25. Chapter Twenty-five

Chapter Twenty-five

Clara

It was a shame how quickly life sped by when things were going well. A month passed in a blink. Thirty-one days full of stolen moments at lunch, sweet kisses, and long, sweaty nights. I was so caught up in the whirlwind of falling for him, I hadn't savored it as much as I should have, but neither of us was going anywhere.

Not when we had it so, so good.

I opened my eyes, squinting at the light streaming through a crack in my blinds. Nellie must've dug her fingers into them the day before, leaving them in enough disarray for the sun to sneak through. I tried to be annoyed, but that lasted all of fifteen seconds. It was impossible for me to take issue with my little girl any longer than that.

I rolled over, expecting a warm body, only to be met with lukewarm sheets. Sitting upright, I peered around my bedroom and turned toward the en suite bathroom. It was dark.

Had Jake already left? He never left without kissing me goodbye. And it was usually difficult to pry ourselves apart.

I checked my phone. No messages from him.

Huh.

He wouldn't have left the bedroom, not with Nellie and Marina out there. At least, I didn't think he would have.

When he came home with me the first time, I'd introduced him to Marina, so that wouldn't have been a problem, but Nellie hadn't seen him since the night they met over fast food. Part of me thought it might be time for a slow introduction, but we hadn't talked about it…

Not that that mattered. Jake probably had to get to Sage or something and hadn't had a chance to text me. He knew I liked to sleep in on Sunday mornings. If not for the sun peeking in my room, I would have been asleep now.

Climbing out of bed, I pulled on my robe, needing to figure out what was going on. After a stop in the bathroom, I padded out to the living room. A smile stretched across my face at the sound of Nellie's laugh, only to droop when I turned the corner.

Nellie was dancing to the music show she loved so much, with Jake right beside her, grooving along. If I hadn't been so distressed at him going against my wishes, I would have stopped to admire how cute they both were. I never would have pictured Jake as the kind of man who boogied down to a kids' show, but he was shaking and wiggling without restraint. For a fleeting moment, I wondered if this was how he'd been with Sage when she was little. Then I remembered I was pissed.

"Mommy's awake!" Nellie spotted me first, and her little legs carried her to me at top speed until she crashed into my knees. "Good morning, Mommy. Jake's here."

I smoothed my hand over her tangled hair and took a deep breath. The last thing I wanted to do was get mad in front of her, but my blood was boiling.

"I see that, honey. What a surprise. Do you remember him?"

"Yep." She nodded hard, her little head bobbing around. "Jake fixed Mommy's car."

"You have the memory of an elephant. Wow."

I took a time-out from my anger to be impressed. Nellie didn't meet tons of people, and we certainly didn't have fast-food dinners with the ones she did meet, but that had been nearly two months ago. For a three-and-a-half-year-old, it might as well have been a decade.

"I'm not an elephant," she cried. "I'm Nellie."

"Oh, right." I laughed, though I didn't feel it like I normally did. "I forgot for a minute."

"Okay." She let go of my legs and swiveled around. "I'm gonna go dance now."

During our conversation, I'd refused to look at Jake, not quite ready to deal with him yet. But once Nellie was immersed in her show again, he came striding in my direction, and I had no choice but to deal.

"What are you doing?" I hissed.

He took me by the bicep and led me toward the kitchen, stopping just outside Nellie's range of hearing while keeping her in view.

"I know you're not happy, but let me explain."

The gruffness of his voice in the mornings was still there. I loved waking up to him saying my name and touching me wherever he could. Today, though, I wasn't so pleased to hear it.

"Go ahead."

He cupped my elbows, keeping me within reach. "Marina knocked on the door this morning. Her daughter was in an accident on the way home from her shift, and she needed to get to the hospital to be with her—"

"Is Cassie okay?" I pressed my hand to my forehead. "I should check with her—"

"She's okay." He tucked my hair behind my ear, stroking his knuckles along my cheek. Steady as a rock, like always. "Marina said she bumped her head and they were checking for a concussion. She's conscious and nothing's broken."

A breath whooshed out of me. Cassie was a nurse, and Marina always worried about her driving home after long shifts. Now that I knew she wasn't seriously injured, I refocused on the subject at hand.

"Good. That's good. Now, can you tell me how you made the decision to hang out with my kid without running it by me?"

He remained calm in the face of my unhappiness. "You were sound asleep, and Nellie had crept up behind Marina. She saw me and remembered my name." Another stroke of his knuckle, soothing me. I must've looked as conflicted as I felt. "I get it, Clara. I do. But she already saw me, so I figured the jig was up. I made her a waffle and cut up some fruit, and we watched her favorite show. I think she'll recover if she never sees me again."

He lowered his forehead to mine, and it was impossible not to soften. If only by a fraction. "I hope that's not the case. I'm getting tired of sneaking out. I could use some lazy mornings with you, and I don't mind watching a cartoon or two."

