Page 28 of Pumpkin
Dosia shook her head, completely confused. “What? How?” It wasn’t like she’d lefthimwith a baby.
“The pumpkin,” Frankie emphasized, like she was revealing a huge secret.
“What pumpkin?” Dosia asked. Her eyes fell on Pumpkin’s cut for the first time and she took in the new road name, despite that everyone tonight had been calling him ‘Pumpkin’ instead of ‘Vodka’.
Pumpkin’s eyes narrowed on her as if he was studying her. “You really don’t remember?”
Dosia shook her head, because there was a lot she didn’t remember from that night, but she hadnorecollection of any pumpkin. “I have no idea what we’re talking about.”
Shoulders slumping slightly, Pumpkin pulled out his phone. He turned the lock screen on her and Dosia blinked at what she saw.
It was a younger Pumpkin. One she recognized without the full beard. A very, very naked, younger Pumpkin. Nothing explicit showed because of how his legs were bent. He was lying on his side on what looked to be concrete, cradling a large pumpkin to his chest like it was a teddy bear.
In the top corner of the picture by the time display was a pile of clothing she recognized too. Fuck, this picture was fromthatnight.
She tried to recall if there’d been a pumpkin around them, but frankly, she had no idea. She’d been in too big of a hurry to get out of there without waking him. She vaguely recalled tripping over something, but she’d thought it had been the foot of a picnic table. Had she knocked the pumpkin over? Or maybe it had been a pumpkin she’d tripped over? She had no idea.
Either way, it didn’t explain why he was cuddling it.
And yet, of all the questions she could have asked him, “Um, why is that your lock screen?” was the one that came out of her mouth.
CHAPTER 6
He had a name for her. Finally, after all these years, Pumpkin knew her name. Dosia. It was beautiful, unique just like her. He wasn’t positive of the spelling, nor was he sure if it was her full name or a shortened version of her name, but he planned to find out.
He was going to find outeverythingabout this woman.
Pumpkin snagged his phone back from her. “Because our club’s Tech thinks it’s hilarious to change my phone’s wallpaper every fall tooneof the various pictures my club brothers took that morning.”
Dosia’s blonde eyebrows drew down as she frowned. “I really don’t understand.” She shook her head slightly. “Anyof this.”
Pumpkin twisted his wrist to give SJ the back of his hand instead of his palm. His son giggled like he’d just done a spectacular magic trick. He kept his eyes on Dosia though. The longer he studied her, the more he realized how it wasn’t just caramel shading her irises. There was copper too. Like lightning strikes, flaring with her deep-seated emotions.
He wanted to create a thunderstorm, to make her eyes spark with desire and passion as he was sure they’d done six years ago and he’d been too drunk to appreciate it. He wanted to watch as every shade oforange, yellow, and brown swirled in the vortex of her eyes as every nuance of emotion was captured. Only for him.Justfor him.
Dosia would never know another man’s touch, would never have to worry about another awkward first date. She would only know the feel ofhimas he brought her to new heights. And Pumpkin relished in the challenge, because the fire behind her eyes hinted that it would not be so easy.
Good. He didn’t want easy. He wanted anger and defiance as he pushed her to reveal her secrets. Layer by layer, he would strip her shields away until there was nothing left but the passionate, vivacious woman underneath.
And what a vixen she would be.
He could see it now. All that pent up passion just waiting to be set free. And he would be the one to do it. Whatever she’d been doing these past six years, whatever her life had been like, it would never be the same. Not now.
“Unfortunately, my memory of that night is just as hazy,” he confessed. “Only thing I’m certain of is how much I wanted to continue to see you.”
Her cheeks turned red, and Pumpkin realized just how much he liked watching her blush. This time, it was a mixture of embarrassment and anger. “I highly doubt that.”
SJ started fussing a little so Pumpkin turned his hand over again. His son laughed like he’d never seen his father’s palm before. Still, Pumpkin never looked away from Dosia.
“I am many things, but a liar has never been one of them.”
Dosia sat back in her chair, her posture mimicking his. “Just a womanizing drunk?”
That was interesting, and a bit revealing on her part. They’d only spent a few hours together one drunken night several years ago. What would make her thinkhewas a womanizer whenshe’dbeen the one to leave first?
Not that he would accuse her of being the feminine version of a womanizer. A man-anizer? Was that a thing? Any other known words to describe such a woman wouldnevercross his mind or lips. InPumpkin’s opinion, it was completely unfair of society to judge women for sleeping with countless men but praise men for sleeping with countless women. The double standard was never one Pumpkin would understand.
Frankie snorted, drawing both Pumpkin’s and Dosia’s attention away from each other for the first time since Dosia had sat down. Frankie’s cheeks pinkened as her eyes went wide. “I amsosorry. It’s just… Him?” She threw a thumb at Pumpkin. “A womanizing drunk?”
