Down Too Deep (Dirty Deeds, #4)(46)

“Don’t pay attention to him. He’s taken a lot of blows to the head.”

Bold laughter cut through the air. “Nudge!” Davis yelled.

Nathan cursed under his breath, then bent down and swapped the bottle of sunscreen Marley was holding for a pool toy, keeping her occupied. “Let’s get in the pool,” he said, moving urgently. He squirted lotion onto his palm and smeared it over his chest and shoulders. When his hand grazed his abs, I gulped in a breath and bit my tongue.

Lord, yes, get him under the water.

Nathan dropped the bottle onto a beach towel and scooped up Marley while I gathered my hair off my neck and secured it into a messy bun. Imagine Dragons was playing now. Some of the crowd sang along. Others cheered, grateful for the song change. We walked side by side to the pool, silent, neither of us bringing up the previous conversation.

I couldn’t forget it though. It ate away at my mind.

I waved at Oliver and Olivia as they waited behind a row of kids for the slide. My two couldn’t stop smiling.

“They’re having so much fun,” I said.

“Yeah.” Nathan’s face was tense when I peered over at him. When he halted at the stairs, I did the same. “Jenna, I need you to ask me.”

“Ask you what?”

“Why it matters if Davis isn’t married.” He turned his head, eyes boring into mine.

I was still wearing my glasses, but Nathan wasn’t. And even though his pledge to keep them on was one of the sweetest gestures anyone had ever done for Olivia, I was grateful for the break. I would’ve missed how carefully he was staring at me right now if he’d been wearing them.

“Um…” My hand tensed around the metal rail. “Okay, why does it matter?”

“Because I don’t want him hitting on you,” Nathan said. “And if anyone else tries something, they’re getting shoved in the pool too. I don’t care who it is.”

I smiled immediately. It was purely reactional—I couldn’t help it. Nathan was telling me what I’d been hoping to hear. The reason I would’ve begged for. He didn’t want his friend hitting on me because…Well, we weren’t there yet. Okay. But we were getting somewhere.

This was a good thing. I wanted Nathan smiling now too. But even after that admission, he still looked so serious and unsure.

“What if they’re already in the pool?” I teased, entering the water one step at a time. I watched him over my shoulder.

Nathan’s mouth twitched. He waded in until the water reached his waist. “Then I guess I’m tossing them out of it.” We circled each other with Marley between us, smacking at the water and giggling at herself.

“Nathan.”

He stared at me over the top of her head. “Jenna.”

My cheeks were on fire. I could feel it. “I don’t have much upper-body strength, but I’ll try to do the same if Davis hits on you.”

His mouth stretched into a grin.

There it is, I thought. God, this man should always be smiling.

“I never thought I’d say this,” Nathan began. “But now I’m actually hoping that happens. I’d love to see that.”

“Right? Me too.”

We laughed together.

Oliver and Olivia joined us after their turn on the slide and begged Nathan to play with them. After passing Marley off to me, he tossed Olivia across the pool and then guided Oliver into a backflip when it was his turn. Nathan could lift my kids above his head, no problem. Damn, he is strong. They sailed through the air. Olivia climbed on his shoulders and pumped her arms to the music, which stayed fast-paced. I hummed “A Groovy Kind of Love” while I guided Marley around the perimeter. I couldn’t get that song out of my head.

We swam until the kids complained about being starved for food. Then we dried off and made our plates.

We chose a table in the shade and ate hot dogs and chicken wings, macaroni salad for Nathan and myself, and chips for the kids. Marley sawed on an ear of corn. Nathan said it was her first time having that. She loved it. Halfway into our meal, I watched Oliver stuff his mouth, his eyes on the game of catch that had begun on the beach between Davis and two other men.

“Oliver, you have plenty of time to play with them.” I reached across the table and touched his wrist, grabbing his attention. “Slow down please. Take smaller bites.”

“Sorry, Mom.” His words were muffled. Bits of hot dog bun shot out of his mouth, making his sister giggle. “Oops,” he mumbled, scooping up the mess. He glanced across the table at Nathan, who sat beside me. Marley was in his lap.

“We’ll go out there as soon as we’re done,” Nathan said, forking macaroni noodles. “They’ll still be playing. Trust me.”

“Cool.” Oliver resumed watching the game, appearing more at ease. His next bite was half the size of his previous one.

I knew my son was worried he’d miss this unbelievable opportunity—throwing around with a professional football player. I was surprised Oliver hadn’t faked being full and fled the table already. I knew how anxious he was to get out there. But I hadn’t expected Nathan to read Oliver the way I had. Maybe I should’ve? He’d eaten with us before. He knew Oliver needed the occasional slow down reminder, even without a pending activity hurrying him along.

A thought bloomed inside my head. Nathan was becoming familiar with my kids. I hid my smile behind a napkin.