The doorbell finally rings and I close my eyes, hands locked behind my head as I take a deep breath in and let it out.
I can explain this. I can explain that the bet happened based on Kingston thinking she hated me, and it was long before I got to know her. Before I developed feelings for her.
When I open the door and see her smiling at me, my heart leaps. This has to work. If I come clean, she’ll know my intentions are good.
“Hey,” she says, her smile nervous.
“Hey, this is a nice surprise. Come on in.”
She’s wearing jeans, a gray hoodie, and simple black sneakers, her shining hair framing her face perfectly as always. It’s all I can do not to sweep her into a hug and try to hold on to her.
“Everything okay?” I ask her.
“Yeah. I just wanted to talk to you.”
“Want anything to drink?”
She gives me a grateful smile. “Some water would be great, thanks.”
I go into the kitchen and get her a glass of ice water, and when I return, she’s perched on the edge of my couch, looking even more nervous than before.
“Hey, what’s going on?” I ask, sitting down next to her.
“I need to tell you something,” she says, looking at the glass of water instead of me.
“Okay.”
She sighs heavily. “I like you. I really like you, Pike. It hasn’t even been a whole week since my divorce was finalized, so the timing is terrible and I kind of wish I didn’t like you, but I do. I think you’re pretty great.”
I put a hand on her knee. “I think you’re pretty great, too.”
“It’s too soon,” she continues. “So much in my life has changed in the past couple months, and I need to take time to just be single.”
My hopes crash into a flaming heap. Bet or no bet, she doesn’t feel the same way I do. It hurts like hell.
“But I think I’ll regret it if I don’t put it all on the table and give you a chance to say yes or no,” she says.
“Yes,” I say, not needing to hear more.
There’s a chance. That’s all I need to know. If Indie feels the same way I do and wants to give us a shot, we can go as slowly as she wants.
She smiles, putting the tips of her fingers over my lips to silence me. “Let me finish first.”
I want to say yes to everything with her. We both want this, what else could possibly matter?
“I have a son,” she says. “His name is Nolan, and he’s three. He’s the light of my life. I’m sorry I didn’t mention it before now.”
Realization dawns, and I nod. “That’s why you can’t talk before nine when I call you at night, right?”
“Right. I didn’t tell you about him at first because I felt protective of him. And then…I don’t know…it just never seemed like the right time. Now it feels like I waited too long.”
I picture a little boy with dark hair and brown eyes, who looks like his beautiful mother. I’ve never dated a single mom before, and before I met Indie, I’ve never wanted to. I know you have to be ready to commit to more than one person if you date a single mom.
“You didn’t wait too long,” I assure her, taking her hand. “It’s a big surprise, but not a bad one.”
She takes a deep breath before continuing. “But Pike, Nolan’s dad, just left his life. And a few hours ago, Dean surrendered himself to the police here, because there was a warrant for his arrest. He’s accused of defrauding customers at his business, and he’s in a lot of trouble.”
I shake my head. “I hope none of it will come back on you.”
“It shouldn’t. My attorney told me with the divorce being finalized and all the fraudulent stuff in Dean’s name only, I should be fine. I had no idea about any of it until very recently.”
Shit. This Dean guy just gets worse and worse the more I hear about him.
“Anyway,” she says. “Nolan doesn’t ask about his dad much, but we have a long road ahead. I guess I’ll have to decide if I’m going to take him to see his dad in prison. I never want to see Dean again, but I don’t want to deny Nolan a relationship with him.”
I’d deny Dean everything but a kick in the ass, but Indie’s a good person, and a good mom. It makes me want her that much more.
“I get what you’re saying,” I tell her. “Nolan needs time and space, and you don’t want to bring some other guy around until you know for sure I’m the real deal.”
“Exactly. I mean…you can meet him if you want to, but I don’t want him spending a lot of time with you yet. And because I’m a single mom, I can’t go out at night because I need to be home with him. My sister helps me out a lot, so I could see you sometimes, but the majority of the time, I need to be home with Nolan. I’d never want to spend nights with you, at least not…”