And Kat was right, of course.
How could any relationship between them ever work? He never dated single mothers and, apart from his patients in A and E, he’d never spent any time with a child in his life.
Josh dragged a hand through his hair and squinted into the sun, watching from the water’s edge as they plunged into the water, gasping and shrieking as the cold waves closed around their legs for the first time.
Why did she have to be so beautiful?
But he knew it was so much more than that. Kat was clever and sharp and she challenged his mind.
But she had Archie, he reminded himself firmly. And that made all the difference. Josh cursed softly. He was nobody’s idea of a father figure, that was for sure. He didn’t want that responsibility.
Not that the boy wasn’t sweet, because actually he was. Josh’s eyes narrowed as he watched the boy dive fearlessly into the water, his skinny arms and legs moving smoothly as he swam. Before he’d met Archie it had never crossed his mind that a child could be good company. But Archie was good company. And funny.
Josh gave himself a mental shake. Since when had he had anything at all in common with a six-year-old?
‘Josh!’ Archie’s shout cut through his thoughts. ‘Come in and swim.’
Unable to find a reason not to, Josh waded in, wincing slightly at the cold. ‘This is bracing,’ he muttered to Kat, and she laughed, not quite meeting his eyes.
He’d already sensed that she wasn’t used to flirting with men. Had there been no one in her life since Archie’s father?
Suddenly he wanted to ask, wanted to know everything about her. He, who preferred to keep his relationships light-hearted and superficial.
What the hell was happening to him?
‘English sea, Josh.’ She looked at him then, her eyes challenging as she dipped her shoulders under the surface. She rose, gasping, her hair falling sleek and wet past her shoulders. ‘Oh, my goodness—that is truly freezing.’ She laughed and he found himself captivated.
She looked like a mermaid. An extremely beautiful mermaid. And those amazing green eyes were enough to bewitch a man into doing something stupid. Like forgetting that he didn’t date single mothers.
He swallowed and decided that cold water could only be a good thing in the circumstances. He dived under the water and surfaced next to a thoroughly overexcited Archie.
‘You’re a good swimmer.’ He scraped a hand over his face to clear the water and smiled at the boy. ‘Did you learn at school?’
Archie shook his head. ‘My mum taught me. She thinks everyone should be able to swim.’
‘Then your mum is a sensible lady.’ Josh looked at her, watching as she swam up to them. He was trying hard not to notice just how good she looked in a swimsuit.
He tried to remind himself that Louisa was obviously matchmaking like mad and he tried to remind himself that Kat had a child.
Those things alone should have been enough to make him run fast and hard in the opposite direction.
In fact, there were so many reasons why he should back off he couldn’t count them.
‘Will you race me?’ Archie tugged at Josh’s arm, his expression excited. ‘First person to Mum wins.’
Kat laughed and obligingly swam away from them to position herself as the finishing line. Josh watched her go and then looked back at Archie. What the hell was he supposed to do? What were the politics of swimming with a six-year-old? He didn’t have the first clue. Was he supposed to lose? Or was that considered patronising? He didn’t want to do the wrong thing.
‘I get a start.’ Archie waded in front of him, glancing over his shoulder at Josh who was still wondering how to play it.
‘You get a start?’
‘Of course.’ The little boy grinned. ‘Because I’m so much smaller than you. Otherwise it wouldn’t be fair, would it?’
Josh felt a rush of relief and then wondered what was happening to him. He cared about Archie’s feelings and the realisation shocked him. He’d never considered himself to be interested in children.
‘I’ll say “go”,’ Archie yelled, still wading forward, and Josh smiled.
‘Hey!’ His voice carried and he saw Kat listening. ‘Isn’t that far enough? Give me a chance!’