Before I could stop myself, I started walking.

  As I got closer I hollered out his name, only with the laughter and commotion from those around us, there was no way he could hear me. I started to walk faster. Just as he reached the parking lot and opened the door of a blue SUV, I tried again: “Clayton!” Yet there was still nothing.

  He crawled into the vehicle and I started to jog, my heart beating rapidly.

  He started to back out and I slowed to a stop, the strap of my bag sliding off my shoulder and I did nothing to stop it. Disappointment hit me as I hung my head and fought the urge to just crumble to the ground at my feet. Then I heard a honk. I looked up to see Clayton standing next to his still running car with the driver’s door opened. His hand rested on the opening as he stared straight at me.

  I started to walk once more, my eyes remained locked with his.

  He wore a baseball cap pulled down low over his eyes and a t-shirt that was tight on his arms and chest, conforming and highlighting every muscle. It’d been a long time since I reacted to my feelings without questioning them first. When I stepped up to his side, he turned to me and I reached up, placing my hand on the back of his neck.

  “You’re not who I thought you were, Clayton Powell,” I whispered as I tugged him closer and he came willingly. “You are so much more.” I said the words just before our lips met.

  His arms circled my waist and suddenly my body was pulled in firmly to his. His other hand went to the back of my head, his fingers combing through my hair.

  Elated.

  That’s how I felt.

  Our kiss was slow and sensual, though the impact it held on me felt so deep. Like every worry I’d ever felt faded and it was the only thing that mattered. “Please don’t make me regret this.”

  “I won’t.” He leaned back and looked me directly in the eyes. “I promise.”

  ***

  “That guy is a pure genius.” Palmer laughed as she pointed toward Ethan. “I don’t think he’s taken those off since you gave them to him.” Ethan sat on the floor driving his little trucks around on the rug that looked like a dozen different roads. Every once in a while, he’d pause and look up at the television, yet he couldn’t possibly hear the movie playing. He wore the Elmo headphones Clayton had given him, and had kept them on since I placed them on his ears a couple of hours before.

  “It was definitely a good idea.” Thoughtful and so very sweet too, but I said that part in my head.

  I’d given in, stopped fighting my need to push him away, but I still felt unsettled by it. It was just part of who I was; I worried. First it was Mark who turned his back on his own child, then my parents, and finally the friends who were quick to dismiss me when they realized I would soon have a kid and be unable to run around and live the ultimate college life. I’d gotten used to being disappointed; it was something I knew well. The only person who had never turned their back on me or Ethan was Palmer.

  “Stop overthinking it.” Palmer nudged my shoulder with her own before turning around and walking toward our small kitchen. I followed behind her, feeling as if I needed just a little reassurance that I hadn’t make a colossal mistake.

  “I just don’t want Ethan to get attached.”

  She looked up over the open refrigerator door and arched her brow knowingly. “What you mean is that you don’t want to fall for the guy.” I sometimes hated how well she knew me. “This is me telling you that the guy could target and get any other girl walking around this campus. He could have chosen the million and one floozies that hang around fraternity row, but he chose you. He chose you even after he found out you had a son and that would have been the time for him to scramble. Yet instead, the guy befriended your son and bought him a gift. Nothing about that screams ‘player’ to me.”

  “What if—”

  “No,” she snapped as she shut the fridge door and handed me a water. “I refuse to let you do this. You’re gonna accept that there is a guy out there that is not a self-centered prick and looks at you for the amazing person you are. A guy that actually wants to spend time with you and your son. Stop picking it apart, stop looking for the wrong, and just live it. Ride the high I know you are feeling because I can see it in your eyes. Hell, Em, I could see it in your eyes since the first moment you came home bitching about the arrogant prick from the ER. He got to you, and whether you want to admit it or not, you liked him then and you like him even more now.”

  “Fine,” I said and walked away from her, irritated that she took all my arguments away. I wanted to give her all the reasons why it wouldn’t work out, but I knew in the end they weren’t solid. They were nothing, only possible scenarios that could take place, things I’d created in my mind to justify my unease.

