Curves for the Single Dad

Not that I was nervous about having Chris inside my home, because I wasn’t. Not. At. All.

To prove that I wasn’t, I changed out of my jeans and flowing blouse and into a pair of gray yoga pants and my favorite Pilgrim PD t-shirt. And fluffy socks with little sticky dots on the bottom so I wouldn’t slip on the hard wood floors in my house. And when the doorbell rang, my heart might have given a little flutter, but it was just the anxiety of having new people in my home. Nothing more.

With a wide smile pasted on my face, I took my time getting to the door and pulled it open like a game show hostess. “Jacobs family. Welcome.”

Lila bounded inside, excitement rolling off of her in waves. “Hi Officer Tara! I like your house!” Without another word, the little girl slipped past me to give herself the ten cent tour.

“Thanks,” I said long after she was gone and took a step back so her much bigger, far more potent father could step inside. “You plan on helping from the porch?”

“I was thinking about it,” he said, his tone playful when he finally did come in, invading my space to the point the scent of him wrapped around me and wormed its way into my nose. And my brain.

“I guess that means you didn’t have time to research what to do with pumpkins other than carve them?” I liked our playful banter, I realized in that moment, which meant it needed to stop. That kind of flirting was highly addictive, and that wouldn’t help keep Sophie and Eva out of this, whatever it was turning out to be.

Chris’ lips twitched and he shrugged. “Sorry I got caught up at the pumpkin patch with an overexcited eight year old who would’ve bought ten pumpkins if I let her.”

“Sounds pretty wonderful to me, but I’m not a pumpkin novice. Tour?”

“Sure. Maybe Lila should lead it, I’m sure she already knows where everything is by now.”

I shrugged it off because it didn’t bother me. “My gun is locked away, so unless she’s a fire bug, there’s nothing lying around she shouldn’t see.”

His brows dipped low. “Your gun is here?”

I recognized that tone and folded my arms, looking him right in those dreamy eyes and frowned. “No. We leave them in our lockers at the precinct so when there’s an emergency we all have to stop there to get it before heading to the emergency.”

A long beat later, Chris smiled. “Sorry.”

I gave a quick nod of acknowledgment and waved for him to follow me. “Come on, this tour ain’t gonna do itself.” My place was small and mostly unimpressive, so the tour of the first floor was pretty quick. “Upstairs is just my bedroom, an office and a guest room. Plus a guest bathroom. Suitably impressed?”

“Totally.”

Lila tugged on my shirt. “Who are these people?” She pointed to a few photos of me when I was fresh from the police academy.

“That’s my mother and my sisters.”

Lila pouted. “I wish I had sister. Where are the pumpkins?”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the breakneck speed Lila could change a subject. “In the kitchen. Follow me.”

“What are we gonna make?”

Lila reminded me so much of myself when I was a kid, so curious about any and every thing new that I came across, heard of or learned. “Well the pumpkin is roasting in the oven right now, that’s how we get it soft to cook with.” I lifted her so she could see the pumpkin halves roasting in the oven. “But I have a very important job for you that I think you’ll find pretty fun.” Chris stood close, too close, and I ignored his heat and the masculine scent of him while I spoke to Lila.

“What is it?”

“Pumpkin seeds, of course!” I showed her the big bowl of pumpkin guts and she squealed. “Separate the seeds from the goop. Put the goop in this bowl and drop the seeds back in here. When you’re done, we’ll season them and roast them.”

“Oooh, okay!” She held her arms out to me and I rolled her sleeves up so she could get busy getting dirty.

“You’re pretty good with her,” Chris said and I couldn’t be sure if it was a compliment or a warning.

“Kids are great. Easy and straightforward, which happens to be my specialty. Besides Lila is like a tiny sponge, wants to know everything. I relate to that. Big time.”

“You don’t find adults straightforward?”

I shook my head and made my way to the other side of the counter where the rest of the soup and cookie ingredients sat waiting. “Nope. There’s usually a lot of obfuscation, beating around the bush and other ways to not say what could be said in a more straightforward manner.” It was another one of the reasons I wasn’t all that eager to date, despite the fact that not dating meant pushing my life plan back a few more years.