there…” I trailed off, raising one eyebrow suggestively.
She shook her head, chuckling as she stood up. “Later.” Was the only thing she said, and I felt like my world stopped spinning for a second. Was that a promise or another tease? I could only hope I guess, but I was already another step closer to falling in love with her.
After another hour of looking around the zoo and eating ice-cream, we headed to the gift shop. I gave DJ a ten dollar bill and watched as his eyes lit up, taking in everything in the store, searching for something to waste his money on. Rosie smiled at me and sighed, stepping closer to me as she wrapped her arm around my waist tightly, pressing herself to me.
“Thank you so much for today. I never get to do things like this with him. I’ve loved every single second of being here with the two of you,” she said, her eyes locked on mine.
I brushed her hair off her face, letting my fingers linger on her cheek for a second as I did it. I hated the fact that she obviously struggled for money and that Josh didn’t really help her that much. She obviously worked hard to just get by; things like coming to the zoo were a luxury that she probably didn’t indulge in very often.
“I had a great day too,” I admitted, bending my head closer to hers, but I didn’t kiss her, I didn’t want to push my luck too far in front of DJ. After all, he still thought we were just friends. I’d had an awesome day with the pair of them, I didn’t want it to end on a sour note by him being upset about his mom’s new boyfriend.
She either didn’t think about DJ, or she just decided it was time for him to know, because she pressed her lips to mine, kissing me passionately as her arm tightened on my waist, clamping herself to me.
My whole body was rejoicing. I cupped her face in my hands as I kissed her back with as much passion as she was kissing me with. When she pulled away, I couldn’t stop the moronic grin that stretched across my face because this was another huge step forward that she’d taken, showing her son that we were more than just friends. I loved that.
“Eww! Did you just kiss my momma?”
Ah, fuck.
My lungs constricted with panic as I looked down, seeing DJ standing there with a slightly confused, but thoroughly disgusted expression on his face as his eyes flicked between the two of us. I had no clue what to say. My mouth was dry and my heart was beating ten to the dozen.
Rosie stepped away from me and took a deep breath. I had the strong urge to pull her back to me and use her as some kind of human shield so I couldn’t see her son’s reaction to me. I was used to being in rough situations, but the way the kid was looking at me was scaring the life out of me. I had no idea how he felt about it. It was staggering how unprepared for this I was.
I winced and looked at Rosie. She looked so incredibly calm and collected as she squatted down to DJ’s level and smiled reassuringly at him. Something squeezed my hand, and I looked down at it, seeing that Rosie was holding my hand firmly in hers, our fingers interlaced. She was either using me for support, or she sensed my meltdown and was trying to reassure me. I wasn’t sure which it was, probably a little of both.
“Yeah, we were kissing. Nate and I, well, we’re like boyfriend and girlfriend,” she explained softly.
He frowned. “Like you and Daddy?”
Rosie stiffened and she shook her head. “No, Baby. Daddy and I are just friends.”
DJ nodded, looking a little thoughtful, and we both just watched him, waiting for his reaction.
Oh God, please don’t hate me and make her break it off with me!
After probably the longest minute of my life, he looked at me and scrunched up his face. “You gots girl cooties now, Nate!” he stated sadly. Rosie burst out laughing and I just stared at him in shock as he held out a stuffed penguin toy to me. “Do I have enough monies for this?” he asked, giving me the puppy dog face.
I didn’t bother looking at the price as I nodded, knowing I would pay whatever it cost. “Yeah, Kid, you have enough money for that.” My voice was slightly husky and thick, probably with the shock of him just accepting me that quickly.
Rosie beamed and stood back up, squeezing my hand again. “On the way home we’ll get you some medicine to take care of those cooties, Nate, don’t worry,” she teased.
I grinned and looped my arms around her waist, pulling her to my side so she couldn’t get away. “Seeing as I’m already infected, maybe I should get some more cooties before I get the cure,” I joked, looking down at her lips again.
She smiled and went up on tiptoes and pressed her lips to mine. I laughed against her lips as DJ spoke. “Kissing girls is gross!”
I pulled away from Rosie, picking DJ up, slinging him over my shoulder in a fireman’s lift. “Yeah, you don’t want to kiss girls, Kid, it gets you in all kinds of trouble. You’d best stay away from them for a little while,” I teased, grabbing Rosie’s hand and pulling her to the counter to pay.
I sat DJ down on the counter while the lady rang his penguin through the register. He squealed and picked up a candy necklace out of the pot next to him, looking at it with wide eyes. I smiled and nodded to the lady.
“Can we get two of those necklaces, too?” I asked politely. Rosie looked at me curiously, obviously wondering why I’d bought two. I took one from the pot and stretched it out, pulling it down over her head while she laughed. “Can’t have you feeling left out because I bought your son jewellery and not you, can I?”
She slipped her hand into my back pocket. “Maybe it’s a little soon for you to be buying me jewellery.”
I shook my head and bent and kissed the side of her neck, stopping to bite one of the candy loops off the string. “I didn’t really buy it for you, I bought it for me.” I grinned, showing her the candy on my tongue.