  “Fine,” she repeated. “So, when are you going to see him next?”

  When she sat down on the couch next to me, I could see the way she eyed me from the side. “We didn’t make any plans.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I told him I wasn’t sure what I had going on.” I shrugged as if that was a good enough reason.

  “So, you ran up to him and kissed him, then when he asked to see you later, you told him you had plans?”

  “No.” I refused to look at her because I knew she’d be giving me that same disappointed stare. “I told him that I would let him know because I didn’t know if I had plans.”

  She didn’t argue with me which I found interesting because Palmer always argued with me when I was being foolish. Instead, she leaned forward and snatched up my cell phone from the ottoman. “What are you doing?”

  “Something you should have already done yourself.” When I attempted to reach out and take my phone, she leaned away from me. “There, now you better move your ass and get this place cleaned up. Your boy will be here in a few hours.”

  She smirked at me, actually smirked.

  “I can’t—”

  “Nope.” She used her hand to stop me, waving it in front of my face. “Excuses are like assholes, everyone has one.”

  “You are so crass,” I told her as I looked at her retreating back.

  “And you are like a little ol’ lady. You need to start living like a twenty-one-year-old woman. Just because you have a son doesn’t mean your inhibitions and frankly your life need to fizzle out. You are smart and beautiful. You have a very good-looking guy that wants to spend time with you. Jeez, Em, dust off the cobwebs and take full advantage of that man.”

  I stared after her with my mouth hanging open. After she was down the hallway, I heard her door shut and I just blinked in surprise. “She is insane,” I mumbled to myself. Usually that would get some type of reaction out of Ethan, a giggle, a grunt, but no…he was too into those damn headphones of his.

  When I noticed his little head bobbing much like it had when he was in Clayton’s lap that day, I couldn’t help but smile. Just then my phone vibrated, and I flipped it over to see only one message on the screen.

  Clayton: Sounds good to me, I’ll bring pizza.

  Chapter Ten

  Clayton

  “Where are you going looking all hot?” Blake asked, and I didn’t miss the glare I’d received from Eli when she’d called me hot. “Oh, will you stop it?” She curled herself around him and kissed his jaw. “No one is as hot as you.”

  It didn’t help he still looked at me like I’d done something wrong. Jackass was ridiculously territorial over Blake, which is why I loved to press his buttons.

  “I’ve got a date with a pretty girl,” I told her with a wink. He growled and I chuckled, so I pushed more. “I hope that don’t make you jealous, kitty cat. I know you’ll miss me.”

  “You want to keep that pretty face of yours clean?” Eli stepped forward and Blake slipped her arms around his center.

  “You keep my girl busy until I get back, Red. I don’t want her sad that I’m not here to make her smile.” When he lunged for me, I slipped out the door just as it slammed behind me. Damn, he was fun to fire up. But nothing would ruin my mood, not even an overgrown meathead like Eli.

  I was excited, more excited than I had been in a long damn time.

  When I got the text from Emelie inviting me over to her place to watch a movie, I was surprised. She left me standing next to my car after one hell of a kiss without knowing where we’d go next. So when the invite came, it gave me back a little of the confidence I’d lost only hours before.

  I’d seen the look in her eyes after we parted—it was regret. Now I just needed to prove to her there was absolutely no reason to feel that way.

  Twenty minutes later I parked in front of a large apartment complex and crawled out of my truck. Two large pizzas and a small cheese in hand, because the lady at Pizza Hut said it was my safest bet for a two-year-old, I started walking toward apartment 4B.

  Tucking my keys in my front pocket, I lifted my hand and knocked on the door. A few seconds passed before it slowly creeped open, and there in the doorway stood Emelie. “Hey,” I said as I scanned over her. She wore a pair of those tight stretchy pants girls wear, but for some reason they looked amazing on her. The t-shirt she wore was fitted as it hugged her waist and hips. Across her chest were the words “my eyes are up here” with an arrow pointing upward on the last E of the sentence. It made me smile, and when I looked upward she was smiling too.

