Frankie chuckled, offering him the stroller handle. “I think you’d look good in a cowboy hat.”
“I’d look good in nothing but a cowboy hat,” he said with a crooked smile. “Or I would have before I was operated on numerous times.”
Frankie stepped forward to get the door for him and the stroller. “Don’t you know, women adore scars. We find them very hot.”
Pumpkin shook his head. He’d been slowly getting over his bad attitude regarding Frankie. In all honesty, he felt bad he’d even had such a reaction to her remaining in his new house, but in his defense, he’d had a lot of changes in his life in the past year.
He offered Frankie his arm after they were clear of the door. She took it, resting her head on his shoulder. It really was like being with the sister he’d never had. “Tired?”
Frankie nodded. “SJ and I walked all around town. He particularly liked stopping at the bakery.”
“Why didn’t Darrin drive you?” He’d give the prospect a piece of his mind. They were heading towards the SUV at a very slow pace. Pumpkin had been given a handicap placard upon his discharge, but he didn’t like to use it. Not when there were others around who needed it more.
“Because it would have been ridiculous to get SJ in and out of the car like that. Besides, I have legs and I liked the exercise. He was never too far away, Pumpkin. I swear it.”
Pumpkin’s eyes still narrowed as he saw the prospect step out of the driver’s seat to come around the other side where SJ’s car seat was. When they neared, he opened the door. As Frankie worked to get SJ into the cage, Pumpkin climbed up into the passenger seat. He was sore enough where the walk to the cage felt good, but the climb into the tall vehicle did not.
Since he was out before Bones, he automatically got shotgun.
Turning in the seat, he watched Frankie expertly hook SJ in. His son didn’t even budge. He noticed the shopping bags on the floor in front of the car seat, indicating that Frankie had gone shopping. Shit, he really needed to have a conversation with her about finances. Whether the club was paying her or not, Pumpkin wanted to give her something too. She’d gone above and beyond for him and SJ.
Even if it did still gall him that she was technicallyhisnanny now.
Huh. Now that he was thinking about it, the brothers hadn’t gotten on him about that either. That should have been a topic of endless torment for him, but they hadn’t mentioned it at all. Fucking hell, Pumpkin just wanted things to get back to normal.
Darrin walked Frankie around to the seat behind his and then got into the driver’s chair. As soon as the door closed, Pumpkin pulled back his fist and punched Darrin in the upper arm.
“What the fuck!?” Darrin shouted before quickly clamping his mouth shut. Everyone turned to see if the exclamation had woken SJ, but it hadn’t. His son could probably sleep through the zombie apocalypse.
Pumpkin turned back to Darrin. “That’s for making Frankie walk everywhere today.”
“She insisted!”
“Then you insist harder!” Pumpkin snapped.
Darrin opened his mouth to argue, but must have seen something on Pumpkin’s face that made him close his jaw.
“Smart man,” Pumpkin said with a bit of a grumble.
Frankie popped between them on the center console. “That was completely unnecessary.”
Pumpkin opened his mouth to say just how necessary it was, but Darrin beat him to it. “No, he’s right. I shouldn’t have let you walk around like that. At the very least, I should have walked with you. I’m sorry.”
Frankie rolled her eyes and sat back, grumbling something about the ridiculousness of men.
Dosia hidaround the corner of the alleyway as the SUV backed out of the spot and then headed down the road. Two fucking days?! She hadn’t even lasted two whole days before she ran into him! This wasn’t going to work. What had she been thinking? Getting her dream to finally run the bookstore was not worth this!
JJ was with her grandma today, which was good. It gave Dosia the afternoon to figure out where they would be going next. And what the hell was she supposed to tell Calliope? The paperwork was already signed for the new storefront. There was a lot Calliope still had to do, though, and even some minor construction to get the room to match her vision.
Was it too late to cancel everything, to back out of the deal? Dosia didn’t have much in savings, but maybe enough to cover Calliope’s deposit if it was nonrefundable?
Dosia closed her eyes, leaning her head back against the cool brick. It had been six years since she’d seen JJ’s father. A biker, a man called Vodka. Even with his full beard now, she recognized him. He was older. In his jacket, it was hard to see his body tone but she assumed he was just as muscular.
The biggest difference, though? He had a wife and kid now! At least, Dosia assumed the stroller had been carrying his kid. Maybe it was the woman’s? With how close they were walking and her head on his shoulder, Dosia could only assume them to be a couple.
That image bothered her. She had no right to feel betrayed by him, but she did. She’d struggled for years to raise her daughter, to provide a life for her, and he’d been here, living a carefree life. No doubt fucking around too. It had been Dosia’s decision not to tell him about her pregnancy, so why was she now angry with herself for it? Why was she full of self-pity at the sight of him happy with another woman?
Why did she wish it was her on his arm?
