“Oh he did, did he?” Emily asked, leaning down to hug Annie again. She put her face next to her daughter’s and they both looked at each other in the mirror. “You didn’t tell him that I’ve been taking you to the free family bowling night since you were three, did you?”
“Nope.”
They grinned at each other.
“He’s so going down,” Emily told her daughter.
“Yup.”
Mother and daughter smiled at each other. This was gonna be fun.
Emily watched as Fletch “instructed” Annie on how to bowl. They’d arrived at the entertainment complex and had started with some food. It wasn’t a long drive to Austin, but of course Annie was hungry. Ever since Fletch had found out how little they’d been getting along with, food-wise, he’d made it his mission in life to always have healthy snacks around and to prepare nutritious meals for the two of them. He vowed that neither of them would ever go hungry again.
After making quick work of an order of nachos, Annie declared she wanted to bowl first. Emily knew it was because the little girl was gonna burst if she couldn’t “trick” Fletch soon.
They had exchanged their shoes and found an empty lane. Fletch was standing behind Annie, showing her the holes in the ball and pointing down the lane at the pins. Emily tried to hide her smile behind her hand. Fletch happened to look back at her right at that moment.
“What?”
“What what?” Emily asked, trying to sound innocent.
“What are you smiling about?”
Emily thought fast. “I just love seeing you with Annie.”
Fletch leaned down to the little girl and said something to her. Annie smiled back and nodded.
Walking back toward Emily, Fletch had an intense look on his face, one Emily couldn’t read. He came right up to her and put both hands on her waist. He leaned in and said in a voice only loud enough for them to hear, “You’ve raised an amazing child, Em. She’s funny, smart, and sensitive to the feelings of those around her.”
Emily beamed. There was nothing that made her feel better than hearing someone compliment her daughter.
“She’s also sneaky, underhanded, and a cheat. Just like her mom.”
Trying not to laugh, knowing he was right, Emily did her best to play it off. She pouted and tried to look hurt. “What do you mean?”
“Don’t give me that hangdog look. You know what I mean.” Fletch turned them so he was standing behind Emily and they were both watching Annie at the bowling lane. He had one hand on Emily’s stomach and the other at her hip. He pulled her back into him, and Emily snuggled in close.
“Go on, Annie, see what you can do,” he called out to the little girl, who was practically dancing in place, anxious to throw the ball down the lane for the first time.
They both watched as Annie confidently strode up to the line, she held the ball, granny style, and lined it up.
“She’s done this before,” Fletch said unnecessarily as they watched the bowling ball roll lazily down the lane and knock down seven pins. “I’m gonna lose, aren’t I?”
They watched as Annie turned to them with a huge smile on her face. “Is seven good, Fletch?”
“Shit. I’m so gonna lose.” It was a statement that time.
Emily turned in Fletch’s arms and leaned up to kiss him lightly on the lips, loving that he felt comfortable with the public display of affection, and that every time she did something like kiss him or hold his hand, Fletch’s eyes glittered with desire. “You’re going down, Cormac.”
An hour and a half later, Fletch slumped against the seat in defeat. “You guys win. Heck, you had me beat from Annie’s first spare.”
Annie danced a victory dance and Fletch couldn’t hold back his laugh. He leaned over and grabbed the little girl, holding her upside down on his lap and tickling her. Annie’s giggles rang out through the busy bowling alley as she wiggled and screeched, trying to get away from Fletch’s nimble fingers.
Finally, he pulled her upright and sat her sideways on his lap and looked over at Emily.
Seeing the tears in her eyes, his entire demeanor changed. “What? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Emily reassured him immediately, wiping away the moisture.
“Em, what?”
“I’m just…happy, Fletch. These are happy tears.”
Understanding what she wasn’t saying, Fletch leaned over, Annie still in his lap, and put his free hand behind her neck and pulled her into him. He kissed her, hard. The kiss probably wasn’t appropriate for their surroundings, especially considering how closely Annie was scrutinizing them, but Emily couldn’t care at the moment.
