“Picky? How come?”
“My life isn’t just about me anymore. I’m dragging two innocent little girls along on this ride, so I definitely have a pretty solid idea of what I want in a partner.”
“Partner. Hmm, that sounds so … official. We’ll get back to that—right now, though, I’m dying to know these qualities you’re looking for.”
He pulled the stool out, sat down and leaned in closer, anxious to hear what I was going to say next.
I pulled out the other stool and followed suit.
“Well … he has to be responsible, stable, grounded…”
Brody’s face was unreadable, as though he couldn’t compute what I had just said.
“What?” I asked him defensively.
He didn’t answer, he just dropped his head into his arms and pretended to snore, loudly.
I reached over and smacked his arm. “Knock it off!”
His head snapped back up, and he looked bewildered. “Why the hell would you want that guy? He sounds like a total buzzkill.”
“He’s not a buzzkill, he’s responsible. A good role model for the girls.”
“No way! The girls are five. They have you to be their good role model. They want someone who will stomp around in the mud with them and let them stay up late and eat junk food when you’re not home. They need someone fun. Sounds like you do too.”
“I have fun!” I blurted out.
“Calm down, Killer, I wasn’t being mean. I think all the qualities you want in a guy are … nice. I just think you also need someone who will show you how fun life can be. Ya know, make it exciting too. Don’t you want that?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. That’s not really a priority to me. I just need someone who is willing to take on the dad role and not bail when it gets tough.”
Saying that sentence out loud made a huge lump form in my throat.
“Your own happiness isn’t a priority?” Brody looked at me with wide, shocked eyes. “Wow. That’s incredible. How will your girls ever be happy if you aren’t?”
“I don’t know. I never really thought about that,” I said quietly.
“Well, how about this … how about you let me come back up here in a week and show you a good time? Show you how fun life can be?” His eyes danced with an excitement that made me want to get up off the stool and twirl around with them.
I woke up to the smell of bacon assaulting my nose, and my stomach responded with a loud growl.
“Is he dead?” A tiny voice whispered.
I cracked my eye open just a bit to see Lucy and Piper sitting on the fireplace bench staring at me.
“No, he’s not. He just moved,” Lucy whispered to Piper.
“His nose holes are opening and closing,” Piper responded, making a gross face.
Unable to hold it together, I laughed out loud at Piper’s comment.
“Girls, get over here!” Kacie whispered sternly. “Did you wake him?”
Lucy cupped her hands around her mouth and turned to face her mom. “We were making sure he wasn’t dead.” She not-so-quietly whispered back.
I laughed again as they scurried back to the kitchen. Rolling onto my stomach, I propped myself up on my elbows to face Kacie.
“I’m so sorry, go back to sleep. I’ll make them hush.” She apologized.
She looked even cuter than she did last night, if that was possible. She had on little black pants that said Pink across the back and made her ass look phenomenal, and a Minnesota Twins t-shirt.
She’s a sports fan too? This girl just got better and better.
“It’s ok, really. What time is it?” I rubbed my eyes and looked around for my cell phone.
“Seven-thirty. I’m making breakfast. You hungry?” she asked, wiping her hands on a dishtowel.
“Starving.”
“Wanna help me cut up some fruit?” she asked shyly, biting her lip.
Can I eat it off of you after we cut it?
“Sure, I’ll be right there, just gimme a minute to wake up.”
That was a lie. I didn’t need to wake up. I was wide awake, but if I stood up right now I would most likely embarrass both of us.
“Okay, everyone else should be down soon. I’d better get cooking.” She smiled again and turned back to whatever she was mixing on the counter.
I lay there for a minute, wishing the others weren’t coming down. I couldn’t pinpoint what it was exactly, but I liked being around her, especially alone. We had a blast talking late last night. She had no idea who I was but seemed to be into me. I wanted to explore that a little more.
I got up and folded up the blankets Kacie had given me the night before and piled them on the floor next to the fireplace.
“Good morning, everyone!” Ashley chirped loudly as she bounced into the kitchen.
“Morning, Ashley.” I heard Kacie greet back.
“Hey, handsome.” She cooed annoyingly when she came into the family room.
I studied her face as she got closer. Who wore that much makeup this early in the morning? She looked like she got smacked in the face by a drunk rainbow.