Page 59 of The Hook Up
Don’t get attached. Don’t get attached.
“Too late,” he murmured softly.
Then he looped the camera around his neck and strode forward to join them.
* * *
Four hours later,Ty clicked off his camera and set it down on the table. He reached for a slice of pepperoni pizza, glad he’d thought to grab extra napkins.
“I can’t believe I just let you film me in a bathing suit with cheese hanging out of my mouth,” Ellie said, grinning at him as she wiped her hands on a napkin. “You’ve clearly conquered my camera shyness.”
He reached over and dabbed a fleck of tomato sauce from the corner of her lip, then smiled back at her.“I promise not to put anything in the video that would be embarrassing to you,” he said. “Thanks again for being such a good sport about this.”
“Thankyoufor bringing us here,” she said, shooting Henry a meaningful look.
The boy nodded as he finished wolfing down his slice of pizza. “Yeah,” he said. “Thank you, Mr. Ty.”
“You’re welcome, Mr. Henry.”
The boy grinned then looked at his mother. “Can I go back in the water now?”
“Only if you stay right here on that big tree-fort thing where I can see you,” she said. “Let’s keep out of the pools for now.”
“Okay!” He started to scramble off, but Ellie caught him by the arm and wiped his face with a napkin. “There,” she said, giving him a big, smacky kiss on the cheek that made Ty wonder what life would have been like if his mother hadn’t died. He barely remembered her, but wanted to believe she’d have been something like Ellie.
He’d only met Anna’s mom a couple of times, and mostly he remembered the smell of cigarette smoke and an air of disdain. She’d barely wanted to be saddled with her own daughter, let alone some grubby kid who looked just like his jailbird father.
“Thanks again, Ty.”
Ellie’s voice jarred him back to the present. “For lunch, or for inviting you here?”
“All of it,” she said with a laugh. “But I was actually talking about this.” She touched a finger to the waterproof bandage that masked his Johnny Cash tattoo. “I’d never ask you to cover it, but I appreciate that you thought to do it.”
“Yeah,” he said, feeling a twinge of pride. “I figured hundreds of small children didn’t need to be flipped off by a country music legend at a water park.”
She smiled and picked a slice of pepperoni off the half- eaten slice of pizza abandoned on Henry’s plate. “What’s the story behind it, anyway?” she asked. “If you don’t mind me asking.”
He shrugged, not sure how much to volunteer. “Johnny Cash was my dad’s favorite singer,” he said. “Sometimes my dad even pretended to be him. It was one of his favorite scams.”
“I see,” Ellie said, nodding as she nibbled the pepperoni slice. “So you got the tattoo to…honor him?”
He realized she was fumbling for the right word, but that wasn’t it at all. Not even close. “No.” Ty snorted with disgust. “To remind me where I come from.”
He stopped himself there, not wanting to put a damper on the afternoon. Not wanting to complete the rest of that thought.
To remind me that I don’t want to be like him.
He cleared his throat and decided to change the subject. “How have the new videos been performing on your website?”
Ellie grinned and wiped her hands on a napkin. “Really great,” she said. “I’ve heard from so many clients who love seeing them. You were right about women wanting that educational component.”
“I’m glad.” Ty glanced over at the big water tower where Henry scampered with a group of boys who looked a year or two older than him. He was laughing and splashing and having a great time. The elation in their little faces was enough to coax a smile from him, too.
He glanced at Ellie to see her watching her boy with such love in her eyes it took Ty’s breath away.
“He’s a good kid,” Ty said.
“Thanks.” She looked back at him and smiled. “I think I’ll keep him.” She balled up the napkin and glanced over her shoulder toward the locker rooms. “Actually, would you mind watching him for just a few minutes? I need to use the restroom.”
