Treat Me (One Night with Sole Regret 8)

“I want to see a kangaroo,” Julie said, “but I like this lephalant. Where is her friends and family?”

“Beats me,” Jacob said. “Maybe they’re inside the elephant house.”

Amanda read the story of Lucky the elephant from a nearby sign.

“So she’s all alone?” Julie asked tremulously.

“She likes to be alone,” Amanda said.

“I will be her friend,” Julie said. “Hi, Lucky!” she called to the elephant, which took a step backward and swayed her massive trunk.

“She hears me,” Julie insisted.

A woman with a pair of boys near Julie’s age entered the observation area. Both boys climbed to stand on a ledge so they could get a better look into the exhibit.

“Put me down,” Julie said. “I want to stand by myself.”

Jacob lifted her over his head and set her on the ledge by the two boys. She smoothed her blond curls with both hands and said to the bigger of the two, “My name’s Julie, what’s yours?”

The boys stared at her as if she were an angel that had fallen from the sky. Jacob cringed as his brain automatically fast-forwarded ten years. There was no doubt she’d grow to be a stunner like her mother. Should he lock her in a tower guarded by a fire-breathing dragon now or wait until she hit puberty?

“She’s already a little flirt,” Amanda said with a chuckle.

Jacob shook his head in denial. “She’s just saying hello.” Though it wasn’t lost on him that both boys were following her and mimicking her motions as if driven by instinct.

“She’s adorable,” the mother of the boys said. “How old?”

“Just turned four,” Jacob said.

“She looks so much like you,” she said to Amanda. “I’m still holding out for a daughter to spoil.”

“Oh,” Amanda said, “she’s not mine. I’m just her crazy aunt.” She smiled and patted her chest.

The woman glanced at Jacob. “You’re so good with her, I thought for sure you were her father.”

“Guilty as charged,” Jacob said.

The woman glanced from Jacob to Amanda and back again. Based on her expression, he guessed she’d seen Amanda copping a feel earlier.

“Julie’s mother and I are divorced,” Jacob said, not that it was any of her business, but he didn’t like the judgmental way she was looking at Amanda.

“I’m sorry to hear that. Jeffrey, Mitchell, let’s go see the rhinoceros,” she called to her sons who were listening in rapt attention to Julie’s story about playing with the real Jojo. She used the stuffed version to demonstrate her interactions with the monkey.

“I want to see a monkey, Mama,” the smaller boy said. “Julie got to hold one.”

“That was at a different zoo,” Amanda said helpfully. “In Austin.”

“We’re not driving all the way to Austin,” she said as she ushered her sons away.

“Bye, Julie!” They both waved until they were out of sight.

“Daddy,” Julie said, a slight pout on her sweet face. She stared at the ground and toed a pebble with the tip of her tennis shoe.

“Yeah, princess?”

“I want a little brother.”

“Oh.” That was not what he’d been expecting her to request. “I’ll get right on that.” Jacob glanced at Amanda and grinned. Her eyes widened and her face went white. She shook her head even as he imagined her pregnant with his son growing inside her.

“Can I have two baby brothers?” Julie asked, holding up two fingers.

“Maybe someday,” Jacob said.

He lifted her back onto his shoulders and continued down the path, looking for signs pointing to kangaroos.

“Why do you want brothers and not sisters?” Amanda asked.

“I don’t want to share my princess castle.”

Amanda laughed. “You share it with me.”

“But you won’t break it. My friend Courtney has a little sister. She breaks everything and she cries all the time.”

“I think most babies break things and cry,” Jacob said.

“Did I do that?” Julie asked, planting her hands on the top of his head and shifting forward to look down at him.

“You were a perfect baby,” Jacob said, giving her ankles a reassuring squeeze.

Amanda snorted. “How soon he forgets. I don’t think you slept once for the first six weeks of your life, Julie. All you did was cry and poop.”

Julie sniggered. “Was it stinky?”

“The stinkiest baby poo ever,” Amanda assured her.

Jacob had forgotten. He’d been on tour when Julie had been born and had missed out on most of her first weeks. He did remember Tina complaining about his absence and accusing him of sleeping with other women. He wondered how different things would have turned out if he’d called off the rest of the tour to be with his wife and newborn that summer. Would they still be married?

He reached over and wrapped an arm around Amanda’s shoulders, and for once, she didn’t push him away.

“Why don’t you have any kids, Aunt Mander?” Julie asked.

“I haven’t got a husband,” Amanda said.

“Yet,” Jacob said, tugging her closer to his side.

“Yet,” Amanda echoed.

“I know who you can marry,” Julie said.

Jacob’s heart warmed as he anticipated Julie saying Amanda should marry him.

“Who’s that?” Amanda asked, looking above Jacob’s head at her niece.

Julie snorted on a laugh. “SpongeBob.”

“SpongeBob?” Amanda shook her head. “He’s nice and all, but he’s a little too square for my tastes.” She made a square shape with her thumbs and index fingers and peered at Julie through the opening.

“Who do you want to marry Aunt Mander? A prince? I want to marry a prince.”

Amanda shrugged. “I don’t know. I think princes are in short supply these days.”

“How about a rock star?” Jacob asked.

“Ooh, rock stars are cool,” Julie said. “I think Daddy knows some of those guys.”

Jacob bit his lip so he wouldn’t laugh. Just how much hinting did he need to do here to get his daughter onboard with his plan to make her aunt a permanent fixture in their lives?

“I’ve heard relationships with rock stars never last,” Amanda said. She looked up at him, the golden sunshine dancing through her hair and a question in her hazel eyes.

“Depends on the rock star,” he said, leaning closer to Amanda. He wanted to kiss her so badly, he could already taste her sweet lips.

“Giraffe!” Julie yelled, startling him into backing away.

He’d just have to save all of Amanda’s kisses for later.

He hoped her lips were well rested.