Page 19 of The Forbidden Sitter
Ending the call, I kind of felt terrible, but also great at the same time. I was keeping my hands to myself, right? Mostly? What I did alone didn’t count, I promisedmyself.
The thought came to me that it had felt good to place my hand over hers while we were talking at breakfast. I honestly hadn’t meant it in any way except in thanks for the lesson she had taught me, but the jolt that shot right through me shocked me.Literally.
It felt like I’d accidentally put my hand on a live wire. Nothing like that had ever happened to me. And by the look on her face, the wonder in her blue eyes, I thought she might have felt the samething.
The ride back home took way too long, as I was anxious to get to them. My little family. It had just been so damn long since I’d had one. So long since I had anyone other than myself to think about or come hometo.
As soon as I came through the door, I heard Braiden’s screams of delight, and he ran around the corner, flying into my arms. As I grabbed him up, I couldn’t help but notice Brooke smiling away at us. “Good, you’re here. He’s been dying for you to show up so he can go see theanimals.”
“Oh, I thought he was happy to see me.” I wanted to ask Brooke if she was happy to see me too, but the smile on her face told me shewas.
“He’s happy about that too, daddy.” She laughed and hooked her thumb in gesture to the door behind her. “I’ve laid out your clothes on the bed. I was pretty sure you wouldn’t want to wear a suit to the zoo, so I laid out proper dadattire.”
No one had laid clothes out for me since I was ten. I wasn’t exactly sure I liked that she did that. But I was nice about it. “Thanks. I’ll get changed, then we can leave. Did you guys eat lunch yet?” I put Braiden down and headed out of theroom.
“No, I thought we’d eat with you.” She took Braiden by the hand. “We can eat at the zoo if you want. Whatever you want todo.”
A smile plastered on my lips. I said, “Okay, we’ll eat at the zoothen.”
As I went into my bedroom, finding my clothes laid out on the bed, I thought about her going through my closet to find the clothes. At first, I was incensed the tiniest of bits. Then I was turned on as I thought about her hands flowing over my things, picking out what she wanted me to wear—what she wanted to see mein.
My cock jerked, and I stopped the train of thought instantly, warning myself sternly, “Quitit.”
The ride to the zoo was full of laughter, as we both adored Braiden and his silly antics. And strolling through the zoo, me pushing the stroller that I’d rented that looked like a golden cage that Braiden loved, I felt like a realfamily.
Brooke walked at my side, pointing out each animal, saying its name, and making the sound it made. Braiden tried to mimic her, something she said was good, as he didn’t talk at all yet. At two, he should be saying a few words, she toldme.
I assured her if anyone could have him talking soon, it would be her. We passed a small gift shop, and I saw stuffed animals inside. “Hey, can you take over with him while I do something really quick,Brooke?”
“Of course.” She took over for me, pushing the stroller to keep him moving. “And that’s a monkey over there, Braiden. It says, hoohoo.”
I heard a chorus of similar sounds as the monkeys in the cage called out to her. Inside, I purchased a stuffed monkey for her and a stuffed tiger for myson.
Heading back out, I caught up to them, as they’d stayed nearby. Giving Braiden the tiger first and receiving a fantastic smile from him, I handed Brooke the monkey. “I saw this and thought ofyou.”
She laughed, and the sound was beautiful. So fresh and innocently happy. One perfectly-arched brow arched a bit more as she took the monkey out of my hand. “So you think I look like a monkey, Gannon?Thanks.”
That didn’t come out right atall.
“No, I don’t think you look like a monkey at all. You’re gorgeous.” I stopped, as that last part wasn’t supposed to come out. It was meant to sit silently in the back of my mind. And the blush that covered her cheeks as she quickly ducked her head shyly told me she totally caught my little slip. “Your brother told me you likemonkeys.”
“Oh.” She shook her head. “Of course he did. Did you talk to him today? Tell him where we were going?” She held the monkey like a baby on her hip, and it was ridiculously, over-the-top cute, to where I wanted to kiss the breath out ofher.
“Yeah, he called, and I told him. He also mentioned that I had better buy you an ice cream before leaving here or I’d face a tantrum from you that would end all tantrums.” I laughed and watched a smile crack her lipstoo.
“Man, I guess I’ll never live that down.” She swayed a bit as we continued walking. “In my defense, I was four. I’d missed my afternoon nap and had a sugar rush from cotton candy and lemonade they gave meearlier.”
“Oh, well that explains it all.” I fought the urge to wrap my arm around her narrow shoulders and pull her close, kissing her cheek. Man, how I wished I could just dothat.
“Gannon, can I ask you something that’s a bit personal?” She looked at me, and we stopped underneath the shade of a tree. Giant goldfish swam to the surface of the pond that ran underneath the little bridge we’d stopped on. Gulping air at the surface, it was plain to see zoo patrons would feed them from thisspot.
I put a quarter in the machine that released a handful of what looked like dog food pellets and tossed them to the fish. Braiden laughed and clapped as he watched them frenzy over the food. “Sure you can,Brooke.”
“Why haven’t you found someone to settle down with?” She eyed me as if gauging if I was going to be truthful with her ornot.
I found I was going to be honest as I opened my mouth and the words poured out freely. “I’ve been busy building a successful business, for one. And once I got that largely completed … I realized I don’t want just anybody. I want a woman who has it all. And I’ve never metone.”
“Never?” she asked as she hugged her littlemonkey.
