Possessive Baby Daddy

“Your name is Ryan, right?”

He looks so excited when I remember his name. “That’s right.”

“Okay, Ryan. What’s the deal?”

“Well, your father set this up. So you’re supposed to go build a sandcastle just over there. We got all the tools you’ll need. And we have tape measures, so whenever it’s over two feet, you’re all set. Oh, and there are a bunch of kids building too but you can just ignore them.”

I give him a flat stare. “Thanks.”

“Oh, good luck!”

I hesitate. “Is Shaun here yet?”

He grins and shakes his head. I give him a tight smile then walk around to the other side of the sign and grab a shovel.

Six other young kids are all sitting around and building their castles. I skip the dry sand and head down to the water, digging as much of it as I can into my bucket. I bring it all back up and upend it, forming the pile into the best approximation of a tower as I can manage.

“That looks bad.”

I look over. A boy about eight years old is standing nearby, frowning at me.

“It’s not about looking good, kid,” I say, turning back to my sand pile. “It’s about making it big.”

“No, sand castles are about looking cool. Yours just looks… bad.”

“First of all, stop talking to me, I’m a stranger. And second, you don’t know what you’re talking about, kid.”

He grunts and turns back to his own castle.

I head down to the water to get more. As I trudge back up, straining to carry the heavy bucket, I watch as Shaun comes walking down the beach.

I dump my sand out and start to add it to my first pile. By the time I’m halfway through, Shaun comes around the sign and spots me. He walks over and crouches down. “Hey,” he says.

“Go away.”

“Why? It’s a nice day. Want to go for a swim?”

I glance at him. “No, thanks.”

“Fine.” He cocks his head. “Nice castle.”

“It’s not about looking good,” I grumble. “It’s about making it big.”

“Right. Sure.” He laughs. “So this is the first contest, huh?”

“Yep. And you’re losing.”

He eyes me and smiles. “Looks like it.”

I look back. “Well, why don’t you start building? You’re not going to catch up if you don’t try.”

“I don’t know.” He sits down in the sand and leans back, getting partially into the shade cast by the huge sign. “I like watching you.”

I throw my shovel down. “If you’re not going to do this, why the hell are you even here?”

He frowns. “Watch your language. Children are present.”

I look around at the kids and bristle with rage, but I get myself together. I can’t keep losing my temper like this. If I’m going to play this game, I need to play it with a cool head.

“Look,” I say. “I don’t get what you’re trying to do here. If you want to be a part of my life, buying this business out from under me isn’t going to make me want you.”

“Maybe not,” he says. “But I’m gambling that giving you want you want will at least make you want to be around me. Then my charming self will do the rest.”

“How do you think that’ll work?”

He shrugs. “I’m delightful.”

I stare at him. He’s insane. My father is insane, and this man is insane.

The father of my child is a crazy man.

“Look, start building. I’m serious. I’m going to be so pissed if you let me do these stupid contests alone.”

He frowns. “Really?”

“Really. Don’t let me look dumb, okay?”

“Fine.” He gets up and grabs a bucket. “How high should it be again?”

“One foot.”

He winks at me. “I know you’re lying.” He walks down to the water and I watch him go.

I let out a sigh, not able to help myself. He’s still as handsome as ever, and he still makes my stomach do flips. Even though I hate what he’s doing, I still can’t help but want him.

I can’t get that night out of my head.

No matter what I do, there’s always that night, always that pleasure he made me feel. It’s so terrifying, but so exciting. Every time he’s around me, I get a jolt of memory, and it brings me back to that pure ecstasy.

God, what a stupid, incredible mistake.

He comes back, lugging his bucket, and dumps it. He frowns at my lump as I add more sand.

“That’s not a castle,” he says. “And the rules stipulate a castle.”

“It’s a castle,” I say. “Just an ugly one. It’s utilitarian. Built to repel invaders.”

“What kind of invaders?”

“Sand crabs.”

“The worst kind,” he says, nodding.

I smile despite myself. “Get to work, idiot.”

He grins and dumps his bucket all at once. Then he grabs some shaped buckets and fills those up. While I make my tower higher, packing it in to keep it from falling over, he starts to build an actual castle.