Intent(59)

She wordlessly shakes her head from side to side, still unsure of which answer to give me.

“No? Hmm. Okay.” A staring contest begins and I have to physically withhold my laughter when she guiltily looks away first. “You’d better get going so you can pack.”

“That’s right. I do need to pack. Let’s go, River.”

When I kneel again, River hugs me tightly and kisses me on the cheek. “Will you be okay without me?”

“It’ll be hard, but don’t worry about me, precious. Have fun with Aunt Lily and be good. Come on, I’ll carry you to her car.”

I kiss my baby girl goodbye, put her in the car seat, and tell them to call me before they leave in the morning.

Lily starts the car and blasts the air conditioner wide open to cool off the interior. When I close River’s door, Lily steps out of the car and gets my attention. “Ace? Have you heard from Margot again?”

“No, not since she showed up out of the blue. I filed a police report about her violating the restraining order. She said that won’t keep her away, though.”

“This thing between you and Layne…is it serious?”

“Yes, it is. Very serious, actually.”

“I’m so happy for you. You deserve to be happy. River loves her, she talks about her all the time. Layne seems like she’d be a great mom to our little girl.”

“I need to tell you something before the town gossip gets around. This will come as a shock, but Layne is moving here permanently and we’re adopting Zoe’s baby together.”

Her face contorts into a mixture of shock, horror, and disbelief as she absorbs the bomb I just dropped on her. When she’s finally able to speak, she presents the very argument I expected her to have. “But Ace, you haven’t known her for very long at all. You, of all people, know what’s at stake when a baby is involved.”

“Aren’t you the same person who just said she’d be a great mom to River?” I chuckle. “Honestly, I know we haven’t been together very long, but I know her, Lily. Just like Frankie knew her when he first met her. I have no doubt that we belong together. We stay awake most of the night just talking, sharing everything we can think of from our lives. Remember what Mom used to say after Dad died? Why she never remarried?”

“She said Daddy was her barn owl.” Lily smiles affectionately at the memory.

“Right. Because once barn owls choose a mate, they’re faithful and monogamous until they die. Mom also used to say that we’d know when we found our barn owl. Layne is my barn owl.”

“Have you told Layne that?”

“Not in those words. Yet,” I grin.

“Did you tell Layne about Mom during one of those talks of yours?”

“No. So far, I’ve just skirted around it, changing the subject to something that doesn’t involve her. I’ll tell her all about it; I’m not hiding it. I just don’t want to ruin the mood, and that topic always does it for me.”

“She meant well, Ace. You need to let it go.”

Lily slips back into the car and drives away. I wave to River until they’re out of sight. “Yeah, you’re probably right, little sister. I do need to let it go. Hell if I know how, though.”

A few hours later, I hear the familiar slam of a car door and look up in time to see my love rounding the corner. When our eyes meet, her gorgeous smile spreads across her face, her skin tinges pink, and her step quickens. She greets me with a kiss that instantly heats my blood to boiling.

“Hello, gorgeous. What did I do to deserve that? I want to make sure I do it again.”

“At the risk of inflating your ego, I’m just literally the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.”

“And do I have something to do with that?”

“Maybe just a little.” The smile she can’t wipe off her face and the love in her eyes say otherwise.

“I guess I’ll just have to try harder. Can’t have anyone else putting that kind of smile on your face.”

“Do you mean you haven’t been giving me your best? You been holding out on me, Sharp?”

“Well, of course. Wait. You mean, all the women haven’t figured out that the guys keep their best moves in reserve?”

“Uh, no.”

“Damn. That was like a best-kept secret, then.”

“And when do you use these reserved best moves?”

“Mainly on very special occasions. Proposals. Anniversaries. If we sense another guy is sniffing around a little too much. And, of course, to get out of or stay out of the doghouse.”

“Wait. Let me get this straight. I have to get mad at you or you have to get jealous over another guy before I get your best moves?”

“You got it.”

“Hmm. Interesting theory. Wouldn’t it just be easier to always give your best and avoid all the unnecessary drama entirely?”

“You may be on to something. Let’s give it a test run. I’m going to use one of my best moves on you now and see if it turns this conversation around.”

“Give it your best shot, Ace.”

Without warning, I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder. She squeals then laughs as her head dangles down my back and the perfect globes of her ass are level with my mouth.