“Dinner? What’d you cook?”
“We made our specialty,” Ellie beams. “Spaghetti with sprinkles.”
He must see the revulsion on my face because Liam chuckles, the vibration of his laughter causing him to go off course and paint half of Ellie’s big toe cotton candy pink.
“Not candy sprinkles, Nya.” He shakes his head. “She’s called parmesan cheese ‘sprinkles’ since she was like three. Didn’t realize that wasn’t something she did here as well.”
I smile, attempting to conceal my regret. My child has a whole life I know nothing about. “That’s so cute. We Latinas don’t really cook with sprinkles.”
Liam
Ready to try
“Your turn.” I take the empty plate from Nya’s lap, passing it to Ellie. She must’ve really enjoyed that spaghetti, because she’s all but licked the plate clean. “Can you drop this in the sink on your way to bed, Squirt?”
“My turn for what?” Nya looks around the dimly lit room in confusion.
There’s a softness to her features tonight. I’m not sure whether something happened while she was away or if she’s just still feeling the aftermath of that kiss I laid on her before she hightailed it out of here earlier. But damn it’s nice to see my girl a little less guarded. She’s been so on edge since I moved back in.
I miss her. I miss her easy smiles and our mundane conversations. The way she didn’t hesitate to call on me for anything and everything. Or nothing at all. I miss my friend.
I pat the tops of my thighs. “Give me those feet, woman.”
Her cheeks flush, and she hesitates.
“Do it! He gives the best foot massages.” Ellie can’t stop grinning as she kisses her mom and me good night. “I’ll tuck myself in.” She smiles at her mother then turns to wink at me.
That’s my girl.
“Oh. Okay. Are you sure, mija?”
“Yep. You had a busy day. Enjoy your pampering.”
With that, our daughter takes off, her feet thumping loudly as she makes her way up the stairs to her room.
“How was your meeting?” I pump a few squirts of lavender lotion into my palm and begin working it into the ball of her right foot, kneading my thumbs in a circular motion.
Nya’s head lulls back to rest on the recliner cushion. “It went well. We start the reno next week. She loved everything! Not a single complaint.”
“Because you’re brilliant.” When I reach the arch, she jerks her foot back, giggling.
“That tickles.”
“Sorry.”
Her answering smile is genuine and ignites a spark of hope in my chest. “It’s fine. This is nice.” She breathes out a contented sigh. “Feels good. Thank you, Liam.”
I continue to work in silence, not wanting to say the wrong thing and set her off. But if a kiss has her this agreeable, I can’t wait to see what she’s like once we—.
“Hey, Liam?” Her sleepy voice invades my thoughts.
“Yeah?”
“You’re a good man…a good dad.”
Well, I’ll be damned. Did someone give her drugs while she was out? I’m not even sure how to respond to that. “Thanks,” I say, moving to the other foot. “What brought that on?”
“Mr. Houseman… he—God, he was just horrible. I felt so bad for his wife. I don’t think she could have kept his attention for more than two seconds if she’d danced around the room naked.” She cringes. “Anyway, made me feel really appreciative.” She smiles down at me. “I’m truly thankful for everything you do for us, and I just felt like I needed to say it. Even though we didn’t work out as a couple, you’ve turned out to be an amazing father and a good friend.” She pulls her feet away, placing them both on the rug and leans forward. Her hands smooth down the sides of my face, and as her thumbs run quickly up and down the stubble, I see what looks like a small flash of admiration in her eyes. “No, I take that back. A great friend.”
A knot forms in my throat, and my dick strains against my zipper. I want so badly to take her to bed and show her how much she means to me, and that she is so much more than a friend. But I know it’s not the right time for that. “I’m thankful for you too, babe.”
“I guess I’ve been acting so strangely because I’m scared to ruin our friendship. To—to become like them.”
“Impossible.”
She scrapes her lower lip through her teeth, staring intently into my eyes. “But how do you know? We screwed up pretty bad last time.”
“How ‘bout you dance naked around this room and I’ll show you just how different I am from that bastard.”
Her throaty laughter is a balm to my soul. “I think I’m ready to try.”
“Try what?”
“Dammit. Why do you always force the difficult words out of me?” she growls.
“Because I want you to take ownership of your feelings…and because I don’t ever want to misread them.”
Her throat clears, and I take her hands in mine, rubbing the pads of my thumbs over her knuckles.
“I want to try to make this marriage work.” She swallows hard. “But we have to take things slow.”
“I can do slow.”
She presses her lips into a semblance of a smile. “I want to be sure it’s not just about sex, but mutual respect and love, and more…”
I nod. “No sex. Got it.”
“I’m just so afraid to lose what we’ve built.” Her jaw trembles. “The loss of our marriage damn near did me in…I don’t think I could survive losing the friendship we’ve built over the years.”
“If you aren’t convinced that you won’t ever lose me by now, I’m doing something wrong.”
“Does that mean we can finally do away with this?” I toss two pillows to the floor and another at her face.
Nya catches it just as it begins to fall and starts swinging it at me. Midge, who from this day forth shall be known as Cockblock, is yapping her little ass off, jumping at me with her tiny fangs bared. It’s clear to see where her allegiance lies. Traitor.
I hold my forearms out in front of my face, blocking her blows before finally tackling her to the mattress. We’re both out of breath, panting like we’ve just run a mile. Her eyes darken as she stares up at me.
“Are you going to freak out if I kiss you?”
Her head shakes, and I lower my face til my mouth hovers just out of reach of hers. Her warm, minty breath is like a drug. I take a moment to revel in the way it whispers across my lips with each frenzied exhale.
It’s Nya who closes the distance, stretching forward to bring her lips to mine.
I grip the back of her neck in one hand. While she explores my mouth, I free her long locks from what’s left of her braid. Our kiss quickly escalates. Her hands are everywhere, urgent and seeking and setting fire to my skin in their wake.
“Can I touch your boobs?” I mutter the question through a tangle of tongues.
She snorts, laughing against my lips as she shakes her head.
“I mean, it’s only fair. You did touch my dick.”