Chapter Four
“Notattoos?”
Isaac’s lips quirked up and he shook his head. “Nope. None.”
“But…”
“You’ve met my brother, Julian, I’m assuming.” Isaac leaned forward in his chair and silently asked permission to take Hank, who was still reaching desperately for him. “Triplets.”
“There are three of you?” I slumped back into my chair and took a second to get my bearings. So, Isaac wasn’t Julian. Just his identical brother, minus the tattoos.
Laughing easily, Isaac let Hank grab his face with sticky fingers as he watched me. “There are three of us. It’s a lot, I know.”
He had no idea. I was sitting with him, wondering how long it would be before he figured out Hank was his son, watching Hank try to grab for his father, having what felt like a heart attack. Isaac wasn’t Hank’s father, though. He had no idea. I was safe.
“I assure you I’m the good triplet.” The way his deep voice and slow drawl said it made it sound like he’d be anything but good.
My body reacted with fire to him but I did my best to ignore it. It was probably just confused and still thinking he was his brother. “If I’ve learned anything about siblings in my life, it’s that there’s never a good one.”
Isaac settled Hank on his lap and watched as Hank grabbed his finger and held it. “I don’t think I’ve held a kid in fifteen, twenty years. Is it supposed to make you this scared? He’s so small.”
“Pretty much. I spent the first three months of his life carrying him with two hands at all times.” I reached over and stroked the top of Hank’s head. “Kara carted the twins around basically by their toes. She wasn’t scared of anything.”
“From what I know of your sister, that checks out.”
“Do you know her well? She didn’t mention how she knows you.”
“Mostly just from around town. I helped her rehome a stray chicken the kids found once.” He grinned to himself. “And I’ve watched her rip grown men to shreds in city council meetings.”
“Oh, god. Did I just move to a town where my family is already hated because my sister bullies the men around?”
“Maybe.” He met my eyes, and one side of his lip lifted. “I wouldn’t use my last name around town if I were you.”
I frowned and tried to read his expression. When his mouth cracked open into a big smile, revealing pretty white teeth, I laughed. “Hey! You really had me worried for a second.”
He winked at me and then groaned slightly when Hank shoved his finger into his mouth to teethe on it. Drool dripped down his hand, and he looked at me with a helpless expression on his face. “Do I just…let him chew on me?”
“Let me get his teether and a napkin for you.” Hopping up, I ignored his protest at being left alone with Hank and grabbed Hank’s teether from the freezer. Snagging a napkin on the way back, I settled in my seat again and leaned in. “Look! You didn’t kill him while I was gone.”
“Funny.”
I took his hand and gently pulled it away from Hank while giving Hank his teether. “He’s teething. He’s been an angel through it, but he is a bit more wet than normal because of it.”
Isaac watched me as I rested his hand on my thigh to dry it off. His big palm was warm, and his fingers flexed while he studied me. “I like your dress.”
My breath caught, and I realized just how close I was to him, with his hand resting on my upper thigh like he’d done it a million times. It felt like he should do it a million more times; it was that nice. I licked my lips and moved back to my original position, letting his hand fall away. “Kara. She doesn’t just bully the townsfolk around.”
“Well. She’s usually right.” His eyes flicked down to my mouth and then to Hank. “So, you married?”
I laughed. “No.”
“Dating?”
My laughter died down quickly. Was he really asking for the reason I thought he was? “Single.”
“Opposed to dating?” He turned back to me, and those pale blue eyes held my gaze with a heat I wasn’t prepared for. I saw then that they were infinitely different from what I remembered of his brother’s. The same beautiful shade of blue, but there was a depth to them that I hadn’t seen in Julian’s.
I felt awareness prickle my nipples and heat fill my core, something that hadn’t happened in a long while. I bit my bottom lip and looked around the kitchen, realizing for the first time that we weren’t alone. There were people sitting opposite us at the kitchen table. People moved around us, interacting with each other and having a good time.