Page 37 of Summer Heat
I gave her a head start before diving underneath the water again. When I finally caught her, I lifted her into the air, and she said, "Throw me!"
I glanced over at Kinsley, who nodded, and I threw her into the deep end, watching closely to ensure that she was able to swim to the surface and tread water. I stayed close in case she needed a hand. But it appeared that Maya was confident in the water. She'd probably spent a lot of her childhood in the ocean or a pool.
Kinsley had done a good job training her for the realities of living on an island. Knowing how to swim was an important life skill.
My dad probably thought the ability to work with your hands, building things, was also a necessity. It certainly had been a passion of mine.
"Again!" Maya said from where she bobbed in the water.
I lifted her and threw her into the water over and over again until Kinsley said it was time to get out for dinner.
"What should we do for dinner? Should we grill or go out?" I kind of wanted to take my girls out for dinner. We'd worked hard today, and we deserved a little break.
"If you don't mind cooking again?—"
"Actually, I do." I lifted myself out of the water and grabbed a dry towel. I rubbed the excess water off my skin. "I'm taking you out. Dress pretty. We're going somewhere fit for a princess."
Maya whooped, then ran into the house, presumably to commandeer the bathroom first.
Kinsley gave me a disapproving look as she closed her laptop. "You don't have to do that."
I paused in front of her lounge chair, hoping her eyes would wander over my bare chest. "We worked hard today. Let me take you out."
She nodded slowly as she fought to keep her eyes from slipping lower. "Fine."
"As a mother of a princess—a queen—you should dress up too."
A grin played on her mouth. "I'll do that."
"I'd say let's jump in the shower, but Maya got to the bathroom first."
Kinsley packed up her things and walked inside. She wore a cover-up over a swimsuit, but it was transparent, and I could see the outline of a green suit. The ends of her hair were still damp and had curled from her earlier swim.
I forced myself to look away and ask something mundane. "How are things with the insurance company?"
"They're going to cut me a check based on the information we sent them."
"Have you talked to your landlord about ending the lease?"
She frowned. "I said we were planning on moving somewhere else. That the damage was too much. At the rate he moves, who knows when it will be habitable."
"And what did he say?"
She shrugged. "That we have a lease."
"I'm fairly sure he's breached any contract at this point. Maybe you should have an attorney look at it. Dalton has a family law attorney for his custody case. Maybe he could help you."
Kinsley sighed. "I hope it doesn't come to that."
"Mommy!" Maya called.
"Duty calls," Kinsley said with a smile as she headed upstairs.
"Take your shower first, and then I'll be up."
"Sounds good," Kinsley said as she disappeared.
I was taking them out to dinner, but it wasn't a date because Maya would be with us. She was a good buffer. I wouldn't be thinking about how gorgeous Kinsley was if Maya was asking me to color with her on the children's menu.
