Page 19 of Almost Always

I’d love to have a certain someone in bed with me instead.

Shaking away the thoughts, he blinked up at the light stretching across his ceiling. His brain provided a second-by-second replay of the day in the ice cream shop. From the moment her eyes met his under the stolen cap, the way her pink lips formed his name, how her nail polish captivated him. Not to mention the way she interacted with Cal. She could have talked to him like a child, but instead she included him whenever she could.

He also remembered the chubby, soft and shy version. The young girl who was always tugging at her clothes, like she was uncomfortable in everything she owned. That wasn’t who she was anymore, even if she still shied away from the attention.

More importantly, he was glad she got her ice cream in a cup. Because even now he could vividly remember the last time they’d eaten the frozen dessert together. It had been their last summer together—she was sixteen to his nineteen—and they’d been visiting every ice cream shop in the city for a silly ranking system. After eating out of disposable cups at the first few places, she opted for a waffle cone. She’d licked her way around the twoscoops, moaning at how good it was. To make matters worse, it started to melt and drip down her fingers. Daisy hadn’t hesitated to lick up what was sliding down her arm, totally unaware of the effect she had on him and everyone around them.

That was the week she kissed him on the front steps of her brownstone. The same week her father drove them away from New York for good.

“Is it time to wake up?” The sleepy voice broke into his thoughts.

“Nope, go back to sleep.”

“Mmmkay.”

Cal flipped over and was asleep in seconds. Rafferty shook his head and quietly slid out of bed, snapping his fingers to get Boots’s attention. His dog gave him a ‘what do you want?’ look, but got off the bed. He pulled jeans and a tee on and ushered the dog out of the room. He started up the coffee machine, grabbed his sneakers and the leash and the two of them set off on a morning stroll.

“There’s Indigo,” Cal said as they walked up to the school. He’d attempted the drop-off line a few mornings ago, but his son wanted more time to cuddle Boots, so that plan failed. They’d get there eventually. For now, Rafferty parked the car and walked Cal up to the entrance.

His son had already shot off like a rocket, heading straight to his best friend who was looking up at a tall man. When he reached the trio, Cal had his hand stretched out.

“Hi! I’m Callahan Ames,” he started, then pointed over and added, “And this is my dad, Rafferty Ames.”

“Nice to meet you two. I’m Mack, Indigo’s dad.”

Rafferty shook Mack’s hand and smiled. “Good to finally meet you, Mack.”

“Dig hasn’t stopped talking about Callahan since they met.”

“My kid thinks your kid is the coolest person he’s ever met.”

They turned to watch the kids whispering to each other while feeding Boots his snacks. The dog was going to be snoozing the whole day with how much he’d eaten, but at least he was getting some extra love. Beyond that, though, he was glad Cal had found a friend who lit him up. Not to mention the fact that Indigo was wearing the exact same T-shirt as his son.

“Theyinsistedon getting one too,” Mack offered, clearly noticing what Rafferty had been looking at.

“That’s amazing. I’m glad they found each other.”

“Yeah. Indigo has never talked about school as much as they have these past few weeks.”

Rafferty smiled, nodding as he felt his chest expand with relief. This was all he wanted and now his son had it. “So, what do you do, Mack?”

“Struggling artist. Well, more struggling than being an artist. It keeps me busy and at home a lot of the time. What about you?”

“Landscape architect, running the family business. And I’m a volunteer firefighter.”

“Seriously?”

He chuckled. “Been doing it since my early twenties.”

“That’s crazy. But hey, throwing this out there, happy to have Callahan over if you need some peace and quiet while you work.”

The offer couldn’t have come at a better time. “I’d appreciate that, man. Especially on days when I’m on call. He’s been at the community center some afternoons or at the pet shelter.”

“I mean, we can’t compete with a pet shelter, but I know Dig would be happy as shit.”

Rafferty smiled and shook Mack’s hand. “I’ll owe you big time.”

“Are you friends now? Does this mean we can hang out together?” Indigo asked, Cal right beside them with matching grins.

---