He pulls into the driveway and parks the car. We get Skyler out, and I take her inside. “Can we make another castle with boxes?” she asks.
“We already have a castle. How about something else?” I ask. “What other thing would you like to make?”
Skyler thinks about it a moment. “Racecars.”
“Great idea.” I size her up so I can pick an appropriate box. “I’ll grab more cardboard from the attic.”
“I’ll get the crayons.” Skyler climbs the stairs, and I follow her. I go up to the attic, which I found out the other day is surprisingly clean and organized. For four bachelors living under one roof, I’m constantly shocked at how tidy they are, and I’m sure it’s all Tobias. For some reason, I find the neat-freak side of him terribly sexy.
I rummage around the boxes and grab two that are perfect for making into racecars, and I take them down to the family room. Skyler is sitting on the floor with Levi, her crayons and colored pencils scattered around them. Levi looks up at me and grins, his single dimple showing. “I heard you’re making racecars. Can I help?”
“Of course.”
I give the boxes to Levi and walk into the kitchen to get the utility knife out of the junk drawer. Tobias is at the sink, his white sleeves rolled up. Man alive. Why does that look so good on him?
“Are you doing the dishes?” I walk to him. “I can do those after dinner.”
He shrugs. “I figure we could use paper plates tonight and maybe watch a movie together or something.”
At first I think he’s talking about just me and him, and I imagine what it would feel like to sit next to him on the couch as we watch something romantic. But then I realize he means watch something with Skyler, and I shove that image out of my head. “Good idea. Still, I can clean the kitchen. You don’t have to do that.”
He shuts off the water and turns to me. “When did it become your job to do the dishes?”
I open my mouth to answer but then shut it again. It’s not my job. He’s right. I was just helping out since Violet was in the hospital. “It’s not,” I finally say.
He turns back to the sink and picks up a cereal bowl. “I’m glad you realize that. I don’t want you to think you have to do all the cooking and cleaning, too. You’re here for Sky.”
For some reason this touches me. I’ve never met a man like Tobias. “All right.”
I go back to the family room and plop down next to Skyler. I draw the basic shapes of the cars and use the knife to carefullycut the cardboard. Skyler colors on her car while I cut the second one out.
Micah comes into the room with a girl. She’s wearing large glasses and she carries a physics book. Her blonde hair is pulled back in a ponytail.
“Hey,” he says, motioning to me. “This is Skyler’s nanny, Kiki. This is my friend, Cricket.”
I smile at her. “That’s an unusual name.”
“That’s just my nickname. I’m Christine.” She reaches out a hand and I shake it.
“Nice to meet you. I didn’t know Micah had a girlfriend.”
Cricket blushes, and Micah throws his head back and laughs. “She’s not my girlfriend. She lives two doors down. We used to play together as kids. We’re just friends.” He looks at Cricket and shudders. “She knows way too much about me. We could never date.”
Cricket stares at the floor, and I can’t help but notice she doesn’t offer the same sentiments. I wonder how long she’s liked Micah that way.
“I heard we’re having pizza.” Micah raises his eyebrows. “Can Cricket eat here too?”
Tobias enters the room wiping his hands on a towel. “Sure. I ordered plenty.” He still has his sleeves rolled up, and I look away so I don’t blush like Cricket, making my feelings as obvious as hers.
Cricket crouches down next to Skyler. “What are you guys making?”
“Racecars!” Skyler picks hers up so Cricket can see it better.
“Cool.”
The doorbell rings, and Tobias crosses through the room. “That will be dinner. Micah, go get out the paper plates and plastic cups.”
Soon we’re all sitting at the table, the smell of pizza filling the house and making my mouth water. Tobias says grace, and Levi stands to open the pizza boxes. As he’s exploring the pizza, Tobias leans close and whispers, “Wait for Levi’s reaction to your sick pineapple pizza choice.”
