Page 13 of Under Ground

Now I have these two come into my life in the most unexpected way, and it’s got me thinking.

“Here we go. I won’t be offended if you don’t clear the plate.” Lana laughs. She hands me a plate piled high with meat and gravy, roasted potatoes, peas and beans.

“This looks amazing. Thank you.”

“I’ll just grab mine and Casey’s, and we’ll get eating.”

“I gotta sit in my chair,” Casey says to me.

“Which one is your chair?”

She leaps up and runs to the corner of the room, dragging a Disney Princess chair to the coffee table. “This one.”

Lana walks back in with two plates in hand, placing the smaller one on the table in front of Casey before joining me on the couch.

“Dig in.” Her smile lights up the room. I’ve never been so glad to have been in the right place at the right time as I was when I met her.

I moan as that first bite hits me. Tender lamb with gravy never tasted so good. I’m usually pretty good when it comes to eating—I keep in shape for being on-screen, but I clean my plate and could do another one.

“That was amazing,” I say.

Lana smiles. “I’m glad you liked it. I wanted to do something special given everything we’ve put you through.”

I grin. “You haven’t put me through anything. It’s made for an interesting week.”

“And an embarrassing week.”

I shake my head. “No. You shouldn’t be. You just have a three-year-old with an imagination.”

She leans closer and lowers her voice. “Thank you for dealing with it the way you have. She’d have been devastated if you’d rejected her.”

“I could never have done that.”

I find myself staring into her eyes. She says nothing, but her gaze locks me in, and I can’t look away. There’s a connection between us that I can’t explain. It’s more than Casey bringing us together, and I can’t help feeling this is meant to be.

What I do know is that I want to get to know Lana better.

Swallowing hard, I stand. “I’ll help with the dishes.”

Lana shakes her head, rising from the couch. “It’ll take a couple of minutes to load the dishwasher.”

She reaches for my plate and our hands brush. Her eyes meet mine again, and I’m lost in a sea of blue. Lana Maitland is a beautiful woman, but this close? She’s spectacular.

My heart thuds.

“Uhh. I’ll be back shortly.” She turns away, and picks up Casey’s empty plate. Her cheeks are flushed, and she takes one last look at me from under her eyelashes and carries the plates into the kitchen.

“Go and wash your hands, Casey,” she calls.

“My hands are clean.” Casey holds them up for me to inspect. There are smudges of food on them, and I can’t help but smile.

“They look like they need a wash to me.”

She wrinkles her nose. “No. They clean.”

“I don’t think so. Good try.” I wink at her, and she giggles. “You should go do what your mom wants.”

Casey licks the palm of each hand. “All done.”

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