“That would be nice for those who can’t get off work in time to get there by five.”
“That’s what I was thinking too.”
“Waken!” I hear two adorable little girls call out.
My head whips toward the door and the sound of their voices to find Grayson and his daughters. I smile and wave. The girls take that as their cue to come and greet me.
“Waken, what are you doing?” Harlow asks.
“I’m getting a pedicure.”
“Does it tickle?” Hayden questions.
“No. It’s relaxing. After my feet soak, they’ll massage them and then paint my toenails.”
“Oh!” Their little mouths form the perfect O.
“Wow. They’ve got this twin thing down,” Lenora comments.
“Who are you?” Hayden asks.
“This is my sister, Leni. Leni, this is Harlow, and Hayden.” I point to the girls. “Grayson Davis’s twin daughters.”
“You can tell them apart?” this comes from Grayson.
I look up at him and about swallow my tongue. Why does he have to be so damn sexy? He’s wearing a pair of cargo shorts and a Mason Creek Fire T-shirt that fits as if it is tailored just for him.
“Hey, Grayson,” I greet him. “Yeah, I can tell them apart.”
“I thought maybe they told you when you were at the house the other day.”
“It took me a while,” I admit. “Your mom brings them in every week, and eventually, I figured it out. However, if I’m not looking at both of them, I still get stumped.”
The girls giggle. “That’s ’cause we look idenial,” Harlow states proudly.
“Identical,” Grayson and I say at the same time. His eyes find mine, and the hint of a smile tilts his lips.
“Waken, guess what? You make Daddy feel wanted,” Harlow says, nodding her little head.
“W-What?” I ask. I have no idea what she’s talking about. I glance up at Grayson, and he’s staring at me with a shocked expression on his face.
“Dat’s what hims said.” She looks at her sister. “Right, sissy?”
“Uh-huh. You tolded hims dat hims smelled good,” Hayden adds.
“Oh, shit,” Lenora mumbles under her breath, but I still hear her.
My head whips around to look at her, and the guilty expression on her face tells me everything I need to know. I did, in fact, tell Grayson Davis that he smells good, and my sister was there to witness it.
“You didn’t tell me,” I say through gritted teeth.
“Girls, come on. It’s time for your haircuts.” They scurry off to the chairs, climbing up and sitting on the booster seats without complaint. I know Grayson is still standing there, but I’m too embarrassed to look at him, so instead, I watch the girls as they chat with Anna and Faith as if they’re all four best friends.
“Laken?” His voice is closer. Sucking in a deep breath, I know I have to face the music. I turn to look at him. He’s closer, much closer. I open my mouth to say something, anything, but no words come out. Instead, I inhale his woodsy scent. Damn, he smells good. The next thing I know, he’s bending his body close to mine, his mouth hovers over my cheek, next to my ear. “You’re beautiful when you blush.” His deep husky voice washes over me.
He pulls back, and my eyes find his. He must see the question because he shrugs. “Do you have plans tonight?” he asks.
“Nope. She’s free,” Lenora answers for me.
“Perfect. I’ll be by your place around seven.”
“Wait. What?”
“The girls are having a sleepover with Nana Christine and Papaw Marty, and you and I are going on a date.”
“A date?”
His grin grows wider. Bending closer, he places both hands on the arms of my chair, and we’re close. So close I can see the different shades of green in his eyes. “Two weeks of you being in my head. Two weeks of my daughters talking about you nonstop. Two weeks of me wondering why I can’t stop thinking about you? I think it’s time we find out.” He stands back to his full height. “I’ll be at your place at seven.” He turns and walks to the front of the salon where the girls are getting haircuts. He stands between the two. His arms are crossed over his muscled chest as if he’s their bodyguard.
My heart can’t take the swoon, surrounded by his woodsy scent and his words. I’m a mush of feelings. My heart is racing so loud I know he can hear it, and there is an ache between my thighs.
“That, dear sister, is the definition of a panty-dropping smile.”
I manage to tear my gaze from Grayson. “What are you not telling me?” I ask her. I try to glare, but I’m still reeling from Grayson in close proximity.
He can’t stop thinking about me.
He wants to go on a date.
Tonight.
Holy shit!
“You might have told him that he smelled good when he put you to bed.” She goes on to explain how I thought I was dreaming. And I’m mortified. “Don’t do that. He’s into you.”