  “Pervert,” she mumbled and narrowed her eyes playfully as her smile grew wider.

  I shrugged. “Wish I could say sorry about that and actually mean it.”

  A loud squeal erupted behind her and she stepped back, turning around and the door opened wider. Barreling toward me was Ethan with his hands out to his sides and what looked like a diaper in one of them. Looking down further my eyes widened a bit when I realized the boy was nude from the waist down.

  “Ethan, no!” Chasing after him was another girl, tall with long, dark, flowing hair. “I swear he only does this to me,” she complained as she scooped him up in her arms. “Hi.” She offered a wave. “I’m Palmer the best friend, and aunt to this little rugrat.”

  “Hey.” I chuckled as I watched the little guy fight her to get loose.

  “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna go duct tape this diaper to his butt.” As she walked away, I gave Emelie a look that I’m sure mirrored my thoughts. When she laughed and motioned me to enter, she took the pizzas from me.

  “She’s not really gonna tape it on him, is she?”

  “She might,” Em said with a shrug and moved toward the kitchen, placing the boxes on the table. “He is always testing her.”

  I looked around the small apartment and all I found were little boy’s things throughout. Toys, books, a highchair tucked up in the corner.

  “It’s a bit messy.” I turned my attention back to her and found she had that crazy ass timidity about her once again. I hated that look. She was a beautiful girl, and in no way should she be trying to hide that beauty.

  “It’s not a mess.” I stepped in her direction and she crossed her arms over her chest but didn’t try to step away from me. I hooked her around the waist and she looked up at me, biting her lip nervously. “Toys don’t make a place messy, it just shows how great a mom you are.”

  When she tried to look away from me, I cupped her cheek and held her still, ensuring that she looked at me. “Why do you do that?"

  “Do what?”

  “Get embarrassed, or shy. I’m not sure what’s running through your mind, but there isn’t anything about this place or your life that should have you hiding.”

  “You’re so sure about that.” I nodded and she shook her head. “You’re looking at a girl that got knocked up by some guy she’d just met at her first college party. Then he turned his back on his child before he even knew the sex of the baby. My parents want nothing to do with Ethan either, because he wasn’t in the plans they’d envisioned for me. I’m now an embarrassment and he’s a reminder of the life I’ll never be able to have now. In their eyes, I’m a disappointment.”

  “Well, then they are the ones that should be ashamed, not you. They’re the ones missing out on you and him. It’s their loss, Em, and you’re better off without their venom in your life.” I tried to control the ticking in my jaw that her declaration warranted. What kind of fucking guy turns his back on his child? And her parents? I may have never met them, but they were nothing but two selfish pricks in my eyes. Fuck them all; no wonder she had trust issues.

  “What are you gaining from this?” Her question surprised me. “Being here, getting wrapped up in my mess?”

  “I’m gaining a beautiful girl and her adorable son. I’d say I’m the lucky one.”

  She attempted to tuck her head downward to hide her smile, but I wouldn’t allow her to. Instead, I leaned in and kissed the corner of her mouth, watching her eyes flutter shut. “You need to stop blaming yourself for the bad choices of others, because one day those idiots are gonna wake up and realize what their poor choices cost them. And when they do, I’ll be able to say that they’re too late because now you’re mine.” I kissed her again. “Both of you.”

  “Clay—”

  I didn’t allow her to argue with me; I knew instantly that was her intention. I covered her mouth with my own and slowly began to kiss her. It was all I’d thought about since the second she ended our first kiss earlier that day.

  One hand holding her face firmly in place, I used my other to pull her body in as close as possible to my own. Damn, she felt good in my arms. “I’m here with you because I want to be, not because I have some hidden agenda. I like you, Em, and I like Ethan too.” I rested my forehead to hers. “I know the two of you are a package deal, and I want the whole thing.”

