Page 45 of Property of Stone
Her mother squeezed her so tightly Taryn could hardly take a breath. “Please be careful, Taryn. A mother worries.”
“I know, Mom. I’m a mother, too.”
The gut punchfrom a tiny foot had Taryn’s eyes popping open. For a second she had no idea where she was. Until it hit her…
This was not her house. Or her bedroom.
Or her normal life.
She twisted her head to see Wren sleeping sideways in his favorite Sonic the Hedgehog pajamas and taking up too much real estate in Stone’s king-sized bed. How could a six year old, only weighing in at about fifty pounds, take up that much space?
After dislodging Wren’s other foot from under her chin,she unplugged her cell phone from the charger, glanced at the time, and groaned.
It was way too early.
However, she had a private dinner scheduled today so she might as well get up, plan breakfast, then start prepping the ingredients for her event later and loading whatever she’d need into the car.
She had no idea how Sunny prepared for school in the morning, other than maybe eating breakfast. Taryn needed to figure out her daily routine, too.
Stone’s daughter had picked at the pasta last night, wrinkling her nose dramatically after every bite she pretended to force down.
Stone scarfed down the contents of his bowl in under a minute, then went back for seconds.
Wren watched him closely and tried to do the same. He failed, thankfully, since Taryn didn’t want to be up all night with a boy with an upset stomach from eating too much.
However, seeing Wren mimick Stone worried her a little. Especially since her son was like a sponge who seemed to absorb all the wrong things.
But all through dinner, the kids hardly spoke two words to each other. Taryn hoped that would change and soon.
Maybe if she made waffles this morning, they could all sit down at the table together and make an effort to interact more than last night.
The second Sunny “finished” dinner, she’d left the table and went back up to her room, once again slamming the door. Stone ended up polishing off her bowl, too, totally ignoring his daughter’s dramatic display.
She could understand him not feeding into her tantrum, but at the time, she was concerned he hadn’t even addressedit. Later last night, she did hear his deep voice coming from her room, but had no idea what that “talk” was about.
Of course, blending families took time and patience. Bumps could be expected along the way. Taryn planned on giving Sunny time and space. Forcing the girl to accept Taryn and Wren might only make things worse and she could come to resent them.
If she didn’t already.
Taryn certainly didn’t miss the side-eye Sunny kept giving her father as he teased and talked to Wren. Her son had been thrilled with the attention. Sunny, not so much.
Taryn groaned softly as she rolled out of bed, made sure all her body parts were tucked away since she had slept in a tank top and pajama bottoms, then after a quick pit stop in the upstairs bathroom, padded barefooted downstairs.
The house was too quiet.
That could mean that Stone and Sunny were still asleep. When she reached the foot of the stairs, she could turn right into the expanded kitchen area or hook a left into the living room. Maybe she’d have a little discussion with Stone about Sunny’s school morning routine before she tackled making waffles.
Her feet stuttered as she spotted Stone on the couch, completely knocked out and only wearing an unbuttoned pair of jeans with the zipper partially open and one hand shoved down his pants. His other arm dangled off the couch with his hand only a few inches from a half-empty beer bottle sitting on the floor nearby. It looked like he zonked out while reaching for that same beer.
She inched her way closer so she could get a good look at him without him knowing.
The man had so many tattoos. So,somany. They covered his arms, his hands, his chest, his stomach…
She wondered if more inked artwork covered his legs and back, too. The man must not be bothered by needles.
One tattoo in particular caught her eye. It was also the only one in color that she could see in a sea of black and gray.
While it made sense because of his daughter, the beautifully detailed and colorful Sunflower tattoo above his heart was unexpected for such a rough-and-tumble type of guy like Stone.
