Page 46 of Crossed Up

She snorts and shakes her head, placing her hand on the handle to open the door.

“Don’t!” My shout startles her, and I grimace in apology, hopping out on my side so I can open both of their doors. Leaning down next to her ear, I whisper my apology. “Sorry for shouting, angel. But my girl doesn’t get her own door when I’m around. You sit your pretty ass in that seat and wait for Daddy to come to you.”

The flush that covers her cheeks is perfection, making me smirk as I stealthily kiss her cheek and go to grab Crew from his seat. The kid learned how to undo his buckles ages ago, so he’s standing up and waiting to jump into my arms the second I open the back passenger side door.

“Alright, y’all. Let’s go battle it out on the track!”

20

LYLA

“Lyly, can you come with me to get some water?” Crew’s sweet voice reaches my ears, and at the same moment, he tugs on my hand. I’m taking a break from our activity for the day to catch my breath because going around the small track so many times made me dizzy.

A cursory glance around shows me Aidan is on the phone. When I catch his eye, he uses his thumbs to gesture a texting motion and points to me. Taking the hint, I check my phone to see a couple of texts from him waiting for me.

Aidan

Sorry, angel. This is my agent, so I have to take it. Can you hang with Crew for a few minutes?

I promise I’ll be back to kick your ass on the track as soon as possible ??

Him threatening to kick my ass shouldn’t make me blush, so tell me why my cheeks are hotter than the surface of the sun?

Turning back to Crew, I smile and grab his hand. “Of course I can, Crew-bug.” I noticed a concession stand on the way in, so I lead us both to it, grateful there don’t seem to be many people milling about.

There is a man and a little girl in front of us in line, and when the girl notices Crew, her face widens into a huge, gap-toothed grin. “Crew, hi! Daddy, look, it’s Crew!”

The man turns around, and his eyes widen when he sees me holding Crew’s hand. I watch his gaze dart to my clearly visible left hand, and when he sees my lack of a ring, he smiles.

He’s classically handsome, with dark brown hair and eyes that glitter in the midday sun, but something about his gaze makes me nervous. It’s completely opposite to how I felt when I met Aidan.

Holding his hand out to me, his smile turns into a smirk. “Hey, I’m Colton. We’ve seen Crew and his dad around here plenty of times, but I know for a fact I would remember a gorgeous face like yours. Are you Crew’s mom?”

That nervous feeling turns to discomfort when I shake his hand and he tightens his grip, holding on just a bit too long to be friendly.

Still wanting to be polite because he hasn’t done anything outwardly threatening, I offer a small smile in return. “No, I’m not Crew’s mom, but I am his nanny.” Crew tugs on my hand, and I’m shocked to see his eyes watering, so I quickly excuse us.

Only Colton grips my bicep before I can go. “I hope this isn’t too forward, but could I possibly ask for your number? I’d love to take you out sometime.”

I fight to keep my smile from turning to a grimace as I extricate myself as politely as possible from his grip. “I’m sorry, but I actually have a boyfriend. If you’ll excuse me, we really do need to be going.”

I hustle Crew to an abandoned table tucked away in a small alcove around the corner and sit down, helping him onto the seat next to me. Big crocodile tears cascade down his cheeks as he looks at me, and I gape.

“Crew-bug!” I pull him into my arms and pet his hair in the motion I know soothes him. “What’s the matter?”

He sniffles, burying his face in my neck as his arms twine around my neck. “Why can’t you be my mommy?”

It takes every ounce of willpower not to let the shock show on my face at his question, but I do pull him tighter against me. When I don’t say anything, he keeps going.

“All of my friends have Mommy’s and Daddy’s, and you sleep at our house, and take care of me and Daddy. And I love you. So why can’t you be my mommy?”

My heart shatters with his quiet, raspy words. Tears spring to my eyes faster than they ever have before, and I pull back just slightly so I can see the tear tracks running down Crew’s pink cheeks. “Crew…”

I feel like I’m walking a tightrope made of fishing wire. One wrong word, and I could set him up for heartbreak if Aidan and I don’t work out. Not to mention, it’s not my place to tell Crew anything, especially when I don’t really know what the heck is going on between me and his dad.

With a sigh, I stroke my fingers through his soft, wavy hair. “Anybody would be lucky to be your Mom, Crew-bug. You’re the coolest kid ever, and you make every day so much fun.”

Aidan’s concerned face appears in front of us, and I decide that my next words are as much for him as they are for his son. “I really hope I get to be a Mommy someday, sweetie. Especially to somebody as smart and kind as you. But for now, being your nanny is the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon. Okay?”

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