“It’s supposed to be a butterfly,” he told her as he set a plate of his best attempt in front of her. The first few were even less impressive than this one.
“Cool, Daddy! She needs eyes.” She used a few of her remaining banana slices to make eyes for the hopeless creature and drew a smiling mouth with the syrup. “Now she’s perfect.”
Jacob was glad his child had a vivid imagination and a kind heart.
“Are we going to the zoo after we eat?” she asked.
“We have to wait for your surprise to get here first,” he said. Assuming Amanda wasn’t hiding from him after what he’d said earlier. She’d sure been in a hurry t
o leave.
“Ooh, what is it?”
Jacob used a butter knife to cut his butterfly masterpiece into bite-sized pieces for her.
“I’m not telling. If I did, it wouldn’t be a surprise. Eat your pancake.”
“I think my surprise is a lephalant,” Julie said and then stuffed a bite into her mouth. “Yummy!”
Jacob touched her hair and smiled, his heart light. There was only one other person on the planet who gave him a similar feeling of joy and she’d soon be there to share the day with them. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so damned happy.
Chapter Six
It didn’t take Amanda long to reach her house. The small bungalow was only a couple of miles from Jacob’s place, in an older subdivision populated by working stiffs like herself.
After her shower, she stared into her small closet wondering what to wear. She wanted to look sexy for Jacob—because, holy shit, the guy actually had feelings for her that she still wasn’t ready to face—but not too sexy since young and impressionable Julie would be with them all weekend. She decided on a pair of black shorts that accentuated her long legs while still managing to cover her ass, and a cute white top made of eyelet material with cup sleeves and tiny buttons down the front. The shirt hugged her figure and gave a hint of cleavage, but didn’t make her look like she was trying too hard. She hoped.
Amanda examined herself in the mirror while she blow-dried her hair and simultaneously swished mouthwash through her teeth. Was she pretty enough to have someone like Jacob “Shade” Silverton fall in love with her? She’d probably rank herself above average in looks, but she wasn’t a stunner like Tina. Amanda shrugged at herself before spitting into the sink. Whatever. She was comfortable in her skin, and she wouldn’t be changing how she looked to appease a man. Not even Jacob. After applying mascara and lip gloss—the only makeup she ever wore—she found a comfortable pair of canvas shoes suitable for walking around the zoo. She was heading out of her bedroom when her gym bag caught her attention.
Was she brazen enough to pack an overnight bag? It probably was a bad idea for her to spend the night with Jacob when Julie was there, but she wanted to stay with him. They didn’t even have to have wild and crazy sex all night long. Just knowing he was within reach was enough. At least for a couple of nights. Truth be told, she wouldn’t mind staying with Jacob whenever he was home from Sole Regret’s tour, but she still wasn’t ready to flaunt their relationship. Just thinking about Tina’s response and all the horrid things she could do to make Jacob’s life miserable made Amanda queasy.
She decided to pack her bag but leave it in the trunk unless she needed it. On her way out, she gave Tinkerbell a scratch behind the ears while the cat devoured a bowl of her favorite tuna dinner.
Scrunching low in the driver seat of her car, she approached Jacob’s drive cautiously, just in case Tina was still there. Amanda was fully prepared to speed on by without stopping, even though it was unlikely that Tina had hung around for any length of time. Amanda wouldn’t have been surprised if Tina had deposited Julie in the driveway and tossed her bag at her feet before speeding off to her spa appointment.
Finding Jacob’s drive empty of gigantic German-engineered SUVs, Amanda pulled in and parked under a shade tree. What excuse would she use if Tina just happened to drive by and saw her car parked in Jacob’s driveway? She supposed she could claim that Jacob needed help caring for Julie, but that was a lie and Tina would use such a claim as ammunition against him.
Leaving her presumptuous overnight bag in the trunk, Amanda scurried toward the front door and rang the doorbell.
“Is that my surprise?” she heard Julie squeal inside the house.
“It’s not a great surprise,” Jacob said on the opposite side of the closed door.
Gee, thanks, Jacob. Amanda chuckled to herself.
