“She’s been in the pool long enough. She knows the rules. Go on, Katie. Go and get cleaned up. Your food will go cold otherwise.”
Without arguing, Katie joined her as they walked out of the pool.
After drying her body and hair again on the towel, she walked over to the grill and fired it up. All this time, she was aware of his gaze on her. She had to be mistaken because no guy had ever paid careful attention to her.
When she stared at his reflection in the door, his gaze was on her, on her ass, and she nearly stumbled.
Eli, her sexy neighbor, was checking out her ass.
She hadn’t pulled on her shorts, so he saw every inch of her. She wasn’t slender. Her body was full, curvy, and many considered her overweight. Was she mistaking his look for disgust? No way.
There was heat in his eyes.
Did he want her?
Was he angry at her?
She didn’t really care because her arousal had already gone up a notch. There was no way for her to cover up now, not without him knowing what she knew.
Damn it, no wonder she was still a freaking virgin after all this time. She had no idea what to do with a man’s attention.
She’d be doomed to live her life alone.
****
Eli knew he shouldn’t be looking at his neighbor’s curvy ass, but it was right there in front of him. There was simply no way not to look.
Ann Adams had become the bane of his existence. His daughter seemed adamant in her search for friendship as she was always around her house.
He didn’t move to this small, quiet little town for nothing. Katie needed structure, security, and he knew the big city would suck up most of his time.
Being the owner of a large software company, he’d turned into a workaholic while many nannies had helped to raise Katie. He’d didn’t think there was anything wrong with a nanny taking care of a kid, but when said nanny wanted to fuck the father, or move on with her life, he dealt with the cleanup.
Katie was an emotional child. She got attached too easily, and when people left, she always took it hard.
Her feelings for Ann were growing. He saw it.
Ann was a beautiful young woman. Single. Her whole life ahead of her. His little girl didn’t need to get attached to this woman. He’d kept his distance for a reason.
She came back carrying two baking dishes with marinated food.
He watched her back, wondering if her skin was as silky as he imagined. His cock betrayed him, more curious than he wanted to be.
From the first moment he looked at Ann, he’d wanted her. With all that long, red hair designed to be spread out across his bed, or around his fist as he fucked her hard.
Yep, he’d had many a lonely night with his hand for company, thinking of Ann instead. She was too young for him though. Twenty-three, he believed she was. He was forty.
He knew the world and Ann was too young to know anything.
She looked over her shoulder at him. “I’ve got a beer in the fridge if you want one. Go and help yourself.”
He got to his feet, needing to do something to rid his mind of all the dirty things he wanted to do to her, and that ass.
College was about exploring, and he couldn’t help but wonder what kind of things she was already used to.
“Do you want one?”
“Nah, I don’t drink. Katie mentioned what brand you like and I picked some up for you. I’ll have a soda.”
He entered her house. It was a nice house, a good size, but he also knew she was clearly struggling for money. She had one sofa, which had been delivered by a thrift store. College was the best and worst experience. Years of amazing challenges, only to be met with a nice fat bill at the end of it.
He sighed.
His software company had taken off a couple of years after he graduated college. He’d paid off all of his debts and hadn’t looked back.
Opening the fridge, he saw it wasn’t stocked. No doubt, she was budgeting.
He made a note to pick up some groceries. Katie was an eater, and he didn’t want Ann going without because she fed his girl.
Beer and soda in hand, he walked back into the yard. Snapping the can open, he stepped up close to Ann.
She was warm but he didn’t touch, even as he wanted to. She’d pulled her hair down over one shoulder, exposing the other.
“Here you go.”
“Thanks.”
Katie came bundling out with a pair of shorts over her swimsuit. Her hair brushed and in a ponytail. He often wondered where her desire for a pony had come in.
Stepping away from Ann, he took a seat, watching his little girl as she walked up to Ann.
This was dangerous.
Katie kept on talking and he couldn’t hear everything as a plane flew overhead. It was funny, though, as Ann started to laugh.
She finished grilling the steaks, put them on a plate, and walked back to the table. “I’ve already made the salad. I’ll be back.”
She left and he watched her walk.
“Do you like her, Daddy?” Katie asked. “She’s really cool.”
“I know.” He avoided the question about liking Ann. His little girl didn’t need to know how Ann appeared in his thoughts, regularly. All dirty.
She came back to the table and sat down opposite him and Katie. “Help yourself. I hope you like everything.”
Before he got a chance to, she was already cutting up Katie’s steak for her. He served them all some potato salad, followed by some crunchy coleslaw. The food was delicious. Katie often talked about Ann’s cooking but he’d never really gotten a taste.
“I’m going to school soon,” Katie said with a pout.
“I know, I remember you saying. Next week, right? Start of September?”
“I don’t want to go.”
“How come?” she asked.
He watched her. Ann seemed genuinely curious about his little girl. She smiled at her, and damn it, he was charmed as well.
Fuck.
This was dangerous. Back in the city, he had a whole flock of women he could call up who knew the score, and who he fucked on a regular basis. This was supposed to be a fresh start for the both of them.
“I don’t know. I don’t want to go. People will laugh at me.”
“They will not,” Ann said. “You’ve got to give people a chance.”
“Did you hate going to school?” Katie asked.
“I was afraid but it was awesome. Honestly, I had so much fun. You’ll find a best friend, maybe two or three. It’ll be fun. Birthday parties as well. Learning is always fun. I love to learn.”
His little girl smiled. “You think so?”
“I know so. You’re a lovely girl, Katie. I would have totally been best friends with you, like we are now. If I could, I’d go to school with you. I’m a little old though now.” Ann turned to him, a smile on her lips. “If your dad is okay with it, afterward you can come and tell me all about it. I can make muffins for us to eat. Ice cream, milkshakes, muffins.”
“Yes, Daddy, can I? Can I?”
“I don’t see why not. So long as you give school a chance.” He hadn’t wanted to send her to boarding school. His life had changed one day, as he’d sat in a restaurant for a business meeting. Katie was with one of her nannies, and as he sat there, he’d looked across the restaurant to see a father and daughter eating dinner. Only, the little girl had been staring at her dad, looking close to tears while her father was on the phone. All throughout dinner, he’d sat on the phone. Each free moment, he’d been drawn to the couple and not once did the dad stop on his cell phone.