Treat Me (One Night with Sole Regret #8)(55)

"Are you sure you want to be a princess?" Amanda asked. "Sounds like a lot of rules to me."

"I'm not sure she's being exposed to the right kind of role models," Jacob commented as he closed the grill lid. "Why are all the female characters in Disney movies princesses? Gives a girl a skewed perception of romance and the real world, doesn't it?"

Jacob started when a wet hand touched the small of his back. Lost in his musings, he hadn't heard Amanda get out of the pool. "Gives a girl something to dream about."

"Is that what you dreamed about?" he asked. "Having some girly prince rescue you?"

"And live out my life in a castle, wearing beautiful gowns, and attending balls every night?"

"And singing!" Julie said. "All princesses sing."

Jacob turned to look at her. "Is that why you want to be a princess? So you can sing?"

She smiled, her eyes lighting up with excitement. "I love singing." She stopped beside him to stare up at him worshipfully, her pruned fingers supporting her chin.

Another way she was just like him. Well, except for the wanting to be a princess thing. He cupped the back of her head and hugged her against his hip. "I think you need to be exposed to other ways girls can be singers."

"Daddy, your singing place is too loud." She titled her head back and cringed, as if she'd insulted him.

"My singing place is loud," he said agreeably and glanced at Amanda for help.

"There's opera," Amanda said.

Jacob produced a breathless laugh. "Loudest singers on the planet. They don't even use sound equipment."

"What's opera?" Julie asked.

"Singing in Italian."

"I don't know Italian," Julie assured him. "Is there singing in Spanish? I like learning Spanish on Dora."

"There's singing in every language, baby." He stroked her hair, trying to think up ways to expose Julie to more than singing princesses. He wished he had more time to spend with her than every other weekend.



       
         
       
        

"We could take her to the theater," Amanda suggested. "A musical."

The thing he liked most about that suggestion was the "we" part.

"Is there a thing with singing and swimming and hugging animals and wearing crowns?" Julie asked, touching her hair where she'd wear a gilded crown. Her imagination was obviously running wild.

Jacob tapped her nose. "Not that I know of, but you can do anything you set your mind to."

"Tina will never forgive you if she joins a circus," Amanda said with a laugh.

"The Little Mermaid," Julie said, jumping up and down when the answer came to her. Yet her face fell almost right away. "But Ariel hugs fish. I don't think I'd like to hug fish. They're smelly."

And they were back to Disney princesses. "This kid needs to get out," he said to Amanda, who smiled in agreement.

Lunch started with the excited chatter of Julie's ideas for her swimming and singing animal show-a crown would be involved, of course-but as her belly filled, her enthusiasm began to wane and soon she was nodding off in her plate. Within a few minutes, she slumped back in her chair midchew.

"Julie," Jacob said quietly, "finish what's in your mouth." He didn't want her to choke while she slept.

Eyes shooting open, she jerked upright in the chair, chewing vigorously. An instant later she was asleep again-her tiny elbow on the table supporting her tiny chin on her tiny hand. Jacob stood and scooped her into his arms. She lazily opened her eyes.

"Are you finished eating?" he asked.

She swallowed the bite in her mouth and nodded. He snuggled her against his chest, and she pressed her face into his shoulder. Her swimsuit had dried while they ate, so he didn't bother changing her out of it. He entered the house and tucked her into her bed for a much deserved nap.

He returned to the outdoor dining table to find Amanda had deserted her lunch. He located her in the pool.

She was floating on her back in the water again, but this time she was topless.





Chapter Twelve


Amanda hid a self-satisfied grin when Jacob entered the pool with a loud splash. She figured removing her top would instantly put him in the mood, and for that, she was thankful. Watching that man wander around in nothing but swim trunks all morning had been hell on her self-control.

When he surfaced between her legs and latched on to her mound right through her bikini bottoms, Amanda's head went under and she sucked in a mouthful of water. She flapped her arms to push her head above the surface and forced the water out of her mouth before she took a deep breath.