“Yeah, I know,” I huffed.
Favors, a nice deed, helping out a friend—whatever it was referred to, I was having a hard time accepting it.
I guessed it was a product of my generation.
All last night, I’d agonized over taking Declan and Leah James up on their offer to watch Noah for the rest of the summer.
Who does that—offering to watch someone else’s kid for two weeks for free?
The James family obviously.
Before I had another second to reconsider, the door swung open, and I was greeted by Declan carrying their daughter in his arms.
“Hey there, Noah!” Declan exclaimed. “I’d give you a high five, but I’m pretty sure I have jam or…. something all over me.”—he pulled his hand closely to his face for inspection and Lily giggled. —“Anyway, I’ll spare you the sticky fingers.”
“Thanks. I mean, hi Mr. James. Thanks for having me over.”
“You can call me Declan, Noah. Connor is upstairs if you want to head up there.”
Seeing a clear escape route now, he said a quick good-bye over his shoulder as he ran through the door and up the stairs, disappearing immediately.
I chuckled, waving my clean hands at the little girl in his arms. She smiled shyly and snuggled into her father’s chest.
“Hey, Jackson. Good to see you again. You got time for a cup of coffee?” Declan asked.
“You, too and sure, I could probably squeeze in a few minutes,” I said, quickly looking down at my watch.
He invited me inside. Their house was impressive, but I hadn’t expected anything less.
“Hey, thanks for doing this,” I commented as we reached the kitchen. “You really don’t have to. I feel like I’m taking advantage here,” I rambled, watching as Lily squirmed out of his arms and ran off towards the living room we’d just passed through.
“No problem, man. We actually feel that way. You’re doing us a huge favor by letting us borrow Noah during the day. Most of Connor’s friends have been gone a lot this summer with vacation plans and what not. He’s been going a little stir-crazy. Having Noah here the other night was great.”
“Good. I’m glad to hear it. He’s been pretty bummed since we moved. It’s great to see him finally making a friend.”
“Yeah, they’ve really hit it off.”
He poured me a cup of coffee, and I watched him dump creamer and a heaping pile of sugar into his own cup.
He caught me grinning. “What?”
“Nothing.” I laughed, taking the sugar bowl from him and repeating the same treatment to my own cup of coffee.
“Liv give you shit about how you drink your coffee too?” he asked, as I pulled the steaming cup to my mouth. It was so sweet, my teeth nearly fell out as I took my first sip.
Perfect.
“No,” I answered.
“She will. I purposely try and sit next to her if we go out to breakfast just so she can watch me toss ten packets of sugar into my cup. The way her eyes bug out? Fucking hilarious.”
“I’ve never met anyone quite like her, that’s for sure,” I commented, with a slight shake of my head.
“So, I’ve got to ask, what’s the deal with the two of you? Is it serious?”
My expression hardened as I slowly placed my coffee cup down on the counter.
Where exactly was he going with this conversation?
He held out his hands in front of him. “Easy, Jackson. Don’t misinterpret this as some sort of territorial thing. Leah is my fucking world, and everything that is part of her, I protect. That includes her friends. I just want to make sure you aren’t going to hurt her.”
I visibly relaxed. “I have no intentions of hurting Liv. I also protect what’s mine.”
He looked surprised but pleasantly pleased. “Good. Now, I can offer you doughnuts. Only friends get doughnuts.”
Turning, he opened a large pantry and pulled out a small pink box from the highest shelf. “I have to hide them from the monsters,” he whispered. “Damn kids eat everything in sight.”
After opening the box, he extended it to me first. I picked out a doughnut and took a large bite. It was really fucking good.
“Apple doughnuts,” Declan said before I even had the chance to ask what they were. “Leah’s obsessed with them. They’re from this little Christmas tree farm up in the mountains. We go there every year to pick out a tree. Years ago, she worked out an arrangement with the owners, and now, her habit is supplied monthly. I don’t even want to know how much it costs me.”
“I’d say these are worth it.”
“No,” he said. “She is.”
We ate a few more doughnuts and polished off our coffees before I glanced at my watch. We headed for the door and went over when I’d be back to pick up Noah, but I felt myself lingering. Since last night, something had been bothering me, festering my mind from the moment it had happened, and I didn’t have a soul to talk to about it—until now.
Finally, I said, “Declan, can I ask you a question?”
He shrugged. “Shoot.”