Page 58 of The Lighthouse at the Cove
She studied him. “Thanks, Reid.”
“No, thankyoufor wanting to spend time with my daughter.”
“Are there any rules?”
He rubbed his chin and chuckled. “If I had any, Piper would enforce them. She’s good that way.” He pointed down the hallway. “The spare room is ready. I even put new sheets on the bed. Make yourself at home.”
“Thanks.”
As he watched her walk down the hallway, he wondered what it would be like if Kaiah stayed in Coral Cove.
Even better, what would it be like to have her by his side forever?
Chapter 14
Kaiah rolled over and stretched, rubbing her eyes as she took in the room. A three-drawer wood dresser with a mirror filled the wall across from her while four paintings of the same beach scene, representing each of the seasons, adorned the opposite wall. A light-colored desk with a chair sat on the third wall.
For a moment she didn’t know where she was, but then it all came back to her in a rush—Reid setting up the spare room for her, watching a movie with him on the sofa, talking until they were both ready for bed.
A lazy smile filled her face as she remembered his muscled frame sitting beside her smaller one. They’d laughed throughMiss Congeniality(which he watched without complaint!), and when the movie was over, they swapped stories about their childhoods. Everything seemed so simple with Reid. Easy. They never ran out of words. She never felt uncomfortable with him. It was the total opposite of what she’d experienced with Hayes.
Kaiah groaned. Thelastthing she wanted was to let Hayes livein her head rent-free. She rolled to her side before she reached for her phone on the nightstand. It was eight fifteen. Time to get up and make breakfast before Piper came running out.
She pulled on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, then scooped her hair up in a ponytail before heading out to the kitchen. By the time Piper came scampering out in her mermaid-theme pajamas, the table was set with two plates of scrambled eggs, toast, and bacon.
“Bacon!” Piper exclaimed. “That’s my favorite!”
Kaiah sat down beside her, and they dug in. “So what do you want to do today, Miss Piper?”
“Can we play outside for a while?”
The young woman smiled. “Sounds like a plan.”
After breakfast, Kaiah took Piper outside, where she played on her elaborate wooden swing set. Kaiah pushed the six-year-old on the swing until, after a few minutes, Piper grew bored and decided to play in her sandbox.
Kaiah sat on the deck with a glass of sweet tea and watched the girl lift a small shovel filled with sand and slowly let the grains drift down like a waterfall. Truthfully it was mesmerizing. Piper sang to herself as she lifted the sand in clumps with her hands and patted them together, smoothing the formation to make an igloo. Kaiah lost herself in the moment, watching the girl create in the sand. Her revery was broken when her phone dinged with a text. Instantly her heart rate bumped up. Was it Reid? She glanced down at the screen, and her face clouded with a glower.
Hayes: Hey. We should talk.
Kaiah’s stomach twisted. She hadn’t expected to hear from him again. In fact, she hoped she wouldn’t. She squeezed the bridge of her nose and debated what to do. Part of her wanted to delete histext and block him. And wouldn’t that feel good? It was something she’d thought about a hundred times since their breakup.
But the same dilemma tripped her up every single time.
What if George was sick? Or what if Hayes wanted to bring George to her?
If George needed her, then she’d jump at the chance to have him back. So, no. She couldn’t block Hayes. Not as long as she knew George was alive.
She peered across the yard to where Piper was drawing ice blocks on her sand igloo. She’d be okay if Kaiah was distracted for a minute or two. Kaiah poised her thumbs over her phone and responded.
Kaiah: Is George okay?
A few moments passed without a response, and Kaiah held her breath. Finally, the dancing dots appeared on the screen.
Hayes: He’s fine.
She blew out a breath.Thank goodness.
Kaiah: Do you need a freelancer to help with a story?
