“Okay. I’ll wear it.”
Paige waited for her to put it on, then followed her outside. “How are you going to get Leon to come out?”
“He’ll come. He lives in his ’partment under there.” She pointed under the trailer.
Paige had never actually seen the turtle, not that it mattered. Casey was happy enough whether he was real or imagined as she picked blades of grass for a bed or a snack, whichever Leon might choose.
The front side of the trailer blocked the afternoon sun and the breeze was warm and dry. She should put her hair up. She pulled a hair band from her wrist and did so, rolling her eyes at herself for the reason she’d left it down. No matter how attracted she was to Jake, no matter how much she liked him, she needed to remember that wasn’t part of her plan. Casey, work, school, better job. No time to get sidetracked.
Minutes passed and Casey sighed. “There’s not enough nature in our yard.”
Nope. And there wasn’t much of a yard either, which got her mind solidly back on track.
Paige moved down to sit beside Casey and picked up a tiny pebble. “Does Leon like chicken nuggets?” She dropped the rock into Casey’s hand, starting her on a new quest.
Jenny joined her on the step and whipped out her cherry-flavored roll-on lip gloss.
“Me too!” Casey said, reaching, always ready for Jenny’s makeup.
“Yes. You too, my little diva.” Jenny handed it to Casey and they watched her roll on the clear shine.
She smiled at her daughter’s excitement and grown-up look. She’d be big soon. All the more reason to stay focused.
A minute later, Jake arrived. Paige took a breath as he parked on the road at the end of the open space and got out amid Casey’s squeals of joy and Jenny’s deep, woman-smitten sighs. He had a quiet, easy way about him. There was no swagger, he didn’t saunter—though looking like he did, he most definitely could have. Could have sauntered, sashayed, skipped, or even flown, and any woman in his vicinity would have fallen into his arms, their eyes glassing over.
It was army green cargo shorts and a black polo-style shirt today, and she wondered if he’d worn shorts for Casey’s benefit. She hadn’t known him long, but it seemed like something he would do.
She stood, dusted off her bottom, then squeezed Jenny’s hand when she stood up beside her. “Do not run off and leave me.”
“What? Casey’s not enough of a chaperone? Afraid you’ll maul the man? I would be.” She sighed dramatically. “So hot.”
“I mean it, Jenny.”
“Of course you do.” Jenny sent her a too-sweet smile. “Here. Put on some lip gloss and simmer down.”
She definitely needed to simmer down. After years of not wanting a man’s touch—an opinion Jenny frequently called ludicrous—she was shocked by how much she wanted Jake’s.
“Hi, Jake,” Jenny said, meeting him halfway. “I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced.” Jake met her with a handshake, let Casey grab onto his other hand, and smiled at Paige still some feet away. Was it possible to feel a smile?
If she was looking to rid herself of butterflies, or feeling like a leaf shaking precariously at the end of a branch, Jake McKinney and his earth-shattering kisses, his smile, and his sweetness were not the way to go. But, she thought, walking over to meet him, she was going.
Chapter 8
There was nothing like a county fair on a breezy California day. Eighty-eight degrees with wisps of white stretching across the blue sky. JT sat at a picnic table, legs stretched out in front of him, elbows resting on the table behind him. The crowd moved in front of him like salmon swimming in both directions, and JT kept his eye on the bathroom exit to make sure he didn’t miss the girls coming out. Simon sat beside him, doing the same.
The event spread across an open field used for everything from air shows to concerts. The pinging and popping of games, each with their own music and blinking lights, filled the air. Screams from a nearby ride grew loud, then soft as it spun and rolled the willing victims on a lopsided wheel.
“So tell me again how you ended up inviting Paige to the fair?”
He heard the laughter in Simon’s voice. “Don’t make me regret letting you come.”
“Letting me? You couldn’t have stopped me. Watching you fall will be highly entertaining.”
“I told you. It’s not like that.”
“You can tell me all you want. I see how you look at her.”
He tried to ignore his friend, but he knew it was true. Even in the midst of all the chaos, he’d been acutely aware of her every movement since he’d picked her up two hours ago. Every time he felt her beside him or heard her voice, his heart thrummed in his chest.