Page 58 of Tricked in October
He turned his head to look at her. “No, I didn’t know that.” It was surprising, considering Pineridge was a small town, and everyone knew everyone else’s business.
Zach must’ve taken a wrong turn because he stopped and spun around and next thing Davis knew they were headed back in the direction they’d just come. June wiggled to get down and he lowered himself until her feet touched the ground and she rushed up with her brother.
“Mrs. Hoffman has been gone for over ten years and I’ve never heard of him dating since. I’ll be honest, I’m not super excited about the idea. You know I love my mama, but she’s a hot mess. She needs rehab not a boyfriend.”
She wasn’t wrong. He agreed with her one hundred percent. But the woman had been a mess as long as he’d known her. Maybe rehab wasn’t enough. Maybe a cheerleader, a support person, a partner was exactly what she needed.
“I don’t know, maybe a guy isn’t a bad idea.”
She turned and stared at him, lips pursing. “You serious? Because if you say maybe she just needs to get laid, I’ll slug you.”
He nearly choked, raising a palm in surrender. “Damn, I’m not saying that.” Though maybe that’s exactly what Kelsey needed. He knew she’d been faithful throughout her marriage and even after. Ten months was a long time. He could somewhat relate. It had been over six months for him, and he felt like all it would take was another steamy cake feeding and he’d explode.
A part of him, the part he wasn’t ready to admit out loud, wanted to be the man she chose to spend a night with, and ultimately, all the other nights afterward.
“No, I wasn’t going to say that.”
“Good. Because I’m fairly certain she hasn’t been lacking in that department.”
That was a bit too much information. “I meant, maybe a guy to be her partner, her support system, wouldn’t be a terrible thing. You’ve been that for her since your dad left. Might be nice for you to get a break.”
She pressed her lips together, forming a smile. “It’s a nice thought. But I still think she needs rehab.”
“Oh, she definitely needs that too,” he agreed. The urge to bring up their relationship and how it had clearly shifted over the past two weeks sat at the brink of his mind. As much as they needed to discuss it, he couldn’t help but worry the kids would interrupt them.
They walked a bit further, taking a right at a scarecrow and then a left at a wheelbarrow full of pumpkins, followed by another left, and next thing he knew they were back at the scarecrow. The straw, shifty-eyed bastard grinned at Davis maliciously.
Zach studied the map, irritation seeming to build in his posture.
“Hey, little man, mind if I have a go at it?”
Zach pouted and handed over the map a bit reluctantly.
Davis gazed at the map for a moment while Cooper chased the kids through their corner of the corn maze he was beginning to worry they’d never find their way out of. But then he saw it, their exit.
“How about we try this way?” He traced a route on the map with his finger.
“Okay, but I’m the leader,” Zach said, tearing the map from Davis’s grasp.
“Me too,” June yelled.
Both kids ran up ahead with Cooper on their heels.
“Thank you,” Kelsey mouthed, relief shining in her blue eyes.
He was relieved too. The pressing issue of his offer was beginning to wear on him, it wasn’t typical for him to keep secrets from Kelsey. And this one felt huge. Though maybe even bigger was the intense feelings he’d been having for her.
After surviving the corn maze, taking a group selfie at the exit to prove their victory, and enduring a rather lengthy line for kettle corn, they sat at a picnic table. The kids ate their kettle corn and sipped on hot chocolate while Charlotte sat on a blanket on the ground. She ate applesauce from a pouch, but the two older kids snuck her a piece of popcorn or two that Davis was unsure she was supposed to eat.
But Kelsey wasn’t the overbearing mom. She didn’t keep the kids on a short leash. She let them explore and try things. It was something he’d always admired about her. She’d been the carefree one out of the two of them. Davis was the one who was rigid, afraid to take chances, needed a push before making any big decisions.
Which was why this decision he’d made so easily had him worried. He hadn’t gotten the approval from Garrett, but he was sure his brother would come around eventually. And normally he’d go to Kelsey. But this decision he had to make all on his own.
Kelsey nudged her shoulder into his. “Hey, everything okay with you?”
“What do ya mean?”
She scrunched her lips together. “I don’t know, you seem distracted.”
