I had never had that kind of connection with another human being in my life, and it only marginally had to do with sex. No, most of it had everything to do with the woman currently dancing in the kitchen.
I leaned against the doorway and watched as she shook that luscious ass of hers back and forth, making Amelia giggle.
Amelia mimicked the motion, wiggling her butt in jerky motions, and grinned up at her mother.
The two of them were baking cookies, something that Livvy didn’t get to do often, but she had finished her work early, taking the time to dance with her daughter, while I stood back and watched, trying to soak in every moment.
It had been three weeks since I had flown down to Colorado with her, and I didn’t know when I was going home. I knew I needed to soon. My life and my ranch were up north. I was still handling a lot of paperwork and computer work from Livvy’s, and my brothers were grateful for that because that meant they didn’t have to do it.
I missed the land. I wasn’t too edgy to be in the city like this—after all, I could still see the mountains and it wasn’t like we were in high-rises. But I missed my small town. Only I knew I could walk away if I had to. That surprised me. I hadn’t known this family long enough to walk away from my life, but I would. Because I loved that woman in the kitchen. And I loved that little girl staring up at her mom with a bright smile on her face.
I didn’t know when it happened, or how, but I was in love with both of them. I would destroy the earth to protect that little girl. And I had no idea where that urge came from. Part of me always knew I would be a father. It just felt like something I would do. I’d find a woman, get married, have kids. Continue to do what my family had done for generations on our land.
Yet I had never pictured something likethis.
I didn’t want anything different.
I didn’t want to get attached. I hadn’t wanted anything like this at all.
And yet there was no way I couldn’t be attached to this family.
Lex and Crew hadn’t said a damn thing about me coming back with Livvy. And that probably should’ve worried me more than anything. Because if they thought this was a done deal, then maybe I was in over my head. Or they thought I would leave and would kick my ass before they had to pick up the pieces I left behind.
And I did not want to hurt the women in front of me.
I wasn’t staying at the house, though part of me wanted to. I was staying at one of the Montgomery rentals nearby and was a little alarmed at the conglomerate the family had started to maintain. But I wasn’t going to look too deeply into it. I had a place to stay that wasn’t underneath the same roof as Amelia. Which made it harder for me to spend as much time with Livvy as I wanted. However it also saved my ass because I was pretty sure Livvy’s father and uncles would have a few words to say if I had moved in.
I swallowed hard at the notion. No, not moving in. I was figuring shit out. I wasn’t going to overthink things or go too quickly.
Even though I was doing exactly that in both cases.
“Ewan!” Amelia ran to me and jumped. I held out my arms and caught her in midair, surprised at how much trust she put in that action. Livvy didn’t look too shocked at that, so maybe Amelia jumped into all of her family’s arms. But it warmed me deep inside that Amelia would trust me that way.
I put her on my hip and tapped her nose with my finger.
“Hello, Amelia. Are you making cookies?”
“I like cookie dough.”
I wiped cookie dough off her cheek and nodded. “I can see that. Cookie dough is my favorite too.” I leaned forward and whispered loudly, “Don’t tell your mom, but I think I might like dough more than cookies.”
“I won’t tell.” Amelia grinned at me, and my heart caught.
Livvy rolled her eyes. “You two are a menace. However, we are having fun with these cookies. These are thumbprints.”
My stomach rumbled. “My mom makes those with the jam from some of the fruit she has on the ranch. I’m very spoiled.”
“Yes, you are. And I did make the strawberry jam. The strawberries I bought from the local store.” She winked as she said it, and I leaned down and brushed my lips against hers.
Amelia clapped and kissed my cheek, and Livvy just grinned.
Kissing in front of Amelia was a relatively new thing. But again, everything about this situation was new. But we didn’t know how much longer I would be able to stay, and we had been very good about not talking about that. Meaning hiding everything from Amelia just couldn’t happen.
I just hoped I didn’t hurt either of them in the end.
“You make your own jam?” I asked, pushing away worries and doubts because I needed to live in the moment.
Livvy studied my face, as if she had heard my thoughts. “Not always, but I was feeling a little energetic.”
