. “Noah spit at me.”
Noah hurried over. “She cut in line.”
“Noah, we do not spit,” said the mom. “What do you say to Sammy?”
“She cut in front of me. She’s a stupid butthead.”
Staying quiet, Dakota glanced at Sammy, waiting to see how she handled things.
“I’m sorry I cut in front of you,” Sammy said, “but I don’t want to be your friend if you spit. Spitting is bad.”
“Nice job using your words, Samantha.” Dakota held out his hand and she slid her small one inside his.
He waited for Noah to say something, but the boy stared at the ground. His mother looked meekly at Sammy. “Noah’s sorry, Sammy.” Then, she smiled up at Dakota. “If you give me your number, I can shoot you a text.”
“We’ve got to get going,” Dakota said. “Good talking with you.” As he and Sammy headed back toward the car, he said, “You handled that very well, Samantha. Do we need to head home and clean you up?”
“He wasn’t a good spitter, so it never got on me.”
Dakota laughed. “Good to know. How do you know Noah?”
“He goes to my school.”
“Does he spit there?”
“Sometimes, but he’s never spit for me before.”
Rather than correct her grammar, he just smiled. After strapping her into her car seat, they took off for D.C. By the time they arrived at his brother’s, Sammy was out cold. But the second he cut the engine, she blurted, “Yay! Uncle Lalla’s.”
Dakota’s sister-in-law, Evangeline Develin, swung open the door. “There’s my sweet girl.” She lifted Sammy into her arms and hugged her. “Uncle Lalla and I have been so excited to see you.”
“We are going to have sooooo much fun,” Sammy declared. Dakota’s twin walked into the room and Sammy held out her arms. “Uncle Lalla!”
Evangeline handed her over and Sammy wrapped her arms around Sin and hugged him.
While Sinclair Develin was known around the region as The Fixer, he was simply Uncle Lalla to his niece. Dakota breathed easier knowing Sammy was with family. He would be able to attend his event without worrying about her.
“Aunt E-Leen, will you play with me?”
“Of course. Maybe Daddy can stay for a little while and see the present Uncle Lalla and I bought you.”
Sammy’s eyes grew large. “A present?”
“Before presents,” Sin said, “we have to go over the safety rules.”
“Uh-huh.”
