Flynn(11)

Flynn waved goodbye and smiled. He was excited about finally being an uncle, and he couldn’t wait to see Shane changing diapers and dealing with midnight feedings. It seemed so long ago he’d done both for Emily. Even sang to her as he walked her up and down in the early hours of the morning trying to get her back to sleep. She’d been so worth it with all the love she’d brought into his life.

He began driving again. Now that his daughter was a teenager, he sort of missed having a baby and little girl wandering around, getting under his feet, reading bedtime stories to her, and pushing her on the swing until his arms ached. Yeah, he’d love to have another child but to do that he had to find a suitable woman. Or if the worst scenario happened, and he ended up a bachelor all his life, maybe he could think about adopting again.

He pulled up outside the motel. He remembered that Natalie had told him she was staying in Room 34, which by the look of the numbers and their layout, was on the second floor. He got out of the truck, pulled up his jacket collar and headed up the stairs. Number 34 was the fourth room on the left. He tapped lightly on the door.

He pushed his hat back slightly, anticipating her answering it and what she’d looked like today. The door opened and his heart skipped a beat, and he felt the love struck teenager he’d been back in fifth grade when he’d had a huge crush on Sally Jones.

“Hi,” said Natalie smiling at him. She’d tied her hair back but a few tendrils had broken lose, framing that pretty face of hers. What little makeup she wore played up her beautiful blue eyes and high cheekbones. She wore a simple red sweater and a black wrap around skirt. She wasn’t skinny like most of the women were eager to be these days. This was a woman with curves. The sort he’d always loved.

“You want to step inside while I grab my jacket?” she asked.

He took of his cowboy hat and entered the room. “Did you sleep okay?”

“I did, which is surprising because usually when I’m in a strange place I get about an hour’s shut eye, tops.”

She reached for her jacket and he rushed over and grabbed it and held it up behind her while she slipped her arms inside the sleeves.

“Pardon me if I’m stepping out of line, but this jacket and those boots, as lovely as they look, aren’t suitable for this sort of weather,” he said.

“Yeah, I’m realizing that now. More suited to a cold Florida day.”

“Do you have any of those?” asked Flynn. He held the door open and she walked outside and locked the door.

“By your Montana standards no, but to us if it’s not hot and sunny, it’s cold.”

He laughed.

“So you think my car will be easy to pull out of that ditch?” she asked as they made their way to his truck.

“I have a surprise for you. My brother and I did just that early this morning and it’s waiting for you at the ranch. However, I thought you might like to try my mother’s café for some breakfast first. My treat I should say. And yes, family members get discount.”

She smiled. “Thank you, that’s very nice of you, and I have to admit I’m starving.”

He held the truck door open for her and she got up inside, the black skirt she wore pulled around her hips as she slid over into the seat. The tops of the black knit pantyhose with their lace topping caught his attention.

“No Emily this morning?” she asked him as he got in beside her.

“No, one of my brothers has taken her to school.”

“Does she go to a regular school?”

He shook his head and turned the heat up a notch. “No, it’s one for kids with special needs, more therapeutic than academic. We’re lucky to have one in the county. She loves it and has made lots of friends there. You probably noticed she’s a very outgoing girl who’s not shy around strangers.”

“She’s very sweet.”

“She’s definitely that. Even if it’s been a bad day, she can make it seem a whole lot better.”

“That’s nice to know…I mean to hear a father say that.”

“Oh yeah, I’m very proud of her.”

Seemed Natalie had taken a liking to Emily, which was a very good thing. He’d hate getting to know yet another woman who had no interest in being even half decent to his little girl.

He pulled into one of the spaces outside his mom’s café, turned off the ignition and ran around to the passenger’s side of the truck to open the door for her. He held Natalie’s hand as she got down from the vehicle. As they made their way to the door, she almost slipped on some snow, but he caught her just in time.

“You okay?” he asked. He continued to hold her, even though it was obvious she was in no danger of falling over. They looked into one another’s eyes. Was she as spellbound as him?