Proving Paul's Promise(56)

He leans down and kisses my cheek. “Just so you know,” he says softly, “I’ve never had a woman sleep in my bed when Hayley’s here before.”

My heart squeezes in my chest, and my belly flutters. I know this much about him.

“So no matter what, don’t break her heart, okay?” he asks softly. His blue eyes stare into mine. “You cuddled with her daddy and with her, so that makes you special. Keep that in mind, no matter what.”

There’s something almost ominous about his tone, but I have no idea what his reticence is about. I wish I did.

###

I sit down on a park bench so full of waffles that I will probably never move again. I might have to get Paul to carry me back to the apartment.

Hayley runs off to play, and Paul calls out to her, “Stay where I can see you!” She rolls her eyes at him, and he grunts. “I have a feeling I’m going to have to break her from that habit before she becomes a teenager.”

I laugh. “Good luck.”

He takes my hand and grips it tightly. He holds it so long that our palms get sweaty and stick together. I extricate mine and pull back. “Sometimes I feel like I can’t get close enough to you,” he says. He’s not looking at me. He’s looking toward where Hayley is climbing on the monkey bars.

I scratch my head. “I don’t think we can get much closer than we were last night.”

He shakes his head. “Sex is easy. It’s the rest of it that’s difficult.”

I look at his profile because he’s still not looking at me. I pretend to make light of his comment and scoff. “I wouldn’t say that I made sex easy.”

His gaze suddenly jerks to mine. “We didn’t have sex.”

I hold up one finger and grin. “I distinctly remember—”

But he cuts me off. “I remember it, too. I remember telling you that I loved you and you telling me you felt the same way. And we made mad, passionate love. Crazy good love like I have never had before. And then we did it again. And then we pulled my daughter into bed with us and that was the best f*cking part about the whole thing.” He turns to face me. “I want a family, Friday. Not just a f*ck. Tail is easy to come by. You, on the other hand…” He lets his voice trail off. “You’re one of a f*cking kind, and I want you to be mine so badly I can taste it. And I’ll still be tasting it next week, next year, and every day following that.”

“I’m with you,” I say hesitantly. I don’t know how much more of a commitment I can offer him. I’ve already offered more than I ever thought I would be able to offer anyone.

He leans over and hovers over my lips. “I love you so f*cking much,” he says. “Just remember that.” He stares into my eyes for a minute, and then he goes to Hayley and races her to the sliding board.

I watch them playing and am just about to get up when a woman drops down beside me. “Beautiful morning, isn’t it?” she asks. She sighs heavily, but it’s a nice noise. It’s not frustrated or confused. It’s just comfortable.

I look up at the blue sky. “Such a pretty day,” I say. I smile at her. She isn’t looking at me, so she doesn’t even see it.

She points toward Hayley. “Is that your little girl?”

I nod. Then I startle because she’s not. But she so is. “My boyfriend’s little girl.”

“She’s adorable.”

A grin tips the corners of my lips. I can’t take any credit for her, though. “Thanks.”

I see a little boy with brown hair run over and talk to Paul. “Is he yours?” I ask.

She nods. “Yes.”

“He’s adorable, too.” He is. He’s tall and slim. Then he looks up, and his eyes meet mine. I gasp. I know those eyes. I have seen them before. It was only once in real life, but I will never, ever forget them. My gaze jerks to the woman beside me.

“Please don’t be angry,” she says. “I talked your boyfriend into it.”

My heart is so tight in my f*cking throat that I can’t get out a sound, not even the sob that’s buried deep within me. I sit forward, balancing on the edge of the seat, because now that I’ve seen him, I can’t look away again. He grins, and I can see his dad’s quirky smile, the one he had when I met him, and I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that this little boy is my son.

“Are you all right?” she asks quietly. She turns to face me on the bench. “Please don’t blame your boyfriend. I just wanted to meet you. Jacob doesn’t even know who you are, and he won’t, not unless you tell me you want that.”

I can hear her talking, but I can’t speak. I get up and walk very slowly over to where Jacob is standing with Hayley. I feel like there’s a magnetic tether between us, and I couldn’t stay away from him even if I wanted to. I want so badly to touch him. I want to feel the heartbeat in his skinny little wrist and watch his chest go in and out when he breathes. I want to take off his shoes and count his toes because I never got to do that. I really wanted to do that.

I stop beside him and squat down. “Hi,” I say quietly. I’m surprised that noise crept past the emotion in my throat because I still feel like it’s going to choke me.

“Hi,” he says quietly. He looks over at Jill, and she gives him a thumbs-up. She doesn’t get up, though. I see her wipe a tear from her cheek.