Play Fair (The Devil's Share Book 3)(27)
“Are you taking her on a date?” She giggled. “Because you think she’s pretty.”
I leaned in and kissed her forehead. “Good night.”
“Good night…Jacks.”
I hadn’t told Landry yet that she was my daughter, biologically. Last night she was too tired and I was in the studio all day today. But she needed to know her mom had been honest about one thing at least. “You’re my daughter, Buttercup. Your mom didn’t lie about that.”
Her eyes got wide. “Really?”
“Really, really.” I brushed some hair off her forehead. “Diane came by yesterday while you were sleeping and told me.”
She was quiet for so long, I wasn’t sure she was going to say anything else on the subject. But then, “Do you want to keep me?”
How many times in this life was she going to make me tear up? Was this normal? I felt like Lexi. “Yes. Do you want to keep me?” I figured it was only fair to let her have a choice as well.
She nodded.
I clapped my hands once. “Well that settles it then, doesn’t it? We’ll keep each other. And we’ll keep hanging out with all the crazy people who live in this house and keep playing with Dagger and keep going to the beach.”
She smiled, full of light. “Like a family.”
“Like a family.”
Her voice cracked. “What if my mom comes back?”
Did she know that her mom could still get custody? “Well, if your mom comes back, then she comes back. We’ll figure it out. I’m still not going anywhere.”
I turned off her lamp and headed downstairs with a pep in my step. I had Landry; I had B; I had the band; I had it all.
***
I figured it was useless to try to rush Bryan. I’d just get Smith to make me a drink while I waited. Lexi and Dash were posted up on the couch, a large bowl of popcorn between them. “Lex, should you be eating that much salt?”
She stuck her tongue out at me and Dash answered for her. “Dylan only buys the low sodium kind.”
Smith was in the dining room, standing at the vintage bar cart the house came furnished with. I smiled when he handed me a whiskey on the rocks. “You read my mind, man.” I took a sip and closed my eyes as I swallowed. It’d been forever since I’d had a good drink. Those shots with Luke didn’t count.
“Landry asleep?”
“Probably. She’s usually out as soon as I turn off the light.”
“How you doing with that? I feel like other than band stuff, I haven’t gotten to really talk to you about everything.”
“I’m good. We’re good.” I let out a quick laugh. “I mean, walking into the living room and seeing Landry standing there was the biggest shock of my life. I was so damn overwhelmed and terrified.” I took another drink. “But then? I don’t know. Things just started to fall into place. I feel so damn guilty that she’s had a hard life, that I wasn’t there for her. But honestly, if I’d have found out about her nine years ago? I don’t know if I would have stuck around. Now, the more time I spend with her, the more I fall in love. I never thought I wanted to be a dad. But now that I am, now that she’s here, it just feels right.”
Smith wiped the corner of his eyes with his fingers. “If you tell anyone I just cried, I’ll kick your ass.” He pulled me in for a hug. “I’m proud of you, bro. Really f*cking proud.” He pulled back a little but didn’t let me go. Sober Smith was kind of an emotional sap. “I’ve been meaning to ask you, where was Landry living? She has the sweetest little accent, it reminds me of—”
“Are we interrupting something? We can always come back later.”
Smith and I stepped back from each other at the sound of Bryan’s voice. I turned toward her to make a smart-ass comment, but the words died on my lips. She rendered me speechless. Her long hair was flowing down her back in soft curls, her ripped jeans were tight, her shirt fell off one shoulder, and her heels screamed f*ck me. She wasn’t wearing much makeup. She never did; she didn’t need it. Her eyelashes were thick and curled and her lips were plump and glossy. Yep. It was official. I wanted to bang the hell out of my best friend. Like, up against the wall, fingers digging into her flesh, sweat dripping down our bodies. Bang her.
***
I’d planned on taking Bryan out to a nice expensive dinner. But she and Dylan had a different idea. They wanted shots, beer, and bar food. Who didn’t love a low-maintenance Southern girl? I’d hired a driver for the night, and B ordered him to take us to a dive bar. And he had. We pulled up to a rundown shack. The name across the top was so faded I couldn’t read it and there were more old rusted trucks out front than anything else. I thought the girls would balk, but instead they walked in like they owned the joint, ordered a round of tequila shots, a round of beers, and put twenty dollars in the jukebox.
The four of us were playing darts, and B was kicking my ass. “I think you’re cheating.”
She let out a chuckle. “And I think you are a sore loser.”
Smith clapped me on my back. “Always has been.”
The place was pretty much empty when we got here, but it was starting to fill up fast. We’d gotten some stares from a couple younger chicks, but no one had asked us to sign anything or pose for pictures. Yet. Bryan had been a little quiet at first, but I just kept joking around and messing with her until she lightened up. Maybe I’d been making her uncomfortable lately. I’m sure I’d been putting out weird vibes since I realized I had feelings for her. If treating her like my BFF made her feel better, then I would. Well, I would as long as I could. I didn’t know how much longer I’d be able to wait to kiss her. I kept staring at her lips.