Chapter Twenty-Two
When we left the zoo, we went straight to Ashton and Anna’s place. DJ was practically bouncing in his seat because he was staying there; he was raving on and on about Ashton letting him play on his ‘puter’. Rosie was telling him over and over to calm down, and that he had to be quiet when he was there because of Cameron. I just smiled the whole time, listening to their exchange while I drove. It was comforting somehow, nice, natural.
When we got there, I carried his little overnight bag. “Can I press the floor?” DJ asked, as we got into the elevator.
I nodded and lifted him up so he could reach the button, at the same time that Rosie said, “Just Anna’s floor!”
Too late. The kid ran his hand across every single button, lighting them all up.
“Oh, DJ!” Rosie grumbled.
I couldn’t help but burst out laughing and slap the kid a high five. “You know you’re supposed to do that when you get out though, right? Not when you’re in it, you do it just as you’re getting out of the door so the next people in have to stand in here and stop at every floor, not you,” I told him, winking.
DJ laughed to himself as we stopped at the first floor, the doors opening and no one waiting there. Rosie just leant against the wall with a small, frustrated frown on her face, as if he did this all the time and it drove her crazy. On the sixth floor, a lady got in with us. I could see her getting more and more annoyed every time we stopped on a floor when no one was there.
The lady scowled in DJ’s direction, so I grabbed his hand and pulled him closer to my side and smiled sadly at her. “They really need to fix this elevator, huh? People pay all this money to buy a place here and you have to stop on every floor, it’s a disgrace,” I stated, shaking my head in mock disapproval.
Rosie chuckled behind me, pressing her face into my back as the lady’s scowl deepened.
“Mmm, quite,” she murmured in a haughty voice. When the doors next opened, she got out even though she’d pressed to go up another five floors.
I smiled and gave her a little wave as she looked back over her shoulder at us. “Nice to meet you, maybe we’ll catch you on the way down.” I burst into laughter as Rosie playfully pinched my side, still giggling like a sc
hool girl. DJ just grinned at me, hugging his penguin toy that I’d bought for him.
When we got to Anna’s floor, Rosie climbed out, DJ went to follow but I grabbed his hand and shook my head, pointing to the buttons again. “Now’s when you do it, Kid,” I instructed. Rosie groaned and shook her head, but smiled at the same time, so I knew I wasn’t in trouble. DJ immediately ran his hands over all of the buttons that he could reach, while I did the top ones that he couldn’t get to. Just as the elevator doors were about to close, I grabbed his hand and pulled him out.
DJ ran off laughing; Rosie sighed and raised one eyebrow at me.
“What?” I asked innocently, taking her hand and pulling her down the corridor after her son.
“You’re teaching him bad habits,” she scolded playfully.
I shook my head, faking innocence. “Actually, I was correcting a bad habit. You never push all buttons while you’re in there, it’s a rookie mistake. You should have taught him better than that. I was just helping the kid grow up.”
When we got to the door, Anna opened it, and DJ threw his arms around her legs. “Auntie Anna!” he practically screamed.
She laughed and hugged him back, kissing the top of his head. “Hey, DJ! How’s that arm?” she asked, nodding at his cast.
“Cool beans,” he stated, grinning and heading into the apartment without waiting to be invited – yet another thing the kid had in common with me.
Anna laughed and mouthed ‘Cool beans?’ to Rosie, who just shrugged. “Who knows where he got that from,” Rosie said, shaking her head looking a little bemused.
Anna waved us in and I pulled her into a hug. “Hey there, best friend’s wife,” I greeted, kissing her cheek.
“Hey there, best friend’s boyfriend,” she answered, winking at Rosie who just blushed and walked off, looking slightly embarrassed.
DJ ran into the lounge, and Ashton immediately swept him up into his arms, hugging him. “Hey, squirt, long time no see. How you been, little guy?” Ashton greeted.
DJ was clinging to him, grinning. “We went to the zoo, and I got a toy guin and I sawed the lions getting feeded, and we rode the train!” he gushed all in one breath. Then he leant in close to Ashton’s ear and looked back at me and Rosie, obviously checking to see if we could hear him. “Guess what Momma and Nate were doing,” he whispered to Ashton, but loud enough for everyone to hear.
Ashton looked over at me, one eyebrow raised suggestively. “What were Momma and Nate doing?” he asked, his voice coloured with amusement.
“They were kissing!” DJ hissed.
Ashton gasped, faking horror. “Oh no! Has Nate got the girl cooties now too?” he asked, shaking his head sadly. Rosie, Anna and I, burst out laughing, but Ashton was keeping up the serious act as DJ nodded with wide eyes. “Didn’t you warn him that you can’t kiss girls without catching their germs?”
DJ sighed sadly and shook his head. “It’s too late now. They kissed more than one time; he’s definitely got the cooties.” He looked at me sadly as Ashton clicking his tongue and shook his head. Suddenly DJ brightened and turned back to Ashton. “Hey, if Nate has the same as you, does that mean that him and Momma are gonna have a baby, like you and Auntie Anna did?” he asked, a smile stretching across his face.