My lips twitched, almost smiling. "You looked like you were enjoying it."

He chuckled. "I can't help it. When a Rossi girl asks me to dance, I dance."

I took a step back—the only amount of space his hold would allow. Sighing, I glanced toward my daughter in the other room before bringing my eyes back to him. "Sage is lucky to have you as a dad."

"I'm lucky to have her as my daughter." He nodded toward Nellie. "She reminds me a lot of my girl. Always moving and grooving. She hasn't met a stranger."

I snorted a laugh. "That's Nellie. With her in tow, I can't run a quick errand. She's always trying to have conversations with people she thinks look interesting."

The corners of his eyes crinkled as he took my face in his hands. "If you're okay with it, I don't mind being her buddy. We'll go slow, and I swear to all that's holy I'll be careful. The last thing I want to do is hurt either of you."

"I know that. If I had any doubt of your intentions, you wouldn't be in my home." I sighed. "But sometimes things don't work out as we intend."

"No, they don't." His hands dropped to my shoulders then slid down my arms before letting me go. "It's up to you, Clara. If you want me to go, say the word."

My stomach swirled like a storm in a bottle. There was no manual for parenting. Everyone had their own ideas on when kids should be introduced to their parents' boyfriends or girlfriends. And when I put my shock and anger aside, seeing Jake and Nellie dancing had felt…right. He wasn't here to be her daddy, but he could be her friend. And I could have some cozy mornings with my favorite people.

"I want you to stay." I circled my arms around his middle. "I'm sorry I freaked out. I do trust you. It's just—"

He kissed my forehead, then his eyes met mine again as he ran his fingers through the sides of my hair. "You've been through hell and back."

I chuffed. "Yeah."

Taking my hand in his, he kissed my knuckles. "Why don't you go dance with your girl while I make you breakfast? Waffles okay for you too? I'll pour you a cup of coffee first."

I blinked at him, wondering if this was real. The offer had rolled off his tongue like we'd done this a hundred times, but this was our first morning together, and he'd already made my daughter waffles.

"You're going to make me breakfast?"

His brow dropped low. "I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere this morning. Why wouldn't I make my girl breakfast?"

"I—" I felt stupid for being so blown away, but I was, and I couldn't quite hide my reaction. "Well, no one has made me breakfast since I was a kid. You took me by surprise."

"Clara," he growled my name with a vicious edge, "don't tell me shit like that when I can't do anything to go back and make it right."

Snatching up my hand, he pulled me fully into the kitchen and pushed me against the wall. I leaned my head back, and he cupped my throat. Anger crystallized in the blue of his eyes, and though I knew it wasn't directed at me, my stomach swooped and knotted. I had never seen him that way. Jake was the most even-keeled man I'd ever met. For him to snap…

"You were mistreated and neglected for a long time. I'm seeing that now. I fucking hate you being surprised over something small like me wanting to make you breakfast."

"I hate it for myself too," I whispered.

He stroked his thumb over my throat as I swallowed. "Expect me to take care of you now that you've let me in. You can lean on me. I want you to. It makes me feel good to be that for you. Everything I'm going to do for you is my pleasure because you're mine and you're important to me. Keeping you happy is important to me. That means feeding you, talking to you, making you smile, protecting you, tucking your soft body under the covers after making you come on my tongue and cock…"

That made me grin. "You had to throw that in there."

His answering smile wasn't quite as bright as mine, but it was there. Some of his anger had slipped away, unfurling the knot in my stomach. "Had to. It's just as important as the rest."

My eyes met his. Honest and clear, he hid nothing behind his gaze. I'd never known this man to say anything he didn't mean. My instincts told me to lean on him like he wanted. He would be there. As steady as ever.

"Jake."

"Clara," he rumbled.

I pushed up on my toes and touched my lips to his. "I would love breakfast. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now"—he gave my butt a smack and a squeeze—"go dance so I can cook you a waffle before it's lunchtime."

"Well, all right. You don't have to be so impatient."

He squeezed my butt again. "Always playing. Wait until later when I play with you."

"Cards? Battleship?" I raised my brows. "Another round of bowling?"

He took me by the shoulders and spun me away from him. "Get out of here."

I squealed like a kid and ran before he could land another smack. This man made me feel all kinds of things. Right now, I felt younger and happier than I'd been in a long time.

I'd squealed for heaven's sake.

Nellie looked up when I got close, studying me with her big brown eyes that didn't miss much. "I like when Mommy's smiling."

I dropped down to the floor next to her and kissed her plump little cheek. "Jake made me laugh."

She reached out and tapped my chin. "I like Jake."

I couldn't resist pulling her into my lap to nuzzle her fuzzy hair. "I do too, Nell-Belle. I do too."