  Her eyes were still closed, and I continued to hold her close. That is, until I felt a tug on my pant leg. I looked down to find a now fully clothed Ethan looking up at me. He held a kid’s cup in one hand and he smiled wide.

  “Hey, buddy.” When I said that, Emelie jumped back from me like we’d been caught doing something dirty.

  I also didn’t miss the way she looked around the room, most likely in search of her friend. I kneeled down and scooped Ethan into my arms. “I’ve missed my little pal,” I told him and ignored the attention I was now getting from Emelie as she watched me with her son. “Where’s your tunes?”

  “He’s got them in the living room,” Em answered. “He’s been listening to it all day long.”

  “Do you wanna show me your toys?” He nodded his head, still staring up at me with a smile. It choked me up a bit as I thought of his father turning him away without a thought. It pissed me off actually, because he didn’t deserve that. Emelie didn’t deserve that.

  I put him down on the floor and he reached up for my hand. I looked back at Emelie. “We’re gonna go play with some trucks.” I leaned in, offering a quick peck on her lips that seemed to surprise her. “Call us when it’s time to eat.” I winked and started walking with Ethan toward his toy box, sitting on the floor at his side.

  One by one he started to pull out each truck and placed it on the floor in front of me while I watched in amazement.

  Before I knew it, we were building a town out of blocks on a huge rug that looked like a landscape of roads, hills and trees. We had garages and houses that Ethan slammed into, then laughed.

  The next time I looked up toward Emelie, I found her leaning against the counter with her friend at her side as they both watched us play. I wasn’t sure, but it almost looked like Emelie had tears in her eyes.

  Chapter Eleven

  Emelie

  I twisted to my side and gripped the blanket beneath me then froze. The material was thin and so unlike the feel of my flannel blankets. Opening my eyes slowly, I looked up to see Clayton, then scanned over the room, realizing we were on the couch.

  The movie was now back on the main menu, the background music playing on repeat. I hadn’t even remembered curling up on him, but apparently I do unforeseen things in my sleep. Ya know, like climbing him and conforming the entire front half of my body to his own.

  One arm was wrapped around my back securely, his other hand rested just above my ass. I was trapped, with no means of escape, unless I wanted to wake him. I looked up at him again and found him sleeping so peacefully, a gentle snore filling the quiet space.

  It was my chance to stare at him without being caught, the chance to memorize his features, the strong jaw and lips that were too perfectly shaped. Men shouldn’t be gifted with perfect lips and long gorgeous eyelashes; it was unfair. Clayton was so masculine, but those added features made him breathtaking. It was one of the things that drove me so crazy about him. Even though I wanted to push him away so much in the beginning, I found it so difficult. He was a man I could look at all day every day and never tire of the sight.

  Lifting my hand, I trailed my finger along his jaw, loving the feel of the stubble beneath.

  “Hey sleepyhead,” he whispered gruffly without opening his eyes. I jerked my hand away, embarrassed that I was caught fondling him, and he lifted his own to catch my wrist. When he brought our now joined hands up toward his mouth, he pressed a kiss to my wrist and carefully placed my hand near his face once more. “Don’t stop,” he insisted. “It felt nice.”

  I smiled when he moved his face in closer to my hand, almost like a cat does when it’s begging to be petted. It was quite adorable how sweet he was when he was half asleep. So, once again I began to trace over his jaw and across his chin. On my second pass over, I made sure to trace along his lower lip, feeling him twitch against me. I paused for a few seconds before repeating the action and getting the same result.

  “I wanna kiss you.” I whispered this, unsure if he could hear me. When he didn’t answer I knew he’d fallen back to sleep, so I carefully moved myself up higher on him, pressing my lips softly to his. “I really hope you’re the man you’ve been trying so hard to convince me you are. Because I don’t think I’m gonna be able to stop myself from falling for you, Clayton Powell. Nothing has ever scared me more than that.”