He placed his forehead against Emily’s and whispered, “As long as they’re happy tears, I’ll take ’em. It’s the other kind I can’t stand.”
“Come on, Fletch. You said after I beat you, you’d show me how to roller skate,” Annie begged, squirming off his lap to the floor.
Fletch pulled back and brushed his thumb under Emily’s eye. Without looking away from her, he told, Annie, “I did, sprite. Can you return our shoes? We’ll go after that.”
“Yay!” Annie chirped in excitement.
Emily smiled at her daughter as the little girl plunked herself on the ground and ripped the rented bowling shoes off her feet. She waited impatiently as she and Fletch removed theirs as well.
“We’ll be right here. Don’t go anywhere else but the return counter,” Fletch warned. “I want you in our sight the entire time.”
“I won’t!” Annie reassured him.
Fletch and Emily watched as the little girl skipped up to the counter and got into the short line.
“Thank you, Fletch,” Emily said quietly. “She’s having the time of her life.”
“I feel like I should be thanking you,” Fletch said seriously. “I haven’t really thought about kids. Not with what I do. I figured it was either a pipe dream, or that it would be many, many years before I’d ever have the chance to have any. Today has been amazing. I mean, I know that Annie is awesome. But seeing her like this, seeing her without a care in the world, it’s…” His voice trailed off. He cleared his throat once, then continued.
“It’s everything. It makes me feel that what I do has meaning. Seeing her happy and carefree, makes me realize something that I didn’t get before. Every mission has a purpose.”
Emily laid her hand on Fletch’s tattooed forearm. He kept his eyes on Annie as she crept forward in the line. She leaned up and kissed Fletch’s jaw. Then his temple. Then leaned forward so she could whisper in his ear.
“You’re so getting lucky tonight.”
Fletch’s head whipped around so fast Emily couldn’t even catch a breath before his lips were on hers. His tongue plunged into her mouth and his hand once more came up to rest behind her neck. But this time it wasn’t in a tender caress. It was to hold her still for his sensual assault on her mouth.
It didn’t last nearly long enough, but Fletch was obviously more than aware they were sitting in a bowling alley surrounded by families. He turned his head back to where Annie was, and murmured without looking at Emily. “Damn straight. You set me up, woman. You owe me.”
Emily giggled, feeling the goosebumps break out over her arms as Fletch’s thumb caressed the side of her neck. He hadn’t taken his hand away, and she put her head on his shoulder.
They sat like that for several moments, watching Annie as she returned their bowling shoes and came skipping back toward them, her arms full with their regular ones.
“Here they are! Hurry! I wanna skate!”
The tender moment gone, Fletch slowly sat up and reached for his boots. He put them on as leisurely as he could, just to torture the little girl. Emily followed suit, until Annie was literally dancing around them, begging for them to go faster.
Fletch stood and held out his hand to Emily. Her warm hand against his own made his heart swell, but it was Annie’s smaller hand, which grabbed hold of his, that made it melt. The little girl was affectionate, but she’d never held his hand before.
He wasn’t a mushy man, but at that moment, he knew he’d do everything in his power to keep both Emily and Annie for his own.
Emily watched as Fletch and Annie made their way slowly around the roller-skating rink. Annie had only let go of Fletch’s hand long enough for them both to tie up their skates, and as soon as they were securely fastened, she’d grabbed hold again. The duo made their way around the floor with about what seemed like five thousand other kids and adults.
Leaning against the wooden rail, Emily watched as Fletch steered Annie away from a pile-up of kids who’d fallen. Then, as he got between her and another kid who was recklessly racing around the far end of the rink, not caring who was in his way. And as Fletch threw his head back and laughed at something Annie said, she sighed.
The man was amazing. Granted, she’d never really been on a date with both a man and Annie before, but somehow she knew this wasn’t exactly normal. Annie was exhausting. She’d be the first to admit it. Emily loved her child, but her never-ending questions, unrelenting energy and enthusiasm for life, and her stubbornness weren’t conducive to a relaxing day by any stretch.