Page 41 of Mother Pucker
“Kai Kumar!” Shayla chides, making me feel bad for the poor kid. And though her tone is sharp, there’s a gentleness to it, too–that perfect gentle-firm tone only moms somehow know how to get right. “Have you been giving your protein bars to the raccoons? Do you know how much time I put into making those?”
Kai looks down at his feet. “I’m sorry, Mom. I saw Aunt Dylan give the high fiber bread you made to Uncle Cortney. Usually, he’s the one who eats most of the food you make her, but then I saw him sneak it to the raccoons. So, I . . . I did it, too.”
Shayla wraps her arms around her chest. “We’re going to have a chat about this later.”
Kai nods, accepting his fate, and I take that as my cue to cheer him up a little. Picking up one of the boxes, I open the top. “Hey! So, I didn’t know your size, but I figured you could try on a few and see what fits best.”
Kai’s eyes light up again. “You got me new skates?!”
Shay eyes all the boxes next to me. “Rowan, did you purchase an entire store? You really didn’t have to do all this. You’re already doing so much by giving him private lessons that I could never afford.”
I shrug sheepishly. “Perks of being my–” I stop myself right before I accidentally say the word, ‘girlfriend,’ flicking my gaze to ensure Kai hasn’t heard anything, “physical therapist.”
Our gazes stay locked while Kai busies himself opening up more boxes, before she whispers, “Thank you,” tucking her hair behind her ear shyly.
God, I want to kiss her so fucking bad, I’m physically having to restrain myself.
Wrenching my gaze away from hers, I pick up another box, opening it to show Kai the helmet I bought. We put it on his head, but it’s too large, so I open up a smaller size that works better.
I help Kai into his new skates, tucking them under what seems to be three pairs of pants, and letting him open up the last box on his own.
When he peeks inside, his mouth drops again. “A special edition number sixteen jersey!” He looks at his mom, surprise in his eyes. “Mom! Rowan signed it!”
Shay’s shiny eyes collide with mine before she looks at Kai. “What do you say, sweetheart?”
Kai wraps his arms around my neck, and I instinctively hold him to me, wondering if I’ve ever met a sweeter kid in my life. “Thank you, Rowan. I love it.”
My chest tightens and I rub his back. “You ready to get on the ice, bud?”
He nods, his face still squished to my neck, making my throat go dry. “So ready.”
thirteen
shay
My eyes trackKai closely as Rowan teaches him the basics of how to fall properly and finding his balance.
He towers over him, but for as big and burly as he looks next to my little boy, he’s just as gentle and patient.
They’ve been at it for well over an hour, taking needed breaks to warm up off the ice. And though I was sure Kai–or Rowan–would call it quits after the first half hour, they’re continuing as if they could go on for days.
Rowan skates backward, bent down, firmly holding Kai’s hands and pulling him forward. I can see Kai’s knees wobble, but he’s got a steel grip on Rowan’s hands. Or is it the other way around?
Kai says something I can’t hear, but a moment later, Rowan throws back his head, his thunderous laugh echoing against the empty seats. He scoops Kai up in his arms and zooms around the ice, as if he weighs nothing. And even though my heart hammers inside my chest–not just from concerns of Kai’s safety–I grip my phone tighter, reminding myself to breathe.
He’s in good hands–the best hands on the ice, at least–so I have nothing to fear. But above all that, I’d promised myself that I wasn’t going to let my fears control my son any longer. Sure, Iobviously can’t just tuck them all away inside a box and get rid of them for good in the matter of a few days, but I promised myself to work on it, and I plan on doing just that.
I refuse to let “ball of nevers” be my lifelong nickname.
I take another breath, allowing myself to smile, as I watch Rowan set Kai down and they practice marching on the ice.
Is it crazy that I find a man who can get down to a child’s level–letting go of his own inhibitions–so sexy? My ovaries sure do, based on their twerking and gyrating inside me like the little tramps they are, catcalling and yelling,“Ooh, pick me! Pick me!”
It doesn’t hurt that said man is a certified jaw-dropper from head to toe with a derriere carved from marble. But even so, at this very moment, that’s not what makes him sexy. It’s the sheer joy on his face as he looks at my son, the encouragement he provides as Kai struggles.
Warmth spreads through my chest, intense enough that if Rowan was to make eye contact with me right now, he’d see my thoughts written all over my face. Pushing them aside, I get off my seat. Bringing up my phone’s camera, I zoom in on the two of them.
Rowan is still teaching Kai to march, but now he’s also doing some sort of goofy dance, making my son laugh. They both have their arms out, but Rowan bounces with each step, trying to get Kai to loosen up and enjoy being on the ice.
