Chapter 38

Ifound myself reluctantly pulled from the depths of sleep. I wanted to stay just like this for another day or ten.

Isadora lay tangled in the sheets beside me, her leg thrown across my thighs. Her arm was across my chest with her breasts pushed against me. Even with her mouth partially open, she was a vision of ethereal beauty that stole my breath away.

We had been up most of the night making love. I couldn't get enough of her. I was pretty impressed with my thirty-something self for managing to get it up time after time. I probably could have kept going if exhaustion hadn't made it impossible. It felt like we had fourteen years to make up for. I truly couldn't get enough of her sweet body.

But even as I lay there thinking about a good excuse to stay in Boston another night, I realized I wanted to go home. I missed the kid. It felt strange to be away from her. It was a feeling I had never experienced before, a testament to the profound impact she had made on my life in such a short time.

Isadora stirred beside me. "Is it morning?" she murmured.

"Judging by the sun I see trying to peek through the curtains, I would say so."

She groaned and adjusted her body against mine. "Do we have to go?"

I chuckled, bending to kiss the top of her head. "I had the same thought, but then, well, is it weird that I miss Sloane? I never realized how much I would miss her after just one night away."

Isadora's laughter filled the room. "You get used to it," she assured me, her voice warm with affection. "But I've honestly only been away from her a handful of times. When Sloane was young, I took her everywhere with me. If I had to travel for work, I hired a nanny to take care of her while I was in a meeting. When she started school, I pretty much stopped traveling altogether. I didn't want to be away from her, but I also didn't want to pull her out of school all the time. Kids need stability."

Her words struck a chord in me, a reminder of the sacrifices she had made for Sloane's sake. It was further proof of the depth of her love and devotion as a mother. Sloane was a lucky kid to have Isadora.

"I'm glad you're her mom," I commented.

"Me too. It's been the best job in the world. I am so happy you're her dad. I want you to know her. Spend lots of time with her."

"I plan on it," I promised. "She's probably going to want to send me away because I have every intention of smothering her."

Isadora laughed. "I have a feeling she's not going to mind."

I nodded, happier than I had ever been. It was a feeling I wanted to hold on to. "We'll figure it out as we go. I'm just so grateful for this chance. I want to be the best dad I can be."

We spent the next hours talking, having breakfast in bed before it was time to hop on the jet and go home.

"When do you think we should tell Sloane about us?" I asked. I broached the subject after we had settled in on the plane. "I mean, she's been through so much already. I don't want to add to her burden, but I do feel like this is the real thing between us."

Isadora's gaze softened, but a flicker of uncertainty crossed her face. "I'm not sure," she admitted, her voice tinged with apprehension. "We're still so new, and I don't want to overwhelm her with more changes right now. She might be happy, but she may also be unprepared for what that means. I haven't talked to her about why we haven't been together."

"Because I left," I said quietly.

"You didn't know," she said, reaching out to touch my arm. "But to a fourteen-year-old girl, she might not understand the nuances of an adult relationship. I don't want her to worry about us breaking up and you leaving."

"I would never do that," I said vehemently. "I wouldn't have done it then."

"I know, I know," she said. "I didn't mean it like that. I'm only saying Sloane doesn't know all of that. I would just like to ease her into this idea."

Her words were a reminder of the delicate balance we were trying to maintain. It was a tightrope stretched between the desire for honesty and the need to protect Sloane from pain. "I get it. I won't bring it up again."

"I'm not saying that." She smiled. "I'm just saying let's enjoy this time together. No rush on telling her."

I leaned over and kissed her, deciding to drop the subject before it got heated. Yes, I was still a little bitter about not getting the chance to spend time with Sloane, but we were working through it.

When we got into the car, my phone buzzed with a message from my daughter. I smiled at Isadora. "She wants to know if I'm staying when I drop you off?"

"I would love that—if you don't have anything else to do."

"Only you," I said with a cheesy grin.

She laughed. "Very funny."

I quickly replied to Sloane's text and let her know I would be coming over to hang out for a bit. When we walked into the apartment, Sloane was sitting on the couch with her phone in hand as usual.

"Holly, this is Graham," Isadora introduced.

Holly, a woman that looked like she ate men like me for breakfast, sauntered over, looking me up and down with discerning dark eyes. She had a lawyerly look about her, but Isadora told me she was the head of accounting at her company.

