I whisper to Gabby, “I feel like she hates me.”
Gabby lowers her voice. “She does.”
“Why?”
Ramona gives us the evil eye and stomps back to her bedroom.
“Football players bullied her in high school, so she thinks you’re all assholes.”
That sucks. Bullies are the worst.
The next time she comes out, I call out to her. “Hey, Ramona. I have a couple of extra tickets to our next home game. If you’d like them. You know, to thank you for letting me crash on your couch.”
She glares at me for a good ten seconds before she says, “Yeah, you can shove those right up your ass,” and disappears down the hall.
“Tough crowd,” I murmur and turn to Gabby, who’s giving me a sympathetic smile.
“That was really thoughtful of you.” Her eyes are soft, and when she tangles her pinky in mine, I feel like I did something right just now despite the verbal beatdown by her roommate.
A warm stream of liquid hits my arm, and we turn to see Poppy giggle.
“Oh, God.” Gabby laughs and covers my daughter’s crotch with a diaper. “Sorry about that. Hey, it’s not a party until the baby pees on you.”
I laugh and grab a few paper towels to dry off.
After showing me how to check the water temperature with my elbow, Gabby sits Poppy in the shallow water. My daughter squeals and laughs and splashes. It’s a relief to see she enjoys it.
Gabby makes this look easy, and a huge knot of tension unwinds in my chest knowing that she’s across the street if I have an emergency. Because let’s face it, I’m fucking clueless when it comes to kids.
The fact that I’m so attracted to her will have to take the back burner. I have zero margin for error here. She’s right. Poppy has to take precedence over everything else. And that means eat, breathe, and sleep football when I’m not with my kid so I can make it to the draft. I have to lock down this ship and focus on getting to the finish line. For my sake and Poppy’s.
By the time we’re done bathing her, there’s water everywhere. On the floor, the counter, all over our clothes. We’re both drenched. Really, the only one who is dry now is the kid, who’s dressed in a onesie, trying to eat her foot, as we towel off her hair.
I get a nice eyeful of Gabby in a wet t-shirt that definitely belongs in my spank-bank hall of fame. Her round, high breasts with those tight nipples damn near mesmerize me, and I have to turn away to shift the growing appreciation in my jeans.
Fortunately, needing to take care of a kid results in instant deflation.
We’re just shooting the shit when I ask, “How’s the tutoring going? I never see you at the circulation desk anymore.” That’s where all of the tutors wait for their appointments.
Her rosy lips twist. She opens her mouth to speak but shuts it again as a flush travels up her neck.
“What? Did something happen?”
She sighs. “Remember when I got sick in May?”
I’m glad she brought that up. I’ve wanted to ask how she’s been feeling. It was scary as hell watching her pass out. One minute she was fine, busy ignoring me while she stalked to her car. I watched her fumble with her keys for a minute, wipe her brow, and when I blinked, she was on the ground. “Of course. Is everything okay now?”
Nodding, she props the baby on her hip. “I’m fine, more or less, but I had to miss work. I called in each day, like you’re supposed to do, but the girl who took the messages never passed them on to my boss, and I got fired.”
“God, that sucks. ’Cause you’re a great tutor.” I’m not just blowing smoke up her ass. She genuinely cares about the students she works with and breaks things down so they understand. I never felt like she talked down to me. Not once. Even though it was obvious she’s a little brainiac and I’m somewhat lacking in that area.
“Thanks. I appreciate that.” She smiles shyly, and my eyes dip down to her mouth that I’m suddenly dying to kiss. When she clears her throat, a pink flush works its way up her neck. “I think I owe you an apology as well.”
My eyebrows lift. “For what?”
Her face goes crimson. “For slamming the door on you last May. It was… it was nice of you to bring me flowers. I wish I had been more gracious.”
I chuckle at this beautiful woman who is making it hard for me to keep my distance. “I’m just glad you’re okay. If you could slam a door, you were obviously feeling better. That’s all that mattered to me. You’re doing better now, right?”
