“Don’t call me that.”
“Right, I forgot. Sorry, cupcake.”
She looked ready to murder him. Fortunately, Chris slid back into the living room before any dead bodies hit the floor.
Immediately, Dylan and Claire pasted on some smiles.
“Everything okay here?” Chris looked from one to the other.
“We’re great,” he said cheerfully.
“Super,” she agreed. Her happy mask shifted for a second to reveal a flicker of extreme reluctance. “We’re going to a carnival tonight. It’s going to be so much fun.”
“So much fun,” Dylan echoed. “We’re excited to get to know each other better. Isn’t that right, honey?”
Her jaw clenched for a second before relaxing. “Uh-huh. I can’t wait.”
Seth accepted the piece of cotton candy Jason held up to him and popped it in his mouth. The sugary sweetness melted on his tongue and brought forth an image of the dentist’s chair he and the twins would be sitting on in the near future.
He wished Miranda were here. She was much better at saying no to her children. He, on the other hand, let those imps walk all over him. He’d already bought them cotton candy, popcorn and snow cones, but he was determined to say no to the next sweet treat they begged for, because at that point, he’d be worrying less about cavities and more about vomit.
“Can we ride the ferry wheel again?” Sophie tugged on his hand to get his attention.
“Ferris wheel,” he corrected. “And the answer to that is heck yes.”
She giggled.
“Jase, you want to ride the Ferris wheel?”
The boy shook his head. “I wanna win a goldfish.”
“All right.” He searched the crowd for Dylan, finally spotting the blond SEAL near the railing of a nearby ride. “Wade! You two mind taking Jason over to games while Soph and I go up on the wheel one more time?”
“No prob. Get over here, squirt.”
Jason dashed off toward Dylan, who’d come in Miranda’s place and ended up bringing a smoking-hot redhead along. Seth had been ready to high-five his buddy for a job well done—until Dylan introduced the chick as his brother’s fiancée. The two of them had been bickering like cats and dogs since the moment they’d showed up, making him long for Miranda even more.
“I wish Mom was here,” Sophie said as he scooped her into the ride car and slung an arm around her.
The safety bar locked into place, and then the car began its slow ascent, each rise providing a better view of the busy carnival grounds. The scent of deep-fried food, popcorn and sugar permeated the evening air. The sun had just set, and the bright neon lights on the rides down below twinkled in the dusky night.
“I wish she were here too,” he agreed. “But she had to work.”
Miranda had been pretty bummed about it. Normally she didn’t start work at OMG until seven or eight, but the club was hosting a private party that had begun at five o’clock, so she’d headed over there right after she finished up at the school. Since this was the last night the carnival was in town, Seth had offered to take the twins himself and now he was glad he had. The kids were having a great time. And honestly? So was he.
It still amazed him, how different things were. How different he felt. Telling Miranda about Adam had been the most liberating thing he’d ever done. The second he’d given her that article, voiced his fears and insecurities, it was like a weight had been lifted off his chest. Miranda had said it wasn’t his fault. A tiny part of him even believed her. But a bigger part knew she was wrong—he was responsible for Adam’s abduction. That certainty hadn’t changed.
But Miranda had made him feel like there was hope for him after all. Her trust in him made him want to trust himself.
“Soooo pretty,” Sophie gushed as she peered down at the lights.
Her small hand slipped into his, and his chest tightened with emotion. Shit, he was starting to care something fierce about these rugrats. Sophie was the smartest, sassiest little girl he’d ever met, and Jason was so damn energetic, so eager to please and quick to smile.
Five months ago, he wouldn’t have dreamed that he’d be atop a Ferris wheel with a six-year-old nestled against him, yet here he was, doing exactly that—and actually enjoying himself.
When the ride came to an end, he lifted Sophie into his arms and made his way to the games area. Didn’t take long to find the rest of their party. Jason had abandoned his quest for a goldfish—he and Dylan were at the shooting gallery now, whooping up a storm and shooting BBs at a slew of metal chickens that rapidly popped up as they flew along a motorized loop.
“Where’s Claire?” Seth asked, looking around.
“Restroom,” Dylan replied without taking his eyes off the targets. “Even bee-otches need to pee.”
Jason looked curious. “What’s a bee-otch?”