"Graham," she said and extended her hand. "We finally meet. I've heard so much about you."

The way she said it made it very clear it wasn't all good things.

I shook her hand, trying to keep a polite smile on my face. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Holly," I said.

Isadora saw the unease on my face and squeezed my hand gently. "She's all bark and no bite," Isadora joked.

"You've never seen me go after someone trying to cheat the books," Holly quipped while still holding my gaze.

"What do you want to know, Holly?" I asked, showing her I wasn't afraid of her questions.

"Oh, so much," she said with a tight smile.

"Holly, play nice," Isadora said before walking away.

"Let me have it," I said to Holly. I could see her chomping at the bit to interrogate me. I didn't fault her for it. Isadora told me Holly had been an honorary aunt to Sloane and loved her like her own.

Holly hesitated for a moment, her eyes narrowing as she studied me carefully. "Alright," she finally said. "I guess my first question would be what are your intentions, mister?"

"I intend to be Sloane's father in every way," I replied easily.

"And Isadora?" she asked in a low voice.

I leaned forward. "I don't kiss and tell."

She frowned. "Are you going to walk away again?"

"Nope."

"Are you going to hurt her?"

"Nope."

She crossed her arms across her chest. "I'm going to keep my eye on you, pal."

"Fair enough." I nodded. "Do you mind if I talk to my daughter?"

Holly sighed but seemed to soften a little. "Alright, but don't do anything stupid. Isadora is nice. I'm not. Think of me as her pit bull ready to chomp on your balls and I don't mean in a sexual way."

"Noted, but you're not going to be chomping on any of my body parts anytime soon."

I walked away, catching Isadora's smile. She mouthed the word "sorry" before going into the kitchen.

"I showed Holly how to play dominoes," Sloane announced. "And I kicked her butt."

"It's an old lady game," Holly said.

"Are you calling me an old lady?" I asked with a laugh.

Sloane rolled her eyes and said, "You're just bitter because you lost, Aunt Holly."

"Oh, please," Holly retorted. "I could have won if I wanted to. I was just going easy on you."

The rest of the afternoon and evening went by with lots of laughter. Even though Holly and I had a rocky start, she was a nice lady. And she was looking out for Isadora and Sloane. After Holly left, Sloane headed for her bedroom to surf the internet and do whatever teenagers did—maybe sulk and write bad poetry.

I helped clean up the kitchen, not ready to leave.

"Isadora," I asked, keeping my voice down. "Would it be alright if I stayed here tonight? I don't have anywhere else to be, and I'd love to spend more time with both of you."

"I'd like that," she replied, her voice soft with affection. "But you'll have to sleep on the couch. I don't want to risk Sloane finding us in bed together."

"Agreed," I said, nodding.

"Let's go upstairs." She smiled. "Grab that bottle of wine. You're going to love the rooftop terrace."

I followed her upstairs and was thoroughly impressed. She turned on the gas firepit before sitting beside me on the wicker couch. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

"I'm glad your father promoted the wrong person over you," I told her. "Otherwise, I never would've known any of this was possible."

Isadora's laughter washed over me. "Funny how life works sometimes," she mused.

We sat in companionable silence. She sipped her wine and looked up at me. I looked into her eyes and was hit with a powerful surge of emotions.

I was in love with her.

But even as the revelation rattled around in my head, I held it back. I didn't want to risk the fragile bond we were developing. I didn't want to scare her. We both had some hangups that we needed to work through and jumping right into the "I love you" stage might be rushing things.

She leaned against me, her head resting against my shoulder. I watched with tender affection as she fought against the pull of sleep, determined to stay awake.

"Let's go back downstairs," I said.

She yawned and nodded. We went back inside and sat on the couch, once again falling into comfortable silence. It wasn't long before she succumbed to sleep. Neither of us had gotten much sleep the previous night. Her breathing was soft against the curve of my neck. Instead of waking her up, I lifted her in my arms, cradling her against my chest as I carried her to bed.

I laid her down, tucking the blankets around her with care before dropping a gentle kiss on her forehead. I resolved to make this last for the rest of my life.

I returned to the couch, quickly making up my bed before closing my eyes and falling asleep.