“What is it?” Julie asked.
“It’s not a what, it’s a who.” Jacob opened the door, and Amanda didn’t know which of the pair made her heart swell with more emotion: the gorgeous dark-haired, blue-eyed, muscled hunk who was currently wearing sparkly blue fairy wings on his back or the adorable blond four-year-old who had no doubt convinced him to wear them.
“Aunt Mander!”
“Surprise!” Amanda said. She held out her arms for an exuberant hug, lifting Julie off the ground and into her arms, getting several kisses on the cheek for her effort.
“This is a great surprise, Daddy,” Julie said. “I love my Aunt Mander.” She bestowed more kisses on Amanda.
“And I love my Julie Bean,” Amanda said, giving her a squeeze. “Can I come to the zoo with you and your daddy today?”
“Yes! I was waiting so long for my surprise so we can leave.”
Amanda supposed an hour felt like an eternity to a young child.
“Did you have breakfast?” Jacob asked Amanda.
“Daddy made me pancakes and they look like butterflies.”
Amanda grinned at Jacob, who appeared rather flushed. “He did?” When Julie nodded, Amanda asked, “Did they taste like butterflies?”
Julie crinkled up her nose. “No, silly. They taste like pancakes. You can have some. He cooked about a hundred of them.”
“You said you were hungry,” Jacob said.
Amanda set Julie on her feet, and the girl skipped into the house toward the kitchen.
Jacob leaned close and whispered in her ear, “You look beautiful.”
She turned her head to offer her thanks and found their lips a hair’s breadth apart. She leaned into him, her hand on his waist, wishing his T-shirt would disappear so she could touch his bare skin. A deep longing curled in her belly.
“Daddy! Where’s the butter?”
Jacob jerked away and spun on his heel. “Don’t go near the stove,” he warned as he hurried toward the kitchen, his bouncing fairy wings slightly askew.
Grinning to herself, Amanda trailed after him, feeling lewd for admiring a fairy’s ass. But who could blame her? She found the pair in the kitchen. Julie was kneeling on a stool at the breakfast bar and arranging butterfly-shaped pancakes—well, they were pretty much blob-shaped, but she was certain Julie was too sweet to criticize her father’s creations—on a plate. Jacob stood beside her, a steadying hand at her back.
“How many do you want?” Julie asked.
“Just two,” Amanda said. These two specifically, even though she knew she could never have the Silverton pair to herself. Even if a relationship worked out with Jacob, Julie was Tina’s daughter and she always would be, no matter how much Amanda adored her.
“Could you keep an eye on her for a bit?” Jacob asked. “I want to grab a quick shower.”
“No problem.”
When Amanda scooted onto the stool next to Julie’s, Jacob leaned in with puckered lips to kiss Amanda’s temple. Wide-eyed, she jerked away. What was he thinking? Julie was drizzling syrup all over Amanda’s pancakes and not paying much attention, but she’d have heard the sound and probably wondered why her father was kissing her aunt.
Jacob’s jaw hardened as he glared at her. “Seriously?”
Amanda shook her head at him. What did he expect her to do? Shove her tongue down his throat and her hand down his pants?
“Aunt Mander, I made you a smiley face on your butterfly!” Julie said.
“Looks delicious,” Amanda said. “That’s enough syrup for me.” Her pancakes were liable to float away on the lake of liquid sugar flooding her plate.
“We need to talk,” Jacob grumbled into her ear before stroking Julie’s soft blond curls with one hand and then turning to leave them alone in the kitchen.
Apparently so. She’d thought they were in agreement about keeping this fling of theirs a secret, but he didn’t seem to think secrecy was important. Surely he couldn’t want Julie to know they were involved. Julie liked to talk about everything she witnessed. Everything. If she caught her father and her aunt being overly affectionate, Tina wouldn’t be the only person to hear the t
ale.
“Mommy is mad at you, Aunt Mander,” Julie said as she watched Amanda dig into her pancakes.
“I know. I’m sorry I didn’t come get you this morning. I stayed up past my bedtime and didn’t wake up early enough.”