“You wouldn’t be the only one. And yes, he is an asshole. And throughout the entire pregnancy, and the four years I’ve had my daughter, people judge me. They realize that my last name never changed, so therefore I couldn’t have been married. Not that I would’ve had to change my name, but social norms in their eyes decree I should have. They ask about her father, or pointedly ignore the idea while whispering behind my back. And they judge me. I’m just another single mom out there who couldn’t keep a man. While my cousin was a brave soldier who found his way into being a gentle father. The hypocrisy is ridiculous. And yet, I never blamed Sebastian. He went through hell and has raised a beautiful little girl. And my little girl is amazing. I would walk through hell for her. And sometimes I feel like I have. So no, Trish’s words didn’t really bother me. Other than her talking about my daughter at all. She can lob any accusation or threat my way and I do not care. Because I have lived through it. And I’m not using my daughter’s near death experience to get a man.”
I reached forward and pinched her chin, bringing her toward me. Her eyes widened suddenly, and I narrowed my gaze. “I wanted you here. I’m the one who asked you to be here. If there was a way I could go back and kick Brick’s ass—” I paused. “What the hell kind of name is Brick?”
Her lips widened into a smile. “Again, I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“But back on topic. I used the excuse of wanting to keep Trish and the others at bay to get you here. The moment I saw you at that park I wanted to get to know you. And it’s ridiculous that something clicked inside me. I want to know everything about you, and I wanted more time to do so. And I want to protect you from all those people who would dare shame or judge you. And it scares me I feel it so hard already. And I’m just now getting to know you.”
Livvy swallowed hard and stared up at me. “It worries me that I want the same”
And I leaned down, doing what I probably shouldn’t, and brushed my lips against hers. She groaned slightly, and I parted her lips with my tongue, deepening the kiss ever so slightly.
I pulled back before anything else could happen, before it was too much, and let out a deep breath.
“There’s nothing fake about that.”
“No, there really wasn’t.” She swallowed hard again.
“Thank you for trusting me with that story. And I’m a selfish dick who wants to know more. To know everything. I want to get to know you.”
“This is a completely ridiculous situation, but I’m really glad I said yes.” She paused and looked up at me. “I don’t date, Ewan.”
My heart stopped at that, and I stared at her. “Ever?”
“Ever. At first it was because I was heartbroken. And then I had no time to date. Frankly I still don’t. Between my job, Amelia, and helping out my family, it’s hard for me to carve out time. I did so for this, and I am surprised at myself every single time I think about it. But I don’t date because I’m so afraid that one day it’s going to be Brick again. I’m going to realize I’m terrible at this.”
“One bad decision, one terrible man, doesn’t make you bad at this.”
“Tell that to my mind at two a.m. when I can’t sleep.”
I slid my fingers over her shoulder, tilting my head. “So you’re saying you want me to be there at two a.m. when you can’t sleep?”
Livvy pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I don’t know if that was a good line, or ridiculous one.”
“I did ask you to be to be my fake date to a wedding. We are already past the ridiculous.”
“Ewan!”
I dropped my hand but didn’t move away from Livvy as I looked over my shoulder at Jackson’s shout. “Hey. What’s up?” I asked, hoping that neither one of them could notice my raging hard on pressing against my jeans.
“Trish is acting weird, and I wanted to make sure everything is okay.” Jackson slowed down, his smile widening when he caught sight of Livvy. “Hey, I’m glad you’re here. Did you bring Amelia?” he asked, looking around as if a little girl was hiding behind the bushes.
“No, she’s with her grandparents. Although Ewan did invite her,” she teased.
I shrugged. “I know I only got a plus one, though I figured the kid would get a kick out of all of these flowers and the horses.”
“Exactly. We loved horses when we were kids.”
“So did I,” Livvy put in, surprisingly. “I used to ride when I was younger, and in fact my mom and I were just talking about me starting up again.”
Jackson’s eyes widened. “Well, you should know that Ewan is one of the best teachers out there. Our ranch handles more horses than his does since we breed them, and they mostly focus on cattle, but he’s great with horses.”
Livvy looked up at me then, curiosity in her gaze. “Really?”
I could stare at those eyes forever. And that meant I needed to calm the fuck down. “Really. Maybe if we have time, I’ll take you for a ride.”
She raised a single brow, and I rolled my eyes as Jackson burst out laughing.
“Used to be smoother than that, brother,” Jackson said with a laugh.