I literally swallowed too much air and had a coughing fit from the shock of what he’d said. Rosie’s mouth dropped open as both Anna and Ashton burst out laughing – probably at me and my pathetic attempts to get my lungs to work properly.
Ashton shook his head. “I think Nate and your momma have a long way to go before they start to think about having a baby.”
Rosie looked at me apologetically, so I shrugged and coughed a couple more times, trying to act like a mature adult but failing miserably.
Ashton put DJ down and he immediately jumped on the sofa, looking at Ashton expectantly. “Can we watch TV?”
For the next couple of minutes, Rosie spoke to Anna about bedtime routines, while DJ, Ashton and I flicked through TV channels until we found some cartoon that he wanted. When a hand slid down my back, I turned back to see Rosie smiling at me. We said our goodbyes to everyone, Rosie gave DJ one last talk about being good and being careful with Cameron, and then we slipped out of the apartment.
As we stopped outside the elevator, she laughed. “Stairs?” she suggested as the light above the door showed it stopping on 34th then 35th floor. I grinned and nodded, and we walked down the stairs holding hands.
“So, I thought I’d ask you now before you claim I’m too drunk to know what I’m saying,” Rosie started, blushing.
I looked at her curiously, not knowing what on earth she was talking about. “Ask me what?”
She smiled nervously. “I’ve got the place to myself tonight, want to stay over and keep me company?”
I resisted the urge to throw her over my shoulder and run to her place as fast as I could. I bit my lip and tried to remain calm, trying desperately not to think about sleeping in a bed with her, having her cuddle up to me in the night. I’d been dreaming of that for weeks.
“Sure, if you’re scared to be on your own.”
“Oh, I definitely need a big bad SWAT agent to protect me.”
I grinned and kissed the top of her head. “Then I’ll stay over. It’ll be a chore, but I’ll do it if it makes you feel better,” I joked. “Want to get some dinner then a couple of drinks?”
“Sure, sounds good.” She frowned and looked down at herself. “I think maybe I should change first, I look a mess.”
I looked her over in her cropped black pants that hugged her ass, strappy sandals and red, sleeveless, V-neck top that was just tight enough to raise my pulse every time I looked at it. She looked pretty damn fine to me.
“You don’t need to change. You look incredible the way you are.”
She laughed disbelievingly. “Incredible?”
I faked shock. “Did I say incredible? Sorry, that was rude of me. I meant edible.”
She pressed herself closer to me. “You look pretty edible yourself.”
I smiled and kissed her. “So it’s settled. Food, then drinks. By the way, I’m gonna get you drunk again because, damn, drunk Rosie can flirt!”
After dinner, we headed to a bar. I was having a fantastic night. Actually, the whole of the day had been incredible and, to use her words from earlier, I’d loved every second of it. Who knew spending time with a girl and her kid would be so rewarding.
My face and stomach hurt from smiling and laughing so much with her. We were playing a spot the lookalike game, finding regular people that looked like celebrities, then we had to rate the other person’s find out of ten. I was currently winning with a Nicole Richie lookalike that had scored me a very respectable eight and a half out of ten.
Suddenly, her body stiffened and she frowned at something behind me, her eyes narrowing accusingly. “You have got to be fucking joking,” she growled, before stalking off after whatever had caught her attention. I turned around, confused, wondering what she’d seen that had upset her.
I watched as she stalked over to a group of four guys. She slapped one of them around the back of the head, making him spill his drink everywhere. He turned around, his face angry, until he saw her and his face dropped immediately, looking like a rabbit caught in the headlights of an oncoming car.
She slammed her hands on his chest forcefully, making him stumble back a couple of steps. “You finished work early, Josh?” she spat.
Wait, Josh? He’s out drinking with friends after he told her he was busy working and couldn’t have his son? Fucking asshole!
His mouth dropped open as she punched him in the arm. “You inconsiderate, stupid, waste of space, good-for-nothing jackass!” she shouted angrily, drawing a few odd looks from the people around her. “Why did you do it again? Why do you do this to him all the time? To me?”
I immediately walked to her side. If she asked me to, I’d happily beat seven shades of shit out of him. He smirked at her, looking her
over obviously, and I felt my back stiffen. Holy shit, I’m going to kill him!
“You’re so sexy when you’re angry,” he stated, taking a gulp of his drink.
“Then I must be sexy all the time, because you always make me angry!” She hit his chest again for emphasis.
“Oh you are, bunny, you are,” he flirted, winking at her.
Bunny? That was why she’d once told me she didn’t want me calling her that – because this douchebag did.
“Grow up, Josh! Seriously, what’s your excuse this time at being caught out? You’re supposed to be working today, so what’s it to be? A fire drill and you had to evacuate, a dirty bomb went off outside your building, a case of cholera going around your work and they sent you all here to wait why they try to find the cause of it?” she asked sarcastically, her voice acidic.
He smiled at her, a lopsided smile that told me he’d been here a while and was already half drunk. “You’re funny,” he told her, looking her over again.
“And you’re a jerk,” she countered, crossing her arms over her chest, making his eyes drift down to that region.