“Thank you,” he said when she returned his plate to him.
Dosia nodded, purposefully casting her eyes downward at her own plate. She wasn’t really hungry now, but she knew she should eat something, especially after that glass of wine earlier.
Frankie was keeping quiet, and other than offering Pumpkin a napkin when SJ had spluttered noodle bits onto his face during a particularly loud laugh, was keeping to herself. When Dosia had joined their table, she’d felt like the third wheel. She could only imagine how Frankie now felt, Pumpkin’s attention split completely between SJ and Dosia now.
Leaving father and son to their food, Dosia ate a piece of broccoli before asking Frankie about her life.
Pumpkin wasn’tsure what was going through Dosia’s mind, and it was killing him. And it wasn’t just because he wanted her attention all onhim. It wasn’t. Really.
Well, mostly.
Something had changed, though. Dosia was smiling and seemed more at ease talking with Frankie about their college experiences, family, and women-stuff. Pumpkin kept his eyes on SJ but his ears were entirely trained on Dosia’s words. He was taking it all in, filing small tidbits away, like how she’d had to drop out of college during her junior year due to a family matter, and she had family in Mount Grove, and how her aunt had called her back recently to help with the family business. While vague, it was a start.
And he tried not to be envious that she was divulging this information toFrankieinstead of him. But he took it as a win either way. She was relaxing, and hopefully, that was a good sign for getting her to meet with him tomorrow night. Just the two of them. In a nicer, candlelit setting perhaps.
Or maybe it would have to be somewhere closer to home. He couldn’t drive after all, and his masculine pride hated the idea ofherpicking him up. Maybe he could get one of the prospects to drive them. The club’s SUVs were extremely spacious in the back, and if neither Pumpkin nor Dosia was distracted by driving, the things they could do to each other…
Pumpkin cleared his throat and quickly scooped up the last of the mac and cheese from the dish as his dick came to life. Jesus, he was a sick bastard. Sitting here with a full-blown erection while trying to feed his son mac and cheese, his mind entirely distracted by the naughty thoughts of what he wanted to do to Dosia.
SJ had always been a good eater. His chubby little legs, arms, belly, and face were adorable, and his doctors said were completely normal for his age range as he reached his first birthday. Pumpkin, along with SJ’s many aunts and uncles, used loving nicknames for SJ, like ‘chunkster’, ‘chunky monkey’, and ‘chubby bunny’. He’d grow out of his baby fat one day, though Pumpkin wasn’t sure his heart could takeit when he did. SJ’s aunts already foresaw SJ being a heartbreaker when he was a teenager.
Pumpkin needed to figure out how early was too early to have the birds and the bees talk with his son. He wasnotbecoming a teenage father, and not just because Pumpkin was far too young to become a grandfather in fifteen years.
Christ, what was he thinking? This train of thought was completely jumping the gun. Many adorable babies turned into ugly teenagers. Otherwise, there’d be a lot more beautiful teenagers and adults out there, right? It wasn’t too much to ask for his son to be one of them.
Glancing down at SJ’s two-toothed smile as he stared up at Pumpkin with a gooey face and full belly, Pumpkin knew that wouldn’t happen. SJ looked too much likehim, after all, and Pumpkin had been a heartthrob in high school. It wasn’t entirely egotistical to think that when it had been true. He’d just have to do what his mom did and teach SJ how to respect girls—or boys. Pumpkin didn’t judge or care.
After cleaning SJ up, Pumpkin turned to his own dinner. Both Dosia and Frankie were almost done with the food on their plates. He was a bit behind, but it wasn’t like it mattered. When SJ started fussing, Pumpkin gave him his hand again. Eating lefty was a bit uncomfortable. Pumpkin kept dropping things off of his fork. It had been the same in rehab when his left cast had been removed before his right. Having to be hand-fed like he’d just done with SJ had been humiliating and frustrating, especially if someone from the club had been visiting at that time, so Pumpkin had tried to learn how to eat with his left hand as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, he was just as bad at it now as he had been then.
Rather than twisting himself like a pretzel to give SJ his left hand so Pumpkin could eat with his right, Pumpkin took his hand back from his son. Pumpkin worked quickly, not wanting SJ’s unhappy noises to get louder.
Frankie put her fork down, offering to take SJ, but Pumpkin shookhis head as he finished unbuttoning his shirt down to the middle of his abdomen.
He did not miss Dosia’s wide eyes as he revealed his tattoos and muscles. They weren’t as impressive as they had been six months ago, but he was working to regain what he’d had and to not lose anymore. The one good thing about spending the day in a wheelchair was that it was a good workout for his arms.
And Pumpkin wasn’t above using his body for more than just comforting his son. As he picked SJ up out of the highchair and laid his squirming son against his bare chest, he wasveryaware of Dosia’s staring. Careful not to bring attention to her, because he didn’t want her to stop, Pumpkin settled SJ over his left pec with his left hand under his butt. SJ immediately calmed down and curled his little body against his father’s breast. This wasn’t as easy as it had been when he’d been a newborn, but skin-to-skin therapy was one of the few things Pumpkin had been able to continue to do while injured, and it hadn’t just calmed SJ.
Pumpkin dreaded the day when SJ was too old to need such contact anymore.
Picking up his fork with his now-free right hand, Pumpkin speared a bite of steak that Dosia had kindly cut up for him as SJ wound his little hand into Pumpkin’s beard, not caring as his father chewed his dinner.
Keeping his eyes on his plate, he did not miss the light, feminine sigh that came from his left. A quick glance to his right confirmed that Frankie was trying her damnedest not to laugh as Dosia openly stared at Pumpkin and SJ.
It was only when Piper came to refill their water glasses that Dosia jumped like she’d been tased, dropped her fork onto her ceramic plate, and bumped her knee against the table. Flustered, she tried to right herself.
Pumpkin turned and innocently asked her if she was okay.
Face flushed, Dosia tried to cover her cheeks with her hands as she nodded and hastily assured him that she was fine.
Piper finished filling their glasses and headed away again.
The table was silent for a long minute before Frankie leaned forward and stage-whispered, “Only thing that would make that sight better is if he was in sweatpants. I mean, he’s like my brother, butdamn.”
Dosia’s head snapped up to look at Frankie. Slowly, she dropped her hand. She glanced Pumpkin’s way, saw he was watching her, and quickly flicked her eyes back to Frankie. A second passed before both women burst out laughing.
Dosia was going to Hell.Metaphorically, of course, because she didn’t believe in the doomed afterlife where souls of the damned dwelled, but it was the only expression she could think of. She wasin publicat a steakhouse with her daughter’s unknowing father,hisson, and his son’s nanny, and all Dosia could think about was tackling that man to the table and riding him till dawn.
